When I was twenty， I decided to go to South Africa on a two-week speaking tour arranged by someone I‘d never met. My mum and dad were not enthused because they were concerned about my safety and health， and about the costs involved. Can you imagine that？ John Pingo had seen one of my first videos and made it his mission to lure me to speak to the neediest people in the poorest regions of his country. On his own he set up a series of appearances for me at congregations， schools， and orphanages through his network of Doxa Deo churches.
John wrote， called， and e-mailed， begging me to come to his country. His persistence and enthusiasm triggered something in me. When I was growing up and sometimes tortured over my circumstances and my future， the one action other than prayer that seemed to bring me relief was to reach out and do something for another person. The more I dwelled on my own challenges， the worse I felt， but when I changed my focus to serving the needs of someone else， it lifted my spirits and helped me understand that no one suffers alone.
Whether you have a lot or a little to offer， just remember that small acts of kindness can be just as powerful as big donations. If you make a difference in just one life， you’ve done a great service， because simple kindness can start a chain reaction of similar actions， resulting in your effort‘s initial results becoming magnified many times. How many times have you had someone do something nice for you and then， feeling grateful， you turn around and do a kindness for someone else？ I believe it is part of our God-given nature to respond in this manner.
Earlier I told you how a simple kind comment from a girl in my school infused me with confidence at a critical point in my life when I had been feeling useless and unwanted. She gave me a boost that made me think maybe I did have something to offer， and now I seek to provide inspiration to those in need worldwide while spreading the word of God’s love. That girl‘s simple kindness to me has been magnified many， many times over.
So if you say that you would do more if you had more， I encourage you to simply do what you can now and every day. Money isn’t the only contribution you can make. Whatever God has given you， share it in ways to benefit others. If you have carpentry or other trade skills， offer them to your church， to Habitat for Humanity， or to the victims of disasters in Haiti and other needy places. Whether it‘s sewing or singing， accounting or auto repair， there are plenty of ways you can multiply your talents.
A high school student from Hong Kong recently e-mailed my Web site， demonstrating how we can all make a difference no matter how old， how rich， or how poor.
I live a very fortunate life， but even still there were times when I nonetheless felt useless and frightened. I was scared entering my high school years because of stories I’d heard about how the older students might treat you. Then on my first day of school， I joined the other students in my Humanities in Action classroom and I had a great teacher who taught us to no longer see ourselves as a class but a family.
Over time we learned so many things. We were introduced to important events in other parts of the world， such as the 1994 genocide in Rwanda and the current Genocide in Darfur， Sudan. My class and I came to feel something that we had never felt before： Passion. We had a passion to understand and help what was happening to the people in Darfur. Even though people wouldn‘t expect much from 14-year-old kids， we found a way of showing the world how we could make a difference.
We put on a performance in which we showed the audience what was happening in Darfur. We found a passion that ignited our souls and spirit.
Because of this we were able to do the unexpected and raised enough money to send essential supplies to help people in Darfur.
Those are wise words from a young person， aren’t they？ The passion to serve others may be the greatest gift God can bestow. I‘m sure the people in Darfur who benefited from the supplies were grateful for every single item， big or small. The awesome power of God is reflected in the fact that if we want to do something for others， our availability is every bit as important as our capability. God works through us when we reach out for others. Once you make yourself available for good works， guess whose capabilities you can rely on？ God’s！ The Bible says， “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Whatever you want for yourself， do it for others. If you make even small acts of compassion a daily habit， you will feel empowered and liberated from your own hurts and disappointments. You shouldn‘t expect to benefit from being generous or supportive to others， but good deeds can lead to surprising rewards.
I’m an advocate of unconditional generosity because it honors God and multiplies His blessings. Yet I also believe that when you do unto others， blessings come to you as well. So if you don‘t have a friend， be a friend. If you are having a bad day， make someone else’s day. If your feelings are hurt， heal those of another.
You never know how much of a difference you can make in this world simply by performing a small act of kindness. Small ripples can set huge waves in motion. The classmate who saw that I was feeling down after being teased and told me that I was looking good not only soothed my hurt feelings， she lit a spark that ignited my career and my mission to reach out to others worldwide.
A PASSION FOR REACHING OUT
Don‘t worry about how much you can do to benefit others. Just reach out and know that small acts of kindness multiply and are strengthened beyond anything you might imagine. Like the student from Hong Kong， I became more and more passionate about traveling to South Africa the more I thought about it and the more I heard from John Pingo.