“And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe. After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country. And they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either.

Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.”
-Mark 16:11-14

Things are not always what they seem.

As I reflect on my life, my leadership journey, and the many ups and downs along the way; this has been so very true. There have been so many great and incredible opportunities that over time proved not to be so great after all.

There have been other terrible and despicable things than have come my way that turned out to be God’s providence for me. The things that looked good on the outside I tried to grab with all my strength, and the things that didn’t I desperately tried to avoid.

But things are not always what they seem.

What looks like an angel, is not always an angel.

It is important not to make shallow decisions based solely on what we see.

Or what we think we see.

Our eyes are important, but they can easily be fooled.

In fact, there might be times when we have to close our eyes and open our ears, so we can truly see what God is showing us.

“For nothing is impossible with God.”
-Luke 1:37

After spending time thinking about what I wrote a few post ago, “9 Characteristics of a World Changer”; I wished I would have included a 10th. The last and best attribute that the World Changer must have is Presence.

Not presence in the way that we most often think of it, communicated through stance or whether we look people in the eye when we speak. But presence as in, God’s Presence. We can have all the smarts, talent, and opportunity in the world. We can have a great team around us with an amazing plan.

But without Presence, our efforts can have no lasting impact. In most cases, they will have no impact at all.

All of us have obstacles that we are facing. Issues at the home, at the job, in our relationships, in the world at large. They are too wide, too tall, and too big for any of us. We need His Presence, and we need His help.

All we have to do is ask.

Did you know that lives are hanging in the balance, depending on our obedience to Jesus?

“To know what is right and not do it is the worst cowardice.”

-Confucius

When we give everything to Jesus, when we are completely devoted to Him, some will call it a waste. A waste of time, energy, money, and effort.

They will say that we should invest our lives in another way. We should chose another path. We could do this, we should do that.

The good news is, Jesus doesn’t see things that way. He lets us know that any investment that we make in Him will never be forgotten.

And it will last forever.

And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.”
-Matt. 10:42

(Continued )

7. Willing to ADMIT MISTAKES: This is perhaps one of the most difficult characteristics for the WORLD CHANGER to grasp. But you can’t try to change the world without first making a ton of mistakes. To take it further, if the WORLD CHANGER is NOT making mistakes, they are not changing the world. Mistakes come with the territory. But how we deal with our mistakes will either create barriers that block us, or bridges that empower us. When the WORLD CHANGER humbly ADMITS their MISTAKES, the world that the are trying to change can better hear the WORLD CHANGER’S voice.

8. Willing to WAIT: Changing the world takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight. For Nelson Mandela, it took 27 years in jail before South Africa began to be change. For some WORLD CHANGERS, it will take decades before they see change. Others will never see the fruit of their efforts in their lifetimes. Though there must always be delay, the WORLD CHANGER uses that time to get sharper, stronger, and better prepared for the challenges that lay ahead.

9. Willing to be the WEIRD KID: Because the WORLD CHANGER has a unique vision that moves them that most don’t see, they can seem at little strange. Maybe even weird. An oddball that others don’t get. Misunderstood and ridiculed by the very crowds that they have a mandate to serve. But world change almost always come from the weird kid.

And it is funny how over time the ‘weird kid’ can become the cool kid. Albert Einstein, Benjamin Banneker, Alfred Hitchcock, Jonas Salk, Rosa Parks, and the Wright Brothers were all ‘weird kids’ or outcasts at some point in their world changing journey. Being a true WORLD CHANGER and being the WEIRD KID always go hand in hand.

NOW GO CHANGE THE WORLD.

Continuing my last post:

4. Willing to PERSEVERE: PERSERVERANCE is a must. Because the WORLD CHANGERS first attempt to change the world will fail. The ideas won’t be good enough, the plan not thorough enough, the WORLD CHANGER not strong enough. Through these forays into failure (and the WORLD CHANGER must fail often), the WORLD CHANGER’S tools are sharpened while true strategy is forged. Trials of testing shape good ideas and dreams through the repetion of practiced perserverance. A true WORLD CHANGER is armed with much more than a good idea. A WORLD CHANGER can only change the world after being changed. And there can be no real change without PERSEVERANCE.

5. Willing to CHANGE TACTICS: PERSERVERANCE keeps us going, but the experience we gain as we press forward is one of its truest benefits. It tells the WORLD CHANGER that the world they planned to change is not exactly how they thought it would be. If the WORLD CHANGER has not allowed the pain of defeat to make them calloused and cycnical, then defeat can make the WORLD CHANGER wise. The wisdom of defeat teaches the WORLD CHANGER the difference between what they thought would work, and what really works. Rather than hoping or wishing, the WORLD CHANGER actually KNOWS WHAT TO DO.

