Big Results

        In 1972, NASA launched the exploratory space probe Pioneer 10. According to Leon Jaroff in Time, the satellite’s primary mission was to reach Jupiter, photograph the planet and its moons, and beam data to earth about Jupiter’s magnetic field, radiation belts, and atmosphere. Scientists regarded this as a bold plan, for at that time no earth satellite had ever gone beyond Mars, and they feared the asteroid belt would destroy the satellite before it could reach its target. 

  

     But Pioneer 10 accomplished its mission and much, much more. Swinging past the giant planet in November 1973, Jupiter’s immense gravity hurled Pioneer 10 at a higher rate of speed toward the edge of the solar system. At one billion miles from the sun, Pioneer 10 passed Saturn. At some two billion miles, it hurtled past Uranus; and Neptune at nearly three billion miles. By 1997, twenty-five years after its launch, Pioneer 10 was more than six billion miles from the sun. 

     And despite that immense distance, Pioneer 10 continued to beam back radio signals to scientists on Earth. "Perhaps most remarkable," writes Jaroff, "those signals emanate from an 8-watt transmitter, which radiates about as much power as a bedroom night light, and takes more than nine hours to reach Earth."

That satellite wasn’t supposed to do what it did.  It was built to last 3 years... it went over 25.  It’s 8-watt transmitter... underpowered even at its launch... continued sending signals and data back to Earth at an unexpected rate.  Tiny power... big results.

If it had disintegrated after it’s expected 3 years, we would have lamented it’s demise but applauded it’s efforts.  After all, that’s what it was supposed to do.  Launch...Jupiter data... done.  But it didn’t.  It kept going.  Never quitting.  Always pushing ahead.

So many of us have settled for what others have told us we’re designed for...  

You are average

You are ordinary

You are plain

You are medium

Do what you get to do in your life... but don’t expect much more...

You’ll never make it.

You don’t have the contacts...the skill set... 

The dream is dead... buried... disintegrated 

Don’t listen to them.  Keep going.  Push past the limits others put on you.  Go beyond people’s expectations and prove to the world that God knows far better than anyone what you are capable of.  

The engineers at NASA built Pioneer 10 for three years of usefulness.  It went thirty...

You were built by the Creator of the Universe for a lifetime of excellence... and have the opportunity to spend an eternity in His presence.  

It doesn’t matter where they say you should stop.

It doesn’t matter if they think you’ll never make it.

It doesn’t matter what others say about your dream.

It doesn’t matter how young or old you are...what your past looked like...or their definition of your success.

It matters where you are headed and what it would take to stop you.

“So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up.”  Galatians 6:9

Stop at nothing.

Keep going.  

Blessings are coming.

Don’t quit. 

Practicing And Preparation

In the 2012 Olympic Summer Games, Kim Rhode won the gold medal in skeet shooting making her the first American to win 5 Olympic medals in 5 consecutive Olympic games. That’s a span of 20 years and not her only distinction. In the 2012 games, she hit 99 out of 100 skeet setting a new Olympic record and tying the world record for the event. As if that wasn’t accomplishment enough... her first medal was in the 1996 Summer Games making her the youngest female gold medalist in Olympic shooting. 

How does this happen?

In an interview with the New York Times, Rhode answers the question of how. She shoots anywhere from 500 to 1,000 rounds every day of the week year around. To save you the math, this is 3,000,000 plus shots with a shotgun. That’s 600,000 rounds per medal.   Over three million practice shots.  Time after time.  Every single day on her calendar.  

Kim would be the first to tell you... it’s all about the preparation.  What you do on your own time is as important (if not more so) than what you do in the spotlight.  Her excellence on the range is due to her diligence, discipline, and perseverance.  In other words... there are no shortcuts.  Gold medals don’t hang around the necks of those that wing it... that hope for the best... that count on good fortune or a favorable breeze.  Champions don’t materialize... they are made.

In 1 Corinthians 9, Paul talks about this type of preparation.  

“Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win!  All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize.  So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.”  

All of us run the race of life.  We lace up our shoes each morning, get on a bus or in a car, and head somewhere that requires us to make a difference.  We make decisions, contribute to relationships, communicate ideas, raise children, and live out the life that unfolds in front of us.  But are we successful?  Do we make the most of every opportunity or do we find ourselves reacting... flat-footed.  Underprepared for the challenges...

Which brings us to the next important question... how much training do we do?   How much of our day is preparation?  How many minutes are spent intentionally trying to better ourselves?  Are we living on purpose?

- How much time is spent reading and meditating on the scriptures? How many Bible verses have I memorized and keep on my heart?

-  How many people do I hold grudges against?  Why haven’t I forgiven them?  

• Am I raising my children in a way that honors God?  How much quality time do I spend with them?  Do they know God?

• Am I being the husband/wife that God wants me to be?  Is most of my energy spent trying to change my spouse or is it spent becoming a better one?

• Do I spend my day blaming others or confessing my shortcomings to God?

• When was the last time I asked for forgiveness?  Given forgiveness?

• Am I living out what I claim to believe?   Or do I tell people I believe it because that’s what they expect me to say?

We can avoid these questions or we can run toward them.  Don’t settle.  Bronze is a beautiful color... but you were created for gold.  The eternal prize Paul was talking about?  The everlasting salvation found in Christ...making a Kingdom difference in the lives of those around you... changing the destiny of someone bound for eternal separation from God into a life-changing eternal relationship with Him.  Growing in Christ... Not surviving life but really living it to its fullest.  That’s what we’re after.  That’s why we train.  To reach the potential that God has placed in our hearts... to fulfill our destiny... to become the men and women that change the world.... and give all glory to God in the process. 

