I hate rules!

It was during the time when I was teaching in one of my Saturday art classes with kids aged 6-7 years old. We are about to do a side view of a zebra using charcoal pencils.

Before we start I always make them recite our class rules. Originally we only have 3 rules, but since these kids are really active I made another rule which is "Don't go before teacher." (It's because when we are doing an artwork, we do it one step at a time) What usually happens when they go before me, their artworks will look different from what I am teaching. So they will air their concern and comment on their works with "Why is my zebra looks different?" or "My zebra looks abnormal!"

So my answer is (of course), "Because you are going before teacher..." or "Because you are not waiting for my instruction..." And this will happen again and again in one session. One time I asked them, "Why you are not following the rules?" And one of my students answered me, "Because we don't want to follow the rules!" And I answered him, "But rules are for your own good that's why you should follow them. They can make your artworks look great."

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Then I remember a time when I was commuting going home. In a fleeting moment I saw a barber shop by the roadside. And in the barber shop I saw a toddler who is inside a crib, jumping. Good thing the kid is inside the crib or else he could be on the road and get hit by a vehicle!

Image from http://northtexaskids.com

Then I remember God and His rules. There are people who doesn't want to get serious with God because they think that God have "so many rules" that they need to follow. Thinking about the toddler inside the crib, it's like we are the toddler and God's laws are the crib. They keep us safe.

Proverbs 6:20-13 (NIV)
²⁰ My son, keep your father’s command
    and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.
²¹ Bind them always on your heart;
    fasten them around your neck.
²² When you walk, they will guide you;
    when you sleep, they will watch over you;
    when you awake, they will speak to you.
²³ For this command is a lamp,
    this teaching is a light,
and correction and instruction
    are the way to life,

His laws are meant for guidance, instruction and correction. They are not meant to choke us or so we can live boring lives. When we believe and know that God loves us so much, we can be sure that His laws are for our good, following them will not be a burden but a delight and treating them will not be with contempt but with thankfulness.

More than just a "Puppy Love"

Puppy love.

They said, "puppy love" also means "young love". This term is usually used (not all the time) by grown-ups to describe their first crushes or first relationships that they had when they were younger. It also means "immature" or "shallow". It's like saying that you "love" the person because that person have a mega-watt smile or is cute, plays basketball very well, makes you laugh, makes you feel happy, makes you inspired, etc.

Image from http://picsbox.biz/

So it's like puppy love = you.

A person is childish or immature when he/she thinks or cares all about him/herself. Notice how a baby clings to a toy that he/she is holding or how a baby cries when you get what he/she is holding. Sadly I realize, there are still people who are already grown-ups yet still have this "puppy love" in them. They go into relationships because they don't want to be alone, they want to feel happy or they want to feel "complete", etc.

"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me." -1 Corinthians 13:11

For a very long time I was puzzled why is this verse included in the "love chapter" of the Bible. God made me realize that when we love (like we reeeally love in its truest sense), we become mature therefore we think or care less of ourselves and more about the person that we love. We mature so "we put our childish ways behind us". Much like what Jesus did for us. He think less of Himself and showed His love for us by dying on the cross so we may have salvation from our sins and have a full life in Him.

So you know that you love (like reeeally love in its truest sense basing on 1 Corinthians 13) when you think less of yourself and more of the person that you love. :)