You Are Not Less Than What You Ought To Be - Part 2

“The greatest discovery in life is self-discovery. Until you find yourself you will always be someone else. Become yourself.” - Dr Myles Munroe

Identity Crisis

As I continue from where I stopped in part one of this subject “You Are Not Less Than What You Ought To Be”. I want to delve into the importance of "knowing our Identity". 

My dear reader I strongly believe that when you know who you are, no one can manipulate you and it puts you in a position to rise above every challenge. Joseph was thrown into the pit and sold into slavery but that did not deter what he would become. He remained a faithful servant even when he was jailed. He had already had dreams and conceived the revelation who was and what he would become, this is an amazing story that is told over and over and it reminds us that there is so much at stake but we need not fear but rise to the occasion.

There is an Identity crisis and this is something we shouldn’t shy away from. There are young or old people who still haven’t discovered who they are. They have modeled their lives on someone else’s life (the way they walk, talk, dress, act etc). The peril of comparison is fueling this more than ever, because people have refused to be content with how they were created and aren’t appreciating their uniqueness. They are copy cats and that's a bad thing.

When you search the internet, you get to find that people are spending billions of money to look a certain way, women are doing plastic surgery to change the way they look, I happened to stumble on a video of a person who spent millions of dollars to look like Angelina Jolie and another to look like Brad Pitt, these so called stars have made their own names and done whatever it takes to take their craft to greater heights that's why they are celebrated, others are trying to emulate them but they are doing it the wrong way by photocopying.

In part one of thearticle, I said this, “Sometimes we need to show people their worth and tell them, what others do, they too can do and only do it better". In telling them so, we are igniting a fire and a passion for them to rise up from the pit of despair to the top of the mountain of possibilities.

Story of Arthur G. Gaston, Black Titan (Making of A Black American Millionaire)

In this book, the authors Carol Jenkins and Elizabeth Gardner Hines wrote; -

Some of the men you see and cannot see are convicts, leased out by the state to bring in revenues; some are war veterans, newly returned to face few opportunities and ample disdain. Nevertheless, one of these men, bruised like all the others by the demands of his working life, is on the verge of taking his first step in the direction of becoming a bona fide millionaire—one hundred times over.

Before this man is through, he will serve as an adviser to President John Kennedy. He will play a pivotal movement. One day he will even be likened to the great giants of American industry—Rockefeller, Morgan, and Carnegie among them. Like just about every other black man in Alabama in the early part of the twentieth century,

Arthur G. Gaston started with next to nothing: His mother was a cook in the kitchen of a prominent white family; he never had more than a tenth-grade education. After the war he had taken his position in the mines as a means of survival—only to emerge utterly determined that his life was worth more than what the mines were offering. In Summary, he broke the status quo, he undid stereo types in a time of high slavery, he traded the path that many did not walk, he was involved in (banking, insurance, motel, restaurant, real estate, construction, funeral homes and cemeteries, radio stations, senior housing, and a business college). He was involved and supported the civil rights movement lead by Martin Luther King jr, he supported financially and in many other ways.

“What I did any man can do, if he has willpower, determination and a plan” - Arthur G. Gatson,

 From the story of this man, we get to understan

1. He was a product of the slave parents and being a slave means so many things, less opportunities, oppression etc.
2. He never had a tenth grade education.
3. He worked in the mines as a means of survival.

 To read more about Arthur G. Gaston, you can get this book from Amazon.

Knowing who you are pushes you to discover your purpose

His story doesn’t stop there, while working in the mines for survival, he gets a revelation that his life was worth more than what the mines were offering. Such revelations come to this who view themselves differently, those who get to really know who they are. I am stretching the point of IDENTITY, what can stop you if you get to know who you are, I believe nothing. When you get to know who you are, it pushes you to discover more of yourself and in doing so, you eventually get to know your purpose.

