(What shall I do to be saved? Arise and work!)
All excellence involves discipline and tenacity of purpose. Great souls have wills, feeble ones only have wishes. Your promised land has been given to you, but you have to with your feet cross the river Jordan. And you may have to fight the Canaanites there. Your manna has fallen in the field but you have to go out there and gather it and early, before the sun melts it. Nature gives birds their food but does not put it in their nest. Almost all progress take place outside the comfort zone
The holy book said: “He who does not work, let him not eat”, meaning that hunger is the best cane for the lazy man. Sometimes, the Almighty do provide for his children through miraculous means, but his primary way of provision is through work. And he has giving us the energy, resources, and opportunity to do so. He is always the source of our physical well-being. He makes the earth produce what we need, and gives us the ability to procure it. Miracle is only a child of necessity. Everyone should work, and not hope on miracles. Israel had miracle of manna because they were in the wilderness. It ceased when they entered the land of Canaan. The Messiah walked on the water because there was no boat; and he multiplied bread to feed thousands because there was no money and nowhere to buy bread.
As a wise man wrote: “I went by the field of the lazy man and by the vineyard of the man devoid of understanding; and there it was all overgrown with thorns; its surface was covered with nettles; its stone wall was broken down. When I saw it, I considered it well; I looked on it and received instruction: a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest; so shall your poverty come like a prowler, and your need like an armed man. He who tills his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows frivolity will have poverty enough. He who fails to labour to get cabbage will eat garbage. In all labour, there is profit but an idle person will suffer hunger.” It is better to be worn out than to be wasted. Over labour is better than idleness. It is better to die for something than to live for nothing.
Someone may say, “This is fantastic but my mates have gone far and am now advanced in age.” Not so my beloved. It is never too late to be what you might have been. No time is late for success or improvement. Even Prophet Samson achieved success in the last few minutes of his life. Don’t listen to those illegal referees. It is not yet over until it is over. Try more. A 90 year old man can still plant a breadfruit tree to be enjoyed by generations after him. It is both present and posthumous success.
Do not fear change, it is the unchangeable law of increase; you cannot become what you are destined to be by remaining what you are. Focus on the future, not the past. Never be hesitant to do something new if you are convinced it is right and better than the former. You cannot continue to do the same thing in the same way and expect a different result. No matter how far you have gone in a wrong road, turning back is the only solution. That you have spent many years in an error should not be a reason to remain in it. To improve is to change. So, he who wants perfection will change as often as it is necessary to do so. The change which you fear is the only way to right the wrong. There is no right way to do a wrong thing. You cannot face east unless you turn from the west. You must drop the wrong to hold the right.
The room for improvement is so large that it can never be filled. No matter how many fishes that have been fished from the sea, the greater part is still remaining. Knowing that there is abundance of everything in this world is the starting point of all great success stories. Good things never finish. Abundance is still there for you. “Out of abundance he took abundance and yet abundance remained”.
Abraham gave birth to Isaac at his old age. You still have a chance. After all, age is not a matter of years; it is a state of mind. You are only as old as your mind tells you. You can be old at forty and young at ninety. Don’t count the days, make the days count. Let number of years only belong to the calendar. Refuse to grow old. Gerontology teaches that if you feel young and don’t feel your age, you will always be young.
Someone else may say; “But my parents are poor, and I have no money and no one to help me”. My friend, you are too big to be helped. The help and the HELPER are in you. Let me ask; what is in your hand? What is in your pocket? David can still kill Goliath today with a catapult and a stone and bring victory to his people and honour to himself. Have you chosen to fail because your parents failed? There is always a new beginning. You are the beginning of new and great things in your family. You are born to succeed. Problems are no excuse for failure. Successful people succeed in spite of, not in the absence of problems. Having a powerful why will provide you with a necessary how. Knowing how makes you drive it, but knowing why drives you. Purpose not money or talent can be your strongest asset. When you are determined to do something, you must find a way. Failures find excuses. If you find an excuse, do not pick it up. Nearly all failures come from those who have the habit of making excuses. When it comes to excuses, the world is full of inventors. But no alibi is acceptable. The lazy man says, “there is a lion outside; I shall be slain in the field”. The lazy man who fails to plow because of cold will beg during harvest and get nothing; his hands refused to labour. The desire of the end will point out the means. Impossible is found only in the dictionary of fools. He who has resolved to conquer or die is hardly conquered. In order to succeed, your desire for success must exceed your fear of failure. We are worshiping a Being who is capable of healing a cripple and make him a fast runner. If you want a harvest, sow seed.
People miss opportunity doors because they are usually closed due to the treasures behind them. All important doors are usually closed. So, if you meet a closed door, don’t turn back or complain, insist on entering. Knock persistently. The universal law said; “knock and it shall be opened to you” In the face of problems, some people breakdown while others break record. Some people buy clutches while others grow wings. Choose side. The same boiling water that makes potato soft is what makes the egg hard. You see, it is not a matter of circumstance but content. If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. Expecting the best means that you put your whole heart into what you want to accomplish. Attempting something half-heartedly is like expecting failure and achieving it. How to surmount a problem is to face it boldly. When you do, forces unknown to you will come to your aid. There is a true story of an eight year old girl who lifted a car that fell and pressed her father on the ground. She could not stand her father’s screaming and there was none around to help. She single handedly lifted the car which under normal circumstances, herself times twenty could not do it. It is in the face of real danger that we develop real courage. A boy remains a boy until there is need for a man. There are powers lying dormant in us waiting to be summoned. Declare a state of emergency in your situation and do the unusual. To remain in your nest when the storm blows is disastrous. Your only hope is to launch out in faith against all insurmountable obstacles and let your Maker do the rest. Nothing is impossible. The word itself says; I’m possible. You can turn your desolation into restoration.
Lackadaisical approach to duty creates lack and laceration to one’s future. Results do not yield themselves to the person who refuses to give himself to the desired result. If you call something something, it will become something for you. Avoid diffidence and always speak and act with aplomb. What we do with a little is a good measure of what we will do with a lot. Begin now to pursue with your little strength. Let the weak say, “I am strong”. The more you do, the more you can do. Expectation creates disappointment if not accompanied by planned labour. It is tantamount to tantalization.
Managerial ability is proved in the time of scarcity. He who cannot achieve a little with the little cash at hand cannot achieve much if given much money. Ask the four Israeli lepers and they will tell you how they moved from nobody to somebody. It is now your turn. And the small Israeli shepherd boy, David, the son of Jesse, will tell you that those who fear failure will never know success. And that you don’t have to wait for an AK-47 rifle gun to fight. Having a catapult, pieces of stone and divine assistance, you are well equipped to face that challenge. The Creator uses the helpless, the hopeless and the useless. Don’t be like a light generating plant kept in a dark room. You are a mighty man lying impotent by the pool of Bethsaida. Arise and metamorphose into a mighty man of valour. In military academy, soldiers are taught, “once you have decided to attack, don’t hesitate or you die with the people you are protecting”. So, arise quickly and fight. Be of good courage and let us be strong for our people… And may the Almighty do what is good in His sight. “He has done all things well. He makes both the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak.” Even “he who was dead sat up and began to speak”. Sometimes the least expected can become the most celebrated.
TODAY IS THE DAY OF SALVATION
-BKC YAHKA
Work Out Your Salvation
