Impact
A few years ago, I was praying about my desire to expand my reach to impact more people. You see, I was 48 years old and questioning what I’d done with the years I’d spent on this earth. I wondered if my best years were behind me. I felt like I hadn’t done anything significant, nor did I see any way to change that. Overall, there was nothing extraordinary about me. I’d cared for my family, attended college, contributed to local churches, and worked jobs I wasn’t passionate about, but that paid the bills. Seeing no solution, I resigned to continue living the uninteresting life I was currently living.
However, while praying, I mentioned how celebrities could impact the world compared to someone like me. As I was praying, the Lord impressed two people in my spirit: my mother and spiritual father. The Lord explained that in the grand scheme of things, neither of them would be remembered by the world because they didn’t do anything the world deemed important or significant. And yet, those two people impacted their world GREATLY.
My mother was a wonderful woman who was dedicated to raising her children. She didn’t graduate high school but was among the wisest women I had ever met. She was lovely and left an impression on everyone she met. People loved her.
My spiritual father was the pastor of a local church I attended for five years. He taught me how to study the Bible and instilled in me a passion for the things of God. He spoke faith and hope into my life whenever I heard him speak. Further, he exemplified Christian living, and to this day, I think of him often.
My mother and spiritual father are now deceased, but they’ve left an undeniable mark on my life.
You don’t need to be a celebrity to impact the world. You need only to obey God to impact “your” world. Your world is what I call your sphere of influence. Your sphere of influence is the people you encounter as you live your life.
Everyone’s life should be better because you are in it, even if only for a minute or an hour. You can impact the cashier at the grocery store, the sales associate at your favorite store, your coworkers and bosses, your husband, children, and other family members. You can impact your church family and even your enemies. Additionally, you can make a difference in someone’s life, just like my mother and spiritual father made in mine.
Our ability to positively impact the world is because of our relationships with Christ. We can spread love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control in a world that no longer sees those things. When we spread these virtues, we shine a light the world can’t dim. That light is Christ, and the world needs more of Him.
So, while we may never stand before a crowd of people like our favorite celebrities, we are responsible for impacting the world, our sphere of influence, for Christ. You and I may never do anything the world deems significant, but we weren’t put on this earth to please the world. We were put here to please the Lord. And when we use every opportunity to impact the world for His glory, we can rest assured that He is pleased with us.
I’m a wife, mother, grandmother, Bible teacher, and preacher who live in a small town in Western Maryland. Although I often feel my contributions are insignificant, God says differently. I am making a difference, maybe not on a national or global scale, but in the lives of the people around me whenever I share hope with them and show love and compassion for them. And I’m sure you’re making an impact as well. Your presence is positively impacting your family, friends, and co-workers.
Don’t seek to be important. Seek to impact the world through love. We may never know our impact on someone’s life, but we can rest assured that God knows and will reward us accordingly.
Until next time,
~Aretha
Until next time,
~Aretha
PS: Here are the links to the social media posts I made over the past week. Enjoy!