Believe in who you are, focus on who you are, don’t live somebody else’s life – you are unique, embrace it

Have you looked down on yourself, have you believed that you were just created a biomass and for nothing, have you believed that you have no purpose, all those thoughts are lies, you were made for more and the dreams you have had are valid, the ideas you have thought about to solve problems of this world are valid. As much as you haven’t started to work your dream out, it doesn’t mean you can’t start now. My dear reader, you are valuable, you have so much worth, so much potential, choose to empty yourself and let your god given talents and abilities begin to flow. You are not less than what you ought to be. I read this somewhere, “If you are a fish then don't spend your life trying to climb trees, you will never be great at it. Just keep swimming”.

Check out part 3

#Impact #Empower #Transform

Be A Generational Thinker

Generations come and go. Some people set the pace for hundreds of years while others destroy the future for many. Our actions are a direct proportion of what we sow for our immediate, near, and long term future. Blessings flow through generations because of acts of obedience and curses flow because of acts of disobedience.

When I think about Abraham, his decision to live his family and follow what God had told him to do that is something of great faith. He left and went to a place the Lord would show him. Getting to the unknown by a God who knows, is a pure act of faith, He trusted in God's ability to lead him to the promise that would come after many years.

We have seen corruption eat up the wealth of many people, it has disadvantaged and ravaged the lives of many. Many of the corrupt decisions have left many hungry, poor, and with services broken down. We have seen over the years that our direct actions have a bearing not only on our lives but on the lives of those attached to us (family) and to the community and nation at large. When a road is made where there was no way, it doesn’t only benefit one person, it benefits generations. When a well is dug, it benefits generation (Case in point are the wells Abraham dug, Isaac came and had to dig them up again and found water). Reflect on every decision you make; it can shape or break the future.

While checking through my WhatsApp messages, Andrew Odoch Umahtete sent me an audio message. It was I think one of the best messages I could listen to as I ended the month of January. I am passionate about re-writing family history and doing things that will enable the future of not just my family but those I come in contact with being better. I am sold out to share my life with young people and tell them that they don’t have to repeat my mistakes but learn from the lessons of others. I am about Impacting, Empowering, and Transforming.

The message I listened to was about generational thinking. I searched the internet to find out who spoke about it and found out it was Dr Mensa Otabil, He is a man from Ghana who leads the International Gentral Gospel Church. The message was so empowering I thought I could write an article to highlight a few things that caught my attention.

A Story About Tetteh Quarshie

In his Sermon, he talked about how Ghana became the leading exporter of Cocoa.

•  In the early 1800s he went as a plantation farmer (almost a slave), left the shores of  Ghana, undertook a voyage to the Spanish colony Fernando Po (now Bioko in Equatorial Guinea). About six years later he returned to Ghana with several cocoa beans (the Amelonado) and made history.
• Dr. Mensa said that he wasn’t a mid-level or high-level worker, he was just a worker 
• With the few Cocoa seeds with him, he settled in Mampong,
• He planted his first seeds in 1879 but did not have much success very early. At that time two bags were exported. The export of Cocoa from Ghana began in 1891, and the official export in 1893 (two bags exported – source Wikipedia)
• It is written in Wikipedia that soon other farmers followed suit and that Basel Missionaries stepped into the picture by importing large quantities of the cocoa seeds into the country.
• Between 1910 and 1980 Ghana was the world's largest exporter.
• In Ghana Cocoa industry became foundation of the economy
•  More than 40% of export earnings come from cocoa

He said the reason why he was giving these statistics is because One Man Carried the Economy of the Country On His Shoulders

In regards to what is written about, Dr Mensa Otabil Points out that

A Generational Thinker (Visionary): -

•          Is able to sow seeds for the future.
•          Is not only someone who is committed to what he wants to enjoy today but someone who says if I run with this race, I must make sure the next generation doesn’t run my race but its race in a better way.
•          Doesn’t think only of his personal needs.
•         Must plan for four generations ahead of him or think of the next person on the line.
•         For everything he or she does, he must think of the person coming after them. They should find it easier and greater than the way it was.
•          Invest in the future – he talked of things like saving for your children so that they can have a starting point.
•         Buys land, not just for themselves but for their children and children’s children.
•         Carries their own burden, so that someone else doesn’t have to carry theirs.

He said, “If we are going to take charge of the future, we have to be generational thinkers”. He also mentioned that “We cannot neglect personal responsibility in building the future of our families, society and the nation at large, if we all play our part, we can prepare the future in a better way for many.” Mensah said that we wouldn’t be fighting some of the battles that we are fighting today. Fights of unemployment because of decisions based on corruption, fights like not renting for a long time but leaving a rental after 5 years and going to your own place or buying your own apartment.

You could be a generational thinker and a hero like Tetteh Quarshie. Be The Hero of Generations to come just like Martin Luther King Jr, Billy Graham, Wright Brothers, Nelson Mandela, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington Carver, Henry Sampson, Kwame Nkrumah, Arch Bishop Janan Luwum, etc. Please listen to the video over here

Don’t Let Your Pursuit of Wealth Affect Your Integrity – It Could Lead To Destruction

Proverbs 21:6 Wealth created by a lying tongue is a vanishing mist and a deadly trap.

The pursuit of wealth, if not directed under the guidance and stewardship of God can be very very dangerous. My dear reader it has been clearly written that the love for money is the root of all evil. We need to note clearly that it says “The love for money and not that money is evil”. Loving money is different from lacking it but also those who lack it can be pushed to limits to do whatever it takes to get it. It is both dangerous to love money and to lack it, that’s why we need to know the truth behind this thing called money, you will find that there is so much about this thing that the bible even says it answers all things.

During the course of 2016, someone told me and my friend that we would amount to nothing, the person mentioned that it was hard to do deals with us because we are "Christians". He also said that we could never grow rich or wealthy. In my heart, I declared that I am richer than the money in my pocket or in my bank account. I know that I am rich in values and virtues that are strongly apart of my everyday Christian walk. I know that the God I serve owns everything and that he gives me the power to create wealth. God’s power to create wealth is genuine, it isn’t corrupt, it isn’t extortion. 

His word talks of how when you are diligent in work and what God has called me to do, it leads to wealth and also talks of how laziness brings about poverty. All I need to know is how to use these God-given skills and truths in a full application in my everyday life. 

I know that without goods and services to people, money won't come to me, I also know that if I don't engage in the production of anything that adds value to the lives of people then money still won't come, I know for a fact that God has to be my number priority to guide me in my everyday affairs, I also know that I need to show that God has called me to fruitfulness, not just claiming a good life of cars, nice houses, etc without applying due diligence, people covet, claim, wish and do nothing about working, they will even tell you I don't have to work, I am already blessed, otherwise, we wouldn't be using the internet to share all these things, if the inventor sat back and did not do what he was inspired to do the world wouldn't be connected on the web.

We wouldn't be using cell phones If Henry Sampson, the inventor of Cellular Phones also sat back. It is because of this man that I can talk on my phone from Uganda to anyone in the Southern Pacific or deep down in Switzerland. We need to create products, services that add value to the lives of people, when people are in need of them, you get paid. We should engage our minds to think and avoid the concept of things coming freely, yet we can work and be fruitful as God requires of us.

I happened to sit in the counsel of an elder. She told me a story about her workplace. In her workplace, people did not like her because of her faith. She was a very integral person who kept her books of account very well. She was very hard to bribe and she was even threatened with death countless times. One day one of her colleagues asked her to do the wrong thing and she vehemently refused. This man she was telling me about had been extorting money of people by creating accounts with names of people who don't exist, some long-dead (ghost employees). He stole enough money and money from those who were also still alive.

He set out to build his house and while his was constructing. It is said that the house was built in such a way that the builders did not use the right measurements. They actually stole from him as well what he stole from people. As his house was finished he was bidding his landlord farewell, no sooner had he entered his new house than it came crumbling down. He had left his rented place and also had no where to stay since his house was no more (Double Tragedy).

David Cameron, British PM at the time said, "If the amount of money stolen out of Nigeria in the last 30 years was stolen in the UK, then the UK would not exist again". This is a strong statement and it shows that our actions if not sanctioned can lead to total destruction.

I think what the writer says in Proverbs 21:6 is so true wealth created by a lying tongue is a vanishing mist and a deadly trap. This man lost his money and his house, what a way to be repaid?

I want to encourage us to purpose to grow but grow little by little. Get rich schemes, conning, bribing people, killing people to extort money are some of the deadliest traps that can happen to a human being. You would rather be what Proverbs 19:1 says “Better to be poor and honest than to be dishonest and a fool.” It is written there is a way that seems right to a man but its end is destruction, follow the way of righteousness and not your own ways.

#Impact #Empower #Transform

Is Reading Part Of Your Culture

Proverbs 18:15 Intelligent people are always ready to learn.

Their ears are open for knowledge.

I hope you are all doing good. I believe that in one way or another, we are doing whatever it takes to be financially educated.

I recently read somewhere that Chinese people between 40 to 65 years of age are responsible for most of their savings. We all know that probably the one child policy at the time pushed these guys to even save more since they had no major expenses in terms of large families and such money is able to take them through their retirement or old age.

Robert Kiyosaki had to say this about financial education "Today financial knowledge is more powerful than a gun or the whips and shackles of slavery. The lack of financial education enslaves billions of people in all parts of the world." 

We all know from the wise saying, "My people perish for lack of knowledge". To liberate yourself from ignorance and enslavement of the mind - Read, read, read. If you can take at-least 30 minutes a day to study something in regards to this area of finances or something that you are interested, then you will be educating yourself. We all know that this subject of financial education will or might never appear in school curricular but we have to go out and seek such knowledge.

The writer in proverbs said it clearly, Intelligent people are always ready to learn, their ears are open to knowledge, I hope you are in this bracket and seeking to improve yourself so that you can help others as well. We all can't be blind, it can be devastating.

This is what My Uncle, George William Nyeko said about financial habits in regards to retirement, he was quoted in one of the articles written in the New Vision this past weekend. He said, "Why would anyone consider they will be broke after they are retired? Financial habits are not formed during retirement. Being broke during retirement means you were broke before." 

We have read this quote  before from Dave Ramsey, that "Personal finance is 80% behavior and 20% head knowledge", our financial habits have to be checked. Are you consuming more than you are investing? Are you rejecting knowledge more than investing in your mind? 

Let us seek out wisdom to win in life, read the bible first, it is the best book, read biographies, read books written by experts in this area, read the news papers. Warren Buffet was asked about his greatest secret, he said that it was voracious reading, this is a trait of many successful people they are rich in knowledge.

#Transform #Impact #Empower

Money Shouldn't Be Your Master.

The love for money over the ages has strongly taken root in the lives of both the young and old people.

Young children are growing in a culture where they believe everything comes with the press of a button, to make it worse parents are not doing much to tame their appetite for things, the schools they go to are also fueling the lifestyle of spending like crazy on different activities that appear on the school curricular.

People have chosen to serve money rather than money serve them, we know how important money is but we know that it's grip upon our lives has caused a lot of damage. This love for money has led to a self-centered life, people want to accumulate everything for themselves, it is good to have things but if you are possessed by them then the reality is that they are a god in your life.

Even the poor person who lacks money is doing whatever it takes to come out of that slump, however, the purpose for coming out of poverty is driven by the demands of showing off in society, being a somebody, people have engaged in drug trafficking, gambling (betting), illicit money deals like prostitution which sometimes isn't their choice but because it could help someone come out of poverty. People are doing money laundering. All kinds of bribery and corrupt deals are making those who already have to want even more so that they can be in control.

Some people believe that having a lot of money gives them status, the pride of life just takes a grip on them. They know that with money, they can be somebody, if the money is to show and not be used to transform your society then it's really a waste of time. Some of the people with the most money can even be in neighborhoods suffering and they need to be lifted up, they want to be begged to support any venture instead of coming out with what God has blessed them with to be a blessing. We should never hoard money, it should be used for the right purpose.

It has been said before that money is a bad master but a good servant. We all need to know that if we don't control this thing called money, it ends up controlling us. Some of the things that can tell you that money is controlling you, is:-

1. When you don't want to let go of it, it has a strong grip over
2. When you overthink about money and can do whatever it takes through corruption, bribery and many treacherous things to get it.
3. When you find yourself buying out of impulse, you left your home and went out to buy something on your budget however you came back with much more than you had planned for.
4. When you find your desire for the good life, achievements, possessions is ruling you, this has been fueled by the media and TV shows we watch, you end up watching this Reality Shows and you wonder when they will ever show when these guys are at work, the presumption then is that we can sit back and everything is OK, forgetting that we have to have work projects, engage in productivity etc. 
5. When you get a loan (Debt) to fuel a certain lifestyle even when your cash flows aren't the best, some end up borrowing from one place to another to settle different debt obligations, debt is one the biggest traps anyone can ever be in.

