Influence

The power of influence. It's an amazing thing, isn't it? For a person to dramatically affect another person, causing them to consider another avenue of thought, and consequently, a different course of action...I think that's pretty heavy!

I'm an optimist, and a naturally trusting person. But the older I get, the more aware I become of influences that I need to guard myself against in order to avoid getting blind-sided and knocked off track. There's a lot of "smart" people out there with a lot of "good" stuff to say, but without listening with the right filters, they might just "bite" you in the butt.

Think of the power of influence in history...just two names: Adolph Hitler and Martin Luther King. Two visionary leaders, passionate about their beliefs, and skilled in their use of influence. In fact, they changed the world they lived in because they used their influence effectively!

I used to think that being famous would be powerful and cool; I'm not so sure now, and it really doesn't matter. I'm just determined to use whatever level of influence God entrusts to me for purposes that are right, noble, and just. It's wild to think that God set it up like this; instead of just programming us all to think the right way, he put us in this pinball machine to bounce around and rub shoulders with all sorts of people, gleaning helpful wisdom and sifting out the meaningless.

Who's influencing you...and who are you influencing?