For every singe evil act by a brutal dictator, we are also capable of repeating the same evil act in our day to day conducts. Thus, we aught to look with in as well.
December 8, 2011
The central message of this blog is not about Muammar Gaddafi or about any political leader anywhere. I am using Gaddafi's story to highlight the point I am trying to make.
The end of 2010 and the year 2011 have been the year of "Arab spring". Rulers of countries such as Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and few others have been shaken to their core, all due to the birth of social media that connected the world as if it is one country. It gave the Youth a new insight about the evil grip of dictatorship and what a democratic society can look like which led to upraisings and the tipping of the balance of power
Imagine you have been given the responsibility of assuming Gaddafi's position for forty two years. What kind of a heart would you have demonstrated towards the people you were entrusted to lead?
Muammar Gaddafiruled the people of Libya for forty two years with an Iron fist. He called himself "The king of kings". While he held the grip of power tightly for all those years, so much have happened in the world. Nine US presidents exchanged power peacefully and harmoniously. I can testify that I was born after he came to power and if I were a Lebyan living in the country, he would have been the only leader I would have known all my life.
He hid Millions of Dollars in Swiss, US and other banks all over the world while millions in the country lived in the worest destitute possible. His five sons each controlled different sectors of the country, grew up in abundance of "milk and honey" while millions go to bed hungry. Opponents of Gaddafi; he referred them as rats and cockroaches, were silenced and brutally murdered in thousand.
The families' numerous luxurious villas, hard to count number of fancy sport cars, chartering flights for big name US celebrities such as buoyancy, Mayra Carry and paying them millions of dollars, access to any amount of money they desire at any given time,power to get anything they want at any time. The list goes on
Then in a year no one expected, revolution broke out in the country. Many died, infrastructures destroyed. Then, Gaddaffi's forty two years of rule was over. On his way to escape from the country, he was chased by an ordinary group of youth, his escape from the car end him up in sewerage tunnel, he was captured, humiliated and killed. They displayed his body in a butcher shop, on an old mattress on the floor, and thousands of Libyans passed by to view his body as they held their nose to avoid the bad odor from his corps. He lived like nobody and his ending became line nobody as well. What a fate! What a sad ending! What a tragic legacy!The entire world reacted about his ending. A shout of joy and satisfaction echoed from cost to cost in Libya and all over the world. Many said, "Justice has been served" He got what he deserved.
Let me ask you the same question I asked you at the beginning. Imagine you have been given the responsibility of assuming Gaddafi's position for forty two years. What kind of a heart would you have demonstrated towards the people you were entrusted to lead?
To know whether you and I would have handled the whole matter differently or not, all we need to do is take a look at our day to day conducts. The choices we make in little matters in our day to day conducts can be great indicators of who we really are. The bible says: "Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much" Luke 16:10In other words, if we do the right thing in small matters, it is a test to our character that we can be trusted in big matters to follow the same pattern of character as well. On the flip side, the negative behaviors we reflect in small matters, if an opportunity is presented in a big scale, they are surely to come out in a big and magnified way as well. Having this in mind, let's observer the below scenarios:
FACT:
If we have the habit of stealing; I am not talking about big theft, small amount too and covering it up so no one knows,
If we have the habit of always being selfish, full of grid, always serving no one but self at the expense of others,
If we have the habit of deceitfulness, lying, covering things up.
Then what all these behaviors indicate is that if we were to be entrusted to oversee a country like Gaddafi, billions of dollars, then there is a big chance that we might end up stealing millions like Gaddafi did. You may say, no this is different. What they did is different. What they did is horrible.
"....whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much" Luke 16:10
FACT:
If we have the habit of being prideful: being snobby, looking others down, not wanting to associate with "those low people", the habit of striking others down to look big and good before others, the habit of destroying the reputation of others to cover up our own faults, then there is a big chance that if we were in Gaddafi’s shoes, like Gaddafi did, we also could call ourselves the ‘King of Kings’ and there is a big chance that we also could devastate a country economically to feed our own egos and prideful desires.
"....whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much" Luke 16:10
FACT:
If we have the habit of hating people we have problem with, hating them so much to the point we wish they were dead, the desire to see them crippled in every way in life just because we have some issues with them, the desire to go out of way to hurt anyone who crossed us in any shape or form, then what all these behaviors indicate is that if we were in Gaddafi’s position, we would have gotten people who oppose us killed like he did in thousands. The bible says whoever hates a brother or sister is a murderer (1John2:11). Strong hate is the initial step of killing. In fact, the killing process has already started in a heart full of hate. That is why the bible says whoever hates a brother is a murderer. May be the next steps were not followed only due to fear of the law and the consequences after wards. Thus, the behaviors mentioned above are the symptoms of anyone who have the potential to do what Gaddafi did to his people.
