Believe it or not i truely believe in the statement above and if you don't then well wish you luck. I know there are many of us who have different ways in which we percive life and whichever way we take, it can either make us or break us.
There are definately going to be challenges here and there, there are those who have been dumped in relationships, those who are yet to be dumped, there are those of us who have hated others for one reason or the other, gotten mad with ourselves because of the decisions we made, lacked school fees to achieve that dream that we so much wanted to achieve, lost loved ones in one way or the other, have probably been told very hurting things, working under un bearable conditions and so on. I can never go through the whole list of the hurts, challenges or abuses we have all gone through.
Well, praise God because one fact remains, we are still alive and what are we going to do about it? sit down and cry until the world ends, tell everyone about it so that the whole world sympathises with us, hate everyone and live on our own, get mad at God for having created us or sit down and let the world take its trend on us.
Whatever route you choose to take, God will remain God, he will always love you like nothing else exists and will be there to welcome you when you style up from wherever state you could have chosen to take. Which brings me to the real issue here;
These things will always come our way, just like the title states, life is but a journey, there are always going to be smooth roads, rough roads, rugged ones, mountainous areas, hilly parts, cliffs, valleys, swamps, sandy times and so on. The beauty about travelling this particular route and not the smooth one is that its adventurous. there is going to be alot of site seeing, skiing, climbing, swimming as compared to the one on the smooth road and this means that along the journey you have alot to talk about, have so much to tell people about after every adventurous point.
This means that, instead of keeping our eyes on the ruggedness of the road, steepness of the mountains, uglinesss of the cliffs, lets go ahead and enjoy the view that God has placed before us, look forward to telling others of the awesomeness of God who has seen us through this journey. Lets not sit back and take everything for granted like the one who took the smooth road.
It is only through this kind of journey that our understanding, love, trust and faith in God grows. Even when we go through this journey, God wants us to enjoy him, be happy, let go of our sturbonness and depend on him for all. Therefore, enjoy your journey, get up every morning and ask God for a great day, he will surely and faithfully give it to you. The most weird part of it all is that only he can give you the strength and courage to go through this journey happily.
I came to learn this in my 1yr experience as a Production Team Leader at Coca Cola. With the pressure of daily targets not only in one area but about 4 different areas including a daily report on the performance whether targets have been met or not. Then comes the part where i had to face my Boss to explain why targets weren't met and where it hurts most is when from the time go he is not believing every single word you are saying. This went on with all sorts of statements about me and my performance. I got so fade upto the extent that i approached the regional manager to be demoted to a position i served before Team Leader.
He refused, i then thought of resigning but i still needed the money which meant only doing so when i have another Job at hand. I did so many Interviews with different organisations in vain to the extent that i was willing to go for a less offer than the one i already had at my present work place.
It was untill God brought ceretain people in my life that things started changing. I remember specifically two individuals whom i owe so much for the changes in attitude i have had till to date.
Isaac; your voice still rings in my mind so clearly as though it was just yesterday that we talked, your words "Pray for your Work every time before you go to the plant, ask God to help you enjoy your day, pray for your team members and pray for your boss that God may give him the wisdom to manage the department well. Give your best at work and leave the rest for God no matter what".
Joan; you are a sister and half and i still remember the times you encouraged me during those trying moments, these statements made a change in my perception of every thing from then, " out of the very many people in the plant, it's you they have chosen for the position beacuse you are the best manager for it and until God says he is done with you in that position, you will remain the best. Just focuss on your work, give it your all and leave the rest for God".
Ever since then i have enjoyed my work both in good times and bad, given my best and left the rest for God, chosen to be happy every morning i wake up no matter what and above all prayed for my bosses. It was only when i started doing these things that God moved me on to Mbarara for my new positon despite so much opposition that i hadn't been tested enough on the former position to handle the next. Well, deep down in my heart i believed God had spoken and hence i have moved. With the same advise, belief and faith i will continue doing my best and leaving the rest for God.
I brought this up because we ourselves have the biggest role to play on the way we live our lives. the friends we keep around us, the things we say, watch and listen to can either make us or break us. Go ahead and enjoy every moment of your life, live with the fact that God loves you despite your circumstances and situation. He longs for a great relationship with you just as you are and whatever challenges you are going through, only he can make it light , adventurous and enjoyable. Come, join us in the bandwagon of joy, love,trust and happiness that can kill you if you are not careful.
Be happy, even when you don't have to.
Keep a smile always.
