Your Link in the Chain Matters

I give you glimpses quite often into life at WillowBridge, and as you know, we do a little bit of everything around here. One thing I don't talk about too often (mostly because it's not something we can really document in pictures or go into detail about) is the amount of advice we give.

Yes, we do things with and for our tenants. We drive them places, help them figure out things they don't know how to do, plan community events, and take care of office and building tasks, but in between all those things, we have a lot of conversations. 

We listen to conundrums and give advice. We listen to frustrations and give advice. We listen to confusions and give advice. We listen to dreams and give advice. It's simultaneously one of the greatest and hardest parts of the job. It's the greatest because it's the connection part that both of us love so much. It's the chance to try to make a lasting difference. It's a chance to plant seeds. It's a chance to do something that feels truly meaningful in a Kingdom-impacting way. It's the hardest, because all we can do is share our hearts. We can't make the tenants listen, agree, or try anything we suggest.

And just like with any relationship, it's hard to have a deep heart-to-heart and walk away feeling like our words melted right into the floor. 

The other day, I was having a conversation (not a heart-to-heart or even a personal session - just a conversation) with one of the counselors from Gateway Woods, and she gave me this analogy that immediately stuck and has been so helpful for me as I think about life. ALL of life. Not just life with our tenants, but life in every single relationship I have.

Below is my paraphrase of what she said...she said it way more eloquently. 

She said our interactions in life are links in a chain. When we join up with another person's story, we become a link in their chain.

But we don't know what number we are in that chain.

The chain for this part of their story might be 500 links long. We might be link #30. 

Everyone wants to be link #500. The important link. The one that finally anchors to the answer. The link everyone remembers.

But we don't all get to be that link. 

Nevertheless, our link still matters. It's necessary to the completion of the chain. Without our contribution, the whole chain breaks. Link #500 can't happen, because link #30 didn't show up and do its part.

I don't know if that grabs you the way it did me, but that was so helpful. 

I have no idea what link number we are in our tenants' chains. I have no idea what link number we are in any relationship we have in our lives. But I am freshly reminded that we matter. We are serving a purpose. Our time of listening and sharing is most certainly not wasted, even if it appears our words are forgotten or even flat-out disregarded.

It's the same for you, my friend. You words and investment matter in the relationships you're in. Even when you think no one is listening or retaining anything you offer, you still matter. Don't abandon the chain. You may be early in the links, but without you, there will be a detrimental break in the story.

Your link matters.