Last week I was reminded that it was the penultimate Tuesday for the year 2014 and today is actually the penultimate day for 2014. In less than 39 hours, 2014 will step into the annals of history and we will be embracing a new year. When we cross time like that, there are always mixed feelings. For some it could be good that 2014 has ended and many will hope that 2015 will be better than 2014. Some are excited about new opportunities that will open up in 2015 and so are looking forward to the dawn of a new year. And there are some for whom nothing is going to change; it's almost a sense of resignation that they feel that they are moving from the 31st of December to the 1st of January 2015 and they don't see anything on the horizon that is going to make it different.
Well, wherever you fall on these points, I thought today, that maybe instead of focusing on 'you and me' today, and thinking about our own attitudes towards the year 2015, it might be good to look back on the year 2014, not in terms of points of regret or what I could have done better, but to look back and remember the many wonderful time slots where we were blessed by somebody else and to have, what is now become a clichéd expression, an attitude of gratitude for the year 2014. Whether or not it was a great year for you, to be able to just find places in the year where there were things that happened that helped you get through and people who were responsible for it.
Thornton Wilder said, "We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures." Sometimes we lose sight of our treasures because we don't take the time to think beyond ourselves. Today, as I was thinking about the year, I thought that there have been many people who have touched my life in this last year and have made it well worth living. I need to spend time –
a) Thinking about what they have done, recognizing it in my own life,
b) To be able to do something about it.
So, I'm going to ask, that as I go through the remainder of this talk, that you have a mental checklist as I go through different areas and tick off those things that are relevant for you. Maybe by the end of this day or tomorrow, you may be able to do something for this person, maybe a thank you note or just a word to them for getting you through 2014.
Well, if you want to start with the office, maybe there's an attitude of gratitude that needs to be in place with your boss. Maybe there was a deadline that got overlooked, maybe your boss cut you some slack when you were struggling with something, or a word of encouragement came your way that just lifted you. Maybe that's a person that you need to be thankful to and for.
Or it could be a colleague who came alongside of you to help you get through a difficult part of your day or a project; he didn't need to but saw that you were struggling. Maybe that's a person that you should just go to and say, "Hey! You remember that time when you came beside me and helped me through this? I just want to say thank you.
Maybe it's an assistant, a secretary who has worked long hours to help you get ready for a presentation that you had to make and you never stopped by to say – I really appreciate what you've done. The quality of presentations that you've been able to put up because somebody was diligent. Sometimes we overlook these people who work so well and at such high levels of excellence that make us look good in what we do. Maybe it's time to just say a word of thanks.
Or it could just be an office boy or peon or somebody who has been doing work very quietly each day, who brings you tea at the right time, who clears the trash from under your desk making sure you have a clean place of work at the start of your day, somebody who's done work through the year and has never been thanked for it.
Well, let's leave the office and go to the family. I wonder whether we have a spouse who has really stood by you. I remember many years ago, when I had first gone to the US, I went into my dorm room, being a student, and was so lonely as my wife and two children were back in India. There on my table was a letter that was addressed to me. I was shocked as I had just walked in. I opened it and there was a card from my wife (it was actually a photocopy of the first card that she had given to me after we got married) and it said, "Follow your dreams and I will always be by your side." She had sent this two weeks before I had left for the US so that it would be on my desk when I entered the dorm room. I've never forgotten that. Our spouses do so much for us. I wonder whether, through this year, you had encouraging moments from them that you haven't stopped and said, "I really want to thank you."
Maybe it's children who have been such a blessing, who brought laughter into your life and joy. Maybe they need to be thanked and acknowledged. Maybe parents who have given much of themselves to get you where you are, who've cut short on things that they could have had so that you could have a good education and come up in life. Or maybe an uncle or an aunt who stepped in to fill a void that was left. I well remember an aunt of mine who took a flight from Chennai to Mumbai to be present at a concert that I was conducting, which was my first major concert, because my parents were not in town. She wanted to be there for me. Family members have made a difference to us in our lives.
Or friends who have stood by you through difficult days, giving encouragement, wise counsel; they never let you down. They've stood by you even when things were not going well. I came across a quote by Albert Camus: "A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words." All of us have those friends who mean so much to us, who stand by us, who are able to know what's going on in our lives and be able to say the right word at the right time. The writer of Proverbs in our Holy Book says, "The right word at the right time is like custom made jewelry."
Finally, how can we forget the Almighty God who has sustained us through this year? Many times when we've walked through dark valleys, He has been there, comforting us, taking us through, never leaving us.
There's much to be thankful for, my friends, this year and I want to challenge myself and you this morning, to maybe just pick up the phone and call somebody who has meant something to you this year, or send a text or write a note. Just say, "Before this year ends, I want to say THANK YOU for what you did and what it meant to me."
I must in closing, thank each one of our support team here on Corporate CAPsules – Joshua, Ajay, Dev, Deepa, Marise, Edwin, Paul – all have worked so wonderfully to make these calls work efficiently. A big, big thank you to each one. I couldn't do what I am doing except for you all who believe in what we do. My grateful thanks to all of you.
So friends, as this year ebbs to a close, let's be filled with thankful hearts. Let's have an attitude of gratitude and even beyond that, be able to tell people who have touched our lives, that they did. Somehow, that may be something that they too need to hear as the year comes to a close. I'll see on the other side of 2015. God bless you all.
Almighty God, You have sustained us through this year and we are thankful for it. And if we get to see 2015 because of Your goodness, Your love for us, help us to cross over with thankful and grateful hearts for all the people who have touched our lives. Help us to be diligent in letting them know that they have. Above all, we thank you Almighty God, for being with us, sustaining us, strengthening us, giving us wisdom to make good decisions. We ask for the same in the year 2015. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
• Thornton Wilder quote, http://www.desicomments.com/quotes/subject/thank_you_quotes/
• Albert Camus Quotes, http://www.searchquotes.com/quotation/A_friend_is_someone_who_knows_the_song_in_your_heart_and_can_sing_it_back_to_you_when_you_have_forgo/509/
• Bible reference, Proverbs 25:11
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