We all remember back to the days of high school chemistry when we learned that enzymes were proteins that worked as catalysts to lower the activation energy required to produce a chemical reaction. OK, actually me and like 6 other people remember that. But what the rest of you certainly will recall—perhaps even more than those of us who spent too much time in the lab—is that people are the most powerful catalysts of all. For whatever reasons, there are individuals that have the ability to rally not just one, but many people behind an event, cause, or group. They can activate a desired reaction from people using a lot less energy than others.
Josh McCammon has been such a catalyst for me, and I am very thankful for that! When you make the switch from working with high school to college students, you no longer have parents or a youth group to fall back on to help meet or build rapport with students. You essentially have to do it yourself, and when you’re not a college student or faculty member, you need to have someone on the inside to validate to others your genuineness and value to students. I knew exactly three Hope students when I started out, and Josh was one of them. I simply could not become a natural part of Hope’s campus life on my own (and rightfully so!), but Josh came to the rescue. With a few simple invitations, he gathered one amazing group of guys that mobilized friends that spawned other groups that connected wider communities that spread into almost every part of campus in less than two year’s time! Simply unbelievable how word spreads on campus, but it took the right catalyst at the right time. Thank-you Josh for doing what I never could to help open so many fantastic and fruitful doors!
Has someone supported you in an endeavor of yours by blowing the gates of access and advancement wide open for you? Heal the hereafter of your catalyst with some gratitude this week!
I am thankful for many people and like to promote ideas or causes they champion whenever I can. Josh values the idea that every single person should be involved in some sort of self expression, and that they shouldn’t have to argue why they express themselves the way that they do, but have that expression speak for itself. It’s a good reminder to me to try to first understand people by observing how they portray who they are before reacting to them.
