2015 and simple machines

So the new year has begun. As usual we all can't resist the coercion to 'start something new' at the turn of a new year. Maybe you are an exception, but I couldn't resist and infact didn't resist. As clichéd as new year's resolutions may sound, 
they are not as evil as they are often portrayed to be. Perhaps people have found over the years that their resolutions 'find them out' and so, have become wary of this secret agent! Be that as it may, goal setting which is the main thrust of new year's resolutions still remains an important activity for anyone who what's to become someone!

For this year, 2015, I have set out a number of goals which I hope to accomplish. This post is not about those goals but about how those goals are going to be accomplished. For this year, God took my mind back to basic physics and the concept of simple machines. 

One of the ideas from that concept is mechanical advantage. By leveraging on the simple machine, effort moves less distance than load. Or effort expends less energy than the load to be carried. Applying that to life in 2015, it means I need to create and use some simple machines (there are six designs to choose from)! :-) . If you are a little confused, let me explain. I am talking about the power of teams. Mapping the analogy, my team is the simple machine, I am the effort and my goals are the load. At the moment, I have myself and my goals but for me to succeed at them this year, I need to build and leverage on my team. The bible says one shall chase a thousand and two shall put ten thousand to flight! Just try to figure out the multiplier effect of team work! So, this year, instead of working my fingers to the bones, I'll be looking to piggyback on others - they could be other individuals, institutions or organisations- to get my goals achieved with less effort from myself. Of course, this means sharing the glory but it also means sharing the costs, liabilities and work! Honestly, you can't eat your cake and have it. But then, having a party all by yourself is not much fun anyway. 

So take a cue from me. Don't try to go it alone. You will only burn out halfway and come back sore. Being part of a team is the way up. Remember though as you try to build your team, other people need you on theirs too. Kind of like 'you rub my back, I rub yours'. So yeah, I hope this post helps you to be more successful this year. Go ahead and have a brilliant 2015!

Don't forget to drop a comment below. Thanks

Simple machines image from www.oocities.org

Commitment

Commitment. That's a strong word isn't it? Yes it is. Commitment is about your honour, your integrity. Putting your life on the line to see an issue through.

The other day I was travelling to Ibadan, Nigeria from Lokoja a town in central Nigeria. A journey of 6-7 hours on a good day. We had dropped off some passengers in a city just 2hrs from Ibadan and picked up some new ones to complete the journey. No sooner had we picked the two new passengers than we heard a snapping sound, followed by a scrapping sound that persisted as the vehicle continued on motion. The driver reckoned something had gone wrong with the back spring of the car. Nothing felt particularly wrong with the car to me, except for the scrapping noise of metal against the car frame.

The driver pulled over, assessed the situation and determined it was safe to drive on till we got to a mechanic workshop where it could be checked properly. He got in and drove on much more slowly. But as the sound persisted, passengers began to agitate to get off. Not the least, the two new addons. In fact they insisted they wanted to get off heatedly and presently were allowed to alight.

The rest of us were willing to persevere till at least we got a full diagnosis at the next mechanic workshop. I for one was contemplating dropping off at the next town where my grandmother lived if I felt the car wouldn't get me to my destination.

So were we just more risk averse than those other two passengers or were we plain silly to have continued such a journey on the highway with a faulty vehicle?

I'll tell you what, we were just committed. Lets look at the indicators.

1. We had paid our fares before we took off. If we got off now, we would most probably have to sort ourselves out.Those two hadn't paid as yet.
2. Most of us had heavy baggage. They had just a hand bag.
3. We had formed a kind of camaraderie having travelled together for over 5 hours experiencing the intrigues of the road together. They hadn't.
4. We had come a long way (5 hours). They were just starting out.

So yeah commitment was the difference. As silly and dangerous as it must have seemed, commitment saw us through and got us to our destination. Together we weathered the storm. As we drove on my thoughts kept flashing back to those two who had dropped off along a bushy, lonely highway. 'Did they get another lift quickly?', 'were they beaten by the rain that fell shortly after?', 'did they get home safe?'. Well, I'll never know. Just like they'll never know how we fared either.

