I’m part of a group of local writers who meets once a month. We call ourselves “Word Girls.” On a recent Friday, we watched the “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” documentary about Mr. Rogers. We showed up at the designated house in our pajamas. (I wore a t-shirt that said “Staying in is the new going out.”) We grazed among the snacks — popcorn and peanut M&Ms, pineapple and strawberries, salty pretzels. Then we settled in for the movie, about a dozen of us cuddled up on two couches like junior high girls at a sleepover.
I watched the original Mr. Rogers program as a little girl so often that when we went on road trips my sweet Mama would answer my questions about how long until we got there using the show as a unit of time. “One Mr. Rogers and a Sesame Street” meant an hour and a half. I liked the little world Fred created on the television — one that was good and kind. I liked his sweaters and his fish tank that he got from FishLab and his little friend Daniel Tiger. It was interesting to look at that same world through grown-up eyes and understand the sense of mission that drove it all.
At one point Mr. Rogers says, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” The film makes it clear he not only looked for the helpers, he chose to become one. Toward the end of his life, Fred Rogers wrestled with wondering if he’d made a difference because hard things kept happening in the world. Watching his life, it’s clear he did. But it reminded me how we can all get a little weary, a little unsure if we’re pushing back the darkness.
If that’s you today, then I want to say, “Yes, you are making a difference. Yes, what you do matters. Yes, the world is a better place because you’re in it.” We all have our own way of helping. I looked at the Word Girls curled up around me and thought of how we keep putting words out into the world, like we’re lighting little candles. Maybe you teach, lead, raise children, make beautiful spreadsheets. Maybe you’re walking with someone you love through a hard season so they won’t be alone in it. Maybe you pray in the quiet where no one is watching. This is all helping. Never underestimate the worth of it.
And the reassuring truth we all need is that God is a helper too — more than that, He is our helper. On the days when we become a bit tired, when it all seems like too much, He says to us, “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand” (Isaiah 41:10). Fred Rogers, an ordained minister, knew this to be true.
The world will never stop being hard to live in. But there will never stop being helpers who make it easier.
Let’s keep looking for the helpers. Let’s keep being the helpers. Let’s do what we can, where we are, with what we’ve been given. And let’s trust, with God’s help, that it’s making a difference more than we can know or see. As Fred Rogers knew, love is not make-believe. It’s the realest thing there is, that there will ever be.
You are making a difference. What you do matters, and the world is a better place because you’re in it. - @holleygerth: Click To Tweet
If you’d like more encouragement, you’ll find it in my new devotional, Hope Your Heart Needs: 52 Reminders of How God Cares for You. When you order it today you’ll also get a limited-time only bonus ebook, Hope for the Holidays, with twenty-one devotions for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the New Year. (For details on how to download the free ebook, click here.)
Holley,
What a wonderful documentary on a man, from my hometown (Pittsburgh), who spread love, acceptance, and worth to millions of young impressionable children like you and me. I remember sitting glued to his show when I was young. There was something in his message that my heart craved – You are special. You matter. You are of great worth. Yes, I have a small blog in comparison to many, but that small blog was the catalyst for starting a Christian school for orphans in a Middle Eastern country notorious for persecuting Christians. We are a small city on a hill and a light that won’t be snuffed out. You never know what God will do if you just say “I’m here, Lord, use me.” And yes, on the days when our souls are bone dry, God fills in the gaps. He notices the difference we’re making and it honors Him. Loved this post – especially in light of the tragedy that just took place in Pittsburgh. Let’s be the good (like Mr. Rogers) that snuffs out the evil. We can make a difference!
Blessings,
Bev xx
I’m not aware of Mr Rogers being from another country but I 100% agree that God does amazing things if we say those words…I’m ready show me your path and use me in your plan for my life. God is certainly our helper….I was missing or had a $560 deficit in my funding costs for accommodation for my Masters trip and I prayed, my mum and dad prayed for me and I contacted the director of my centre and they are funding me an extra $500!!! God has provided and continues to provide, I am so humbled and grateful for what God is doing in my life. He makes me feel valued and he sees my worth! And most of all he makes me feel loved. Praise God!!!!
