You Opened My Eyes

“Your current status in life is always an indicator of how hardworking or slothful you were in the past. Hard work always speaks and reveals whether or not you wasted your life in slothfulness in the past” – Dr Sunday Adelaja

Throughout this year 2017, while walking in our neighborhood where I stay, I decided to be a blessing to someone close to me. While talking about everyday life, I challenged this person to believe in themselves and to know that it is not too late in life and that things can get on track. I told the person that we have so many opportunities around us and opportunities are presented in our everyday problems, our everyday needs and our everyday challenges and stresses of life. 

We keep dreaming about a better life and do nothing about it, we keep saying when I get this job or break through deal then things will be OK, the problem about this thinking is that it makes someone sit back with great hope but with nothing to show for their time while waiting for the big break through, yet their break through could actually come in converting their time into tangible results.

Opportunities Are in Problems

I talked to the person and told them how I have started looking at problems with a different perspective (see opportunities – blessings in disguise) but I told him that when we sit back and do nothing, we only add misery to the hip of our problems. I had just finished talking about OUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS MONEY AND THE VALUE OF HARD WORK on a Sunday service, so our talk evolved a lot around many of the things I had shared. 

I then told him see this space, we can do this and that together, we can partner in this kind of venture. I told him see these tree seedlings, someone who doesn’t have them might need them and for them to get it, they can pay you for it. So one day I told him to escort me to a project that my wife and I are doing, I then told him, put for me two seedlings of this tree in the trunk of the car. After we reached our destination, I told, “Here is your payment for the tree seedlings”. He looked at me and smiled and I told him, “Don’t be afraid to sell a product or a service, be very proud of what you do”. I then said, you planted these seedlings, you nurtured, you spent your time and energy, why should I take it for free as much as I know you can give it to me free, why not pay for your service and add value to your life.

Change In Attitude

A few months down the road. One of the ideas we had talked about started becoming tangible. It moved from just being an idea or words, we started putting the words into action. The most important thing that came out of our talk was attitude change. He would tell me, Arthur, “You talked about getting me money to put this up, here is where I can get this and that cheaply”. Even without much money in my pocket, I would get the little I had and would put it there. Every penny was recorded. We got pieces of wood, iron sheets, he already had nails and we built a poultry structure.

Today as I write this article my dear reader, we have a Poultry project and we sell local birds to people within our vicinity and it is doing well especially in this festive period. Change of attitude has demands, it calls for humility, it calls for coming out of your comfort zone, it calls for breaking routine and doing things in another way that brings results. It calls for appreciating the process because it is as important as the result.

One of the beautiful things about our partnership is that, he started telling me that he knew where he could get very good chicken this was because of his experience of working in the field, so even without injecting much capital to bring the chicken, the people he knew said that we could get the chicken and even pay later, this gave us energy. We managed to pay the guys from the source much later after we had made some sales.

Ideas Need To Be Put To Work

It is not enough for us to just talk, talk, talk and talk. Whatever ideas drop into our minds; those are indicators of what we should do, indicators of our purpose and calling for a given time. I am reminded him of a saying, that we are God’s workmanship created to do good works (Ephesians 2:10). So many times we sit back waiting on miracles to happen instead of making the miracles. A wise man once said that “No miracle can make you successful in life if you refuse to work hard”. Collin Powell said these powerful words, “A dream doesn’t become a reality through magic, it takes sweat, determination and hard work”

You Opened My Eyes

Right now my partner is onto another project, and all this is because he says that, “Arthur You Opened My Eyes”. I wouldn’t have opened his eyes if I did not believe in him, I wouldn’t have opened his eyes if I did not see that anything good can come out of him. I am eternally grateful that my time with this person has given him new energy to think beyond one project. To me it is a testimony that we should add value to a persons life, we should encourage and give hope to people, we should cause them to believe once again in God and in the abilities he has given them. 

Pictures Of What Of Some People In My Neighborhood To Be Are Doing

I saw the above pictures in my neighborhood and I concluded with this statements in my mind. “While others are complaining about how life is unfair, others are finding ways to make life better by using what they have, I would rather be the latter, nothing is insignificant unless you make it to be”

I would like to conclude with this quote from Dr Sunday Adelaja

“There was never a man in history who became a workaholic who did not succeed in life. Through hard work, all your dreams and inspirations in life can become a reality”

Let us be the eyes of our neighbors, Let us be the ears of our friends, Let us be the agents of change for our nations, let us work together, individually, corporately, in partnerships, in saving groups, investments groups to kick poverty of our lives, families, and respective countries.