6. Willing to PLANT: The key to changing the world and challenging the status quo is having vision beyond the present. This ‘future sight’ allows the WORLD CHANGER to make investments in tomorrow by planting proper seeds today. This is often difficult because in many cases there is no tangible ‘today’ benefit from doing this. It takes faith in the vision for the WORLD CHANGER to ignore what the natural eye sees, and invest in the vision that they can only see when their eyes are closed. In Genesis 6 when Noah when he was building the ark, he kept working because he knew rain was coming. The WORLD CHANGER knows that they must get ready for what is to come.

Here are some of the characteristics of a world changer I scribbled in my journal a couple weeks ago:

1. Willing to RISK: This is a very important quality. Because there is always something that could be lost when challenging the status quo. Security, reputation, routine, are just some of the many things that a WORLD CHANGER risks by attempting to change the generation in which they live.

But the WORLD CHANGER has a different perspective from others that are calmly content with simple survival. They believe that by not risking something to pursue their impossible dream, they risk EVERYTHING. They would rather try and fail, then forever wonder what life would be like if they did.

2. Willing to be MISUNDERSTOOD: Most WORLD CHANGERS are early adopters and visionaries. They see things, believe things, and hope for things that others don’t. Their sight makes them special, but most often places them in the minority. Their vision can make them the object of ridicule and worse (see below). But the WORLD CHANGER knows that to deny what they see, violates who they are and who God created them to be.

3. Willing to be PERSECUTED: When WORLD CHANGERS are MISUNDERSTOOD by the majority, they can be subject to extreme difficulty. The masses will hail the visionary long after the vision is made clear, but the process to this moment can be painful (and even fatal).

Though the WORLD CHANGER is pressed on every side in the middle of the storm, the reality of the vision gives them peace. On the journey they decide that the pain of never bringing the vision or dream into the world is much greater than the pain that persecution can bring.

I am fine with being me.

I am happy with God made me.

Made me with my quirks, my oddities, and my issues.

Made with my strengths, weaknesses, and perspectives.

I am happy with how God made me.

So happy I don’t wish to be you anymore.

Don’t wish I had your gifts, your talents, your looks.

Don’t wish to have your clothes, your stuff, or your story.

I am happy with how God made ME.

I am also happy with how God made YOU.

I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.
-Psalm 139:14

“Follow Me.”
-Mark 2:14

Have you ever considered who you are following? Who is shaping your life, making an impact on how you think and act?

We often talk of how we are ‘Jesus Followers’. But is that really true? Are we really following Jesus? Are His words, directives, and ideas REALLY shaping us? Or is it simply a religious disguise for appearance’s sake while we all do our own thing?

I am convinced that we probably lie more in church than perhaps anywhere else.

We sing songs that speak of our love, desire, and desperation for Jesus. But when we leave the building we too often contradict everything we sang and prayed about.

And the crazy thing is, most of the time we don’t even know it.

The disconnect doesn’t even register.

We are so comfortable with our duplicity, and those around us, that we barely seem to notice.

I wonder what it would be like if we really lived what we said, sang, and prayed?

I wonder what we would be like if we REALLY followed Jesus?

Don’t you?

Ever felt this way?

Along the path to every dream, the Dreamer has to endure a few bumps and bruises.

But the best dreams never come any other way.

This is a picture of the owner of Mexican Dan’s restaurant. in the Westfield Shopping Mall in the Los Angeles area. Tiffany and I decided to hang out a little during our flight layover and went to the mall (one of her favorite spots!). At lunch time we got hungry and made our way to the food-court.

She wasn’t sure what she wanted, but I went to the Food-Court with a plan. I was going to the Steak Escape to get a chicken sandwich with tomatoes and lettuce. Maybe some fries on the side.

On my way to the Steak Escape, we passed a place called ‘Mexican Dan’s’. As we were walking by the owner offered us a free sample of smoked chicken. I really didn’t want to try anything (I needed to get to the Steak Escape!), but he insisted. So I did. And it was pretty good. I thanked him, while Tiffany checked out the rest of the menu. Then the owner offered me a little steak.

Good, but not quite at the same level as the chicken. The chicken was off the hook. I thanked him again, and started to walk toward the Steak Escape (I really needed to get there.)

He asked me to wait. I smiled but kept going. Tiffany was still standing in front of Mexican Dan’s and was considering having her lunch there. That was good enough, I thought.

As I took another step toward the Steak Escape I heard someone yell my name: “Hey, Julian! Where are you going? Come back here!” I turned around to see who it was.

And you guessed it.

It was the owner of Mexican Dan’s.

(Tiffany told him my name!)

I looked at him and burst out laughing. It was at that moment that I realized that I just couldn’t deny this man. His passion and persistence had won me over.

I WAS going to eat lunch at Mexican Dan’s.

And the lunch was amazing ( I had a chicken burrito). In fact it was so good, and the owner so compelling that I found myself doing a little recruiting myself!

It was really funny.

But the passion of this man was so contagious that I changed my plans, ate his food, and had become a volunteer employee.

All in less than 10 minutes.

True passion is a powerful thing. It can change things.

It can change the world.

I walked away thinking, “Am I as passionate about what I am doing as the owner of Mexican Dan’s?”

“And if not, why not?”