YOUNG, YOUTH, YONDER.

Life is in phases and men are in sizes----------Bishop David Oyedepo

All protocols observed

All of history can be summarized in one word- Progress; we are not today what we were yesterday. Like Herodotus said: we cannot step into the same river twice. We cannot always be 18, 20, or 80; phases come and go in life just as the sun and the moon sets daily. There’s the time for harvest and the time for seed-sowing. There’s a time to be young (playful and childish, not been able to be independent), there’s a time to be a youth (the most important phase man’s development, where the capacities of our ability are developed and fully expressed for the blessedness of humanity. It is a curse upon any society to neglect its youth. There’s little hope for a nation that suppresses her youth. J. P Clark wrote about Casualties, I believe until the youth stop being the casualty in the country there’s little prospect for the development of our society and the advancement of the human race. Benjamin Franklin said most men from 25 years of age often have their dreams annihilated or killed. If you intend to determine the future of any society all that’s needed is for you to check its youth. We were often told in our school days that we are the leaders of tomorrow, surprisingly the assurance of tomorrow is unquestionable but would there be leaders for tomorrow?

The term Yonder here speaks of a preferable future, Marx spoke about a Utopian state of society, a representation of serenity, where justice and equity prevails, where economic prosperity becomes the order of the day. Yonder is the place of destiny of a people. Now, the passport to the yonder is the youth; that young man in the secondary school listening to his English teacher, the young lady in the University library reading Plato’s Republic, the young man carrying out a research on his project, even the young man combing the streets looking for a means of livelihood; all these persons have a fundamental role to play in the birthing of Change. All the dreams of a people are carried in the heart of its youthful population.

What must be done?

We must all arise as a people and swear an allegiance to the development of the lives of our youth, indeed we are not qualified to die until we have successfully spent our lives in service to humanity.

Indeed my heart has a burden it longs to express, in my spirit lies an utterance. My words go out to the youths just like in the words of Jesse Jackson: Keep Hope Alive, I adjure you today KEEP HOPE ALIVE, after the sunset there’s the sunrise, the Scripture says : the night is far spent, the day draws near, let us therefore cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. We must take responsibility for our future for no one else will do it for us, not the government, or the schools, not the banks; though these all have their respective roles to play. However, the onus lies on us; it is a collective responsibility as well as an individual responsibility. We can get to yonder place if we try and fight and never give up. Arise, Shine is the admonition, we must never relinquish our dreams, rather we should be willing to sacrifice who we are for who we intend to become….there are No Holds Barred. You were born to make a difference, don’t leave the earth without delivering what’s inside you.

 I Believe in You-th.

I’m a Youth Aflame.   

Thank You.

BREAKING FORTH INTO DESTINY.

Breaking forth into your destiny…….

Breaking forth into your destiny begins with an understanding of the scope of your journey in life. For every man there is a mandate. Your purpose is empowered by your vision………

Every Vision given is a response to a burden in the heart. The Burdens drives a person to searching, studying, inquiry and Prayer. Most times the vision is meant to solve the problems of a people, nation and society. There are key features as it relates to vision: Release, Running and Realization.

The greatest gift God gave to man is not the gift of sight; it is the gift of vision.             Myles Munroe

what do you see?........

The man Jeremiah was asked ‘what do you see?’ What you see determines what you’ll get, that’s why God often times shows us Visions. He often shows the end from the beginning for He calls those things that be not as though they were. Jeremiah saw an almond tree, Jesus saw the joy that was set before him, Stephen saw the Heavens opened, Paul saw a crown laid up for him, Bill Gates saw the each home having an operating system.

Between the moments of the Release and the Realisation there is the place of Running. It is impossible to arrive at a destination without first taking a step. The delivered vision is always writable; a vision is not just an idea, thoughts or flashes, or rays of imagination, illusions or allusions. They are like paths on a race track, like a railway line. It is writable. The first place to give evidence to the vision is on paper. When the vision is released it is only a ‘it’ (at this point it is lifeless, no breath has been infused). Every vision is precise and does not lack definition. Vision means writing what you see, not saying what is seen, and it becomes a sign post that guides the path of life. Inotherwords, it is only to be written but read. Attention must be given to reading it constantly.

