So, COTM just finished a series a few weeks ago about the question used for my title. "What are you doing Personally to Impact Someone's Life?" And I am going to be real with you, by the end of the series, I began to get frustrated every time I heard somebody say it. Not because I didn't like the question, but because I never had an answer for it. Because I am part of the staff at church, we would hear this question in our staff meetings, I would hear it in my volunteer meetings, and I heard it in the services. And I loved the premise of the question. I loved hearing people's stories about things that had happened in their lives as a result of using this question to guide their daily interactions. But still yet, I had no answer to this question. I began to get so discouraged. When I heard this question, I felt a sense of dread, rather than empowerment.
If you know me at all, you know that I desperately want to reach people for Christ. I began to wonder why I didn't have any fabulous stories to tell, even though I tried to be friendly and show God's love to people I encountered on a daily basis. Little did I know what God was working on behind the scenes.
For those of you who don't know, I teach seventh grade English. (And I LOVE it, in case you were wondering!!) Anyway, this week I was going back and reading some journal entries that my students have written since the beginning of the school year. There were some funny ones, some silly ones, and some thought-provoking ones. But then I came across one that stopped me in my tracks.
Some of you may be reading that and thinking, "So what? She said she likes you as her teacher. Big deal." But for me, it is a huge deal. It brought joy to my heart and tears to my eyes. I have a special desire in my heart to reach and bless young people, especially young girls. After reading this journal entry, I knew that God was helping me do just that! I was doing something to impact somebody's life and showing them God's love, I just didn't realize it while it was happening.
Remember my friend who asked about the blog? It turns out that the same thing happened with her. When she asked me why I hadn't written in a while, I realized that my blog posts were ministering to her. She enjoyed reading them and missed them when I didn't write them. (Now, whether she missed them because she liked them or because she liked to laugh at how awful they are, I haven't figured out yet!) This was another case where God was using me, without me realizing it. Man, I was so excited when God showed me this last night! I had been so frustrated with my lack of success with reaching people. And God showed me more than one way that He had used me as His vessel of love and encouragement.
So, for those of you who have found yourselves being bothered by the fact that you don't have an answer to this infamous question, don't grow weary in doing what is good! You may not see it yet or have any idea what's happening, but God is preparing your harvest. You may feel as though you are not doing anything to help or show God's love to others, but I promise you are. Don't give up just because you can't see the fruit yet. You may have no idea who you are affecting, but God will show you in His perfect timing.
