Comentarios de índole general

Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your

crown.

Revelation 3:11

One of the most inspiring works I ever held in my hands are the moving books of Dr. T.L Osborn. I will never forget a profound remark in a book he wrote for winners called “To

Be The Best” in which he clarified that rather than intimidate

one from the pursuit of greatness really great personalities make you realize that it is indeed possible to be great. They demystify the elusive prospect of winning. A close relationship with a real champion provokes the notion that winning is not as hard as it seems. In fact, to the uncritical eye of a naïve enthusiast real champions make winning appear so easy. It is in this regard that we must appreciate the requests of the sons of Zebedee when they asked the Master that they be positioned on the right and left of His throne at the time of His Kingdom (Mark 10:37). They sought to rule with Him because they had walked with Him. In their naïve estimation they assumed it was easy to be like Him. As such, really great fathers make fatherhood look easy;

really great men make manhood look easy; really great sisters make sisterhood look easy; really great drivers make driving look easy; really great ministers make ministry look easy; really great doctors make healing look easy; and, really great businessmen make business look easy. Apart from making greatness seem

easily achievable really great people make one feel really great. They inspire greatness. That is why if you really want

99

to be great one vital requirement is that you hang around someone really great. Short of which, you may study someone really great.

Since the prospect of hobnobbing with the really great is not always possible I have endeavored to put together a study on a really great champion in the person of Jacob. In the testimony of Jacob we have sufficient evidence that everyone can be great. Jacob is a lesson par excellence that winning is a possibility. In him, we can identify with greatness even if the circumstances around us dictate a different story. Jacob’s story reveals how winning in the hands of God can be done in spite of ones shortcomings or the challenges one faces. When we observe his fears, his pains, his setbacks, his vulnerability, his trials and how he triumphs in the end, we know that there is no need to throw in the towel. If Jacob made it with God, we too can make it. Jacob’s story is a motivation boost for all who aspire for greatness. He tells you that the nagging sound in the depth of your heart that calls you to a higher calling, to lofty places, need not be a temptation from hell to ruin you. It usually is a divine move pushing you to a destiny God prepared for you before the foundation of the world.

A more critical study of great personalities reveals that they come in two kinds: There are those who make winning seem specialized to a unique category of persons and there are those that make everyone around them feel like a winner or at least, a candidate for victory. In my opinion, the true test of a winner goes beyond how many accomplishments one is able to achieve as an individual. It is really not how super

100

one is as much as it is how many others the winner is able to inspire into their own victories. A truly great person must be able to reproduce him/herself in others. That is indeed the testimony of Jacob. He was able to inspire his otherwise dysfunctional family that they were champions in God’s regard. In spite of their failings, his death wish was a call for his children to rise above their circumstances to their true calling of destiny. He was able to pass on the baton. That is also what made Jesus incredibly great. He was able to pick all kinds of diverse persons and inspire them to be just like Him. Within a short time of living with them, He was able to send them to go and do just what He did. In fact when He set out to live them after only three years of being with them He assured them that they would do much more than He had done (John 14:12). Today, He calls all of us to only believe and we too can do what He did (Mark 16:17). He too, passed on the baton to us. Because He is the most inspiring figure that has ever leaved, He is in this sense also the greatest personality in history.

Throughout the scriptures are examples of other really great personalities that were able to inspire those close to them to become great. Apart from the apostles, we have Joshua who learnt from Moses to be a leader, Saul who learnt from Samuel, Solomon who learnt from David, Elisha who learnt from Elijah, Mary who learnt from Elizabeth, Timothy who learnt from Paul, and many others. Many in our contemporary times have applied the same principle: I am sure that America’s current President George W. Bush Junior owes both his tenure and political experience to his father the 42nd _{President. Others in our times that have been}

101

inspired by greatness include Prime Minister John Major who was inspired by Margaret Thatcher; Cece Winans and Bebe Winans who picked up motivation for Christian music from their parents; Benny Hinn confesses to being inspired by the maverick evangelist Kathryn Kuhlmann; for Creflo Dollar it was Kenneth Copeland; and Kenneth Copeland himself was inspired by Oral Roberts.

The point is that really great personalities make winning seem easy because it is possible. Winning is not some mystery that can only be attained by a magical concoction whose formula is reserved for a chosen category of eminent persons. It is a rather achievable goal for all who are willing to pursue it. You can win, I can win, and everybody can win. In fact, everybody is destined to win. That is the plan of God and the only thing that has caused many to lose is the deception of Satan, the ignorance of men and women to God’s noble intentions, and the refusal to persist till one overcomes.