Tropical island by Maliz Ong
What Difference Does My Life Make?
Have you ever watched the movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life?”
James Stewart stars as George Bailey, a man who wants nothing more than to leave his hometown and travel the world. However, his plans are never realized as life deals him a very different hand. He ends up taking over his father’s business, marrying his sweetheart, and raising a family.
He feels robbed of his true calling and when he faces a jail sentence because of another man’s mistake, he considers taking his own life. This is when his guardian angel, Clarence, is sent from heaven to stop him from committing suicide.
After much debate, George says,
“It would have been better if I’d never been born.”
In saying this, George is given the fantastic opportunity to see how his life affected and influenced the lives of so many others. Clarence shows him what his town would have looked like if it hadn’t been for all his good deeds over the years. In the end, George chooses to live when he sees how his life really did have meaning and that it would not have been better if he were never born.
I bought the movie years ago and it has become a yearly ritual to watch it at Christmas time. This movie has profound meaning to me. It reminds me that I am not an island and it asks me to consider my life in view of how it has affected others.
Did my life make a difference?
It’s too easy to fall into the trap of believing that life is all about me, about what I want out of it. Yet truly, life is to be lived, not for us, but for others. When you think of Mother Theresa, it is obvious that she lived for others. Her life made a significant difference in the lives of many.
But we are not all called to be a “Mother Theresa”.
We are called to make a difference where we are – with our spouse, our children, our boss, our co-workers, and our neighbours. We are called to make a difference where God has placed us.
Today, ask yourself, “What difference does my life make?”
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms (1 Peter 4:10 NIV.)
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Life is to be lived, not for us, but for others. (tweet this)
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This blog is an example of the devotionals you can read in my e-book, Where Family Meets Faith. To receive your own free copy, sign up for my inspirational newsletter here: