Drop a small stone in the water and what happens? That one small splash creates a ripple effect of concentric circles widening out from where the stone broke the surface of the water.

This past Sunday I spoke to our congregation about Living for the Ripple Effect. I want to share a small portion of that with you in this week’s blog. The ripple effect is the nature of leadership. It is the nature of influence, and it is what you and I as believers in Christ have been called to do.

As Saul, later the Apostle Paul, demonstrated in his life, we should be living to make ripples in the spiritual waters around us. No matter where you are, or in what circumstances you find yourself, you have an opportunity to make ripples in the spiritual waters around you. All it takes is to drop a pebble, a small stone, into the water and it will always leave a ripple effect.

In fact the more you exercise this practice, the stronger the ripple effect. Scripture from Acts chapter 9 tells us, “Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ.”

This same man, Saul, who had only weeks before been persecuting people who believed in Christ, was now proclaiming Him to be the Messiah. And this verse (22) tells us the more Saul shared, the stronger his witness became. It is his spiritual strength this verse is speaking of. Saul had become “a voice to be heard.” His conviction of who Christ is and his compelling speech and actions was baffling the Jews who heard him speak.

Just as in physical exercise gives us strength to our bodies, likewise studying God’s word and spending time with God strengthens our spiritual being. The world today tells us to build bigger bank accounts, stronger financial portfolios, and to accumulate more “stuff.” God and His people on the other hands pursue people. Our stuff will not outlast this world.

The moment you die, your stuff will be owned by someone else. However, every human being has a soul that lives on forever in one of two places. You will either spend eternity (a very long time) with God in heaven, a place full of happiness and joy. A city that knows no suffering. Or you will spend forever in Hell referred to as a lake of ever burning fire, rendering constant pain and suffering.

As Christians, believers in Christ, it is our duty to make ripples for Christ for the many souls around us. Jesus Christ Himself began those ripples more than two thousand years ago to His Apostles. They in turn continued those ripples creating the earliest of the New testament churches in Jerusalem. Those followers in turn carried the spiritual ripples into the world, and they continued throughout the centuries until one of those ripples intersected your life. Your life was impacted by one of these ripples. It is now your turn. How will you make ripples for God this week? Into whose life has given you the opportunity to continue this ripple effect?

Once a stone is dropped into the water you can no longer see it. But the ripple effect carries on long after the stone has disappeared. You have one opportunity to make a splash. One splash makes many ripples. What will be seen after your life is over? What will be said of the ripples you leave behind?

Will you live this week and every week to create a ripple effect for God?