Completing Project MeSample

Layer upon Layer and Ripples Unending

One act of valor can inspire a generation of people to do the same. One person’s life-changing decision can break a multigenerational cycle of violence or crime for succeeding generations. One commitment to do the right thing can lead to scores of people being saved from illness, abuse, and death. It happens all the time. Stories abound. You likely know some. You may be an example of how a single act of good has surprised you in the grand scope of its impact. In reality, this happens every day. Whether the results are heroic and inspiring or mundane, your actions have more than one consequence.

The same is true for the opposite side of the spectrum. Acts of sin, injustice, and abuse have consequences and effects that can sometimes roll on for generations. I believe every person who has ever done something wrong has at one time or another thought in a calculating way: Why not? The only thing that can or will happen will be . . .,  or, It is not going to make that much difference. The worst thing that can happen is . . .  The very thought behind those statements is an error of the greatest order—one that caused millions of people to think, at a later point, If I only knew at the time that it would lead to this, I never would have done it. The initial thought is that there will only be one contained, equal and opposite consequence associated with an action. The outcome is the horror of a lifetime of disappointment, addiction, failure, hurt, or pain.  

The Bible is replete with examples of amplified impact from beginning to end. One person takes a bite from an apple, thinking this would be good food for a moment, but that short-term indulgence negatively impacts every child born thereafter. Another person hangs on a cross and opens the door of hope for an eternity for all who have ever lived who respond by faith. Whether good or bad, there is more to everything than what we can see. The implications run further than the action itself.