Who are you? That is the million dollar question that we are often asked but when you truly think about it… who are you really? When you put away the typical, standardize answer, you begin to get to the root and find the essence of your true existence. For years I thought I knew who I was, I would give my answer machine answer, knowing that deep inside I lacked a definition for myself. I am now 27 years old, a father, and I am on a mission to empower the youth along with the world to live for God and the greatness that He has placed in us all. With all that being said there is one big problem… how can I be on a mission to help others live for God and the greatness that He has instilled in us if I am not doing the same in my own life?
I was once told in the journey of life you could be one of two people. You can be a travel agent or a tour guide. A travel agent will tell you to go somewhere only for their benefit or gain and more than likely they probably have not been there themselves. While on the other hand a tour guide is not only someone who has traveled the road that you are on but they are also going to walk it out with you. I choose to be the tour guide, I think there is something to be said about someone who has actually traveled the roads of life rather than telling me to go somewhere that they have never traveled. My brother Geo once said it best, “ advice is like cooking, do not feed it to others until you eat it first.”
So without any further a due, I am Michael Spence, a six foot ten inch man from Orange, New Jersey. I have a son named David who is five years old and he is the apple of my eye. I have a loving mother and sister who mean the world to me. I am in a relationship with a strong woman that supports me through it all. I have the support of great mentors and friends to become that man that God has created me to be. Most importantly I am growing each day to become the change that I want to see in the world. Before I was even able to write this message to you, I was a lost man. Making decisions that not only hurt me but the people around me. God grabbed a hold of me and sat me down… He humbled me in the process but He is our father and that is what fathers do in love. Most importantly I am found now and it is not because of what I do, what I own, or how much money I make or my success. I am found because of the One I choose to follow for direction. I am committed to finding more about myself each day, discovering more about myself that I did not know. I am a motivational speaker, (I kind of go back and forth with the title because everywhere you turn you see someone saying they are a motivational speaker but for the sake of this post I am going to roll with it lol) I love our youth, I am a big brother to many but for the remainder of my time I am going to be your big brother… I am going to be your tour guide not for today but throughout life. We are going to walk this journey out together. As long as I have breath in me and God continues to allow me to see a new day I will be writing to you. I pray that each post and word pulls you closer to your purpose and to the plans that God has for your life. I pray that you learn from my mistakes as well as your own, I pray that you learn it ok mistakes but what is not ok is that you do not learn from them and improve. I pray that you become empowered by my triumphs, and enjoy my success as if it was yours because that is what I will be doing with you. I pray that when you get around my age that you will be moved to help those younger than you in their journey because in the words of Coach Collins, “a youth without a mentor is like a sailor without a map.” With that being said… See you next week.
With Love,
Big Bro Mike