Well, here is where my story begins…

Like most men, I wanted to do something great with my life. Like most men, I desperately wanted to be “somebody.” Like most men, the focus was on me!

I had it all, I was addicted to winning at all cost and over time and I completely lost myself in the pursuit of greatness. My identity became to twisted and interwoven in position, prosperity and power that the man God created me to be…was barely recognizable!

I was an easy target for the narrative of the world and I exchanged “the truth of God” for a lie and destroyed myself and my family in the process of wanting greatness.

This is what greatness is not! So, what is greatness?

Have you ever felt deep in your bones that you were born to something great? Something that will impact the world?

Then, right after the adrenaline rush of these ideas of greatness flood our minds, we pause and somehow believe that its all just some far off too distant reality. We get stuck in the mud of who we imagine ourselves to be and who we are. Or the life we’re supposed to be living and the one we are living.

We’ve all read the epic stories of the Bible of men and women who went on to do extraordinary things with God, but have you ever noticed that they are filled with flaws and often make choices that are self destructive? Flaws, shortcomings and bad choices…sound like someone you know?

These people as broken as they are become the heroes in the stories that inspire us and cause us to believe that maybe our lives too could be used for something extraordinary.

Do you believe that you were created by God? For intention, purpose and because of His love? That your life is supposed to have significance and that this burning desire to do something great is supposed to be awakened in you?

The question we wrestle with is why is greatness so hard to get to?

Why is it that we see a world does not exist, imagine a life we’ve never known and long to be a person we’ve never become?

Because we confuse greatness with fame and applause!

Jesus said that if you want to be great in the kingdom of God, you need to be a servant of all. What He is saying is that we are trying to pursue the right thing the wrong way. On this path to greatness we typically see people maneuvering and manipulating to be seen as someone who is great. The focus is on self, position, prosperity and power!

That desire we have in us to become great does not go against what God wants for our lives and it does not go against the character of God in the world. Why? Because God created you to something that matters in the world!

Jesus doesn’t stop telling us to be great or stop trying to do something that matters…He is telling us to serve people. What happens is that most of us punt on living the life of greatness that Jesus is calling us into and we choose living a life of mediocrity.

Now, when you decide to walk the path to greatness that Jesus describes; you will be challenged; you will be critiqued; and you will have enemies. Sign me up, right? If any of this scares you, just play it safe…living an average life trying to please everyone and trying to fit in. Or you can step into the courage of Jesus and rise above the crowd. What’s it going to be?

So with the context of how Jesus defines greatness, are you living up to your greatness?