8.02.16
School’s almost here. A fresh start. The season of new friends and new clothes and new classes and new things is approaching, quickly.
We had a tough summer. We are crumbling, to say the least. This world has a growing crack that can only be filled with God’s love. So the question I have for you is, How are you going to change the world? And how can God help you help change the world?
Let me start by telling you a story. I did not write this story, but I heard it at one of my favorite places on this planet, summer camp. At our closing ceremony, one of the counselors stood up and told the story of The Boy and The Starfish:
Once upon a time, there was an old man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach every morning before he began his work. Early one morning, he was walking along the shore after a big storm had passed and found the vast beach littered with starfish as far as the eye could see, stretching in both directions.
Off in the distance, the old man noticed a small boy approaching. As the boy walked, he paused every so often and as he grew closer, the man could see that he was occasionally bending down to pick up an object and throw it into the sea. The boy came closer still and the man called out, “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”
The young boy paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean. The tide has washed them up onto the beach and they can’t return to the sea by themselves,” the youth replied. “When the sun gets high, they will die, unless I throw them back into the water.”
The old man replied, “But there must be tens of thousands of starfish on this beach. I’m afraid you won’t really be able to make much of a difference.”
The boy bent down, picked up yet another starfish and threw it as far as he could into the ocean. Then he turned, smiled and said, “It made a difference to that one!”
Changing the world is not about starting a charity or raising millions of dollars and giving away every cent. Don’t get me wrong, those are some incredible things that do change the world. But I’m not here to tell you how to do those things. Start with one person. Then watch. Watch how quickly God’s love can spread when you change one person’s world. Now, I’m not an expert at anything, but I do know what it feels like to have someone show a little love through a small act.
Love is ALL OVER THE BIBLE.
“Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” 1 Corinthians 13:7
Try this: find one person and show them God’s love. Go give someone a hug or give them a piece of candy or tell them they’re good at what they do. Just be nice! People aren’t looking for extravagant or crazy things. People want to be shown love. God loves you, go show other people His love! It’s awesome and feels awesome to make someone else feel awesome.
So go change the world. One starfish at a time.
-Delaney
Thanks to
for the story!
A Dose of Delaney 