One secret that will set you apart at all times!

Take a moment an ponder upon some of the difficulties and challenges you have been through and think about what kept you going in the midst of hardship and calamities. Turn on your TV and listen to the news and you will have a good dose of “bad news”. There seems to be no end to unnecessary killings, wars and epidemics. Right now you maybe in a season of your life where everything is going on well and you are facing no life threatening situation. If that is the case you may have to pass this to somebody who needs it. No matter how much we try to avoid pain, disappointments and betrayal, things keep going out of control. Occasionally we have fleeting moments when we think we have had everything figured out and brought things under control, just to see things slip out of our hands, leaving us helpless and out of control. We are constantly looking for a quick fix to easy our pain and take us out of our predicament. The issue of pain, suffering and death has troubled humans for a long time. Some deal with it by trying to ignore it. Some numb their pain with chemical substances and others give up on life altogether. Job who lost all his livestock on a single day and his seven children had this to say, “A person who is born of a woman is short-lived and is full of trouble.” In other words suffering, pain, afflictions are a given to all who are born of woman. This implies there is no exception. Since nobody is left out, it makes sense to figure out how to deal with life’s challenges, difficulties misfortunes, setbacks etc. One of the most efficient ways to deal with suffering and pain is to understand the following 1) Life is tough. This is a simple truth that will set you apart at all times and under any circumstance. As John Cash said, Life is rough so you gotta be tough.” Life is difficult! That’s it! The sooner you accept this, the better and more equipped you will be to handle whatever is thrown at you. Remember that you started life with a cry and not a smile. Accepting that life is difficult will toughen you psychologically, mentally and emotionally. This will enable you to face whatever comes your way with courage, resolve and bravery. Let me know what you think about the suggestion that accepting that life is difficult is a secret that will set you apart at all times.

20 Reasons Joseph could have given if he committed adultery with Potiphar’s wife

We all know about the story of Joseph recorded in the following passage …7It came about after these events that his master's wife looked with desire at Joseph, and she said, "Lie with me." 8But he refused and said to his master's wife, "Behold, with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has put all that he owns in my charge. 9"There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?” 10 As she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her to lie beside her or be with her. Now it happened one day that he went into the house to do his work, and none of the men of the household was there inside 12 She caught him by his garment, saying, "Lie with me!" And he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside..…Genesis 39:7-12 We live in a day and age when it is not easy to hear people justify anything under the pretext of, it is complicated, it is a grey issue, it is difficult. When people are hard pressed, they fight back with you do not understand, you have never been in my situation, you do not know what you are talking about. Unfortunately they do not mention God and what God’s word is saying concerning the situation. We have come up with a gazillion reasons to justify disobeying God. Joseph will be justified if he committed adultery with Potiphar’s wife because of the following reasons; 1) Joseph was far away from home, sold by his brothers why did God allow this bad thing to happen to him? 2) Joseph had no support of the local church. He was all alone in the house of Potiphar and there were no other people there that were worshiping God. 3) He was living in a culture that was occupied in worshiping idols and it would have been Ok for him to sleep with his mater’s wife. 4) There was no regular Bible study for Joseph to be reminded of what God’s law required of him. 5) He was lonely and home sick and the companionship of his maters wife would have been a good distraction. 6) His master was gone most of the time and his wife was lonely and need somebody to be with her. 7) She was he mistress and had power over him, for Joseph was a slave and had no rights whatsoever. 8) Joseph would be justified for it is his mistress that came up with the proposal. She is the one that insisted. Joseph would have said, give to Caesar what is Caesar’s. My mistress has given me an instruction and I am just obeying orders. I am a slave and all I have to do is to obey. 9) Joseph was in charge of everything and adding his mistress to the list of responsibilities would have been just a call to duty. 10) To be the captain of the Guard his master Potiphar had to give up his manhood. In order words, he could not perform sexually. Therefore his wife had legitimate sexual needs that had to be met. 11) Out of compassion and pity for his starved mistress Joseph could have met her needs. What is wrong in meeting a genuine need? 12) There was nobody in the house the day his mistress grabbed him. This implies nobody will know about it. 13) Joseph was minding his own business and this woman kept asking in day in day out for him to go to be with him. He did not dress in a compromising way, he did not tempt the woman, but she kept bogging him. He could not leave the house because he was a slave. 14) Joseph was young, handsome and had sexual emotions that needed to be satisfied, for he had no wife at that time. 15) Sleeping with his mistress would have empowered him the more and it will feel good as well. 16) Who know he might have gained is freedom, because now that he is meeting his mistress needs she can talk with his master to release him. 17) Joseph had no mentors or role models to help him out. 18) God will forgive him after he sins for God understands. 19) The temptation was too much for this young man. 20) Others were doing the same thing. We give many reasons why we do the things we do. We convince ourselves and those around us why it is OK to disobey God. For example, I needed that Job so badly that I have to lie on my resume; I had to sleep with that man or woman. Joseph had every reason under the sun to disobey God, but he chose to obey God. He knew sleeping with his master’s wife was a SIN before God and it not a good thing to disobey God. Read the word, read the word, read the word and do not force the word to fit your situation. Most of the time we want the word to say what we want to hear this will get us into trouble. May God help us to obey him!

