Pay It Forward is one of those movies (like Defending Your Life and Flatliners) that have a great concept, but they fail to deliver on their potential. At the heart of Pay It Forward is an idealistic message of hope that if one person helps three people and encourages them to return the favor by helping three other people, the entire world would change for the better, and many burdens would be lifted.

I had one such moment recently. I was waiting behind a few cars at a Wendy’s drive thru for a few minutes before I was able to place an order for my wife and kids. It was nothing fancy or expensive. When I got to the drive thru window and held out my debit card to the cashier, I was surprised when he told me there was no need for that because the person in the car in front of me had already paid for my meal. It was a pleasant surprise. Occurrences like this are rare, and I certainly don’t expect someone else to pay for my necessities or luxuries. But I really appreciated that small gift anyway.

I wasn’t able to thank that anonymous Good Samaritan in person, but I came up with a few ideas of how to pay it forward. First, I prayed that God would bless him or her for that act of kindness. I find that blessings often come to people engaged in good behavior, so I figured it couldn’t hurt to let God know that I appreciate all that He does for me through other people and that I hope he blesses that person for what he or she did. Second, I treated one of my longtime coworkers to a free lunch just before his retirement. And third, I plan to continue to look for ways to make the world a better place by simply being kind, speaking my mind, and telling people the good I see in them.

It’s amazing what a simple act of kindness can do.

This is the Deja Reviewer bidding you farewell until we meet again.

Watch Pay It Forward: