OVERCOMING ADVERSITY SERIES (4)

THE POWER OF PERSPECTIVE

Adversity is inevitable; all of us are set to face setbacks and various challenges in life. No one is exempt. It is only the dead who do not experience any challenges. Challenges are for the living. Job, the ancient biblical sage observed, “Man born of a woman is of a few days and full of troubles” (Job 14:1). There is always going to be challenges and obstacles to overcome but we will come up tops, if we maintain a proper perspective of the situation.

How we choose to view our circumstances and our challenges in life determines both our direction and our outcome. In other words, your perspective today will determine both your destination and rewards, or otherwise tomorrow.

Everyone can have an optimistic outlook on life when all is going well. However, many people resort to a pessimistic outlook on life when in adversity. The way you choose to handle present difficulties will impact on your future outcomes. You can both wallow in misery and dwell on the negative aspects of your situation or you can find the benefit or lesson that the problem is offering.

If you are to experience any success you will need to position your mindset for it. See yourself solving the problem you are confronted with and succeeding. When you do this, even in the midst of adversity, you will find solutions and you will achieve success.

Choose Your Perspective

We have no control over a lot of things in life. We don't get to choose our parents or the circumstances of our birth and upbringing. But we do choose our perspective. We have the power to determine our perspective on life. Our perspective must not necessarily mirror our circumstances, especially, if these are less than ideal. In other words, our perspective doesn't have to be a mere reflection of the moment we are currently experiencing.

You can bring change to your situation by the way you choose to see it. The quality of what you see depends on the perspective from which you see it.

See moments of crisis or adversity as an opportunity to make something greater happen. I understand the Chinese word for crisis is weiji, made up of two words – wei, which means danger and ji, which means opportunity. It is up to you to choose on which side of the divide you fall. Don’t think about what adversity has taken from you. Instead think of what you have and what you can do.

Friend, you are never without hope in any adversity. There is always a way out. Napoleon Hill observed that, “Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.”

When we shift how we look at something, we open the door to new possibilities. There’s always a flip side to the difficulty. You see, a “problem” is often not a problem at all. It may actually be an opportunity. For instance, a problem may point out an adjustment you can make to improve certain conditions in your life. Without the problem, you never would have taken this positive action.

There is a tale about these two shoe salesmen who travel to a third world country in search of new business opportunities. One man calls his wife the moment he lands, telling her, “Honey, I’m coming back home. There’s no hope here. Nobody here is wearing shoes, so there’s no one to sell to.” He boards the next flight home.

The second man calls his wife and says, “Honey, you wouldn’t believe what I found here. There is so much opportunity. No one here is wearing shoes. I can sell to the whole country!”

See how powerful perspective is. The first man could not notice the huge opportunity because he did not have the right perspective of the situation. The other saw the same situation yet saw great opportunity because he interpreted the situation differently.

Ever read the Bible story about the twelve spies that were sent out to spy the land of Canaan (Numbers chapters 13 & 14)? Ten brought an evil report which stirred a whole nation negatively. Caleb and Joshua were the only two who had a good report. All twelve saw the same thing but two had a different perspective to what they saw. The Bible says, ‘they had another spirit.’ In other words they had a different way of looking at things.

They assigned a different meaning to what confronted them. They chose to walk by faith and not by sight. They did not deny the reality of what was before them; they only proffered a different view and meaning to that reality. They chose to follow God’s promise and refused to let their circumstances dictate to them what they should see and do.

Dear friend, the way you look at things (events, situations, circumstances) and the meaning you give to it goes a long way in determining the decisions and choices you make. In other words, your perspective influences your decisions.

Decide to see and interpret things differently from what is. When you do that you will empower yourself to take total charge of your life and influence your environment positively, as opposed to your environment influencing you. Get some fresh eyes and look at the same thing as it is but understand it differently.

It is important to note that success or failure is not determined by the number of challenges we face, rather by the way we choose to view and approach our challenges. Will you take the “lemons” of life and make lemonade with them or will you suck on them and make a sour face?

You can turn your perspective into a tool to overcome your present challenges or a tool to perpetuate them. So, your perspective can make or break you. You choose!

May God help you choose the right perspective in every situation you find yourself; for therein, is your victory. Every blessing...

