Control-Alt-Delete Yourself!
Monday, March 29, 2010
When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger!
Luke 15:17 (NLT)
I stumbled on excerpts of an interview that Sam Worthington granted last week and I was fired up by what I read. Before you begin to wonder who this guy is, let me quickly help you. You must have had about the film called AVATAR. Yeah! He was the lead actor in the movie where he played Jake Sully.
So, what’s new? I am not really a movie person if I were to be one, I would have been part of the Avatar premiere in London last December. But the thrilling thing for me was that Sam Worthington, who is now 33 years, used to be a bricklayer and just about 3 years ago he used to live in his car. But he said he woke up one morning and looked at himself in a mirror and didn’t like what he saw and guess what he did- in his own words, I CONTROL+ALT+DELETE-d myself (that’s smashing!)
‘Control+Alt+Delete’ is a computer command that restarts the computer. Sam Worthington decided to restart his life.
How? He sold all he had from flat screen TV to the least of his personal belongings and used the proceeds to buy a ‘crappy car’. He took some books with him and a few clothes and then drove off….. the rest his history. Today, just 3 years later he scaled through the auditions for the lead actor role of the movie that has recorded gross revenue of over 2 billion dollars and has beaten all the records available in the movie industry history and even that of Titanic. Sam Worthington has won countess man of the year awards to date.
It is never late to be right- David Oyedepo
Bottom line
I don’t intend to analyse any criticism behind the Avatar movie but that you can restart from wherever you are and still make good of this one life that you’ve got.
On Aston Villa match days, I observe the way people troop across the street where I live and pay so much for parking spaces. I live about 5 minutes walk from Aston Villa stadium and I just wonder how passionate people can be at something that adds nothing to their living. Worse still when I flash back at my times back in Nigeria how people do all they can to watch football matches by their favourite clubs with generating set, Satellite subscription and all the inconveniences for the football madness that has gone global. If only people can be as passionate about their very lives as much as they do for other things.
Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music. - Ronald Reagan
What to do;
Come to your senses
Like the prodigal son in the scripture above, he finally came to his senses. Although he had taken his part of the father’s inheritance, he decided to have a new start. Sam Worthington restarted as young as 29 years and in 3 years he hit it. How old are you now? It doesn’t matter how old you are-start afresh.
Move from decision to action
Many after reading this piece will just discard of it. I desire that you will not just make a decision to start pursuing your dream if you have lost it but that you will back it up with commensurate actions. Get those books. Get the skill, the qualification or certification and develop yourself.
Be Relentless
Keep on….Obstacles will come. Sam Worthington has many weaknesses- he has a blurred vision, he lost at the induction to become the next James Bond but in spite of his failures and limitations, he bounced back.
Friends, when you look at yourself in the mirror of life, what do you see? Do you see yourself living in the reality of your childhood dreams? If not, do something. Don’t lose that dream. Like the prodigal son, if you have strayed from your Heavenly father, reconnect with Him and He will receive you back and stop chasing after the wind.
Shall we pray;
Lord, help us to make the most of this one life that you have given us. Amen
Luke 15:17 (NLT)
I stumbled on excerpts of an interview that Sam Worthington granted last week and I was fired up by what I read. Before you begin to wonder who this guy is, let me quickly help you. You must have had about the film called AVATAR. Yeah! He was the lead actor in the movie where he played Jake Sully.
So, what’s new? I am not really a movie person if I were to be one, I would have been part of the Avatar premiere in London last December. But the thrilling thing for me was that Sam Worthington, who is now 33 years, used to be a bricklayer and just about 3 years ago he used to live in his car. But he said he woke up one morning and looked at himself in a mirror and didn’t like what he saw and guess what he did- in his own words, I CONTROL+ALT+DELETE-d myself (that’s smashing!)
‘Control+Alt+Delete’ is a computer command that restarts the computer. Sam Worthington decided to restart his life.
How? He sold all he had from flat screen TV to the least of his personal belongings and used the proceeds to buy a ‘crappy car’. He took some books with him and a few clothes and then drove off….. the rest his history. Today, just 3 years later he scaled through the auditions for the lead actor role of the movie that has recorded gross revenue of over 2 billion dollars and has beaten all the records available in the movie industry history and even that of Titanic. Sam Worthington has won countess man of the year awards to date.
