Mom Heart Moments #299

He who walks with wise men will be wise.

ABOUT TEN YEARS AGO, Nathan and I went along to watch Joy perform in a national competition for actors, singers, and dancers. One of the perks was that the participants met with producers, agents, record companies, and directors from Hollywood and Broadway.

Soft blonde curls, large blue eyes, and sophisticated clothing left quite an impression on us as we met a lovely woman who was a Broadway producer. She wrote an evaluation for Joy’s performances and later told her, “Joy, you are indeed quite naturally talented at acting and communicating. However, what you need most is to be surrounded by people who are more talented and more experienced than you are, who will challenge you to move further ahead in your skills. It is always wise to put yourself in the company of others who are more excellent than you.”

What great advice! This is a principle I adopted in my own life many years ago. I began to look for friendships with women who challenged me to be “more” than I already was.

Cultural voices tell us that we deserve a break, that it is okay to compromise. These voices give us permission to rest on our laurels, to stay complacent, and even to learn to whine about our difficulties.

I believe that if we understand that we have an amazing capacity to be excellent, hardworking, bright, authoritative, and influential because we are crafted in the very image of God, we will always be striving, in a positive way, to become all that He created us to be, in order to fulfill our potential in life.

Intentionally placing ourselves in the company of other excellent people, reading inspiring and challenging books, studying Scripture in depth, practicing anything in which we would like to become more excellent, will expand our capacity to accomplish great works in our lifetime.

Who in your life is more excellent than you? Who might you plan to spend more time with in order to grow?