You see, what we do in small scale is what we are capable of doing in big scale. What we do in small scale is an indication of who wereally are. All the behaviors mentioned above are the small mirror reflections of these magnified and big acts that we hear and see on TV regarding the horrific actions of people like Gaddafi. It may not feel like it is a big deal when we do it because it did not happen in a big and magnified way. It is a small act no one pays attention to but the spirit of the act is the same and clearly it shows the attitude of the heart.
Putting these comparisons does not mean I am condoning or minimizing the crimes of people like Gaddafi. It is despicable and heinous crime that should not be excused or seen lightly in any shape or form. They deserve every single punishment given by the court of law. But the BIG point I am trying to highlight is, how about our own hatred, selfishness, grid, pride, immorality and as such? how do we also put our own actions in check? we can not condemn the actions of these dictators and involve in divisions, hatred, vengeance, selfishness and as such and move on as if nothing happened and continue condemning these dictators every time their names come up in converstations. As much as Gaddafi's story is appauling and barbaric, unless we learn what not to be from these people, we can end up repeating smilar actions in our day to day walks although it is not as magnificed as their actions are. It is very easy to point out fingers without never looking with in. Let us also take time to really look into our own heart whenever we talk about these kinds of stories, lest we can be as guilty too. Let us use these kinds of stories to challenge our own divisions, hatred, bigotry, vengeance, selfishness, and grid.
How did the condition of the human heart became so wicked? How can we overcome the challenges of our own day to day hatred, selfishness, grid. etc...?
Ever since the human heart got corrupted by sin in the Garden of Eden, it is bent towards evil not good, deceit not honesty and integrity. "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" Jeremiah 17:9. In Genesis 6:5, the bible also says: "The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time."That is why Gaddafi and his family did what they did. That is why we hear unbelievable kinds of crimes from unexpected people all the time. In Romans 7:21-25, the apostle Paul says: "So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me.For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; But I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work in me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!".
We can not change the inclination of our sinful heart by owr own will power. Only God can change it. This does not mean that we have an execuse to do what ever we want. God has aleady planted what is good and bad in the heart of all humanity. God gave everyone a conscious to discern what is right from wrong. In the final analysis, we are accountable for all our negative actions before the law, our own conscious as well as before God. Yet the central reason as well as the possible solution for this cycle of violence that exists from the individuals level, family level, small groups level, as well as country level is usually misunderstood and misinterperated. If we want real fix for the ills of this world, trying to change just the behaviour of the person will not go much further. But rather, the totality of the condition of the heart has to be changed. And no one can change that but God. Only God is able to take out a heart full of hate, selfishness, pride, crulity, and give us a heart full of love, selflessness, compassion and sensitivity for others. We need to come to God pleading for his saving grace.
Ezekiel 11:19 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."
We can see that God is willing to change our bad heart and give us good and clean heart so long we are willing to submit our life to his authority. If we are willing to receive, He is willing to give. God would not force anything upon us. As King David prayed, we also need to come to the throne of God saying: “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." Psalm 51:10
The most difficult task on the face of the earth is not to lead a country but rather to put our own selfish desires in check daily and follow the right path. When we are willing to die for our carnal desires daily and live for God, that is when we are able to find our true identity and what the purpose of our existance on this earth is. Only then we are ablet to make a positive impact with in our families, small groups, Churches, Sinagogs, in our Governments and as such. Otherwise, the same cycle of violence we observe from a distance also repeats with in our midst. The person who was disgusted by the actions of Gaddafi from afar can easily repeat the same evil acts if he were to be entrusted for the same seat for fourty two years. Whoever can control self to daily choose what is right, is the most victorious person on earth. "Better...one with self-control than one who takes a city" Proverbs 16:32.
Oh God, create in me a pure heart, and renew a steadfast spirit within me as I know how weak I am.
Amen!
God bless you
What are the steps I can take to be a born again Christian?
