What Is Greatness?

 

Dear Reader,

Today I’ve found myself pondering the idea of greatness. In modern times, we often associate greatness with high achievement, widespread recognition, or celebrity status. Social media counts, public honors, and prizes like the Nobel may symbolize success. These forms of distinction do carry weight—after all, people in positions of influence can shape the lives of many.

Yet as Stewart Udall wisely cautioned:

“We have, I fear, confused power with greatness.”

Real greatness, I believe, starts not with external power, but with inner posture—especially a posture of gratitude. I find deep truth in the words of James E. Faust:

“A grateful heart is a beginning of greatness. It is an expression of humility. It is a foundation for the development of such virtues as prayer, faith, courage, contentment, happiness, love, and well-being.”

Greatness, then, is not reserved for the famous. It lives in anyone who chooses to live with purpose, humility, and courage.

As Joseph B. Wirthlin observed:

“Desire, burning desire, is basic to achieving anything beyond the ordinary.”

Sometimes all it takes is a single act of will—a quiet choice—to create momentum. Like a small stone rolling down a hill, that decision can trigger powerful change.

Each of us is invited into our own form of greatness. As Shakespeare wrote in Twelfth Night:

“Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.”

But greatness is not something we wait for. It’s something we choose, now. The author James Baldwin reminds us:

“There is never time in the future in which we will work out our salvation. The challenge is in the moment; the time is always now.”

Greatness isn’t measured by applause. It’s revealed in our relationship with God, with truth, and with the law written on our hearts.

As the psalmist writes:

“Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.” – Psalm 119:165

And again:

“How great is our Lord! His power is absolute! His understanding is beyond comprehension. The Lord supports the humble and brings the wicked down into the dust.” – Psalm 147:5–6

True greatness lies in recognizing our place in God's majestic creation. When we understand who we are in His kingdom, and act in alignment with His will, greatness ceases to be a status—it becomes a way of being.

With peace and purpose,
Amen