I just devoured Amy Sherman's new book, Kingdom Calling, by InterVarsity Press in about an hour and a half. LOVED IT! She's providing the missing language and framework for what we're trying to do with InterVarsity Faith@Work. Thank you, Amy!! 

One of the biggest insights she gives is about the type of character that we followers of Jesus need to embody in order to make the most impact in the workplace. Here they are:

1. Servanthood: being willing to do what no one else wants to do. Servanthood is about raising your hand on Friday afternoon to take the weekend assignment. It's about anticipating the needs of the people around you and serving them, even though it's not in your job description or perhaps "beneath you". 

2. Responsibility: doing what you promised to do, doing what you're expected to do, figuring out how to do what you're supposed to do. 

3. Courage: saying the honest but dangerous word, asking a "dumb" question, raising your hand to offer your opinion, speaking up against injustice, sharing a hunch.

4. Humility: sharing powers, putting others first, seeking to meet the needs of others and not your own, giving compliments and sharing praise. 

If you were to pick a character trait that you would like to grow in or think God might be inviting you to grow into over the next quarter, what would it be? How can you creatively grow in that trait?

For a few years after my wife and I graduated we worked together on campus as campus ministers at University of San Diego. Fairly often we would find ourselves in separate 1-1 conversations with students at adjacent tables, close enough to hear each others meetings. Sometimes I would drift attention from my table to hers and eavesdrop. Admittedly I remember thinking every so often, "I can't believe she said that" or "I would never do it that way" or "I think she has a few things to learn from me."

Then, something started happening. I would run into the students that she mentored and they would say things like:
    "Wow, the meeting I just had with your wife rocked my world"
    "Dang, your wife is amazing"
    "I just experienced God in a way that I never have before after meeting with your wife"

Needless to say, (they weren't saying the same things about meetings with me!) she has AMAZING impact on the people that she chooses to invest in. They are changed by her mentoring.

Last night, we had friends over for dinner, and I got to watch her in action. This time, I was taking notes. Here's the secret sauce to my wife's mentoring:

1. Asks the most obvious questions: she always goes right into the thick of danger, the most obvious places of people's pain, confusion, or crisis. She has no qualms or fear about people feeling uncomfortable and immediately disarms people because she's not uncomfortable with talking about those sorts of things.
2. Makes observation about their pain: since she's so comfortable talking about difficult things she always makes observations about their pain and empathizes. She says things like: "that sounds really, really hard" and "no wonder you're so confused, that's really complicated". Making observations about other peoples pain gives them more space and freedom to explore their internal world with God.
   
3. Leads people to God: another hallmark of her mentoring is to lead people to God in prayer. She always prays with people. She always uncovers and unpacks their pain and then prays with them about it. 

Now, I don't critique or compete. I get out of the way and pay attention. When people are around her, they experience transformation. I'm still learning!

One of the themes I hear from college students and young professionals on the sunrise of their career is a completely sincere desire to reach their potential- to make a positive impact on the world and leave a lasting legacy of significance. What does it mean to reach your potential? And, what would it look like to accelerate your growth? Well, I spent the past week with SDSU students on Catalina Island, and I think I found a shortcut...

Have your life transformed from the inside out, get your potential unlocked by an inner change that only Jesus can do through the study of scripture, and put yourself in a place to have powerful encounters with the Holy Spirit. That's it.

Maybe that's not so easy, but I had the opportunity to spend 8-10 hours per day facilitating in depth studies on the gospel of Mark, getting into the context, historical background, and talking through significant and deep theological issues that have practical importance. I watched students wrestle, study, digest, and engage with the powerful nature of the scriptures. They argued, they searched, and they found the presence of God who wants to change them and help them become the best versions of themselves. Here are the ingredients I noticed, that you can take anywhere:

- Scripture: read it, and seek to understand not only what it meant for the people of the time, but also what God is trying to communicate to you.
- Community: get into a small group situation where you can wrestle with life's biggest questions, and both spot the potential in each other and encourage each other to be the best version of you
- Take Risks: invite God to come into your life and change you, from the inside out. Dream what your life could become and then take small, practical next steps to move towards those dreams.

God believes in all that you can become. He alone holds the key to unlock your potential. Give him the opportunity to shortcut the process and change you from the inside out. What do you hope to be and do?