1. Admit that you are a sinner (Rom 3:23) - "...All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God "
2. Admit that you can not change your condition by your own will power and only God can do that and repent of your sins. (Rom 7:21-25)
3. Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of the world. Accept Him as your savior and Lord. (John 3:16)
4. Put your Trust on God and follow him daily. (1 Tim 1:15)
5. Join a local Church where you can grown in your faith.
A friend was telling me something over lunch today that peaked my attention. He said his job sent him to Singapore for eight months. The company paid $8,000/month for a very luxurious two bedroom place for his stay, the place was packed with all sort of amenities, maid service that came and did all the cleaning, a shofer picked him up every morning to drive him to his office, all paid restaurant meals, travels to near by countries on weekends and during his day offs to visit and relax. Everything was just perfect. What he said next was what peaked my interest the most. He said, ' It was the most boring and frustrating eight months of my life.'
Boring? Frustrating? you would not expect to hear these kinds of words in this situation. He was bored and frustrated not because there were some situations causing the frustration. As explained above, he was leading a lifestyle millions of people can't even dream of having. He is on top of his game by the world's standard. This is a kind of lifestyle we all aspire and work so hard to get to. The big point to ponder after hearing what he said is; once we acquire everything in life, then what? will we automatically attain happiness, joy, satisfaction, hope, purpose, contentment, peace? Hardly! Infect, this might be when people become even more frustrated in life because all those impossible dreams and aspirations that made one believe they would bring happiness from a distance, once attained, they are also empty.
I am not advocating for poverty, laziness or am not against luxury, and leading a good life. Not at all. I strongly believe that we need to work hard to be successful in what ever we do and enjoy life on this earth. But the point I am trying to make is, there is more to life than just success from the world's standard and enjoying just material possessions. If the money and luxury of the world would satisfy humanity, we would hear no complaints from so many who have it all. Just take a look at Hollywood. They literally have everything life can offer : millions of dollars they don't know what to do with, good look, fame, connections, etc. But is Hollywood the most satisfied place on earth? Not really. in fact, it might be one of the most dissatisfied place on the face of the earth. Because, obviously, life is much more than attaining material success.
How can we lead a happy, satisfied, content and purposeful life then?
God gave His one and only son to die for us on the cross so we live a meaningful, joyful and purposeful life. Jesus paid all the needed penalty so we do not have to. Making Jesus the Savior as well as the Lord of our life is the first and most important step. Then the reason for our existence on this earth starts making full sense. Our priorities will change by itself. What we like and disklike will change. What is important in life will automatically change. Joy, peace and purpose will start filling our heart. God gave his son Jesus Christ as an ultimate gift for the world.
Life on this earth is very short. Chasing luxury, money and fame without having God as a priority in life is like chasing the wind. It is vanity. As soon as you have it, it has nothing in it, just empty. But when God takes the first priority in life, everything else become enjoyable. There is nothing new under the Sun, generation after generation, things come and go. Only the Love, Grace and mercy of God is new every day. True satisfaction comes only from God.
The writer of the book of Ecclesiastic puts it this way:
" Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”
What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course.....
..What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! This is something new”? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time." “Ecclesiastic 1: 2-10
And the writer concludes this way:
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind." 12: 13-14
Aspiring to lead a comfortable life is a good thing. Aspiring to live a life of Conviction for the things of God is even greater.
Below this blog, you will find a blog written on June 10, 2010 entitled " A friend called Marsh". The story unfolded a beginning of an awesome friendship between our boys and a cockatoo pet bird called Marsh. The humble beginning of their friendship began on April 29th, 2010 and blossomed as days turned into weeks and weeks into Months. Unfortunately, after exactly eight months it ended few days ago on December 30, 2010.
The bird Marsh suddenly passed away on December 30th 2010 around 7:00 PM EST while he was sleeping in his cage. The detail of his death is still under investigation by the family but you can imagine how sad and shocked the boys were. This is their first experience of owning a pet. As the beginning of their friendship with Marsh was exciting, the ending was shocking as well. I was the barer of the bad news as they were watching video down stairs and their reaction to the news revealed a side of my boys I never seen before. They looked and acted like two adults who heard the most shocking news of their lifetime. They were calm but turned their heads down with sadness and somber look as they sat. Immediately, we had to embrace each of them with comforting hugs that lasted a long time as we tried to comfort ourselves at the same time.
The end of Marsh's friendship had impacted even us the parents and many who made contacts with him or knew of him thorough us. Who would have thought a small pet would create such an effect on so many people. A strong attachment with a pet was not a phenomenon we were used to before we had Marsh. But now we can understand why the western world families invest thousands of dollars for the care of loved pets. Why some people leave behind millions of dollars inheritance for their pets.
