Influence

As I sat in Conklin Hall last night I listened to story after story that Tom had to share. Some of them were funny and others almost made me cry. I just thought to myself, "here is a guy that has given his life to something that matters; something that he really believes in." His words and his faith somehow made mine stronger. He wasn't the most eloquent speaker, although he spoke well; he wasn't the funniest guy I ever met, although I laughed; and he wasn't always that relevant. He is a 50 year old man that has kids my age, so he can't be that cool. But what he said made my wife and I want to change the way we live our lives. Not out of guilt or sympathy, but out of conviction of how life should be lived. He had dedicated his life to helping people find truth, and after 30 years he is going stronger than ever, what an example. He influenced us in a major way, not so much by his words but by his actions.

Then I read Eric's blog this morning. (http://amsterdamasp.blogspot.com/) He posted about his daughter, Olivia, and the health problems she has had since she was born. In her short few years here on earth she has been plagued with hemangioma, a physical deformity. And unfortunately, over the past year instead of disappearing like the doctors have hoped, the large red lump on her forehead has just grown bigger and bigger. Now, you are probably wondering why am I telling you this fact? “I don't even know Eric and his family,” you may be thinking. But what amazes me most about his post on Olivia is not his openness and honesty, not his amazing love for his daughter, but the responses he got.

People from all over the world posted comments about their feelings, and people from all over the world got to read about Eric and Marci's amazing attitude and love for their daughter. From what I hear, because of Eric’s one post about Olivia, hundreds of people are now reading Eric's blog. Why?

It is the power of influence. It is amazing to think of the impact that we have in life without even knowing it. It is even a little scary. That has made me think how do I influence others? Do I make them happier, more reflective, angrier, sadder, do I push them towards God, or do I push them away from God? All this talk about influence has made me think a little harder about the decisions I make, about the words I speak, and the way I use my time. I guess I just want to influence people like Tom and Eric have. That is the ultimate example of influence…. imitation.