A man took

the bus to work. Since rain was predicted, he went to get the umbrella,

but his wife stopped him.

"You have

taken every umbrella we have and haven't brought a single one back. I

need that umbrella for my running around today. Just hope it doesn't rain

before you get to work."

So he caught

his bus, and by the time he was approaching his stop, the bottom fell

out. It was pouring and he had a two-block walk to his office. Then he

noticed a gentle Quaker sitting across from him with an umbrella propped

in his seat.

The man thought,

"That Quaker is a peaceful man. If I grab his umbrella, he won't

oppose me. I'll just borrow his."

So the bus

came to his stop, the man got up, grabbed the Quaker's umbrella and took

off down the street, leaving the Quaker staring in disbelief.

That afternoon,

the man remembered to grab the other six umbrellas he had left at the

office. When he caught the bus, he sat down and realized that he was sitting

across from the very same Quaker man. The Quaker noted his collection

of umbrellas and said, "Thou hast had a very good day, huh?"

Like it or

not, people watch us and notice what we do. Several recent experiences

reminded me that you never know who is watching. I took my son to the

video store on a Friday night to let him pick out a movie. As he was looking,

I was reading movie jackets in another part of the store. A man walked

over to me and said, "hello, preacher."

I could not

place this person, but we visited and he said he had attended my church

about a year ago. He knew me, but I didn't remember meeting him. I was

just thankful that I was holding a copy of "Mary Poppins" when

he walked up.

Then in the

grocery store, I passed this friendly lady in the aisle who spoke like

she knew me. She recognized my picture from this column. We visited and

became acquainted and I had the opportunity to invite her to church. I

do a lot of socializing in the grocery store.

Another time

I walked into an office and the kind administrative assistant said, "aren't

you David Chancey?"

I responded,

"yes, I am. Please tell me who you are."

She gave me

her name and told me she recognized me from my picture in the paper. She

said she enjoyed reading the column in the Sunday Citizen.

On still an

earlier occasion, I had opportunity to walk into a different office and

another lady asked, "aren't you David Chancey?"

I told her

I was and asked her name. We had a really great visit as she told me she

enjoyed the column and that she had even used some stories in her Sunday

School lesson from time to time. She teaches a ladies' class at the Methodist

Church.

I promise you

that each occasion did not feed my ego. Instead, it scared me to death

to realize that people know who you are and what you represent and are

watching what you do.

Every one of

us has influence, and we are in the process of influencing someone for

the better or for worse. Sociologists tell us that even the most introverted

of us will influence 10,000 people during his or her lifetime. Unbelievable!

Influence is

a mystery. J. R. Miller put it well: "There have been meetings of

only a moment which have left impressions for life, for eternity. No one

can understand that mysterious thing we call influence, yet everyone of

us continually exerts influence, either to heal, to bless, to leave marks

of beauty; or to wound, to hurt, to poison, to stain other lives."

The lesson

is, people are watching, and we have the privilege helping folks or hurting

folks, of lifting people up or letting people down. Which do you do?

"My life

shall touch a dozen lives

Before this

day is done.

Leave countless

marks of good or ill,

E're sets

the evening sun.

"This

is the wish I always wish,

The prayer

I always pray;

Lord, may

my life help other lives

It touches

(Dr. David

L. Chancey is pastor, McDonough Road Baptist Church in Fayetteville. Join

them for Bible study at 9:45 a.m. and worship at 10:55 a.m. each Sunday

at 352 McDonough Road, just down from the soccer fields.)

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