Fifty years ago, I was a teenager with an unreliable automobile. But that’s never a problem for an Oklahoma boy who has knowledge, tools, and daylight.
My knowledge and tools were always with me, but the daylight disappeared at the worst possible time, no matter how badly I needed it.
Cell phones had not yet been invented.
When the batteries in my flashlight died, nothing could be seen but the desperation, defeat, and despair of a boy at the side of the road trying to repair a car in the darkness.
Any person who stopped to help me with a bright beam of light seemed like an angel sent from God.
People who are lonely, lost and frightened are all around us but we seldom see them because fear, sadness, and despair look exactly like preoccupation, concentration, and distraction. This is how people in pain disappear into the scenery around us.
But sometimes that beam of light within you will reveal a person directly in front of you who needs your help. Will you pass by on the other side of the road, or will you stop and share your light?
I’m not talking about random strangers. I’m talking about people whose names you know, people who are already in your life; coworkers, colleagues and employees who are walking with an invisible limp, people whose sunlight has receded below the horizon.
You can shine some light into their darkness:
- Find a moment when it is just the two of you.
- Look at them and say their name.
- Say, “Do you know what I’ve always admired about you?”
- Describe specific moments you remember that quietly impressed you.
- Tell them the truth about themselves. Remind them of who they are, and how much they matter, and why they belong.
This is often all it takes to recharge a person’s batteries and help them get their motor running again. When you shine your light into their heart, you elevate their hope, and you brighten their future.
The mark of a strong leader who is deeply loved is that they lift up the people around them by speaking the encouraging truth into their lives, regardless of whether a person needs it or not.
It is a gift that is always welcome.
Roy H. Williams