As the boys and us struggled to recuperate from the sting of pain of the loss, we embarked the year 2011 with great optimism and the celebration of the gift of life. The death of Marsh deeply reminded us how precious life is and how fragile it can also be. That we should never take what is given to us for granted. That we should enjoy and cherish the gift of life every single day.
We wish you the best year as you begin 2011. Enjoy and celebrate the wonderful opportunity of a new and fresh beginning. Cherish friends, family and your pets.
We brought him home on April 29th 2010. The boys anxiously waited for about four months for his arrival. They are so excited that he is a new addition to our family now. Emmanu had the name Marsh ready for him months before we brought him home. He named him after his favorite kid detective character called Marshal from a mystery series book he had read; Marsh in Short. Marsh enjoys spending time with the boys: they play together, sometimes fight, and have him always around as they watch vides, as they read, when they eat their meals and do different activities. His presence amongst our family added a unique excitement.
The boys got a Cockatoo. Cockatoos are intelligent and very affectionate companion birds. The night we went to Petco to get Marsh was full of excitement for them. They have asked for a pet for a long time; a dog as their first choice. But we know for sure that the responsibility of taking care of a dog is quiet big. In the end, we negotiated with them to get a Cockatoo instead. They jumped on the idea right away. Emmanu wanted to get Marsh for his birthday which was in the middle of March. Benny wanted him for the end of May. If we get him on either of their birthdays, then he would end up being one of the boy's pet. You can imagine the kinds of sibling raiveray that would bring. So we decided to get him in between their birthdays; in April. That worked out well. Cockatoos have interactive behaviors. If trained properly, they can learn to imitate few words. Studies show that they can live for many years. Thus the boys will practically grow up with Marsh. Unless they...… you know what I am trying to say. In fact, I had to set them up with one of their teachers and also a local librarian to give them a crash lesson on how to take care of a pet like Marsh. Too much love for a pet can be nice and also dangerous at the same time.
It has been an interesting few weeks with Marsh and the boys. The night we got Marsh, we had no idea what kind of temperaments he had. All we knew about Cockatoos was that they are friendly pets, they can be trained to talk, and they can be wonderful companions. That is it. We did not do our homework to learn that they bite hard until they feel comfortable with their owners. To make the story short, with in the first few days of his arrival, every singe member of our family got bitten by Marsh real hard. He managed to show everyone how tough he was. Then we knew right away where our boundaries were when interacting with him. So Benny changed strategy right away. Instead of giving him his hand to step on to, he started giving him a stick. That worked out real well. As soon as the boys brought the long and round stick close to Marsh’s feet, he hops right on it immediately. Then they were able to move him out of his cage, room to room, and anywhere.Marsh then progressed adapting the family environment rather quick. The boys let him walk around the house, then let him sit on their laps, then on their fingers, then on their shoulders, then on their heads. No biting, no fussing around. If a guest comes to our house, they offer if Marsh could sit on their shoulders. Upon getting the consent, Marsh hops right on. Incredible.
Marsh was able to create few dramas as he became more and more comfortable with the family. Some were funny and some were dangerous. Here are few of them:
As he has done it many dozen times already, Marsh was sitting on top of Benny’s head as usual one weekday evening while Benny was doing different mundane activities in the house. Benny is at ease with this. Then all of a sudden, Benny’s head was covered with Marsh’s poop. Aaaawch! Benny quickly moved Marsh away from his head to the floor and started running to the bathroom with noticeably embarrassed and blushed look. He tried to laugh it off as he was washing his face and head in the bathroom sink. The lauder we laughed, the lauder Benny tried to laugh as well. Boy Marsh got Benny real good. Marsh? He was as calm and relaxed as could be as if he is saying by his body language, got him!
On another night, Marsh and Benny were playing together. Benny had his forehead locked up with Marsh’s front head. The two were having fun together. It looked like Benny had totally forgotten he was playing with a bird not another human being. When Benny opened up his mouth to say something; with quick reflex response, Marsh pocked Benny’s tong. Oopps! ... Again, Benny played the incident down by saying it did not hurt much and laughed the incident off and continued playing with his buddy. Boy we were laughing hard again.
