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
The Day My Friend Saved My Life
Dive into this touching episode where we explore the transformative power of kindness through the heartfelt story of Kevin and Kyle. Kevin reflects on a pivotal moment from high school when a simple gesture of helping a classmate led to an unexpected friendship that altered both of their lives. From the initial encounter filled with the sadness of bullying to their shared experiences throughout school, this episode beautifully illustrates how one act of compassion can create profound waves of change.
Good morning everybody. It's good to have you here today. I hope your week is off to a great start. I'm enjoying being back with you and I've got a really wonderful story for you today. It's told by a man named Kevin and how one act of kindness changed the life of someone else forever.
Speaker 1:One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class walking home from school. I was a freshman in high school. I saw a kid from my class walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself why would anyone bring home all of his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd.
Speaker 1:I was looking forward to my weekend. I had lots of things planned, with parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon. So I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running towards him. They ran directly at him, knocking all of his books out of his arms and tripping him. So he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying and I saw them land in the grass about 10 feet from him. He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes, my heart went out to him. So I jogged over to him and as he crawled around looking for his glasses I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses I said those guys are jerks. They really should get lives. He looked at me and said hey, thanks. There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude.
Speaker 1:I helped him pick up his books and asked him where he lived. As it turned out he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to a private school before now. I would never have hung out with a kid from a private school before, but we talked all the way home and I carried his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play football on Saturday with me and my friends and he said yes. We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him. Monday morning came and there was Kyle with his huge stack of books, again going back to school. I stopped him and said Boy, you are really going to build some serious muscles with this pile of books every day. He just laughed at me and handed me half the books Over the next four years.
Speaker 1:Kyle and I became best friends when we were seniors. We began to think about college. Kyle decided to go to Georgetown and I was going to go to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor and I was going to study business on a football scholarship.
Speaker 1:Kyle was the valedictorian of our graduating class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak.
Speaker 1:On graduation day I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than me and all the girls loved him. Man, there were some times when I was actually jealous, and today was one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his speech, so I smacked on the back and said hey, big guy, you'll be great. He looked at me with one of those looks the really grateful type and smiled thanks, he said.
Speaker 1:As he started his speech. He cleared his throat and began graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach, but mostly your friends. I'm here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift that you can give them. In fact, I'm going to tell you a story. I looked at my friend in disbelief as he talked about the very first day that we had met. He had planned to kill himself that weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked directly at me and gave a little smile. Thankfully, I was saved, he said. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable. I heard a gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us about his weakest moment. I saw his mom and his dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. It was not until that moment that I recognized the true depth of that smile.
Speaker 1:Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture, you can change a person's life. Jesus tells us that we are to make a difference in the lives of the people around us. In Matthew, chapter 5, jesus says to us you are the light of the world, so let your light shine before others that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father, who is in heaven. May see your good works and give glory to your Father, who is in heaven. We can make a difference in the lives of the people around us. Sometimes, all it needs is for us to say hi or to take them for a coffee, even just to smile at them and ask them how they're doing. You can make a difference in the life of someone else today, but it all starts with the choice. The choice to let your light shine before the people around you, and God will bless you as you do. Have a great day, my friends. We will talk again tomorrow.
