NEGATIVE ACHIEVERS

1 Chronicles 9:1-10:14; Acts 27:21-44; Psalm 8:1-9; Proverbs 18:23-24

“Saul… was unfaithful to the Lord. He failed to obey the Lord’s command, and he even consulted a medium instead of asking the Lord for guidance.”

“Then the sailors tried to abandon the ship; they lowered the lifeboat as though they were going to put out anchors from the front of the ship. But Paul said to the commanding officer and the soldiers, ‘You will all die unless the sailors stay aboard.’ So the soldiers cut the ropes to the lifeboat and let it drift away.”

“Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor.
 You gave them charge of everything you made, putting all things under their authority….”

For awhile now, God has been calling me to become more observant and actually seek out and encourage examples of negative achievement. Today, I commit to doing so. “Negative achievement” is the ability to accomplish positive results in the midst of adverse circumstances. The fact is, we need to actively praise negative achievement whenever we see it. Individuals accomplished in its art remain undaunted by the world. They still are willing to take appropriate risks. These are the folks who know and live in hope, and their lives are beacons to others. How much better for the rest of us is it to affirm and promote their achievement than to dwell on the negatives we all face!

Jesus’ life was the ultimate study in negative achievement. Few of us can even begin to aspire to His level of accomplishment, but it’s no reason not to try and give ourselves over to the process. There’s already been quite enough gloom and despair. Call me utopian, but I believe we have just got to find an alternative before our emotions implode our entire society. Like Jesus, we must find a way to overcome the world. The good news is the world can, in fact, be overcome, even today. I am privileged to have just met six young adults who prove it on a daily basis.

These youth are achievers in the very finest sense of the word. They are students at a special needs school – it is actually called the Achiever’s Center for Education (or ACE) - which I serve as a Director. One of our main responsibilities to the school is to help promote its annual fundraising gala. This year will be particularly challenging, so we are trying something different to inspire those who attend to support the school’s ministry. We have selected seven Achievers to present their own personal testimonies about how the school has made a difference in their lives. I must admit going into their first rehearsal not expecting a lot. I was blown away! First, their scripts were heartfelt and written at a depth no outsider would ever have predicted. Then, their presentations were given without nervousness and with hardly a flaw. They understood and accepted the importance of their mission gladly. They were happy to be put to the test and delighted to be so challenged. I don’t know how the attendees will respond, but I know what I did. I cried. I praised God for the opportunity to serve these youngsters and help them accomplish their goal of helping defray their fellow students’ financial needs. I was humbled by their indomitable spirits, their sense of joyful and enthusiastic adventure and their utter selflessness. They brought Christ close, but it was no big deal to them. They are used to relying on and living with Jesus on a daily basis. It’s how they make it through their days… victoriously!

Dear Lord, please, I want to get over myself. I want to get beyond and outside myself and past my own limitations. Remind me again of your willingness to help me become a negative achiever, especially in these tough times. Help me apply the Living Gospel I saw in those kids’ lives to my life. Let me experience anew your overcoming power. Holy Spirit, I want to be an Achiever, not a whiner. I want to see the opportunities, not the downsides.  Let me see with Your eyes, and let me be in Your Power. Make me Your vessel, Father, a vessel full of abundant and everlasting life! In the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.