It is never late to be right- David Oyedepo
Bottom line
I don’t intend to analyse any criticism behind the Avatar movie but that you can restart from wherever you are and still make good of this one life that you’ve got.
On Aston Villa match days, I observe the way people troop across the street where I live and pay so much for parking spaces. I live about 5 minutes walk from Aston Villa stadium and I just wonder how passionate people can be at something that adds nothing to their living. Worse still when I flash back at my times back in Nigeria how people do all they can to watch football matches by their favourite clubs with generating set, Satellite subscription and all the inconveniences for the football madness that has gone global. If only people can be as passionate about their very lives as much as they do for other things.
Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music. - Ronald Reagan
What to do;
Come to your senses
Like the prodigal son in the scripture above, he finally came to his senses. Although he had taken his part of the father’s inheritance, he decided to have a new start. Sam Worthington restarted as young as 29 years and in 3 years he hit it. How old are you now? It doesn’t matter how old you are-start afresh.
Move from decision to action
Many after reading this piece will just discard of it. I desire that you will not just make a decision to start pursuing your dream if you have lost it but that you will back it up with commensurate actions. Get those books. Get the skill, the qualification or certification and develop yourself.
Be Relentless
Keep on….Obstacles will come. Sam Worthington has many weaknesses- he has a blurred vision, he lost at the induction to become the next James Bond but in spite of his failures and limitations, he bounced back.
Friends, when you look at yourself in the mirror of life, what do you see? Do you see yourself living in the reality of your childhood dreams? If not, do something. Don’t lose that dream. Like the prodigal son, if you have strayed from your Heavenly father, reconnect with Him and He will receive you back and stop chasing after the wind.
Shall we pray;
Lord, help us to make the most of this one life that you have given us. Amen
Focus Shift
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.
Philippians 3:13 (NLT)
Do you find yourself easily distracted? Have you started facing some discouragement already in this New Year? May be the year doesn’t even feel NEW because of some of the experiences of last year like joblessness, emptiness, lack and struggles that you seem to still have. Yes, you laugh when your friends and family are there but when you are alone you know you’re on your own. You know these negative experiences should not continue if this year must bring the good that you are anticipating.
Like Paul, even with his privileged Roman citizenship, his training in the best schools of his day and all his achievements before He met the savior and after he said in the words above, ‘I have not achieved it (meaning he is not yet where he is going) but the only thing he does is to focus on one thing: TO FORGET THE PAST AND KEEP LOOKING FORWARD!
Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future- Oscar Wilde
I wish I could sound it clearer. This kind of attitude will help you to move on with your life in spite of whatever you face in 2010.
Yes, you were just fired and your take home didn’t take you home.
Yes, since you have been applying for jobs not even one have called you.
Yes, you have a job but you are merely surviving because the job takes all your time and you live from pay cheque to pay cheque.
Yes, most of the employers have called you for interviews but their promise of getting back to you has never materialized.
Yes, you look at some of your colleagues, old school mates and you try to avoid them because of your situation.
Yes, you don’t have any stable source of income and you wonder if this is how your life will continue.
I am sorry to tell you that all these may continue until you deliberately and consciously decide to CHANGE YOUR FOCUS!
"The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude”- Oprah Winfrey
I remember one of the most resounding instructions God gave me about this year is that I should be resilient, which is the ability to bounce back like an elastic rubber after being bent.
Three things to change your focus from this year;
From FEAR to FAITH
Fear incapacitates. Fear limits and sees impossibilities. But you can change your focus from fear to faith this year. Refuse to give up. Faith is seeing the things that are not yet as if we already have them. Don’t speak words of fear even if things around you are scary. Speak words of hope and faith about your future. Words of faith are power and they work. Don’t stand around fearful people because they will influence you. Just do all you can to move your focus from that of fear to faith. And faith comes by hearing what God says in his Word.
“The distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion”- Albert Einstein
From FAULTS to STRENGTH
We all make mistakes but the difference between people is that those who will succeed will not spend time morning their mistakes but just learn from it and move on with their lives. Who do blame for your present predicament? Some blame their parents for not sending them to school, others blame it on the government, economy or political party. Until you shift your focus from your faults and weaknesses and begin to focus on your areas of strength, then there is a problem. There is a something you can do better than others. As a matter of fact, everyone has an area of weakness and there is no situation that is peculiar to you. Dust yourself, look within and explore your untapped strengths. Stop playing the blame game.
