Open Your Gifts

There are two great days in a person’s life;? the day we are born and the day we discover why.? - William Barclay

He drank heavily, and while on long nightime walks around Chicago reflected upon the solution to his family's struggles. Three years earlier he had lost his four year old daughter to complications?from polio and spinal meningitis.? Now at age 32 he had a new daughter, but had lost his job.? One?night he looked at the frigid waters of Lake Michigan as a solution.? It was time, he thought, to swim out as far as he could and drown.? In later years, when speaking to audiences, he would recount this experience and the inner voice he heard, one that said, “How dare you?? Who do you think you are to abandon the responsibilities of your life, to your children and to the world?? ……..You do not belong to you, you belong to the universe…….You and all men are here for the sake of others.”? His name was R. Buckminster Fuller and he was an American architect, writer, designer, inventor, and futurist.? Creator of the geodesic dome, he held 28 US patents and in 1983 received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Ronald Reagan.? He would later share, “My life changed that night.? I realized that I wasn’t on this planet for myself, but rather to do good for the world and for others.” ?

Fuller came to an understanding of achieving his potential.? My father once likened potential to a bar of gold laying on the floor of the ocean, having no value whatsoever until it was brought to the surface.? Much the same is true of human potential; we all have it, but until such time as we awaken it and let it serve a purpose, it has little if any value. So the question becomes, how do we discover our potential, and once discovered, how is it realized and surpassed??

Think of potential as a gift!? The concept, illustrated in, “The Parable of the Talents” (Matthew 25:14-30) tells of a master who was leaving his house to travel, and before leaving, entrusted his property to his servants. According to the abilities of each man, one servant received five talents, the second received two, and the third received only one. The first servant used his skills to turn the five talents into ten, the second did the same, only it took him longer.? The third, overwhelmed by the challenge, buried what he had been given in the ground. The moral of the story is to be found in what we do with what we have been given. It is about the choices we make, and how we will use the gifts and opportunities before us.? Some will grow while others hide.? Some will reach their potential, others won’t!

I think at one point in all our lives someone made the comment, “You’re not living up to your potential.”? I know I heard it more than once from well-meaning people (parents, coaches, teachers) who were trying to inspire and motivate me, but it didn’t work for two reasons: (1)?I was too young to even understand the concept of potential. (2)?More often than not, the potential they were alluding to was something they wanted for me.? It was a path they wanted me to follow, not one of my own choosing.? Hence, the key to discovering your potential is developing an awareness of the special skills and gifts you hold.

Oscar Wilde, the Irish poet and playwright believed that we are each a prophecy, that we have a destiny.? Our job is to fulfill it; “The aim of life is self-development.? To realize one’s true nature.? That is what we are here for.”? What is your destiny?? Perhaps asking a question is the best place to start.? I’ve thought about this and my inner voice provided an answer:? “What will bring me true happiness in this life?” ? Once we identify our destiny, our purpose, we can then ask, “What gifts do I possess and what opportunities lie on my horizon."? Therein is where we begin to achieve our potential, by understanding and using our gifts, and taking advantage of opportunities that will enable us to not just achieve, but to surpass what we thought possible.

The challenge is simple:

• Will you take advantage of the gifts you have been given?
• Will you walk through the doors of opportunity afforded you?
• Will you become more than what you were meant to be??

It’s not a case of just realizing our potential, it’s a matter of doing what no one thought was possible. It’s not a matter of doing our best, it’s vying with the best, to become the best.? It’s living by the words, “Our reach should always exceed our grasp!”

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Embrace Your Potential

Embrace the Challenge

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