But we can’t do it if we aren’t prepared.  It isn’t easy.   Christ never promised us ease of lifestyle... He promised eternal reward.   The challenges will be hard... the competition fierce... and the opposing team?  An enemy that prowls like a lion just waiting for us to stop growing and start settling.   Ready to win?  Every race... every result... the path to every gold medal was all began the same way.  

Deciding to start.   

Greatness

I read a story of a man who played the violin in the Washington DC subway.   On this particular cold and blustery morning, very few people noticed the man on the platform… playing skillfully on his instrument.  They were scurrying to make their next train… looking over their newspapers… pressing their faces close to their phones while they checked Twitter.  After a little while, a lady stopped and placed a one dollar tip in his violin case.   But the recognitions were few and far between.  After about 45 minutes of playing, the man had made $32.00.   After finishing his last piece, to the deafening silence of no applause, the man placed his violin back in its case and headed home. 

What the people passing didn’t know… this was Joshua Bell.  Violin virtuoso.  One of the most talented players in the world.  In fact, just two days before, Joshua had played to a sold-out concert crowd in Boston… where the average ticket price exceeded $100.  

Sometimes greatness is right in front of us and if we aren’t careful, we’ll miss it.  

For many of us at Christmas, the same thing can happen to us.  We can miss the Greatness that this season is all about.  Busyness, family, and the rush of getting everything done can cause us to be blinded to the real meaning of that special night.   The night where Mary and Joseph walked the streets looking for a place to rest… and the innkeeper turned them away to the caves…   The night when angels prepared to sing, shepherds stared into the starry sky in anticipation, and God smiled knowing that His plan for salvation was about to be unveiled.  It was the night when greatness and perfection lay waiting as a human child in the womb of a young virgin… eager to open His beautiful eyes in a world desperate for His presence.  

Greatness was about to appear to the world.  Yet many would miss it.   To some it was just another night… just another star in the sky… just another young boy.  

To some it was just another birthday.   

This Christmas… don’t miss it.  Don’t allow the busyness to get in the way of the beauty of His birth.   Don’t miss the chance to worship Him… giving your greatest gifts to Him… sharing His story with those that might otherwise walk on by.  He is the greatest single human being ever born… and, at the same time, every bit God.   His knowledge is as vast as the sands on the beach… and His compassion is unequalled.   He IS God.  He is greatness personified.   He is our Savior.   Let’s celebrate knowing that He was born with the ultimate purpose….  saving the world!

The Hall

For every 2000 high school football players... only 44 of them will ever play in college.  Of those, less than 1 percent will ever make the roster of an NFL team.  The 1,696 players currently in the NFL are in a very elite group!  Out of all of veterans of the league... only 4 to 7 per year are inducted to the Hall of Fame.  Quite an impressive accomplishment!

When we visit Canton, Ohio...and the football hall of fame... it’s easy to walk past the statues and be awed.  But the Bible cautions us about having too much admiration for those the world considers great... 2 Corinthians 10 tells us to avoid comparing ourselves with others because it’s unwise.  Instead, we should remember that our value comes from God... and He made each of us on purpose and destined for greatness!  We may never make it in to a hall of fame... but our name is known by the Creator of the universe... we are valuable to Him.. and that’s what truly matters.

Created for Greatness

Mary Fasano’s parents pulled her out of eighth grade so she could work in a cotton mill in Rhode Island.  Fifty-five years later, she made a major decision.  She decided that she was going to go back to school to complete her education.  At 71, she completed her coursework and received her high school diploma… but she wasn’t done yet!  She signed up for Harvard University’s extension program and took one class at a time.  Week after week, she drove the twenty miles to the school… and did so for seventeen years!  In June of 2003, Mary Fasano graduated from Harvard at the age of 89.

Many called her crazy.

Many would have told her that her dream was impossible.

But what they forgot…?  Something is impossible ONLY until it is accomplished.

Mary lived her life by this truth from Matthew 19:26 “For nothing is impossible with God”

Today you may be facing something that nobody else believes in but you.   It’s a mountain that’s never been climbed… and achievement the world’s never seen… a way of doing something that’s never been done.  Be bold.  Read that verse above over and over until it weaves its way into the fabric of your heart.  You have been created for greatness… and your greatest competition is the status quo.  The odds of success mean nothing when you have God on your side.  He sets the odds.  He gets you through.  And He will equip you with everything you need to push onward.  Seize the day.  Take your dreams back from the critics because someday you will be dancing in victory while the doubters stand silent.  

Created for Greatness

Maybe you’ve heard the name:  Babe Ruth... one of the all-time greatest home run hitters in the history of baseball.  714 to be exact.  What many don’t know is that he had 1330 career strikeouts when he retired.   That’s nearly twice as many failures at the plate!  When asked for the secret of his success, the Babe said “I just keep on swingin’ at ‘em!”  

That’s my challenge for you today... step up to the plate.   You’ll miss a few... but you’re destined to hit your share over the wall.  Galatians 6:9 tells us “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”   Don’t quit.  Don’t give up.  Your home runs are coming... Step boldly out of the dugout, shrug off the strike-outs, and listen to your Coach... He created you for greatness!