I was told of an interesting poem one day during Moral Seminar and I just got a chance to look it up. It was taken from the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying and is titled 'Autobiography in Five Chapters.'
Chapter 1.
I walk down the street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in. I am lost…I am helpless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.
Chapter 2.
I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it. I fall in again.
I cant believe I am in this same place.
But it isn’t my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.
Chapter 3.
I walk down the same street.There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there. I still fall in… its a habit.
But, my eyes are open. I know where I am.
It is my fault.
I get out immediately.
Chapter 4.
I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.
Chapter 5.
I walk down another street.
Does this sound anything like you're life? I know it sounds like the way I act sometimes.
The two that sound most like myself are chapters 2 and 3. How many times have I found myself sitting at the bottom of the whole because I pretended it wasn't there.?..all while saying, "Well it isn't my fault there's a hole in the middle of the street!"
Just as often, I am blatantly aware of the hole and go walking around.
Its the glory that I call God that gets me from Chapter 4 to Chapter 5 of this story. When I finally realize that I could keep walking around this hole for the rest of my life.
When I read this story, a very important passage comes to mind:
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Phil 3:12-15 NIV
Let's not forget that we have a much bigger goal in life. When we are able to walk down a different street and stop falling into useless holes, we will be able to walk towards the goal we hope to achieve.
