What??????

In a stunning development, my name was not among the 100 most influential people in the world as just announced by Time magazine.  How in the world will I keep putting one foot in front of the other and continuing with life? To borrow, and likely abuse a bit, words from Isaiah (6:5) “Woe is me, for I am an unlisted man.”

Hillary, Donald, Ted, and Bernie are all on the list. I’m not. The infamous (or famous depending upon economic theories) Koch brothers are on the list. I’m not. President Obama is there, and even Governor Nikki Haley of South Carolina is on the list. I’m not. They included at least one religious leader, Pope Francis. But not me. Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, and Leonardo DiCaprio are on the list. But I’m not. Caitlyn Jenner is on the list. But I still didn’t see my name.

Even more stunning, I know a lot of people I think are very influential. But not only are they not on the list, I don’t remember even seeing them posting the “vote for me as one of Time’s 100 most influential people” posts on Twitter. Can I really be so out of the world of real influence that not only is my name not mentioned on the list, but I don’t even know someone whose name is there? 

I have personally met people like William Willimon and the late Fred Craddock. Both were recognized by Baylor University a few years ago as being in the top twelve most influential preachers in the English speaking world. But I didn’t see their names. I have a few autographed copies of N.T. Wright books. Again, his name isn’t there. My very good friend and colleague Greg Moffatt has written more books (very good books) than anyone I know, and even his name isn’t there. I know Greg likes soccer more than baseball, but in the socialist leaning world in which we live, that should make him more likely, not less likely, to be on the list. But there’s no Greg Moffatt listed there.

What’s a person to do? One option of course is to sink deeply into the depression of recognizing that the world thinks I’m a no body. For however long Time has been doing this list, I’ve never even had an “honorable mention.” “Woe is me, for I am an unlisted man.”

But a different option is to notice that Jesus’ name isn’t on the list either. I get it that Jesus isn’t “alive” in the sense that those 100 people are “alive,” but if you want to talk about influence, maybe He ought to be considered. After all, from the worldview of non-believers, He has been dead for 2000 years, and yet people who are influenced by Him are among the first to show up when tragedy strikes, have built more hospitals, orphanages, hospices, and other kinds of relief centers than can be counted. I know there are times when the “Jesus people” didn’t get it right, but the simple truth is that every single day since that “first day of the week” in A.D. 30 when He was raised to never die again – His people have been doing tons of incredibly important stuff.   When I look carefully at my own life, I am quick to own up to the fact that it is “Jesus in me,” not “me,” that has been able to influence some people around me. And there are millions upon millions of people alive right now who would say precisely the same.

So . . . perhaps being “unlisted” isn’t quite the career disaster it might first appear to be. Think about it. In Christ, I’m on the list of people God calls His children. (1 John 3:2) I won’t trade that list for the Time 100. In Christ, I’m confident that my name is written in “the Lamb’s book of life.” (Revelation 21:27) I’m not about to trade that listing for Time’s either. I’m even on a list of “God’s fellow workers.” (1 Corinthians 3:5-9) Lots of people on Time’s list can’t say that. 

Congratulations to the 100. Our culture thinks you are very influential. In some ways that may mean you are more “famous” than “influential” – but your name is on the list and mine isn’t. Congratulations!  But I’m not going to feel like a failure. My name is on the really important – eternally speaking – list that the God who created to world and all that is in it (Acts 17) is making.

To borrow one more time from Isaiah, and not abuse his words, ""Here I am! Send me." (Isaiah 6:8)