Yesterday was my 39th Birthday. I know, I know… “39 in the new 29” right? (Yea, let’s go with that.)
And I found myself celebrating in the most unlikely of settings: a room full of brown and black belts. Now, before you mutter to your screen, “Why Drew, I didn’t know you were a master of the martial arts!” let me stop you. I’m not. In the immortal words of Ferris Bueller, “Never had one lesson!” Nope, I’m the guy asking the instructor if it is okay to wear my white belt after labor day.
So why was I there? Well, because a pastor friend dared me. Simply put, he pushed me to take on something in which I lacked ability and see what I could accomplish. And, to push me over the edge, he told me he believed in me. That did it.
Why do I share all that? Because it reminded me of the power of “pushing” when undergirded by encouragement. Let me put this in a much better context. This week I read the following article about the growth of Kids Hope USA in AZ: http://www.svherald.com/content/community/2011/12/29/241358
In it, a teacher shares about the amazing progress of one of her 9 year old students being mentored:
“Oh my gosh! His whole demeanor has improved. [He is] enthusiastic about reading for the first time and his reading comprehension scores have increased by 15 percent. His behavior is better and he’s allowing himself to be challenged. Prior to the mentoring, he resisted being pushed or challenged.”
Notice that what changed was not the pushing, it was that this young boy now allowed himself to be challenged. Why? Simple. He now has his own personal “I-believe-in-you!” cheerleader. With one of those, there is no limit to what kids will try. And no telling what they will achieve.
Speaking of achievement, southern Arizona has gone from 0 partnerships to 5 this year thanks to the amazing efforts of a dedicated KHUSA Ambassadors team. And, they are pushing each other to have every school matched with a KHUSA church. I don’t know about you, but I sure believe in them!
Reaching 12,665 children through 763 church-school partnerships…and growing!