The fastest easiest and surest way to have a bountiful harvest without sowing

Is it possible to harvest without sowing? This question came in my mind this afternoon as I harvested fresh veggies from the garden. I was pondering on the law of sowing and reaping and how it impacts every area of our lives, and how many times people try to circumvent this law, because they do not want to go through the process. In other words they want a bountiful harvest without sowing. The process of sowing seeds, nurturing, and caring for the plants and waiting for a harvest is too long, too complicated and too demanding. The lure of making it quick and rising to sudden riches and fame is extremely attractive and appealing to many. The desire to get promoted and get to the top of the corporate ladder with speed has the propensity to cause many to neglect the law of reaping and sowing. Tight budgets and the desire to cut cost pushes some people to cut corners and the results are not always desirable.

There is a push for a silver bullet that will get rid of the process involved in achieving a long lasting relationship with a spouse, raising successful kids, owning and maintaining a successful business. This is because the process is not appealing, for it involves hard work, dedication, determination, perseverance and waiting. For example the veggies I am harvesting this afternoon were nursed in August and the young plants transplanted in September. For the past two months, I watered and removed the weeds and ensured that bugs did not get the veggies before me. This means that after a long day, I had to go to the garden in the evening and check on the plants, no matter who I felt. Now is harvest time and I can joyfully reap what I sowed.

The joy of harvesting is more than the pain, inconveniences and hard worked required to sow. What then is the fastest easiest and surest way to have a bountiful harvest without sowing?

Hmmm! Harvesting from other people’s plots is equal to stealing if I am not mistaken. Stealing is fast, quick and immediate, but the consequences when caught are undesirable. You may say, I will always go free; many are doing it and have never gotten into any trouble whatsoever. You are partially correct. But Paul the Apostle said, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows”. It is possible to reap without sowing, but in the process you are sowing bad seed that will eventually yield bad fruit. For example fraud scandals like what happened in Enron are a sobering reminder that the law of reaping and sowing is well and a live and should not be broken no matter what.

Therefore each day is an opportunity, to sow good seeds, in your business, job, relationships, kids, neighbors, colleagues and all you come across. This will require patience, perseverance, long sufferance, peace, joy and hope. As such the fastest easiest and surest way to have a bountiful harvest without sowing is an illusion and should not be pursued by anybody that wants sustainable and long lasting success.

When life throws bricks at you build a wall

You must have heard that "bad things" happened to good people. This is part of the truth. The whole truth is that your response to whatever happens to you is the ultimate determinant of the outcome you get. You are not a victim, even if you have been told so and you feel so. You have the power to choose the right response. Do it and walk in the new opportunity that is always hiding behind the seemingly "bad situation." This is not a denial of the existence of evil, but a bold move to rob evil of its power and control over your life. If a seed had the ability to speak, it will scream when it is deprived of the comfort, warmth and security in the house, when it is being taken out of the house for planting. When the seed is being taken out of the house, if it could, it will be kicking and screaming for nobody wants to die. The seed will be justified if it complained about the terrible conditions that are associated with being buried in the dark under heavy soil for a couple of days and left to rot and die. But the seed knows better not to cream and kick. It knows that the comfort and warmth on the self is extremely limiting. It is safe and comfortable, but it is preventing the tree in the seed from coming out.

The seed understands that getting out of its comfort zone, is the only way for its full potential to be realized. Yes! It is dark, uncomfortable and extremely dangerous outside, but these are the condition for innovation and breakthrough. The seed understands that there are two sides to every coin and both sides make the coin complete. Life and death make a whole. The seed MUST die to live. It must give up its present life for a bigger and better life. It is in the dark and lonely place that this transformation takes place. As Jesus of Nazareth said, “I can guarantee this truth: A single grain of wheat doesn't produce anything unless it is planted in the ground and dies. If it dies, it will produce a lot of grain. This partially explains why life sometimes throws “stones, lemons, bricks, sticks and other things at us. These life changing events come suddenly and without warning and unexpectedly. These circumstances are meant to “kill” us, make us uncomfortable, stretch us, and push the seed in us to grow. The only difference between you and those who make it is that they make a choice to use whatever is thrown at them as building blocks. They make a foundation out of the stones and rocks. The bricks are used to build the walls of the house and the sticks for the roof. The lemons are used to make lemonade to quench their taste as the labor under these difficult circumstances. Those who get anything done are those who have also learned to use the trails and difficulties that come their way. Start making lemonade with the lemons that are being thrown at you. This is done by As I have already said, this is not a denial of the existence of evil, but a bold move to rob evil of its power and control over your life.

