09.20.09
9-20-09 The Blessing–Celebrating Lives
In their book, The Blessing, Gary Smalley & John Trent talk about the importance of using words of high value to bless someone. They talk about “value” as “attaching great importance to it” (p.67) and that “anytime we bless someone, we are attaching high value to him or her.”
Today is my youngest daughter’s 4th birthday and as has been a custom for me since the reading of the above mentioned book, I have been pronouncing a blessing each year on my daughters on their birthday. The focus of my blessings are on qualities or characteristics that I have seen them exhibit over the previous year. This quality may not always show itself in a positive way all the time but I do focus on the positive aspect of it. For instance, for Kylie’s 3rd birthday, I pronounced on her the blessing of her “deep convictions” which she sticks to fervently and with much passion. The way that this “deep conviction” has expressed itself has been both in positive and negative ways (after all our greatest strengths are also usually our greatest weaknesses). In Kylie’s case, the growing side of her strength is her strong-willed personality which can go to bat with the greatest of them, the positive side of her strength is her desire to stand firm in her beliefs (a quality that I hope she keeps throughout her life).
As we think about the people we lead, think about their areas of strength, reflect on their unique contributions and focus on their impact. Instead of a quick word of praise to them like “good job!”, bless them by sharing a specific way that their presence has made a difference. It will add value to their contribution, your organization and the depth of your relationship.
