Who's Your Who?

     It was a little over two years ago when I learned an important lesson in my life. It wasn’t earth shaking by any means, but it most certainly redefined some areas of my life.

     Since the day of my youth society and culture has made it clear to me that the key to happiness is having “more”. In order to have more of whatever it is you want, you must have the resources to do so. Now for you to have the resources to obtain the “more” that you so desire, you must also pursue a career or profession that will pay you the largest sum of money. But in order for you to be in a position such as this you often must spend a large sum of money towards education and training. However, even this is not a guarantee. Education often needs the years of experience in addition to being highly skilled so that you stand out above the rest resulting in pay raises, bonuses, and overall monetary gains and perks for your hard work.

     This post isn’t a knock on any of the things aforementioned. All of those are good things and many times are areas we should consider and pursue in our own careers. But the thing I learned was that many of those are not the most important things in the end. I’m not saying education doesn’t matter, because it does. I’m not saying climbing up the ladder of success in your career isn’t important either, because it is absolutely important! You should absolutely try to excel in every area of your gifts and talents. But what I am saying is that doing what you love to do is great, but it’s not more important that doing it with the people you love.

     A little over two years ago I applied for a position that would have provided in many ways for my family. It would have changed my status and would have been considered a great move professionally. It was an opportunity that usually doesn’t come along very often for people. So, I pursued it with curiosity, excitement, and a little nervousness. I was eventually selected as a finalist and it was in that interview where I learned something I’ll remember forever. During our conversation the interviewer asked me three questions:

What do you love to do?

If you could do what you loved to do, where would you do it?

If you could do what you loved to do where you wanted to do it, whom would you want to do it with?

     
     I had never been asked these questions before. I certainly knew my answer to the first question without hesitation. But the next two questions took a little longer for me to answer. It’s not because I didn’t have several ideal locations of where I would love to work (e.g. Hawaii, San Diego, Hawaii, anywhere there’s air-conditioning and a food buffet), but what I started to think about was, “does it matter where?” I knew it didn’t, so that’s how I answered their “where” question.

     The “who” question took even longer for me to answer. Honestly, it had never entered my mind before that day. But I remember asking myself, “Who did Jesus choose to be with? Whom did He surround himself with?” What I realized during that introspection was that no matter how important my “what” (work, career, profession) is to me, I must also consider the “who”.  Who would I choose to work along side with doing what I love to do?

     What I realized that day was that the “what” you do is important, but the “who” is just as important. In certain seasons of life, the “who” is often more important than the “what”. For many years the “what” gave me my identity. When that went away for a season in my life I realized (a year later) that if I can’t do the “what” with the “who”, then I’ll never be as fulfilled as I could be. In many ways the “who” reminds me of where my identity comes from.

     Jesus was commissioned from God the Father to do the work set before Him, but He chose to do that work with people who would eventually become friends. The kind of friends that were willing to do as Jesus did and lay down their lives down for each other. I learned that day that this was far more important to me than what I did for a living. It wasn’t about my career. It wasn’t about making a name for myself. It wasn’t about acquiring more things or more titles. What I really wanted, what I really needed, were people to do this work with me. People who were committed to me and vice versa. I learned that doing what I love is far more valuable doing it with the people I want to do it with.

     Two weeks ago one of those who I have chosen to work with said to me, “I’m so glad we get to do this together. I’m in this with you for the long haul.” I completely agree. The “who” has changed everything for me. It’s changed my perspective of work and it’s value in this life. It just might do the same for you.