A vision released in the now is to meet a need of the future, hence it is for a time appointed, but there is an end, a point of the fulfilment of the released vision. There is a starting line and finishing line in every race (Chinese Proverb). At first the vision is only in a lifeless ‘it’ but when lives of men are impacted by the vision it begins to speak. Testimonies of transformed lives are the proof of the success of a vision. Patience is a necessary virtue to possess in the walk towards the fulfilment of the vision. Since the vision is a response to a need, it longs to be met and by so though even if it delays it will surely come.

No man who receives a vision should be puffed up; the revelation of the vision is to aid proper preparation for the run towards attainment. There is no room for pride, arrogance, or hastiness. Declaring to be a candidate for an electoral office does not guarantee your winning. The character of the recipient should be meekness, soberness and temperance which guide the course of action. Oftentimes the vision depicts things that you cannot do ordinarily. It is a task that cannot be achieved by sheer guts but first you must BELIEVE. It is your believing that guarantees your Becoming. Therefore, the Just (those who count themselves as having received through God’s own desire this vision) live by faith. The Faith here is a combination of Believing + Action. It propels the receiver to move.

BELIEVING + ACTION= FAITH 

The vision becomes totally unprofitable when the recipient does not believe it. The world will continually deteriorate when men refuse to either receive or run with their visions. God has wired us to discover not speculate about our purpose in life. Darkness will prevail if you refuse to shine as light, bitterness will destroy men when there is no salt or when it has lost its savour.

Today the vision of Martin Luther King Jr speaks, the vision of Kenneth E. Hagin speaks, the vision of Bishop Oyedepo speaks, Bill Gates, Steve Jobbs. Imagine a United States where blacks would have been sidelined forever, a world without Oyedepo would have made dead and without faith.

Perhaps only the graveyard and cemeteries would tell the tingling tales of great men who never took up the mantle of their vision, whose light were never lit and those who refuse to take responsibility for their future. A life without vision is a burden; it makes you dependent on others.

The run is not aimless or directionless, it is to obtain. To attain you have to fight a good fight of faith. It is a fight against obstacles, challenges and against personal weaknesses. You vision makes you an example, a prototype, a representation of what you carry. People should see the evidence of what you speak about.

Perhaps, there is a book you’ll love to write about, a song you’ll like to sing, a course you desire to study, don’t sit around waiting for change, stand up and make your moments count. This is a personal lesson I’ve learnt, nothing will work until you work it. All that you’ll ever need has already been deposited in you, all that is required is discovery and exploration (Eph 1:17-18)

Measure Checks.

·               Constant Looking: the written vision must be constantly looked at, referred to, to see how much distance you have covered in relation to the destination,

·               Endurance, Fortitude, perseverance is needed greatly. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin once said it is our duty to proceed as though the limits to our abilities do not exist. The challenges are strong enough to forestall the race. Know that whether on a visionary platform or not people are running but only those with destinations obtain. A man going nowhere will never get anywhere. You must press forward at all cost, be not slothful but followers of them who through faith and patience obtain the promises.

·               In order to apprehend that for which you have been called to accomplish there must of necessity be a contention. Your breaking forth would be guaranteed through fervent prayers, wrestling, violence of Faith. Jacob wrestled with the angel. Martin Luther confronted the Papacy of Rome, Jesus confronted the Jews, the scribes, Pharisees, Mandela confronted the Apartheid regime in South Africa, and Daniel shut the mouth of lions. The three Hebrew men confronted Nebuchadnezzar. The person who apprehends is the one who contends.

·               Vision imparts into you a force, a spirited confidence and courage. Shakespeare opined that the cowards will die many times before they are dead. Truly, cowards never conquer only the confident do. Truly God gave Jeremiah this with his promise in 17-19, so also Joshua etc

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

In the final analysis I’ll to let you know that no one would respect you on the basis of what you have written down but on what you’ve wrought. Every delivered vision must provide Proofs and Evidences that men can testify. Transformed lives are the Proof of the reality and power of a vision.

