Because we are just one person in a sea of 7.9 billion people, it’s tempting to believe that there’s nothing we can do that will make a difference in the world. Psychologist and writer William James disagrees: “Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does,” he said.
Deep down, we know this is true, because we have seen it happen. We know it made a difference in our lives when a grandparent, aunt/uncle, or teacher nurtured and encouraged us. We know that civil rights were achieved in the United States because a lot of someones came together to courageously organize, march, and resist unjust laws. We learned that women were capable of being physicians when Elizabeth Blackwell fought to be accepted at Geneva Medical College and became the first female doctor in the United States in 1849.
Furthermore, just as the psalmist says to God, “Rescue us! Your love demands it” (Ps 44:27), Christ’s call for us to love one another demands that we take action on behalf of others in need. This love does not require us to be successful but to be faithful; when we act with the intention of making a difference, we can be at peace, knowing that the outcome is in God’s hands.
Even when it seems as though contacting a senator about a justice issue is a hopeless cause or providing a meal for a family that is facing cancer seems insignificant, we must act. If nothing else, we become more loving when we do loving things, so our actions help us become the type of person we want to be. Taking action also shows our trust that when we make the effort to exert ourselves on behalf of others, through God’s grace, things will come ‘round right.
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