A Challenge to Make a Difference – From Tom Gardner

A few weeks ago, our company President, Tom Gardner, spent two weeks in India. This was his sixth trip to India to visit orphans and widows who are served by Don Shire Ministries. While there, Tom had some time at his hotel to think, and he wanted to share his thoughts with you. It has everything to do with what motivates him as a leader, and he hopes it motivates you, too. 

I was thinking this morning while working out at the hotel in Vijayawada, India. I needed something with inspiring music and some beat to get these old bones going. My iPod found its way to Nickelback’s “When We Stand Together.” Not your typical worship music, I know.

That’s when it hit me. I am here in India because God called me out of my comfort zone to love people who at one time I detested. Not only that, but to share the love of Christ with them and to share the fact that when you open the door and let Jesus penetrate your heart, he changes you.

As you read this, what does it mean for us to stand together (as the Nickelback song lyrics suggest). To those of us who proclaim to know who Jesus, are we hiding it in our hearts, or are we standing together to make a difference? Are we sharing his love, his grace, his mercy? 

Are we doing something, or letting the world form us and tell us who we are? God may not be calling you to India but he might be calling you right where you are. Are you making a difference in the world around you? 

We are in a lost and hurting world. What are you doing to make it a better place? And what if today was your last day? Would you step into eternity knowing who Jesus is? Has your life made a difference? Are you making the world around you a better place?

Every day is a gift; what are you doing with it?

If you’d like to know more about how Hay Creek Companies supports Don Shire Ministries, and read some thoughts from Tom’s trip to India last year, we encourage you to read this article. A portion of the sales of our wood pellets goes toward the support of these women and children in India.

As we transition from Thanksgiving into the Christmas season, this is the perfect time to evaluate your own purpose in life and how you make a difference in your own corner of the world. You don’t need to travel outside of your own zip code to find a person who needs someone who cares. 

by Tom Gardner, President and CEO of Hay Creek Companies