My wife and I sat in the Sunday morning service in Vienna Christian Center (2008), listening to our Pastor. He told of a man who spent the last few years as a member of our congregation and was about to leave because of his job. He attended service regularly and was part of a home Bible study group, but not much else. The man had a lot of potential but was about to leave without having accomplished much in the Church. I soon realized he was talking about me.
I could tell you about my busy work schedule and how hard it was to drive across Vienna at night. Perhaps the lifelong friends we made in our Bible study group might impress you, but he was right about the Church. I always thought of myself as “passing through” and I should leave the ministry to those who would stay. That was long ago and I still haven’t done much in the Churches we have been a part of. I hope to change, but I regret missing so many opportunities to make a difference in someone’s life.
I saw a story on the internet that a man spent ten years shaping his hedge to look like a dragon. His hard work gained him a bit of notoriety, but was it worth 10 years of his life? Were all those years wasted? Maybe the hard work was good exercise, or the attention brought him closer to his neighbors? The article does not elaborate, but I hope his life made more of a difference than just a hedge shaped like a dragon.
Richard Dunn is one life to consider. He pastored Churches in the US and then served as a Missionary in some of the most troubled parts of Africa. He worked in Europe to create Christian programming for other mission fields, and he led our international congregation in Belgium. I saw him baptize many former Muslims and heard testimonies of other lives that were changed under his ministry. Only GOD knows how many people will spend eternity in Heaven, because of what he did with his life. He is past retirement age and back in the US but is still one life that is making a difference.
Billy Moore is the Pastor of a small Church in La Vernia, Texas that you might miss if you blink while speeding along Highway 87. Pastor Moore doesn’t have a theological degree but was miraculously saved in his 40s and was called to preach while still a “babe in CHRIST” himself. How could he really make a difference? If you are one of the lost that found JESUS in that little Church, he made a world of difference to you. If you or your loved ones were healed or raised from the dead when Pastor Moore prayed, he is very important. Perhaps one of the students that attended the Christian school he runs will make a bigger difference? Less apparent might be the other Churches and ministries that exist because he answered the call and made a difference.
I know two other lives that made the ultimate difference. “GOD so loved the world, He gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him might not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). GOD gave and JESUS obeyed. They will make a difference in your life and in your eternity, if you believe.
Wayne Lance (2016) – That’s Good News to Share!