Another incident. I had Marsh on my head this time, walking around gracefully as if I had done this all my life, preparing the table for the dinner we were about to eat. Mom and the boys though I was so good at this. Served, the red wot on the table right after Mom had finished warming it up, the plates, the injera, the glasses of water, the vegetables, everything one after the other. All of a sudden, Marsh flew off from my head onto the table where I prepared everything. From the table, jumped in the red hot wot, splashed the Wot all over the place including some in my eyes and landed on the floor. As soon as I noticed Marsh was walking on the floor again, I ran to the bathroom to wash off my burning eyes from the Wot. Marsh ended up in the bath tub getting washed up. He had the Wot on his wings, feet and the rest of his body. The funny part of this was Marsh enjoyed the cold bath so much he did not want to get out. I totally forgot for a moment that I was washing a bird as I washed his feet, his body and his wings stretching them one at a time in each direction. He was so cooperative. He was so calm and relaxed as if he has been waiting for this to happen for a long time; as if he created the drama for this purpose. He did not resist at all. Very interesting.
The boys are enjoying every single time with Marsh. With enjoyment, come responsibilities as well. They have two job categories that they agreed upon to follow at the beginning. The first task is to clean Marsh’s poop every morning. The second task is to change the food and water every morning. The boys had agreed to exchange the task every Monday. Even further, Emmanu had originally promised he would do the poop cleaning permanently without needing any help from anyone. They take care of their responsibilities but not consistently. Now, who offers to help when the boys fail to do it? Mom. If the boys point fingers at each other for not wanting to do their part of the responsibility, well it has to get done. That is why she is helping them out. But I say Mom and Dad will have to be brave enough to resist doing any of their chores because they need to totally own the responsibility at hand. I remind them it is like getting a chance to raise a little baby on their own by making sure they feed him and clean his poop every day. Well, if a bird can be trained and be able to adapt, I believe boys will as well, as we continue to train them to take full responsibility to care and look after for someone beyond themselves.
How about getting your own Cockatoo? Go for it. As long as owning Cockatoo fits with you lifestyle, you will be glad you did.
President Barack Obama was elected President of the United States of America a year ago to this day today as the first African American President of the United States. He ran his campaign with the platform of Hope and Change. Hope for the better America and the better world. His message of hope resonated with the entire world very well. In fact, his candidacy as well as his background embodied the possibility of hope which made his message even more appealing and powerful.
After two years of fierce campaigning, his message worked! He got elected overwhelmingly and became President of the free world just at the age of forty seven. His election victory literally galvanized the entire world. Every single country in Africa celebrated the result in a way never seen in the land of Africa before for a political election. Asia, Europe and beyond were ecstatic. Young, old, rich, poor, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, everyone was totally swooped away by the excitement of this victory. Even my then five and half year old son was cheering for the "Brown guy", as he used to call him. On the election night, my son had to go to bed during the election returns and asked me to post the name of the winner on his bedroom door so he could be able to find out the first thing in the morning if his brown candidate won. I did as I was asked. For sure, at 7:00AM in the morning, he got the news and celebrated his own way.
I could not believe that just one man, one election was able to vibrate the whole world in such unprecedented way. Everyone knew that his victory would be a historical one but no one predicted this much excitement and response from the world.
I agree it was a huge victory for an underdog, young and charismatic African American candidate to challenge and defeat the "well oiled", well funded, well connected, political machine of the American political establishment. Without getting into the political aspect of whether it was good or bad to elect him as a president, I thought a lot about his victory. Why did everyone respond in such profound and personal way for his victory? What is it unlike many other political victories this one was able to excite and galvanize the whole world the way it did?
This is why I think:
There are many good reasons why the world was very excited for Obama’s election victory such as: identifying oneself with the candidate, like my boy did, identifying oneself with his campaign messages, having the first African American president in American history which is huge on its own and some other reasons. But in addition to these reasons, from my view point, I also observed that his victory touched two subtle yet powerful significant core elements as well. The first one is, his election victory touched the very core of the possibility of hope for millions across the entire world. It is not news that deep seated hopelessness and many uncertainties exit everywhere in the world. No individual in the world, regardless of race, class, or financial status is immune from this. Since Obama eloquently spoke and campaigned so much about the possibility of hope and his own personal story and candidacy also shattered so much odds, I believe his victory awoke the hopes and dreams of millions all over the world. His slogan of "Yes we can" spoke to peoples' aspiration and ambition to mean "Yes I can". Yes it is possible to win, whatever the challenge is. His victory became the lens where many saw their own possibilities in life which in the end gave them a sense of hope like never before. I think, this is one of the main reason why a year ago today, the world responded for his victory by crying, and showing all those unbelievable emotional responses. I also believe, the second underlying reason is, this overwhelming sense of feeling hopeful blured the line between reality and the idea of "Obama hope" for many, as if he would swing a magic wand and all the bad realities of life would just disapear. As if he is "the one" to take away the ills of the world. It followed Obama all the way to the Oval office and everyone wanted to cash the "promissory check" of Obama's hope and change right away.
We re-winded one year back. Now, let’s fast-forward one year from the Election day and it brings us to today. How is the world responding to the election victory today? Again, departing myself from different political world views, it is easy to observe that not all those that were so excited a year ago today are now as excited as they used to be. Beside many of the good things we hear as a result of his great leadership, we also hear that his approval rating in the U.S keeps on coming down every month. His supporters in the U.S and other countries are grumbling that he has not fulfilled his campaign promises on this and on that matter. Some say they are feeling "buyer’s remorse" because they voted for him. In fact, some who were chanting "Change!" Change!" before the election are now saying "Change it back!” after some changes took place. The strong emotional connection some expressed with candidate Obama do not seem to have it with President Obama now. That sense of strong optimism that the world felt last year is not fully here now. America and the world are moving on just like before Obama took office. The same frustrations, the same sense of hopelessness, the same sense of feeling defeated still looms over our world. hmm...
What happened to all the hope that was on the air a year ago?
Well, the answer is simple. Reality starts kicking in.
Hope is not supposed to be gotten from any human being. If we put our hopes on an individual, a government or anything else other than God, we will be disappointed for sure. Hope is supposed to be sought and found from the source of the real Hope giver. That is God though our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is our only true Hope. The Hope that He gives is not like the hope politicians promise. His hope fills us with peace, contentment, assurance always. It does not fluctuate. It is not conditional. It is assured.
Do you have a sense of feeling defeated, a sense of hopelessness? Do you get disappointed again and again to the point of feeling let down? Well that is probably because you are putting it on a wrong place. Put your hope on God. He will give you an assured Hope that lasts for eternity. He will not let you down, you will not be disappointed. Invite him into your heart and you will experience hopefulness, peace and contentment like never before.
"Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him." Psalm 62:5
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28
My hope rests on Him alone!
Where does your hope come from?
Give Him a chance and you will never be disappointed.
It has been about five years since we as a family have decided to shut off our TV from our living room and moved it to the basement. What a difference. We have more time as a family, we use the quiet time at nights for family time together and for many other valuable works that we need to take care of. Most of all, TV does not have the power to control our living room, our time, and our attention. Our kids do not have the “luxury” of flipping channels to watch all sorts of junk. And they are better off without it.
But since about two weeks ago, a TV set was moved from the basement to our living room, my wife and I were glued in front of the TV monitor during the nights. We went to bed much later than the usual. Even the five year old Ammanu was allowed to stay up as late as 10:30PM.
Yes, it was because we were watching the Beijing Olympics.
Michael Phelp’s performance in the swimming poll was captivating, the gymnests peformance was incredible, the synchronized pool divers were amaizing , The track runners speed was hard to believe, the long distance runners were tireless, the Valley Ball was fun to watch, the list continues.
We were intrigued and were very inspired by the performance of these athletes. Their passion to their chosen sport, their focus, their hard work, and their physical as well as mental strength was beyond what I can comprehend. Some of the gymnasts were as young as 15 years old but with all the passion, dedication and focus that is beyond their maturity level.
What is it that drives them to get up every day and go through all the mental and physical pain to practice, practice and practice? What drives them to give every ounce of their passion to the sport of their choice? What if after years of practice end up loosing the competition? what makes them get up and do the same work all over again? What enables them to take all that risk? What tics them every day to continue pushing against all the odds?
As I pondered through these questions, they made me see with in my self. If we all were as dedicated, focused, hard working, willing to take risks, willing to go through pain if necessary, willing to challenge ourselves to the maximum, the world around us would be a better place. The family we lead, our work environment, the grades at school, the ministries at Church, the business we run, on and on and on... would have much higher quality.
What is your passion in life? And what are you doing about it? get up and pour all your energy and focus into it. Because if you do so; the "Gold medals" of life could be waiting for you. Or else, you will be sitting on the "bench" of life for a while. As thecliché goes , " NO PAIN, NO GAIN!"