Find yours and act on it.

Scripture References: Jeremiah 1:1- end, Habakkuk 2:1-4

………………………………………………………………………………Courtesy: Youth Aflame

Follow on twitter @youthaflame2013

Youth Aflame is a Youth Organisation empowered with the mandate to raise a generation of leaders that would be Heaven Bound and Earthly Relevant. If you’ll like to be a part of this move…….call 08134993450

LESSONS FROM THE FIELD OF PLAY

Lessons from the Field of Play.

Ever wondered what it feels like on the field and being watched by millions all over the world, with some cheering you on and others playing the devil? Scripture gives us a picture of this when it says Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.

  

I was watching one of matches of the just concluded African Nations Cup, precisely the match between Nigeria and Ethiopia. While watching the match certain truths came into my heart, the Light that Knowledge brings flooded my heart. The tension of the missed opportunities and fouls did not get to me. What got me was how similar living life is to the game of football. Many watch to relax or catch fun but in all experiences we encounter, life gives us a lesson to learn. There is a definite substance in every event and occurrence.

Follow me carefully as I unravel these truths to you……

The first truth that stunned me was that it is impossible achieve or arrive at your goals in your comfort zone (in your own half of the pitch). Your goals here are a product of your vision. It is a known fact that although a vision gives you insight about the future, yet it is setting goals to achieve them that actually make them a reality. So, every goal worth scoring is never against you but for you. It requires a launching into another half of Life’s pitch.

The second is this: In a match there are always opponents, there are always contenders for the balls (potential goals) you have on your feet.

Permit me to define your intended actions as ‘balls’ and your achieved plans as ‘goals’

Thirdly, in scoring goals your head and your legs are all that is needed. When any other part of the body is used the referee blows his whistle. Mental accent and physical strength is needed here. A wise saying goes thus: People fail for two things, first is thinking without acting and secondly acting without thinking. Hence, we can say that the head and the body are needed in achieving anything worthwhile. Football players as well as fans know that goals could come from a header, and also from the boot of any player.

Your head determines the path which your feet must follow. This speaks of the place of knowledge, it’s been said that life only paves way for those who know where they are going, and the amount of what you know is what determines where you go, inotherwords your destination is a product of the level of insight acquired

There is no friendly match in life. There must of necessity be a prize in view, so we fight, wrestle compete and contend in other to apprehend. A song was had these lines: boys are not smiling, that’s typical of how the field of play is.

There would be injuries (falls) but never give up. A wisdom nugget goes thus: Quitters never win and Winners never quit. Despite the fact there that there would be setbacks in life, know this for a fact that every Setback is an opportunity for a Comeback. Imagine if Stephen Keshi gave up before the tournament was over perhaps we would have never gotten the gold medal. Never, never, never, never give up.

Opportunities do not occur the same way every time. In fact opportunities are not automatic they are consciously created which is usually as a product of strategy and teamwork. Opportunities are like tamed beasts to those who are prepared. A prepared man even created his own opportunities.

Your efficiency and effectiveness on the pitch is not gotten on the pitch but gotten in the place of preparation.

You must work with others to achieve the cause.

When you solve the problems of others they would go the extra mile for you.

The Future Now.: THE 5 UNDENIABLE STEPS TO STARDOM

The Future Now.: THE 5 UNDENIABLE STEPS TO STARDOM:                     THE 5 UNDENIABLE STEPS TO STARDOM. How beautiful those twinkling little lights which spread across the skies w...

THE 5 UNDENIABLE STEPS TO STARDOM

                    THE 5 UNDENIABLE STEPS TO STARDOM.

How beautiful those twinkling little lights which spread across the skies when the dark clouds gather. It draws my mind back to seasons in my life when we all stood or sat reciting those wonderful lines repeatedly. I must admit that those rhymes are timeless lessons, evergreen classics and indeed maxims which in some profound way speak to us today. We usually chanted thus:

       

Twinkle, Twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are

Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky…….  

