Episode 83

TODAY’S READING:

28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?” 29 Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”

Acts 26:28-29

 

Influencer: Someone with great influence and persuasion over a group of people, and in 2020, it is officially a job title. 

 

I remember the first time I had heard the word. It really wasn’t that long ago. Maybe two years at max, but it’s a term that Social Media profiles with huge numbers of followers have coined as what they do. 

 

They influence large groups of people to buy clothes or eat from certain restaurants. Average people are essentially getting sponsored and paid to talk about certain products. 10 years ago, only athletes and celebrities had that kind of income. 

 

But here we were in 2020, and every kid growing up wants to be an influencer.

 

Somewhere along the way, the term was misunderstood. Somewhere along the way, only people with 10k followers could be labeled a person with influence. But the term Influencer is nothing new to God. His people have been influencers since the very beginning.  

 

Look at Paul. He is imprisoned talking to King Agrippa, and his response was, “short time or long, I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”

 

Paul had the influence to persuade people to follow Jesus. He devoted his life to God’s grace and teachings. I pray we open our eyes and see how much alike we can be to Paul. We have influence. God brings people into our lives, and we have the power to live and love on others as Jesus did. So they make have hope for a better tomorrow. 

 

I don’t care if you have 10 followers on Instagram or work with 3 co-works. I don’t care if you work with 30 people and have 3k followers. You have influence. You have the power to spread the love of Jesus.

 

PRAYER

Jesus, thank you for trusting us to influence the people around us with your love. Thank you for bringing new people into our lives, even if it is virtual. Every day, we have the power to spread our love to those around us. Every day we have the ability to live like you. Love like you. Pray like you. In return, we would have the ability to change the lives of the people around us. We pray we can honor you in this way today. It is in your Holy Name that we pray, Amen!