It's always quite easy to jump off the boat. But count the cost. There'll always be 'what-ifs' both sides of the coin. Weight your commitment before you throw it all up in the air. Just a little patience might crown your commitment with results.

Selah

Image credits: jasaero.com

Death

Do you wake up everyday with the thought that the next moment you might be dead? I guess not. Especially if you are not waking up on a hospital bed!
As days, weeks and years roll by, we bubble with life, going about our 'business' without much of a thought about our frailty and the human eventuality - death.
Just like the day we are born can usually not be 100% predictable, even more so the day we die. That undated appointment that every person must keep.
Death must be the least understood experience of humans and yet, it's the most certain. Natural, accidental, self inflicted or assisted, death comes to all.
Like I was pointing out earlier, most of our life we rarely give a thought to death. It sounds so ominous, we cannot bear to keep the thought for a moment longer. However, should death continue to be a topic shrouded in darkness? Should it continue to elude us and catch us unaware?
The very nature of death makes such questions difficult to answer. Often unexpected, the grief that is communicated by the loss of a fellow human being hardly gives us any window to learn from it. Moreover, The dead is, well, dead! You cannot experience death and tell the story. Its the omega experience. Only the dead know how death feels - that's if they feel something . Those who live on only feel the impact of the death: the loss, the pain, the void.... I am reminded of a quote by a friend 'death is for the living'
Well, every once in a while, we are reminded, usually shockingly, that we are not immortal beings. At least not yet. The death of a loved one rattles through our being, shaking the very foundations of what we believe and hold dear. We give the thought to the fact that we too must go someday too. And hopefully, we learn some lessons, reorder our priorities and focus on our purpose. For this is the whole duty of man.

--- Inspired by the tragic death of Dr Myles Munroe 9/11/2014. May his blessed soul and those of the 8 others rest in peace.

Worshipping God

Do you sometimes attend a church service and all the while your mind keep wondering? You keep struggling to 'connect'. You see all the excitement and near ecstasy around you and you can't but wonder 'how do they do that?'.
When we come to worship God, its an interesting activity. It is an outward expression of an inner relationship. It is the overflowing of a spiritual life that is based on God.
The vibrancy of your worship bears quite a direct relationship to the vibrancy of your relationship and fellowship with God.
Yes of course, we have the actors... those sanguines that always seem to be excited! And of course we have the melancholies who struggle to leap for joy even on 'Christmas day'. Be that as it may, true worship moves beyond our circumstances and personalities. True worship brings the sanguine to tears on his knees and the makes the melancholy shout and leap for joy.
Worship is ignited by the Holy Spirit. So next time you are stuggling with worship, pray in the Holy Ghost, establish the connection and let the Spirit take over.

Its worship time. Selah.

SATAN'S MEETING

SATAN'S MEETING: (Read even if you're busy)
 
 
 Satan called a worldwide convention of demons.
 
 In his opening address he said,
 
 "We can't keep Christians from going to church."
 
 "We can't keep them from reading their Bibles and knowing the
truth."
 
 "We can't even keep them from forming an intimate relationship
with their saviour."
 
 "Once they gain that connection with Jesus, our power over them is
broken."
 
 "So let them go to their churches; let them have their covered
dish dinners, BUT steal their time, so they don't have time to
develop a relationship with Jesus Christ.."
 
 "This is what I want you to do," said the devil:
 
 "Distract them from gaining hold of their Saviour and maintaining
That vital connection throughout their
 day!"
 
 "How shall we do this?" his demons shouted.
 
 "Keep them busy in the non-essentials of life and invent
innumerable schemes to occupy their minds," he answered.
 
 "Tempt them to spend, spend, spend, and borrow, borrow, borrow."
 
