We Can Be More Than We Are

I think that many of you can relate to this story. I was out of collage and heading nowhere. I didn’t know what I wanted to do for a living. I picked up a job that was taking me nowhere. I had no career aspirations, and I didn’t make much money. I became more serious about my future after I was married and had a baby. Maybe the shock of newfound responsibility forced me to deal with my future or maybe I was finally growing up. I started to take job hunting more seriously. I started to work harder at the goal of forging a new future.

Then a strange thing happened to me. As I was trying to build a career in the Banking world, I was called into the ministry. A ‘calling’ is different from a career goal. We ministers believe that the ‘call’ is a message from God. So I jumped into the role of minister in training. I continued to work at the Bank in the day, went to school at night and worked as a minister on Sunday’s. In-between I found time to study and be with my family. The whole process took six years. I found in this experience that I could accomplish more than I ever thought possible. I never knew that I could work so hard. I never dreamed that I could do so much. Even today I am still amazed at what I accomplished.

Because of this experience, I now believe that people can accomplish anything. And why not? Why can’t we reach those goals that we dream of? Many things are holding us back, but so what? I am not a naturally gifted writer, but I have written a book. I had the vision of what I wanted to accomplish and went out and did it. Why not follow the vision? The only thing that could have stopped me was me. It may take time and energy, but so what? Put the time and energy in and bask in the accomplishment.


Every generation produces great people. We have a set of criteria that is not written down to decide who is a great person. One of the criteria is success in business. Captains of industry like Andrew Carnegie are usually considered great people. Another of the criteria is inventing something that impacts lives. Thomas Edison would fall under that one. And still another of the categories would be people who do extraordinary things to help others. During my lifetime Martin Luther King is considered one of the greatest of people who helped others. So would Mother Theresa. Great people pop up now and again and are remembered.

Why not more? Why aren’t there more people who are considered great by today’s standards? What makes a person great? Maybe it’s because of their family background. Maybe it’s their genetic background. Maybe they’re in the right place at the right time. Most likely it is a combination of factors that no one can guess at before it happens. As a result, great people don’t come around very often. Not everyone becomes a person that others consider great.

But why not more ordinary people doing great things? Why not more great moms and dads? Why not great accountants? Why not more people going to nursing homes and visiting with the lonely people there? I know a woman who goes to a nursing home and sings songs for the people with her guitar. She is not a professional singer. She is just an ordinary person. Wouldn’t the world be better off with more people visiting the lonely people who live in nursing homes? Nobody is going to honor this woman with a national holiday, but in her small way she is doing a great thing. I know that everyone can achieve greatness in everyday living!

Be a great Mom, be a great Dad. There is nothing holding you back. Strive to be more than you are. Reach for achievements that appear high and lofty to you. There is no reason to stay where you are. All of us can be great in our own individual way.

Peace,

Pastor Bill Whitehead