How to Lead an Extremely Significant Life

So counter-cultural were Jesus’s values, that even those who lived with him continuously for three years could not fully grasp them.

So his spirited apostles, James and John, whom he called “The Sons of Thunder,” get their mum to ask him for the places of the greatest prestige and visibility, on his right and left, in his court, once he came into his Kingdom.

And the other ten are indignant! Jesus asks them to cluster around him and explains (once again!) the ground rules of the topsy-turvy kingdom he is inaugurating. They are not to lord it over others or boss them around. The greatest, the one who is first, will be the one who is a blessing to others. And so, he offers them, not the second or third place, but the first place in the lives of those they encounter. Be the one who sees others, listens intently, slows down for others, cares for them, helps them.

Such a person is always one of the greatest people in the lives of those blessed to encounter them. They don’t need to sharp-elbow themselves to sit with the greatest. To those whom they have blessed, they are the greatest, in the way Christ himself modelled. They have used their one, two or five talents to bless others, to find the place where their deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet. 

My memoir: Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India UK USA

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My book of essays: Wandering Between Two Worlds (US) and UK

Transcript

How to Lead an Extremely Significant Life Matthew 20: 20-28

Jesus came from a Kingdom of voluntary gentleness, in which

Christ, called the Lion of Judah, stands at the centre of the throne

in the guise of a lamb, looking as if it had been slain. No wonder his

disciples struggled with his counter-cultural values. Oh, and we too!

Salome, the mother of the Apostles James and John, asks Jesus

for a favour—that once He became King, her sons got the most

important, prestigious seats at court, on his right and left. And

the other ten, who would have liked the fame, glory, power,

limelight and honour themselves are indignant and threatened.

Oh-oh, Jesus says. Who gets five talents, who gets one,

who gets great wealth and success, who doesn’t–that the

Father controls. Don’t waste your one precious and fleeting

life seeking to lord it over others or boss them around.

But, in his wry kindness, he offers the ambitious twelve

and us something better than the second or third place.

He tells us how to actually be the most important person to

others at work, in our friend group, social circle, or church:

Use your talents, gifts, and energy to bless others.

And we instinctively know Jesus is right. The greatest people

in our lives are the kind people who invested in us, guided us

and whose wise, radiant words are engraved on our hearts.

Wanting to sit with the cleverest, most successful, most famous

people is the path of restlessness and discontent. The competition

is vast. But seek to see people, to listen intently, to be kind,

to empathise, and doors fling wide open for you, you rare thing!

The greatest person is the one who serves, Jesus says. Serves?

How? By using the one, two, or five talents God has given you

to bless others, by finding a place where your deep gladness and

the world’s deep hunger meet. Writers, write what is a blessing.

Entrepreneurs, let your products bless. And serving includes

hospitality, walking with a sad friend, and tidying up a house.

And that is the only greatness worth having. That you yourself,

your life and your work are a blessing to others. That the love

and wisdom God pours into you lives in people’s hearts and minds

and blesses them. May the Lord bless us as we seek to follow him.