Tag: friends

Running on Empty

emptyI don’t know why it is, but stopping to get gas seems like such a waste of time.  It is a task I put off to the very last minute.  Partly because I have places to go, and partly because I want to get the most out of my fill-up by trying to create as much time as possible between stops.  I have literally coasted into the filling station a few times.  Once I I was concentrating so hard on just getting to the pump, I forgot to think about what side my tank was on.  After I shut the engine off, I couldn’t get it to start again.  I had to get some help to push my car to the other side of the pump.

In my job, summer is the time for planning, getting ready to implement new ideas or just reflecting.  I have been able to spend some valuable and rewarding time lately visiting with others about goals and strategies.  This is one of the favorite parts of my job.  It has reaffirmed the importance of investing in others.  We have the power with our words and actions to refuel those around us.  It is like filling up your car.  It really doesn’t take that long, but we have to make a point to do it.

There have been many days that an encouraging word is what got me through the day.  I could write a whole book telling stories of times others have invested in my life.  The experienced mom that encouraged me when my children were young.  The principal that was willing to trust and nudge a beginning teacher into leadership roles.  Probably the most influential person that energized my life was my 6th grade teacher.  She greeted me so kindly every day, often complimenting me or calling me “Smiley.”  Her words fueled in me a confidence that wasn’t there previously.   Of course most often it was just the unexpected kind word or compliment that changes my day.  I’m sure you can immediately recall a time when someone said something to you that made you feel better about yourself.

In 1 Thessalonians 5, Paul speaks of how hard it is to be a believer, but the necessity of salvation and living for the Lord.  He closes this section of his letter by saying, “Therefore comfort each other and edify one another,”  I see this as Paul telling us we are all in this together, and we need to help each other out to get to the finish line.  Just as my car needs fuel to get me to my destination, we need encouragement to live our life to the fullest.  We cannot serve the Lord and live victorious without the encouragement of others.

The problem is, you may be at a place in life where your tank is running on empty.  you are lacking a Christian friend or family member that is willing to invest in your life. You may feel all alone or like a failure.  Because you can’t run on empty forever or you will end up stranded along side the road, I have two pieces of advice.  One, begin to fill up and invest in others.  This action will inturn energize you.  Proverbs 11:17 tells us, “A kind man benefits himself.”  Two, turn to the Word.  Let this be your fuel source.  Our heavenly Father can affirm your worth and purpose.  “God is our refuge and strength,” Psalms 46:1.

I guess the real question is, “Are you willing to encourage and edify others?”  Just as we have to take the time to stop and refuel our cars, we need to take the time to encourage, send notes, or just speak kindly to others.

Dandelions

Weed or Flower?

Part One:                                                   dandelion

I started writing this and it just kept getting longer and longer, so I’m going to divide it up into three parts.

I got my love for a beautiful yard from my dad and Grandma Campbell.  My dad took yard work to a whole new level.  In the summers when my sister and I were old enough to stay home by ourselves, we had a chore list every morning that had to be completed before we could go down the street and play.  It was very common for this list to include picking a sack full of weeds.  Thus began my disdain for dandelions.  To this day, if I see a dandelion blooming in my yard, I quickly pluck the bloom or seed plume off to make sure I don’t end up with 100s more.

It was just this week when I was visiting a principal that I noticed a bundle of dandelions wrapped in a damp paper towel lying on her desk.  They were clearly a gift from a student.  It is obvious this kind-hearted student does not view dandelions the same way I do. It is all a matter of perspective or personal point of view.  As I drove back to the office, I had three different thoughts concerning dandelions.

Thought number one, how do you view those around you?  Do you look at the people in your life and see flowers or weeds?  It is so easy to quickly see others as weeds.  I once worked with a lady, aka Sally, that talked all of the time.  I would catch myself stewing over how much talking she was doing and wondering how she ever got any work done.  I felt that way until we did a stakeholder survey.  The comments on the survey over and over again mentioned how friendly and welcoming our office was.  Why? because Sally talked to everyone that came through the door and made them feel comfortable.  This same action that was driving me crazy, was really what made our office a welcoming place.  It was all how I chose to view it – weed or flower.

What about you?  How do you view that co-worker who gets on your very last nerve, takes credit for everything, does nothing, or gossips and keeps drama stirred up all the time.  Maybe there is a flower there that is perceived as a weed.

Even more importantly, what about your family?  As a semi-perfectionist, I often only see what is wrong.  I will notice (even obsess over)  the shoes that are left out before I give any thought to the kind words that were spoken that morning.

Luke 7:36 begins with a sinful woman hearing that Jesus is having dinner with a Pharisee.  She goes to the house and begins to wash Jesus’ feet with her tears and then anoints His feet with oil.  The Pharisee immediately saw this woman as a weed.  She was a sinner, she had wasted an expensive oil.  While there are multiple points to this story such as forgiveness.  The point I want to make is Jesus looked past the “weediness” of the woman and saw her as a flower.  I will admit I often take the path of the Pharisee and get preoccupied with the faults of others.  It takes a conscious effort to look for the flower in everyone.

What you see or think is what you will get.  Proverbs 4:23 “Above all else, guard your heart for everything you do flows from it.”  If you think of those in your life as weeds, you will treat them as weed.  It is what you are putting in your heart.  Your family and friends deserve better.  We need to be like the child who picked dandelions for her principal.  We need to look for the flower in those around us.