The Power of Influence
The dictionary defines influence as the ability to change how someone behaves or thinks based on persuasion. We have the power to influence someone positively or negatively.
Several years ago a group traveled to Denton, Texas to help a friend begin his ministry at a church. We went to help work on the building and we also knocked on doors inviting people to attend. Of all the doors we knocked on and all the people we invited, there are four people I will never forget. It was a dad and three children. The wife/mother no longer a part of their lives.
We invited the dad to church. His response was, “No, I am not interested.” He was not mean about it. He was just that blunt and that direct.
So, we said we would like to invite the children to attend and began to explain all the church would have to offer the children. We talked about Sunday School and how we would study the Bible. We included information about all the activities the children would enjoy. To which the dad replied, “No, they would not be interested.”
We stood there a moment or two processing his response for them. Then he said, “You see, I have decided to not teach my children anything about God, Jesus, or the Church. When they turn 18, they will be adults. At that age they will be old enough to decide for themselves what they would like to believe.”
This dad was convinced he had arrived at some utopian wise position – to let the children decide for themselves. There is a Proverb that speaks to this. Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” So important is this proverb, it is stated again in Proverbs 16:25.
Although this dad thought he had arrived at some wise freedom of choice for his children, I am guessing he would not have left them to make other decisions for themselves. I’m sure he would not have let his children wear their swimming suits to school in December. He would not have let his children decide what to eat if their choices included a candy cane for breakfast, cotton candy for lunch, and ice cream for dinner.
You might be thinking, but that is different. Yes, it is different. It is radically different. Because when we are talking about God, Jesus, and the Church, we are talking about spiritual matters. We are talking about eternal matters. We are talking about important matters that matter a lot. We are talking about whether those children will spend an eternity in heaven or an eternity in hell. I think about those children from time to time and wonder how they turned out.
Your influence with your children, your grandchildren, and other children is powerful and can be life changing. What kind of influence would you like to be for them?
