PROBLEMS, CATALYSTS OF INVENTIONS

WISDOM NUGGET: "For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all".

Imagine a world where there are no problems; in that kind of world, I can assure you that the word INVENTION will never exist there. All through the pages of history, we are inundated with the gallant strides of great inventors, whose inventions have made our world aglow.

 Truth be told however, in the absence of the problems that arose against humanity from time to time, the names of those inventors would never have been known. Amazingly, lots of those problems existed for so long until someone was daring enough to confront them. Those confrontations birthed great solutions, which we today refer to as inventions.

It was 1818 in France, and Louis, a boy of 9, was sitting in his father's workshop. The father was a harness-maker and the boy loved to watch his father work the leather. "Someday Father," said Louis, "I want to be a harness-maker, just like you." "Why not start now?" said the father. He took a piece of leather and drew a design on it. "Now, my son," he said, "take the hole- puncher and a hammer and follow this design, but be careful that you don't hit your hand." Excited, the boy began to work, but when he hit the hole-puncher; it flew out of his hand and pierced his eye! He lost the sight of that eye immediately. Later, sight in the other eye failed. Louis was now totally blind. A few years later, Louis was sitting in the family garden when a friend handed him a pine cone. As he ran his sensitive fingers over the cone, an idea came to him. He became enthusiastic and began to create an alphabet of raised dots on paper so that the blind could feel and interpret what was written. Thus, Louis Braille opened up a whole new world for the blind, all because of an accident!

In our key scripture above, Paul, the man who made the statement above was actually in chains, yet he calls it "light affliction". But more interestingly, he said, it is working an ETERNAL and far GREATER WEIGHT OF GLORY.

That is why the names of these great inventors will eternally be remembered, because of the problems they solved for humanity. It is popularly said that necessity is the mother of all inventions. Anthony Robbins couldn't have put it in a better light when he said, "Every problem is a gift - without problems we would not grow."

10 BENEFITS OF PROBLEMS

Wisdom Nugget: It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn...


A nurse was trying to make a baby sleep at night, but her rich experience proved fruitless. The baby was crying and simply refused any incentives. She was exasperated, went to the mistress, and asked for a book from the shelf.

The mistress said, "What is it for?" The nurse said, "I often see the master sitting with a book in hand. He soon dozes off even before he starts reading. I therefore think the book will do the same trick to the baby.

Though a funny joke from the Anthology Of Chinese Humor, this story effectively communicates how problems & pressure brings out our creativity and inventive genius. When your back is to the wall and you are down on your last dime or the house is on fire and you are stuck on the last floor of the six story building, it will shock you to know how many wonderful ideas are locked up in that little brain of yours. Truth is we learn more when under pressure than when under pleasure, when under adversity than under prosperity. This what was David meant when he said "It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes"

There is a legend that an ancient despot, out walking, hurt his foot upon a sharp pebble. Thereupon, he ordered his ministers forthwith to have the whole face of the earth covered with leather, that his feet might be protected.

Knowing the impossibility of carrying out that order, and knowing the dire consequences of failing, the ministers took counsel despairingly among themselves.

But one hit upon an inspired solution. After a day's secret work, he presented to the delighted monarch, not a covered world, but a pair of leather sandals.
 Truth is 'Desperate situations always birth desperate solutions"

Problems Are Opportunities, Trust Me

WISDOM NUGGET: "Out of the eater, something to eat. Out of the strong, something sweet."

Source: Photo Pin

In an economy, it would be correct to say that "problems make the world go round!" Why? You ask? Here's the answer.

When I have a problem with my car, the mechanic is paid. When I have a problem with my computer, its the tech guy that makes money. When my clients want to grow their businesses, or have difficulties achieving their most important goals, I get a call - I make money.
Thank goodness for problems!

Michael had a harrowing experience trying to secure a visa to travel abroad. He made frequent visits to the embassy several times. This was annoying as each visit was a nightmare, because he had to wait for long periods; standing in long queues that seemed endless. He was so troubled about this that during one such visit, he noticed an events rental services company close to the embassy premises. Suddenly, an idea was birthed. He simply rented some chairs, moved them to the embassy premises and began to rent them for a fee (almost three times the amount he got them) to people waiting for their turns for interview at the embassy.

