Your Actions May Change A Life
One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class
was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was
carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, "Why would anyone bring
home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd." I had quite a
weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow
afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on.
As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at
him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he
landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the
grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and I saw this terrible
sadness in his eyes. My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him
and as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in
his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks.
They really should get lives." He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!"
There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that
showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him
where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I
had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before
now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We
talked all the way home, and I carried his books. He turned out to be a
pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play football on Saturday
with me and my friends. He said yes. We hung all weekend and the more I
got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. And my friends thought the same
of him. Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of
books again. I stopped him and said, "boy, you are gonna really build
some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!" He just laughed
and handed me half the books.
Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were
seniors, began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I
was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the
miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor, and I was
going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of
our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to
prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to
get up there and speak. Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He
was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He
filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than
me and all the girls loved him! Boy, sometimes I was jealous. Today was
one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So,
I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!" He
looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and
smiled. "Thanks," he said. As he started his speech, he cleared his
throat, and began: "Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you
make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your
siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your friends. I am here to tell all
of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give
them. I am going to tell you a story." I just looked at my friend with
disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He had planned
to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out
his locker so his mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his
stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.
"Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the
unspeakable." I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome,
popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his mom and dad
looking at me smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment
did I realize it's depth.
Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture
you can change a person's life. For better or for worse. God puts us all
in each other's lives to impact one another in some way. Look for God in
others.
Do not forget to do good and to help one another,
because these are the sacrifices that please God.
Hebrews 13:16 GNT (Editor: SkyWriting.Net)
[ Author Unknown -- from 'E-Mail Ministry' (EMailMinistry@yahoogroups.com) ]
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