Do Our Actions Even Matter?

Do Our Actions Even Matter?

God is not unjust. He will not forget how hard you have worked for him and how you have shown your love to him by caring for other believers, as you still do.

Hebrews 6:10

One day as I was driving my kids to school, I unexpectedly cracked. As I pondered the crazy onslaught of obligations in the upcoming weeks and months, I suddenly felt crushed beneath their weight.

Once the kids were safely delivered to school, I started sobbing—the loud, uncontrollable, ugly kind of crying that comes from overwhelming emotion. Without thinking, I looked to the sky and cried out: “Does any of this actually make a difference?”

Whoops. I hadn’t meant to shout. The words poured out when my guard was down and my emotions were raw. I half expected a lightning bolt to turn me into a crispy critter as I murmured an apology for shouting at the God of the universe and continued my drive to work.

It was midmorning when my friend called to tell me about a person who had been deeply touched by a project I had helped on. I laughed ruefully and confessed exactly what I had shouted at God that morning. My friend chuckled and stated the obvious—God heard me and responded.

Later that day, another friend sent me an e-mail describing a breakthrough in a terribly difficult situation for which many people have been praying. I smiled a bit bigger. God heard and responded. Before the day was done, I heard from a third person who had received an answer to prayer in a situation that was beyond her control. God reminded me that I am a tiny part of something bigger, and my actions do matter.

I stopped and thanked God for loving me enough to answer my tantrum with grace and for reminding me that when we partner with him, our actions do matter and we do make a difference—regardless of whether we ever see it. God does not forget us as we do his work.

—Julie

— Today’s Act of Kindness —

Consider a time when you were the recipient of kindness. Reach out to the person who showed you kindness and let them know just how much their actions meant to you.