[Initially, this was a comment to the blogpost "Change the World, Today?" written by Christina Dickson as a guest poster on the blog, therebelution.com) and I thought I would share it here as well.]
"It's not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me."
This quote, from the 2005 movie, "Batman Begins", has haunted me for the past 3 years. Read it again.
While at one angle, we can interpret it to mean that our actions are what defines us, thus ignoring who (or, in this context, Whose) underneath our actions. Or, as in the context of Doing Hard Things, we can interpret it as our actions through the strength of Christ are what defines me.
As a 44-year-old adult single male who has grown up in the church, attended Bible college and is currently employed in Corporate America, I, like many of you, find myself STILL wondering, what kind of an impact will I make/have I made on the world and the people around me? Sadly, for me, I don't see that I've made much of an impact; however, from what my friends tell me, I have made an impact in their lives.
As Christians, we need to do EVERYTHING we can, in His strength, to impact the world for Him and to His glory. Paul says it best in Philippians 4:13, (ESV), "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength" and later to the Corinthians, "But as you excel in everything--in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you--see that you excel in this act of grace also." (2 Co 8:7, ESV) Peter writes that, "... in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 4:11c, ESV)
As a Christian, "It's Whose I am underneath and what I do for Him to bring Him glory that defines me."
How do I see this practically, Alex? In my life now, it means
*PRAYER and BIBLE READING to God that He will guide me throughout my day and guard my heart against temptations within the workplace.
*Always being truthful to my managers and co-workers, no matter what that may mean. In other words, when I err, I take the responsibility of owning up to it instead of making excuses or blaming others (us men refer to this as "manning up").
*Doing my best in every task I undertake. If I have to work with a computer application like Word or Excel and I am not familiar with it, taking ownership and proactive initiative and doing some outside reading on it. It might even require purchasing a book and learning more about it (think: Half Price Books and Excel for Dummies!).
*Asking for help (see last bullet-point)--if I don't understand something, proactively initiate with someone who does understand.
