Have you ever wondered if you make a difference?

We may not necessarily all want to be celebrities or superheroes.  We just want to know if our lives impact anyone else, if we will be remembered for having done something significant while we existed on the earth.  Has it mattered that I was born?

In the Christmas story, a priest in Israel named Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth, had been faithful servants in God's work.  Year by year, Zechariah took his turn at the temple in Jerusalem.  This particular year that Luke records was Zechariah's opportunity to burn the incense.  That in itself was a special honour and I'm sure he felt very blessed to serve the Lord in this way.  

People were gathering outside the temple at the hour of incense (Luke 1:10) as Zechariah fulfilled his duty. This ritual was significant in that it represented the prayers of the people being lifted up to the throne of the Lord Most High.  The priest's role was to offer the incense, and to pray on behalf of the people of Israel.  And then something way out of the ordinary happened:  an angel appeared to Zechariah!  

The angel gives some amazing news.  "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John." (verse 13)  The backstory is that they had been barren and unable to have children.  And as Luke describes in verse 7, they "both were advanced in years."  Was Zechariah still praying about this desire in their lives, to bear a child, even in their old age?  Was this a prayer from years ago and God was just answering now?

Serving in the temple must have been very special and fulfilling.  But in the Israelite culture, having children, having someone to bear your name and continue your family line was the ultimate blessing.  So Zechariah and Elizabeth must have felt somewhat disappointed and disillusioned in reaching advanced years and having no heir.  How could they leave a legacy?

Now they were able to have a child, John, and he grew up to be quite the unique individual!  A Nazirite prophet!  (He was not to consume fermented drink, nor cut his hair, and be a special servant of God, just like Samson in the Old Testament.)  God's purpose for this miracle child was to be a forerunner for the Messiah.  That's a huge calling and special honour!

To jump ahead in time, beyond the nativity scene, John the Baptist grew to be the prophet and predecessor of Jesus Christ.  He preached the coming of the Messiah, preparing the way as foretold in Isaiah 40:3-5.  He baptized people as they responded to his message, a baptism of repentance.  People were often being baptized before John's ministry, as a way of showing they wanted to follow the Hebrew God.  But John's baptism was a step further in repentance and preparing for the Messiah.  

In Luke 7, John the Baptist, as he became known, sent two of his disciples or followers to find out if Jesus was the "one who is to come, or shall we look for another?" (verse 19)  John had met Jesus, baptized Him in the Jordan River and witnessed the coming of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus at that time.  If anyone could be sure of Jesus' identity, it would be John.

But he, like any human, doubted his own significance.  He probably wondered if he had made any difference, if his ministry and life impacted those around him.  Had he been proclaiming this coming Messiah and somehow had the wrong person?  

Jesus answered the two messengers from John, "Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them." (verse 22).  And then Jesus affirmed John the Baptist's ministry by quoting scriptures about John and how he fulfilled the calling also predicted in Malachi 3:1.  "Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you."

Maybe our significance isn't quite like Zechariah, John or Jesus.  But God has chosen each one of us to be influencing others for His Name.  We have been created for a purpose, called to have impact and to be light, salt, witnesses, servants for the Kingdom of Heaven!  

In Ephesians 2:10, our calling is clear.  "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."  Every one of us, as followers of Jesus Christ, have specific works prepared for us, that we should discover them and walk in them.  In other words, we have unique opportunities and the giftedness to serve and make a difference.  Our testimony of God's saving grace in our being born again, and our faithfulness in everyday living impacts everyone who knows us and sees us in action!  Don't underestimate your life being observed and copied by those of your family and your circle of influence.  

God sees you, and He is answering your prayers.  

YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE!