Sponges

Whomever you hang around with consistently, whatever you indulge your being into regularly, you will no doubt be shaped by their influence eventually. We have been built to be influenced- shaped, twisted, molded, constructed, inspired- as though we are sponges. And the thing about sponges is that they not only absorb, but they must extract. What we understand about sponges is that if they only absorb and never extract, they will get heavier and most certainly crust into a hard, stiff, moldy entity glued to the place where they have been left. On the other hand, it is impossible for a sponge to only extract without absorption, right? How can you extract something when there is nothing there to extract in the first place?

The sponge analogy is simple and obvious, I know, but yet the sponge holds a deep meaning as to why humans are the way they are. Think about this for a second. People tend to either do a lot of absorbing or a lot of extracting but rarely, a balance of both. The most effective people (in a positive sense) have disciplined themselves enough to be both absorbers and extractors. Either way, there is revelation in all of this.

Absorbers, at their core, find it very easy to be inspired. They tend to be vulnerable enough to allow themselves to be moved by things like art, conversations, experiences, emotions, and the list goes on. In our wretched nature, we absorbers absorb the most unhealthy things. Being that I'm an extreme absorber, I find it easy to be lazy- to immerse myself in pleasure (pleasure is not necessarily bad, btw) and to fill myself up with the worship of women, the coveting of people who are really good at what I want to be good at, and shopping for more and more stuff. Without even much thought, I will spend hours watching Family Guy episodes on the internet while playing video games into the wee hours of the night. This is most likely me at my worst. I get lethargic and yet I can never get enough.

That, my friends, is absorbers.

On the other hand, extractors tend to be the ones who habitually try to inspire others through fully engaging the world. More often than not, they are go-getters, effective communicators, and spontaneous and adaptable to any circumstance. Although they have the pure intention of helping shape the world and are a voice to important causes, the most extreme extractors can be a really loud voice with very little substance or theology behind the words. An example of this my desire to perform music but my refusal to spend hours practicing and refining my craft. Because I am a guy who loves improvisation, I pride myself on making music on the spot (which I truly love) but many times it is an excuse so I don't have to take the time to be disciplined away from the spotlight. 

I think the point to all of this is that we've got to be aware of all sides of the sponge in our lives. And not only is the awareness key to it all, but more for the reality that we need to be a blessing to others. Of course, there are so many more details involved in our lives that play a factor in our abilities to absorb or extract, but more often than not, improving on what you lack involves steps of faith into unfamiliar territories. You've got to trust that if you open yourself up to be inspired, you will indeed be inspired. And if you push yourself to be an influence, you will be given the ability to be an effective influence in present situations. 

Hopefully you can see that the intentions of this blog are not a "how to guide" but rather thoughts to reflect on and hopefully an invitation to change. Only you will find your way (ok, God is somewhere in there, too) and none of us can copy the ways of others. But sometimes we just need to begin by moving forward.