Wonderful lines? Truly. However I’ll like you to know that stars are not little, the scientists say that the largest star would easily engulf the earth, mars, Jupiter and Saturn. The smallest dwarf stars are about the size of the earth. Therefore, though the stars are different yet they are not small.

       

Hidden in every being is a desire to shine; a voice to be heard, a feat to be accomplished. In you lies the capacity to dominate. In fact, stardom speaks of stars having dominion, exercising their God-given authority. There is a mass of greatness in you. Thomas Edison once said if we did all the things we are capable of doing we would literally astonish ourselves. There is a Star in you that longs to show forth its glory.

No one aiming to look at a star looks into a building or a start digging into the ground, the gaze is directed towards the skies. The problem with the present generation is that we have more of spectators and analyst and less people who are willing, like Mahatma Gandhi said to be the change we needs to see in the world. It’s not about talking the talk but rather about walking the walk. It pays to be a partaker than to be an On-looker (God forbid that I watch things happen). It’s usually said that there are those who watch things happen, there are some who wonder how things happen and finally there are also who make things happen. What category to you belong to? The word of the Bishop ever lives with me: You are not created to make a living but to make an Impact.

       

        I’ll have you to know this for a fact that every created being was not made to create or formulate a purpose. Rather we’ve been called to find and fulfil purpose. Mark Twain once said there are two important days in life, the day we were born and the day we discover why. A purpose driven life is that which adds salt to the earth and Light where darkness dominates.

A Chinese proverb says that the journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step. Get ready to explore the steps to stardom. God is forever committed to making you into who he has in mind. One principle I learnt is this: if you do what other successful people do, nothing can stop you from eventually getting the same results they do---Brian Tracy.

HERE WE GO……

·                 RECOGNISE THAT YOU ARE A STAR :

The heart has its tender way of giving back what you invest into it. As a man thinketh in his heart so is he. Remember the word ‘AS’, this means the pattern, paradigm the kind of mindset a man has goes a long way in determining the kind of life a  man lives. Get Infected with the fact that you are a star. Your life is a product of your heart. You become what you repeatedly think about. No man became or ever becomes what he never thought about. That’s why the scriptures were given so that we could be re-programmed into the mind of God. I usually say this to myself: I am not a burden but a Blessing. You might have been born poor, but that does not mean you should have a mind of a poor man. You are responsible for what you think and that would go a long way in determining who you become. I love the words of Jesse Jackson he said, though he was born in the slums, the slums were not borne in him. Being a star is not pop-psychology, a quick-fix mental exercise. Jesus is the Bright and morning Star and you must know that we are made in His very own image and as He is so are we in this world. We have His likeness and we reflect his glory hence the fact that you are a star is indisputable, because God only reproduces after His kind. It is a knowing: Accept it, Believe it and then Become it. Knowing yourself is the first step towards becoming who you want to be.

·                 RECOGNISE YOUR WEAKNESSES:

I strongly believe that the next fundamental step towards your stardom is the recognition of your weakness: the areas of life where there ought to be improvement. The journey to perfection is actually undertaken by the weak ones and not the strong. In the Beginning despite the fact that God created the heaven and the earth, in the very next verse he admits to us that the earth was without form and void and he proceeded to re-creating it.  We drop our weakness and those weights as we progress along the path of destiny. Mahatma Gandhi was once asked to train a young lad to stop taking sugar, Gandhi surprisingly replied the mother to give him a couple of days to stop taking sugar himself so as to be a proper example to the young lad. This is the dilemma and contradiction we face in our nation, where leaders refuse to accept their weakness and inability to manage the affairs of governance. Where are the likes of leaders who resign their appointment no matter the luxury attached because they recognise their incompetence? The picture in Africa which we see is that of leaders perpetuating themselves in power. In my honest opinion a failed state is not one with an unstable government but one who cannot produce quality leadership.

