You don’t have to be big and powerful to make a difference in the world. You don’t even have to do something huge, something that everyone knows exactly when, how, and why you do it. You can do something small, something as easy as handing a shivering child a coat or giving bread to someone that’s hungry. Even something as small as that can make a difference in someone’s life, and maybe, because of your help, that person will reach out and take care of others as well.
A good example of this takes place in a book called The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. One of the characters, Peeta Mellark, gives bread to a starving girl, Katniss Everdeen, who later rises up and starts a rebellion and changes the whole world for the better.
“There was a clatter in the bakery and I heard the woman screaming again and the sound of a blow, and I vaguely wondered what was going on. Feet sloshed towards me through the mud and I thought, It’s her. She’s coming to drive me away with a stick. But it wasn’t her. It was the boy. In his arms, he carried two large loaves of bread that must have fallen into the fire because the crusts were scorched black. His mother was yelling, “Feed it to the pig, you stupid creature! Why not? No one decent will buy burned bread!
“He began to tear off chunks from the burned parts and toss them into the trough, and the front bakery bell rung and the mother disappeared to help a customer.
“The boy never even glanced my way, but I was watching him. Because of the bread, because of the red weal that stood out on his cheekbone. What had she hit him with? My parents never hit us. I couldn’t even imagine it. The boy took one look back at the bakery as if checking that the coast was clear, then, his attention back on the pig, he threw a loaf of bread in my direction. The second quickly followed, and he sloshed back to the bakery, closing the kitchen door tightly behind him.” (The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins)
Peeta risked a punishment to do a seemingly small thing for someone, but, If Katniss hadn’t gotten that bread from him, she and her family would have starved. Peeta saved a girl’s life, and, because of only two loaves of burned bread, Katniss survived another day and was able to make a huge difference in the world only a few years later.
Wouldn’t it be great if we could all help someone in that way? It doesn’t take a lot of time or effort. You don’t need to have a lot to assist someone. It’s not the size of the person or content of the purse that matter. Instead we know it’s your Spirit, not your size, makes the difference. That’s it. It really doesn’t take anything but spirit. If you want to help someone then, no matter what, you will be able to find a way.
If something as small as throwing burned bread into the mud can help a life then what are we sitting around here for? We have so much more than that little boy had, and anything can make a difference; you just have to be willing to help. So don’t hesitate! You can change the world.
Three ways you can help today:
- Operation Christmas Child: The simple act of sharing an inexpensive gift can radically change a child’s life.
- Compassion International: For the cost of a few cups of coffee you can rescue a child from poverty.
- The Salvation Army: Always there to help when needed.