Jas
And the incourage sisters prayed too and God answered x Thank you to this community for your prayers Xxx
This brought me to tears to read this this morning. Last night I was myself struggling with questions and discouragement. It didn’t seem like I could even begin to make a difference. Then I get this in my email today. AND I have been praying for JAS daily! GOD is faithful! YES! What a great start to my day! When I feel like “I can’t,” GOD says, “I can!”
Jas.
God continues to answer prayers in His timing. He wants us to trust Him for everything. I pray you have a safe, good trip & learn much. So happy for you!
Blessings 🙂
Bev,
My thoughts and prayers go out to all those who have been impacted by the tragedy in Pittsburgh.
I hope that you have a blessed day,
Penny
I love how Mr. Rogers was real enough even to audibly doubt his impact. That genuineness has to be the secret behind his impact–more than his cardigan and his comfy shoes, we needed his level gaze that let us know he was singing that we didn’t have to be afraid of the bathtub drain because he had felt that fear himself. So . . . this is a huge calling. If we want to make a difference, we have to be real with each other about our fears and or failures–
By grace.
I so love this and needed this today, thank you!!
Anne
This is beautiful and I, too, needed these words today. I will send this along to my adult children who grew up watching Mr. Rogers. I’m sure some of God’s first words to Fred Rogers when he arrive in Heaven were “well done good and faithful servant!”
My oldest son loved watching Mr. Rogers. In fact, we were just talking about the show recently. I have not seen the movie, but see the impact of the show in my son. May we all be helpers and walk out our days in kindness.
Dear Holley, Thank you for your words. I am grateful for the reminders. I took my teenage daughter to see the same documentary because Mr. Rogers meant so much to me as a child, for the same reasons as you listed. He was a “friend” who cared, and I could relate to him. As an adult, I learned that he as a Presbyterian minister, which made complete sense to me. My daughter and I (and my husband, and really most everyone I know) also struggle to believe that our small offerings make a difference, that the Lord of the Universe can use us for His glory in this world. Thank you for speaking this Truth.
Self-doubt is a struggle that I know very well! Knowing that our impact and influence on others is immeasurable, does not define our worth, and is lived out by obedience to God’s unique calling on each of us helps to nudge those doubts to the side to continue to live in confidence through Christ. You sure do make a difference! Thanks for this!
You have just made a difference. Glory to God.
Holley,
Thank-you for sharing your kind, and gentle post, with a tone similar to Mr. Rodgers.
Have a blessed day all,
Penny
Thank you, Holley! Blessings!
Ok now I NEED to see this documentary. *wipes away tears*
Thank you so much, Holley, for these precious words. I’m grateful you are a “Word Girl”, who continually encourages my heart with truth and grace. I am a word girl too, and I just LOVE your analogy of sending out little candles into the world… it does make a difference, even on the days when I feel so little and worn down.
Such a good read. Thank you, Sister! 🙂
Becky
I really really need to read this today. You were my helper Thank you.
Thank you SO much Holley for sharing this truth with us! It is difficult for us to see this ourselves! You are making a huge difference in people’s lives by sharing the truths God makes you aware of!!! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!…
Holley,
There have been many times I wondered if I was making much of a difference. Through time God has shown me that my little efforts of seed sowing have been helpful. This world says do something big, have huge platforms, etc. God says differently. He only asks us to do what we can with the little or much He’s given us. John Wesley said it best: “Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, In all the places you can, At all the times you can, To all the people you can, As long as ever you can.” It looks different for each of us. For me I can make cookies for “Feed the Multitude”, cook for in-laws, pray, be a shining beacon at work & help by willingly working full-time some, run errands for hubby & in-laws & just giving hugs to elderly at church. It may not seem like much to this world, but to the individuals it means the world. We can all share a smile, & laugh or two. Let’s all go shine our light brightly & make a difference in our worlds!
Blessings 🙂
Your daughter sounds like me. 🙂 Thank you for this, Holley. It’s so difficult to believe that there are helperS, plural and that God is the One who put us where we are; we aren’t supposed to be anywhere else. Thank you again. There’s no heart that doesn’t need to hear that.
Sorry, ignore the thing I said about your daughter. I’m just confused.