Facebook: It’s a Wonderful Life
Admit it. You’ve secretly thought how cool it would be to fake your death so you can attend your own funeral and see what everyone says about you.
What? I’m the only person that neurotic? Maybe. But I’m not the only one who watches It’s a Wonderful Life every Christmas. If you are the only person left on the planet who hasn’t seen the film starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed, here’s the scoop. Stewart’s character has fallen on tough economic times. (Wait, this film might be particularly relevant this year!) He decides his family and the world at large would be better off without him, so he attempts suicide.
An angel intervenes, then shows him what the world would be like if he had never been born. I don’t want to spoil the plot but trust me: it was not a better place without him.
Most of us have no idea the profound impact we’ve had on the lives of others. In the past, one of the surest ways to measure that was funeral attendance and the long-delayed words of affirmation that pour forth around the casket. My oldest brother recently died and the funeral director estimated nearly 400 people showed up. I had no idea he had affected so many lives. My guess is: neither did he.
Enter Facebook.
I’ve only been Facebooking for about a month and a half, but I’m already back in touch with people who knew me when I was in diapers, lots of high school classmates, young people I’ve taken on mission trips, and partners in ministry from around the world. I’ve realized two things: the profound impact some of these people made on my life and, much to my joy, vice versa.
Just today, the lead translator from my trip to Peru contacted me through Facebook. He reminded me of special times I had forgotten. Moments later, I heard from Bruce Bacon. As a 19-year old, Bruce dragged me to a Christian conference that completely changed the course of my life. I wonder if Bruce is sitting in his home in New Jersey, right now, realizing the profound, rippling affect of his determined efforts to reach out to one very hurting teenage girl named Donna.
I can’t tell you how many moms and grandmoms come up to me at my conferences, tears streaming down their faces, to tell me a teenage girl they love is currently on drugs (as I was when Bruce reached out to me). They say they had given up hope but now that they’ve seen how God rescued me, they have renewed determination to keep praying and reaching out to that hurting teen.
Bruce gets the credit for that; not me. I didn’t set the example of reaching out; HE did. Bruce doesn’t have to wait for his funeral to get a sense of the impact of his life. A little time on Facebook will do the trick quite nicely and, one would assume, far more pleasantly than the average death.
So why not join Facebook and find out the impact YOUR life has had? If you are not satisfied with the answer, I believe I can help. My mission is: Helping you maximize your life for maximum Kingdom impact. Check out the resources I offer and feel free to suggest resources you would like to see me develop in the future. A great book to start with is: Becoming A Vessel God Can Use.
Helping you maximize your life…
for maximum Kingdom impact!
Blessings,
Donna Partow
P.S. Enjoy the last few minutes of the film