Love you.
says Solo.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
THINK OF THESE THINGS
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy; meditate on these things. Phillipians 4:8
This is the fruit and the food of the mind that, adage “garbage in, garbage out” is applicable here. Meditate on these things: So much of the walk of the Christian comes down to the mind. Romans 12:2 speaks of the essential place of being transformed by the renewing of your mind and 2 Corinthians 10:5 speaks of the importance of casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. What we choose to meditate on matters, a regard to truth in our words and engagements, and to decency and becomingness in our behaviour, suitable to our circumstances and condition of life
That pretty well eliminates television, doesn't it? Of all of the mental pollution that is going out night after night over the major networks. Our whole nation is being polluted by the television industry and by the movie industry. I mean, it is leading the nation right down the tubes. Why? Because it is having people think on things that are impure, unholy, filthy, unrighteous, immoral, and there is other things we need to be thinking on. Sort of tragic, a lot of people watch television just before they go to sleep, because you plant that junk in your mind just before you drop off.
It amazes me how very many of us enjoy the most famous T.V shows of the present generation and that is Soaps. We get so caught up in these soaps that in most cases the last thing in our minds before we close our eyes is what happens next. This leaves us craving the whole day for the next episode that we either fail to give full attention to whatever we are doing or don’t give any attention at all.
I have also interacted with people whom their so called dream guys or ladies for the future are almost duplicates of the characters in these soaps. This leaves me wondering where the world is heading to leave alone where we are taking God’s salvation that he has so lovingly presented to us.
I know there are many out there who will disagree with me but let us face the facts here, the majority of information in these shows and many others all revolve around Money, hate, cheating, backstabbing, lies, deception and many others. Well, lets try this simple task, get a piece of paper and draw a line in the middle. Label the left side A and the Right side B. on side A write what you learn from the shows you watch and on side B write what you thing Christ’s opinion would be about the show. From there own, make your decision depending your consciousness.
I am writing all this because of the simple fact I have come to learn in my life.You know, I have found that what I plant in my mind the last thing at night before I go to sleep is something that sticks with me. I learned as a child that I can memorize any formular by reading it over three times before I went to sleep. In the morning I could get up and recite it, all I do is read them over three times before I went to sleep, and in the morning I could recite them. Because it seems like during the night, what you plant just before you go to sleep has a way of your mind continuing to work on it.
Let us explore a little more on this; the biggest force in the World is the un seen force. I am going to elaborate more into this. Lets start with the power of God, both we the Christians and the some none believers out there some where within them believe that God is the most powerful force in the world. This is a straight fact to all of us but the point here is that God is an invisible force, the other one being the Holy Spirit. Together with God the two have done amazing things in this World that most people can never comprehend. Let’s look at other un seen forces or invisible forces like the radiations, i.e. the gamma, x-ray and alpha rays, scientifically speaking these have been used in so many experimental works that no man would ever deem possible. The rest brings us to the more visible and understandable force like water, electricity, fuels and so on.
The point I am trying to put forward is that God has created us in his own image and there for presented us with a powerful force in us that can enable us achieve so much or destroy us completely if not put in good use. That is nothing else but the MIND. This I am sure now helps us understand why Paul’s emphasis on renewal of the mind.
On a humanly point of view, every word we say in our lives is first conceptualized in the mind as a thought. When these thoughts mature in us is when they come out as words as it is said in proverbs; out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. When these grow, they turn into actions which actions develop into habits and these finally become our characters.
Brothers and sisters, the last thing in the night to be planting in our mind: that which is pure, that which is true, that which is honest, that which is just, that which is lovely, that which is of virtue and good report, think on these things. Interesting how we like to think on other things, isn't it? The hurts, the disappointments, the nasty thing that he said to me. Here is a good model to follow, I think that somewhere around the house we ought to put up, "True, Honest, Just, Pure," that our minds, we gear them toward these things and surely we will enjoy the salvation that the Lord has lovingly given us.
Solo.
This is the fruit and the food of the mind that, adage “garbage in, garbage out” is applicable here. Meditate on these things: So much of the walk of the Christian comes down to the mind. Romans 12:2 speaks of the essential place of being transformed by the renewing of your mind and 2 Corinthians 10:5 speaks of the importance of casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. What we choose to meditate on matters, a regard to truth in our words and engagements, and to decency and becomingness in our behaviour, suitable to our circumstances and condition of life
That pretty well eliminates television, doesn't it? Of all of the mental pollution that is going out night after night over the major networks. Our whole nation is being polluted by the television industry and by the movie industry. I mean, it is leading the nation right down the tubes. Why? Because it is having people think on things that are impure, unholy, filthy, unrighteous, immoral, and there is other things we need to be thinking on. Sort of tragic, a lot of people watch television just before they go to sleep, because you plant that junk in your mind just before you drop off.
