WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH YOUR DOMINO?

“We are all inherently like dominoes. We are capable of falling for or nudging others to good or evil, blessing or curse, life or death. “

I love dominos. Back in the day I remember strategically setting all of my dominos up in a line that spanned the length of the entire room. The set up always seemed to take forever and I had to tiptoe around the domino line so I didn’t prematurely level what had been created. Then after I posted up the last domino, I would go back to the first one I set up, let the anticipation build for a moment and gently knock it over. The domino effect began and it didn’t stop until the last one was reached.

My grandmother was like a domino to me. When I first started attending Church at 13 years old, I had no clue how to read a Bible or how to find a specific Book or verse in it. My grandmother taught me that though. Every few weeks we would talk for about an hour on the phone about life. The conversation always seemed to go back to Jesus. She constantly let me know she was praying for me and that she was proud of me. She always listened to what I had to say and was undeniably more concerned about me than she was for herself. She would admit her flaws to me but never seemed to be defined by them. She was a great woman.

In 2016, she died. I had the honor (and hardship) of officiating her funeral. In preparation of that message, I purchased a box of dominoes – enough for everyone in attendance. I picked out my own domino from the box and shared how it reminded me of my grandmother. She chose to live a Godly life and it touched my life. In a similar manner, God has used my life to touch others. But that domino effect would never have happened if my life wasn’t positively impacted by her first.

I encouraged those in attendance to keep the domino as a reminder of the positive impact they can have on someone else’s life. I also reminded them to be mindful that a negative impact can also have an equal, unwanted domino effects on others. Because of that, I keep my domino on my closet shelf where I can see it each day as a reminder.

We are all inherently like dominoes. We are capable of falling for or nudging others to good or evil, blessing or curse, life or death. That’s what I loved about my grandmother. She chose to be like a domino falling toward Jesus. She wasn’t employed and didn’t have a degree. She couldn’t get out of her house very often and her health wasn’t always the greatest. My grandmother didn’t need a stage or microphone to impact others, she did it through our sporadic phone calls. She did it in person at our occasional family reunion. She did it on the hand-written letter inside of a Christmas card.

Don’t convince yourself you need more or something different when you have a God that’s more than enough. He will use your circumstances to motivate others – whether you’re at the top of the mountain or at the bottom of the valley. You just have to choose to fall toward Him with the life and circumstances you’ve been given.

So, what will you do with your domino?

BL

Ben Lippens

Police Officer | Advocate for Racial Reconciliation | Youth Worker | Husband & Father | Writer | Believer