.  I’ve known them for 16 years very, very closely. And Preston had said a long time ago, “Cameron needs to be a baseball player.”  And he exposed him the baseball. And that’s cool. But after a while Preston said, “Ed, Cameron likes music.”

Now, Preston doesn’t know jack about music.  The guy’s tone deaf.  He said, “Ed, help me man. I like baseball; Cameron likes music.”

But I watched Preston as he supported Cameron’s uniqueness, and I’ve watched him get into Cameron’s world.  I’ve watched him get outside of himself and applaud Cameron’s uniqueness, and this past Wednesday night I watched Cameron on stage in the Apex student ministry lead worship to over 1,200 high school and junior high students. And I said, “God, that is it!  What an incredible example of supporting someone’s uniqueness.”

Are you always trying to make people like you?  “I would have done it that way and well, I don’t understand what you’re doing, so forget you.”

Our kids and the people who report to us are dying to hear an applause.  Their dying to hear, “You’re one of a kind.”  That’s what God tells us.  So we have to be mirrors and reflectors of that and do the same thing.  See and support their uniqueness.

INSPIRE THEM WITH RESPONSIBILITY

“I” – Inspire them with responsibility.  Inspire them with responsibility.  Let’s go back to parents again.  Parents, it could be swimming in the deep end.  It could be saying, “Here’s the car keys.”  It could be the first baby sitting job.  Inspire them with responsibility.

How about the managers, and the coaches, and the teachers and the pastors?  We need to give the people who work for us responsibility.  When we give them responsibility, what are we doing?  We’re saying, “You matter.  You can make it.  You can do it.  You’re unique. You’re one of kind.”