Making a difference. It’s what everyone wants to do. Wether its at school, in their workplace or in the world around them. But so many of us miss what it takes to really make a difference. What it takes to impact this world for God.
I believe that a true difference maker is somebody who denies themselves for the sake of another and in order to pursue God’s plan for their lives. God always works through those of us who are willing to follow Him no matter what the cost to our own personal plans and dreams.
Do you want to be a difference maker? Here are 3 quick things that it takes to make a difference in your world.
If you are going to make a difference, you must learn from your failures, and than leave those failures behind. Check out the story of the rich young ruler in Mark 10:17-22.
“As He was setting out on a journey, a man ran up to Him and knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments, ‘DO NOT MURDER, DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, DO NOT STEAL, DO NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS, Do not defraud, HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER.’” And he said to Him, “Teacher, I have kept all these things from my youth up.” Looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, “One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But at these words he was saddened, and he went away grieving, for he was one who owned much property”
What I want to draw out this story is not the fact that he walked away. Its that we don’t know how this story ends. You see, the rich young ruler failed that day. Jesus gave him a choice to make, and he chose poorly. But it didn’t mean that it was the end for him. The thing we need to learn from this is that failure is never final. And even more important than the failure, is how we react to that failure. We only fail when we fall and don’t get back up. The rich young ruler could have turned around at any point and embraced what Jesus told him to do and all would have been good. God is never more than a step away from us, and His hand is always outstretched to help us back up and to move on.
If you are going to make a difference, you must have a Biblical world view. Ever been trapped in an airport or busy hallway, being forced to move with the crowd? It’s a lot easier to just follow along with them than to move the other way. But God is calling us to something greater than we could ever be by ourselves. Our movements must be an eternal investment. We invest our money in missions. We invest our time in helping others. And we invest our prayers interceding for friends and loved ones. When we start to invest these 3 things in something that is bigger than ourselves, only than do we begin to understand the purpose and meaning of our lives. God created you with the purpose of living a life of purpose. Nobody is an accident. We were all put here to do extraordinary things for Christ. And we don’t have to be the most talented, awesome, outgoing person to do these things. God works through us to accomplish them. Look at who God used in the Bible. Noah was a drunk, Abraham was a liar, Moses was a murder, and the list goes on and on. You don’t have to be perfect to be used of God, just faithful.
If you are going to make a difference in the world, you must ask God to change your own world first. We hear all the time people say “take up your cross”, and it has a general meaning, but honestly it means something different to everyone. Here is what it means to me: taking my plans, my dreams, my hopes, my future and my finances. I put all of those things away, and follow God’s plan and live my life the way Jesus would want me to. That is pretty heavy stuff to think about. But we can’t even hope to change our world until we allow God to change us first. Only than will we have the capacity and the compassion to see people how God sees them and care as much for their eternal destinations as we do for their earthly needs. That means we stop living life for ourselves, and start living it for God.
Think about the people in your life. Your friends, teachers, coworkers, family and even the people you pass by everyday. Who might God be sending you too? Who’s world is God asking you to change? If you stop and think about it, your mission field is always right in front of you. You don’t have to get on a plane, you just have to walk out your front door. The world you need to reach is right here, right now. The question is are your willing to move past your fears and your failures and start making a difference right now? In Acts 1:8 Jesus tells the disciples that they will be His witnesses “to the ends of the earth.”. I am here to tell you that the ends of the earth start at your doorstep. Live a life of purpose and make a difference in the world around you.
Resonant Love 