Human beings have a multitude of advantages over the animal kingdom. We can communicate at high levels (when not posting on social media!). We can imagine. We can solve complex problems (Granted, so can the squirrels trying to get to the seed in my bird feeder.). Perhaps most significantly, people can keep growing throughout their life. Certainly, elephants, horses, and giraffes also grow, at least for a time. But eventually they reach full maturity and level off. Humans can learn, mature, and become more sophisticated long after their physical bodies have reached their peak.
This ability to grow creates a problem. We live in a continual state of tension. We are what we are now, but we are constantly aware that we could be more. We may be an average leader, but we could become much more effective with work, mentoring, and study. We may be a so-so public speaker at the moment, but with work, coaching, and practice, we could improve. Our marriage may be average, but with due care and effort, we could experience a much more fulfilling relationship. Humans have the God-given capacity for improvement.
But this capacity also causes tension. After all, we have to live today with who we are now. It matters not that I may be a much better leader five years from now, I have to lead my team today! This discrepancy can drive perfectionists crazy, for they know that whatever they do today will be inferior to what they will be capable of doing in the future. Some people simply refuse to attempt things until they feel confident they have mastered the required skill. But this approach is unrealistic for most people. A father can’t cloister himself in his master bedroom and refuse to interact with his children until he has mastered the art of parenting. People can’t begin their career as an expert leader. Everyone has to begin somewhere.
When God sent an angel to Gideon, the Midianites had been oppressing the Israelites for seven years. Gideon’s father was a farmer and the chairman of the elder board for the Church of Baal. Gideon’s brothers had been killed by the Midianites. So, it is not surprising that Gideon was afraid of his nation’s oppressors. One day he was threshing wheat in a hole in the ground normally used for pressing grapes. He was using that unorthodox method because he was afraid the Midianites would spot him threshing wheat and relieve him of his food (and perhaps his life).
Suddenly, an angel called out to the fearful farmer and said, “The Lord is with you, mighty man of valor!” (Judg. 6:12). Mighty man of valor? He was hiding in a hole in the ground because he was afraid. He was anything but “mighty” at the time. So why did the angel use that moniker? God knew what Gideon could become. You see, whenever God looks at you, he sees not only what you are today but also your capacity to grow. He made you. He knows full well what you are capable of. He also knows the future. He sees what you will be some day. God interacts with you based not only on who you are today but also who he is making you.
God is comfortable dealing with this tension in people, though it must test his infinite patience to watch people he has gifted with enormous capacity settle for a small fraction of what they were designed to be. How it must disappoint God for his magnificent creations to shrug their shoulders and say, “It’s good enough!” when he knows they could be so much more.
How should you handle the tension of living with your current reality when you know there is still much more you could be and do? Here are some suggestions.
First, never be satisfied to remain who and where you are. Live your life with the constant awareness that you still have room to grow. Intentionally choose to become a more mature person than you were the year before. Anticipate growth. Set goals for yourself but show grace when you fall short. You haven’t arrived yet!
Second, do “today” well. You can’t wait to live today until you are fully mature and highly skilled! You have to live today with the tools you currently have in your tool belt. Acknowledge that five years from now you might have handled the situation much better. But you aren’t yet that person! I have often thought it would be nice to take what I know now back in time and be a newlywed to my wife all over again. I was so immature back then! I said some foolish things. I meant well, but I was clueless. Unfortunately, we don’t have that luxury. Instead, we are called to live each day, to the best of our current ability.
Third, build a track record of faithfulness. God typically grants assignments based on character. When we start out in our careers, our character is not yet fully mature. So, God grants us small assignments. If God were to give you an assignment that was larger than your character, you would inevitably crash and burn. The best way to grow your character and skill set is to work hard at the task before you. Finish what you start. Meet deadlines. Reflect on how you could improve. Learn from your mistakes and your successes. And without you even being aware of it, you will grow, mature, and improve. All of a sudden you may become aware that you are no longer the same person you used to be. Hallelujah!
Finally, enjoy the journey. I am a lot wiser now than I used to be. I am also a lot older! I am a smarter parent, but my kids have all moved out of my house and started their own families. Though I wouldn’t relinquish the wisdom and skills I have gained over time, I do miss certain dynamics of my earlier life. God designed life to be that way. There are positive aspects of every stage of life. So embrace each stage, knowing you won’t always be there. You are growing, maturing, learning, and aging. Embrace each stage with gusto. Strive to be the best version of you that you can be in each stage of your life. Don’t lose sight of today in your zeal to be more mature tomorrow. Live today well.
We live in a constant state of tension. Horses probably don’t spend a moment of their time reflecting on what they will be like one day. They are what they are, and that is what they will always be. But we have the enormous, exhilarating opportunity as humans to grow and change. We can become a better version of ourselves. We can learn from our mistakes. We are not sentenced always to remain the same. When you stop and consider what almighty God by his infinite power could help you become, it is breathtaking. But in the meantime, let’s do the best we can to live today well!
