The Ripple Effect
He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. (Mark 16:15)
I heard the name “D.L. Moody” a lot growing up in church. I knew he was a well-known evangelist who did a lot of amazing work to spread the gospel, but it wasn’t until last year that I learned more about D.L. Moody’s story and what a ripple effect it had on the God’s Kingdom.
Once D.L Moody got saved, he began preaching all over England. One of the times he was preaching, he was speaking to a huge crowd, and in that crowd was a man by the name of F.B. Meyer. Meyer found his heart stirred by D.L. Moody’s message, and from there God began to use him in a great way.
Later on, F.B. Meyer was preaching on a college campus. One of the young men listening on campus was Wilbur Chapman. After hearing F.B. Meyer present the gospel, Chapman gave his life to Christ and began to engage in ministry, including becoming involved in ministry with the YMCA.
While he was there, Chapman hired a brand new Christian by the name of Billy Sunday to come and work for him. Sunday was a famous evangelist who got saved during his career as a professional baseball player and was part of the group who started crusades in Charlotte, North Carolina.
During the second crusade, Sunday enlisted the help of Mordecai Ham to come and preach. And on the night Ham preached, a little boy by the name of Billy Graham walked down the aisle, gave his life to Christ, and the rest is history.
It’s amazing to see how the stories of these men were so divinely intertwined over the years. Because all of them were faithful to God’s call and were obedient in spreading the gospel, countless individuals came to know Christ. The impact of each of these men spread so far beyond themselves. They never knew on this side of heaven what kind of impact and influence they were having on people they never even met.
The same can be true for us. We will never know how our words and actions can impact others. Our only job is to be faithful in sharing the gospel with those around us. As we share, let’s pray that a ripple effect will ensue as the Lord’s message of hope continues to spread throughout the world.