Just the other day someone put a meme on my Facebook page
that showed a picture of a baby boy and it said “Why is it so important for me
to remember that cows say moo?” She commented something about wondering if this
is what (a) feels like. It made me giggle,
but I also quickly had the thought to myself… “Well of course he knows why, he’s
a cowman in training!” My parents and
sisters raise beef cattle for a living and (a) LOVES to be on the farm around
the livestock. He will tell us “do
chores” and frantically starts “mooing” as soon as he sees the cows. This makes sense to him because it is in his
circle of influence. That circle is
something I often take for granted when I realize there are many other kids his
age who are terrified of large farm animals or have no idea about them except
the fact that the cow arbitrarily says “moo.”
He lives his life based on the
influence we have surrounded him with and he is quite happy with that.
In the last week, I have had several reminders about the
power of influence, and the importance of being intentional with my words and
actions. As we headed to church camp (A)
and I had a conversation about the flavor of our attitudes throughout the week
and the influence it would have on others.
We made a pact that even if the schedule was running frustratingly
behind, the weather was crazy hot, or something wasn’t working as smoothly as
we planned no matter what we were
going to remain positive. As leaders of
a team, our attitude would influence the entire group. I wish I could say we did this perfectly
throughout the entire week, but that would be a lie. More than once one of us would shoot the
other the look that said “REMEMBER! Be positive!” It was great to be accountable to someone
else about my influence. I was reminded
again just last night when a little girl walked into my VBS classroom at church
and said “Mrs. Sweeney!! You are going to be my 3rd grade teacher
this year! I didn’t know you worked HERE too!!”
I have to admit, I don’t always remember all the places little eyes are
watching me, but what a great reminder she was.
At church, she heard me tell about how God changes people. This school year she will walk into my public-school
classroom daily where I will not be able to tell her about Jesus with my words,
but she will be watching for Him every day in my tone, attitude, actions, and
the way I love her and her classmates. But
since I am human, I already know she will also remember the days when I lose my
patience, heave a sigh of frustration, or speak too sharply when I am
tense. I pray those days don’t come
often. Oh, the power of influence!
During camp one of my lessons touched on Jesus’s words from the
Sermon on the Mount where He reminds us, “You are
the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.15 Neither
do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its
stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they
may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16 NIV) I love how God works- every time I prepare a lesson to teach others it seems that really the person who learns the most is me. He gives me a topic to teach, but it is really the topic where I need to receive the lesson. I needed this reminder to let my light shine. You see, the interesting thing about light is that you don’t have to see the light bulb itself to see the light it gives off. This is also true when it comes to the power of influence. We may not even know that others can see us, or in what ways our words and actions may affect them. My constant prayer is that the light of Jesus shines through me, and that I am intentional in the way I use that influence to point to Him.
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