BE SOMEONE PEOPLE CAN TURN TO

I get the whole looking up to someone! I mean there are people out there who are outstanding in their craft. Since I love sports, let’s take Michael Phelps as an example. Michael is one of the best -if not the best- swimmer the world has ever seen. Throughout his career, Michael managed to win 28 medals, out of which 23 were gold medals. His numbers are insane, in fact, Mark Spitz and Matt Biondi who place in the second and third position correspondingly, have 11. He doubles his number y’all! That’s pretty impressive. However, celebrities aren’t the only people we look up to. Sometimes our older brother becomes our superhero, little kids aspire to one day grow to be like their parents, and best friends turn into our role models. We notice the good in people, so we want to learn from them, and why not… be like them.

When I came up with the idea of creating a platform for the younger generations to live a meaningful life. The whole plan was to show people that if you apply what the bible says and follow Jesus, then one day you could have a life that looked like mine. Just by reading this I can’t help but laugh! See, I always thought that to inspire people I needed to become someone. To have more money, a better physical appearance, and a creepy smiley face because supposedly if God is with you then who against you?  Not only does that statement sound arrogant, but it couldn’t be further from what it takes to be a real inspiration, a person worthy of being looked up to. The more I’ve been able to experience life, talk to amazing humans, and struggle with the situations in front of me, the more I realize that a person who is REALLY worthy of being looked up to, is first a person who you can turn to. The world doesn’t need more influencers showing the highlights of their life! We need humans who struggle and like everyone else, are trying to give meaning to a life that in the words of King Salomon is like smoke -Ecclesiastes 1: 2-10.- Today, I want to tell you my friend that you are not alone! And even if social media shows you otherwise, we are all struggling. That’s just how life works, nothing is perfect, and in case you think it is… let me remind you that one day you will die, and it will all come to an end. The world we live in wants you to think that imperfection is not normal, that every day you need to be on the go because your best version is found on the other side of the mountain you are climbing. They show you what a “good life” looks like and trick you into believing that yours isn’t enough. The result? A bunch of humans with no sympathy for others because we are all trying to be “perfect”. However, when I looked at Jesus’ life, who “according to me is who I was trying to model”. He never wanted to be looked up to, in fact, many times after he performed a miracle on somebody, he asked the person not to say anything. Jesus never said I come for the perfect ones, NO, he said I’m here for the sick, the poor, the one who is humble enough to recognize that something is missing. He sat with them, listened to them, and even partied with them! Get this!!! The one who was in fact perfect, never separated from the imperfect… all he did was to build ways that allowed him to connect with people.

Why am I telling you all this? Because friend, we can’t fall into the trap of indifference. We can’t become apathetic to our neighbor’s problem because we are too busy trying to become someone. A real leader and a real successful person has managed to relate, connect, and inspire on his way to the top. Your life becomes meaningful once you see yourself in another human’s face. When instead of burning bridges you build them, and when the climb becomes more important than conquering that mountain. You don’t need to go around announcing your successes for you to be valuable. You are valuable as you are, and I promise you that relating to someone is in the long run, way more satisfying than any amount of followers. REMEMBER!! Before you become someone people should look up to… become someone people can turn to. PS: The best version of yourself is when you are fully you… not who the world says you should be.