The Thursday Night Football talking heads love to make their predictions for the big game. Not only do they predict which team will win the game. They also predict whom will be the “difference maker” for the winning team. Every analyst predicted that my Green Bay Packers would win the game and beat the Chicago Bears. The Difference Makers they selected were interesting choices.

Every organization needs an energetic difference maker. I’ll give you two examples:

1. Community Event Difference Maker. Six churches in our area, including ours, are putting together a “Funtoberfest” for our entire city. One of our local pastors dreamed up the idea. He asked the other churches to come alongside. He runs the meetings. And He makes the connections in the city that make a real difference. Advertising is indicating there may be upwards of 2000 people at the event. No one church could have done this on their own. Nor could all of us have done this together had we not had a true Difference Maker.
2. Church Event Difference Maker. Our own church recently put on a Trivia Night fundraiser. We had a great committee, effective meetings, and many people doing many different jobs. But our church’s business manager was the catalyst that kept things moving on a day-to-day basis. She paid attention to detail at the event. Then, after the event, she took the initiative to write thank you’s to the many people who helped us out.

It’s difficult to do much of anything in an effective manner if you don’t have a Difference Maker. My wife is the one in our family who is an organizational genius and has always kept us on task. Our daughter is a Difference Maker at her job where she oversees many people and keeps them on task.

Our son-in-law has stage managed numerous plays and musicals. He’s the glue that keeps it all together. I once sat in the booth with him during a show. In the middle of the first act one of the actors got sick and left the stage. I witnessed the way he calmly assessed the situation and took care of it. No one in the audience knew what happened.

Difference Makers really make a difference.

How can you be a Difference Maker today in your home, at work, or at church?