With my mother having survived a horrific boating accident earlier this year, I’ve been thinking a lot about thankfulness – and about forgiveness, too. Because I believe thankfulness and forgiveness go hand in hand.
If we focused more on being thankful for our blessings, then it would be so much easier to forgive. I try to count my blessings every day, no matter how little or insignificant – like the dawn of a new day or a beautiful sunset. So, if you’ve ever seen me walking around muttering to myself, please don’t think I’m crazy. I’m just thanking God.
Many years ago, I did not have the same thankful mindset that I have today. Whenever something went wrong, I could be resentful, even passive
aggressive at times with my feelings.
This happened once in the early days of Turbo Logistics as we were growing our family’s original brokerage operation. One of our top salesmen quit during a tough business period. I was furious and lost my temper. As he exited my office, I slammed the door so hard behind him that it came off its hinges. I had to look at that damaged door for two weeks until it was repaired, a painful reminder of my lapse in control.
I learned from that experience that it’s better to take the high road, to forgive rather than hate. Today, we even focus on putting our company’s team members first while creating a supportive and fun place to work. Through the years, we’ve seen the wisdom in that decision, including better customer service.
In some cases, a former team member will return to our company and do an even better job – because we didn’t “shut the door.” We have the attitude that God will bring us the right people for our company. The same goes if someone leaves us – we maintain a spirit of forgiveness and faith that the right person will eventually fill their shoes.
To better articulate my point, there’s a song about forgiveness by Matthew West, a Christian music recording artist, that really touches my heart every time I hear it. Here are a few lyrics from his song, “Forgiveness.”
“It moves away the mad inside.
It’s always anger’s own worst enemy.
Even when the jury and the judge
Say you’ve got a right to hold a grudge.
It’s the whisper in your ear saying set it free.
So let it go and be amazed by what you see through eyes of grace.
The prisoner that it really frees is you.”
Blessed to be a Blessing,
Greg Syfan
President, Syfan Logistics
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
