Manifesting Greatness through Christ

We often associate greatness in our ability to achieve our dreams and aspirations in life. Our dreams fuel our passion to succeed and excel more. However, as I dwell on the idea or feeling of being great, I come to ask the following related questions:

• Is reaching our dreams the ultimate goal in life?
• Is reaching our dreams the sole barometer of greatness?
• Hence, are we a failure if we were not able to attain our aspirations in life?

Let me share to you 3 things that I have discovered in my life, which I believe, has guided me to manifest greatness in my own little ways.

1. Learn from your mistakes.

In the past 15 years of my experience in the corporate world, I realized that there are a lot of things to be discovered in our journey towards our dreams.

One mistake that I did is that I plagiarized. Shocking? Well, I plagiarized in the sense that I have inherited some (if not most) of my previous bosses’ rigid work ethics. Maybe because I wanted to please them or simply, I believed that by doing so, I could reach the same leadership position by imitating their ways. I was plainly ambitious at that time.

There was one time when I expressed my emotions of distress and deep frustration without further discernment. I failed to approach the problem and the persons involved in a proactive way. I was too engrossed with what my boss would say if the group would perform poorly.

I realized that I have become a “copycat” who plagiarized my bosses’ authoritarian ways in order to please them, at the expense of my staff’s disposition and our working relationship.

The moral of the story is: You can effectively manage people only as much as you can effectively manage yourself. I have then changed my approach in leadership, where I encourage proactive participation from my staff, as well as good rapport with my boss, no matter what their leadership style is.

Our mistakes and failures in the past allow us to have a humble heart and ultimately, the way to have an intimate relationship with God. This now leads me to the second point,

2. Maintain an intimate relationship with God. Pray and meditate.

The best way to have an intimate relationship with God is to maintain a contemplative way of life. It allows us to see God in every situation.

I’m quite sure that you think about the saints, or Buddha, or yoga, or deep concentration with the words “pray” and “meditate.” However, I think meditation should not always be viewed as a separate entity in our lives. It should be treated as one of the dimensions which forms part in every activity that we do, may it be personal or professional.

Meditation is one way of returning to the self and the Lord. It is the perfect time to be naked from material possessions and worldly views. It is the time to control our selfish desires and to think of our family and neighbors, and how they might inherit a great legacy from us.

A more relatable example is that when we do our basic tasks at school, such as submitting our reports on time and passing the exam in flying colors, we shall see to it that we are working for the greater glory of God. And that, for me, that is a way of meditation.

3. Following Christ is about service.

The first thing that comes into my mind when I hear the word service is the 1997 movie, “7 Years in Tibet.” It was said during a conversation of the Tibetan woman and the main character, Austrian Mountaineer starred by Brad Pitt:

“You admire the man who pushes his way to the top in any walk of life, while we admire the man who abandons his ego.”

It struck me and I realized how our culture and societal standards affect family and relationship values. Our society specifically suggests professional achievement and financial success are the measures of a person.

However, we are invited to serve God and make our lives as a humble offering so that others will also be blessed. Further, we can be successful if we are able to achieve our all-inclusive goals—may it be a great physique, good mental health, great emotional regulation, a booming career, a fulfilling social/service calendar, a sustainable bank account, or a healthy family life. If all these are done for the greater glory of God, then consider yourself a success.

These 3 personal key points that I shared are the new perspectives of manifesting greatness. We manifest greatness when we allow ourselves to be of service with God and our neighbors, and in turn, live in a happy and positive disposition.

Hearing these, let us now have those questions I raised a while ago, answered by reflecting among ourselves:

• Is reaching our dreams the ultimate goal in life?
• Is reaching our dreams the sole barometer of greatness?
• Hence, are we a failure if we were not able to attain our aspirations in life?

(Francis Manayan)