Greatness

Friends,

I have known a number of people in my life whom I would consider -- great. I am not talking about Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison, Ronald Reagan, or Ghandi. I am just talking about ordinary folks like you and me. What is it that makes them "great"? It is an unwillingness to be forced into a mold. It is an inability to accept "the status quo" or to be a "yes man". It is having the courage to lead when everyone else is wanting to or willing to follow. It is having amazing perseverance. It is to be that "voice crying out in the wilderness". It is a person who is willing to say, believe and practice the right things, even though he or she may be persecuted by the masses for doing such. For those of you who think I may be describing Jesus -- in a sense, I am. For the purpose of this writing, I am not intentionally seeking to describe Him personally -- in fact, one of the above references is in relationship to Jesus' cousin, John the Baptist, another great individual. I am seeking to describe individuals who, in their imperfection, are willing to and able to operate in the spirit of Jesus Christ, because He was, indeed, all of the things mentioned above and so much more! When we read the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John), we see that He was willing to and able to lay down His life in order that we might live -- eternally. This was the greatest act ever fulfilled by any man. The more that we truly become like our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, the more that we can genuinely understand what greatness is all about in the fullest sense of the word.

Don