This past week has been a busy, bittersweet one for me as the time came for my youngest child to embark on the next chapter of his life~~the exciting, for him, College Bound years! New opportunities, new people to meet, new things to experience await my son.
His siblings are currently out of the house as well so this transition will be a little harder as my husband and I adjust to the empty nest; a much quieter house than we have been accustomed to for over 25 years.
Through a few series of events that occurred on his last official day at home, I got to thinking about the theme of “influences.”
Think about it. There are so many influences in our lives especially these days where there is such easy access to the internet with everything being at our finger tips. Social media of all kinds and texting capability to get instant contact with someone even if they are half way across the world are great influences in our lives.
Aren’t there so many influences in our lives that can be negative? There are addictions of several kinds from drugs to alcohol to hoarding to eating excessively. The world will tell us that we should be chasing money and fame; that it is okay to lie and cheat to make it to the top. That we need to be the best at everything we do, that climbing the corporate ladder is what is most important.
What good influences are in our lives? Those people who encourage us when we’re going through a tough time, those that lift us up in prayer without us even asking, those who send a friendly note to say they are thinking of us. Maybe good Christian music that ministers to your soul, sermons that speak to your heart.
Isn’t that pretty awesome to think about? We might not know until we get to heaven and all is revealed!
How powerful every little thing we do is knowing that it can influence someone or something!
Wanting to make my son’s last evening at home as special as it could be, and of course, before he officially started packing all of his belongings, I thought it would be nice to take him to one of his favorite restaurants….Texas Roadhouse.
A few nights before, I was talking with a friend of mine, whose first grandchild was in the same boat as my son leaving for college for the first time, when she mentioned her and her husband would be going the last night to the grandchild’s house to pray before she headed out.
I thought, oh what a wonderful idea! Knowing that my son has grown in his relationship with the Lord because of the influence of two Young Life leaders he has gotten to know the past year, I thought it might be a nice idea to invite them to dinner with us and then see if it would lead to praying with my son after dinner. The guys were available for dinner and we had a wonderful meal sharing good food, talks and laughs. After walking outside the restaurant we asked the guys if we could pray with my son.
My husband started off the prayer and the two guys were kind enough to join in. Me, well, my prayer was letting out some tears! 😉 It was a treasured moment with precious heart-felt love that I am sure blessed my son and hopefully a time he won’t forget. I remind him often of the many people God has put in his life that love and care for him! My son then left to play some basketball with the two fellows followed by a Bible Study.
Earlier in the afternoon, my son, after finishing his first college homework assignment that is due his first day of classes, brought out a phone book to see if he could find the phone number of a monitor at school that he knew. As I hear him talking to her on the phone, he was inviting her to dinner with us that night! She was busy at that time so he gave her his phone number and said to call if she could go out for ice cream later. I thought it was so special that he wanted to see her one more time before he headed to college. I asked my son if I could come and meet her if they ended up meeting; he said sure.
My son had told me a little about her sometime during his senior year of high school. In fact, I learned then he would actually stay later at school than he needed to in order to talk with her. He ended up being able to confide in her and not be judged. During the year, I had learned from him that she was a Christian and would tell him that she was praying for my son.
As a mom that really touched me. I asked my son if he thought she used the internet as I was going to share my website with her. He ended up saying no, he did not think so at which time I had my son give her a book of thoughts I had penned years earlier. I ended up writing a little note to her on the inside of that telling her how I appreciated her listening to and praying for my son.
++++++++++++
We found out later it truly was a “God thing” that she happened to be home and answered the phone that afternoon as she had just gotten a new phone since family members alerted her to the fact that her old phone stopped working. She was so happy to hear his voice and said she would see if they could meet up later in the evening. My son said he would leave the Bible Study if she happened to call. Sure enough that is what happened. They were going to meet a local ice cream store. I told him I would come a bit later so they had some time to visit first. I really wanted to meet her and thank her in person for the influence she has had in son’s life.
It truly was a joy to meet this woman, who is actually going to turn 75 soon! It was special listening to her wisdom and the encouragement she offered my son. After closing down the ice cream shop, we all exchanged hugs and she prayed over my son too. She ended with saying “Peace be with you.” I was really sad when it was too late and I realized we didn’t think of taking a picture of her and my son. Hopefully they will meet up again at one of my son’s college breaks and we can rectify that. 🙂
Thinking about these two interactions in one evening really made me think about the influence we have in others’ lives.
