Multiplying Our Impact: Helping People Help People

As Christ followers, we have an incredible opportunity to make a difference in the lives of the people God puts around us.

Sometimes I wonder if we act differently toward people who are Christians than we do toward people who are not Christians. And I wonder what kind of impact that makes—not only on them, but on us.

In the workplace, we don’t always get to choose who we work with. Sometimes we’re surrounded by believers. Sometimes we’re surrounded by people who don’t know Jesus. Often, we’re around both.

So what is our job?

I believe God has given each of us a job, and 1 Peter 2:9 reminds us that we are called to “proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

That’s our life.

Our life is to proclaim His excellencies.

Ministry Is Helping People Move One Notch Closer to Jesus

I’ve been thinking a lot about what ministry really means.

I define ministry as helping other people move one notch closer to Jesus.

That applies to everyone we meet.

When I interact with someone who doesn’t know Jesus, I want to help them get to know Him a little better. I can share what I know, share my experiences, share my story, and help them trust Christ.

But what about the people who already follow Jesus?

Many of the Christians I have interacted with in the marketplace are already committed followers of Christ, but they still don’t have a great idea about what to do with their faith when they’re at work.

Their primary objective may simply be to stay out of trouble until they can get back to the part of their life where all the other Christians are engaged and involved.

But I believe Jesus has called us to be difference-makers in every person’s life.

None of us are as close to Christ as we would like to be. None of us are as much like Him as we would like to be.

So we can help every person we meet move one notch closer to Jesus.

And that means I don’t have to look past one person to find someone else.

Helping People Help People

One of the things I hope we do in Follower of One is more than simply helping people ourselves.

I want us to do things that help people help people.

That’s multiplication.

Paul described this kind of multiplication in 2 Timothy 2:2:

“The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

Paul was describing a generational pass-down.

One person learns.
That person teaches another.
That person teaches someone else.
And eventually, what started with one person continues through multiple generations.

We have that same responsibility.

Let’s share our faith in such a way that other people embrace it and share it, too.

If someone already has a relationship with Christ, maybe we don’t need to help them take the first step. Maybe we simply need to help them know what to do next.

That’s a big part of our passion at Follower of One.

The Great Commission Is About Making Disciples

Jesus gave us the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20:

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

There are two important pieces here.

First, we help people come to know Christ.

Then, we teach them to observe everything Jesus commanded.

I don’t think we should overlook that second part.

It’s one thing for someone to trust Jesus. It’s another thing for that person to learn how to actually live like they follow Him.

And it’s in the observing of Jesus’ commands that other people see Him.

When we live differently because we follow Jesus, Jesus becomes visible to the people around us.

Let Your Life Make Jesus Visible

Jesus said in Matthew 5:16:

“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

We’ve been given this incredible opportunity to live in a way that isn’t normal in our world.

When we live differently because we follow Jesus, people notice.

Some people will be curious.

Some people may judge us.

Some may assume we’re trying to get something from them by inviting them to church or talking about our faith.

But that’s not our primary motivation.

Our primary motivation is following Christ.

I get great joy from doing what Jesus would have me do. And when I live that way, I have the opportunity to put Him on display.

God Brings People Across Our Path

One of the things I’ve been challenged to do is evaluate my interactions with every person.

Can I help this person come to Christ?

Or can I help this person who already follows Christ bring others to Christ?

Either way, I have an opportunity.

God brings people across our path.

We’re always in a position to put God on display.

But that requires us to live carefully.

If we’re following Christ, He automatically becomes displayed through our lives.

If we’re following our own flesh and our own desires, He doesn’t.

That’s convicting to me.

I’ve had a history of overeating. I joke with people that I’ve eaten enough that I’m several years ahead on my meals.

But even something as ordinary as what I eat can become an opportunity to trust God more and allow Him to change the way I live.

I want my actions to be based on what He tells me to do.

Faith Shows Up in the Ordinary

This morning, while I was praying, God brought several people to mind. So I sent a few notes to some friends.

I want to do that every day.

I want to actively communicate with and pray for the people I meet and the people I know.

Most of those people are believers, simply because that’s the way my life is currently structured. But I can do the same thing with people who don’t yet follow Christ.

God is actively engaged in our relationship with Him, but He’s also engaged in our relationships with the people He brings across our path.

I’ve always been fascinated by how, in some church circles, if you can’t bring somebody to Jesus, then it’s almost as if the opportunity doesn’t count.

I don’t believe that.

We have an opportunity to live like we follow Jesus whether or not we get an opportunity to speak.

Whether or not we get to lead someone through a gospel presentation.

Whether or not we have a spiritual conversation.

I want to live in such a way that people know my motives are different.

And that shows up in the ordinary things.

It shows up in the way I interact with vendors.

The way I treat servers in restaurants.

The way I behave in traffic.

The way I respond when I’m disappointed or frustrated.

The way I behave when something costs more or takes longer than I thought.

The way I respond when I’m angry, discouraged, or disappointed.

Those are all opportunities to glorify Christ.

And they’re opportunities where I want to drop the ball fewer times.

I want to get better at this.

It All Counts. It All Matters.

So what does Jesus want us to do today?

We have meetings on our calendars. We have things we have to accomplish. We have responsibilities and problems and interruptions.

Whatever you’re doing today, give it to Jesus Christ.

Give it to Him and let Him show you how you can do it in a way that blesses the people around you.

Pray for the people around you.

Look for ways to genuinely appreciate people.

Serve others.

Speak for yourself.

At Follower of One, we talk about five daily habits:

Pray.
Appreciate others.
Know what you believe.
Serve others.
Speak for yourself.

If we practice those things, we’re living out the command to make disciples.

Jesus’ job for us today is to go and be His people in our world.

Our meetings, our disappointments, the things happening in our lives that are completely outside our control—those are all opportunities to live like we trust Him.

God is almighty. He’s in charge.

And we have the opportunity to live like we believe that.

We’ve Been Given Another 24 Hours

I’m excited because we’ve been given another 24-hour chunk.

Let’s go live life following Jesus.

Let’s do what He has for us to do with the people around us.

And even if you’re working with another Christ follower, help that person be an encouragement to the people they meet.

It all counts. It all matters.

Matthew 10:42 is one of my favorite verses:

“And whoever in the name of a disciple gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink, truly I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.”

To me, that means that when we’re intentional about living intentionally—when we interact with people because we’re Christ followers—we are making a difference.

We don’t have to worry about the reward now.

We can trust God with that.

Our job is simply to follow Him.

Let’s Multiply Our Impact

We’ve been given a great opportunity to be a blessing to the people we interact with today.

Let’s proclaim the excellencies of Him who called us out of darkness and into His marvelous light.

Let’s look for the people God brings across our path.

Let’s ask how we can help them move one notch closer to Jesus.

And let’s take it one step further.

Let’s help people help people.

That’s multiplication.

That’s how our impact grows beyond the people we personally interact with. That’s how our faith gets passed from one person to another, and then another.

What we do because we follow Jesus matters forever.

So let’s go to work today and make a difference in the world—not for our glory, but for His.

Let’s live like we trust Him.

Let’s follow Him.

Let’s do what He says.

And let’s allow Jesus to be seen in the way we live, work, serve, and interact with the people God puts in front of us.