OVERCOMING ADVERSITY SERIES 3

The Power of Gratitude

“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

Gratitude is one of the most powerful tools at our disposal to overcome adversity and create a desirable future. It is easy to be thankful when everything is going on well in your life. How about when things are not going on well in our lives?

If you are overwhelmed right now by challenges in your life, it can be really difficult to find things to be grateful for. When life seems to be dumping hardships all over you, feeling grateful may seem as something far beyond reach for anyone.

So, how can someone stay thankful when adversity visits?
Start by being thankful for what you have. You need to recognise what you have if we are to experience the victory you desire over adverse circumstances. You are never without anything...there is always something you can be thankful for. Always!

When adversity visited Job (he lost everything except his life and his wife in one day), his initial response was to show appreciation to God and bless Him. Take a read:

"Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, and said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” (Job 1:20-21)

When Apostle Paul and his associate were beaten and cast into prison for doing no wrong, they did not allow their crisis to put them down. They praised God in that situation and God brought them deliverance.

“And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed” (Acts 16:25-26).

We can use the same example (call it strategy, if you like) to experience our desired change. Complaining and blaming all other is not going to help you overcome the situation. It will rather perpetuate it. But when you unleash the spirit of gratitude you will feel empowered to take charge of your life.

When faced with adversity, decide to appreciate what you already have. Your appreciation will help you build the capacity to learn, grow and overcome, not only in the face of adversity, but because of it.

So, when you feel like things are not going the way you want, that you haven’t got what you want, that things seem not to be turning out as you intended or desire, try this: Focus your attention on what you do have. If you focus intentionally on what you have in your life that you value, you create new value. In other words, you will find new and greater significance for it. To put it simply, what you appreciate, appreciates.

On the other hand, if you focus your thought and attention on what you might have lost as a result of adversity, you will feel incapacitated and that will only serve to magnify the problem and prolong the pain. You will be robbed of the power to initiate change and thus perpetuate the problem, if not made worse.

Focus rather on things you are thankful for. As you begin to focus on the resources you have (for example, supportive friends and family, your ability to think, your education and training, etc) for which you are thankful, you open yourself up to new opportunities and possibilities.

When you cultivate an attitude of gratitude, you will not only transform your world, but also the world of those around you.

I see God do for you what he did for Paul and the others as you put on the attitude of gratitude irrespective of your circumstances. You shall experience divine help. Have a great day, and look forward to the next post in this series. (See also my blog post on "Be Thankful").
Every blessing...

OVERCOMING ADVERSITY SERIES 2

THE POWER OF CHOICE

In his book, Man’s Search for Meaning, Dr. Victor Frankl wrote: “...everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of all human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” So we are never without power. While we cannot choose our conditions, we are entirely free to choose our response to those conditions.

When adversity visits your life, you have two choices: to be a victim or to be a victor. Either we choose to be responsible for the life we create or we shirk our responsibility by blaming others or events for our failures and unhappiness.

Those who choose to be victims allow life circumstances to get them down, and they spend their lives asking others to redress the grievances life has dealt them. Victims are needy and demand to be served.

On the other hand, those who choose to be victors don't find life to be a struggle. They find it to be exhilarating. They don't encounter problems; they merely face things they wish to change. When they find something blocking their way, they look for a way to get around it or to overcome it. In a word, they look for, and find, solutions.

Victims are experts at looking for excuses. They almost delight in finding others and events to blame. Instead of looking for solutions, they doggedly search for excuses. They blame anything or anyone else for their problems. They refuse to get involved in finding a solution because they are, after all, victims.

People who believe they are victims say that the only way for their lives to change for the better is when other people get better, or if the socio-economic and political environment improves. They give a plethora of excuses to explain why they are in their very situation. Just listen to them talk and you will know their thinking and mindset.

The truth is, for as long as we keep thinking that it is not our fault, that it’s someone’s or something else’s, we will continue to feel helpless and powerless. By continuing to play the victim, we will completely be at the mercy of our environment or situation. We rob ourselves of so much power (the power to initiate change) by playing the victim. Most of the time the outside world will not change...not until we change first!

