Do we really understand the impact?

One of my favorite things to do is to go to Mardels and look through all of the books on the Super Bargain racks. Ya, go ahead and say it, "Terry, you need to get out more and "live" a little", and I say to you (Jeff Berg)....."don't judge me":) Last weekend, I was able to go to Mardels. I like to look for non-fiction books that are going to help me grow in my Christian walk, help me to grow as a disciple of Christ, help me to be a better parent, a better man, a better Pastor, husband, etc. In my quest, I came across a book, for $3 I might add, called "When Worlds Collide: Stepping Up and Standing Out in an Anti-God Culture". It is written by Mike and Daniel Blackaby. If you recognize the last name, yes, these are the grandsons of Henry Blackaby, author of "Experiencing God". So, I had a few minutes the other day to pick it up and read the Foreword. It was so good I wanted to share it with you. I edited some of it to help get to the point.

"In the middle of the nineteenth century, in a small church in Boston, MA, a Sunday school teacher named Edward Kimball had a burden to reach people for Jesus Christ. One day Kimball decided to share his hope in Jesus with one of his students. That day Kimball led Dwight Lyman Moody to the Lord. Moody became one of America's all time greatest preachers. He preached revivals across America and Europe. Moody befriended another America evangelist named Wilbur Chapman. Occasionally, Chapman would take along apprentices in order to mentor them. One of those apprentices was a man named Billy Sunday, a former professional baseball player. Billy Sunday became a prominent revivalist in America. In 1924, Billy Sunday had such an influence in Charlotte, NC, that the local businessmen started the Billy Sunday Layman's Evangelistic Club. These men wanted God to bring revival back to their city. In 1934, these local businessmen asked Mordecai Ham to hold a revival in their city. During that meeting a young man named Grady Wilson came to know Christ. Wilson was so moved to see his friends come to know Christ he invited them to come the following nights. One night his good friend Billy Frank came with him to the revival and accepted Christ. Billy Frank would go on to be known to the world as Billy Graham. Billy Graham has been used by God to preach to more people than anyone else in the history of the world" This Foreword was written by Will Graham, grandson of Billy Graham.

Do we really understand the impact we could have on our children, our friends, our co-workers? What God has in store for them we may never know. Maybe they will become an Edward Kimball or a Grady Wilson? or maybe a DL Moody, a Wilbur Chapman, a Mordecai Ham or even the next Billy Graham? Yes, God can and does use a Sunday school teacher, a revivalist, an ex-pro baseball player, local businessmen, etc. But that process begins in the home first. What do you think Edward Kimball's parents' role was in his life? Discipleship is who you are becoming-"BE". Let's "BE" discipl-ers, don't miss out on the impact you "could be" making in your home first and then your extended family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, students, and to the ends of the earth:)


Terry Langenberg
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