Starting Right
Starting Right is a 5 minute Day Starter to help keep you motivated, encouraged, and focused throughout your day. DannyMac is a pastor, teacher, motivational speaker, husband, and father. His years of leading and training people have given him vast experience in helping individuals to accomplish change in their lives and meet their goals. He can help you set the course for your day by offering practical advice from God's Word in a positive and fun way. There is no better way to begin your day than by Starting Right with DannyMac.
Starting Right
Heart of Giving: More than Tickets
Step into a heartwarming narrative that reminds us of the power of giving in this insightful podcast episode. Drawing from Katharine Hepburn's autobiography, we dive into a beautiful story that unfolds at a circus ticket counter, where a father’s struggle to provide an outing for his excited children reveals the heart-wrenching reality of financial hardship. Yet, amidst this tension comes a transformative moment sparked by selfless generosity.
This episode beautifully illustrates how one small act—dropping a $20 bill—can ripple through lives, offering not just tickets to a circus but an activation of joy and kindness. As we share Hepburn's touching recollection, we reflect on how each of us can extend compassion and support, especially in challenging times. The discussion weaves in Biblical teachings on generosity, reminding us that true fulfillment comes from uplifting others rather than seeking personal gain.
Join us for a heartfelt conversation that sparks reflection and motivates action. If you find joy in sharing love with others, tune in, and let’s continue to foster a culture of giving together! Don’t forget to subscribe, share, and leave a review to help us spread this vital message!
Good morning and welcome to Starting Right with Danny Mac. I'm going to be here every Monday to Friday to help you get a great five-minute start to your day. So grab your cup of coffee, sit back, relax and let me help you start your day right. In her autobiography, which she entitled Me, catherine Hepburn tells this story of a time when she was a young teenager having a special night out with her dad. Once, when I was a teenager, my father and I were standing in line to buy tickets for the circus. Finally, there was only one other family between us and the ticket counter. This family made a big impression on me. There were eight children, all probably under the age of 12. The way they were dressed, you could tell that they didn't have a lot of money, but the clothes were neat and clean. The children were well-behaved, all of them standing in line, two by two behind their parents, holding hands. They were excitedly jabbering about the clowns and animals and all the acts they would be seeing that night. By their excitement you could sense that they had never been to the circus before and it would be a highlight of their lives. The father and mother were at the head of the pack, standing proud as could be. The mother was holding her husband's hand, looking up at him as if to say you're my knight in shining armor. He was smiling and enjoying seeing his family happy.
Speaker 1:The ticket lady asked the man how many tickets he wanted. He proudly responded I'd like to buy eight children's tickets and two adult tickets so I can take my family to the circus. The ticket lady stated the price. The man's wife let go of his hand, her head dropped. The man's lip began to quiver. Then he leaned a little closer and asked how much did you say? The ticket lady again stated the price. The man didn't have enough money. How was he supposed to turn and tell his eight kids that he didn't have enough money to take them to the circus?
Speaker 1:Seeing what was going on, my dad reached into his pocket and pulled out a $20 bill and then dropped it on the ground. We were not wealthy by any sense of the word, but my father bent down and picked up the $20 bill, tapped the man on the shoulder and said excuse me, sir, this fell out of your pocket. The man understood what was going on. He wasn't begging for a handout but certainly appreciated the help in a desperate, heartbreaking and embarrassing situation. He looked straight into my dad's eyes, took my dad's hand in, both of his, squeezed tightly onto the $20 bill, and, with his lip quivering and a tear streaming down his cheek, he replied Thank you. Thank you, sir. This means a lot to me and my family. My father and I went back to our car and drove home. The $20 that my dad gave away is what we were going to buy our own tickets with.
Speaker 1:Although we didn't get to see the circus that night, we both felt a joy inside of us that was far greater than seeing the circus could ever provide. And that day I learned to give. The giver is bigger than the receiver. If you want to be large, larger than life, learn to give. Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get, only with what you are expecting to give, which is everything. The importance of giving, blessing others, can never be overemphasized, because there's always joy in giving. Learn to make someone happy by acts of giving. Those are the words of Katharine Hepburn.
Speaker 1:When I first heard that story, I was really moved by it and I was quite inspired. This was a lady who came from a family where that kind of giving and that kind of caring about others was very evident. But as I thought about it, I also became somewhat embarrassed. Because here I am. I'm a Christian. I've been a Christian for a long time and there are times when I have not been that kind, where I have not been that generous, where I have not been that aware of the things going on around me and I missed out on the opportunities that God put before me to actually make a difference in someone's life.
Speaker 1:To have planted into you the understanding that we are to give, even when it sacrifices something of ourselves, is something that's not very common in our world today. Most people are focused on what they will get, not on what they can give. But here we are as Christians, with the love and grace and power of God within us, who chooses to use us to impact the world around us. We're told in Hebrews, chapter 13 and verse 16, do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased Over. In Galatians, chapter 6 and verse 2, it says Carry each other's burdens and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
Speaker 1:Here's what I want to leave with you today. God has placed his love within us Our ability to use that love and to shine, to be a light in this world and to care about other people should be even greater than what anybody in this world can do in and of their own strength and abilities. We're coming to a difficult season where families usually get together and a lot of joy and love is spread in that fashion, but it's not going to happen this year, so there's going to be a lot of hurting people who need to have some love poured out on them. Even now, two months ahead of time, let's start looking for ways that we can show that love to the people around us, love that shows the true love of Christ shining through us to them, so that we can make a difference in their lives and a difference in this world. Have a great day, my friends. We'll talk again tomorrow. Talk again tomorrow. Thank you for listening today and I invite you to join me Monday to Friday, right here on Starting Right with Danny Mac.
