My dad sent me a copy of a sermon yesterday. He's done this before and while I always read them, I'm not necessarily always moved or inspired by them. This one got to me though. I'd just had a conversation a couple of weeks ago with a friend about people who "change the world" and how neither of us was particularly inspired to do this. Neither of us was quite sure how riding our bikes all the time was really changing anything.
So yesterday I got the sermon from dad's pastor, Stephen McConnell, and in the middle it said this:
Did you know that you have a way about you? For better or for worse, you have a way about you. And this way you have about you...tells people, whether you like it or not, what you think is most important. The things you say, the time you spend, the emails you write, the items you spend your money on, how you parent or don't parent, the way you relax- it all makes up your way. It's the one thing you cannot deny.
Did you you know that the thing that will most outlast you about yourself....is your way. Your way is the most lasting thing about you. For better or for worse. How you go about your life.
By your way you are making an indelible impression upon the lives that surround you.
So basically he's saying we all change the world, in some way. Sure there are people who affect thousands of lives all at once by donating money or serving food to the homeless, but is that any more important than quietly changing the life of one friend by picking them up when they're down? Or is it any more important than putting a smile on a stranger's face because you took the time to talk to them while you waited in line at the grocery store?
So, to that friend who wondered if riding his bike so much really helped him changed the world, consider this...... You once picked me up at the airport in the middle of the night. The next morning when you found me in bed feeling sorry for myself, you rolled me up in the covers, dumped my ass on the floor and made me get up and start the day. You once went mountain biking with me in the rain. When I insisted on trying the same corner over and over, you stood there in the rain encouraging me. Later when I pretty much pitched a fit because I never got the corner, you somehow convinced me to suck it up and get back on the bike. Your way has slowly worn off on me and become part of my way. Because of that, I'm a little bit tougher, a lot more focused and much happier.
Any of you reading this have probably affected me with your way as well. For that I have to say thank you.
Now go about your way and enjoy the day.....
