What is impact?

One day, while reading a Psalm as part of my devotions, a question popped into my head: “Do you suppose David knew his future impact?” In other words, did it ever occur to him to wonder about what the world would be like years and years in the future, and whether anything he did or said would even still be remembered? Of course, no one can answer that question … but it got me to thinking …

Because David was who he was, and did what he did, his feats of greatness are still talked about, his words are still quoted, his failures still examined, etc. And not just years and years after his death – instead, centuries and centuries later! His life story from the time he was a little shepherd boy through the time of his death and burial is chronicled in the Bible. He’s famous for a number of things: confronting and killing the giant, Goliath; being anointed as king of Israel years before he was able to take the throne; his ability to play the harp so beautifully that his music could soothe the souls of those who heard it. But maybe the talent that he’s remembered for more than any other was his ability to express every emotion known to man in the Psalms that he wrote. And thereby, give us tacit permission to express all of our emotions to God.

He is accredited with being the author of at least seventy-three of the Psalms and many of us have memorized his words and still use them in our lives today. How about Psalm 23 where we get the familiar phrases, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death…” or The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want”? Just to name a couple. Or a phrase that I’ve used frequently in my life as I continually lose sight of my priorities: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” (Psalm 51)

Did David have even a slight idea of what his impact would be not only on his generation, but on thousands of generations to come? I imagine it must have crossed his mind at least a time or two – but, let’s face it – he couldn’t possibly have conceived of a world where anyone who desires to, can find all the words that are credited to him just by pushing a button or two on a little electronic gadget that was not even a dream just one century ago.

SO, what does that mean for you and me? I don’t know about you … you’ll have to figure that one out for yourself. But, for me it means that, partially because of the story God has given me, and partially because of the magic of computers and internet, etc., I can dream that what I write, what I say in front of a group, and what I record might still be impacting people in a positive way many, many years in the future. The thought of that will hopefully help me view my gifts more seriously and make me take what I perceive as my calling as something to be treasured and pursued with more diligence and consistency. After all, none of knows what the future holds here on earth …