What a special thing influence is!
Each of our lives has that possibility at any time throughout the day; in fact each and every day!
I know my son getting to know these two young men who willingly give of their time to share the light of Christ with others has strengthened my son’s relationship with the Lord. How wonderful it is that there are people who love the Lord that want to influence others’ lives in this way; giving of themselves, despite the struggles they might be going through, to influence others in a positive way.
This school monitor, in listening to my son and taking it upon herself to pray for him has had such an influence in my son’s life. In fact, while I was there she told my son that he was the first person she prays for each day after praying for her family members. How very special is that? We might not know the influence those prayers and the encouragement she has offered has had on the direction of events in my son’s life until we get to heaven!
She pointed out to my son that he has always known love where some people have not been blessed to know that. Yes, my son is surrounded by the influence of love; love from God, love from his family, love from the many special people God has put in his life. She also mentioned how the simple hand written note I inscribed in her booklet had an influence on her life; how much she appreciated that simple act.
This week, I, too, experienced the influence of others in my life. Yes, those people that cared enough to understand what I was going through in letting go…letting my son fly to this next milestone in his life. I can think of at least four people who texted me and encouraged me, letting me know they were praying for my son and me. I am thankful and blessed!
The funny part is we might not fully know the answer to either of these questions until we get to heaven and everything is revealed!
How many times do we pray for people and they don’t even know it? God certainly knows though and I am sure He smiles when we do that!
We can pray for someone or something where the outcome comes out different than it would have because of our prayers! The influence prayers might have in our life that we don’t even know about!
What a powerful influence!
I encourage you to think about the things you do….
the influence you might have in someone’s life….
treat life with respect,
treat everyone you meet with respect….
Go change the world with your influence!
Let us be concerned for one another, to help one another to show love and to do good. Let us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are doing. Instead, let us encourage one another all the more, since you see that the Day of the Lord is coming nearer. –Hebrews 10:24-25 (GNT)
Don’t let anyone make fun of you, just because you are young. Set an example for other followers by what you say and do, as well as by your love, faith, and purity. –1 Timothy 4:12 (CEV)
Wonderful, touching post! What a great reminder of how even the little things we do influence others. And how wonderful that your son has all these great mentors in his life.
Thank you so much for taking time to read and comment, Shari! I do think it is neat how even the little things we do ends up influencing others—the never ending ripple effect of God’s goodness! Blessings to you and your family~~I hope all is well!
1.) Influence to me: Jesus Christ -from detailed study and Gospels -> the realization of how he lived his life, how his ministry was so amazing, how he finished his Sedor Supper dying on the Cross, and how painful his punishment and crucifixion was.
2.) Who did I influence: This one touched me the most ->I was thanked by a very active parishioner for saving them from leaving the Catholic Church when our Diocese began dealing with the Sexual Abuse Cases. I was told that it was how I reported what I heard in Syracuse in a Diocesan Pastoral Council meeting directly from then Bishop Cunningham. I spoke of how he was addressing every case individually, talked to each victim and family, and removed Clergy from their duties. To this day I cannot understand what I really said, or why it happened.
Lou: Thank you so much for taking time to read, reflect and share in helping me end this post! 🙂 I love what influence means to you~~Great truth! Jesus sure is the greatest influence in our lives; what a great reminder. It sounds like you were a great blessing and influence in that person’s life…it was the Holy Spirit working through you for sure guiding you! How powerful! Blessings to you and your family~
What an awesome post! When I think of who has influenced me greatly I think of several persons – all women from church who I have admired for their dedication to Christ and to others despite their own personal trials.
Thank you for sharing those powerful influences, Sandy! It is very special that you have those people in your life to help influence and inspire you. I appreciate you reading and sharing to help finish this post. Blessings to you~
First off, I pray that the God of all comfort will grant you and your husband the deepest measure of comfort as you go through this challenging time.
Reading this post brings back so many good memories. Ironically, I can relate with your son’s experience, because I too had an older woman who was a monitor in my high school. Her and I would always talk about the Lord after I got saved. Indeed there can be significant influence that affects our lives in a positive way.
