WHY LIFE IS SIMPLER THAN WE THINK

"Naked I came from my mother's womb, naked I'll return to the womb of the earth" ~ Job

In my estimation, life is simpler than we complicate it. Life is to me, a binary of two possibilities. The wise would know exactly what phase they are in, and most importantly, what phase they could be in. That's it!

Here is the curveball: We have finite minds. We do not grasp all there is to grasp at a go. We cannot escape the mirage that life offers us daily. At some point, we see our possibility and realize where we are in relation to were we could be. So when we get where we thought previously that we could be...we realize that it has become where we are...and there is another where we could be...! That my friend...is the structure of our life metamorphosis.

That is all there is in life. Two major possibilities.

Let me explain. If we are to use the analogy of hunting gold mines...there are only two states we all ought to operate in: 

1. The Highway to Our Goldmine
2. The Goldmine itself.

That is it. There is no other complication in life.You are either currently on top of your gold mine or on the highway towards it! Now...there are two types of people on the highway: There are those who know that they are on the highway to their goldmine...and then there are those who are clueless.

There is only one group of people on top of the Goldmine...those who knew all along that they where on a journey towards it...think about it!

We need to realize what our Goldmine is. Each of us has one Goldmine...and it is only one Goldmine that is needed. The creator in his own infinite wisdom made our Goldmine first...and then formed us. In us, He put all the things we need to gravitate towards that Goldmine.

He put in the map of passion. It is revealed by what excites us...as well as that which infuriates us. He put inside of us the compass that would take us there...our talents and our giftings. He put inside of us an eternal landmark that will guide us to the Goldmine...our hearts. He put inside of us all the necessary tools that we need to take us to the Goldmine...our personalities.

The highest calling we have in life is not to find our Goldmines...but to use our Goldmines for the greater good of 'others'. 

So, back to the message: You are either on top of your Goldmine...or you are on the Highway towards it...only if you realize that fact and consciously live it.

The most interesting thing is that the Highway to the Goldmine proves to be the most intriguing phase...and in my submission, the most important phase of our lives than being on top of the Goldmine itself. It seems to me that there is much more glory in mastering the road signs of the highway to the Goldmine...than knowing how to use the Goldmine itself.

Either way, you must dig it. Gold never appears on the surface. That is why at whatever level or phase we find ourselves in, we cannot term it useless...and I am speaking regarding the Highway moments of our Life Signatures. The road to a Goldmine of our lives will be littered here and there with some deposits of gold. The tragedy would be to camp at those deposits at the expense of discovering the Goldmine.

The biggest tragedy though is never realizing what phase one is...and therefore just exist to pay bills...count the days and anniversaries, birthdays and special occassions until that time we go back to the womb of the earth...naked!

Do you know the phase you are in?

BEAR HUG FAILURE

When Watoto Children's choir is mentioned, very many people the world over will recognize them. This includes former US President George W. Bush, as well as her Majesty the Queen of England (Who is looking forward to meeting them again this May 2012). Sometimes, the visionaries behind this facet of their vision seldom have their story told. You might remember that some months back I wrote on this blog about a thorough and sobering production that the kids did depicting the LRA war in the Northern Uganda. This production is more impactful than what is doing rounds on the Internet these days about Joseph Kony, seeing that the actors were mostly former Child Soldiers in the LRA.

On Resurrection Sunday April 2012, I attended Watoto Church service, where Marilyn Skinner, wife to Gary Mark Skinner gave a sneak preview of how it was in the formative years of their missionary work to Uganda. I was enormously moved when she gave an account of the civil war in Uganda at the time that herself, husband and kids had moved to Uganda in pursuit of a Vision of 'raising and English Speaking church in down-town Kampala'. Those were tough days when goons would systematically target houses, rape women, kill men, and take everything in their house including light bulbs and sockets! One day, Gary was off to Canada, and these goons came by for Marilyn. According to Marilyn, the goons tried for more than three hours to break through a wooden door but failed. Now that speaks of God's protection, albeit not in a spectacular format to the casual observer.

The most touching thing about this story is this. That Marilyn had just about had it! She was ready to give her husband a piece of her mind when he came back! Not only that, she was done...she thought of going back to Canada and abandoning the whole thing altogether. In a split second of decision making, there would be no Watoto Church. There would be no Children's choir. There would be no Restore Tour. There would be no Watoto Church in Gulu (Northern Uganda), or in Juba. There would be no presence of Watoto church in South Africa.

