ONE man....
The impact ONE person can have on other's lives has come 'alive' for me this week. Lets just take a look at some folks relevant to my little world anyway. Nelson Mandela, Oskar Schindler, Adolf Hitler and let me not forget; Jesus Christ. Can anybody argue that these people have had amazing impact on others; much less our very own lives?
As I read the news and see the clips of so many people going to Africa to honor Mr. Mandela; it moves me to realize this ONE man lived 95 years and made such a huge difference. It may have been a 'world' away for me but I do remember apartheid in the news and one of my favorite books is 'The Power of One'. Life is real, it hurts and yet Mr. Mandela made it better for many.
I went through the Schindler Factory Museum this past Monday. Mr. Schindler was a German spy and member of the Nazi party; generally speaking, not such a good man right? And yet he came to Poland to work, took on a factory and earned a lot of money. At some point; his heart was touched by the way people were treated so he used his German rank and his personal money to 'buy' people's lives. Many people lived through that time period because of ONE man.
Adolf Hitler; yesterday (Saturday) I went with some friends to tour the Auschwitz/Birkenau concentration camps. I have been fascinated by Hitler since a child; reading a book (The Hiding Place) of Corrie Ten Boom and her Dutch family hiding Jewish families. For that they were sent to prison and all but Corrie were killed. Also doing a report on Hitler in middle school; that made me wonder how, who, when, and why? Fifteen years ago my brother and I went through Auschwitz on our own; we took much time to read, view, hurt and ponder. It was overwhelming and humbling. Information overload going with a guide yesterday but oh so hurtful, overwhelming and humbling again. As we saw the huge piles of personal items that were taken from the prisoners such as combs, shoes, suitcases, glasses, prosthetics; oh my gosh the list goes on; that hurt. As we walked through the gas chambers and saw the ovens of the crematorium; it hurt. We stood on the platform by the railway that millions were on and determined 'fit' or 'unfit'. That hurt. We must never forget what ONE man was able to do; so much hurt and harm.
And last but in no way the least; Jesus Christ. The fact that I am experiencing all these historical people during this Christmas season...it is ironic. This time or season of year is because of ONE man; being born to die really and yet that is not the end of the story! He lives on and is impacting lives to this very day. I have not been to Bethlehem where he was born or Golgotha where he was killed or even the empty grave where he laid for 3 days (yet) but I am sure that would be overwhelming and humbling as well.
I have great respect for each of these 4 men really; each one has touched my life in some way over my 49 years and specifically this past week. But the ONE that continues to live and touch my life is Jesus and for that I am very thankful. He is the ONE out of all I know that is worth having as an example. I want to be more like Him! Life is good, but God is waaaayyyy better.
As I read the news and see the clips of so many people going to Africa to honor Mr. Mandela; it moves me to realize this ONE man lived 95 years and made such a huge difference. It may have been a 'world' away for me but I do remember apartheid in the news and one of my favorite books is 'The Power of One'. Life is real, it hurts and yet Mr. Mandela made it better for many.
I went through the Schindler Factory Museum this past Monday. Mr. Schindler was a German spy and member of the Nazi party; generally speaking, not such a good man right? And yet he came to Poland to work, took on a factory and earned a lot of money. At some point; his heart was touched by the way people were treated so he used his German rank and his personal money to 'buy' people's lives. Many people lived through that time period because of ONE man.
Adolf Hitler; yesterday (Saturday) I went with some friends to tour the Auschwitz/Birkenau concentration camps. I have been fascinated by Hitler since a child; reading a book (The Hiding Place) of Corrie Ten Boom and her Dutch family hiding Jewish families. For that they were sent to prison and all but Corrie were killed. Also doing a report on Hitler in middle school; that made me wonder how, who, when, and why? Fifteen years ago my brother and I went through Auschwitz on our own; we took much time to read, view, hurt and ponder. It was overwhelming and humbling. Information overload going with a guide yesterday but oh so hurtful, overwhelming and humbling again. As we saw the huge piles of personal items that were taken from the prisoners such as combs, shoes, suitcases, glasses, prosthetics; oh my gosh the list goes on; that hurt. As we walked through the gas chambers and saw the ovens of the crematorium; it hurt. We stood on the platform by the railway that millions were on and determined 'fit' or 'unfit'. That hurt. We must never forget what ONE man was able to do; so much hurt and harm.
And last but in no way the least; Jesus Christ. The fact that I am experiencing all these historical people during this Christmas season...it is ironic. This time or season of year is because of ONE man; being born to die really and yet that is not the end of the story! He lives on and is impacting lives to this very day. I have not been to Bethlehem where he was born or Golgotha where he was killed or even the empty grave where he laid for 3 days (yet) but I am sure that would be overwhelming and humbling as well.
I have great respect for each of these 4 men really; each one has touched my life in some way over my 49 years and specifically this past week. But the ONE that continues to live and touch my life is Jesus and for that I am very thankful. He is the ONE out of all I know that is worth having as an example. I want to be more like Him! Life is good, but God is waaaayyyy better.
Feel free to come visit the Netherlands -- we can take you to Corrie Ten Boom's hiding place!
ReplyDeleteWow, it really must feel overwheming, actually being there. It all seems to feel so much more removed here I think - even though I have always been fascinated by that period of time as well, sometimes it doesn't feel as though it could be real.
ReplyDelete