I was reading a story about a man who used to work on the Boeing 747. For 15 years it was his job to work on a switchbox that was smaller than a loaf of bread. As small as that component was, without it, flight would have been impossible. It reminded me of our potential or influence we can have on those around us.

You see, sometimes we see ourselves as pretty insignificant, with little or no impact on the world around us. That is a lie that comes from our own misunderstanding of ourselves and especially the God we love.

Heather Cortez said, “To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.” When you look at some of the people in the Bible, they made significant contributions to the world and faith in spite of their limitations.

One such person was the apostle Paul.The Bible describes him as small and with poor eyesight. But God used him and transformed him into a person of influence and significance. He was a missionary, a theologian, a church planter, a mentor; and next to Jesus, the most influential person to the modern Christian church.

In his letter to the Galatians, he had to defend who he was (apostle) and counteract the influence of Judaizers (legalists); He begins with a brief discussion of his journey from persecutor to apostle.

From his life we can see some principals that he followed to become a person of influence and I believe these principles are important for us today as we seek to honour God and reach our world for Jesus.

The first principle was He sought God’s approval above all else. It is easy to fall into the people pleasing trap. Galatians 1:10 says, “For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.”

Who you most want to please will determine how much influence you have in this life. For much of my life, I tried to please my dad. I craved to hear the words, “I’m proud of you.” But I noticed that “desire” affected all my other relationships. It wasn’t until I went on a mission trip to Vancouver when a pastor gave me this verse. It put everything into perspective. My goal, dare I say for each of us, is to please an audience of one.

The second thing Paul understood is that God had a mission for his life. In verses 11 and 15 we find these words, “For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel… But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace,”

Whatever God reveals to you will be consistent with His Word, and it will be recognized by others. I think we all have dreams and aspirations. It doesn’t matter what they are as long as you do it with integrity and it honour God.

There is a story in the Bible of a tax collector named Zacchaeus. Tax collectors were despised because they not only collected the taxes for the Romans, they took extra for themselves. When Zacchaeus encountered Christ, he was changed. He gave all the skimmed money back and then some.

In looking towards the future, it is important that we seek God and let Him reveal His purposes for your life, and set your heart on fire so nothing else matters.

Another lesson Paul learned was he needed to invest time in preparation and build a foundation to work from. Paul’s ministry was based on many years of hard work. After conversion he left for Tarsus, his hometown for quite some time. Barnabas sought him out to continue the work in Antioch and later he met up with Peter in Jerusalem. And as they say, the rest is history…

Influence takes time. It is about building relationships, gaining trust and sometimes they have to see your care and Christ, before they can hear it. Paul was not in a place of influence until they saw repeatedly the changes in his life.

Do we want to be a people of influence? Some people don’t like the role. Former NBA star Charles Barkley said, “I am not a role model.” The truth is, we are influencers whether we like it or not.

In recent years, the church has lost much of its influence in our culture and world. If we ever want to become again the people of God He has called us to be, we will need to be patient and intentional in taking time to pray, seek His Word, build relationships, understanding our values, discovering our vision and setting up strategies and goals to see that vision come to fruition.

We want to make a difference in the world, but will it be in a positive or negative way? As we seek God, may He empower us and give us wisdom in making a difference in our community and world.