Who Will You Empower? – By Ian Love-Jones

Ian Love-Jones is an educator, voiceover talent and the current Chaplain at Peninsula #128 in Portland Oregon. He is also author of Three Links Hijinks: An Odd Fellow’s Joke Book.

Think back over the people who have stood out in your personal story. Take your time, remember their faces, their voices, and their deeds. Now, name one of those people who invested in you. When I ask you to name someone who invested in you, remember that investment isn’t just about coins and credit.

Investment is also the giving of time, space, attention and energy. So, who did you name that took precious resources from their own life, however modest, and shared those things to bless you in some lasting way? Who gave you a chance? Who gave you a skill? Who gave you knowledge that never left you? Who provided an inspiring example?

I’ll tell you one of the most exciting things about being genuinely invested in. Because of what was once poured into us, we are now empowered and have become people who can invest in others. Did you realize that you are someone who can fill another person’s cup, or provide a life-changing hand up?

Your life doesn’t have to be perfect to give back. So often, people need your humanity more than your holiness, and your seasoning more than your success. Give it thought and you’ll start to discover the many ways that you could give back to someone else. You may have precious knowledge from hard earned lessons, you might have a moment to listen and encourage, or particularly as Odd Fellows, you could open the door to a world of supportive community.

Giving back never has to involve grand gestures. We can give back from wherever we are, as long as we realize that there is no such thing as small investments. The meekest contribution to another human’s life, shared in earnest, could create a lifetime of inspiration for that other person.

As Odd fellows the concept of paying it forward is not just represented in the heart in hand, reaching out to relieve the distressed. For members of our Order, paying it forward is also rooted in the humbling lesson of memento mori. Remembering that our days are numbered challenges us to create positive legacy, inspiration, and opportunity for others that will outlast us. Who will you empower today?

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