This may sound drippy, but have you ever sat down and thought about your impact on the lives of others? In the movie It's a Wonderful Life — one of my favorites I refer to often — we see the story of George Bailey, who through a series of events comes to see how incredibly vital he is to those around him.

We don't have an opportunity to go through town with an angel, showing us what life would be like without us. Instead we see through the glass darkly, as Paul says in I Corinthians 13. Yet even though we can't see it all, we do have God's promises, and story after story in Scripture of those who changed history by simply following God.

When we read these stories let's keep in mind that David was not "David" when he was out in the fields with the sheep. He wasn't out there thinking, "Well, this is the tough part of life, but one day the books of Samuel will chronicle my life for everyone to see." And Moses — when he faced down Pharaoh — had certainly heard from God but could not say, "Wow, Exodus is going to be a great book when this story hits the press." Moving to the New Testament, what about Peter? When he was denying the Lord, he wasn't thinking about how his would be a grand story of redemption. Peter was frightened and he denied the Lord rather than risk his life, not knowing whether he had any future at all. Later he would preach one of the most effective sermons of all time, in the Book of Acts. Even then, he had no idea of the impact of his life. Nor did Stephen, who died at the hands of his persecutors. Or Saul, who became Paul. They were all regular people loving and serving God in any way they could.

And that's us. We too are regular folks, doing what we believe are simple acts of faithfulness in a love relationship with our Leader, the Lord Jesus Christ. When times get tough, let's keep in mind that we have some great company. There won't be another Bible to chronicle our lives, but there is a cloud of witnesses (Heb. 12:1). And as we serve, they smile.

Letter reprinted by permission from LifeTrends. If you'd like to know more about the resources provided by LifeTrends that can be used to encourage your volunteers, educate your Board and reach your supporters, or if you're looking for a great speaker for your next banquet, contact Kirk Walden at kirk.walden@comcast.net or visit LifeTrends' web site at LifeTrendsOnline.com.

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