This is just to mention but a few.

When need to strongly know that if we put our trust in money, we have lost it all, the owner of all the money and other resources on this earth is God, so we must use money as a tool to achieve our purpose on this earth. You can't serve two masters, mammon and God. 

We are reminded by Solomon that we should only put our trust in God, there are many things we can do to put money under our authority.

Proverbs 11:28
Trust in your money and down you go!
But the godly flourish like leaves in spring.

#Impact #Empower #Transform

Watch What You Spend On – Don’t Get Trapped by The System and Culture

One of my goals this year is to watch what I spend on and see where necessary make cuts and translate that money into little amounts that can grow then eventually invest it, my spending must be purposeful and reasonable.

  

When we try to impress everyone, We need to know that people really don’t care, all they think about is themselves, you will probably say in your mind, how will people see me if I don’t have or do this, we need know that we shouldn’t do things to impress people but only to serve them. To live to the applause of people, that shows how trapped an individual is.

You will buy the latest iPhone and everyone will be like wow!! however, we need to  remember in a few months a new one will be released and the *wow* effect will be no more because the one in your hand is now old. The psychology used by the developers of these things is to keep us wanting and not really needing. 

The culture of spending is so ripe that people have put aside reasoning to tone down on expenditure, a wise man said that the adverts we see are geared to stir up emotions that cause discontentment in one’s life and they create in us the need for the advertised product with the promise that the product will bring about satisfaction. 

The business people thrive on the culture of consumerism and that is how rich they get while at the end of the day you have spent on something you did not need, people make money off us because we don't have proper plans and lack knowledge, our ignorance is their playing ground, the pressure to keep up with the status quo is pushing someone to say I have the best or I had the best. Howver, having the best will only remain in people's memories but have an impact on your financial future.

In December last year, a friend of mine told me of how they were going to cut costs in regards to a wedding he was going to attend. First of all, a digital card would be made and invites sent on WhatsApp using that card. 

I thought that was a brilliant idea in cost cutting. For the wedding, the things like decoration that take a lot of money, they would go for an open heaven with a few accessories here and there. They saved a lot of money instead of paying the usual $1300 which is equivalent 5m Ugx for decoration. Any way their choice was theirs but also smart, they were thinking about the marriage future instead of just a one-day event. 

I think we need to embody such mindsets as much as there is pressure to impress, remember people don’t really care even when the culture will say you can’t have a wedding of less than this or that. People are getting heavily indebted because of wedding costs, Our marriage counselor told us, save for your marriage and not just the wedding, those words made us plan wisely.

These powerful statements from a book I read recently have given me a much stronger resolve to be disciplined and plan my everyday life.

“The consumer culture in the world is part of the system. The world constantly bombards with things you need to spend money on. Products are packaged in attractive ways to appeal to your eyes. Advertisements, both obvious ones and the subtle ones, are constantly pushing you to spend money, enticing you with your own desires.” – Sunday Adelaja

With the culture of consumerism, an individual’s value is driven by material symbols. In this way the system ensures, no matter how much more you keep making you cannot satisfy all you want. 

The desire of the good life is pushing people to the edge because if they don’t attain this or that, they are aren’t a somebody. One of the worst things happening to some, is that they even save but then save to consume and not invest. People spend a whole year thinking of that summer holiday or vacation, they will do whatever it takes to have that money, when it is all spent, they are back to zero. 

We need to calm down and humble ourselves to understand that our lives are not worth what we possess, the richest things we should embody are values, our worth should be in eternal things, when we have such a mindset we won’t fall into the trap and choose to grow steadily but surely. We have messed up our futures because of instant gratification. But all hope is not lost, we can change the course of events by doing the right thing by starting to have a plan and living by it, is it saving, budgeting, knowing your expenses, investing, etc. Check out this article for more.

#Impact #Empower #Transform