Sometimes the smallest kindness can have the greatest impact. Look around you for someone to encourage today.
Sometimes the smallest kindness can have the greatest impact.
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada, and I know that you have experienced that. You’re going through a hard time, feeling slump-shouldered and discouraged, and out of the blue, someone reaches past the gloom and into your heart with help and hope and kind words that make all the difference. Now, my husband Ken has been one of those people who often reaches out with help and hope, and – like most – you know, you never really know what sticks, right? What if you’ve said something or done something – has it really made a difference? And a short while ago, my husband received this email from a parent of a young boy named Eli. Okay now, so, being a teacher, Ken always perks up when he hears from a parent, but this message really touched him.
Eli’s father wrote and said this: he said, “[Ken] I have [a quick story to share]. A few months back, our son Eli (who is now a junior in High School) [he] shared a memory from the time… you and [he] attended Mission Springs Family Retreat. It was a memory we had never heard him talk about before. Eli struggles with being social, and apparently he was sitting all by himself one afternoon during the volunteer break, too shy to join the groups of other campers and volunteers who were hanging out together. [And] He said that [you] walked by and saw him sitting there all alone, [and you] invited Eli to come to the snack shack, where [you] bought him a milkshake and then spent the next half… hour chatting with him and offering encouragement! It’s a moment that really impacted our Eli, and now that he has shared it with us, we will never forget it either. And [you know what? You are] amazing [Ken].”
And it doesn’t surprise me that at Family Retreat, Ken would walk up to a shy boy with medical issues and strike up a conversation, even invite him to the snack shack for a milkshake. It’s kindnesses like these that have a forever impact on the lives of others, especially if those others are children lacking social skills. People are starved for kindness these days – they’re hungry for someone to break through the gloom and lift their spirits through a kind gesture or with kind words. Ephesians 4:29 says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful [now here it comes] for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” You know, I can just picture Ken spotting Eli hanging out with no one to talk to. And I can see my husband thinking, “What can I do to be helpful to build this boy up?” And – aha! – God brings to mind the snack shack and a picnic bench on which to sit and sip milkshakes and talk one-on-one for thirty minutes.
It’s little kindnesses like that which make all the difference to a little boy who’s feeling insecure. And so, if you are praying about a way to serve God this summer; if you want to make a difference in the lives of young people like Eli, you can start by applying to serve at Joni and Friends, one of our Family Retreats. We will be holding 59 Family Retreats this summer that are full of opportunities for friends like you to come alongside special needs families like Eli’s. Do what is helpful in building others up according to their needs – and you can do it by serving with us at Family Retreats this summer. I promise it’ll be such a blessing! So, for more details, just visit joniradio.org. And Eli and his daddy – oh, and Ken, too – would thank you. Go today to joniradio.org.
© Joni and Friends