As you already stated, there are so many things at our fingertips; whether on the internet, television or even in music. Let’s remember this truth in scripture: “the enemy is called the prince of the power of the air.” Think about it. There are air waves in television and sound waves in music. These both are in the “air”. On a personal note, I’m convinced that it’s not possible to watch any television without some sort of subliminal message attempting to reel me into buying into the lie, falling for the hype and then following it to the wayside.
And part of my testimony is that I was doing exactly that. Thankfully, God got a hold of me and helped me walk away from that lifestyle.
The real problem that we face today is that our media, advertising, television and everything else is promoting what is evil and calling it good. This is quite troubling to be honest. But, the bible clearly warns about this. We live in a society now where the love is really starting to show itself as cold. So much more can be said about all of this. (On a side note, the Lord gave me a book title, so plenty more to come.)
It’s like you said; influence is critical, especially positive and Godly influence. Influence is that which goes within us. It can either build us up or tear us down. Society unfortunately has a lot of mixed messages which is the main reason why a lot of people are walking around confused, among other things.
I like what your friend said earlier about Christ being their best influence. He’s the influence that transforms us into being better people. Anything this world has to offer as far as influence goes cannot, will not and does not have the longevity to create everlasting fulfillment and abundant life. Those can ONLY BE FOUND IN CHRIST. Jesus offers the AUTHENTIC; this world offers the ARTIFICIAL.
I certainly want and will place my value in more of the GENUINE AND REAL LIFE that can only be found in Christ. Anything else of this world’s values is imitation and really fake.
Closing thoughts: God creates; the enemy crafts. God gives us the created as a free gift; the enemy takes the created and crafts it with a hefty price. God will never give us anything that will harm us; the enemy doesn’t really give anything without a stipulation. Jesus said: “Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.” Matthew 16:25. Verse 26 continues: “What will it profit a man of he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can man give in exchange for his soul?”
There is absolutely nothing temporal, materialistic or of earthly worth that can measure the value of life that Christ holds for all eternity.
Be blessed. By the way, I wanted to say thank you for being an amazing Godly influence in my life. It’s such an awesome blessing to see how God speaks to you and allows you to put things into writing. May He continue to pour into you His springs of life, so that in turn you can be poured out to overflowing into the lives of others. All to the glory of His name! It’s pretty evident that He is your Shepherd. Continue to follow His lead.
Wow, Christopher, how very cool to hear that you too had a monitor who helped influence your life! We just never know who the Lord will put in our path to influence us especially in growing closer to Him. The thoughts and Biblical truth you share are so on point and they help me see more depth in our relationship with the Lord. Your prayers and words of encouragement are a true blessing to my soul for which I am so thankful! Thank you for speaking life into me. I can’t wait to hear more about your future book!! How exciting~ Continued blessings on you as you take one day at a time walking with Him!
How exciting for you all!!
Thanks for this post. Most people forget they influence those around them…..good or bad. It’s true.
Thanks for how you inspire and influence me and so many for good!
Marie
@spreadingJOY
How wonderful to hear from you, Marie! It is hard to fathom the time has flown by so that we are at the empty nester stage of life! I still feel 23 so I guess it’s all good! 😉 Thank you for reading and sharing as well as your kind words. Just this week I was reminiscing about the Blogger Care Group—a tool God used to influence, inspire and bless me! (Thinking in reference to my next post. Hope you’ll check it out later tonight! ;)) Blessings to you and your family~
We have had the great honor and privilege to influence Caleb and other young people to pursue God with all their heart and cheer them on as they run their race. I have influence the men and women around me at church but they have have certainly influenced me as well. Even as one cell in the body works with and supports the cells around it, so it has been for me. I have been greatly influenced by the words and character of my former pastor, Bruce Plummer, plus visiting speakers, prophetic words spoken over me,my husband and at times, the children God placed in my life. But the greatest influence, as your friend said, was the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself. His word, His life, His death, His resurrection, His suffering for MY sin and His faithful love that I can see woven in my life since I was born make want to be like Him, not only in my actions but in my heart.
Thank you for being a special influence and mentor in Caleb’s life~~I am so grateful for you all and the many kindnesses you share to bless him and us! How nice to hear of the special people who have influenced your life that God has put in your path. I know you are doing the same for so many in a great way! I like your “cell” analogy which is so perfect. And thank you for the reminder of the greatest influencer in our lives…Amen!