Sunday, March 6, 2016

Raise Your Standards - Luck is Overrated


When I was a small boy I remember the excitement of approaching a wishing-well as I noticed the vague glimmer of coins representing past travelers hopes, dreams and wishes. Whatever I murmured as “my wish” it really came down to a naïve belief in luck; a belief there was some magical force that would grant me what I wanted as long as I threw a few coins in and wished “really hard”.


If my Excel skills were a bit better as an 8 year old I would have liked to tracked how many of these wishes came true; although I was a nerdy kid I wasn’t quite that nerdy…yet. The ironic thing is the most effort in pursuing something at that time in my life was in the wishing; afterwards it was back to life as usual somehow expecting what I wanted to just happen based on a hope in “good luck”. Good thing adults are so much different right? For those unfamiliar with sarcasm the answer to this is an obvious NO!  As adults we still throw money away --  quite literally in search of our hopes, dreams and wishes. Much like children, rarely do we change our choices and habits to achieve them. When you notice the glimmer of luck in the next proverbial wishing-well of your life, adjust your eyes and instead focus on your own reflection for that is often the beginning of where you will find what you are searching for.


One person who has done so much in serving youth across the world in reaching for their dreams without relying solely on this “wishing mentality” is the Executive Director of Ncompass Katie Matheny; powerhouse “doer”, master strategist, new mom and a second cousin of yours truly. Ncompass is truly an amazing organization that has evolved from serving sandwiches in downtown Portland, to serving, empowering and developing orphans in Haiti as well as being the parent organization of Kidstarter (see my February post for more about Kidstarter). Katie leads Ncompass with a corps of volunteers, while working full time at Life Christian School as their Registrar and has now added “mom” to her list of  responsibilities. But what is it that motivates Katie to do what she does? “Ever since I have been out of college I have wanted to impact kids; in fact it is my personal experience in seeing what education has done in my life and the mentorship I received early on from my high school Student Council advisor, Mrs. Storey, that proves to me education has a powerful impact on kids” Katie says clearly as she reflects on what drives her. And drive it is! Out of all the people I know I think “drive” is one of the best words to describes Katie as I have seen her spearhead several projects and programs in developing Ncompass into the professional organization it is today. I can say her drive in particular to serve the youth in Haiti is just as authentic as it is intrinsic. “My first mission trip was to Haiti and it was an impactful experience for my husband Randy and I; it was one of the first times I felt really pushed out of my comfort zone. It reminded me that regardless if people are materially poor, we are all spiritually poor in comparison to what God has given us.  In that call to poverty we all have a connection to one another since we are all made in the image of God…even those who are different than us, or may occasionally creep us out…if I have raised my standards it is in the way I treat all people as people of God, even those where it may be hard to realize it at times”.

When asked what keeps people from raising their standards Katie boiled it down to two points: fear of failure and lack of knowledge on how to. Some people simply get comfortable and although they may wish to be better they are afraid to make the choices in order to move to a  higher standard. In the situations where it is not fear, it can often be lack of knowledge. “I ask some of the Haitian kids what they want to be when they grow up and they say ‘a doctor’ and I ask them how are they going to do that and they simply shrug their shoulders and say ‘I don’t know’…there is such a large gap from where they are and their dreams they do not know their next step…we want to help fill that transition gap”.

To fill this gap created by fear and ignorance, Ncompass is emphasizing and investing in their Transitions Program during 2016. Katie’s belief in raising her standards embodies the spirit of Ncompass in tackling this new challenge, “each year Ncompass has set lofty goals and we have achieved them; as an organization we continually want to raise our standards, which means not only meeting the basic needs of kids to stay alive, but on showing them how to thrive as well.” The Transitions Program does just that by providing mentorship and guidance that is  so needed by kids who live in a country marred by an unfortunate history of chronic corruption and poverty.  For these kids,  finding out what their “next steps” are can be quite difficult. “We do not want the kids we care for to simply survive, we want them to thrive! We feel this is a way we can contribute to breaking the chain of poverty here in Haiti and who knows where in the future”.

To learn more about the Transitions Program at Ncompass and/or get involved click here to find out more!

In your life what chains need broken for you to move from surviving to thriving? Are you simply wishing the chains go away, or are you instead hoping and doing something about it? For answers remember to adjust your eyes to see your reflection and who you are ultimately intended to reflect in the end.


- St. Patrick



  • Fun Questions
    • What do you want to be when you grow up?
      • I wanted to be an archaeologist. I thought it would be so cool to discover pyramids and dig treasures out of the dirt.
    • What do people in Haiti do for St Patrick’s Day?
      • “I am not sure, I will have to get back to you on that” ☺
    • With St. Patrick’s day around the corner I am curious, do you believe in luck?
      • “I will have to say no. For everything that happens there is a reason; God can strategically use whatever we choose for his purpose. Everything that happens is a result of someone’s choices, or accumulation of choices”.