PROBLEMS, FACILITATORS OF PROGRESS

WISDOM NUGGET: "And once the storm is over, you won't remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won't even be sure, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won't be the same person who walked in. That's what this storm's all about."
                                                                                                       - Haruki Murakami

Problems are like pregnant women. They usually come pregnant with "progress babies" inside of them. Please understand that most problems are a good sign. Problems actually indicate that progress is being made, that wheels are turning and that you are moving toward your goals. Beware when you have no problems; because then you really have a problem. Take it or leave it, problems are like landmarks of progress.

Nelson Mandela is perhaps one of the most influential men of all time. But you would recall that he did not necessarily set out to become that. He just wanted to solve the problem of Apartheid. He was so consumed with his drive for finding a solution to that problem that when the problem began to swallow all he had, he most likely didn't realize it. That drive made him daring and astonishingly brave. In Soweto, when the kingdom fell in darkness and shadows ruled the night; with no sign of dawn, he soldiered on and in the long run brought the black race in South Africa back to the dawn of a new life founded in freedom. Had the brutal Apartheid regime known they would never have incarcerated him as they did. If only they knew that 27years in Roben Island will make that man  "The Number One Citizen of The World" today, they would quietly have left him alone. Today, one man's die hard decision to solve a national problem has led to "The Making of a Hero" and has put the nation of South Africa in an enviable place in the map of the world, producing the strongest economy in Africa, hosting the World Cup and becoming Africa's number one tourist destination.

If you read further our key scripture, you will notice that Paul implied that the troubles that some folks cooked up, which should have caused him more trouble in prison, brought about an explosive fast tracking of the accomplishment of the very reason why he was apprehended in the first place. Can I challenge you today to focus 90% of your time on solutions and 10% on problems and see the great world of difference it will make? It was Haruki Murakami who said, "And once the storm is over, you won't remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won't even be sure, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won't be the same person who walked in. That's what this storm's all about."

THE ULTIMATE GIFTS: THE GIFT OF WORK 1

Wisdom Nugget: All life demands struggle. Those who have everything given to them become lazy, selfish, and insensitive to the real values of life. The very striving and hard work that we so constantly try to avoid is the major building block in the person we are today.

                                                                                       - Pope John Paul VI

Gift
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Last week I gathered all my pastors and leaders together and played the movie "The Ultimate Gift". I had heard about the movie from Prof Vin Anigbogu during my training at the Top Executive Leadership Course (TELC) at the Institute for National Transformation (INT). I must confess I was not prepared for what I saw. The impact of the movie was so strong it left me literally under the anointing for 3 days. It is a must watch for your Leadership Retreat. Today let me begin a life changing series as part of my inspiration from that movie. I have titled this series "The Ultimate Gifts". I found the patterns very interesting.

(1) Man with the (same) ability to be a creator or inventor (just as his creator is).

(2) Then He brings man into the garden so he can catch a vision of  his future so he can see all the spheres or areas where he can possibly unleash his creativity.

(3) Then man is given WORK to do apparently tailored towards the specific area of Adam's creative or innovative interest or ability.

(4) Once man had developed good work ethics the next thing God did was to train him on the discipline of making right choices from wrong ones.

(5) That settled and having turned his work into a JOB, God felt Adam was now matured enough to handle a woman so gave him a wife.

Notice Adam first got a WORK before he got a JOB. A work is never scarce and always available. A JOB is what is sometimes difficult to come by. The difference? Work is any opportunity to serve that you seize without considering remuneration or profit. While a job is work that gets adequately rewarded. Those who pick up work always end up with the job. But those who pursue the job often have a tough time and face a stiff competition to get one.


The great terrific mountains and the wild beasts in them were created  by His words, the scary seas and their great whales  at his words, God formed the galaxies and all the beautiful birds at his words but interestingly God refused to give rain or dig one inch of ground after creation but waited for man to do so.

Question: Why? Why didn't life just make everything easy by commanding the garden to take care of itself. Why does man have to till the ground before eating from it?

Answer: Man was created for work. Work is man's way of displaying his God given creative nature. God never engages in mass production. He only produces a prototype, injects into it the seed element and commands it to "reproduce after its kind". Only the raw material is provided and man is left to exercise his creative ability to process the finished product. Nations and individuals who have taken advantage of this ability to process raw or natural resources are wealthy and those who remain producers of raw materials or natural resources and do not process it are poor. This is why Nigeria for example is the world's 6th largest producer of crude oil and America's 4th largest supplier (especially the lead free Bonny Light which is purer than what the Middle East produces) yet because we have no functional refineries, we are still amongst the world's poorest nations.

