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In The Chapel
A GOOD FOLLOWER FIRST It was Christmas time! The time we like to get together as a family and laugh, and sing, and hug, and drink hot cocoa. It's the time we celebrate the Lord's birth, but we act really giddy as though He is, only now, just about to be born. Is it the coolness in the air? Is it the presents beneath the tree? Maybe it's just all of us being together and being happy at the same time…that is, all of us, except her. She is my grandmother…A very upright, strong, and pure woman. She was everybody's "Granny Clark". Though we were linked through bloodlines, she belonged to everyone, not just me. Her life had been spent in service to her King. A leader of many, as long as I can remember she held titles and offices and zoomed around in her car getting God's work done. There simply was never a dull moment with her. Her laugh was absolutely contagious and my brother and I would look for things and ways to get her going. It might be a battery operated monkey playing the drums, or something as silly as a funny face. And it really didn't matter how many times she saw the same exact act, it was always as though it was the very first time and she would laugh as loudly and as heartily as the first time. There was so much to love about Granny. But one thing that we talked about a lot was the fact that she never complained. She suffered most of her life with debilitating arthritis, and you could hear her groan as she would move about, but never complain. She had tried to come to Christmas this year, but it was not to be. Her pain had gotten so severe that she was homebound now. The laughter was not quite so loud this year. We bought the funny toys, but somehow they just weren't that funny. We all bundled up and drove to Granny's house to bring a little Christmas to her. We walked into her room and there she lay on her bed of suffering. It was probably the hardest thing to look at…a woman on strength, a leader, a woman of power…just lying there in helplessness. Somehow I knew that this would be my last time to see her awake, for she was fading so quickly. I wanted to glean any wisdom from her that I could. Afterall, she had been the source of so much knowledge to others. Her life had effected so many. Now, it was my turn, I thought. I rubbed her soft silver hair and hoped silently that she would speak. It was a moment in time that I felt I had her all to myself. And finally, she opened her eyes and looked at me. It seemed as if she could see all the way into my soul. She could feel the time passing quickly, and it was as though she sensed that I needed some morsel to take with me through life…something of my very own. And then she spoke…her voice tired and weak, yet so much authority, "If you are ever going to be a great leader, you must first become a great follower." It seemed like an odd statement to choose. Of all the pearls of wisdom she could have bestowed, this was it. This would be the statement that she would leave with me for life. Little did I realize at that moment, that her statement would prove to be an indelible aphorism ever etched upon my life's work. It's what He wanted me to remember…"do unto others"… This is the way we must live. For it is when we begin to treat others the way we would like to be treated, that we stop the cycle of the bad reaping and sowing. When you treat others with respect, care, and love, then you will in return be treated the same. In essence, what she was doing was giving to me the greatest gift she had to give…a life of no regrets…a way of life that would lead to greater returns. To those who would aspire to be placed or promoted into positions of leadership, or those who just simply want to be a good role model in your own home, take the advice of one who knew what "leading" meant. She realized that the correct way to the top, was being kind to those still at the bottom. And that when you finally make it to your "position" in life, that if you have treated your leaders well, then you in return will be treated well. "Go ahead, take the high road," she was saying to me, "There's great reward in doing so."
Romans 12:10 Prayer: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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