Today I took five teenagers to the theater to see Minecraft. For those of you older folks who are in the “know,” yes, “chicken jockey” was kind of a big deal. Though this movie resonated very little with a middle-aged woman, there was one concept that stuck. To quote Jack Black’s character Steve, “It’s harder to create than to destroy. That’s why cowards tend to choose the deuce.”

My God, that is true! Think about how we avoid creating or building because it is just easier to destroy. When I reflect, I see this truth everywhere in my life. I see it in my work, relationships, and the way I take care of myself.

Sometimes it feels as if I’ve been in the movie Groundhog Day at work. I have been through 21 preps for a new school year. What always strikes me this time of year is the preservative attitude we fall into. We must plan to prepare for a new year as we have always done. Why? Is it because we are so in love with our current practices? Is it because we are too damn tired at this point in the year to fathom change? Is it because we don’t want to upset people who crave routine and sameness? I say it is because it is harder to build. Yes, it takes time and patience to create a replica of something, but it takes guts and fortitude to build something from scratch.

In relationships, we can have the same attitude. Think about a conflict or altercation you have experienced. It is much easier to TNT that connection than to face the discomfort of doing what it takes to build it back up. How many times have we walked away because it was easier? How many people have we given up on because it was easier? Building loving relationships requires sacrifice, compromise, and understanding. Who has time for that? We all should if we want to build connections that actually mean something.

The relationship we hold with ourselves can be just as contentious. Today I went on a four-mile run and ended up at an empty church. I sat in a pew by myself with no one but my conscience and the Man upstairs to fill my thoughts. I immediately became overwhelmed with emotion. Reflecting on our own potential and purpose, and how we have fallen short, can be a weight too heavy to carry. We don’t see ourselves as enough or ready. We would rather destroy the idea that we are designed for more than build something with what we are capable of creating.

Who would you be if you saw yourself as something so precious you felt you were worth building instead of destroying? What materials do you have within you that can be the foundation for great creation? There is no doubt that creating is harder than building. It is why so many of us opt for self-destruction and apathy. But you are worth the patience, struggle, and sacrifice it takes to build.

Destruction can be very lucrative, but it is the way of the coward. You have the resolution to become the crafting table, as you take all the ingredients this world has to offer and build something that makes you stronger and this world more beautiful.

Maybe this child’s game has something right… Maybe the world should be a little more like Minecraft, where “Anything you can dream about here, you can make.”