Payment for a spot to sit at the embassy became a regular source of income that Michael altogether shelved the idea of leaving the country. He had birthed a business out of the frustration of standing for long hours at the embassy for a visa interview.

Going through this experience was problematic for this young man, no doubt but out of that mess had emerged "something sweet"; a legitimate money spinning venture.

The truth is that if you want to make more money, you MUST learn to love solving more and bigger problems for more people. All over the world today, people do not pay to have problems analysed; they pay to have problems solved.

It was Henri Kaiser who said, "Problems are only opportunities in work clothes." And Theodore Rubin hit the "bulls eye" when he said, "the problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is a problem."

A Song In The Night

Wisdom Nugget: "We are experiencing all kinds of trouble, but we aren't crushed. We are confused, but we aren't depressed. We are harassed, but we aren't abandoned. We are knocked down, but we aren't knocked out. "

Courage
Source: Photo Pin

Sometimes in life we all go through the proverbial experience summed up in the axiom that says "when it rains, it pours !" That time when it looks like all hell has broken loose over you and your entire world is crashing down on you. Everywhere you turn there seems to be a problem waiting for you and your entire life is a litany of woes. You have no clue what's going on or whether Our Maker is still out there and if He cares. At such times just remember that when the night is darkest morning is near and that weeping may endure for the night but joy comes in the morning.

During the Thirty Years' War in the 17th century, German pastor Paul Gerhardt and his family were forced to flee from their home. One night as they stayed in a small village inn, homeless and afraid, his wife broke down and cried openly in despair. To comfort her, Gerhardt reminded her of promises about how things always work out for good. Then, going out to the garden to be alone, he too broke down and wept. He felt he had come to his darkest hour. Soon afterward, Gerhardt felt the burden lifted and sensed anew goodness. Taking his pen, he wrote a hymn that has brought comfort to many.

"Give to the winds thy fears; hope, and be undismayed; God hears thy sighs and counts thy tears; God shall lift up thy head. Through waves and clouds and storms He gently clears the way. Wait thou His time, so shall the night soon end in joyous day."

It is often in our darkest times that we learn of the existence of a higher power. Our sufferings and troubles help us see how weak and defenceless we truly are. We can't do everything by ourselves. And when we see this truth, like Paster Gerhardt, we receive new hope. Are you facing a great trial? Take heart. Trust and Obey. Wait a while. Things will get better and who knows, you might receive a "song in the night."

BEHIND EVERY PROBLEM IS AN OILFIELD

Wisdom Nugget: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."

One of the most scary things in life is "closed doors" because you don't know what lies behind them. We are all scared to leave the known for the unknown and the familiar for the unfamiliar. When life suddenly hits you with a closed door (a loss of job, a failed marriage, a visa denial, a business collapse etc) the fear of "so what happens to me now ?" often leave us with that gnawing sense of hopelessness and a paralyzing helplessness.

Dr. Bill Bright of Campus Crusade for Christ tells this story of a famous oil field called Yates Pool: During the depression this field was a sheep ranch owned by a man named Yates. Mr. Yates wasn’t able to make enough on his ranching operation to pay the principal and interest on the mortgage, so he was in danger of losing his ranch. With little money for clothes or food, his family (like many others) had to live on government subsidy.

Day after day, as he grazed his sheep over those rolling West Texas hills, he was no doubt greatly troubled about how he would pay his bills. Then a seismographic crew from an oil company came into the area and told him there might be oil on his land. They asked permission to drill a wildcat well, and he signed a lease contract. At 1,115 feet they struck a huge oil reserve. The first well came in at 80,000 barrels a day. Many subsequent wells were more than twice as large. In fact, 30 years after the discovery, a government test of one of the wells showed it still had the potential flow of 125,000 barrels of oil a day. And Mr Yates owned it all. The day he purchased the land he had received the oil and mineral rights. Yet, he’d been living on relief. A multimillionaire living in poverty.

This is the sad paradox of most people. Treasures are hidden in trash, destinies in destitutes, messages in a mess, gain in pain and miracles in mistakes.