Victors, on the other hand, rise above the challenges they encounter. They rebound from life's hardships with newfound strength, and they use their strength to overcome their situation and serve those around them.

“People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can't find them, make them.” – George Bernard Shaw

Why do so many people choose to be the victim? The reason, I guess, is that we get lots of sympathy, don't we? We also want to feel assured that we were in the right by justifying our own actions. Though it seems beneficial, the cost of doing so is high. The fact is, for as long as people convince themselves to be the victims of circumstance, blame something or someone else, they will never be able to take charge, learn from their experiences, move on and change their lives for the better.

Becoming a victim to your circumstances or situation is a choice. It really is! You can rise up today and choose to be a victor. May the Lord empower you with divine wisdom and strength to help you rise above your current challenges. You are a Victor, and not a Victim. Every blessing...

OVERCOMING ADVERSITY SERIES 1

Triumphing Over Adverse Conditions

A crisis is an event, or a circumstance, or a situation that impacts and influences your life, over which you have no control, or you are not the cause of, or responsible for.

There are different kinds of crises – financial, family, business, personal, health, etc. Whatever crisis you encounter, you can overcome. In other words, you can succeed in dealing with that problem, or difficulty, or misfortune and effectively change your circumstances for the better. The challenge really is in knowing how to overcome those conditions and live victoriously after.

Adversity is Unavoidable
It is imperative for one to recognise that adversity is part and parcel of life. Everywhere you look there are challenging situations - pain, loss, suffering, stress, and other difficulties. Some mistakenly think that by virtue of being Christians they are somewhat exempt from adversity. King David observed that “many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers him out of them all” (Psalm 39:19).

Jesus never promised anyone a trouble-free life. He told His disciples, “...in this world you will have trouble...” (John 16:33). So, regardless of one’s consecration adversity may hit you. One’s faith in God doesn’t necessarily exempt you from adverse situations; it rather positions you for continual triumph.

Now, if adversity is unavoidable, then we must know how to deal with it when we encounter them. King Solomon reveals that, "if thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small" (Proverbs 24:10). In other words, if you give in to discouragement and despair in the day of adversity (time of trial, or temptation or crisis), then your strength is small. So your ability to withstand adversity and overcome is directly linked to the measure of strength you posses.

Ancient Greek philosopher Epictetus once said: “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” I couldn't agree with him more.

In this presentation, my intention is to deliver into your hands tools you can use to surmount your present challenges and bring to pass your desired change. So, please come with me and let’s take a look in the toolbox and learn how we can effectively apply these power tools.

I will put each power tool under The Overcoming Adversity Series heading. I hope you find the information helpful. Watch out for the next post in the series on The Power of Choice. May God strengthen you to live victoriously. Every blessing...

BE THANKFUL

“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” – (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

It is easy to be thankful when everything is going on well in your life. How about when things are not going on well in our lives? We tend to focus on those who seem to have it all, while worrying and complaining about our situation. We talk about what we don’t have, what could have been or what should be. You see, if the grass is greener on the other side, the water bill might be high too. You only need to look around very well to see how fortunate you are compared to others.

We must learn to be thankful for what we have in life even though that might not be all we desire. Someone has said that accepting your lot in life is not about resigning yourself to unhappiness; it’s about not wasting time wishing for what you do not have. American deaf-blind author, political activist and lecturer, Helen Keller, echoes similar sentiments when she said: “So much has been given to me; I have not time to ponder over that which has been denied.”

Each time you find yourself complaining about something, re-direct your focus to something you are grateful for. Make a habit of transforming your awareness of troubles into an awareness of abundance. Apostle Paul advises: “in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

I concede that certain life circumstances and events can be so bad and soul crushing that sometimes one wonders if there is really a God of love. I guess what Apostle Paul is saying is that be thankful, not for the event itself but for the grace to go through it. Friend, God will not allow you to go through something for which he knows you have no capacity to handle.

1 Corinthians 10:13 says: “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.” Again he says: “…God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8)

It is even more reassuring and refreshing that God’s intention even in an unpleasant situation is to turn it to our advantage. Listen to Apostle Paul: “…we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

Friend, there is something you have when you think you have nothing. If you look hard enough you will find it and be grateful. Gratitude opens us up to new opportunities and possibilities. Go on...and be thankful!