 "Persuade the wives to go to work for long hours and the husbands
to work 6-7 days each week, 10-12 hours a day, so they can afford
their empty lifestyles."
 
 "Keep them from spending time with their children."
 
 "As their families fragment, soon, their homes will offer no
escape from the pressures of work!"
 
 "Over-stimulate their minds so that they cannot hear that still,
small voice."
 
 "Entice them to play the radio or cassette player whenever they
drive." To keep the TV, VCR, CDs and their PCs going constantly in
their home and see to it that every store and restaurant in the
world plays non-biblical music constantly."
 
 "This will jam their minds and break that union with Christ."
 
 "Fill the coffee tables with magazines and newspapers."
 
 "Pound their minds with the news 24 hours a day."
 
 "Invade their driving moments with billboards."
 
 "Flood their mailboxes with junk mail, mail order catalogs,
sweepstakes, and every kind of newsletter and promotional offering
Free products, services and false hopes.."
 
 "Keep skinny, beautiful models on the magazines and TV so their
husbands will believe that outward beauty is what's important, and
they'll become dissatisfied with their wives. "
 
 "Keep the wives too tired to love their husbands at night."
 
 "Give them headaches too! "
 
 "If they don't give their husbands the love they need, they will
begin to look elsewhere."
 
 "That will fragment their families quickly!"
 
 "Give them Santa Claus to distract them from teaching their
children the real meaning of Christmas."
 
 "Give them an Easter bunny so they won't talk about his
resurrection and power over sin and death."
 
 "Even in their recreation, let them be excessive."
 
 "Have them return from their recreation exhausted."
 
 "Keep them too busy to go out in nature and reflect on God's
creation. Send them to amusement parks, sporting events, plays,
concerts, and movies instead."
 
 "Keep them busy, busy, busy!"
 
 "And when they meet for spiritual fellowship, involve them in
gossip and small talk so that they leave with troubled consciences. "
 
 "Crowd their lives with so many good causes they have no time to
seek power
 from Jesus."
 
 "Soon they will be working in their own strength, sacrificing
their health and family for the good of the cause."
 
 "It will work!"
 
"It will work!"
 
 It was quite a plan!
 
 The demons went eagerly to their assignments causing Christians
Everywhere to get busier and more rushed, going here and there.
 
 Having little time for their God or their families.
 
 Having no time to tell others about the power of Jesus to change
lives.
 
 I guess the question is, has the devil been successful in his
schemes?
 
 You be the judge!!!!!
 
 Does "BUSY" mean: B-eing U-nder S-atan's Y-oke?
 
 Please
 pass this on, if you aren't too BUSY!
 
 I don't think I know 10 people who would admit they love Jesus.
 
 Do You Love Him?
 
 IF YOU LOVE JESUS, PASS THIS ON!!!!!!!
 

The Power of Faith Driven Prayers

Oh! the joy of answered prayers! It really is a trill when you bring your
requests before God and you see him go to work on your behalf. When you
feel and experience the invincible had of God order events and situations.
What a joy and a relief when the Holy Spirit helps you to pray and you just
know in your heart that it is done.

The bible says that the prayer of faith has much effect. And how true that
is!

Next time you kneel in prayer, kneel in faith and pray in the Power of the
Holy Spirit. And don't forget to Praise! Then watch the hand of God move
things around.

Let us Pray.

Getting married

When you love someone, you want them to be your closest friend. You don't
want to let them out of your sight and you want them to always be within
your reach.
When you get to know them better and the butterflies in your stomach cool
off but you still realize that you love them even more than in the
beginging; then you are crazy over them and you know for sure you want to
spend the rest of your life with them.
I found this kinda love and there's nothing good enough to give in place of
our relationship. We got married on the 21st of March, 2008, and I know the
party is just beginging. Now I can have him in my arms forever as we both
discover new depths of love each day and relish to sweetness of it.
I couldn't ask for more than to be married to the love of my life,Sola.
Indeed my soul mate.
Getting married is wonderful!