For as long as I can remember I’ve had access to a magical drawer. As a young boy, sharing a room with my brother, Jim, the drawer was there. While living in Wadsworth, Ohio, during my late high school years, I benefitted greatly from the magical drawer. Amazingly, that magical drawer has shown up in our home for the thirty-two years that Debbie and I have been married.

Come to think of it, the only time in my entire life the magical drawer and I have been separated was the four-year span while attending college. Even then, the magical drawer showed up during holidays and summers while living at home.

This magical drawer is well used. I open it every morning shortly after getting out of bed. It never fails. Every time I open this drawer, I take out what I need. I never put anything into it, yet it seems to fill up once a week. It may get low, but it never runs out. As amazing as this drawer is, this is the first time I have spoken or written about it. And I’m sure you’ll understand why – the magical drawer is my underwear drawer.

We all know, of course, there is no magic to it. My mother and my wife have lovingly and faithfully washed my clothes for over five decades. They take dirty clothes and make them clean. Every week for thirty-two years Debbie does our laundry – willingly, joyfully, and without complaining. She never says, “John, did you notice I did the laundry again this week?” She’s like Nike – she just does it!

Most of us have people like my mom and Debbie in our lives – people who joyfully and faithfully serve without drawing attention to their work. Every day when I come to work at 1445 North Boonville Avenue, in Springfield, Missouri, the temperature is just right – the electricity works – there’s food in the cafeteria – the waste baskets are empty – the computers are functioning well – the bathrooms are sparkling clean – the sidewalks are swept – Esther has printed my daily schedule and placed it on my desk. It’s not magic – a lot of committed and capable people have been diligently working behind the scenes to make these things happen.

Honestly, over the years I have not thanked Debbie enough for her acts of kindness. In fact, it was just a few days ago when the “magical drawer” thought occurred to me. I thanked her for being the “magic” behind the drawer. I think my thanks surprised her. I know it encouraged her. I’m not sure I ever thanked my mother for working her “magic.” I guess I’ll have to wait until heaven for that one.

One aspect of finishing strong is acknowledging that all of us benefit from the loving service of others. Perhaps you’d like to join me in identifying two or three people that we can thank for being the “magic” in your life. Your word of thanks may just make their day brighter and this Christmas season more meaningful.

By God’s grace I’m finishing strong – I hope you will, too!

jmp

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 6th, 2007 at 1:00 am and is filed under Encouragement. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.