What grounds you? she asked the small group that had gathered for an evening of reflection. I had to chuckle to myself. The word grounded had surfaced frequently over the past week.
Our new grand-parenting life has changed our vocabulary a bit. Questions like, Do you have homework? What time will you be home? Who’s driving?, are now regularly asked.
The word grounded was one of those words I assumed had run it’s course. We didn’t use it much with the kids were teens. Being grounded was simply a challenge for our oldest and our youngest never needed to be. I remember the few times we did use it as a punishment, it quickly translated in more work for me.
Grounded is typically connected to a negative situation. A plane is grounded due to weather, kids get grounded for punishment. Grounded, stuck, imprisoned…it’s a force that prevents movement.
This past week I pulled the old punishment out of retirement and used it in hopes of reinforcing an important lesson.
When I was asked, “So, am I grounded?” I wanted to respond, “God I hope so!!! I want you to be grounded in the…
- knowledge of who you are and the an amazing human you are becoming.
- understanding that love surrounds you every day, all day.
- belief that there is nothing you have to do to make God love you more.
- faith that nothing is impossible and your life is unfolding before you and will lead you to amazing, unimaginable places.”
My response was, “Let’s call it house arrest and see how the weekend goes.”
We all need to be under house arrest from time to time. We need a force that prevents us from movement. It’s in those time of quiet, stillness, times when nothing seems to be happening that allow us to become just a little more grounded. It’s in those times we can figure out, “What grounds us?”
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Define Your Purpose is a study in finding passion and purpose in everyday life. It’s a great step in becoming more grounded.
