Every individual on the surface of the earth has been given an assignment by God to fulfill. This innate ability with which each one of us has been endowed is referred to as ‘potentials.’ Each one of us has a responsibility to discover our potentials and then maximize them, in order to fulfill our God-given assignment on earth. First, let’s briefly consider how we can go about discovering our potentials before going ahead to discuss how they can be maximized. DISCOVERING YOUR POTENTIALS The following questions will be of help to you on the pathway to discovering your potentials. Try to give an answer to them. a. Consider what the Lord has impressed on your heart as a special talent or unique gift. b. What is your heart’s deepest desire? What stirs your passion? What do you enjoy doing so much that you forget to eat? What naturally flows out of you? Whatever you were designed to do will feel right and natural when you do it. Although it may be complex for someone else, it will be simple for you. Find out and write down the gifts that naturally come out of you. Ask yourself, “What do people say I do well?” Where do you produce good results? What ideas, visions or dreams are impossible to get out of your mind? To what can you give 100% of your life? If you knew you wouldn’t fail and you had all the power you will ever need, what would you do? I hope the questions above will really be of help to you in discovering your God given potentials. MAXIMIZING YOUR POTENTIALS Having discussed the issue of discovering your potentials, let’s now consider how to maximize them. The following tips will certainly be of help. Diligence: No matter how gifted you may be, if you’re lazy, it will be difficult or rather impossible to go very far. Successful people have diligence as one of their major hallmarks those who have made outstanding impacts in various fields of endeavour in life have practiced the principle of diligence, examples abound in the field of sports, music, arts, literature, science, as well as the gospel ministry. Diligence will help you to use your potential to the fullest, says “………. Be even more diligent to make your call and election sure”. Law of use and disuse: What so ever gift you have, put it to use. Do not hesitate at every opportunity you have to put your gift to use. It is a natural law that the more you use your gift, the better you are at them. This lesson is clearly taught in the parable of the talents. Association: The kind of people you associate with will go a long way to determine how effective you will be in making the best use of the potentials (i.e. gifts & abilities) that have been embedded in you. Be careful who your friends are; be determined to associate with people that will motivate and inspire you towards excellence. Be determined to walk with people that will influence you positively and add value to your personality. Get information: Information is power. Go for information in other words, seek knowledge. Get to know more about your area of gifting. Read books that are relevant to your area of interest. Buying books is one of the most important investments you can ever make. Furthermore, as much as you can afford, enroll yourself for formal training. If you’re gifted in music, for instance, try to enroll at a music school. It will be of great help if you enroll at a formal institution that will help you excel in your area of giftedness. Get a mentor: E.g. Do you have a desire to be a Pastor, then look out for a Pastor you admire most and who has made a success of the pastoral ministry. For every area of interest and giftedness that one has discovered, it is necessary to seek out someone who has excelled there in; if possible, one should seek to establish a personal relationship with such a person. Such a person will serve as a mentor and a role model that could be looked up to for guidance, advice, counsel and encouragement. Humility: Pride is one of the greatest enemies of success. Life is full of stories of peoples who have fallen from great heights because they were not humble. “…God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble”. No matter how gifted you are, remain humble. Only then will God keep promoting you from one stage to another. Those who are humble before God will be made great by Him. In conclusion, many people have lived through this life without discovering or maximizing their potentials. Such lives are wasted lives. That is the truth! May God grant you greater illumination as you put the above principles to practice. May your life not be wasted. May you live to express your potentials to the fullest. May you live to become great!