Make Today Great

I went to the doctor the other morning because I had a bad rash on my arms that was not going away (I found out I have seasonal allergies… yay). While I was sitting in the quiet lobby waiting for a nurse to call my name, I couldn't help but think to myself what a dreary day it was as rain continued to pour down outside.  It was one of those days where you just can't help but feel unmotivated to do anything because of the weather. As I continued to watch the rain collect in a large puddle on the sidewalk, the squeaking of wheels along the floor brought me back to the lobby of the doctors office. An elderly man pushing a beverage cart asked me if I would like any coffee, tea, hot chocolate, lemonade, or water to drink.  I replied with, "no, I have a water, but thank you very much!" Then I flashed him a smile thinking to myself what a cute old man he was. The man smiled back and said, "Okay, make today great!" Then he winked at me and wheeled his squeaky cart along.

After my encounter with the charming elderly man that morning his words "make today great" kept echoing through my head. I decided to use his words as motivation for my day. I accomplished my whole list of things to do for that day, plus some other things that I didn't expect to get done until at least a few days later. I found that with that little bit of encouragement that the elderly man offered me (probably unknowingly) I was able to accomplish a whole lot more than I would have without hearing those words. At the end of the day I felt very accomplished, but most of all, I felt encouraged. This made me realize just how important encouragement is to others, and how much of a difference it can make in people's lives. 

Encouragement…

• keeps us going
• makes us better
• gives us hope
• turns lives around
• empowers teams
• leads to great things

We can lift people up or we can take people down. The world is starving for appreciation. It is hungry for compliments. But somebody must start the ball rolling by speaking first and saying a nice thing to his companion, friend, co-worker, stranger, etc. Benjamin Franklin says, "As we must account for every idle word - so we must account for every idle silence." Can you imagine how many lives would be turned around if everyone complimented at least one person a day? My challenge to everyone is to do just that! Give someone you see tomorrow a compliment.  Make it a daily ritual. Wake up every morning and ask yourself, "Who can I compliment today and how can I make today great?" I would love to hear your stories and ways you have felt encouraged, or ways you have encouraged others. 

"God's love for us gives us the reason to encourage others. 

God's love in us gives us the ability to encourage others. 

God's love through us gives us the way to encourage others."

 - John C. Maxwell