You've got potential!
Most of us are pretty pleased when others tell us the above. And if you're anything like me, you'll be surprised to hear that it's not really all that great of a complement.
Less than a great complement
A few months ago, I was having breakfast with a mentor. He said, "'You've got potential' isn't that much of a complement. It really means that you're not living up to what God has put in you."
Now, an obvious argument to that statement is that none of us have lived up to our full potential. And God has each one of us where we are for a reason. So, the statement is arguable. But it's also true that being amazing is better than simply having the ability to be amazing. So, it's our goal to discover more potential in our lives, and become that amazing person that everyone is telling us we're capable of becoming.
This is where my blogger instincts kick in, and I feel tempted to compulsively list the people that you should look to as you discover more potential in your life. But that's not what this post is about. It's about the one person you should be looking to to help you learn and grow. And that person is you.
The one person
More than anyone you've ever known or will know, you are responsible for discovering the potential that God put in you. People commonly make the mistake of holding mentors, accountability partners, spouses, friends, parents, and even employers responsible for discovering their potential for them. And those parties can certainly be helpful, but none of them carry the responsibility of seeing what you're made of. I recently had to face this hard fact.
I received my 2014 budget worship and programming, and quickly discovered that the line item for leadership development had been removed. I knew that we had to make budget cuts. But my first thought was is my development not important? I was worried that the development of my growth was taking a back seat. In reality, I was just putting the responsibility on the church that belonged to me all along.
Since then, I've been focusing on taking the initiative to pursue growth for myself. I still look to other people for guidance. But I no longer hold anyone else responsible for my progress. Now I ask myself this simple question, that I want to leave with you:
What am I doing right now to pursue the development of my leadership?
Leave a comment below with what you've been doing lately to grow as a leader and follower of Jesus.
Cover photo courtesy of Krystian Olszanski at Flickr.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment