Big
Mark E. Haskins
January 25, 2026
In one of the best-selling business books of all time, Built to Last1, the authors coined the term BHAG (pronounced, bee hag) to stand for "Big Hairy Audacious Goal.” In short, the guiding presence of a BHAG is a differentiating factor for an organization built to last and one that isn’t.
For individuals, I believe BHAGs are the priorities that inspire and fuel our lives. Some are temporary, some are long-lasting. Well, the men and women, young and old, who have fallen in love with our Heavenly Father are most definitely being built to last. Despite all our human frailties and stubborn reluctance, one of God’s most important BHAGs is transforming us for an eternity with Himself (2 Corinthians 3: 18). In that vein, He also provides BHAG opportunities for us as we await Jesus’ return. I confess, however, my early BHAGs were not heavenly focused.
Let me invite you to go down your memory lane as I do here in a bit of a playful, but accurate, manner depicting an evolution of my BHAGs. Perhaps you have had a similar journey. First, as a young boy growing up in the foothills of Western Colorado, my daily priority was to simply maximize the adventures of the Brothers Haskins And Gang. We roamed the hills, and depending on the call of the land that day, we pretended to be soldiers, scouts, cowboys, outlaws, or wagon train leaders. We went to sleep each night anticipating the next day’s adventure. During my teen years, the dominant BHAGs in life became excelling at Baseball, Hoops And Girls. I must admit, those seemed like great years at the time. No cares. Some success. No pressures. Some success. No responsibilities. Some success. But, if I am honest, it was also a time of no substantive thoughts about others or life. My college years were mostly about Ballerinas, Heroes, And Grades. I hung out with ballerinas and had numerous heroes like Johnny Bench, Chuck Yeager, and Don Henley. In school, nobody was going to get better grades. Later, for a season, my BHAGs involved a focus on Boating, Hospitality And Garlands of success with longer-term emphasis on Business, Hobbies, Accomplishments & Grandkids. For some of you, BHAGs may have been about the next trip to places like Belize, Hawaii, Australia, or Greece. Still others may have been super fans of a sports team from Boston, Houston, Atlanta, or Green Bay. Why do we choose the worldly BHAGs we do? It’s amazing what we will devote to their pursuit.
When we accept God’s invitation to participate in the greatest love story ever, our BHAGs change. They most definitely do. At a fundamental level, all followers of Jesus share some profound BHAGs. For example, life becomes about manifesting the Blessed Hope & Abundant Grace He has for all those He loves, and He loves us all! (Titus 2: 13 and 3: 7, Romans 5: 17). It is also about living in the reality that Believers Have A Guide who wants to shepherd us each and every day, through each and every circumstance (Psalm 23:3 and Psalm 48:14). Moreover, we, the Body of saints Have Access to God and we are to avail ourselves of that connection opportunity every minute of every day (Hebrews 10: 19 and Ephesians 2: 18). In addition, our Heavenly Father asks us to Boldly Handover our Anger & Guilt and shame to Him so that He can free us from their clutches. Also, consider the fact that while Jesus walked this earth He was able to endure affliction, love others well, and witness of His Father, Because He Asked God (John 17 and Matthew 26: 36-39) for strength to do so—we are instructed to embrace that same reliance on His Father, our Heavenly Father (John 16 and 17). That’s not all. We are His Beloved, Heir, And Glory (John 3: 29, Revelation 21: 9, Romans 8: 17 and Galatians 4: 7) Can that really be? Yes. Do we live in full awareness and dedication to these amazing BHAGs? Such BHAGs are important because they make Him evermore precious to us and they manifest Christ to those around us (Isaiah 60: 2-3, Philippians 2: 15-16 and 2 Corinthians 2: 15-16).
Starting today, in this new year, with renewed desire, let’s hunger and thirst for our Beautiful, Holy, Adventuresome God, the One who Beckons His to Access His Generosity, the One who can Bring Help And Gladness to all. As we pursue our earthly endeavors, may our purpose be that others will see the Beauty of His sincere desire for them through us, Hear His message of acceptance from us, experience His love by our Actions, and know His Goodness because of us.
Caution. My sister-in-law has quipped, “If you want God to chuckle, just tell Him your plans.” Indeed, let’s not get the proverbial cart before the horse. We are to live expectantly while holding preconceived expectations loosely because, “when it comes to … the ability of a person to recognize an opportunity, expectations can become an unconscious prison.”2 Whatever the opportunities we encounter from Him, they will be Kingdom BHAGs. Let’s be discerning and open—not propelled by or boxed in by a “prison of [our own] expectations”3. This new year let’s be especially attentive for His moments. We can be more generous with our time, attention, talents, and resources. We can more regularly and earnestly pray against the Enemy, for others, and with friends. When we do any of this, there is no moment, no encounter, no sincere offering of ourselves that is so small that it is not a Kingdom BHAG. Yes, the moment or event may seem small in terms of time, effort, or resources but it is a holy moment because the Kingdom impact is not small in our life or the life of another (Matthew 25: 34-40). “Living fully each day let us share [God’s] love in all our … relationships, responsibilities, and passages.”4
Lastly, let’s be mindful that our amazing God is the original BHAG maker. For example, we were not haphazardly formed—He uniquely made each of us to share His image (Genesis 1: 27). Wow! To save humanity, He sent His only Son as a ransom for all (Romans 8: 32, Mark 10: 45)—He held nothing back! There’s more. He didn’t just forgive our sin; He removed it as far as the east is from the west (Psalms 103: 12). And let’s not forget that His unconditional love for you, for me, is so broad, so deep, so high that we cannot fully begin to fathom it (Ephesians 3: 18-19). There are no half measures in His purposes and pursuits. He is all in and He has a role for each of us. What is that wonderfully Bestowed, Heartfelt, Authentic, Gift from God that we have each been given that can be at the ready for His purposes? In short: Kingdom BHAGs are about impactful love. Let’s sincerely offer ourselves to Him for that this new year.
1 Jim Collins and Jerry Porras (1994), Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies, (Harper Business, NY, NY).
2 Will Burns, (August 31, 2021), “Creativity and the prison of expectations”, available at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/creativity-prison-expectations-will-burns/ (accessed 4-27-25).
3 Ibid.
4 Henri Nouwen (2017), You Are the Beloved (IMAGE, NY, NY), p. 398.
The shark photo that appears on the blog home page with this month’s post is used with permission. The shark was successfully released back into the wild.
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