Leveraging Our Lives

We are only granted one life, one voice, one chance to change the world.

I want to use everything within my reach and within myself to create impact and change in this place, not to leave a legacy of me but that I might BE a legacy of Christ.

Since childhood I have loved stories. The words of love stories, brimming up from the pages of leather bound books, make me smile. The adventure stories told around campfires or living room rugs spark curiosity and excitement in my soul. Memories, that look more like movies in my head, of days gone by and people who shaped me are some of my favorite things to ponder. Tall tales from the mouths of babes, about bears in the kitchen or catching dolphins on fishing poles, ignite creativity and energy in my mind. The simple exchange of words that draw pictures in the mind or invoke emotion in the heart are the basis of every story ever told.

Every life tells a story and every story reveals something. So dear friends, what does YOUR story say and where does YOUR story point?

To accept that our lives are not for nothing and our days are not lived in vain, is to accept that our lives have meaning and are designed for a purpose. The acceptance of this truth contains great weight and responsibility for us to steward them well and live them out with intention. Living out our days with meaning and purpose requires that we leverage the one life we’ve been given to tell the story of Jesus…the only story that can save the soul and redeem the past. 

The leveraging of our lives is the giving of ourselves beyond the ordinary into the extraordinary, beyond the natural into the supernatural, beyond the mundane and into the majestic.

Wrapped up tight in the beauty of YOU are gifts and talents and abilities and stories and experiences and blessings that are yours to steward and share with the world. How will you leverage what is inside of YOU to point towards the ONE who created you?

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” (Colossians 3:23)

To the mommas (and the papas and the grands) …whisper when you want to scream; bend down when you want to run away; hold tight when you want to let go; laugh when you want to scold; and give grace once more when you think there is nothing left to give. Leverage your motherhood (and your fatherhood and your grandparenthood) to point us all to the Father and you will find grace for it all.

To the coaches, teachers, caretakers, healers, and encouragers of the world…see the person not the limitation; hold the hand and gaze into the eyes; give the direction but remember to listen more than you speak; pat the back and brush off the knees because the falling is hard but the getting up is even harder; and applaud the loss as loudly as the victory because it is in losing that we learn the most. Leverage your position to point us all to the Overcomer and you will breathe strength into weakness.

To the builders, innovators, dreamers, thinkers, and wanderers…imagine things that have never been perceived and deliver them to us boldly; create with your hands and see beyond what the eyes can behold; inscribe poetic words of souls onto the turning pages of books; sing loud and dress wildly; walk slowly and charter new territory; think outside the box, color outside the lines, and remind us often that living free is always the goal. Leverage your creativity to point us to the Creator and you will discover freedom beyond your imagination.

To the organizers, managers, executives, directors, and detailers of this chaotic world…hold it together with prayer instead of ability; solve the problems but acknowledge the success; leave striving behind and remember to rest in Him; find joy in the mistakes of others (and yourself) because learning is a process; compartmentalize the drawers but not your heart; lead the meetings, delegate the tasks, and make the sale but remember that people matter more than process. Leverage your leadership to point us all to Jesus and He will lead us to the Father…the ultimate destination.

To YOU…there is more in you than you ever thought possible and it is all purposed for the sharing of the good news of Jesus Christ. The uniqueness of YOU is needed in this world so leverage your one life to reach the one soul that is waiting on your YES.  

Leveraging our lives leads us from executing ordinary tasks into making an extraordinary difference; allowing the pages of our stories to unfold into the glory of God by giving Him all of what lies within.

© Dani Hardy (January 29, 2019)

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