I Am a Person of Action

Greetings,

I trust that your Christmas went well and that you are now in the midst of preparing that great list of New Year's resolutions.  I have been in the center of a raging chest cold and have not found the energy to make it to my laptop and write.  However, seeing that it is New Year's eve, I thought I would drag my sorry hind end to my keyboard and sludge on.

I do this not so that I might feel good about myself but so that I might put into action the next great statement for success that we will be lookng at...I Am a Person of Action!  David Ponder next finds himself on a Civil War battlefield in the presence of an officer named Joshua Chamberlain.  I am not going to go into the specifics of his discussions as I feel that the true revelation of this encounter is best left to the reader.  Suffice it to say David comes in contact with a man that is truly heroic on the battlefield.

Heroism is a funny word isn't it?  I mean, we each, probably, have a different definition of the word "hero".  Certainly, the brave men and women who serve our country are heroes.  We met hero after hero as the stories of  September 11th came out.  Perhaps, paerents and friends, family and celebrities fit your description of what a hero is like and/or should be.  I don't want to take this space to debate who is a hero and who is not.  I want to write about David Ponder's experience with an individual who showed heroic characteristics.

On my journey home I have had had the opportunity to meet and interact with heroes.  These indviduals may ot seem like heroes to you but they were and are to me.  During my sugeries I found heroes in the neuro ICU. They were the nurses that so lovingly cared for me.  Christine, my wife, was my hero as she encouraged me and guarded the door with a lion's heart.  My mom and dad, sister, and all my family, were heroes to me and remain that to this day.  My church family were my heroes as they prayed for my safe recovery.  Different people doing different things, all heroes!

Yet, I had to ask myself what it was that drew me to this Civil War hero named Joshua Chamberlain.  Then it hit me.  It was what he shared with David Ponder.  The statement that was shared on that civil war battlefield that david was taken to next brings clarity to my definition of what a true hero is.  That great statement is...I Am a Perosn of Action.  You see, all of these statements for success, in my opinion, would be less than they are if there was not some sort of action associated with them.  I believe action is what makes a hero!

I can't help but think what my life would be like if Jesus would have just thought about wanting to give His life for me.  I know that is simplistic but it's true.  My salvation, and yours, is due to the fact that Christ walked that "Way of Sorrows".  As He sat there in the garden and prayed that, if possible, the cup of crucifixion be taken away He had a choice.  Some might say that He didn't have that choice but I believe He did.  He got up from that cold, damp, earthly, garden floor and chose to fulfill the will of His Father.  He chose to take action.

Joshua Chamberlain was a man of action on the battlefields of the Civil War and this is where David Ponder sees this man in action.  The point that Chamberlain is trying to make is that we are responsible for the choices we make, no one else!  If we want to make things happen in our lives then we need to be people of action.  That is why I dragged my behind to this laptop.  This article wasn't going to write itslef!  Although, I am sure an article was going to be written however, if I didn't take action it wasn't going to be written by me and it wasn't going to be written today.

Some might say that is not a very good example of what Joshua Chamberlain was talking about and they would probably be right.  Yet, the thrill I get from writing this blog makes the days that I write different.  For me, there is joy in writing.  I am sure that my day will be just a litle bit different because I decided to take action.  What about you?  Very few of us have the daily oportunity to charge a regiment of men and women into battle.  Very few of us get to decide to rescue a baby from a burning building.  Nevertheless, each one of us, each day, have the choice to take action!  Whether it be the action of helping someone down on their luck or helping yourself as you are down on your luck action makes a difference.

As this new year comes upon us and we say goodbye to the old let us take this statement of success with us.  Let us dedicate ourselves to action.  In our daily lives, at our work, in our churches, with our faith, let action be our battle cry!  Let us look at our lives, no matter how great or how lousy they are, and declare that we are people of action.  Let us have the mindset that today I will take action, I will do something!

At the end of this encounter Chamberlain hands David Ponder an old tobacco pouch in which David will keep the statements of success.  This old, worn out pouch plays an important part in our story.  That is a point that I want to share with you next time.  Until then, pray for my chest cold, take responsibility for you, seek wisdom daily, and strive to be a person of action!

May God bless you and your famly in this new year!

Blessings,

Derek