Change People’s Lives, One Small Action At A Time

It was an early Thursday morning, and a man I love and respect was with me that day. He had invited me for breakfast, so I had to say yes. He took me to eat at a nice restaurant called Cracker Barrel, our favorite place to eat. Before going out, I hadn’t told him all the things that I was going through, but he just had that way of knowing that I was hurt. 

He didn’t know that I was arguing with my parents, I wasn’t where I needed to be with God, and that I was struggling with the money that I had and could not afford to go on a trip to Winterfest, which I wanted to attend. He had no idea that school was stressing me out, and I could not handle all the schoolwork from my AP classes; I had sports, and I was working a full-time job. 

At the moment that we were sitting at the restaurant, he was just showing me love, not realizing what he would do for me that day would change my life. 

He sat there, being patient as I told him stories and talked with him about my future and what I had hoped to accomplish. We began to wrap up our conversations and decided it was time to continue our day. We left the restaurant and were heading back to the hotel that he was staying at, but before he did that, he had to make a stop at the bank. 

Cluelessly I just sat there, still talking to him, and then out of nowhere he handed me the money that I needed to pay for my Winterfest trip. I was in complete awe with what he just did for me. Nobody has ever, even on a random occasion, handed me over money like that. I was silent; the words “thank you” were robbed from my mouth. I struggled to understand why someone would do something like that for someone they barely knew.

This story brings me back to when Jesus was changing people’s lives with one small action at a time. It is too bad that we don’t get to hear more of what Jesus did in his lifetime, but I’m sure that the same thing that man did for me was the same type of things Jesus did for His people. Imagine all the lives Jesus touched, and all the “awe” moments they had when they were with Him.

An example of Jesus changing someone’s life in an instant would be Zacchaeus. He is a perfect example of how, in a moment, he changed the way he behaved and returned everything back to whomever, and some more. 

To follow Christ, you are not only turning away from sin and living for Him. You are also called to try and live life by Him by doing what He did. He loved on us, listened to us, and didn’t condemn us; instead He showed me the same love Harold showed me that day. 

From that experience, I know from just showing love the way he and Jesus did can change someone’s life. I know now that I simply need to be there for someone with open ears and an open heart.

 An interaction with someone living that example is just as important as a one-on-one interaction with Christ.

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