A search was made to find the great achievers of the world’s history. The scope of the study included all the major nations of the world and recorded cultures through the centuries. About four thousand names emerged. The search and review was a worthy project. Not only were the factors of greatness identified, but we can isolate the group from the rest of the world to help interpret what real life is all about for the masses. What have millions upon millions of persons achieved who have gotten through their life sojourns successfully, without greatness? World history belongs to these last. Some of them did not believe in God, and some did, but they in rather high percentage more likely lived closer to the rules of God’s meaning than did the remainder of human beings higher and lower on the various continua of measurement.
How do we approach greatness as human beings? And, that is the point – greatness as a human being. It is achieved most highly in God’s pattern of fulfillment through righteousness (rightness) that includes investment in others – caring for them so to live and contributing to them to achieve in a direction they sense is meaningful and fulfilling. It is usually done in the small things in life. He is most human who gives attention to the increments of life – even if it is only a word in season. So one’s life, and the lives of those with whom one has to do are vitalized with relationships that do not necessarily carry heavy burdens of baggage, but the faithfulness of constructive contributions. Humanly speaking we think of Mary, the mother of Jesus, as achieving lasting admiration and greatness in that she contributed to the nurture of Jesus. Most mothers did what Mary did. We really know very little about her, but we do need to know more in that she, a righteous young woman, was obedient to the heavenly vision revealed in her life. We feel her spirituality in the Magnificat signifying the immaculate conception, and her humanness in the mild scolding she gave to Jesus on discovering him in the Temple discussion when he was twelve years of age.
In remarking on the helpful innovations in society, Jeffrey Wadsworth stated: There is no Lone Ranger. Most . . .things . . . have come from remarkably complex teams. . [It is a] myth that stuff happens fast. Wadsworth develops the idea that it takes many years, of many contributions, to achieve a meaningful creation, the results of long periods of bit-by-bit advances. The result seems to be so dramatic that the story becomes iconic, and falls to one person in the context. Lindbergh hastened to take off for Paris, because another pilot was poised to take off in a matter of hours. Others had tried earlier, and failed because the planning was likely too hurried. Even Lindbergh was too hurried but got away with it.
What if parents would provide the factors of orderliness to the nurture of their children? What if the boss would introduce some small improvement to the line or office? What if the teacher would work personally with the student to measure the growth of his or her learning – and find a personalized way to improvement? So much is related to something that is achievable, that will make life better, and point the way to the desired haven. This is a major matter, but it gets little attention, so to rob us of what we really want for ourselves and society. What if at some casual moment late in the day, the family would play a One Sentence Game? In one sentence the family member would say: Today I was helped by . . . Today I learned . . . Today I was challenged by this question. Small seeds are sown for abundant harvest.
Our lives grow little by little. One should approach the day with the idea: What may I gain today to contribute to my spiritual, intellectual, physical and social life? There is a day-by-day period in which we are formed to become the persons our life vision and objectives can make us, so to please ourselves – and God. There is too little understanding about how the divinely guided daily life of a faith person functions. There is patience that comes from God, the Father, to his children in faith that makes life comfortable and fulfilling. We are not under the gun. God means to form us, if we are willing for the construction. There is no way any of us can match the person he has in mind for each of his children – without his assistance. The marvel of it all is that the developing life makes us effective in his kingdom. Every day’s motto ought to be: I am not today what I was, but I am not yet the person that I mean to be. *Mark W. Lee, Sr. — 2016, 2020