Myles Munroe - Uncover Your Potential: You are More than You Realize

Applying the Kingdom

Gods Big Idea

In Pursuit of Purpose

Kingdom Parenting

Kingdom Principles

Myles Munroe 365-Day Devotional

Overcoming Crisis

Rediscovering Faith

Rediscovering the Kingdom

Releasing Your Potential

Single, Married, Separated and Life After Divorce

The Glory of Living

The Purpose and Power of Love & Marriage

The Purpose and Power of Praise & Worship

Uncover Your Potential

Understanding Your Potential

Waiting and Dating

Wisdom From Myles Munroe

Available From Destiny Image Publishers

You Are MORE than You Realize

Myles Munroe

Copyright 2012Myles Munroe

All rights reserved. This book is protected by the copyright laws of the United States of America. This book may not be copied or reprinted for commercial gain or profit. The use of short quotations or occasional page copying for personal or group study is permitted and encouraged. Permission will be granted upon request. Scripture quotation is taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

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Previously published as Understanding Your Potential

TP ISBN: 978-0-7684-4100-0
Ebook ISBN: 978-0-7684-8866-1

For Worldwide Distribution, Printed in the U.S.A.

The wealthiest spot on this planet is not the oil fields of Iraq or Saudi Arabia. Neither is it the gold and diamond mines of South Africa, the uranium mines of the Soviet Union, or the silver mines of Africa. Though it may surprise you, the richest deposits on our planet lie just a few blocks from your house. They rest in your local cemetery or graveyard. Buried beneath the soil within the walls of those sacred grounds are dreams that never came to pass, songs that were never sung, books that were never written, paintings that never filled a canvas, ideas that were never shared, visions that never became reality, inventions that were never designed, plans that never went beyond the drawing board of the mind, and purposes that were never fulfilled. Our graveyards are filled with potential that remained potential. What a tragedy!

As I walk the streets of our cities, my heart frequently weeps as I encounter and observe the wasted, broken, disoriented lives of individuals who, years before, were talented, intelligent, aspiring high school classmates. During their youth they had dreams, desires, plans, and aspirations. Today they are lost in a maze of substance abuse, alcoholism, purposelessness, and poorly chosen friends. Their lives are aimless, their decisions haphazard. This enormous tragedy saddens me. What could have been has become what should have been. The wealth of dreams has been dashed into the poverty of discouragement.

Only a minute percentage of the five billion people on this planet will experience a significant portion of their true potential. Are you a candidate for contributing to the wealth of the cemetery? Ask yourself the following questions:

Who am I?

Why am I here?

How much potential do I have?

What am I capable of doing?

By what criteria should I measure my ability?

Who sets the standards?

By what process can I maximize my ability?

What are my limitations?

Within the answers to these questions lies the key to a fulfilled, effective life.

One of the greatest tragedies in life is to watch potential die untapped. Many potentially great men and women never realize their potential because they do not understand the nature and concept of the potential principle. As God has revealed to me the nature of potential, I have received a burden to teach others what I have learned.

Theres a wealth of potential in you. My purpose is to help you understand that potential and get it out. You must decide if you are going to rob the world or bless it with the rich, valuable, potent, untapped resources locked away within you.

You are more than what you have done.

The brilliant summer sun poured its liquid heat on the windswept island of the Caribbean paradise as the old village sculptor made his way to his humble home outside the village center. On his way he passed by the great white mansion of the plantation owner who, with his field workers, was felling one of the age-old trees that for generations had provided protection from the scorching sun. The old sculptor suddenly stopped and, with a twinkle in his eyes, called over the wall with a note of interest, What will you do with those discarded stumps of wood?

The owner replied, These are good for nothing but firewood. I have no use for this junk.

The old sculptor begged for a piece of the junk wood and with care lifted the knotted tree trunk to his shoulders. With a smile of gratitude, he staggered into the distance carrying his burdensome treasure.

After entering his cottage, the old man placed the jagged piece of tree in the center of the floor. Then, in a seemingly mysterious and ceremonious manner, he walked around what the plantation owner had called useless junk. As the old man picked up his hammer and chisel, a strange smile pierced his leathered face. Attacking the wood, he worked as though under a mandate to set something free from the gnarled, weathered trunk.

The following morning, the sun found the sculptor asleep on the floor of his cottage, clutching a beautifully sculptured bird. He had freed the bird from the bondage of the junk wood. Later he placed the bird on the railing of his front porch and forgot it.

Weeks later the plantation owner came by to visit. When he saw the bird, he asked to buy itoffering whatever price the sculptor might name. Satisfied that he had made an excellent bargain, the gentleman walked away, hugging to his breast with great pride the newly acquired treasure. The old sculptor, sitting on the steps of his simple cottage, counted his spoil and thought, Junk is in the eyes of the beholder. Some look, but others see.

Today there are many individuals whose lives are like the old tree. Trapped within them is a beautiful bird of potential that may never fly. Society, like the plantation owner, sees nothing in them but a useless, worthless person on his or her way to the garbage heap of life. But we must remember that one persons junk is another persons jewel.

Scientists in the field of human potential have estimated that we use as little as 10 percent of our abilities. Ninety percent of our capabilities lie dormant and wasted. It is sad that we use only a small part of our abilities and talents. Most of us have no idea how much talent and potential we possess.

Consider the life of Abraham Lincoln. His story is one of the most dramatic examples of a man struggling to release the wealth of potential locked up inside him:

He lost his job in 1832.

He was elected to the legislature in 1834.

He suffered the death of his sweetheart in 1834.

He suffered a nervous breakdown in 1836.

He was defeated for speaker of the State Legislature in 1838.

He was defeated for nomination for Congress in 1843.

He was elected to Congress in 1846.

He was rejected for the position of land officer in 1849.