In the midst of a society that is greedy and unappreciative, I was able to witness an evening of thanks. My school where I teach has a tradition. We have a senior dinner. At this dinner, the students receive all their cords and sashes for graduation. Then, there are the speeches. Each and every senior has written a thank you note to their parents/guardians. They wrote them on index cards and gave the speeches in front of the entire class of seniors, parents, and teachers at the dinner. The beauty began.
Big, tough young men broke down into tears thanking their parents for all that they did in their lives to bring them to their graduation from high school. Some students apologized to their parents for all the trouble they caused them. Students confessed that they loved their parents. Parents were in tears. Then, the last kid gave his speech. This big jokester who will go to a four-year college thanked his single mom. Then, he turned and like many others thanked the staff and teachers. As he turned to his math teacher, he thanked him for being his father figure and that now he has a dad in his life. My co-worker, a girl dad, was brought to tears.
These young people reminded me that we must take the time to thank the people in our lives that have made a difference. So many people reserve those words when those people are no longer in our lives. Whether it is from death, or they are no longer in our physical presence because of distance, we speak highly of them but not to them. That senior dinner reminded me to take the time to thank those who have shaped my thoughts while I am in their presence and not wait to speak about them to others.
Vulnerability is an action that most people would prefer to stay away from. Scroll through any social media site and people are blasting other people and never exposing themselves and their flaws. People would rather present themselves as perfect than be vulnerable. This senior dinner put into practice what we have been teaching our students. We have taught them to be vulnerable and honest. For one night, they put that into practice. It is difficult, but the things worth doing in life are the most difficult.
So many of us are wasting our time insulting others instead of building others up. The Bible implores us to encourage one another. Anyone can insult. You may think you are better than the person that you insulted, but you are not. In fact, you just revealed that you are weak and unable to have a conversation with someone to discuss the differences and still remain respectful. The people who can empower others with their words are the people who reveal their confidence and the people that are remembered.
I have been guilty of insulting others both in-person and online. I have repented from those days. It took someone being frustrated with me that I realized that she just needed to be valued by others. I then changed my words when I approached people. I empowered and encouraged them before I would do anything else, especially those in leadership in the church. I know what it is like since I have been on church staff. Even after I have been out of youth ministry for several years, some of my former parishioners would rather insult me than empower me. I am trying to empower them back now.
Think of the people who have made a difference in your life. They were not perfect. In fact, their imperfections may have encouraged you to not have to be perfect. Look at the qualities that they have that have inspired you. It is those qualities you can appreciate. You can learn from their imperfections that even though no one is perfect, they still have a purpose in life, and they still influence others around them.
Who have you influenced? What would people say about you? More importantly, who has influenced you? What have you said to them? Are you known to be someone who shows appreciation and empowers others, or are you the one who believes that you are better than others and you are insulting others? Here is my challenge. Take the time to thank someone who has influenced you in your life. Look for that teacher who made a difference, or that pastor, or that youth pastor. Once I found some of my mentors online, I thanked them for their influence. It takes a few moments. It lasts a lifetime.
No comments:
Post a Comment