During the last two months, I’ve had the great privilege of spending time with and speaking to more than 100 outstanding students in both Cape Town and Crete.  These students have had tremendous opportunities. Whether it was the thrills of Shark Cage Diving or Sailing the Greek Isles, or seeing the Big 5 up close on Safari to watching the sunset from a street in Santorini, or even working with less fortunate individuals from the slums of Africa to the streets of Athens, Greece.  At the end of the day, these students had some incredible “diamond experiences”

In 1985 Vance Havner wrote a book entitled “Playing Marbles with Diamonds”

The title of the book emanated from a story that he heard about a traveler who had gone to a region in Africa and witnessed an incredible sight. There was a large group of African boys in a township who were gathered on the dusty ground in a circle playing the very common game of marbles.

So get the picture here—a bunch of little African boys, gathered around a circle, playing marbles.

What made the game astounding to observe was that the children were not playing the game with glass marbles but instead they were playing the game with what turned out to be actual DIAMONDS.

Can you even begin to imagine?!? You have the world’s most precious gem, diamonds, being used in what is possibly the most elementary and common game that a child can play, MARBLES???

What if these young children realized what they had in their possession?  They had no idea the wealth they held in their playful little hands.

Just think for a minute—
what if they understood
the power of what they held?
How could that change their lives?

As we ended each program this summer, I told this story and challenged our students.  However, I think it is a message we should all take to heart.  Take a step back and think about the experiences you have had in your life, think about the opportunities you have been blessed with, think about the potential you hold in your hands… Don’t play marbles with diamonds!

I believe you Play Marbles with Diamonds when you do the following 3 things-

*You are playing marbles with diamonds when you think about what you can get more than what you can give.

*You play marbles with diamonds when your greed exceeds your gratitude.

* You play marbles with diamonds when you fail to turn your aspirations into achievements.

Today, pause just for a moment to think about how fortunate you are.  The story above changed my perspective and has been shared with many audiences around the world.  What story or illustration has been a game-changer in your life?

I’m Counting on You!

“You will be the same person in 5 years that you are today except
for 2 things: the people you meet and the book you read” –Charlie Jones

The value and importance of reading can’t be stated too often or too strongly.  Simply put, books change people’s lives.  The right book at the right time has the power to drastically impact an individual.

This summer, in both South Africa and Greece, I was asked what books I would recommend.   Here are the top 10 books that I think any person who desires to make a positive impact on the world should read-

“21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership” -John C. Maxwell

“Louder than Words” –Andy Stanley

“A Million Miles in a Thousand Years” –Donald Miller

“The Traveler’s Gift” –Andy Andrews

“Switch” Chip and Dan Heath

“Tuesday’s with Morrie” –Mitch Albom

“Same Kind of Different as Me” –Ron Hall and Denver Moore

“In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day” –Mark Batterson

“Making a Life,  Making a Living” –Mark Albion

“Oh, the Places You’ll Go” –Dr. Seuss

For what its worth, the following are the best books in certain categories that I’ve read lately-

Biography- “Quiet Strength” -Tony Dungy

Political Book- “Game Change” -John Heilemann and Mark Halperin

Devotional- “Daily Insights” –Zig Ziglar and Ike Reighard

How about you?  What books have made an impact on your life?  I’d love to know!

After 24 hours of travel, I have finally arrived in Africa.  This time two years ago I didn’t even own a passport.  I had never been out of the country.  I honestly didn’t even know that much about Africa.  Here I am, for the third time, delivering leadership lessons to more than 100 students from universities across United States.

Landing in Cape Town makes me think back to the first time I arrived in Africa, nearly two years ago.  How could I forget?

There were five of us, with what seemed like hundreds of bags (mine was undoubtedly the largest and heaviest as I felt the need to bring food for the next 100 days).  We embarked on a journey that took us on 4 planes  from Atlanta, Georgia to Frankfurt, Germany to Rome, Italy to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and finally to Nairobi, Kenya .  Yes, you read that correctly—3 stops and 44 hours—just to get to our starting place.

The crew in Kenya

One of the first things we did in Kenya was attend, volunteer, and speak at the National Youth Leadership Convention.     In Kenya, 80% of the population is under the age of 30, and the conference brought more than 1,000 of the top young leaders together, representing each province, to discuss the pressing issues of the day.

It’s interesting to note that our journey began speaking to young people at the 2008 Kenyan National Youth Leadership Convention.  Now two years and three trips to Africa later, I am preparing to speak to young leaders again, only this time they are American students participating in a Global L.E.A.D. Program in South Africa.

LEAD Cape Town 2009

Working with young people is important.  It’s the reason that I have chosen to do what I do.  I truly believe that the world will be shaped by these young people, the decisions they make and the actions they take.

What have you done to shape the next generation?

“The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible– and achieve it, generation after generation. “ –Pearl S. Buck