·                 DEVELOP THE CHARACTER OF THE PERSON YOU INTEND TO BECOME:

I read John Maxwell’s blog recently and he made a statement which struck a chord in my heart. He said if you want to be a successful leader, learn to lead before you have a Leadership position. Character development is a rigorous process; it is not something we are born with, it is something that is acquired through experience in life. Our character is shaped by the several occurrences of our lives from childhood. Good character is a proceed of good seeds sown and vice-versa. You never become a star in a marathon by just registering and running in one, neither can you be called a boxer because you love to watch and talk about the sport. There place of training is imperative. Many great leaders of old and present evolved a noble character through sufferings. The likes of Yinka Obalade who said Poverty condemned him to success, Steve Harris who went from being a college drop-out to a corporate sell-out. Jesse Jackson, one of America’s finest politicians in a speech once said: suffering breeds character, character breeds faith and at the end faith would not disappoint. When we mention names like Fela Durotoye what comes to mind are thoughts like impact, Leadership, Influence and Relevance. Character cannot be bought off the supermarket. A Yoruba saying goes thus ‘iwalewa’ meaning character is the definition of beauty, character is precious and highly valued. Let your sufferings, pain and past produce in you a passion to save others who might be going through such situations. That’s what stars do. Kanu Nwankwo had a heart condition, later on he went ahead to establish Kanu Heart Foundation to help those have the same problems. It is sufferings that produce character and successful life stories have a way of healing the heart, giving hope to the hopeless, strength to the weak. I won’t forget Jesus, scripture says ‘for it became him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through SUFFERINGS’. Though he was God he wouldn’t have been effective in his calling if he hadn’t gone through the sufferings. Now he can heal the broken hearted, help those who are tempted. Your character is of inestimable value, don’t trade it for anything. Remember suffering breeds experience (maturity of character), and experience hope and hope will not disappoint.

·                 POSITION YOURSELF PROPERLY:

The profound words of Sir Isaac Newton still resonates in my heart at this moment, he once mentioned this: if I see farther it is because I stood on the shoulders of giants. His discoveries are still relevant in the field of science today. Proper positioning is fundamental to your stardom. There is a popular saying that experience is the best teacher. This is true to some extent. But a wise man once remarked that though experience is the best teacher it is better if it is not your own experience. This is his message: There are certain mistakes you make in life that may put you in a shape where it is impossible to pick any lessons from them. In other words, the experience of another person is your best teacher! Pure wisdom. From the foregoing we can conclude proper positioning in life guarantees that you will not make certain mistakes others who have gone ahead of you made. Biographies, autobiographies of great men intrigue me. Find out the rough paths which the great ones today took and you’ll discover a great deal of resources which would be useful for your journey. You know in the game of football and basketball your chances of goal scoring depends on how properly positioned you are. Get a Mentor, Discipler, Teacher to take you through the School Of Destiny. Every great leader today was once a follower of another leader. I discovered that every Leader must be led. The likes of Kenneth Copeland, Pastor Adeboye, Bishop Oyedepo and others all tapped from the unction that flowed from Kenneth Hagin. Karl Marx followed the teachings of George Frederick Hegel and Feubarch closely though he deviated yet the writings of these persons served as the foundation for his historical and dialectical materialism. Be extremely careful as regard whom you follow because who you follow determines to a large extent who you will become.

·               FIND YOUR TEAM:

We currently live in an inter-connected reality, countries are forming pacts and alliances just to be able to create a better life for its people. The word team means Together Each Achieves More. No one ever achieved greatness without the help of others, though w celebrate Henry Ford today for his innovation as regards automobile engineering, but obviously we know that he couldn’t have been the one assembly the cars at the assembly line, he only gave the idea and others worked together to see that the goal is accomplished. With the use of the internet connectivity just became more inevitable. This lends credence to the work of Stephen Covey in the 7 habits of highly effective people, where he wrote that Interdependence is a higher value than dependence. You can never succeed alone, you need others. In the skies what makes the stars so attractive are the different clusters making it more beautiful a sight to behold. Being the Light of the World is not by Confession but by Proper Positioning. The joy of being a star really is worth the while when there are others to celebrate it with you. Our Lord Jesus has ascended up on high to prepare a place for us so we could come to reign with Him forever. Find your team, the quality and quantity of your achievements is dependent on it.

Bottom Line: You Need People.