By: Trisha Bleau Smith
Once upon a time there was a girl who was raised in a Christian home by strong Christian parents who spent much of their time in Christian events and church. She had a happy, yet wholly innocent and sheltered life.
From an early age she learned about Jesus. She memorized Scriptures and sang Bible songs. And Christ forgave her for her sins and was with her always when she turned to Him fully.
But she fell away from Him when she got older. She began to doubt her faith in something she could not see. She began to listen to the world and started exploring other religions. And because of this she got mixed up in the occult and New Age practices.
Of course, she was still a child of God and no matter how hard the enemy tried even he couldn’t snatch her from God’s hand. And God loved her so much that He was grieved by her doubt and confusion. She began to see God all around her, in every little thing. He flooded her world with His presence and she could not doubt or deny Him again. She returned to Him, renewed and refreshed, with a passion to serve.
Because of her experience with doubt and her exploration of other religions and world faiths she had a new understanding. She had insight in to what others were experiencing. And she wanted to help them, to share her story, her renewed faith. She wanted to help them get out of the trap of the enemy before it was too late.
So she began to get involved in church. She began to volunteer in the community. But she still wanted to do more. She could not help enough people in her immediate world. She was limited to her geographic location. leaving millions unaware of her story and her drive to share Jesus.
The answer was the Internet. She began to meet others online and shared. She told her story and told it again. And she met others who wanted to make a difference, too.
Thus a ministry was born. She started dreaming up new ways of getting people to come to their new website and before long the site began to grow. New things were added to the site, new volunteers began to offer their time, and it grew and grew.
Before long the expenses began to mount. The only options she had were to give it to someone who could pay for things (not an option in her opinion), to close things down entirely (also not even a consideration), or to file nonprofit and ask for financial support from others. God opened the doors and provided the assistance (and later the funding) necessary for her to register the ministry as an official charitable organization.
The ministry thrived for 8 years. It reached tens of thousands of people on a daily basis. Hundreds of people interacted each day on the forums and mailing lists. Hundreds signed up each month for the various interactive programs designed to help them grow in their faith. Lives were changed on a daily basis.
But problems with her marriage caused the ministry to falter. It went offline. Her marriage dissolved, she faced life as a single mom, and eventually God brought a new man in to her life. He supported all of her efforts, encouraged her to chase her dreams, and after 16 years God once again put the burning desire to share as she had in the past. Thus, the ministry was reborn, old posts, articles, bible studies, and more being shared once more.
Today the girl, now an older woman with teens of her own, asks for prayer that she would continue to share her faith and encourage others in their walk with God.
All of this has come about through the dream that began with one girl who wanted to make a difference…
Do you have the desire to make a difference? Do you want to make an impact on the world for Christ?
So many people say, “….I am only one person! How can I make a difference?”
I was one person, too. Yet look at what this ministry is now accomplishing. Though it began as one person it has grew to far beyond. It grew through the efforts of hundreds of volunteers. But it all came from the dreams of one…
So dream on my friends. And put those dreams in to reality. YOU can make a difference. It doesn’t matter if you are 8 or 80, if you are American or something else, if you are male or female, if you have a speech impediment or can babble up a storm. God can and will use you if you let Him.
Let your own story begin now. Let God work in you and through you. Trust Him and follow Him. Touch the world. They are waiting to hear YOUR story.
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