One of my all time favorite movies, is It's a Wonderful Life. In it the lead character, played by Jimmy Stewart is in despair and attempts to commit suicide and a strange little man shows up and thwarts the suicide. The little man's name is Clarence, he is an angel who is trying to earn his wings. The movie depicts what would happen if Stewart's character had never been born. It is amazing how many lives were affected by his life. Being able to view how his life had helped so many others totally transformed Jimmy Stewart's character and Clarence got his wings!
So today I pray that as you consider your life in light of the questions below you too will be encouraged this day. God bless you all who read this, and please ask the Lord to help you answer the questions and try not to be so critical of yourself.
Do you have children? If you were never born, they would not have life. Consider your children's lives, and how they have blessed so many people beginning with their parents. Of course your grandchildren would not be here either, and only God knows how they would have blessed the world just by being alive and living their lives according to God's purpose for them! Be encouraged by your children and grandchildren, I am because they encourage me.
Have you ever shared Christ with another? Then you have a part in their salvation which has eternal ramifications! You were sowing the seed and Scripture says that some seed this is sown will yield a crop of one hundred fold. What if you shared Christ with the future Billy Graham? Or what if all of the hundred shared Christ with just one, but their one had a hundred fold return, think of the people that would be affected by your little involvement in kingdom work!
Have you ever prepared a meal for another that was in need? Have you ever visited someone in the hospital or in prison, or a nursing home? Have you ever given possessions or money to another in Jesus name? Have you ever shown kindness to a child, or love or provisions? Then you are blessed because Jesus sees and knows about every time and He even said it is as though you have done it unto Me.
Have you ever sponsored a youth to go on a mission trip, or church camp? Have you ever sent a card just to let someone know you care and that you reached out to encourage them. I'm talking an actual card that you put a stamp on and mail it via snail mail. So much more personal than tweets, text, Facebook or email. Have you given rides to people for medical appointments, or taken them to the grocery store or other errands?
Have you ever prayed for another and faithfully lifted them up to the Lord? Have you prayed for people and they didn't even know it? Have you ever prayed for total strangers? God knows who, what, where and when you prayed, every time! I believe when we are in heaven that we will know fully just as we have been fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12. And we will know who has prayed for us and they will know that we have prayed for them. Wow what a blessing that will be!
Are you a teacher? Okay let me define teacher, do you have influence over another person? In the home, in the workplace, in volunteer work, in church, in Sunday school, in cell groups, study groups, and yes; grade school, middle school, high school and college. I think that probably covers most of the human race and classifies them as teachers. If you teach truth, compassion for others, responsibility for one another, forgiveness, or scriptural values then you have touched another for good!
I could go on and on but this is a blog post not a novel. I pray that you were encouraged today on the value of a single life...yours! And I pray that this would be an encouragement to do even more for that is the affect it has had on me as I wrote it.
One last thing, who made a difference for good in your life? Let them know today, encourage them and thank them.
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