"Don't you wish every child came with their own special alert button?" Those words were part of a text message from a friend of mine. The loving nature of her heart was all over that text message. Another young person had been brutally murdered in Buffalo. It has taken me several weeks to even get to the point where I can write about another murdered child. I could feel my friends heavy heart through the text message. I shared her heaviness. She made me think, deeply, about an "Alert Button for Children."
I tell people that I get my heart broken about once a week. That is the nature of the youth ministry in the inner city. Children lie, steal, fight, go to jail, get abused, and die on a regular basis. In our Youth Center alone, we have had 3 employees lose family members through murder. We have known many other children who have been killed. Sometimes we visit young people in jail. Many children are abused. How do we protect these children? If there is a fire in your home, an alarm goes off. Can we install an alarm to warn us when a child is going to be hurt or do something hurtful? This may sound crazy, but I just believe that we can install alert buttons. No, I am not talking about some computer chip under your skin. An Alert Button for Children can be installed by developing the vision of our hearts.
The rest of this article could be called heart-storming. It's an exploration process in creativity with compassion as the foundation. I think we can recognize danger by developing our peripheral intuition. Some people seem to be connected by a mutual wavelength. Coincidences bring people together. A parent may feel the pain of a child in a physical way when they are miles apart. A mother senses when her child is in danger. A "gut feeling" causes us to call a friend who is in need. A sudden thought rush can cause us to alter our route home and we later find that we avoided a possible collision. Personally, I believe that these instances are "God-moments." We are all connected in a divine way and our spiritual receptivity determines the depth of our connection. Please understand that even if your belief differs from mine, we are still connected. Spiritual receptivity is about desiring or hungering to be connected to God and people in a deeper way.
Let's take a closer look at the term "peripheral intuition." Let me first define each word as I understand them and then define the term itself. Peripheral is seeing beyond the immediate area of focus. It is seeing beyond to the very edge or the boundaries of your vision. Seeing the big picture is almost a prelude to thinking outside the box. Intuition is your gut feeling. The thought rush that comes out of nowhere. The God in you helps you to sense something important. It's a message delivered on a mutually shared wavelength. When you are with a child, can you use your peripheral intuition as the Alert Button? Yes, the key is being present in the emotional moment shared between you and the child. Give the child your undivided heart, mind and soul. We live in a multitasking world. We cannot multitask and be emotionally present with a child at the same time. Peripheral Intuition will sense danger just beyond the periphery of each child's unique sensitivity. If you seek "An Alert Button for Children," you will find it.
The next chapter on Alert Buttons for Children will focus on "Peripheral Passion."
Do you really care enough to see the big picture?
Thanks for your time. Go do something nice for somebody.
Bob Kuebler
YWAP Director
https://www.facebook.com/MentorForce
A Scholarship for a young person to attend a 3 day Wilderness Adventure in the Adirondack Mountains is valued at $185. We are a 501c3 and your donations are tax deductible. You may give online at:
http://www.gofundme.com/73te4
 |
| If you are familiar with horses, you will recognize their emotional state by their behavior. |
I tell people that I get my heart broken about once a week. That is the nature of the youth ministry in the inner city. Children lie, steal, fight, go to jail, get abused, and die on a regular basis. In our Youth Center alone, we have had 3 employees lose family members through murder. We have known many other children who have been killed. Sometimes we visit young people in jail. Many children are abused. How do we protect these children? If there is a fire in your home, an alarm goes off. Can we install an alarm to warn us when a child is going to be hurt or do something hurtful? This may sound crazy, but I just believe that we can install alert buttons. No, I am not talking about some computer chip under your skin. An Alert Button for Children can be installed by developing the vision of our hearts.
 |
| The eyes are the window to the soul, what do you see? |
The rest of this article could be called heart-storming. It's an exploration process in creativity with compassion as the foundation. I think we can recognize danger by developing our peripheral intuition. Some people seem to be connected by a mutual wavelength. Coincidences bring people together. A parent may feel the pain of a child in a physical way when they are miles apart. A mother senses when her child is in danger. A "gut feeling" causes us to call a friend who is in need. A sudden thought rush can cause us to alter our route home and we later find that we avoided a possible collision. Personally, I believe that these instances are "God-moments." We are all connected in a divine way and our spiritual receptivity determines the depth of our connection. Please understand that even if your belief differs from mine, we are still connected. Spiritual receptivity is about desiring or hungering to be connected to God and people in a deeper way.
 |
| When you really get to know a child, you understand what they feel. |
Let's take a closer look at the term "peripheral intuition." Let me first define each word as I understand them and then define the term itself. Peripheral is seeing beyond the immediate area of focus. It is seeing beyond to the very edge or the boundaries of your vision. Seeing the big picture is almost a prelude to thinking outside the box. Intuition is your gut feeling. The thought rush that comes out of nowhere. The God in you helps you to sense something important. It's a message delivered on a mutually shared wavelength. When you are with a child, can you use your peripheral intuition as the Alert Button? Yes, the key is being present in the emotional moment shared between you and the child. Give the child your undivided heart, mind and soul. We live in a multitasking world. We cannot multitask and be emotionally present with a child at the same time. Peripheral Intuition will sense danger just beyond the periphery of each child's unique sensitivity. If you seek "An Alert Button for Children," you will find it.
The next chapter on Alert Buttons for Children will focus on "Peripheral Passion."
Do you really care enough to see the big picture?
Thanks for your time. Go do something nice for somebody.
"Find new ways,
in as many ways,
in more excellent ways,
on all of your days,
to show love."
Bob Kuebler
YWAP Director
Youth With A Purpose
In School & After School
In The Mountains & In The Hood
In The Mountains & In The Hood
157 Locust Street
Buffalo, New York 14204
716-830-8240
"All Children Are Gifted"
http://thebrightspotreport.blogspot.com/https://www.facebook.com/MentorForce
A Scholarship for a young person to attend a 3 day Wilderness Adventure in the Adirondack Mountains is valued at $185. We are a 501c3 and your donations are tax deductible. You may give online at:
http://www.gofundme.com/73te4
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