3:27 – Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in the power of your hand to do so.
I remember standing in the bathroom, looking at my dad as he was shaving. I was 17 years old, and I was crying.
I said to him, “I’ve been to Boys’ State and Boys’ Nation. I’m in the National Honor Society. I’ve spoken at the Regional and the National Junior Achievers’ Conventions. I’m going to UVa (the University of Virginia) on a Navy ROTC scholarship.”
“And, you’ve never once told me you’re proud of me.”
By this point, I was blubbering.
My dad stopped shaving. He froze. Then, his reflection locked eyes with me, and he said,
“You’re right.
Your mom and I tell everyone else how proud of you we are, but we haven’t told you. I’m sorry. We are proud of you.”
I wonder how many families would be stronger, and how many jobs would be more enjoyable if people paid attention to the good things other people do, and made it a point to tell them.
What if more people made a conscious choice to “not withhold good from those to whom it is due”?
Make no mistake, this has nothing to do with “self-esteem.” Will it affect the self-esteem of those around us? Sure, it will.
But, this wisdom from Proverbs is not for them; this is for you.
Too much time in our lives is spent focusing on the inadequacies of others – and telling them!
Let’s train ourselves to look for what is good and right in others and tell them!
Maybe we won’t change the world, but we can begin to work a change upon those closest to us, and upon ourselves.
