One Person’s Power

The book of Acts, Chapter Nine, tells the story of a female disciple in Joppa named Tabitha. What is surprising about this particular passage is that the woman is named. Most women are nameless in the New Testament. They do the work. Men get the publicity.

Tabitha is a widow of means. Her financial state and her faith compel her to provide for others. When Peter is called, her friends show him clothes she made for the poor even before they take him to the upper room. Perhaps they are not in a hurry because they know she is already dead. Or maybe her gifts are so important because the clothes are all they have to remember her by.

But why did they call Peter? What did they expect him to do? Did they hope for a miracle? Maybe they wanted him to broadcast Tabitha’s story to the other faithful (which is what ultimately happened).

Tabitha’s story is an early illustration of the difference one person can make. In more recent times there is the example Nicholas Winton the 29-year-old stock broker on vacation in Prague who saved 669 children from the Nazis, or Maurice Hilleman the microbiologist who developed over 40 vaccines, or Nils Bohlin the Swedish engineer who invented the three-point seat belt. I am conscious of ordinary people, like members of my church, who sew quilts, or read to children in after school programs, or donate Spanish language books to indigenous people in Guatemala. They are like Tabitha, too.

The Apostle Peter is another model. In the years he followed Jesus, Peter was inconsistent. Sometimes he was a rock. Other times he was vain or doubting or hesitant. He fell asleep at key times. In other words, he was a lot like us. Three times he denied Christ, but after Christ’s resurrection, all his hesitation was gone. In Acts 9, Peter is shown to the upper room where Tabitha is lying. He asks the other women to leave. He instructs Tabitha to rise from the dead. She does.

Tabitha’s ministry comes from this same kind of faith. She, too, translates faith into action. Tabitha can feed and clothe the poor, and so she does.

Now consider those “feel good” stories on the back pages of newspapers or featured in a sound bite at the end of the evening news. There’s the 94-year-old knitting caps for preemies and the retired Army sergeant who bakes pies to pay off a neighbor’s medical debt. Anyone can do something like this. Why are these simple acts of kindness newsworthy? Why should people be amazed when someone of faith cares for others? It should be the norm, but instead is the exception. Exceptions make the news.

Maybe you’re one of these people who make a difference, but nobody is writing about you. Take time to pat yourself on the back. Write a “good news” piece about the things you do for others: neighbors, strangers, relations, refugees, people you don’t even like very much. Better still do the same for your friends. Tell them how much you admire their actions in support of others. Don’t let them go unnamed or unnoticed. Tabitha’s not the only one who can made a difference in the lives of others.