One of the endearing aspects of living a life connected to the world of sports is the reliability of Cheers, Jumps, and Fist-Bumps. It does not matter if you are standing on the sidelines of the All Star soccer field at the church, in The Fred viewing an attacker spike over the net, or watching a championship game from the sofa, if you’re eyes are open, you will likely bear witness to a Cheer, Jump, or Fist-Bump at some point in the contest. Even the age of the participants has little bearing—that five-year-old who just kicked the ball to somebody (likely not their teammate) celebrates just as jubilantly as the professional football player who has choreographed his touchdown dance!
As I compose this post on a nearly-February weekend, the competitors for the Super Bowl are about to be determined, and although I am extremely disappointed that it will not include the Titans and the Poetry in Motion of King Henry, I’m contemplating marking a tally of the Cheers, Jumps, and Fist-Bumps during the game to keep myself occupied, especially if the score becomes lopsided. Can you imagine how my hand, and an aggravated tennis elbow, would ache attempting to record them all?
Like me, do you not yearn for this type of excitement and emotion to pour over other areas of life, outside the playing field? Touching on this idea in Find Your Flame, I wonder how many people deeply long in their hearts for someone to offer a Cheer, Jump, or Fist-Bump—to be seen, noticed, maybe even celebrated, for some ordinary accomplishment in life? Why can’t events experienced in Ordinary Time receive the same kind of attention? Our world is broken regarding what we often celebrate (me included) and I wonder how many times we miss moments to be an encouragement to someone else? This nudge of a thought has appeared several times lately, and Chandler and Snetzer capture the sentiment well, “Live music concerts are big fun, take us to a whole other place—but then they’re over, moving on to the next show in the next city. Fourth-quarter comebacks are crazy exciting. Cheers, jumps, and fist-bumps. But then the stadium clears out, the announcers sign off, and by the end of the day, we’re home packing our sandwich and apple for work tomorrow.” What if someone offered a Fist-Bump for that well-packed lunch today?
In her book entitled Making Good Habits, Breaking Bad Habits, Joyce Meyer Cheers us to develop the habit of adding value to others and shares a quote from Mary Kay Ash, “Pretend that every single person you meet has a sign around his or her neck that says, Make Me Feel Important. Not only will you succeed in sales, you will succeed in life.” Meyers adds, “I believe one of the greatest things we can do in life is to form the habit of adding value to everyone we come in contact with.” These two statements remind me of Don Clifton’s theory of Fillers and Dippers, which I think are essential thoughts in creating a Habit of Awareness. “The more you encourage others, the better you will feel and the more joy you will have. We reap what we sow; therefore, if we sow joy, we will reap joy,” cheers Meyers.
Who might need a Cheer, Jump, or Fist-Bump from you today? “The world needs encouragers, but sadly not enough people see it as important, so they don’t bother doing it. Adding value to everyone you meet may be one of the most important things you do in life. It may help many succeed who might have otherwise failed in their pursuits. Most people don’t place enough value on seemingly little things like encouragement, but I don’t believe it is a little thing to God.” Which student who enters my class this semester might need a Cheer to continue reaching for a vocational calling? Which server at lunch needs to be greeted by name? The opportunities are endless if we just open our eyes.
Please consider sharing in the comments below a time when someone offered you a Cheer, Jump, or Fist-Bump just when you needed it most.
References:
Meyer, J. (2013). Making good habits, breaking bad habits. [Kindle version]. FaithWords.
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This post hits very close to home with me. I was a cheerleader during, my first three years of college. I was so used to being publically recognized for being someone that cheered others on. It was very superficial and held no true meaning. What was supposed to be my senior year turned into my junior year due to college credits not transferring and I ended up being cut from the cheer team. In that time of being removed from a public position to cheer people on God used that time to teach me to support and cheer for people in private. He showed me the importance of cheering for people in private because you never know what people are experiencing in life. God has blessed me with the opportunity to cheer publically again, and this time I intend to use it for His glory and not my own.
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