There is a poem by Edgar Guest called "The Great Were Once As You." If you are unfamiliar with the poem its a great one to Google. The gist of it is that those we call great started out as ordinary and in fact still are ordinary men and women, but they didn't run when times of testing came. Rather they stayed and stood their ground even if that meant standing alone. There was no magic to it. They just did what needed to be done when it needed to be done. Its simple yet sometimes difficult to do.
It's not something that is done with perfection either. However there ought to be a striving for perfection and a forgiveness of self (and others) when that perfection isn't obtained. And if we strive for that perfection with the goal to glorify God and not self we will meet with incredible results.
Oh Youth, go forth and do! You, too, to
fame may rise;
You can be strong and wise. Stand up to
life and play the man
You can if you'll but think you can;
THE GREAT WERE ONCE AS YOU.
You envy them their proud success?
'Twas won with gifts that you possess. ~Edgar Guest
Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths. ~Proverbs 3:5,6 (NKJV)
