Today I want to talk to you about something important - impact. Impact what you ask? Not what but who. Who's life do you impact? Some people you know, some you would know if you thought about it and some you may never know this side of heaven but you do impact people's lives. The question is how do you impact them?
We have all had situations where we did something we regret and it might have impacted someone in a very negative way. While that is certainly unfortunate and we should all strive to avoid hurting people, I want to discuss how we impact people in a good way.
The first group of people we impact are people we impact their lives and we know it. I recently found out that a friend of mine was having a really bad day. I was able to do something for her that really cheered her up. It was really cool because I knew she was hurting and I got to help brighten her day. I also got to brighten two of her friends day at the same time. It was a really fun thing to do. So let me ask you, when was the last time you did something nice for someone? When did you do something for someone just because you wanted to do a nice thing without hope of any type of payment? Can you think of exactly what you did and when? If it was longer than a week ago, you are long over due to help someone. I apologize right now if this sounds like bragging. If you know my heart, you know I don't ever want to brag on myself. However, it is fun to be the person God uses to bless someone. I had one day last week where I was able to bless several people on the same day. It was really neat. I even had the opportunity to do something nice for someone today. That came with a huge payoff though. The smile on that person's face made the whole thing worth while.
The next group of people are ones that you can impact in a positive way if you will just look around and pay attention. I struggle with this group sometimes because I don't pay as much attention to others as I should. Now everything you do for someone doesn't have to be a big thing. Maybe its something small like seeing someone walking out of Starbucks with their hands full and opening the door for them. I did that today. Was it a big deal? No. Was it something nice for someone I didn't know? Sure.
See, we all know what our friends and family need. In many cases, because we are so close to that group, that we are intimately aware of what they need. When we get a chance to help, we should. But what about other people around us? What about the guy in the wheel chair struggling up a hill. I recently watched a guy go up a hill near my apartment. I should have helped him but I didn't. Look around you, there are people everywhere that need help, we just have to open our eyes and watch.
There is another group that we should pay close attention. Unfortunately, we will never know who this group is. Well, how can we pay attention to them if we don't know who they are? We can pay attention to how we treat people in general and the example we set. Whether you know it or not, people are watching you every day to see what kind of person you are. Do you help people or do you hurt people. Let me ask a question. If you were the only Jesus someone ever saw, what would they think of Him? That's a pretty sobering question and if you take it the wrong way, you can wind up in condemnation. I don't want you to go there. What if someone looked at the way you acted and said, "That person is just a great person. If that is what Jesus is all about, count me in?" That would be pretty cool huh.
Well, sometimes we can say a word of encouragement to someone and we will never know that they were encouraged. Not too long ago, I was talking to a close friend of mine who happens to be my banker. We were talking and he was telling me about a mutual friend of ours who now lives in Houston and is doing quite well. Apparently several years ago, I was sharing with our friend about tithing and how it changed my life. I learned that the true way to increase was to give. That doesn't make sense right? But it works. Anyway I don't even remember talking about this with our friend but apparently he was inspired by what I told him and started tithing himself. Now he is very successful and he told my banker friend that he remembered our conversation from several years ago even to this day. If I remember right, that pushed him over the top in the right direction.
So let me leave you with this. You impact people around you all the time everyday. It's up to you what you do with that opportunity. You have the ability to do something nice for someone that will bless them and encourage them.
In this life, making a million dollars isn't important, making a difference is.
That's the Opinion of the Minion
We have all had situations where we did something we regret and it might have impacted someone in a very negative way. While that is certainly unfortunate and we should all strive to avoid hurting people, I want to discuss how we impact people in a good way.
The first group of people we impact are people we impact their lives and we know it. I recently found out that a friend of mine was having a really bad day. I was able to do something for her that really cheered her up. It was really cool because I knew she was hurting and I got to help brighten her day. I also got to brighten two of her friends day at the same time. It was a really fun thing to do. So let me ask you, when was the last time you did something nice for someone? When did you do something for someone just because you wanted to do a nice thing without hope of any type of payment? Can you think of exactly what you did and when? If it was longer than a week ago, you are long over due to help someone. I apologize right now if this sounds like bragging. If you know my heart, you know I don't ever want to brag on myself. However, it is fun to be the person God uses to bless someone. I had one day last week where I was able to bless several people on the same day. It was really neat. I even had the opportunity to do something nice for someone today. That came with a huge payoff though. The smile on that person's face made the whole thing worth while.
The next group of people are ones that you can impact in a positive way if you will just look around and pay attention. I struggle with this group sometimes because I don't pay as much attention to others as I should. Now everything you do for someone doesn't have to be a big thing. Maybe its something small like seeing someone walking out of Starbucks with their hands full and opening the door for them. I did that today. Was it a big deal? No. Was it something nice for someone I didn't know? Sure.
See, we all know what our friends and family need. In many cases, because we are so close to that group, that we are intimately aware of what they need. When we get a chance to help, we should. But what about other people around us? What about the guy in the wheel chair struggling up a hill. I recently watched a guy go up a hill near my apartment. I should have helped him but I didn't. Look around you, there are people everywhere that need help, we just have to open our eyes and watch.
There is another group that we should pay close attention. Unfortunately, we will never know who this group is. Well, how can we pay attention to them if we don't know who they are? We can pay attention to how we treat people in general and the example we set. Whether you know it or not, people are watching you every day to see what kind of person you are. Do you help people or do you hurt people. Let me ask a question. If you were the only Jesus someone ever saw, what would they think of Him? That's a pretty sobering question and if you take it the wrong way, you can wind up in condemnation. I don't want you to go there. What if someone looked at the way you acted and said, "That person is just a great person. If that is what Jesus is all about, count me in?" That would be pretty cool huh.
Well, sometimes we can say a word of encouragement to someone and we will never know that they were encouraged. Not too long ago, I was talking to a close friend of mine who happens to be my banker. We were talking and he was telling me about a mutual friend of ours who now lives in Houston and is doing quite well. Apparently several years ago, I was sharing with our friend about tithing and how it changed my life. I learned that the true way to increase was to give. That doesn't make sense right? But it works. Anyway I don't even remember talking about this with our friend but apparently he was inspired by what I told him and started tithing himself. Now he is very successful and he told my banker friend that he remembered our conversation from several years ago even to this day. If I remember right, that pushed him over the top in the right direction.
So let me leave you with this. You impact people around you all the time everyday. It's up to you what you do with that opportunity. You have the ability to do something nice for someone that will bless them and encourage them.
In this life, making a million dollars isn't important, making a difference is.
That's the Opinion of the Minion
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