Go M.A.D. (Make A Difference)

Your loving kindness, O LORD, extends to the heavens, Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.  Psalm 36:5

 

In a world that seems to be swirling with fighting, violence, hatred and evil; there is something calming about a quiet morning. A morning that steals in subtlety with a hazy fog and the subdued voices of the wild birds is, to me, a blessing.

After being deluged by negative news stories of events happening in our world; I was treated to the gift of one of those wonderful quiet mornings. My husband and I sat on the porch and just soaked it in.

 Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. James 4:14

 

There is something elemental…something so basic about a quiet morning filled with fog. There is a hush over the land as the vapor swirls, while the sunlight is trying to break through and burn it off.  It softens the edges of the world and has a beauty that is hard to put into words.

We are rather like the vapor that is only here for a bit. In the scheme of things our lives are just a tiny dot on the timeline of life. It is humbling to remember that….we are not as much as we think we are!

It is also good to remember that while we are here, we do get to make an impact…..for better or worse. Just like the fog nourishing the crop with the dew it sends, we can affect those around us. We cannot reach everyone and encourage them…but we can encourage the person next to us. We can reach out with love, compassion and joy. We can help someone else be renewed.

Your vigor will be renewed each day like the morning dew.   Psalm 110:3

 

Like the fog, we can be subtle. We don’t need to be flashy, glaring or loud in our efforts to make this world a little better place. Sometimes quiet things like smiles, hugs, and candy go a long ways.

And now you are wondering, where in the world is that Chicken Grandma heading with candy?????  Let me take you there….

In our church there is an older gentleman who keeps candy in his pockets.  Anytime a kid wanders close enough they are slipped a treat.  (after a questioning look at their moms and dads, of course!) When my sons were young they were always on the lookout for this man, also known to them as, Uncle Howard.

There is no fuss about handing out the candy…..no big showy splash. Just a quiet nudge and an outstretched hand with the treat waiting. To the kids in our church those treats show love.  It shows the effort of someone, to make a little difference in their day.

When my youngest son was in the lower grades in elementary school, they had “Come As a Famous Person Day.”  On our way home from school he was grouching that he didn’t even know what a famous person was!  I explained that a famous person was someone that everyone knew. His face lit up and he declared, “I want to be Uncle Howard! Everyone knows Uncle Howard!”

He did, indeed, go as Uncle Howard. He dressed exactly like him, down to the tire tester in his pocket. He handed out candy all day long….. just like Uncle Howard. I wonder if Uncle Howard really knows what an impact he has made on all those kids during the years….and all it took was a smile and some tootsie rolls.

Many times it is the little things that make a difference. They are the things that get remembered because they do make a difference. We may only be as temporary on this earth as fog, but we do have a choice in how that temporary space of time is spent.

Perhaps this coming week we can be the person that makes a difference. We can impact just one person, young or old, and show them that they matter.  My sister has a saying on her wall, that you cannot miss, when you walk out her door:  Go M.A.D. ~Make A Difference.

Let’s be the person that goes M.A.D. this week. Let’s hand out some smiles and some tootsie rolls. Let’s show the world that good and grace wins every time and that love outshines evil and hatred. We may only be a vapor…but  let’s water those around us with gentle moisture while we’re here. May you be blessed as you Make A Difference!

 

“In a gentle way, you can shake the world.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

 

“I am only one, but I am one.
I cannot do everything, but I can do something.
And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.”
― Edward Everett Hale