For some reason it was difficult to settle on a thought for the column today. As usual there were plenty of thoughts and ideas firing off in my head – too many really – but I couldn’t nail just one down. I am usually motivated enough about a particular matter to stay focused on it but this time that was just not the case. There are simply too many issues to be addressed too many problems that need solving.
So I started thinking about that issue of too many issues. I realized how overwhelmed when I tried to sort through the world’s injustices crises and everyday heartbreaks in an attempt to decide which to assert as most pressing. Naturally I ended up on Facebook if for no other reason than to divert my thoughts for a moment in some hope of clarity. Somehow that did it. Who knew Facebook really is good for something.
I don’t know if you’ve noticed those “25 Things…” of Facebook notes that people are writing lately. If someone tags you in their list of 25 of tidbits of personal information you’re supposed to write your own 25 then tag 25 more people and so forth. I personally don’t have time to participate but it is entertaining to read about what my friends post. It has actually turned out to be a rather inspiring way to waste time on Facebook.
Toward the end of her list one friend wrote that she prays God will bring people into her life for her to help that she feels helpless sometimes and wishes there were more she could do but doesn’t know where to start. I think this is a common sentiment for most people at least among those who desire to make a change in the world. There is so much to be done – where do I start?
It starts right where you are right now.
Five years ago you were looking forward to right now. You were planning imagining and wondering about what you would be doing this very instant. I’m not concerned with whether or not this is what you had pictured. Rather by the time you daydream away five more years then five more where will you be? Probably no closer to effecting change than you were before stuck in a cycle of non-action.
Changing the world we live in complete with its pain and problems starts immediately. There is no time for planning how you will change your corner of the world today. It is living radically as Jesus exemplified and as He challenges us to live; it is living and loving in a way that inspires even one person – in a manner that jars you out of the mundane normalcy of existence.
It is responding to situations with grace and giving others the benefit of the doubt that you desire to be given.
It is almost like we expect someone to stop us on the sidewalk sit down next to us on the shuttle or walk into our dorm room apartment classroom or office and say “I need you to invest in my life today. God sent me.” Obviously it isn’t that simple. Nonetheless what kind of opportunities are we waiting for? We have hundreds everyday.
Helping others truly loving and committing to them is generally not a glamorous endeavor. But it is also not something that you are intended to foresee from start to finish. The inspiration you provide someone with today will live on and later be cultivated by or shared with someone else – some may call it karma pay it forward providence or the hand of God. In any case it is about fulfilling your small role today. When combined with the efforts of others from all over completes the beautiful however imperfect masterwork of changing the world.