It is humbling, surprising, rewarding and right to give to others. – Nick Chaconas

“He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us.” (2 Corinthians, 1:3-5, The Message)

Who has God brought into your life at key times to pay it forward to you?
Are you in a major slump in your life? If so, how can you get out?
What things of value do you have to share others?
Who is God asking you to pay it forward to?

At 4:30 AM in the morning on October 15, the same day that Sharon Graham received her two bouquets of flowers, Nick Chaconas sent a daily devotional titled “Pay it Forward” on behalf of Jeff and Jill Williams, co-founders of Grace and Truth Relationship Education.

Apparently, Jeff and Jill asked Nick for help in writing the October 15 devotional because they were away at a weekend retreat for life coaches sponsored by Tony Stolzfus on October 12-14. Incidentally, I learned about this from Jerry and Sharon Graham, who were also at that retreat. I’ve never met Nick and didn’t know anything about him until talking to Jerry.

Diane Peck, my sister-in-law, was the first person to encourage me to watch the movie Pay it Forward. After renting the movie on DVD about 1-2 years after it came out, I ended up buying my own DVD and watching the movie several more times with various friends. The principle of paying it forward – multiplication through uncommon generosity – subsequently became a guiding principle for me in being a catalyst to expand God’s Kingdom.

In his outstanding and transparent message, Nick shares the history of the phrase and principle “pay it forward.” He also shares a transparent message about a major personal slump he was in last year and how God delivered him from that. Visit today’s Link of the Day to read Nick’s message.

Prayer Power
Heavenly Father, thank You for Nick Chaconas and his wonderful message. Bless him, his family, and his marketplace ministry. Thank You all the people You have brought into my life to help me through difficult challenges or slumps. Thank You for each and every person who has payed in forward to me. Forgive me for the times I have sorry for myself or have been focused on my own advancement instead of Yours. Bless my readers to be people who pay it forward. Thank You Jesus. Amen.

Link of the Day
Pay it Forward – outstanding message by Nick Chaconas  [http://www.yourdailyblessing.com/content.cfm?id=2443]

Blessing to live a life paying if forward and enjoying the fruit form that!
 
From: Jeff Williams [mailto:jeff@graceandtruthrelationship.com]
Sent: Monday, October 15, 2007 4:30 AM
To: randypeck@gmail.com
Subject: Pay It Forward [Daily Grace & Truth]

Purpose
The purpose of this devotional is to catalyze reflection and action to strengthen and heal marriage, family, social, ministry and work relationships.

Highlighted Resource
The New Rebellion Handbook, by Jerome Daley, is a wealth of resources to awake a generation to its heavenly destiny. It addresses 24 real world, cutting-edge themes of life with fresh ideas, biblical insights, and life applications.

Devotional Author’s Bio
Nick Chaconas – married with 3 boys, serves vocationally as a realtor in greater Washington, D.C. His avocation is to sharing his faith and relationship/business principles and skills that are helping him to enjoy meaning, pleasure and success in all endeavors.
 
Pay It Forward

A recent TV commercial for a national insurance company portrays a series of good deeds witnessed by different men and women, who in turn are prompted to perform good deeds for others. This ongoing series of doing for others as it has been done for them has been described as, “Paying it Forward.”
 
“Many people mistakenly believe the phrase “pay it forward” as a moral philosophy first appeared in Catherine Ryan Hyde’s novel Pay It Forward, which in 2000 was adapted into the film, Pay It Forward. Science fiction author Robert A. Heinlein, however, used the phrase in Between Planets, a book published in 1951, almost 50 years before Ryan Hyde’s novel.”*
 
Paying it Forward was recommended much earlier than 1951. The Apostle Paul wrote about it in his second letter to the Corinthians: 
 
“He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us.” (2 Corinthians, 1:3-5, The Message)
 
There was a time last year that I was going through some difficult times both personally and professionally. I often struggled to just make it through the day. Helping others wasn’t on my mind. It took every ounce of energy to focus on myself, I wasn’t interested in helping anyone else, and even if I did want to help – I resigned myself to the belief that I could not be helpful to anyone else. 
 
Have similar thoughts or questions gone through your mind?
• I don’t have anything of value to share with anyone else.
• I’ve got my own issues – who would want my input/support?
• I’ve done too much harm to too many people to warrant helping someone else.
• I don’t have it figured all out – who can I help?

As I continue to recover from my struggles, I have been stunned by the number of opportunities to support and encourage friends going through hard times. Once it meant being available to listen and act as a sounding board. Recently I’ve been investing time to disciple a friend to develop and strengthen his love for Christ.
 
It is humbling, surprising, rewarding and right to give to others. Sometimes I don’t feel qualified, but I now believe that this is God’s plan for me; that I should live a life of continually “paying it forward”, and that I am to selflessly give to others out of what I have received from Him.
 
How have others come alongside you? What have you learned in difficulties that you might not have learned otherwise? How are you “paying it forward”?
 
Zig Ziglar, a well known contemporary motivational speaker says, “You don’t have to be great to start, but you do have to start to be great.”
 
Can you start simply by holding a door open for someone at the office? How about doing the dishes or folding the laundry for your spouse?
 
Prayer
Thank you, Lord, for your Son. Thank you for the trials and tribulations of our lives. I recently heard someone say “if the mountain were smooth, you couldn’t climb it”. Father, I pray that you would open my eyes and my heart to be increasingly more aware of opportunities to pay it forward, to give back a portion of what I have received. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
 
*Website Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pay_it_forward