“There is only one real tragedy in a woman's life. The fact that her past is always her lover, and her future invariably her husband” – Oscar Wilde
From PAST to FUTURE
Why do you focus on the past when you know you can’t do anything about it? Imagine you being in a vehicle and your driver keeps focusing at the back instead of looking ahead at top speed. What do you do? You scream- Face your front!
Anyone who focuses on the past is heading for a crash. This year is still new with so much potentials loaded inside it. Why do you want to continue driving the wheel of your life by focus on the errors in your past relationships, career choice, wrong investment decisions and failures? Can you unscramble eggs? There is no point crying over spilled milk.
Focus on the dreams of a better future that you have always had and continue to work at it. Work at it with all the strength in you as you look ahead. Let me scream it once again at your face. FACE YOUR FRONT, LOOK AHEAD BECAUSE THE WORLD IS WAITING FOR YOU!
Shall we pray;
Lord, because you live we receive grace to face tomorrow. Amen
Closing Stock
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
You crown the year with a bountiful harvest; even the hard pathways overflow with abundance.Psalms 65:11 (NLT)
Today is the first day of the last month in 2009. Companies generally take their closing stock in December and this closing stock influences the profit figures for the year. For you to arrive at your profit figures for 2009, you need to start taking your closing stock from now.
The worst moment for an atheist is when he feels grateful and has no one to thank. - Wendy Ward
To say that we have no reason to be grateful to God is not just to be short-sighted but to be an ingrate.
Not that there were no challenges in the year but that we are able to withstand the same that wept others under.
Not that we are already where we are going but that we are not where we used to be;
Not that we didn’t lose anything in the course of the year, but that we didn’t lose everything;
Not that we know what tomorrow will be but that we know He who holds tomorrow;
Not that we don’t have needs but that we are even in our right minds to know what we need;
Not that we already have who to marry but that we are even marriageable;
Not that we have a job but that we are employable;
Not that we have a car but that our legs have not been amputated;
Not that we have the latest designer clothes, but that we know how to cover ourselves;
Not that we know how to celebrate this Christmas but that we know without you there wouldn’t have been any Christmas. You are the reason for the season.
I can go on and on… the list is endless, but I will allow you to think of what to add to your list of thanksgiving. The truth is that if you can think well, you’ll thank well.
Though I am grateful for the blessings of wealth, it hasn't changed who I am. My feet are still on the ground. I'm just wearing better shoes. - Oprah Winfrey
Personally, this year has been a great year in many ways. It has not only been that of the greatest challenges I have ever witnessed but it has also been a year of the greatest victories I have ever known. I have witnessed tremendous landmark changes that will influence many generations to come.
A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves. - Henry Ward Beecher
I woke up early this morning trying to mutter the lyrics of a hymn, the lyrics of the song has inspired me to write this note to stir you to look at your life and still give thanks from January 2009 to date. I don’t know many things but I know thanksgiving will always set you up to receive more. Give thanks to God for what He has done already and then you will commit Him to do even more before the end of the year. Let the stock taking begin!
Count Your Blessings
Words by Johnson Oatman, Jr. (1897)
Music by Edwin O. Excell (1897)
(Verse 1)
When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
(Chorus)
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your many blessings, see what God hath done!
(Verse 2)
When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
(Verse 3)
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.
(Verse 4)
So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey's end.
Shall we pray;
Lord, help us to shift our focus from the things you’ve not done to the things you’ve done in 2009. Amen
Today is the first day of the last month in 2009. Companies generally take their closing stock in December and this closing stock influences the profit figures for the year. For you to arrive at your profit figures for 2009, you need to start taking your closing stock from now.
The worst moment for an atheist is when he feels grateful and has no one to thank. - Wendy Ward
To say that we have no reason to be grateful to God is not just to be short-sighted but to be an ingrate.
Not that there were no challenges in the year but that we are able to withstand the same that wept others under.
Not that we are already where we are going but that we are not where we used to be;
Not that we didn’t lose anything in the course of the year, but that we didn’t lose everything;
Not that we know what tomorrow will be but that we know He who holds tomorrow;
Not that we don’t have needs but that we are even in our right minds to know what we need;
Not that we already have who to marry but that we are even marriageable;
Not that we have a job but that we are employable;
Not that we have a car but that our legs have not been amputated;
Not that we have the latest designer clothes, but that we know how to cover ourselves;
Not that we know how to celebrate this Christmas but that we know without you there wouldn’t have been any Christmas. You are the reason for the season.
I can go on and on… the list is endless, but I will allow you to think of what to add to your list of thanksgiving. The truth is that if you can think well, you’ll thank well.
Though I am grateful for the blessings of wealth, it hasn't changed who I am. My feet are still on the ground. I'm just wearing better shoes. - Oprah Winfrey
Personally, this year has been a great year in many ways. It has not only been that of the greatest challenges I have ever witnessed but it has also been a year of the greatest victories I have ever known. I have witnessed tremendous landmark changes that will influence many generations to come.
A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves. - Henry Ward Beecher
I woke up early this morning trying to mutter the lyrics of a hymn, the lyrics of the song has inspired me to write this note to stir you to look at your life and still give thanks from January 2009 to date. I don’t know many things but I know thanksgiving will always set you up to receive more. Give thanks to God for what He has done already and then you will commit Him to do even more before the end of the year. Let the stock taking begin!
Count Your Blessings
Words by Johnson Oatman, Jr. (1897)
Music by Edwin O. Excell (1897)
(Verse 1)
When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
(Chorus)
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your many blessings, see what God hath done!
(Verse 2)
When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
(Verse 3)
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.
(Verse 4)
So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey's end.
Shall we pray;
Lord, help us to shift our focus from the things you’ve not done to the things you’ve done in 2009. Amen
Dangerous Twins
Monday, October 5, 2009
You lazy fool, look at an ant. Watch it closely; let it teach you a thing or two.Nobody has to tell it what to do. All summer it stores up food; at harvest it stockpiles provisions.So how long are you going to laze around doing nothing? How long before you get out of bed?A nap here, a nap there, a day off here, a day off there, sit back, take it easy—do you know what comes next?Just this: You can look forward to a dirt-poor life, poverty your permanent houseguest!Proverbs 6: 6 – 11 (TM)
I feel so pressed to share some of my thoughts with you especially because another year of our lives is moving gradually. Let me quickly say that this note is aimed at making you give up two deadly and destiny-crashing twins called ‘Sleep and Idleness’. While sleep in itself is a good thing, however, if it now impedes you from maximising your life it has become an enemy and it is dangerous.
With less than 90 days to go in 2009, have you given up and folded up your hands just waiting for the year to end because you think there’s nothing more to do this year or you’re just fed up of trying, the open secret is that the challenges you are facing are your size and if you couldn’t handle them, God would not have allowed then in the first instance. My friend, it’s your size, Wake up!
No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it.
1 Corinthians 10:13 (TM)
Wikipedia defines idleness not just as a state of doing nothing but that an idle person is one who spends his days doing nothing of relative importance and could be said to be "idly passing his days."
Let me put some questions to you;
Are you really living the kind of life that you desire? Are you on the path to fulfillment? Can you still afford to get it wrong at this phase of your life?
Are you really living the kind of life that you desire? Are you on the path to fulfillment? Can you still afford to get it wrong at this phase of your life?
Remember, when this year began you had dreams and hopes. You were very determined to give it all it would take you to prove a point to people around you and to yourself that you could do more with your life. You were full of passion and zest to pursue your dreams. But somewhere along the way because of the pressures from all sides and the time running out, you seem to be cowardly giving up to fate. Now, you sleep more, engage in things of less relative importance and you are simply idle- passing your days.
Hunger is not the worst feature of unemployment; idleness is. ~William E. Barrett
I know you have a job and you go to work very early and come back late at night but you know that what you do between the working hours are not really of relative importance to where you want to be. You are just engaged in activity without productivity or motion without promotion. I understand.
I know you’ve been unemployed for some time but has your state of unemployment made you resort to sleeping and idleness has an escape route? I may not know many things but I know a man who loves sleep will become very poor. Hard, but true!
I know you have the excuse of the failing state of things in the country but it is not enough reason to crew up because you only have just this one life to live and you cannot afford to waste it. Wake up!
National Sleep Foundation, a non-profit organisation claims that the average 7 hours sleep that average Americans get is not enough but some scientists have proved that the lesser the sleep, the longer one is likely to live. And it is no longer news that if you sleep 8 hours a day which represents one-third of 24hours a day, by the time you are 75 years, you must have slept for one-third of your life which equates 25years of sleep! Are you practising how to die?
Indolence is the sleep of the mind. - Luc de Clapier de Vauvanargues
The essence of this note is to give you a TAP from your slumber and to rid you from the claws of sleep and idleness. Jesus gave a parable of a man who sowed good seed in his field but while he slept, the enemy came and planted unwanted weeds in Matthew 13: 25 and we know that weeds share in the nutrients that the plants would have used in its growth. In principle, when we sleep spiritually we give room to unwanted vices to hinder our growth and progress in life. Please wake up!
The essence of this note is to give you a TAP from your slumber and to rid you from the claws of sleep and idleness. Jesus gave a parable of a man who sowed good seed in his field but while he slept, the enemy came and planted unwanted weeds in Matthew 13: 25 and we know that weeds share in the nutrients that the plants would have used in its growth. In principle, when we sleep spiritually we give room to unwanted vices to hinder our growth and progress in life. Please wake up!
TAP (Think-Act-Pray);
Wake up from your sleep,
Wake up from your sleep,
Climb out of your coffins;
Christ will show you the light!
Ephesians 5:14 (TM)
THINK
Give a thought to how you have fared so far in 2009 and be sure you are not asleep in any aspect of your life such as your career, relationship, finances or academics. For instance, you should know you are asleep in your finances if you are already neck-deep in debt or running a deficit budget that you did not really plan for at the beginning of this year. But there is always a way out! Think
ACT
Our thinking normally should culminate in us taking decisive and calculated steps on how we intend to move out of our present condition to a better one. For instance, the prodigal son in scriptures after coming to his senses, he took steps to move out of his dilemma. He went to his father and he was reinstated. Take action regarding your career- make enquiries and act. Take action regarding your relationship, know what you really want and stop engaging in fruitless relationship. Take action regarding your finances, watch your reckless spending and make sure you can really differentiate between NEEDS and WANTS.
The hardest work is to go idle. ~Yiddish Proverb
Ephesians 5:14 (TM)
THINK
Give a thought to how you have fared so far in 2009 and be sure you are not asleep in any aspect of your life such as your career, relationship, finances or academics. For instance, you should know you are asleep in your finances if you are already neck-deep in debt or running a deficit budget that you did not really plan for at the beginning of this year. But there is always a way out! Think
ACT
Our thinking normally should culminate in us taking decisive and calculated steps on how we intend to move out of our present condition to a better one. For instance, the prodigal son in scriptures after coming to his senses, he took steps to move out of his dilemma. He went to his father and he was reinstated. Take action regarding your career- make enquiries and act. Take action regarding your relationship, know what you really want and stop engaging in fruitless relationship. Take action regarding your finances, watch your reckless spending and make sure you can really differentiate between NEEDS and WANTS.
The hardest work is to go idle. ~Yiddish Proverb
PRAY
I would normally pray before acting and it is important to commit your thoughts to God for direction at all times. One of the symptoms of spiritual dullness is lack of a solid prayer life. It doesn’t matter how smart you are, you will still need GOD. Why do we pray? We pray for spiritual empowerment, to receive divine helps and to secure mercy. And I have come to realise that prayer is much more than what we do, prayer is what we use. It is a spiritual weapon that is both defensive and offensive. But how can you pray to the God that you do not know personally, or a God that you keep hurting with your sins?
Make up your mind to get the best out of this very life that you have by confessing your sins to Jesus and accepting as your Lord and saviour. If you are ready for this new birth experience, please say this prayer: Dear Lord, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me my sins. Cleanse me with Your precious Blood. I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Now I know I am born again! Amen.
I would normally pray before acting and it is important to commit your thoughts to God for direction at all times. One of the symptoms of spiritual dullness is lack of a solid prayer life. It doesn’t matter how smart you are, you will still need GOD. Why do we pray? We pray for spiritual empowerment, to receive divine helps and to secure mercy. And I have come to realise that prayer is much more than what we do, prayer is what we use. It is a spiritual weapon that is both defensive and offensive. But how can you pray to the God that you do not know personally, or a God that you keep hurting with your sins?
Make up your mind to get the best out of this very life that you have by confessing your sins to Jesus and accepting as your Lord and saviour. If you are ready for this new birth experience, please say this prayer: Dear Lord, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me my sins. Cleanse me with Your precious Blood. I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Now I know I am born again! Amen.
