You have probably heard the old story about a boy who was walking along the beach, tossing stranded starfish back into the water. Someone tried to discourage the boy from his efforts, pointing out that there were too many dying starfish on the beach for him to possibly make a difference. The boy bent over and picked up another starfish, and, tossing it into the water, replied, “It makes a difference for that one.”

The application is that, even though we can’t save everyone, we can save somebody.

On a recent trip to the beach, I discovered another angle to this idea. I found a starfish out of the water. Wanting to do the right thing, I picked it up to throw it back into the sea. Not being a marine biologist, I couldn’t even tell if the creature was still alive. Then one of its arms moved. This gave me hope that there was still a chance for that starfish.

Some of the people we want to save don’t show many signs of life spiritually. But sometimes they will say or do something that will give us a clue that they are indeed open to spiritual truth; that they are receptive to having God intervene in their life.

Let’s not give up on them.