All throughout life we’ve seen other people fall. On YouTube, some of the top videos are skateboard crashes and accidents. When we see people fall, oftentimes we laugh. We also see people fall spiritually. Nations are at war and oppressing one another. Individuals are suffering from addictions, self-hate, alcoholism, and all of the other isms in the world. The funny thing is that we are just as vulnerable as those we’ve seen and see falling.

The true test of one’s character is not whether or not one laughed. The true test of one’s character is whether or not they picked up the banana peel. We’ve all slipped on banana peels in our own lives or have seen others slip on ones that were in our reach. But have we tried picked them up? By “them” I mean the person and the peel. To only pick up the person and leave the peel means that someone else will likely fall in the same way. There is glory and heroism in picking the person up. It makes us feel good. But eventually guilt sets in because we know that the root cause of the problem still exists.

We are a gifted and talented generation. Let us not be like some who have come before us and rely on charity. Charity is convenient; true change is challenging. May we use our gifts and talents to hack at the root causes, the banana peels of our society, that make our brothers, sisters, and ourselves fall. If each of us simply picked up the peels that we’ve seen, slipped on, or unconsciously threw on the ground, the world would be a better place. There is a reason we all fall; It’s God’s way of saying pick up the peel.

Live purposefully!