Benjamin Franklin has said, “ Idleness is the Dead Sea that swallows all virtues”
Shall we pray;
Lord, help me to make the most of my life. Amen
Shall we pray;
Lord, help me to make the most of my life. Amen
You can still Do More!
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
I do not consider, brethren, that I have captured and made it my own yet; but one thing I do [it is my one aspiration]: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead. Philippians 3: 13 (AMP)
Meditating on the experience of Isaac in Genesis 26, where Isaac was sent away from his place as a result of envy and on getting to a new place he decided to dig a well but the people of the land fought him over the land and took it up from him, he named the first well- Argument. But his men dug another well which they fought over again and he named that one- Opposition until he moved on to the one which he named Room enough and no one fought over that one.
Similarly, Peter the experienced fisherman having been frustrated throughout the night without catching a single fish but when Jesus told him to still let down the net for a catch, it was as if all hope was lost but Peter said, “nevertheless I will try because you say so”. And that one more single trial gave him a boat-sinking, net-breaking experience.
How often do we give up after a couple of attempts!
Someone once said, “Your result is the only proof that you have done your best”. The only thing that shows me that you are truly giving life all it takes is the fact that you have results to show for your efforts. This may sound mean but it is meant to propel you to work at your life till you get results.
Apostle Paul was an outstanding man of God who gave his divine calling everything till the point of death and would do anything for the gospel to be preached and so the prison, beatings, hazards, persecutions and afflictions didn’t really matter to him.
Friends, what is your purpose, pursuit, vision and passion for living?
How much time, energy, study and perseverance have you given your life?
What are you contemplating of giving up on?
What aspect of your life do you need to give just an extra attempt?
What well are you trying to dig?
How long have you been toiling without a catch?
Permanence, perseverance and persistence in spite of all obstacles, discouragements, and impossibilities: It is this, that in all things distinguishes the strong soul from the weak. -Thomas Carlyle
God’s word for you today is to give your life an extra push by refusing to give up easily after a few attempts because until you have results to show, your attempts are not yet enough.
By perseverance the snail reached the ark. - Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Take time out of your busy schedule to give the necessary attention to your very life and ask the sincere question, Why am I not getting the desired result?
Among others, the reasons why people give up are;
• Lack of a definite purpose for living. Before you can do more than what you are doing now, you must be sure that you have set out a definite purpose for your life which must be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-Bound (SMART). Psalms 37: 5
• Lack of divine direction. For me, divine direction is key. Don’t just jump at opportunities because others are doing it, let God lead you. You can only lead a stress-free life by allowing God to lead you through His Word. And one of the acid test for divine direction is PEACE and PROGRESS. Anything you do and you lose your peace is not of God. Be wise! Psalms 32: 8
• Lack of inner strength. See what Proverbs 24: 10 says, “If you fail under pressure, your strength is not very great”. Many just get fed up and tired easily. It is because of lack of strength within. God has what it takes to give us strength from within. No wonder Paul prayed that, “..from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit.” Ephesians 5: 17
Through perseverance many people win success out of what seemed destined to be certain failure. - Benjamin Disraeli
I penned down these words on the airplane enroute Lagos to Dubai last week and I know it will bless you;
Do more than being a jobseeker, start creating jobs
Do more than praying, fast
Do more than receiving, give and be a distribution centre
Do more than complaining, be a problem-solver
Do more than meeting your deadline, be purpose-driven
Do more than walking, run with a vision for living
Do more than loving, be committed
Do more than believing, trust God
Do more than passing through school, let the school pass through you
Do more than saying, I’ve tried my best better to say I can still try more
Do more than being global or local, be GLOCAL!
Shall we pray;
Lord, I receive grace not to give up at the very edge of my breakthrough. Amen
Order!!!!!
Friday, September 4, 2009
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.
Genesis 1: 1-2(NASB)
Do you know that the fundamental difference between a Garden and a Jungle is Order? While the former is well planned, tended and cultivated, the latter is in disarray, unplanned and complicated even though they may be of the same size or even the same species of plants.
Can the situation of your life at the moment be said to be like a garden or a jungle?
Are things in disarray and characterized with unplanned or dragging relationship, uncompleted academic and professional courses, broken home or quarrelling parents, chaos, abandoned projects, truncated dreams, bad habit and so on…..
Will you say you are right on course with your own 7 point agenda that you set for yourself at the beginning of the year or you have already reduced it to 2 or even 1 point agenda and it’s still not working?
