On Pondering the Power of One
February 20, 2009
You have heard the expression, “It’s good to be a team player.” There is strength in a group, and we will definitely need people in our lives as we live on this planet. But is the group always dominant? Well, a poet helps us as we endeavor to answer that question. He writes, “I am only one, but I am still one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do!” As we consider this statement, West Broad and friends, we see that it is simply dripping with truth. For example, one woman led hundreds of runaway slaves to freedom along the “underground railroad.” One twenty-six-year-old minister galvanized a community, led a bus boycott, and ignited a movement. And most recently, one man involved millions of people across racial and economic lines in the political process, inspired a nation, and was elected President of the United States. Beloved, as you begin this new week given to you by God, what will you do with your “power of one?” If you are walking in his will, God has affirmed that he is with you and will strengthen you (2 Kin. 6:14-17; Isa. 51:12; 54:17; Heb. 13:5-6). So what can we say? Simply that the Bible and history affirm the power of one. As we live for Jesus and share his truth in downtown Richmond, let us walk in that power. Let us celebrate that power. Let us rejoice in the fact that each one of us can make a difference! —JLNJR (Resource: E. E. Hale, “Affirmation No. 457,” Singing in the Living Tradition, 1993).