RISK IS THE NEW SAFETY

A ship in harbour is safe, but that is not what ships are built for – John A. Shedd.

Risk is not the word anyone wants to hear. A lot of us are averse to risk because it is scary, uncertain and unpredictable. I often hear friends say, “Play it safe.” Though an advice well intentioned it wouldn’t help in anyway if I were to fulfil my potential.

“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. Security does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than exposure.” – Helen Keller

When you stay too long at the shore, you never discover new horizons. Andre Gide said it better when he noted: “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” I have found that taking risk opens us up to new ideas, skills, opportunities and experiences. Risk helps us to develop our strengths and talents. Risk allows us to grow and discover new things about the world and ourselves, which we never would if we have stayed where we were and not dared to venture out.

“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” – Walt Disney

One of the major reasons why people fail to actualise their dreams or achieve their goals is their inability to take risks because of the fear of failure. They fear they would be criticised or rejected if they fail. Fear incapacitates. Most people do not achieve a fraction of what they are capable of achieving because they are afraid to try and they are afraid they will fail. Those, who achieve the extraordinary, look beyond their fears, and pursue their dreams, they see failure as outcomes or results, not as failure.

Ancient Greek historian and author, Thucydides, once remarked that “the bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it.”

French author, adventurer and statesman, Andre Malraux, also observed that: “Often the difference between a successful person and a failure is not that one has better abilities or ideas, but the courage that one has to bet on one’s ideas, to take a calculated risk – and to act.”

Mark Twain, the great American novelist, knew about the importance of taking risk when he said, “Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Any wonder God twice told Joshua to be strong and courageous (Joshua 1:6, 9)? I believe you don't possess the promise without it.

To go forward in the face of overwhelming odds, is to risk failure. Focused on possibility and not failure. Focus on the vision, the goal and its rewards. Focus on the promise that God has given you. For faithful is He who promised and he also will do it. Only be strong and courageous.

Stay empowered, and elevated. Cheers!

What Real Leaders Don't Do

One thing real leaders don't do is to give excuses and fight for them; they create results. They understand that to fight for one's excuses is to be robbed of power to transform. It is not fighting a good fight.

Just take a listen to some of our civil and political leaders speak on certain issues and your heart will break beyond repair. Instead of proffering solutions to current challenges, they tend to explain away the problems. Real leaders don't make excuses; they create results.

Friend, if you're going to live the life of your dreams, then you have to do away with excuses. For no one ever built a great life on the foundation of excuses. The doorway to greatness is not unlocked by giving excuses however 'legitimate' they may be.

When you cultivate the habit of giving excuses, you rob yourself of enormous power. The more you fight for your excuses and don't do away with them, the more they will own you and rob you of power. The moment you let your excuses go, you step into power.

A lot of the things we proffer as an excuse are creations of our own imaginations. They are illusions, to say the least. Listen to the ancient sage: The lazy man says, “There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion is in the streets!” Proverbs 26:13 (New King James Version)

Excuses negate responsibility. I guess it's one of the reasons why we love to engage in it. When you are faced with a problem, you have to accept responsibility for it and look for ways to turn it into opportunities for change. Apportioning blame is not going to help matters in anyway. It is when you accept responsibility that you step into power.

Yes, it's could be a fact that it wasn't your fault, but blaming others and circumstances isn't going to help you either. It can give you a momentary psychological and emotional relief. It is when you accept responsibility that you will own the situation. Your creative juices will begin to flow as you seek out solutions, not culprits.

Folks who abandoned their pursuits to problems were only interested in such endeavours. When you are committed to a task, you do everything to see to it's definite conclusion. Renowned author and motivational speaker, Art Turock said it better when he noted: "There is a great difference between interest and commitment. When you're interested in doing something, you do it only when circumstance permit. When you're committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results."

How committed are you to your life vision? how committed are you to the goals you've set for this year?

Don't find an excuse for how little, if any, progress you have made; find a way. Don't make excuses; make a plan and take corrective action. Do take the ultimate responsibility for where you are, and for where you want to be.

Do not rationalise your challenges...Rise up and take charge, Now! No more excuses! You are empowered. Cheerio...