Make a difference in the lives of other people

One of the most important things anyone can do is to make a positive difference in the life of another person. All around us are people who are hurting. They be struggling with illnesses, relationship issues, financial pressures, employment concerns, or some crisis we know nothing about. Chances are they feel at times that no one cares. Sometimes, all it takes is one person to make a positive difference in a person's life. Why shouldn't that person be you?

There are many ways you can make a difference in someone's life. It doesn't take a million dollars or some supernatural ability. Sometimes all you have to do is listen. A few years ago I was called to the home of an individual to look at some items she wanted me to sell for her at auction. After we talked for a few minutes she began to tell me how her life was unraveling. Her fiance has recently died, and she was struggling with an illness herself. As she began to tell me all the bad things that was going on in her life the tears were running down her face. I explained that I was a retired pastor and asked if I could pray for her. She agreed, and after I prayed I asked if she had a church home. I knew many of the churches in that area, and when she responded she did not attend a church I was able to recommend a couple I knew could help her. Her spirits lifted simply because some cared enough to listen to her pain.

Another thing you can do is to stand up for someone going through a rough time. When Jackie Robinson became the first African-American player to play in the Major Leagues he encountered a lot of hatred. Some opposing teams threatened to not play if he was on the field. Even some of his own teammates threatened they would refuse to play as long as he was on the team. Fans in the stands hurled the worst racial comments towards him they could think of. One game was exceptionally hateful when Pee Wee Reese walked over to Robinson and stood beside him with his arms around his shoulders. Reese was highly respected in MLB, and his act of friendship soon quieted the crowd. Sometimes we can make a difference just by being a friend and letting the other person know they are not alone in their battle.

A third way we can make a difference in someone's life is to share what we know. I have spent a lifetime promoting and writing about bivocational ministry. My doctoral thesis was on the subject. Every year I get one or two calls from grad students who are writing their dissertations on bivocational ministry, and they are calling to ask me some questions. I love being able to help them because I know that not only are they being helped, but their research and writing will help others down the line.

The final thing I'll mention is to stay positive. Too many people look for the negative in others when we should be looking for the positive. Sometimes a person makes a mistake and people are quick to jump on the negative bandwagon. No one's life should be evaluated for their worst moments. If you look for the good you'll find it in most people. When they get down on themselves for their mistakes you can remind them of all the good qualities that are in their lives. Believe me, it will make a difference.

I encourage you to look for those people who needs encouragement, who needs someone to remind them of their potential. Take these steps and you'll make a difference in their lives.

Choose to make a difference

King Duncan once wrote, “The Law of Influence says that we are making a difference – every day in hundreds of different ways – for better or for worse.”  He was right. Nearly every day we are doing something, either in our lives or in the lives of others, that make a difference. Hopefully, that difference is positive, not negative. We might not be aware we are making a difference. We may not even be aware that anyone is watching, but they are, and what they see influences them.

When I think of people who influenced me I have to think of my parents. I grew up the oldest of five children on dairy farms. I was driving tractors before my feet could even reach the brakes. I had to stand up to step on the brake. I was driving standard-shift pickup trucks in the field by the time I was nine or ten. I learned there was nothing wrong with hard work and making an honest living. I learned that neighbors helped neighbors. I learned that there was a time when a handshake meant more than contracts in triplicate. When my Mother became ill after a stroke I saw first-hand what marital commitment was by watching my Dad care for her for years. Much of what I am today is due to the lessons I learned from my parents.

Before I became a Christian I worked with a group of men on the assembly line who were not like most Christians I had known. During breaks and lunch they would study their Bibles together and talk about church and related things. I'll just say that was not how I spent my breaks and lunch and let it go at that. One day life began to close in around me. It was to these individuals I turned asking for help, and in time I became a Christian. Before that I doubt they knew how closely I had been watching them. What I saw convinced me I wanted what they had. They made a difference in my life.

My first pastor as an adult is the first person who asked me if I had ever thought God might be calling me into the ministry. I had, but I hadn't told anyone. Knowing how much I enjoyed reading and studying, one day he gave me a key to his church study and told me to use any time I wanted. Talk about an impact! He made a difference in my life.

For 53 years my wife and I have been married. A dozen books could not contain all the ways she has made a difference in my life over the years. She has shown me so much support and offered so much forgiveness that I couldn't begin to list the times. She has made an incredible difference in my life.

I have found that it is in the small things that we often make the biggest difference. We sometimes think that if we were wealthy or more influential we could have a greater impact, but we don't have to wait. Sometimes just to be willing to listen to someone is enough to make a difference in their lives. My wife has a passion for a particular charity and often said she wished we had the means to support it. One day it hit me; we could begin to support it with what we had. No one will ever name a building after us, but our regular small gifts can make a difference when they are added to the small gifts of others. Begin where you are, and you will make a difference.

I hope I've made a difference in people's lives. I think when we reach the end of our lives the only two things that will really matter is our decision to accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and the impact we've had on the lives of other people. Not many will talk about our wealth or position in life, but they will talk about how our life touched their lives. I pray that my life will have positively touched the lives of others.

Let me close with a funny story. A few weeks ago someone asked on Facebook who people checked to see if they were still around if they were ever afraid they had missed the rapture. A Facebook friend of mine responded that as a child, if he thought he had missed the rapture, he would sneak over to his neighbor's house, MINE, and peek in the living room window to see if I was there! I never knew that! I had to laugh when I read that, but at the same time I was deeply touched knowing that someone was watching me and my life was a witness to that individual.

You will make a difference in the lives of other people, either a positive one or a negative one. I encourage you to make the choice to make a positive difference on the lives of other people.