If these describe you in a way, then these words are for you because the God who created the earth in the beginning is set to bring order to your life.
If these describe you in a way, then these words are for you because the God who created the earth in the beginning is set to bring order to your life.
After the creation at the very beginning, the earth was still formless and void, it was dark, black and lacked colour and the beauty that the Creator intended but what He first did was to turn the lights on.
Turn the Lights on!
While you and I do not need to turn the physical lights on like God did, we have the light of the Word to turn on.
Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path.
Psalms 119: 105 (NLT)
While you and I do not need to turn the physical lights on like God did, we have the light of the Word to turn on.
Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path.
Psalms 119: 105 (NLT)
Which area of your life is in disarray and where do you need help?
There is arguably no area of your life that is not traceable to God’s word. Are you having a challenge in your academics, getting a job, relationship dragging, job insecurity, struggling with terminal diseases and infections? Listen, there is a provision in the Word of God that you can lay hold on for victory.
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee… Hosea 4: 6 (KJV)
To reject knowledge or to be ignorant of what has been prepared for you is to suffer in silence. Go for knowledge!
To reject knowledge or to be ignorant of what has been prepared for you is to suffer in silence. Go for knowledge!
How to turn the lights on
Be sure of what you want
It’s amazing to note in my conversation with people that many still don’t even know what they really want. What do you really want? Be specific in your request. When Jesus met a blind man, He still had to ask him want he wanted. Why? It is because the blindness may not be a top priority on his list. What do you want?
Be sure of what you want
It’s amazing to note in my conversation with people that many still don’t even know what they really want. What do you really want? Be specific in your request. When Jesus met a blind man, He still had to ask him want he wanted. Why? It is because the blindness may not be a top priority on his list. What do you want?
Search the Word
Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. John 5: 39 (KJV)
After being sure of what you need, then you will need to settle down with your bible to be able to get insight as to where the provision is made. It is real work but it pays off. I have personally engaged this over the years and it has always worked. It’s in the Word.
Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. John 5: 39 (KJV)
After being sure of what you need, then you will need to settle down with your bible to be able to get insight as to where the provision is made. It is real work but it pays off. I have personally engaged this over the years and it has always worked. It’s in the Word.
Meditate on the Word
Meditation is simply reasoning in line with God’s word. It is the similar to the process of regurgitation in animals where certain animals throw up what they have eaten to re-chew it and properly digest it. When you meditate on God’s word you eat the word until it becomes part of your system and faith is fully formed in you beyond doubt.
Meditation is simply reasoning in line with God’s word. It is the similar to the process of regurgitation in animals where certain animals throw up what they have eaten to re-chew it and properly digest it. When you meditate on God’s word you eat the word until it becomes part of your system and faith is fully formed in you beyond doubt.
Declare the Word
Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that it was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness.
Genesis 1:3- 4 (NLT)
A word found and eaten but not declared will have no effect. Your mouth is the tool for framing your destiny. My pastor once said, a closed mouth is a closed destiny.
God only performs what you declare from His Word!
Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that it was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness.
Genesis 1:3- 4 (NLT)
A word found and eaten but not declared will have no effect. Your mouth is the tool for framing your destiny. My pastor once said, a closed mouth is a closed destiny.
God only performs what you declare from His Word!
Even God had to call for light before it came. Therefore, based on the knowledge of God’s word that you have, declare the light you want to see in your family, on your job, in your relationship, on your career, and all will become good because after light came God said that it saw that was very good.
Your jungle shall be turned into a well watered garden.
Your life will reflect God’s glory.
All your long awaited blessings will come speedily before the year runs out.
All these shall be yours as you turn the lights on!
Shall we pray:
Lord, cause the light of your Word to bring order to my life. Amen
Your life will reflect God’s glory.
All your long awaited blessings will come speedily before the year runs out.
All these shall be yours as you turn the lights on!
Shall we pray:
Lord, cause the light of your Word to bring order to my life. Amen
Running with a Vision!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Remember that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize. You also must run in such a way that you will win. All athletes practice strict self-control. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches. 1 Corinthians 9: 24 – 26 (NLT)
If there is any man who is enjoying a great time at the moment, it would be the man whose name and record-breaking feat strikes like a thunder bolt, Usain Bolt."Usain Bolt" who had his 23rd birthday last Friday 21st August. holds world and Olympic records in both the 100 metres and 200 metres and his name and achievements in sprinting have earned him the media nickname 'Lightning Bolt'.
