Sphere of Influence

A few years ago I led a Bible study at my house on Monday nights. We called the group “Good Times”, because well, it was. The group lasted for some 3 years or so, and over those years many people came and went, but there was a pretty solid core that was there through most of it. We studied Colossians, 1 John, Ephesians, Daniel, and a few other books over the course of those years, and all of those studies were incredible, but I think most of our people from the group would agree that the most fruitful study we ever went through was in the book of Hebrews. That study changed people’s lives, and it was through that study that our little Bible study grew to about 30 people.

One of the guys that spent some time in that Bible study is a friend of mine named John Lawrence who has since moved to Texas. What is interesting about John is that he wasn’t in our study for very long, maybe a couple of months. He spent some time in my home outside of the study to hang out and play ping pong a few times, and he was attending Living Stones for a few years, but because of his brief time in the Bible study he wasn’t one of the people I would have picked as having been too heavily influenced by the study. It turns out he was. I recently received a package in the mail from John full of great resources for studying the book of Hebrews that he compiled over time and sent to me as a thank you for the impact that our Hebrews study had on his life. It was a very cool surprise from a friend I hadn’t spoken with in a couple of years. I can’t wait to study Hebrews again using the tools that he sent to me.

This experience got me thinking, it’s amazing the influence that we as Christians have on one another, often without even knowing it. I had a few good moments with John, studying the Bible and just hanging out with him and some other guys from time to time, but to now find out that he appreciated our study so much is a blessing and great reminder of the ways that God uses our experiences with one another to really encourage us and mold us in the faith. Glory be to God, quite a few incredible things happened in that group over the years. Currently, 14 of our small group leaders at Living Stones spent significant time in the Good Times Bible Study. That I can remember upon reflection, 4 different couples started dating in the study that is now married. There are at least 4 people that I can think of that were prayed for in our study as non-Christians, who then later attended the study and were saved by God.

I don’t say this to brag about how amazing that Bible study was, although it was very special, I say all of this as a consideration as to the incredible influence godly people have on one another when they obey God’s command to fellowship, pray, break bread together, and submit to the Apostles teaching. This was the frequent practice of the early church (Acts 2:42-47), and this lifestyle had great affect on the mission of God through the early church as people were being saved daily. How often do you consider your influence on other people? Have you been strategic in leveraging your influence on others for the sake of the Kingdom of God? Usually, as was the case with Good Times, your influence has great effect as a simple outflow of your love for others and your obedience to the calling of God. The people in that Bible study influenced one another so greatly because they loved each other, were in tuned with the Spirit of God, and cared for each other’s needs. Sometimes it also does us good to be strategic about using our influence in a powerful way, but most of us are unaware of the influence we have. As well, there are probably quite a few people in your life that have had great influence on you. When was the last time you told them that?

I think my major point of reflection here is that influence is like water. It’s one of the most powerful resources in the world, but most of us really take it for granted. We also protect our time so selfishly that we can’t really use our influence well, but according to Scripture, God uses your life as a letter from himself to an unsaved world, if you’re a Christian that is. How can you use your influence? If you’ve never thought about it, you should. As with Good Times, your small group might be a good place to start.