You Can Change The World

Mother Teresa is quoted as saying: “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” When put that way, the task of changing the world is not as daunting a task as you might think. Most of us can accept the challenge to cast that first stone. Now when I say change the world, I am not talking about something you do one time that affects every human being. I am describing something a person can do that changes a life or situation with long lasting effects.

• Mentoring: I am currently mentoring two Christian men who want to improve their walk with the Lord. As we study the scriptures together, I am able to share the bumps on my road, which have brought me closer to God. My goal is that as they grow in the knowledge of the Lord, they will become mentors to other men who also want a deeper understanding of God.

• Evangelizing and Discipling One Person a Year: Here is one that will absolutely amaze you. Let’s say a person commits to leading one person to the Lord and discipling them for one year. At the end of the year, they each commit to leading another person to the Lord and discipling them for a year. So now, at the end of the second year, you will have four committed believers. If this process keeps going with all participants pledging to continue evangelizing and discipling, in 32 years all 7 billion people on the planet can become believers. That first person who started the process only touched 32 lives in those 32 years, something that is very doable.

• Sponsoring a Child: There are many organizations like Compassion International where for $38 per month you can provide life changing opportunities for a child to attend school, life saving medical care, nourishing food, and hearing the gospel. Many children who have benefited from this program, are now responsible, fulfilled Christian adults.

• Becoming Foster Parents: Bridget Seeley is a woman that my wife and I have known since she was a little girl. She and her husband Bret are a Christian couple who have chosen to be foster parents. Here, in her own words is what choosing to be foster parents can look like: “We had 2 brothers that lived with us for 8 months. They were a bit sickly so we were able to get them the care they needed to get healthy. Their mama was angry and upset that they had been taken. We reached out to her immediately and told her we were going to take care of her boys while she did what she needed to do to get them back. It took awhile, but she learned to trust us. We included her and her husband in everything we did with the boys. I’ll never forget when she came to watch her boys play baseball for the first time, and the huge smile that formed on her face when her 6 year old hit the ball and ran to first base! We all cheered together! Over time she let me tell her about Jesus and how much he loved her. We celebrated with her when she got clean and got a full time job! When those 8 months were up and it was time for the boys to go home, she gave me a huge hug. I was shocked because she was not an emotionally open person nor had she ever thanked me for housing her boys, but that hug was her thank you without ever saying the word. It was then I knew that our purpose for fostering had changed from wanting to adopt to wanting to see families healed, restored, and reunited.”

• The 5% Solution: Whatever profession you are in, donate 2 hours a week, or 5% of your 40-hour work week to help people in need of your gifting. If you are a dentist, give an extra 2 hours a week to help people who can’t afford your services. If you work in construction, volunteer with an organization like Habitat for Humanity to help build affordable housing for deserving families. Think of the possibilities of giving home ownership to people who desperately need a place to live. It doesn’t matter what work you do, we can all participate.

• Decide to Engage: In the film, Every Three Second, tells the unforgettable stories of five regular folks – a boy, a college student, a thirty-something and two seniors – whose lives went from ordinary to extraordinary based on one simple decision: to engage. Each chose action over apathy, and in the process, each one has had a significant and lasting impact on two of the most challenging, yet solvable, issues of our time: hunger and extreme poverty. https://www.firstrunfeatures.com/everythreeseconds.html

• Targeted Prayer: One powerful example of targeted prayer is the Hebrides Revival. In the mid twentieth century, two women in their 80’s, one of them blind, were greatly burdened because not a single young person attended their church. They decided to spend time on their knees in prayer twice a week. They had a vision that the church was packed with young people. They sent for the parish minister to call his office bearers to join them for prayer. As a result, the power of God swept into the parish and an awareness of God gripped the community such as hadn't been known for over 100 years. People walked out of bars, dance halls and homes and came to the church not knowing why they felt compelled to come. Other people were just walking in the area, when suddenly they fell on their knees, began to weep and gave their lives to the Lord. This all began because two elderly women prayed earnestly that God would visit their region.

I believe I have only scratched the surface. Maybe you have some additional thoughts on how the world can be changed. Don’t think you have to be in some leadership or influential position to make a difference. Don’t settle. Don’t say it can’t be done. It only takes two things to start: prayer and obedience. Are you willing? Are you open to God? Begin today and see what happens.