Jump In The River

While listening to a recent discussion on the “7 Mountains of Influence”, one person had an interesting thought, culture can be looked like a river. A common view to look at culture is like a mountain range; the 7 Mountains of Influence. If we change this picture to looking at it as a stream, it thus becomes the 7 Streams of Influence. This idea resonated with me so much that I had to pause the discussion to allow myself time to jot all my notes down.

Living in Western New York, I am spoiled by all the amazing rivers all around me. I have so many fond memories of playing in many of them, in particular, the Cohocton River.

The first swims of the summer were often the most exhilarating. It didn’t matter how hot it might have been, and there was always that thought in the back of my head that told me the river was still very cold from the melted winter snow. If I ever waded in, there was a good chance I would psyche myself out and have to try again. However, there were times when the heat overcame my trepidation, and I just jumped, cannonballing into that water, creating a splash that towered over the tree line — stated with only a little bit of exaggeration! The thrill of overcoming fear and just surrendering to the river lead to some of my favorite childhood memories. 

It still amazes me to think about how those small rivers I spent my childhood in eventually go on to be part of something greater. The Cohocton River goes on to feed into the Chesapeake Bay.

In the same way, my childhood swimming hole goes on to help form a place where cities sprawl. These significant streams of culture all have some small origin point which goes on to create the streams that affect all of us in our workplaces, families, and places of worship.

As we further develop the illustration, we see that culture can be similar to a paracord, which is even better! If you know anything about paracord, the first thing you know is how strong it is. For such a thin rope, it can hold a remarkable amount of weight. The reason for its strength lies in its design. Within the outer layer, there is a strong fishing line. Inside the outer jacket is a small steel cable, and then there are seven nylon strings. Just like culture, this paracord is perfectly defined by seven strings.

Further breaking down the analogy, those nylon cords are each made up of 3 individual threads, which reminded me of a conference I attended last year. Dan Meylan, the keynote speaker, and author of The Compound Effect. He talked about how there are often three different types of people who interact with one of the strings of culture: A Leader, a Servant, or a User.

Another block of three types Meylan talked about, was the Survivor, the Successful, or the Significant.

Groups of three are so common in many areas, and while I was writing this, I was reminded of something my pastor was talking about recently. 

During the story of the Resurrection of Jesus, Jesus first revealed Himself to the Marys who Witnessed, they Heard the story, and then they Acted on the news they heard. They went to the other Disciples to let them know what they experienced, and we learned that only two of the Disciples went back to the Garden Tomb, or chose acting.

All of this hit me around the same time, so do the 7 Mountains have anything to do with this? Not necessarily, other than it has everything to do with it.

Considering the Witnesses, Hearers, and Actors roles of the Resurrection, how many of the Disciples eventually moved to the Acting stage? All of them did at different points on the timeline. How many of us are similar to the disciples? We might think if we were in that place, we would be the person who would immediately act upon what we heard, or we might need a little more faith like doubting Thomas.

So as I process all of this, the question that I feel resonating in my spirit is, “What is my action? Where do I fall on the action timeline with what God is speaking to me?”

Now, I know that sometimes, it is hard to relate to Biblical characters, so let’s use another story that is a little closer to us in terms of history. After the Civil War, there were a hundred or so years with very little change in terms of how our country dealt with our African-American, former slave communities. Sure slavery was outlawed, but history shows that quality of life for the ex-slaves barely increased. Then Martin Luther King Jr. Witnessed the racism and evil that his fellow “free” Americans were facing, he Heard that Gandhi was able to bring about change through peaceful protest, and he Acted it out. His goal was to convince just 10% of whoever would listen to take action towards change. While it was tragic what happened to him at the end of his life, his efforts have forever shaped our American culture.

One of my favorite Scriptures that illustrates this point is Proverbs 21:1 – “The king’s heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases.” (NLT). This verse has always stuck with me, and it reminds me that there are different seasons in which God is calling me to do something. Sometimes He wants me to witness an event, at times, we are to listen and hear, and while at other times, I am called to influence things through my actions.

So, what Stream of Influence is God calling you into? Are you standing at the edge dipping your toe in out of fear of the cold winter snow? Or have you surrendered to the passions that God placed in you to create the biggest splash you can? Where is God leading you to Witness? Where are you supposed to Hear? Where are you supposed to Act?  

All of our lives are part of that String of Culture and how we operate does affect the individual cords. Come on in, the water is fine.