The Search For Significance

Living in Cambodia has caused me to evaluate many areas of my life. One of those areas is significance. Is who I am and what I’m doing significant? I know we often look at the activities we’re involved in, what we have accomplished, or how much money we make to determine if we are successful, but is what we do significant? There is a difference between success and significance. One visit recently to a village school made me evaluate this a little deeper.  I met a school principal whose life work challenged me.

When I lived in Texas I was surrounded by family and friends and was able to be a part of so many peoples lives through my antique business, teaching and pastoring. Simply being known and loved by that many people made me feel significant. Now that I’m removed from that and look back at what I’ve done with my life it has really caused me to evaluate what was significant. When it boils down to it the things that I believe were significant were not things I did for myself, but were things that had a long-term positive impact on other people’s lives.  I had many events, ministries, projects and achievements that could be categorized as successes, but in the long run they had very little long-term impact on anyone’s life.

Living in a new country where I am not known has caused me to look at everything I invest my life and time into and ask the question of whether what I am doing will simply be seen as a success or if it is actually significant.

I mentioned a village school principal a minute ago. Principal Min has been working and teaching in the same village for 13 years. On a recent visit to his village he told me the story of the primary school where he works.

The school grounds are now nearly 2 ft higher

When he started 13 years ago the village was in the jungle. The school borrowed whatever community shelter it could to have school for the very few students who would attend. The government had given the school land, but it was covered in trees and brush. The area was susceptible to flooding during the rainy season and fire during the dry season. Principal Min worked to motivate the local community and over time got the village to help him clear a small part of the land to construct a small school building. 

The Classroom Floor

Over the next few years the village cleared more of the land, as fires often endangered or damaged the small school during the dry season.  Principal Min didn’t stop there. He eventually worked with the local village chief, a local church in the community and an aid organization that helped him and the villagers construct 5 more classrooms and a latrine for the school. He kept working and was recently able to get two water ponds dug to provide a year round water supply for the latrines and the school. Being resourceful he even used the dirt dug from the ponds to raise the elevation of the school grounds so during the rainy season the school grounds would no longer flood.  Today over three hundred primary school students attend class at the school!!

The "chalkboard" is actually polished treebark
and you can see through the outside walls

Now if you are looking at the pictures of the school on this page you might question whether Mr. Min is a success. The school has a dirt floor, is made of rough cut planks from trees and on the day I was there, 48 children had to pack into one classroom with 3 children sharing each desk. I realized that day that Mr. Min isn’t working in life towards personal “success”. If he was, he would have left the village years ago to pursue an easier post in a more affluent area.  He is however working towards something significant. He is investing in generations to come. He began to tell me as we were finishing our time at the school about the number of teacher’s and students who have accepted Christ and I realized that Mr. Min’s perspective on significance stretches into the eternal.

I read an article this week by John Maxwell on the difference between success and significance. As you read these think about whether you are striving for success or are you meant for the higher purpose of significance.

48 children in 1 class - 3 kids to a desk

“Success can last a lifetime; significance can last several lifetimes.”

“Success asks, “How can I add value to myself?” Significance asks, “How can I add value to others?” My evolution from selfishness to significance went something like this:

What can others do for me? → What can I do for myself? → What can I do for others? → What can I do with others, for others?”

“If I pursue success, my joy is the result of my success; if I pursue significance, my joy is the result of others’ success.”

By the way, my work with Samaritan’s Purse will hopefully help the local government and Mr. Min get a new school with new desks on that land he worked so hard to build up over the last 13 years!