Saturday, November 20, 2010

RIPPLE EFFECT

I am buried in Revelation, my latest Scriptural intense focus, which, when the Lord drops a Book onto my plate, usually means reading the book over and over until the He moves me on ... so far it's been about 7 times this month, plus reading one Revelation-oriented commentary book. [Last time it was Luke, which I utilized for a number of posts last Spring.]

In that Revelation commentary book, someone had asked
the author why the judgment for people who died didn't occur immediately upon their arrival to the Lord. [Not going to fuss about all the differences in terminology/theology re: that event.] His answer was that just because the person was now gone from the earth, the continued effects of their life could go on for quite a long time; who they loved, who they blessed, how they served the Lord.... or, in all these options, didn't.

As some of you wou
ld assume, I thought of my husband. [No, he ain't perfect, I guess... but I hardly ever see him as anything but a huge blessing.] He's a quiet man, but servant-hearted and giving-oriented who can remodel homes, refinish floors, fix electric problems, handle plumbing, interior and exterior painting, build and fix computers [and give them away], and, on top of that, he's a wonderful musician. He thoroughly enjoys teaching others [especially piano and computer]. He's done all of these tasks in our homes, neighborhoods, town, other states, and in Uganda and Costa Rica.






When he dies, which I hope won't be any time soon, his effect will linger. The youngest of his present piano students, for instance, is 7 years old. He began with her when she was 5. He has about 16 students, from young to adult, and loves working with them. To have more and more would be a huge blessing to him. [Over the years, he's had many, many students, some who are now worship leaders, on worship teams, or teaching others.] The students love him. He's patient, creative, flexible, and warm; he hasn't scared any of them. Most of them move forward quickly because they want to please him. My assessment: Dave will "ripple" for a long time.

When I think of the ripple effect our lives have, it makes me stop and take a look at where I'm headed, what I'm doing, what my attitude is, and how I need to assess and reassess the questionable points. Doesn't mean I expect the Lord to keep nailing me for errors, but that He'll touch my heart and keep me moving in the right direction.

Just as all of you, I'm sure, I want to ripple, for a long time, in a good way and bring m
ore and more blessing to the Lord.


3 comments:

Beth said...

This is beautiful, Caryjo, and so true. You could have been describing my husband until you got to the music part. He loves to listen to it, but doesn't play or sing. His ripple effect will be immense.

I worry about mine at times. I know I touch lives every day in a good way with God as my leader. But I'm human and my patience level is not high enough with some of the more annoying ones(ones besides those 6 boys. I'm actually reaching one of those--he's uneasy about the encouragement I give him, and it confuses him, but he doesn't like to overtly upset me.)

There are others whose incessant questions and attempts at conversation are exhausting---I worry about the ripple effect there.
We should all keep that in mind.
Great reminder! :)

I finally read the Jackson post and left a comment.

Unknown said...

This was so good...the ripples we produce last generations!

S. Etole said...

I'm sure both yours and Dave's will continue on for quite some time.