Be All You Can Be: A Challenge to Stretch Your God-Given Potential by John Maxwell Page A
Authors: John Maxwell
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To have say-it faith you have to know it, do it, show it, and feel it, and then you’ll be able to say it.
S EIZE I T —F AITH ’ S A CTION
Few will cross the Jordan to seize the prize. I think there are four reasons why some of us get right to the edge of the river and then don’t go on across and possess the land. First, we’re too close to success to risk failure. Fear of failure probably keeps more people from positive action than anything else.
The second reason that we do not seize it is that this level requires discipline. If you’re going to act on your dream, it takes more than just sitting around on the sofa. You have to roll up your sleeves and go to work. It does not take any discipline to dream, but it does take discipline to make those dreams real.
The third reason that many people do not seize it is that this level divides the concerned from the committed. I have found that you can get almost anybody to agree to almost anything. You can get almost anybody to show some kind of concern for something. But there are few people willing to leave the ranks of the concerned to join the committed.
This level takes time. If you’re going to seize your dream, you’ll have to make a time commitment. You can say your dream in a moment, but you can seldom seize a worthwhile dream in less than a lifetime.
S ECURE T HAT D REAM !
How are we going to secure the dream of a life? I would suggest six things:
S tate dreams
E xamine motives
C onsider options
U tilize resources
R emove nonessentials
E mbrace your challenges
The first thing you do is state your dreams. Write them out on a piece of paper. Look at them. Then examine all your motives. You have to ask yourself, Why am I doing this? Do I have pure, right motives? If the motive isn’t right, the dream will die. Make sure in the beginning that your motive is right.
Consider all your options. Now that you have stated your dreams and examined your motives, sit down and consider all of your options. How many ways can you reach this goal? There is more than one option. Everybody needs a backup plan; everybody needs a plan B and a plan C and a plan D. Next, utilize your resources. Find people around you who have a similar dream and work with them.
Remove your nonessentials ; get the excess baggage off your back, anything that keeps you from achieving your dream. And finally, embrace your challenges . Picture difficulties in front of you and practice reacting positively instead of negatively. Learn to wring out of those challenges the best that God has for you.
In February 1973, when bus ministries were really big, I went to a conference in Lynchburg, Virginia. Jerry Falwell was talking about buses, and he challenged the five thousand of us there to get a dream for a bus ministry. God began to speak to my heart, saying, “John, you could have in one year as many people on buses as what your church was averaging when you came.” Our average attendance had been 418. I didn’t even have a bus. I remember going back to the Holiday Inn and lying on the floor saying, “God, do you really want me to do this?” Falwell had said, “Tomorrow, we’re going to give you a card and you’re going to write down your name and the number you’re going to have on buses within one year. And you’re going to bring them forward and we’re going to read them.” I thought, Oh, no, they’re going to read this in front of five thousand people from all over the world! I wrestled with it all night. The next day I took a card and put 418 on that card—and I didn’t have a bus! With fear and trembling I handed in my card, and it was read in front of five thousand people. I thought, This is the worst thing I’ve ever done in my life . But I became motivated because I had said it. Falwell wrote a letter to my church board telling them my goal, and I had to go out and raise money for buses before we ever brought it to the board. The great thing is that in one year’s time,
S EIZE I T —F AITH ’ S A CTION
Few will cross the Jordan to seize the prize. I think there are four reasons why some of us get right to the edge of the river and then don’t go on across and possess the land. First, we’re too close to success to risk failure. Fear of failure probably keeps more people from positive action than anything else.
The second reason that we do not seize it is that this level requires discipline. If you’re going to act on your dream, it takes more than just sitting around on the sofa. You have to roll up your sleeves and go to work. It does not take any discipline to dream, but it does take discipline to make those dreams real.
The third reason that many people do not seize it is that this level divides the concerned from the committed. I have found that you can get almost anybody to agree to almost anything. You can get almost anybody to show some kind of concern for something. But there are few people willing to leave the ranks of the concerned to join the committed.
This level takes time. If you’re going to seize your dream, you’ll have to make a time commitment. You can say your dream in a moment, but you can seldom seize a worthwhile dream in less than a lifetime.
S ECURE T HAT D REAM !
How are we going to secure the dream of a life? I would suggest six things:
S tate dreams
E xamine motives
C onsider options
U tilize resources
R emove nonessentials
E mbrace your challenges
The first thing you do is state your dreams. Write them out on a piece of paper. Look at them. Then examine all your motives. You have to ask yourself, Why am I doing this? Do I have pure, right motives? If the motive isn’t right, the dream will die. Make sure in the beginning that your motive is right.
Consider all your options. Now that you have stated your dreams and examined your motives, sit down and consider all of your options. How many ways can you reach this goal? There is more than one option. Everybody needs a backup plan; everybody needs a plan B and a plan C and a plan D. Next, utilize your resources. Find people around you who have a similar dream and work with them.
Remove your nonessentials ; get the excess baggage off your back, anything that keeps you from achieving your dream. And finally, embrace your challenges . Picture difficulties in front of you and practice reacting positively instead of negatively. Learn to wring out of those challenges the best that God has for you.
In February 1973, when bus ministries were really big, I went to a conference in Lynchburg, Virginia. Jerry Falwell was talking about buses, and he challenged the five thousand of us there to get a dream for a bus ministry. God began to speak to my heart, saying, “John, you could have in one year as many people on buses as what your church was averaging when you came.” Our average attendance had been 418. I didn’t even have a bus. I remember going back to the Holiday Inn and lying on the floor saying, “God, do you really want me to do this?” Falwell had said, “Tomorrow, we’re going to give you a card and you’re going to write down your name and the number you’re going to have on buses within one year. And you’re going to bring them forward and we’re going to read them.” I thought, Oh, no, they’re going to read this in front of five thousand people from all over the world! I wrestled with it all night. The next day I took a card and put 418 on that card—and I didn’t have a bus! With fear and trembling I handed in my card, and it was read in front of five thousand people. I thought, This is the worst thing I’ve ever done in my life . But I became motivated because I had said it. Falwell wrote a letter to my church board telling them my goal, and I had to go out and raise money for buses before we ever brought it to the board. The great thing is that in one year’s time,
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