The upside of excuses

This evening as I was doing the dishes, I started thinking of all the excuses for not writing this post. Top on the list was lack of time and tiredness. This was followed by nobody is going to read what I will write, for nobody knows me. Another “good” one was, it is a waste of time there are more qualified and famous people out there already doing an excellent job of motivating and encouraging people. Therefore there is no point in wasting people’s time. You will be surprised by how long the list will get if I continue, but I am writing because I decided to say NO to all these excuses. What about you? What are some of the excuses you give for not getting the job done? What are some of the excuses you give for not leveraging your full potential? What are some of the excuses you give for not pursuing that new business idea or that invention? What is preventing you from lunching that new product line? What is preventing you from travelling to another country? Excuses, excuses, excuses, Everybody gives them The rich, the poor; The young and old, Everybody has excuses. The only upside of excuses is that they keep you where you, but prevent you from being where you desire to be. They rob you of all that might be and keep you bound in fear and defeat. Each time you start giving excuses, know an opportunity for growth is at the corner. Life is tough and growing is even tougher. The only difference between you and those who grow is that they have learned to say NO to their excuses, no matter how good they are. Let excuses spur you to do something counter to them. I said no to my excuses and wrote these few words this evening and I am glad I did. Focusing on your excuses will rob you of all the infinite outcomes that might result if you do something. Remember there is always going to be somebody out there that will out smart you, but that does not mean that you have not out smart others. Keep doing and stop giving excuses for there is no GOOD excuse, no matter how well sounding it may be. Excuses are missed opportunities, stop giving, and instead let them be a catalyst for growth. If this helped you, I will like to know about some of the excuses that you have and how this has impacted your life. Thank you for sharing.

You can help stop the Ebola stigma and panic

This morning on my way to work, I turned on the radio and heard that a second nurse who took care of the patient with the first case of Ebola in the United states of America has come down with Ebola. During lunch at work as we eat, Ebola was one of the main subjects that came up in our discussion. Somebody asked why air travel around the globe cannot be banned until this situation is brought under control. Others talked of the lack of trust in the government’s ability to properly inform the public. There is a potential for panic! You can help by getting informed and staying informed with the updates. Engage other people and initiate the conversation about Ebola. If they have fears calm their fears with facts. We know Ebola is a deadly disease, but with the right protective gear it can be prevented. Those that have it are not outcast, or committed a crime and should not be blamed or stigmatized.

An article I read in the New York Times today made me extremely uncomfortable and ashamed at the treatment Sierra Leone’s national team has received in some African countries. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/14/sports/soccer/sierra-leones-soccer-team-struggles-with-stigma-over-ebola-outbreak.html The stigmatization is pushing the players to start dong the unthinking able. For example, one of the players said, “When people asked if we were from Sierra Leone, we’d deny it,” Lahoud, who plays for Philadelphia’s M.L.S. team, said in a telephone interview. “We felt it was for our protection.” I do not support this attitude, but the way we can defeat it is by taking away the stigma associated with this disease. Taking away the stigma from Ebola will “knock off the wind from its sails” and it will be eventually defeated. • It will prevent people from covering up when they fall sick. • It will encourage people to seek medical attention immediately. • People will immediately go into quarantine and avoid spreading the virus to others. We cannot afford to let fear push us to the point where we resort to stigmatization for comfort. Together we can show compassion, we can educate others, we can keep the conversation going. Ebola has become a global issue and needs all of us to put an end to it.

You can help stop the Spread of EBOLA!

You may be wondering why, I am asking you to join in the effort to curb the spread of the Ebola virus. Read on, you are going to find out! Information is one of the greatest weapons to combat any treat. The more you know about something the greater your chances of dealing with it adequately. My son came back from school yesterday and told me he was being taunted that he has Ebola. This is absurd and unacceptable, but his school mates think since his parents are from Africa, that means Ebola is here. We live in Dallas and the first Ebola patient in the city died last Wednesday and one of the nurses that took care of the patient has come down with Ebola. On my way to work this Friday, I turned on the radio and somebody was saying that his annual trip to Dallas to watch the Dallas Cow Boy Football game had been cancelled, because of fear of contacting Ebola. Another man said, he was coming to from out of state for a job interview, but have not told his mother of his travel plans because she will be extremely worried. You can help stop the spread of Ebola by: 1) Learn the facts about the disease. The more you know the better and it will help stop the panic, stereotypes and fear. In addition it will make you safer and those around you, for all of you will be acting based on the right information. Ebola is not an airborne disease, you must come in contact with bodily fluids of the infected person to get infected. African has more than 1.1 billion people and so far unfortunately 4000 people have been killed by the virus. 2) Share the information with your love ones, colleague and all who care to listen. Focus on passing on the facts and not rumors. 3) Discourage people from stereotyping Africans. The fact that somebody is black or from Africa does not mean that they have Ebola. You cannot tell if somebody has Ebola by looking at the color of their skin. Only laboratory tests can determine if somebody has Ebola or not. Spread the word and together we are going to stop the spread of Ebola.