I was meditating the other day and contemplating the thousands of folks in the cemeteries who lived and died without making any impression upon anybody. No one hated them and no one loved them. They are not missed because no one ever knew they existed. They touched no one's life in any memorable way. How sad.
There is such a wondrous power in the gift of human kindness. New life emerges in hearts longing for tenderness, compassion and understanding. When you reach out and lovingly touch someone, you infuse something priceless of yourself into the very soul and essence of another. When we touch others in empathetic, kind, gentle ways, we may be incognizant of the lasting impressions we are imprinting upon their mind screen with each word, hug, or glance. Yet, the power of your kindness will be warmly remembered long after you have departed the scene. There is something subtle, magnetic, redemptive that mysteriously transmit to others in a positive, healthy and permanent way. It is the ministry of absence; the most lasting and meaningful kind of ministry. The influence you make on the lives you touch continues to minister even when you are no longer physically present.
And, let me hasten to add that it does not have a lot to do with what you say. It has even less to do with what you do. But it is who you are when you are not saying anything or doing anything. It is who you are when no one is looking or listening. It is who you are as you go about the business of just living. No artificial device of the will of man, no trick, no ingenuity can produce a healing influence from a dissolute life. But for the life wrapped in the garment of love and human compassion, it is a certain atmosphere you generate and carry with you which somehow registers its impression upon other lives. During special moments of remembrance and intervals of recollection, you will miraculously reappear in the lives of those you have touched, even though you are absent.
It is the silent, holy, and powerful contagion of a Christian's life. You are present even when you are absent.
My Prayer
Holy God, may I never be too busy, too occupied, and too selfish with my time, to reach out in love to my fellow man. Grant gracious Lord, that the influence of your Holy Spirit be reflected through my life in such a way that it registers a positive, holy, and lasting impression upon the lives of others. Enable me to live so great a faith life that others may be drawn to you. In the blessed name of Jesus Christ, who with you and the Holy Spirit reigns forever, I pray. Amen.
Rev. Saundra L. Washington, D.D., is an ordained clergywoman, social worker, and Founder of AMEN Ministries. http://www.clergyservices4u.org She is also the author of two coffee table books: Room Beneath the Snow: Poems that Preach and Negative Disturbances: Homilies that Teach. Her new book, Out of Deep Waters: A Grief Healing Workbook, will be available soon.
More and more today people are showing an obsession about... Read More
I hear it all the time. Cries from Christian women... Read More
Talent is defined as: "Natural endowment or ability of a... Read More
What will be the effect on general public if the... Read More
Actually he was more appropriately called a Cynic, but that... Read More
For it is written in the book of 2Timothy 3:16... Read More
I was meditating the other day and contemplating the thousands... Read More
Part Two continuedThe Christian's duty of paying taxes even extends... Read More
Dear Readers, I received a letter this week that is... Read More
... Read More
The Catholic Church is kind of like a forest sometimes.... Read More
Romans 1:16-1:32. Can there be a compromise between the two:... Read More
Isaiah 59:19 declares: "...when the enemy comes in like a... Read More
Sainthood?that title given by the Catholic Church that seems to... Read More
Buddhism is a teaching which has spread worldwide absorbing the... Read More
Acts 5:1-5:10 Sex, Lies and Videotape Part 2. Lies. What... Read More
Of a truth, the physical manifestations of God's answers to... Read More
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me,... Read More
For it is written in Matthew 12:36 But I tell... Read More
Webster's dictionary explains majesty meaning a title used to speaking... Read More
Where is God? This is the question most often heard... Read More
As an ancient African-American gospel song laments, life is filled... Read More
According to the Book of Revelations, the city of Babylon... Read More
Some may ask, why can't I have a lot of... Read More
As the world becomes closer and closer together, there seems... Read More
With the passing of Arafat, the Middle East will take... Read More
Many cities have large Catholic Church presence and well-established Lutheran... Read More
When we think in terms of what it means for... Read More
This Article is the result of another hard night of... Read More
When the Lord was showing John on Patmos what the... Read More
In classrooms throughout the country, Judeo-Christian beliefs are often cast... Read More
- 147.5 million Americans claim affiliation with a religious group-... Read More
The Harry Potter book has just been released in the... Read More
"Religion is the fashionable substitute for belief." - Oscar WildeA... Read More
God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.(Genesis... Read More
And God hath set some in the church, first apostles,... Read More
What is The Big Bang Theory! What do we mean... Read More
What does your church teach regarding the subject of Widows... Read More
"What? Trying to spread the gospel message without quoting from... Read More
This next event, a war in heaven, will not be... Read More
You all know the big dogs that carry rum to... Read More
There is a great need in the world today for... Read More
The founding of the United States went along with the... Read More
Who said religion has to last a lifetime?When I was... Read More
I find it funny that one of the oldest concepts... Read More
Real nobility feeds on its own intrinsic value, as a... Read More
Murders are so frequent in our country that a single... Read More
There is a new term being thrown around "phenophilia", no... Read More
Let's be honest: Too many Christian books are nothing but... Read More
This article was inspired by a book by E. W.... Read More
If you say that Christianity is a peaceful religion according... Read More
Review your religious beliefs with these revealing quotations all about... Read More
There are many different church denominations in this year of... Read More
The powerful tsunami that on Dec. 26, 2004, hit the... Read More
Jesus spoke as much about Heaven as He did about... Read More
As I am sure you all can tell by now,... Read More
This month a court in Burlington, Kentucky issued the largest... Read More
It's the End of the World as we know it...When... Read More
I know you want to kill me, and I wish... Read More
It is interesting that everyone is so hung-up on the... Read More
How does a Christian really handle negative feelings and emotions... Read More
The story of Joshua and Caleb is one of the... Read More
Recently I met an interesting Gentleman at a Coffee Shop,... Read More
The modern historical era of liberal theology basically encompass four... Read More
The popularity in the past few years of the apocalyptic... Read More
If your view of religion is like most people, you... Read More
Religion |