Impacting Others at Christmas

If you grew up in the 1980s you probably owned a copy of Trivial Pursuit. The game was created in 1979 by Chris Haney and Scott Abbott.  As you might remember, Trivial Pursuit is a board game in which winning is determined by a player's ability to answer trivia and popular culture questions. Haney and Abbott created the game after finding pieces of their Scrabble game were missing. https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-trivial-pursuit-4075081 (a trivial fact for you).  I loved playing that game, more than playing, I loved reading the cards by myself and doubting the answers when I flipped the card over. Before the internet, I went to The World Book Encyclopedia to see if the answer was true.  Over the years I have been fascinated by lots of strange stories that actually turn out to be true and have an applicable point.  Take for example William Phelps Eno.  You have never heard of him, but his contribution to society has probably saved your life.
 
Known as the “father of traffic safety,” Eno invented the stop sign around 1899. After his father’s death in 1898 left him with a multimillion-dollar inheritance, Eno devoted himself to creating a field that didn’t otherwise exist: traffic management. An incident that happened to him when he was a child left a lasting impression. Describing his passion, he writes about what happened to him at an intersection in 1867, “There were only about a dozen horses and carriages involved, and all that was needed was a little order to keep the traffic moving. Yet nobody knew exactly what to do; neither the drivers nor the police knew anything about the control of traffic.”  He went on to develop the traffic plans for New York, Paris, and London.  But the interesting trivia doesn’t end there, perhaps the most intriguing thing about Eno is that he never learned to drive. Eno distrusted automobiles and preferred riding horses. He died in Connecticut at the age of 86 in 1945 having never driven a car. https://www.interestingfacts.com/fact/616a3ff0bf8b900007ae0bdd
 
His story reminds me of the passage in Hebrews 12:1: After devoting all of chapter 11 to the Old Testament heroes that paved the way of faith for us, Hebrews 12 begins by reminding us of our present-day duty.  None of the Biblical characters we read about knew how impactful their lives were going to be, but they proceeded in faith and we are the beneficiaries of their witness. With that understanding, what are you doing that, you might never see the benefits of, but will impact the next generation for the Lord?  All of us have a duty to use the gifts and resources the Lord has given us, even if we will never experience a personal return.  People like William Phelps Eno never drove a car, but his work saved the lives of millions that do.  What are you doing today that might not only save a life, but direct someone to Jesus and save their soul?    
 
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:3-4

Serving the Savior,
Bro. Jonathan