I am a thief. I take stuff and I don't give it back. I only do this sometimes, though. It does bother me occasionally when I stop to think about it. But I'm usually too busy to give it much thought, anyway.
For example, I did it last Tuesday. I went to Bible study and I sat there and I just took in what Kasey was teaching. I wrote copious notes, had some scales fall from my eyes in realization, jotted a blog idea or two off to the side based on what she was saying and even teared up at the end because I was so moved by her words. When it was time to go, I packed up the nuggets of information I would finish digesting later and then my mind was on how the pick up of the kids would go.
They would be hungry.
There would be a fit.
Would we go eat afterwards?
Did I have snacks in the car?
Did I bring that pacifier?
I passed Kasey in the parking lot within probably twenty feet. Probably examined my shoes as if they had grown some fascinating and exotic flowers spontaneously as I kept my head down and hurried to my children.
I take stuff every single Sunday at church. I sit in the service and soak in the worship music and glean lumps of wisdom from the pastor. And two weeks ago it was a guest speaker. He was so young and I was struck with his wisdom and poise. I remember at the end of the sermon, he was standing by himself and gathering his notes off the podium. I similarly gathered the notes I had taken from him .
And went the opposite way.
I read blogs and books that inspire me, give me ideas, motivate and encourage me. Like Catherine Zeta-Jones in Entrapment in that enviable scene where she acrobats her way through the red lasers to steal the goods, I am in and out and no one has noticed that someone else just read their blog and was moved by it.
That's how good I am.
But it's an uncomfortable, distended feeling.
I am growing fat, greedily gorging on others' words, music, lessons when I am not giving back.
Meanwhile, the people contributing to my spiritual diet are not Super Humans equipped with a gene that bypasses one of the basest desires that humans have: affirmation.
And that same gene does not provide them with a limitless supply of creativity, insight and encouragement.
They dig for that stuff.
And then they give it away.
That takes guts.
I take that for granted more than I should. I don't think I have ever told a pastor 'Hey. I was really moved by what you said. It made me reach out to my brother and that changed our relationship.'
I mean, that's kind of enormous. And it's only one little example. It happens all the time.
Let's make a pro/con list on encouragement:
Pros:
*It could lift someone's day when they think they aren't making a smidge of difference.
*They could turn that around and encourage someone else.
*They are being affirmed by God (you know how He does that crazy stuff) with something
*It's a Moment when we connect with another human being.
*It could give them some energy to start a new/another project
I'm going to quit being silly and listing the Pros...they are limitless and beyond our imaginations and I tend to think that when we are prompted to connect in that way it comes from God and, well, there is no telling what He is up to.
But we still have to deal with the drawbacks....
Cons:
It takes one minute out of your day.
There. That's it.
No more gorging for me.
I am going on a diet.
Out of curiosity, are you good at feeding back? Do you let someone know when they have touched you?
A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.
Proverbs 25:11
For Rachel, Laura and Kristi...your timely words of encouragement have been God's voice whispering directly in my ear. Thank you.
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