Editor’s Note: Michael shares an honest struggle with what it means to be “great” in God’s Kingdom—and then points to a powerful example from one of our prison small groups.
Of course we all know that asking this question was a strategy of the enemy in the Garden. Heck, it’s still his strategy today. He wants us to question not only God’s words but also His Lordship and really His greatness. As I’m stuck at home with COVID while my men discuss Chapter 3 of Kingdom Man, I can’t help but reflect on how hard this chapter was for me the first 3three times I studied it.
I find myself easily leaning into being a humble servant, often praying to “be the hands and feet of Jesus” and embracing the die daily admonition prevalent in Jesus’ teaching. But when I think about being great, I am thinking about my abilities, my success and my achievements. Trying to reconcile my earthly outlook with Jesus’ Kingdom outlook often leaves me disappointed and disgruntled. And here I am struggling with it again as I read and pray through the chapter tonight.
A little light is shed on why Tony feels God wants us to be great when we read this quote, “God is not opposed to greatness. God is opposed to pride.” Ok maybe we’re getting somewhere. Is he saying it’s ok to be great as long as I’m not proud of it? Maybe but let’s look a little deeper. How about this one, “Greatness is maximizing your potential for the glory of God and the good of others.” So you’re saying it’s not about me are you? Yes, yes we are.
It’s really about glorifying the Lord in all you do and doing it with glorifying Him as the goal. Don’t miss that second part. We throw around the phrase “all glory to God” because that’s what we are supposed to say so everyone will think we are spiritual, but a Kingdom Man means it, lives it and loves it. Greatness for a Kingdom Man is serving God. Period. That’s easy as long as you truly make Him the Lord of your life, but so many of us struggle with that. Again, we say it but do we mean it and live it?
Dwelling on greatness for Kingdom Men makes we wonder what greatness for a Kingdom Man looks like. I started to make a list but then I thought back to a story that James a friend and fellow volunteer told me about one of his men. In the beginning of the class, this young man shared that he had not been in contact with any of his family members since before his incarceration began years ago. There was a bitterness that left a deep hurt he felt inside and that he expressed repeatedly as they discussed each week’s lesson. Without him even realizing, God’s words were softening his heart every week, through every lesson. Then one week, his heart was pliable enough and the Holy Spirit decided it was break through time. It was certainly no coincidence that the lesson that week involved reconciliation with family.
That night during the lesson the man confessed that he knew what he needed to do – he needed to make the first effort, make the first call. He also shared that he was afraid and expressed all the “What If’s” that Satan was whispering in his ears to keep him paralyzed. We have all heard them ourselves. We talked about God’s forgiveness, what God expects us to do and that God is responsible for the outcome. As a group of men, we closed out the night by laying hands on him and praying for him which each man at the table praying. It was an incredibly powerful moment.
During the next week he followed through and reached out to his mom and reconnected with her. He made the first call that broke down the wall of noncommunication that had been built over so many year. Prayers answered and a broken family is being restored. Since that first phone call he has had additional video calls with his family, reconnected with more family members and had an in person visit with his family on his birthday. When it came time for the visit to end, the members of his family prayed over him just like the men at his table had done that night.
Do you see it? That’s greatness for a Kingdom man. Doing the right thing at the right time. To humble himself and be totally open and vulnerable. To reach out across the uncrossable divide and say, “I’m sorry and I love you. Please forgive me.” So what you might say? It’s just a couple of phone calls and his family mumbling a prayer before they left. Oh no, no, no my friend, it’s much more. It’s a man dying to himself so he can be great in the Kingdom of Heaven. It’s a man throwing open the door for the Holy Spirit to move through his life AND the life of his family. It’s greatness pouring out of a broken man as Jesus uses to heal and restore. It may just be what keeps his son from joining him in prison. A mumbling prayer indeed.