The wind blows to the south; it blows to the north; it blows from one direction to another. Then it turns around and repeats the same pattern going nowhere.
I received Christ when I was about nine or ten years old while watching the evangelist Rex Humbard on television. Though I could not explain it, I felt something had happened to me that day as I knelt before the TV set while the evangelist led in the ‘sinners’ prayer.’ However, without follow up or knowledge of what to do next, there was no practical change in my life. (I tell a little of the story in my book Criminals behind the Pulpit).
I lost my father at the age of seven and my mother when I was twelve. She had seen me through up to the point of gaining admission into Edo College. Though she saw my Common Entrance Examination results, she passed before the resumption of school in September of that year.
Before the road-trip that would take me from Lagos to Benin to commence schooling, one of my uncles advised me to “Read hard and play hard.” Unfortunately, the phrase after the word “and” was what I chose to listen to, and so by the second year, my life had gone with the wind. I was supposed to be having fun, but repeating the same patterns year-in, year-out my life was going nowhere, just like the wind. It was a downward spiral.
Early in my third year, I recommitted my life to Christ and began to take strides towards improving and bringing positive change to my life, the Lord and great friends helping and encouraging me along the way.
Improvements that make us better persons begin from within. Consistent progress in our lives is essential to mental and emotional health. Someone who does not see progress in his life for lengthy periods can easily relapse into depression and other physical health challenges. Nevertheless, positive change does not just happen; it is the result of deliberate effort and discipline.
First, breaking the cycle of ‘going nowhere’ begins with you changing the way you think. You must see your life today, not as some happenstance or as caused by your parents, enemies, the government, or the economy. You must take personal responsibility. Let the buck stop on your table. ‘My actions or inactions have brought me thus far.’ Period!
Start looking within. Ask yourself, how did I get here? How can I change it? What must I do to improve and be a better person for my family, friends, my world and myself? The goal of this personal self-exam is not to berate or judge yourself for your faults (all of us do make mistakes). But like the doctor, you want to seek an accurate diagnosis to prescribe an effective and efficient remedy for restoration to good health, as it were.
Besides, to bring positive transformation into your life, you must begin to develop the mindset of the gardener. See your life as a garden, which can only become beautiful through deliberate and careful nurturing and pruning.
Take note, I said nurturing and pruning. This means that apart from intentionally doing things that enrich your life, there are things like wrong habits, and perhaps some people in your life that have to be cut off. For example, to stop the downward spiral I had mentioned, I had to cut off some bad friends. They were a dangerous influence on me.
A great garden does not just happen. What happens when nothing is planned or done purposefully are weeds, thorns and thistles. Okay, I agree, there is the lone flower that pops up occasionally, but it shrivels as quickly as it blooms. Nevertheless, to have a beautiful garden, the right things need to be done at the right time, consistently.
Having the mindset of a gardener is the same as having the mentality of the farmer. This Biblical principle of the farm, “Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap,” should not just be seen in negative terms but more importantly, from a positive point of view. That is, you can determine the kind of results or harvest you want in your life and start ‘planting’ towards them.
We do the right things in life because it is the right thing to do! Therefore, you must deliberately do the right things to bring about improvement and positive change that produces tremendous results for a great life. It is a miracle!
Finally, you must be thoroughly convinced in your heart that it is God’s will for you to do excellently well in every area of your life, irrespective of what may have happened in the past or is happening presently. I cannot over emphasise this. God has already made provision for you to have a great life. This is proof of a loving Father’s heart.
This is the first part of “Taking Strides for Personal Improvement and a Successful Life“. Later I will discuss various aspects of our lives that should always be improving and how you can achieve that.
Right now, I want to pray for you along with St John, as he did in Third John 2:
Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.
References: Ecclesiastes 1:6, NCV; Galatians 6:7b, NKJV; Mark 4:26-32; Ps 35:27; John 10:10; 3 John 2; 2 Peter 1:3-4; 3John 2.
If you like this blog post, you might also want to read “Thieves of Personal Life Development”
