Have you ever considered the long-term impact our care has upon not just the patients but also their families?  Recently, I went to Cracker Barrel for dinner, and a couple stopped me.

“Aren’t you a chaplain at St. Vincent?” the woman asked.

“Yeah,” I responded hesitantly.

“I’m sure you don’t remember this, but you ministered to my husband and me before he received his new transplant.”

“Really?  I’m sorry; I do not remember,” I replied.  Then, looking to the husband, I questioned, “So, how is the new organ?”

“Great!  I feel so much better,” he answered eagerly.

Reflecting on this incident, the image of dropping a stone into a pond comes to mind.  The dropping of the stone symbolizes the direct contact we offer with those whom we serve, and through that ministry, the rippling of the pond represents all who are affected by our act of service.

So, today and in all the days ahead, may we always keep in mind the difference the Lord has made in each of our lives and, through this, be motivated to continue this rippling effect in making a difference in the lives of the people we encounter.  Furthermore, keep in mind the following quote by John Piper:

“You don’t have to know a lot of things for your life to make a lasting difference in the world. But you do have to know the few great things that matter, and then be willing to live for them and die for them. The people that make a durable difference in the world are not the people who have mastered many things, but who have been mastered by a few great things. If you want your life to count, if you want the ripple effect of the pebbles you drop to become waves that reach the ends of the earth and roll on for centuries and into eternity, you don’t have to have a high IQ or EQ; you don’t have to have good looks or riches; you don’t have to come from a fine family or a fine school. You have to know a few great, majestic, unchanging, obvious, simple, glorious things, and be set on fire by them.”