The crux of this post is that these visionaries have not always had it straight. They have had a fair share of setbacks. We need to learn from them and understand that it is OK to fail. It is OK to accept failure. One of the reason as to why many people do not attempt great things is because we fear to fail. I have come to learn that as long as we are in this world, we will experience setbacks. No one is immune. God himself has experienced set backs...major ones at that. He has experienced setbacks with Adam and Eve, with Abraham, with King Saul, and with King David. He has experienced several setbacks with Lawrence Namale...and in all that, God has been relentless in believing in humanity.

Watoto Church had/has a vision to have its presence in South Africa...and in earnest, set out to partner with a church there. That was about a year ago...it was only after six months that the visionary Gary Skinner decided to pull out 'instead of staying there and fighting; a fight which we I could have won'. In life, there are times to accept a drawback. There are times to accept a retracement, or even a complete reversal. The main thing they say, is to keep the main thing the main thing. That even in the wake of a retracement, we maintain our focus on the big picture.

Friend, in life you and I will face situations that are not necessarily encouraging. Our calling at those moments is never to let those 'failures' or 'drawbacks' define who we really are: Visionaries of Life Signatures. Failure is a learning curve...it is temporary. When it shows up as it surely will to all the best of us, accept it, hug it if possible, learn from it and move on stronger, better and more relentless to the passion that lies deep inside of you. Have a relentless week, wont you?

HOW TD JAKES WAS DISCOVERED

The most negligible thing you could see is a single drop of water over a large rock. Again, the most benign thing you could watch is a single 'powerless' ant scurrying away with a single crystal of sugar from your table. Those two events are never spectacular by any chance, yet I would tell you this: They are critical to Life Signatures. I have come to notice that Life Signatures are never formed by pomp and polemics, but by simple, ordinary events and actions that mean something to visionaries. Let that drop of water do its thing again over that huge rock. Let it drop again, and again for years. After that, you will begin to take note. It is a function of time and TIMING. Now the question we need to ask ourselves is this: Which drop is the most important in making a mark on the rock? The first one? The last one? No, each and every drop is equally important like the last one that finally makes the mark.

I have been listening to something inspirational by a guy called Perry Stone. He's message is titled "When Broken Vessels Sing!". Wow! Now, if you are not that spiritual savvy, a vessel in this case refers to a human being fashioned by the Almighty God for the sake of Life Signatures. No apologies folks. That's just it. Let me quote him here verbatim:

"See, you may be familiar with a man called Bishop TD Jakes. Bishop 'Get ready, get ready, get ready, get ready... TD Jakes.

A lot of people are familiar with Bro Jakes' Ministry now, but wouldn't be ten years ago when he pastored in Charlton West Virginia in a church of four hundred people. When TD Jakes said that 15 years before he ever got on TV, he often worried at how they would pay the bills at his house in his church, how he used to go to the woods and walk around and preach to the trees because he didn't have anybody to preach to...but you see Bishop Jakes was a Chosen vessel who was on a shelf in a closet being hidden because it wasn't TIME for him to be known.

One time Carlton Pearson as I understand it met Bishop Jakes, heard him preach and met Jan Crouch. He said, "Jan, this man would like to give you a video", and Jan said, as she always does, "I don't have time to listen to everybody's videos, we've got hundreds of them coming in in a week"! And Carlton Pearson said, "Would you trust me,listen to this man preach on tape please listen". So she had somebody listen. Somebody came and said, "Jan, get in here and listen to this man preach!"

She said: I WANT HIM ON T.B.N AS SOON AS WE CAN BOOK HIM. Bishop Jakes got up there and milked the word baby, he milked that thing that there wasn't any milk left...and Jan said, "My God I have never heard a man in my life walking in shoe leather preach like this man can preach, I WANT HIM BACK". TD Jakes went from 400 to 1000 in Charlton, then he went to Dallas Texas, where he now has 20,000 members...and God has blessed that man to the extend that he had a conference in Atlanta, and had the largest crowd that met together in this Dome....oh, you don't wanna hear what I am talking about, somebody help me right now!!

I do not know what it is you are doing that is considered 'non-impactful', 'un-important' or 'un-noticed'. The true measure of Life Signatures is hanging on to those things in the days when you are hidden. If you can do this, then the day you are discovered, you will still  have that strength of no struggle to duplicate the things you were true to in the secret out in the limelight. You need not get discouraged because someone has not picked you. You need not get discouraged because someone has dumped you. You need not give up because nobody notices you or your efforts. This is the third time I have said it on this blog, and let me say it again: As long as you have found your voice, your passion, your vision, or what matters to you, I tell you, put your hands to it with reckless abandon. There is no other calling but this.

