When the Rev. David Watson retired from his job some years back, it gave him the chance to do what he said he has always wanted to do-work.
Watson, now a pastor for the Tower of Power Ministries, spoke Saturday evening to a group of at least 250 members of the Tri-School Alumni Association during their 19th annual Unity Banquet. The association is made up of graduates of three former African-American high schools representing both sides of Texarkana. Those schools included Washington High School on the Arkansas side and Dunbar and Macedonia High Schools on the Texas side.
"I'm going to talk about one word tonight-and that word is 'potential,'" he said.
"Potential is a word that can best be described as untapped desire and power that person has always had within them. It just needs to be tapped. Potential is how far we can go in life-we just haven't tapped into it and made it there yet. Potential is your God-given assignment in life, one that you may already have a passion and desire for."
Watson, a graduate of Washington High School, said many people may take on what they call a "job" just to pay bills. But when they discover their true talent and potential in life, it's the kind of work they've really always desired to do.
Watson, who held a job with Cooper Tire and Rubber Co. for 30 years before retiring in 2006 to become a pastor, said he used the life of Jesus Christ as a prime example of someone who had a job but also worked at achieving his potential in life.
"Christ was a carpenter by trade but that was just his occupation," Watson said. "But what Christ preached and brought to others was the work he loved to do. It was who he was and still is. Everyone here started out in life knowing the basics taught to them by their mom and dad, basics like how to have honor and how to respect others. But as you live life you will, at some point, learn what your true assignment is. It will be your 'work with a purpose' and it's the reason why we are here tonight. Work isn't a job, work is a higher calling. One of the most important things we can do in life is to find out what we were born to do and pursue it."
Watson went on to say that it's important to not only have good parents, but also good mentors.
"Good mentors will help you everywhere in life, because they can be trusted teachers," he said. "I was able to do the work that I was called for and that was to be a witness. Potential is locked up power. It's talent, it's a gift kept within. And when we find our true work, we find our gift. Go discover your gift-and may God bless you."