Have you ever felt like you needed a miracle? In the midst of calamities global and local, shared, and private, we wish we could change the world—or at least some small part of it. But big problems can make us feel small, powerless to help.
What can we do when it feels like it would take a miracle to make a difference? Perhaps the answer lies in something theologian and physician Albert Schweitzer once said: “Do something wonderful, people may imitate it.”[1]
The fact is ordinary people are doing wonderful things all over the world. In Argentina, volunteers are harvesting the oranges that grow on public streets to make jam for people in need in their community. In Mexico, compassionate people are delivering rice and beans to the hungry. And in England, volunteers are teaching English to immigrants, helping them prepare for success in their new home. The example of serving others is catching on and spreading across the globe.[2]
What might happen if you tried doing some small, wonderful thing? There’s a good chance that your kindness, your generosity of spirit, or simply your willingness to help could spread beyond the person you set out to bless—it may also touch others in your family, among your friends, and in your community. Just as a seed grows into something much bigger than itself, your act of kindness might make a difference much greater than you expected. That would be a miracle.
When we refuse to get entangled in an online quarrel, when we stop what we’re doing and listen to someone who’s anxious or distressed, when we reach out to someone who’s alone, when we say something encouraging or hopeful—any act of kindness can be contagious. Even a smile and a compliment can catch on. And once people try being kind, they often feel so good, they continue it. We never really know how far-reaching each of these small acts of love can be.
God is a God of miracles. He often does intervene to bless His children. And it may be that the next miracle He has in mind will start with you. So, when you find yourself thinking it would take a miracle to change the world for the better, considering being that miracle.
[1] In David Ives and David A. Valone, eds., Reverence for Life Revisited: Albert Schweitzer’s Relevance Today (2007), 131.
[2] See Jason Swensen, “How Just Serve’s Guiding Mission to ‘Love Your Neighbor’ Is Fueling Its Global Reach,” Church News, Sept. 28, 2021, thechurchnews.com.
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January 30, 2022
Broadcast Number 4,820
The Tabernacle Choir
Orchestra at Temple Square
Conductor
Mack Wilberg
Ryan Murphy
Organist
Richard Elliott
Host
Lloyd Newell
Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven
Ryan Murphy
Be Thou My Vision
Irish melody; arr. Mack Wilberg
Norwegian Rustic March
Edvard Grieg; arr. Richard Elliott
Home Is a Special Kind of Feeling, from The Wind in the Willows
John Rutter
May We Be More Like Thee
Mack Wilberg
Fill the World with Lord, from Goodbye, Mr. Chips
Leslie Bricusse; arr. Mack Wilberg