Maximum Impact: God's Way

What does it mean to have “maximum impact”? God has a different way of measuring maximum impact. In Luke 21:3, we see that Jesus taught that the poor widow who gave two copper coins “put in more than all the others.” This was the widow living a life of maximum impact. Maximum impact comes from completely fulfilling God’s plan for you. God has a different plan for each person, each family. Did Morrow and William Graham, the parents of influential Christian leader Billy Graham, have maximum impact? Did they raise Billy and their grandson Franklin well? How about Betsey Moody, the mother of 19th century evangelist, D.L. Moody? Did she raise her son so he would have maximum impact? She did, and her life too had maximum impact. Maximum impact is not about how many people an individual can influence, but rather, it’s about influencing the people God puts in our lives. This book is about how we can have maximum impact in life, God’s way. To have maximum impact, we cannot take the short-term view of only what I do. Maximum impact can only come from what God calls me and my family to do. Many men and women can accomplish great and mighty things (all God, of course) over the short span of their lifetime, but then they turn their estate over to their children, who blow it or slowly let it waste away. Whether it be wealth, ministerial gifts from the Lord, especially wisdom in loving God and loving others, God expects us to impact the next generation. God’s idea of maximum impact is that each generation, having the advantage of guidance from their godly parents, live a life of love for God and for others. Then they do what is right and just. In turn, God blesses them and increases their love, their wealth, their gifts of the Spirit, and their impact in the world around them. Whatever they touch is blessed, God is always with them, and the world around them can see it. God uses that light to draw the evil, wretched sinners to His Son, and whole families are restored. To have maximum impact, we need to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength; we need to love others as Jesus loves us, which is with agape, or unconditional love. We need to teach this to our kids, helping them do what is right and just. In this book, we will see that if we can live this way, our grandkids and their kids will do the same. God will help. We can then rest in peace knowing that our families and household will have maximum impact in the world around us. We can say we did it God’s way. Agape love is the foundation for maximum impact. When there is agape love in our actions, God jumps in and enables His full power to be activated in our lives. God’s supernatural powers (wisdom, knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, speaking in different kinds of tongues) are enabled in our lives for the specific mission that He planned for us. This is part of what Jesus was referring to when He said in John 14:12–13, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing (practicing agape love, for one). He will do even greater things than these (Jesus’ miracles), because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father” (notations added). Wow, imagine Jesus doing whatever we ask for as we align our hearts and lives according to His plans for us. The concept of agape has been one of the key principles that has guided my life. I believe my embrace of agape was the result of how my mom and dad raised me. God had maximum impact with their influence on my life, which in turn helped me to have maxi-mum impact on various areas of my own life,