But going through his biography, he said and I quote him, “Well I have been running good since I was 15, so this is no surprise to me. I am sure it is no surprise to a lot of people because I have been doing this from when I was young. I have been doing tremendous things from when I was young. So, this is no surprise to a lot of people”
After breaking the world records in Berlin, he said this in an interview session, “ I keep saying anything is possible. You work hard, you train hard. I still train very hard and running fast races doesn’t change that, but I keep telling you guys my aim is to become a legend”
Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction. - John F. Kennedy
The Jamaican sprinter in the Berlin games collected $320,000 in prize money comprising $60,000 for each gold medal and $100,000 per world record. Whoops!!
Do you also know that Bolt’s recent string of world records was clearly not an expected event, it is not only a world record but has made statisticians and mathematicians to go back to the table because they didn’t predict a 9.69 seconds until almost 2030 but Bolt even shattered this by running 9.58 seconds in Berlin in the 100meters. This is awesome to me for a 23-year old.
He broke the mathematical model that had fit 100-meter record data for almost a century, Bolt’s incredible performance could reset how fast researchers believe humans ultimately can run, but Bolt’s records, the scientists say is nowhere near human limit. Meaning it can still be broken!
To me this means there is still room for you and if not on the track and field but in our chosen professions, vocations, careers and ventures to set the pace, blaze the trail and break age-long records but this starts when we have a purpose for living.
Have a purpose for living!
I love to read biographies a lot and reading through the 23-year old life so far I learnt that he started out early in life although with a passion for the cricket at first but his coach spotted his performance on the pitch and encouraged him to focus more on the tracks. I challenge you to have a purpose for living. God is God of purpose and He has created us all to fulfill a mission on earth, however, He has given us the task to discover, find out, locate and identify the innate gift He has bestowed upon us.
God DETERMINES our purpose, We DISCOVER our purpose.
A man without purpose is a tragedy going somewhere to happen. This is because such a person will always be at the wrong place, wrong relationship, wrong job, wrong career and wrong company at every point in time. Oh! How frustrating to be without purpose. Even if the circumstances surrounding your birth seems accidental, you may be born whether out of wedlock, beside wedlock, under wedlock or before wedlock (whatever), God still has a purpose for your living.
A man without PURPOSE is not fit to live- Martin Luther King Jnr.
Characteristics of Purpose
• Purpose comes before creation;
• Purpose is from God;
• Purpose is permanent;
• Every purpose is unique
• Purposes are inter-related and;
• Purpose requires counsel.
Tips on discovering God’s purpose for your Life
We as humans have God as our ‘manufacturer’ and every manufacturer first determines the PURPOSE of a product and its functions before setting out to produce it, hence, the only genuine source for knowing your purpose is to ask from God if you believe He is your creator. However, since it is not all of us that can hear God distinctly, the following tips can guide us in the discovery of our purpose;
• Check out “that thing” that flows from you NATURALLY or EFFORTLESSLY.
What do you do for others or to better humanity without much stress. It could be singing, dancing, events organizing, public speaking, public relations, sports (like Usain Bolt). No one knows you like you. Settle down and find it out, it may be a pointer to your purpose.
• Check out “that thing” that people COMPLIMENT you for the most.
What do people thank you for the most? Have you led a team or a talk so well that people appreciate you so much but to you it seems normal to you? What do people like so much about you?
• Check out that thing that MOVES you the most.
What do you hate to see? Have you ever wished you could take care of abandoned children or children who are victims of broken and shattered homes? For instance, Mother Theresa found this as her purpose and she stood to address the United Nations. What problem do you wish you have what it takes to solve? Do you hate to see our policemen collect bribes? Do you hate to see violence? Are you hurt when children drop out of school because they can’t afford to pay their fees?
What moves you may become what you’re created to move.
Life is one big road with lots of signs. So when you riding through the ruts, don't complicate your mind. Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy. Don't bury your thoughts, put your vision to reality . Wake Up and Live! - Bob Marley
Please note: These are tips but it can go a long way in propelling you as you discover why you are here. Don’t just sit down and watch. Young boys and girls are already making striking impacts. When will you be shown to your world?
Shall we pray:
Lord, help me to live a purposeful life on earth. Amen
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
