by Michael Holland
A couple days before Christmas, I told my daughter and her husband, who was home on leave from the Marines, that I had quest for them: they were to go to a local Walmart or Target to deliver 7 envelopes. I explained that I had put some cash in each envelope which was destined to be delivered to some folks who needed the cash. They were to go into the store, say a prayer asking God to direct them to those people who needed the envelopes, then walk through the store and hand out the envelopes as they felt drawn to. And most importantly, they were supposed to walk away quickly so they would not be drawn into any conversation.
These acts are symbolic of how we can choose to live our lives. As men, we work to provide what’s needed. At those times when we are blessed with a little more than we need, we can choose to share some of those blessings. As fathers, we have the opportunity to continually coach up our kids, taking advantage of moments in time to impart our faith, true desires, and love for others. We can choose to leverage those opportune moments.
The key is choosing to act. We can stand up, acknowledge our blessings, and recognize opportune coaching times. But if we fail to act, to take a small step forward, to engage in some way to live out our lives as God has intended, then we miss the key to impacting many lives.
I believe our role as men is to seek ways in which our faith and wisdom can be passed down not just to our kids, but also to our grandkids, their kids, and their kids to come. For this to happen, we must choose to take action, even if it is just small steps forward.