Soon enough, even if the world does not 'discover' you, you will find that you are leading such a fulfilled life. Such a life of purpose. You will find that you look forward to each day with much enthusiasm, because you have already discovered yourself. Let me tell you this, before the world discovers you, make sure you discover you! And as you embark on your little unnoticeable venture, I have this gut feeling, that as long as it matters to your heart, as long as it is important to you, somebody somewhere will 'get wind' of what you are up to. It could be a King Maker (Blog post coming up), it could be a tweet you sent out, an email, an acquaintance to an acquaintance...as long as you set yourself on fire with what you have discovered about yourself, get ready, the world is coming to watch you burn!

As sure as the sun is out there today (I hope it is on your end), I can tell you that there  is someone, or even a community, or even a nation, or even a whole region, or even the whole wide world that will 'discover' you. Here is the shortcut: You do not set out so that the world discovers you! No, that is not the focus. The focus for you is that you stay relevant to the dream and the passion and the vision. Seeking the world's attention cheapens you. Staying relevant to the vision deepens you (Selah)

You see, great men and women never set out to be great. Greatness was never their focus. No, great men and women stayed the course on what MATTERS to them, never wavering. What is it that MATTERS to you today? How about in your whole life? What really MATTERS to you? Find that out. That is your calling! Have a discovery day, wont you?

WHAT THE NAMALES AND THE MANDELAS HAVE IN COMMON

The crowd, the world, and sometimes even the grave, step aside for the man who knows where he’s going, but pushes the aimless drifter aside~~Ancient Roman saying

Make no mistake about it. These are one of the most 'dry' seasons and times of a visionary. When the vision stays just it~a Vision. When the dreams still are up there un-materialized. When a visionary faces situations that are screaming a contrary message of your Life Signature. These are root moments. Yet they are faced the world over. In fact whether one is a visionary or not, they will come to that moment of disillusionment. Those moments where one's efforts seem to go unnoticed. Like one hitting a rock with a rubber hammer-it simply bounces off and even threatens to wreck the wielder of the hammer himself.

These are the moments that form the Steve Jobses, the Abraham Lincolns, the Nelson Mandelas and the Lawrence Namales, and for a good measure, you can insert here your clan's name. To be honest, I have learnt to embrace these moments and if anything, MAXIMIZE them. You see, the earlier I accept the root time, the earlier it is that I start filling up my Life Signatures with incredible nutrients. In fact the best University out there has been called the UNIVERSITY OF LIFE. It is in this place that you learn stuff first hand. There is no one to dictate notes, no one to mark your assignments. The root moments. We oughtta cherish them.

Isn't it amazing that our greatest opportunities so often arise from our greatest challenges? Yet we find it paradoxical enough that sometimes we term these moments as 'the lost years of our lives'. We could never be any wrong on a definition. These are seldom lost years. These are root years. Root years tend to pose those pertinent questions to a soul and ultimately to a Visionary of Life Signatures. Where we go wrong for the most part is equating progress with motion, or fruitfulness with incessant action.

However, one of the largest ingredients of success to a visionary is those solitude, rocky, tough times that life itself does not make sense at all. When your dream seams like a mockery to you. When pursuit of a dream is threatened with the watering down of a life to mundane living of putting food on the table, cloths on your back and shelter on your head. Evidently, this is far from fun as we know it. However, it is such times that shape our character, mold our resolves and strengthen our belief in the dream. Remember the iDIMENSION?

The crux of this post is to encourage all of us to stand focused on the path of our Life Signatures at those seemingly 'God forsaken' moments. What I have seen many people do is 'wait out the season'. This means that they suspend living and ultimately drop the dream...until such a time that conditions will become favorable. That is a mistake. I have learnt that there are illusion in tough times. The first illusion is that...the times are tough all over the place. Why do I call it an illusion? It is because everything else around us is sifted through the glass of what we are experiencing.

I have learnt to embrace and welcome the root-times of my life, knowing full well that they are shifting shadows. Will be here today, tomorrow they will be forgotten like they never existed. Of course the root times vary depending on the dream and the person. For a certain Mr. Nelson Mandela, it was well over 25 years of root time. We are talking a quarter of a century of root time just for one man alone. But in the end, this is one of the most respected statesmen who ever lived, I dare say in the same league as Abraham Lincholn and Martin Luther King Jnr.
For a certain Steve jobs, it was half a lifetime of starting over. One amazing thing is that the man just kept working. Kept believing. It made no difference whether it was a root time or otherwise. It is no wonder that some of the products at Apple are out of stock months after introduction for the very first time in the market.

Friend, root times do not make any sense....and that is perfectly well. They are not supposed to make sense, at least to a normal human being. They are to be embraced. Vision is to be held despite the things happening around that we do not understand. I read somewhere that 'persistance is the mother of personal development'.  I could not agree more.I count myself persistent, and how lucky and blessed I am to have many examples of individuals who have already gone before us, no doubt leaving their Life Signatures not only to this generation, but many more to come.