This post is by my friend, Beth, and is the first ever guest blogger here! Beth and I met in college at The University of Georgia. She is married, and has two children, Noah and Hope. Below is a story she shared on her Facebook page and it resonated with me in such a big way. I loved the simplicity of the message, the photos, and that it was a message taught by children. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Thank you, Beth, for allowing me to share here! Thank you to each reader and the support you have shown me over the past 7 years, the 277 followers, and the 14,635 views! Please show Beth your support and let her know what you think!…….

We’ve read a book for years to Noah, and now Hope, about filling buckets. The concept is everyone has an invisible bucket and our actions fill it or empty it… and we even fill and empty our own with the choices we make. We talk about it DAILY in our home.

We went to an Easter egg hunt at the karate studio Noah attends and Hope was able to participate. But, she was overwhelmed. Lots of kids and lots of chaos resulted in lots of tears and only a few eggs in her bucket. In the minutes that followed, not one, but TWO little girls saw that Hope didn’t have much in her bucket and took eggs out of their own buckets and put them in hers. They didn’t hesitate. They saw a need and they filled her bucket… both literally and figuratively… and oh, how they filled mine. This sweet image has constantly replayed in mind over the past week.

And then tonight happened…. Noah struck out 2 times in a row during his baseball game. It wasn’t pretty. He was frustrated and upset and just plain angry. In the minutes that followed, I watched the scene in the 2nd picture unfold. His sweet teammate who is constantly cheering for and encouraging his team in EVERY game, sat on the bench and put his arm around Noah and gave him a pep talk. He poured himself into encouraging Noah. He wasn’t distracted by the game or his friends or the fun. He filled Noah’s bucket.. and oh, how he filled mine.

If we’re being real, talk about having children bringing you to your knees. Because… what if… what if I took EVERY opportunity God presented me with to fill someone else’s bucket? What if in the midst of business and chaos I sat down and prioritized someone else? What if whenever I saw a need, I didn’t hesitate, I didn’t let the world distract me.. I just jumped in and filled buckets? I do try, but in the midst of life I miss SO SO SO many opportunities. Tonight my prayer is that I slow down and take the opportunities. What if I was more like these 2 sweet images. What if we all were?

Written by: Beth Suddarth

Shared with permission.