We often believe that a central platform is needed to share our voice and message with others. We think that if we have not taken center stage on what we consider a noteworthy platform, then our voice and message are minuscule: not significant enough to create an impact worthy of attention. Yet, we are all given some form of a voice, but knowing how and when to use it properly may have such a profound impact on others that the words we speak may change the lives of those we least expect.
A message of Hope you share with a single person may influence them to pursue a life they never before imagined.
A message of Faith may influence another to never give up on their dreams, no matter what stands before them.
A message of Love shared may allow someone to understand or finally feel they are not alone, especially when they have felt years of isolation and rejection.
When we use our voice, we are like a match that ignites a burning flame. That flame has the potential of setting off a larger fire that continues to
spread beyond the boundaries of the small territory we see ourselves in. It did not take a major platform or a bullhorn to create change. All it took was one person to use their voice to share with another, encouraging them to live and continue to spread the same to others. Many Believers will speak of the testimony of Jesus. Still, how many of us have actually taken the time to share the teachings he demonstrated for us to follow?
The greatest gift we have is the ability to learn from not just what Jesus said but what he did and how he lived. Walking the earth in the flesh as we do now, he spoke using his voice to share the message of His Father. While we read how the multitudes would gather around him and how they followed him, the messages we read today and continue to share are from those he spent most of the time with. The disciples with who he shared his voice, not necessarily on a large noteworthy platform during that time, were the ones who continued to share the messages he gave. Like the woman at the well and the man possessed, others also desired to share with others their life-changing encounter.
As a leader, it is easy to get caught up in the ongoings and ways of our society in today’s world. It is not difficult to lose Hope, faith, and love and shift to feelings of doubt, fear, and hate as we struggle to share the message that burns inside us. Our society places much emphasis on fame, familiarity, and fortune that if we do not have one or all three, we think we are insignificant. As I look around at the lives I have had the honor of being a part of, I see the difference even if others, on a grander scale, do not. Lives have been changed! Lives continue to change! I challenge you to reflect on the same. It is essential that as leaders, we acknowledge our milestones and achievements even when others do not. We must value our work and voice even when others do not. We must recognize and remember who we are, even when others do not. We must not diminish who we are and the voice we have simply because the multitude does. We must keep focus, not losing perspective on what we set to accomplish by becoming so entrenched in the ever-changing paradigms of the people and world around us.
Our society is flaky! What is popular or significant today may become obsolete tomorrow. If we focus on finding our place amongst those consistently inconsistent, we can only honestly hope to lose ourselves and lose faith in what we are promised by the Most High.
As leaders, we must lead using our voice, what has been given for the time, place, and season, we are in. We must not lose our voice in the chatter and chaos that exists in the world we live in. We need real, sustainable change in our world. The way this begins to happen is if we continue to stand firm on the path God has set us on, using our voice and the message he gives and following Him as he leads us to share with those he says. We must purposefully and intentionally use the gift He has given, not squandering it on crowds simply to be heard but never really listening to what is being said. Our voices and the messages we share have value, and when shared with the right person(s), lives will be changed, and a shift will take place that is impactful beyond what we could have ever imagined.
So, continue to use your voice.
Continue to share the messages of Hope, Faith, and Love because there is a need. For if there was not then you and your message would cease to exist
Why?
Because God does not make mistakes!!
