Impacting the World
posted in God-sightings |Without having clearly stated it, my 12-year old daughter, Britini, wants to use her life to make a difference.
Ever since she was a toddler she has looked out for the underdog, making friends and inviting them to play with her. As she has gotten older she has learned to take a stand and tell others, her friends included, that there is no need to call someone else names or put her down just because they disagree on an issue.
As much as she can at this age, Britini is even learning that sometimes doing the right thing may cause her heartache and cost her a friendship or two. But regardless, she is always on the lookout for ways to help others.
Recently her school was doing a fundraiser for the local Leukemia foundation. The students were instructed to bring in money from home (theirs or their parents). There were no knick-knacks, food stuffs or magazines to buy. Just the cash each family was generous enough to donate. My daughter decided that she and her friends would be more effective if they joined forces and rallied their neighbors.
So, on a particular Friday, Britini invited several friends from class over for a sleepover. Shortly after they all arrived and dropped off their bundles of “stuff” (tween girls have a lot of stuff) the girls grabbed Ziploc bags and a copy of the school flyer and headed out. They walked our entire neighborhood, some 200 homes, going door to door asking for spare change for the fundraiser. Within a few hours they had gathered over $160 – in coins!
Although the weight of those coins almost killed her, Britini was thrilled to carry them up 6 flights of stairs to her homeroom on Monday morning. Without even thinking much, my daughter had found a simple way to make a difference.
Wanting a more tangible way to serve, last summer Britini decided she would join a group of kids from church on a summer missions trip. This small group of middle and high school students took a week out of their summer plans to work with and serve an impoverished community in the mountains of West Virginia.
For one gentleman who couldn’t walk and hadn’t been out of his house in years these kids literally gave him renewed hope. The students spent days removing shoulder-high weeds and debris from his front and back yard talking to him through the darkened screen door whenever possible.
The man who had become a recluse and a social outcast managed to get dressed and meet the kids on his front porch a few days into their work. He talked with the kids, shared some of his invention ideas and cried in appreciation for what they had done. It was the first act of kindness this man had received in years.
This summer a larger group of kids from church, our daughter included, are flying to the Bahamas to serve in the same way. They will not be staying in a resort or enjoying the typical tourist attractions. Instead they will be working alongside locals to help finish construction projects, teaching young kids how to do arts and crafts during Vacation Bible School and providing support in any way they are asked. Each of the 22 students who are going are in grades 7-9 and they all want to serve.
These students are an encouragement and a reminder that anyone, regardless of our station in life, can make a difference for another person. We just have to be willing.
Are you willing? You don’t have to do something as dramatic as going to another country. You can serve right where you live. Volunteer at the local rescue mission, teach a class to seniors, take food to an animal shelter or read to students at a nearby elementary school. We ALL can make a difference and we ALL can leave this world making it brighter for just one person.
Find a way to make an impact today. If my 12-year old daughter can do it, so can you.