Work as far as I know is not a burden but man's opportunity to display and manifest the multi-faceted aspects of Nature's goodness to humanity.

That was why Thomas A. Edison said "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." Unfortunately, today when men take the credit or glory for their inventions. If only they understood that the work of creation was being continued through them... Those who pick up work always end up with the job. But those who pursue the job often have a tough time and face a stiff competition to get one.

. It was Albert Camus who said "A man's work is nothing but this slow trek to rediscover, through the detours of art, those two or three great and simple images in whose presence his heart first opened" and John Dewey concludes "To find out what one is fitted to do, and to secure an opportunity to do it, is the key to happiness."

Friends Are Not For Life...

Wisdom Nugget: "Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend."

                                                                                                                -Albert Camus

Friends
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We've probably used this very popular phrase about friends before. "Friends are for life". But today I beg to completely disagree with you.

Amongst all the several definitions of who a true friend is that I have read about, William Penn's stands out: "a true friend freely advises, justly assists, readily adventures, boldly takes all patiently, defends courageously, and continues a friend unchangeably."

For want of space, let me take only one item from the above: "DEFENDS COURAGEOUSLY".

A true friend will not keep quiet when someone is gossiping about you. They may not know the details but will not tolerate anyone running you down where they are. They courageously defend you first before they come to find out (from you) whether what they said about you was true . In the law of friendship "silence (when your friend is being defamed) is equal to tacit support for the defamation." You are as guilty as the one who is peddling the story. But DEFENDING COURAGEOUSLY goes beyond gossips.

Everyone knows the fate of women when their husbands die (or when their sons die). Inhuman treatment are sometimes, metted out to helpless and defenseless widows in certain cultures.That was why Jesus said to his mother, "woman, behold thy son!" Then saith he to his trusted friend  "Behold thy mother!" And because the trusted friend, John, understood the coded language of his dear and dying friend Jesus, from that hour he took her unto his own home, to protect, defend and look after her. Remember, soon after this Jesus died. The master's body was lifeless. John's friend and future were buried, but still John didn't leave. Why? Was he waiting for the resurrection? No. As far as he knew, Jesus' lips were forever silent and his hands forever still. He wasn't expecting a Sunday surprise. Then why was he here? You'd think he would have left. Who was to say that the men who crucified Christ wouldn't come after him? The crowds were pleased with one crucifixion; the religious leaders might have called for more. Why didn't John get out of town? Perhaps the answer was pragmatic. Perhaps, he was taking care of Jesus' mother. Or maybe he lingered because he loved his friend Jesus. To others, Jesus was a miracle worker, was a master teacher, to some others, Jesus was the hope of Israel. But to John, he was all of these and more. To John, Jesus was a friend. John had learnt that "You don't abandon a friend - not even when that friend is dead because friends are not for life but for all time".

Did he understand Jesus? No. Nobody fully did. Was he glad Jesus did what he did? No. But did he leave Jesus? No. Our friendship is hypocritical if after our friend died, we did not arise to defend his widow and fight for the upkeep of their children. If we watched our friend's widow humiliated and their children frustrated by a tradition that gave one irresponsible in-law the right to deprive her and her kids of all their late husband and father laboured for and did nothing, then we were never friends in the first place, but wicked, selfish, conscienceless and  opportunistic imposters whose true character had been revealed in the unfortunate event. Our friends' widow and children are still in shock as they observe our indifference, wondering if we were the same people who ate in their home and hung around with their dad.

Friends we should take up our responsibilities, and understand that : "FROM THE DAY OUR FRIEND DIES WE BECAME A FATHER  TO HIS KIDS AND A HUSBAND TO HIS WIDOW"! Not in conjugal terms but in terms of "RESPONSIBILITY TO THE BEST OF OUR ABILITY".

Let us conclude with the words of  C. JoyBell C "There are still some wonderful people left in this world! They are diamonds in the rough, but they're around! You'll find them when you fall down- they're the ones who pick you up. They will never judge you. But you'll only know them them when you're down! When you get up again, remember who your true friends are!"

 "... there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother."

Bottomline: riends are not for life, but for all time.