Shepherds

While reading Paulo Coelho’s infamous novel The Alchemist I was struck by a line in his literary masterpiece that forever change my view of the way God uses shepherds. Coelho writes, “It was shepherds who were the first to recognize a king that the rest of the world refused to acknowledge. So, it’s not surprising that kings would talk to shepherds.” With Christmas this week, I am reminded of these lines and how they apply not only to the story of Christ’s birth, but also to our lives today.

A shepherd by definition is: a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. I believe we can all name at least one person who has tended to us when we were in need, one who has herded us back into the flock when we strayed away into “wolf territory”, one person who has fed us, and yet another who guarded us from the attacks of the wolf.

God has always used shepherds to symbolize obedience. David, who God considered to be a man after His own heart, was a shepherd. God used David’s life to demonstrate His ability to awaken the strength within us, His ability to empower us through leadership, and His limitless grace and mercy. Through the life of King David, God reveals that while we are sheep to Him, through obedience we can become shepherds to others.

God uses every single person on this earth for His glory whether they believe in Him or not. We are all here to be used as instruments by God and He can speak to you through your atheist co-worker, just as well as He can speak to you through your pastor. Think of all the conversations you have with both believers and non-believers. Didn’t all of those conversations grow your faith in some way shape of form? Maybe a believer reminded you of the promises of God while a non-believer challenged you to quote scripture to defend your faith.

Proof that shepherds come in just as many various forms as the sheep they tend.

Who Is James Gatz?

The first time I ever heard the name Jay Gatsby I was a junior at Pace High School. I cannot recall the teacher’s name that assigned Fitzgerald’s literary masterpiece to us, nor can I recall whether the course was considered English or Literature, but how I handled the assignment I can recall vividly. I waited until the day of the quiz that was designed to test our comprehension of the literary work, to read it, and by read it I mean skim Spark Notes on the computer in the library during my lunch period. I am willing to admit this scandalous act, because while I also cannot recall what I made on the quiz, I do remember my grade mirrored that of my interest in the assignment, which was very little.

I began longing to revisit the infamous work as I began to live it. I dived in and let the eloquent words of Fitzgerald consume me. I came to realize that I could easily identify with both Gatsby and Carraway. To my friends and family back in Florida I had become Gatsby, mysterious, reclusive, and oddly successful. To the New Yorkers I am Carraway, shy, observant, and eager to learn. I also realized that New York has not changed much since the 1920’s. The businesses come and go, the buildings undergo extensive renovations, but the way society behaves is forever changeless. Which is why Fitzgerald’s classic novel still captivates audiences today.

Aside from those revelations, I became enamored with the story of Gatsby’s life prior to his mysterious success. Gatsby was born James Gatz in a limited vision farm town to parents who had very little aspiration. At a very early age, James Gatz knew his dreams and aspirations stretched farther and wider than the farm life would permit. James ran away at the ripe age of seventeen to fulfill his unknown destiny and along the way changed his name to match his new life and mentality. Where he went wrong was denying his past as James Gatz. He crafted a story that he peddled around to anyone who asked which was filled with lies and half-truths that he came from a wealthy family, went to Oxford, owned a line of drugstore, etc. all things that are easy to do when you are born into prominent society life. But, what Gatsby really did with his life was far more impressive than the story he fabricated.

When I was in college I decided to change my name. I changed the spelling from Jamie to Jayme because I thought it was “cooler”, but that is not a legitimate reason for a name change. I found the legitimate reason while I was sitting across the desk from an acting consultant two years later. We were discussing stage names and she told me that the sole purpose of a stage name is to spark a conversation with casting directors. She began asking me what I could come up with that would be both unique and personal and would give a casting director something to remember me by. I sat and pondered for a moment, then it hit me. I am named after my grandfather, who was raised in Jay, Florida. Jay D. Ramsey it was. Obviously, Jay is an odd name for a girl, so that prompts casting directors and the common person alike to inquire about it and when they do, I am able to share both the origin of my name and the origin of my lineage with them. While I am striving to keep Pensacola in my rearview mirror, I would never deny it as my hometown. I have broken my family’s cycle and there’s something to be said for that, but to forsake them would enable my expansive vision to become a weapon against me.

This is why we must not lose site of our James Gatz past once we become Jay Gatsby.

James Gatz was a boy from a limited vision farm town, Jay Gatsby was a young man who overcame the odds set against him and fulfilled his vision to it’s most expansive capacity in the big city. The same will be said of Jay D. Ramsey.

The Reason Why You’re Not a Billionaire

A few weeks ago, I found myself sitting on a park bench next to a fellow struggling actress. While watching the boys we baby-sit play basketball, we began discussing the exuberant tuition required by the boys’ elite private school. During the discussion, she stated, “I cannot fathom having that kind of money! I was thinking the other day that this is what is wrong with my life. I cannot imagine being more successful than I am now and I’m not that successful.” I had a previous conversation with this sitter in regards to her recent twenty-ninth birthday and her short stint on Broadway, which left her with more disappointment than fulfillment. Obviously, we’re both caught up in the same means to an end now, but unlike her I believe I will make it in the arts and already have a date set, on which, I will eliminate my “means to an end job”. This conversation made me think about the difference in our mindset. Mine with vision of prosperity, hers lacking improvement beyond where she is now.

I concluded after our conversation that our success in life is determined by two things:

1.    You are what you believe you are.

2.    You will succeed as far as your vision expands.

You are what you believe you are.

Have you ever met someone who believes they are less than what they are? They might be the CEO of a company, but they have the attitude of a part-time sales associate at Wal-Mart. On the flipside, have you ever met a part-time sales associate at Wal-Mart that thinks he’s the CEO of the company? He takes your question of, “What aisle are the Clorox wipes on?” and turns it into an opportunity to tell you how well Wal-Mart stock is trading and suggests that you invest in the company if you haven’t already. Then he convinces you to open a Wal-Mart credit card upon checkout.

If you do not believe you are making a difference as a CEO you won’t. If you believe you can make a difference as a part-time sales associate you will. With faith, the part-time sales associate, with the CEO mentality, will go on to run the company or better yet start his own. You will continue to rise above and climb up the career ladder until you believe you are no longer making a difference. For at the moment you stop believing in yourself, your career will philander.

Who we believe we are is based on the vision we have for our life, which brings me to my second point…

You will succeed as far as your vision expands.

Richard Branson supplies us with the ultimate example of expansive vision. He has pioneered the Virgin group for several decades and has no set retirement date. Branson, 63, started a magazine by the name of The Student at the ripe age of sixteen and since has founded over 400 companies and is worth $4.6 Billion. If Branson’s vision only stretched as far as The Student, I wouldn’t be using him as an example today. He did not view the magazine as an accomplishment of destiny, but rather a springboard to a limitless career that is leading him into the infinity of space and beyond.

Many people have said to me, “You’ve already done so much in the arts, even if you stop now what you have done is more than most people will ever do in their lives.” This back handed compliment sickens me. One, because it’s suggesting that I limit my vision, two because it’s a reflection on our society’s lack of vision. If at the threshold of my career I have done more than most people will in their lifetime that is pathetic.

God didn’t put us on this earth to waste oxygen. He is the ultimate Creator and His vision is more expansive than we could ever fathom. He instilled that same creative vision in our souls and if we choose to utilize it, we will surpass the odds set against us, and transcend the confines of this world through our vision.

To be a billionaire or not to be a billionaire? The answer lies in your belief and vision.