Bucket & Dipper  

There is no effect more disproportionate to its cause than the happiness bestowed by a small compliment. ~Robert Brault

I am an avid reader and I love to read books that give me a different perspective on life.  I read a book several years ago called “How Full Is Your Bucket?” by Tom Rath and Donald Clifton.  Their theory is that each of us is a bucket with a dipper and the things people say or do to us can either fill our bucket or empty it.  When our bucket is full we are more positive and we have a tendency to fill other’s buckets.  But, when our bucket is empty we become negative and dip from other’s buckets. 

A full bucket makes us stronger and more optimistic but an empty bucket poisons our outlook and takes away our energy.  Every time someone dips from our bucket, it hurts us.

There was a case study done after the Korean War.  They studied 1,000 American prisoners of war detained in a North Korean camp.  The study focused on the most extreme and effective cases of psychological warfare.  There was a 38% death rate among American soldiers-the highest in US military history. 

The odd thing about this was that the American soldiers were given adequate food, water and shelter.  They weren’t subjected to common physical torture.  They were not surrounded by barbed wire and none tried to escape. When they were released and offered an opportunity to call loved ones very few did. 

What occurred was what the soldiers called “give up-itus.”  One of the most critical and destructive tactics used was the North Koreans withheld any positive letters from home and only gave them negative letters.  These were the ones where relatives had passed away or in one case a wife writing to her husband that she had given up on him ever returning and was remarrying.  They received overdue bill notices from collection agencies.  The soldiers basically gave up on living and gave in to the hopelessness of their situation.  The soldiers died because they gave up.

If we apply this to our own situation under the theory that we each have a bucket and a dipper, we learn that each time we dip into someone else’s bucket and take from it, this reduces what is in our own bucket.  Dipping from someone else's bucket can mean we speak negatively to them, say harsh things to them or break them down instead of lifting them up.  On the other hand, when we add to someone else’s bucket it increases what is in our bucket as well. How many times do we empty other people’s buckets without even thinking about it?  Then when we empty theirs we start to feel worse because our bucket is empty too. 

I challenge you to fill someone’s bucket today. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I want to fill other people’s buckets.  When I say a harsh word to someone it empties their bucket and then they in turn empty someone else’s bucket.  We are taught by you to love each other and build each other up, not tear each other down.  Help me to be an encouragement to others.  I praise You today for filling my bucket.            

Scripture: For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.  May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 15:4-6