It amazes me how very many of us enjoy the most famous T.V shows of the present generation and that is Soaps. We get so caught up in these soaps that in most cases the last thing in our minds before we close our eyes is what happens next. This leaves us craving the whole day for the next episode that we either fail to give full attention to whatever we are doing or don’t give any attention at all.
I have also interacted with people whom their so called dream guys or ladies for the future are almost duplicates of the characters in these soaps. This leaves me wondering where the world is heading to leave alone where we are taking God’s salvation that he has so lovingly presented to us.
I know there are many out there who will disagree with me but let us face the facts here, the majority of information in these shows and many others all revolve around Money, hate, cheating, backstabbing, lies, deception and many others. Well, lets try this simple task, get a piece of paper and draw a line in the middle. Label the left side A and the Right side B. on side A write what you learn from the shows you watch and on side B write what you thing Christ’s opinion would be about the show. From there own, make your decision depending your consciousness.
I am writing all this because of the simple fact I have come to learn in my life.You know, I have found that what I plant in my mind the last thing at night before I go to sleep is something that sticks with me. I learned as a child that I can memorize any formular by reading it over three times before I went to sleep. In the morning I could get up and recite it, all I do is read them over three times before I went to sleep, and in the morning I could recite them. Because it seems like during the night, what you plant just before you go to sleep has a way of your mind continuing to work on it.
Let us explore a little more on this; the biggest force in the World is the un seen force. I am going to elaborate more into this. Lets start with the power of God, both we the Christians and the some none believers out there some where within them believe that God is the most powerful force in the world. This is a straight fact to all of us but the point here is that God is an invisible force, the other one being the Holy Spirit. Together with God the two have done amazing things in this World that most people can never comprehend. Let’s look at other un seen forces or invisible forces like the radiations, i.e. the gamma, x-ray and alpha rays, scientifically speaking these have been used in so many experimental works that no man would ever deem possible. The rest brings us to the more visible and understandable force like water, electricity, fuels and so on.
The point I am trying to put forward is that God has created us in his own image and there for presented us with a powerful force in us that can enable us achieve so much or destroy us completely if not put in good use. That is nothing else but the MIND. This I am sure now helps us understand why Paul’s emphasis on renewal of the mind.
On a humanly point of view, every word we say in our lives is first conceptualized in the mind as a thought. When these thoughts mature in us is when they come out as words as it is said in proverbs; out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. When these grow, they turn into actions which actions develop into habits and these finally become our characters.
Brothers and sisters, the last thing in the night to be planting in our mind: that which is pure, that which is true, that which is honest, that which is just, that which is lovely, that which is of virtue and good report, think on these things. Interesting how we like to think on other things, isn't it? The hurts, the disappointments, the nasty thing that he said to me. Here is a good model to follow, I think that somewhere around the house we ought to put up, "True, Honest, Just, Pure," that our minds, we gear them toward these things and surely we will enjoy the salvation that the Lord has lovingly given us.
Solo.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
People and Time
This is always an interesting subject that i am sure my readers' eye brows and interest rose at the site of this heading. Well, i pray you don't get disappointed. Many of us have read the book of 1cor 13 and probably have so much to argue about what Paul says in this portion of scripture and how hard it can be to meet these expectations.
To me, the most important thing is, how much change can that bring in an individual's life?
As a child from the age of about 4yrs, i was staying with my grand parents and attending school in one of the local schools in the village. This had a specific routine day after day. Monday to Friday had a fixed routine of waking up to sweep the compound, collecting water and then preparing to go to school, all this time you are home alone because the older ones have gone to dig. After school, it is definately collecting water again, looking for the goats and sheep to bring back, clean up to get ready for supper and the day is closed my the saying of the Rosary.
Then, over the weekends, the person hired to look after the animals (cattle) is not expected to report because you are home all through and therefore saturday and Sunday, its you to go and graze the cattle. this went on for all my time in the care of my grandparents untill i was picked by my Mother in 1993 when i was 12yrs old.
By this time i was so found of my grandfather that i was angry with my mother for having taken me away. This made me dislike her that i rarely talked to her unless when asked a question or asking for something.
Just when i would say i was starting to get used to my parents, i finished primary and moved to S.1 in a very distant school from my parents but again closer to my grandparents. Given the fact that for my 4yrs in the school i was seldom visited, it didn't help matters between me and my parents. This even got worse when i moved to my A-level.
What i am trying to put forward is that, time spent with people and communicating with people is a big factor in bonding relationships. I find it hard to interact with my parents upto date because of that big gap between us. I have tried hard for the few times i have been there but things have never gotten any better.
This has affected me in that, i have found a family outside home that cares, loves and appreciates me in many ways and above all, i too love these people with all my heart. They have become a big part of my life and we have had great times together. This is because they are the people i am always with, communicate with, hang out with and share alot of personal matters with. they are the people i will always turn to first in case of any storms and even in times of joy i find myself reaching them before any of my family members.
This is a very dangerous situation, and i always pray that i never get in such a situation with my own family in future. I therefore intend to have every little time i can afford with my family, because i have learnt the importance of quality time with the people you love. this has also helped me learn alot from my friends, be encouraged, rebuked in love and corrected by my friends making me a better person each day that passes.
We are living in a generation where career and wealth are the driving force of every ones life both men and women. This has left the children in a vacuum that is only filled up by the house helpers, friends at school, Teachers and the environment interms of what we see, hear and read.
I thank God for the friends he has brought my way who have taught me what true love is and what it means to be loved. This has also helped me understand God's love for me hence improving my relationship with God.
Isaac, Joseph Prince, Eddie, Jojo, Joan, Stellah, Lizand not forgetting the power Fm love family, thanks for being a good influence in my life, thanks for always being there fore me and above all, thanks for accepting me as a friend despite the garbage in me.
Inconclusion, there are many people out there craving for a little bit of concern for what they do and people to talk to. Well, the Lord through his son Jesus Christ has demonstrated to us what true love really is. He is not asking us to die on the cross for others but extent a hand of care, concern and love for the people he has placed around us. I believe God having created us in his own Image, cares about us more than anything else, and the only way he can extend his love from one individual to another is through us whom he has already revealed this love to. In short, I believe that God's biggest project in life is people. How much are we contributing to help in this project? That is a question i ask my self every day. What about you?
Think of it and desire to be a blessing.
Solo
To me, the most important thing is, how much change can that bring in an individual's life?
As a child from the age of about 4yrs, i was staying with my grand parents and attending school in one of the local schools in the village. This had a specific routine day after day. Monday to Friday had a fixed routine of waking up to sweep the compound, collecting water and then preparing to go to school, all this time you are home alone because the older ones have gone to dig. After school, it is definately collecting water again, looking for the goats and sheep to bring back, clean up to get ready for supper and the day is closed my the saying of the Rosary.
Then, over the weekends, the person hired to look after the animals (cattle) is not expected to report because you are home all through and therefore saturday and Sunday, its you to go and graze the cattle. this went on for all my time in the care of my grandparents untill i was picked by my Mother in 1993 when i was 12yrs old.
By this time i was so found of my grandfather that i was angry with my mother for having taken me away. This made me dislike her that i rarely talked to her unless when asked a question or asking for something.
Just when i would say i was starting to get used to my parents, i finished primary and moved to S.1 in a very distant school from my parents but again closer to my grandparents. Given the fact that for my 4yrs in the school i was seldom visited, it didn't help matters between me and my parents. This even got worse when i moved to my A-level.
What i am trying to put forward is that, time spent with people and communicating with people is a big factor in bonding relationships. I find it hard to interact with my parents upto date because of that big gap between us. I have tried hard for the few times i have been there but things have never gotten any better.
This has affected me in that, i have found a family outside home that cares, loves and appreciates me in many ways and above all, i too love these people with all my heart. They have become a big part of my life and we have had great times together. This is because they are the people i am always with, communicate with, hang out with and share alot of personal matters with. they are the people i will always turn to first in case of any storms and even in times of joy i find myself reaching them before any of my family members.
This is a very dangerous situation, and i always pray that i never get in such a situation with my own family in future. I therefore intend to have every little time i can afford with my family, because i have learnt the importance of quality time with the people you love. this has also helped me learn alot from my friends, be encouraged, rebuked in love and corrected by my friends making me a better person each day that passes.
We are living in a generation where career and wealth are the driving force of every ones life both men and women. This has left the children in a vacuum that is only filled up by the house helpers, friends at school, Teachers and the environment interms of what we see, hear and read.
I thank God for the friends he has brought my way who have taught me what true love is and what it means to be loved. This has also helped me understand God's love for me hence improving my relationship with God.
Isaac, Joseph Prince, Eddie, Jojo, Joan, Stellah, Lizand not forgetting the power Fm love family, thanks for being a good influence in my life, thanks for always being there fore me and above all, thanks for accepting me as a friend despite the garbage in me.
Inconclusion, there are many people out there craving for a little bit of concern for what they do and people to talk to. Well, the Lord through his son Jesus Christ has demonstrated to us what true love really is. He is not asking us to die on the cross for others but extent a hand of care, concern and love for the people he has placed around us. I believe God having created us in his own Image, cares about us more than anything else, and the only way he can extend his love from one individual to another is through us whom he has already revealed this love to. In short, I believe that God's biggest project in life is people. How much are we contributing to help in this project? That is a question i ask my self every day. What about you?
Think of it and desire to be a blessing.
Solo
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