I know we are only in October, but with all the supply chain issues going on, the prognosticators are telling us that Santa’s workshop may be experiencing some supply chain disruptions. Some of the materials he needs are stuck on containers all around the world!
So Santa may be having to do something that he isn’t accustomed to doing: deputizing a bunch of little elves to spread some Christmas cheer. If you’re wondering what that is going to look like, check out this cute little video that shows what happened when an individual in Idaho Falls, decided he wanted to give away a hundred thousand dollars to people in need.
He contacted the local TV Station and they asked people to nominate others who could use a little hope, and be reminded that they are not forgotten, and that good things can still happen. After getting the nominations, and making selections, the TV crew volunteered to be part of Santa’s team and deliver the checks and some good cheer to a bunch of people.
When I met with my associates to discuss this week’s Words of Encouragement, I wasn’t sure about sharing this story with you. As I mentioned to my teammates, after last week’s message that featured Shaquille O’Neal’s willingness to help others and wake up each morning looking to bring a smile to someone’s face, I was wondering if we needed to once again share a message that focuses on people being kind to others.
We agreed that even with a Christmas theme in October, we can use frequent reminders that there are good things happening around us. This was affirmed when the reporter noted that “when all hope had seemed lost,” the daughter of the mom let everyone know: “This is just the biggest deal!”
After hearing this, I could not help but think that all too often, we believe that making a difference in someone’s life involves some grand gesture or big action that makes people go “WOW!” But as one of my friends, Sean Lambert, the leader and founder of the Youth With A Mission’s Homes of Hope program, notes in his frequent citing of the “Starfish” story, little things can make a big difference.
For those of you who may not be familiar, a young boy is walking along a beach with thousands of starfish that have been washed up because of a storm. The boy decides to pick up the starfish and throw them back into the water. An older man notices this and asks the boy what he is doing. When he learned that the boy wanted to throw the starfish back into the water, he looked at the thousands of starfish on the beach and asked the boy if he thought he was making a difference. As the boy picked up another starfish and threw it back into the water he looked at the man and said “I am making a difference for that one.”
The story illustrates the fact that with everything going on in the world today, it can be easy for me at times, and perhaps for some of you reading this note, to throw our hands up in the air and ask “What can I do?” When I shared this question with a mentor years ago, he gave me some very direct and profound advice: “Just be nice to the person in front of you.”
Speaking on a very personal level, that simple advice can be difficult to follow. Sometimes in the hustle and bustle of all these activities, I can get distracted, frustrated and dare I say, a bit rude to others. So as Santa goes ahead and checks his naughty and nice list, I’m hoping he overlooks those occasional transgressions and reminds me that there are still lots of starfish that would like to get back in the water.
This video reminded me about the power of recognizing others and reminds us about the hope of having better days ahead of us. It wasn’t about the size of the gift that the elves delivered, it was the fact that someone reached out and affirmed: “You matter!”
And in reminding others that they and we matter, we can also take joy in remembering those words from Romans that “nothing can separate us from the love of God.”
