by Pastor John Kim
On May 17, 2014, Naval Admiral William H. McRaven gave a commencement speech at the University of Texas that was inspirational and challenging. As he introduced himself, he recalled how he had no memory of the commencement speaker at his graduation so he promised to keep his speech short.
But in the short speech, titled “What Starts Here Changes the World,” he gave some thoughts that from a practical standpoint especially highlighted the reality of life and how to respond to hardship. The training he had received to become a Navy SEAL particularly addressed the resolve a person needs to have to face adversity and not give up. Toward the end of his speech, McRaven shared these words:
Start each day with a task completed.
Find someone to help you through life.
Respect everyone.
Know that life is not fair and that you will fail often, but if you take some risks, step up when the times are toughest, face down the bullies, lift up the downtrodden and never, ever give up – if you do these things, the next generation and the generations that follow will live in a world far better than the one we have today and – what started here will indeed have changed the world – for the better.
When I hear words like these, I am often inspired, at least for a moment. The reality of life then sets in and I will echo what I think the majority will feel – inspirational words are fleeting and the injustice and bullies of the world seem to always win out. And since I am a Christian, I can’t retaliate and just have to take it lying down. On my own power, I feel completely overwhelmed, especially by how cruel some people can be, completely heartless in their desire to crush a person’s heart and soul. Left to myself, all the inspirational thoughts don’t even begin to help and if anything, I am left wallowing in freakish misery or the cold desire for vengeance starts to creep into my mind. Either way, I am not in a good place and feel like giving up.
The reality truly is that life is not fair. We will fail often. We do need to take some risks and step up in the tough times. We need to bow to the bullies and we need to lift up the downtrodden. We need to persevere and not give up. But the question is how can we do all these things when it really is impossible to do these things on our own power?
Martyn Lloyd-Jones in his book Spiritual Depression gives a helpful framework to consider as we think through the dynamics of how we deal with life issues. How we think shapes the affections of our heart so that we exercise the choices of the will based on what we value. This simple process has really helped me to see how my thinking really does shape what my heart values. If I allow my thoughts to be preoccupied with discouragement, fear, anger, vengeance, bitterness, resentment, discontentment, there should be no surprise that my heart affections are then being given over to responses that reflect such a source. My actions will then be guided by these thoughts and affections, so ultimately the decisions I make in how I respond to life’s challenges will reflect my mind and my heart. What I do is not out of the blue. Everything I do is the result of what I have been thinking and treasuring in my mind and my heart.
Why is it important to identify this? The times that we are severely tested, especially with relational conflicts, are the very opportunities that reveal what we really believe and what we really have as convictions. I remember one of my professors from seminary talking about how many say they have a conviction about being faithful in marriage but by pursuing a divorce they reveal that they really did not have such a conviction.
I cannot say that I am anywhere close to perfect regarding these issues but I can say that the times when it has been the hardest, I have had to really consider carefully what I would do, especially in response to being criticized, accused, slandered, and misrepresented. While I obviously do not enjoy such experiences, the realities of life are such that what the naval admiral said is true, and God’s Word has already said it would be so and we should not be surprised.
But if there is one thing that I am reminded, it is that fact that these tests and trials are not just a time to struggle, they are opportunities to change the world. We know that we are called to a mission – to make disciples of Christ (Matt. 28:18-20) and this mission will not go unchallenged. There is an enemy out there that seeks to discourage, distract, and even destroy the work that we are called to do. We should expect such attacks to come from unexpected sources, even from within the church. While there can be some struggle in how we respond, the opportunity to persevere and carry on the mission echoes of the kind of battlefield experiences that the military faces – you cannot expect to enter the battleground and think that all will go smoothly and without surprises.
Our vision – to plant churches (Acts 1:8) – helps give us a long term view as to what we are hoping to see happen through the churches that God has so graciously planted. We are not here just for our generation alone. We are here to pass on the greatness of God to the next generation and we cannot afford to be satisfied with just enjoying the blessing for ourselves. This is exactly why the nation of Israel eventually turned away from God. The prosperity that they enjoyed in the Promised Land ended up becoming the very idol that led them away from the one who had rescued them from slavery in Egypt. Though there will be difficulties that come, we must endure and press forward for the greater goal of God’s kingdom being pursued.
Our passion – to love God and people (Matt. 22:37-40) – in many ways will be tested in the most mundane ways to the dramatic. There are the small irritations, the bothersome habits of those that we find strange, the personality quirks that give some the justification to avoid those who make them feel uncomfortable. Then there are the conflicts that arise from misunderstandings to deliberate slights and attacks and the great drama of betrayals and destroyed relationships. These are all a part of the race we run and as the Navy SEALs are challenged, don’t ring the bell and give up because of the weariness of these hardships. For sure we will feel worn down and we will see others worn down and give up and there will be times of great discouragement, even maybe to the point of despair. But don’t let the bullies beat you down and don’t let the hard-hearted convince you to bail. We have a great God who has assured us that He is working all things out for good. We have a compassionate Savior who has promised us and never forsakes us. We have a powerful Holy Spirit who comforts us and counsels us according to the Word of God to strengthen and enable us to be strong through God’s strength.
Take heart and know that God uses such little people like us to change the world for the sake of His kingdom and glory. So don’t let the mundane and the difficult cause you to stray from the path. Press on, run the race with endurance, and finish well. Be faithful in the little things. Don’t go at things alone but partner with those that God has provided both to disciple you as well as for you to disciple. Be gracious and kind toward all and manifest the love of Christ.
I’m going to piggyback off of what the admiral shared and follow a similar path of encouragement:
Start each day with a prayer completed and be faithful to do the small things.
Find someone to both disciple/mentor you as well as for you to do the same for someone else.
Be gracious, kind, and gentle toward all, even your enemies.
Know that life indeed is not fair and we will all fail often. Take the risks of faith and trusting the Lord especially during the difficult times. Stand firm in the midst of the battle, pick up your fallen brother/sister, and never, ever, no never give up the fight of faith. If we do these thing, the next generation and the generations that follow will be able to see a testimony of faithfulness to Christ that will hopefully encourage them, inspire them, and challenge them to pick up the baton and keep running the race for the glory of God. In this way, may what we do today change the world for the sake of God’s kingdom.