I have met a few Renaissance Men and Women who do many things well. They create and run multiple businesses, paint in oils and acrylics, are amateur archaeologists, speak five languages (three fluently), and found time to teach themselves piano and guitar.
And of course, they have authored a novel and are working on their memoirs.
But for most of us, such accomplishments are only the stuff of dreams. We hack around at many things, never quite mastering them, and may feel a little inferior to the occasional Superman or Superwoman. Our interests and passions regularly outrun our gifts.
Scott Joplin, the brilliant pianist who almost single-handedly developed and perfected the “Ragtime” piano genre, a forerunner of Jazz, died disillusioned when the two operas he composed were never really taken seriously. One of them was never even fully staged during his lifetime.
And then there was Mark Twain, Samuel Clemens if you prefer, whom many acclaim as the greatest American humorist. His books and stories are classics, and few have equaled his story-telling abilities. He lost his fortune investing in an overly complicated version of a typesetting machine, fancying himself an entrepreneur and businessman.
Now, I’d be the last to discourage your dreams or suppress your spirit, but a good dose of reality is just as important as a folio of fantasies. For most of us, if we learn to do one thing well, and are able to serve others in our efforts, we can and should be able to live and die as happy humans. (It also helps to remember that even good work and creative ideas sometimes are ahead of their time!)
It’s vital to make peace with who we really are. The Apostle Paul reminded the Corinthians that no one has all the gifts (1 Corinthians 12-14), and without love to temper them, even the ones we do have can prove disastrous.
He gives similar counsel in Romans 12:3: “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.”
Please understand, I’m not faulting the above named gentlemen for pursuing their dreams. We should never settle into visionless monotony masquerading as contentment. But there is a competing reality that we must live within ourselves and be happy with who God has made us. Even Renaissance Men don’t do it all, and with the right attitude, it is possible to enjoy what we don’t master.
One public person who understood this concept was Gerald R. Ford, who eventually became our 38th president. After being sworn in as Vice President, he said, “I’m a Ford, not a Lincoln. . .”
“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.”
1 Corinthians 12:4, 5