Are You Living Below Your Potential?

Daily Devotional – Tuesday, May 9, 2023
For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor.
Psalms 8:5 (NKJV)

Whenever the Nobel Foundation rewards exemplary performers, we marvel at the brilliance and ingenuity of the winners. Similarly, we revere the great inventors and thinkers, whose ideas have revolutionized the world. Is it that there are more endowed than us or we are living below our potential?

Below Par Mentality?

Now, some psychologist opine that geniuses only use about 10% of their brain capacity! If the scientific, medical, technological, infrastructural and other advancements we see in society are a result of a tenth of our mental abilities, how advanced would we be if we exploited even 20% of our potential?

How endowed, you might ask, is a human being? David gives us a hint when he asks God, “What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor.” (Psalms 8:4-5).

Under Par Performance

The psalmist wonders why God regards the children of Adam so highly because in the universal ranking, man is third after God and angels in that order. This privilege, though, comes with responsibility. As David observes, God has given us dominion over the universe (Psalms 8:6) to help us exploit and harness nature to our advantage, but responsibly.

In essence, if we are not utilizing all the resources God has given us, we cannot blame him. While it is commendable to recognize those who excel in their fields of specialization, we need to realize that they are just scratching the surface. The precious gold is still underneath.

Are You Living Below Your Potential?

Are you living below your potential? If you assess your achievements today, would you say you have exploited all your capabilities? What percentage of your God-given abilities have you utilized so far?

When is your book coming out? How long are we going to wait to hear your music? When will you bless the world with beautiful artworks, projects and inventions? Is that cherished childhood dream still alive? If today were your last day on earth, how many of God’s gifts would you take with you to the grave?

Prayer
Lord Jesus, reveal to me the gifts You have endowed me with and help me live up to my potential.