Making A Difference

There is a story of two people walking along a beach in an exotic location, but the beach is littered with starfish which the tide has abandoned and where they will die. One of the people walking along the beach picks up starfish as they go and throws them back into the water: the other looks on in amazement. "There are too many here for you to make a difference; you can't throw them all back." "No, but I can make a difference to this one, and this one, and this one" the person replied throwing three more back into the sea.

As we watch the news and hear about the world we live in it is very easy to think that we are powerless to change things, but we can look back in history and see how individually powerless people, acting together, can change things.

At St James', in May, we are having two services to give thanks to God for the work that a few people do, but which makes a difference to others. The first is 14th May when we are celebrating Education Sunday. Ms Nolan, the head teacher, and two pupils are coming to talk in the service about life at St James' School. We are very fortunate to have such a good school in the village, with such caring and competent staff. The staff, teaching and non-teaching staff alike, make a difference by the way they work, so that young people learn in such a positive environment. I hope and pray that the children will grow up to be people who make a difference by the way they live.

The second special in May is a service to celebrate Christian Aid Week (21st). Christian Aid is an excellent charity which works world-wide, with people of any or no faith, to alleviate poverty by aid, development and campaigning. It has been in operation since the end of the Second World War when the churches got together to help those who were left with nothing after the devastation of the war. Its work has grown and it is now listened to by governments in its campaigning work. However, it is still funded by donations, enabling people like you and me to make a difference to the lives of people across the world.

Next time you watch the news or read the paper and feel helpless, don't just sit there; do the little you can and be amazed at the difference you can make!

This article is from our news archive. As a result pictures or videos originally associated with it may have been removed and some of the content may no longer be accurate or relevant.