By: Rex Stump
As a little boy, I enjoyed picking up and throwing stones. I can’t explain the attraction but give a boy a stone and he will do one of two things: put it in his pocket or throw it!
I would typically find a target and throw it, whether it was a tree, a wild animal (sorry pet lovers), a plant, a sign, or my brother…just kidding.
As a matter of fact, if you put me in front of a body of water with a pile of stones, I’d lose track of time skipping stones or making ripples.
Sometimes I would take the challenge of trying to create the largest ripple possible. It’s easy. Just toss a big stone in the middle of a puddle, pond, or lake and see how big a wave of ripples you can make.
What if I told you that we are God’s stones on this earth? I’m not saying you are dumb as a rock, or that you are hard as a rock. Think about the impact of a stone hitting a puddle.
From where the stone hits the water, a series of consecutive waves push outward causing a larger area to be affected by the initial impact. You know what I’m saying? One stone tossed in a calm body of water will create a ripple effect!
You and I are like those stones in the sense that wherever God has tossed us, we should be making an impact that creates a ripple of change!
Years ago, someone anonymously bought me a cup of coffee. So, I decided that each week I would return the favor and do something nice for someone else and pay for a coffee for the next person in line.
The ladies at the counter would keep track and wait for the next person to step up to the counter and then they would give them their coffee for free.
I’ve heard that many times those customers walk away stunned! In time the story evolved! I later went in to get a coffee and again pay for the next person.
The lady behind the counter pulled out a slip of paper with half a dozen tally marks. She had a list of coffees prepaid for the next six people! The ripple effect in motion! Get it?!
It began with someone buying me a coffee – that is the stone hitting the pond. The first wave was me; the next wave was the person I paid for, and so on!
Does it matter? Absolutely! You should have seen the lady behind the register and the excitement she had over these free coffees!
I remember when we had been praying for a school that didn’t have any FCA ministry. Within a few weeks we had the privilege of sitting down with two adult leaders and a student who later launched an FCA Huddle at the school! Answered prayer!!!
By the way, one of the new Huddle leaders was a former FCA Student leader at one of our schools! This girl was once a student leader being impacted by her Huddle leader and the Word of God. Now she is a Huddle leader impacting students at a new school! The ripple effect in motion! Get it?!
Understand that your actions and your influence will impact the lives of those around you! What you say to your family, your friends, your co-workers, your spouse, or even a waitress or waiter will create a ripple effect!
How you respond to the referee, how you choose to give at Christmas, and the way you complain or encourage – directly impacts others. We have the awesome opportunity to be a stone for God and make an impact for Him on those around us.
The size of your stone of impact doesn’t matter. What matters is that you don’t leave the stone in your pocket; instead let it fly!
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Rex Stump is the Area Director for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and serves as a Pastor at True North Church in Wauseon, Ohio.
