It would rather commonplace to say that this event changed the world by shifting the geo-political balance at the time or that it changed China by initiating China's opening to the world after years of self-imposed isolation. Nevertheless, China (and the world) is certainly a very different place than it was forty years ago. In a sense, with9ut Nixon's decision to travel to Beijing and meet with Mao Zedong, the China we know today--the economic powerhouse, the proud host of the 2008 Olympic Games, and so forth--would perhaps not exist. And yet, it can be argued that the impact of that event was not only felt in the spheres of global politics and economics, but also in the lives of individuals. Nixon's journey led to growing contacts at the personal level between Chinese and Americans, as Americans flocked to China as tourists or to work and as many Chinese were able to study in or even emigrate to the U.S. (the former often leading to the latter!). I suppose it could be said that this event even had an impact on my own life--though I could not have imagined it at the time. Because of the improved ties between the U.S. and China after 1972, more relaxed U.S. immigration policies allowed many Chinese, like my wife, to come to the U.S. as students. Thus, we were able to meet and to marry. Subsequently, because of China's post-Mao opening to the world, foreigners like myself were allowed (even encouraged) to come to China to work--in my case, as a teacher. Consequently, it could be said that I wouldn't be where I am today if it were not for that historic event.
In short, this is a classic example of how history can affect the lives of even ordinary people. However, I firmly believe that history doesn't just happen--there is One whose purposes are being worked out through the course of human events and His purposes will come to their fulfillment in proper time, whether in the lives of nations or of individuals. I think that should be a reassuring thought to those of us who put our trust in Him.