No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. 

Aesop

His name was Brent Hodges and he contracted Polio when he was an infant. He had known pain his entire life, and had spent most of his adulthood in a wheel chair. Many would look at Brent and say that he would not be expected to do anything because of his handicap, but they would be wrong. You see, Brent was not handicapped.

A number of years ago, Brent went to school and learned how to use the computer. He and his sweet parents realized that this was an area where Brent was on an equal footing with everyone else. In fact Brent was head and shoulders above the vast majority of the world, having learned to use a computer when most people hardly even knew what one looked like.

But, it’s not Brent’s technical genius that I wanted to tell you about today - it’s what he did with it. You see, Brent probably didn't have a single day of his existence that he had not experienced pain. But rather than being bitter about his hard lot in life, Brent became acutely aware of the suffering of others. So, whenever some friend or acquaintance became ill, Brent would fire up his old computer and create his famous giant “get well” banners. He would then bring those banners to worship services so that everyone at church could sign it. Then, he would present this symbol of love to a soul that he knew needed cheering up.

Does that sound like a “handicapped” man to you?

Brent has gone on to his reward now - his polio finally caught up to him.  But Brent has left behind a legacy of kindness that will not soon be forgotten. He, like so many others, did what he could and left his mark. It's our turn now, so let us all do the best we can to leave behind our own legacy of kindness. Not everyone will notice, of course, but that's really not the point, is it? 

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others…

I Peter 4:10, NIV