TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE DARE TO BE DIFFERENT

It’s amazing how many times we do the same things the same way and yet expect a different result. That is insanity, only mad people do that. The more I have looked at what is going on around us both in the church and in the world, the more I realize that something is definitely wrong somewhere.

If we were playing a game of chess, it seems the world has checkmated the church. The world is waiting for the church to make the next move. All the moves that we as a church have made in the past are no longer effective. We need to come up with a new move. The Lord through the silver-tongued Prophet of old is reminding us afresh,

“Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it? (Isaiah 43:9-23).

Are we seeing it or are we so blind like Peter on the roof calling unclean what God has called clean that we aren’t able to see the new thing that God is doing. People are tired of fake things and theories. People are looking for what will work what we call “Real solutions to real problems”; giving people something practical, a handle to hold on to the truth of God’s word. The truth by the way has not changed. It’s the same old truth. But how we package it must change.

This past Sunday I visited a Church that is really doing that. They have met a lot of opposition from the body of Christ locally, but what I witnessed this past Sunday blew my mind. It confirmed to me why this particular church is on the cutting edge. The way the word was presented was very real and very practical intersparsed with an interview in form of a testimony of one young man who was addicted to alcohol but had his life turned around by Jesus.

For those of you who know me know that this is the kind of stuff I love. They talked about addictions. The Pastor had very chilling statistics from Nacada, facts to back what he was saying. Imagine 2 out of every 5 Kenyans aged between 15 and 65 years consumes Alcohol. Did you know that?

The way the message was presented would have made any addict feel convicted and yet loved at the same time. They were given hope in  being made to realize how much Jesus loves them and is willing to set them free. One word that sums up my experience in that service was, “Different”. No wonder they are making a difference in this City.

To be different one needs to be daring. It is easy to be like everybody else. But you know what, you cannot be a change agent if you are just like the rest. You got to be different to make an impact. The people who have made history, beginning with the greatest of them all our Lord Jesus, did so because they were ... yes, different. Dare to be different this week and you have a different week, won't you!

IN PURSUIT OF YOUR DREAM - DON'T QUIT

Last Saturday we as a Nation bid farewell to one of our country’s great heroes or rather heroines, Professor Wangare Mathaai, the founder of the Green Belt movement and Nobel Peace Laureate. This woman had pursued her dream to see the conservation of our Environment even in the midst of very harsh conditions under the Moi regime. She refused to be cowed down and to quit, but soldered on especially in her protest against the building of a skyscraper at Uhuru Park.

What a coincidence that she died in the same month that we as a Nation remember our heroes, the men and women like Dedan Kimathi who fought for our freedom as a Nation. This week on Thursday, October 20^th we shall be celebrating “Mashujaa” day. These men and women dreamed of a free Nation, a Nation in which the African people would enjoy the fruits of their labor; a nation where the locals would own land and not simply work on it as slaves.

Many of them were imprisoned and banished from their families. Some were even killed. But all this didn’t prevent them from pursuing their dream of a free and independent nation. Then came the fight for what became known as the “second liberation”. Many of those who fought this fight were tortured in the infamous nyayo house torture chambers. Some took off to exile and many spent a good part of their lives in solitary confinement. What we enjoy today in terms of multi-party democracy, freedom of expression and the new constitution are all because of their relentless effort in pursuit of a free democratic space. Thank God they refused to quit.

They didn’t give up even when things were thick just like in the American Revolution which lasted more than six bloody years and cost the lives of thousands of people on both sides of the conflict. It wasn’t quick, and it wasn’t easy – but history reveals what an enormous and vital role it played (and plays still) on the world’s stage. The patriots who dreamed of freedom did more than talk; they took action. They did what they needed to do to turn their dream into a reality. And thank God they didn’t quit.

No matter what you are faced with in pursuit of your dream, don’t quit. Remember that when the going gets tough, the tough get going. So get going and you too will see your dream turn into reality. 

Have a great Mashujaa day.

“An outstanding thread that runs through people who carry visions of impact is their tenacity"    
                                                                                                                  - Wale Akinyemi

IN PURSUIT OF YOUR DREAM, BE READY TO PAY THE PRICE

The Leadership Guru, John Maxwell, in talking about life trade-offs says this, “I’ve found that the higher you go, the harder it is to make trade-offs. Why? We have so much more that we risk giving up. People often talk about the sacrifices they had to make in the beginning of their careers. But in truth, most people have very little to give up in the beginning. The only thing of value that they have is time. But as we climb higher, we have more, and find it more difficult to let go of what we have worked for. That’s why many climb partway up the mountain of their potential and then stop. They come to a place where they are unwilling to give up to get the next thing. As a result, they stall – some forever.”

That is so true. This week I relinquished all my Pastoral duties in one of the greatest Churches in this city where my wife and I have served for the last 12 years. It wasn’t easy giving up my position, leaving behind my fruit in the ministry, long standing relationships plus of cause a pay check. We like Abraham of old are leaving behind our land, our relations, and our Father’s house to go into a land that God is showing us. We are embarking on a new journey as we establish a marriage ministry in this city.

Twelve years ago I resigned from formal employment to join “full time” ministry. I thought then that that was a great sacrifice. But compared to the sacrifice we are now making, that was nothing. I have come to learn the hard but vital lesson of life that in order to go up, you need to give up certain things that are so dear to you. Something in human nature tempts us to stay where we are comfortable, where we have comfortable stress and adequate finances, where we have comfortable associations with people without the intimidation of meeting new people and entering strange situations.

But we can never achieve our dreams if we don’t come out of our comfort zones, if we are afraid of the uncertainties ahead of us, if we are afraid of taking a risk, if we are wondering how things will turn out; there is a price to be paid and so we must be willing to take a deep breath and dive into the deep end as it were. And the deep end is doing what we know is the right thing for us to do.

“Greatness is a narrow path that affords us little detours. It is a path of give-ups. The secret of greatness is choosing the right give-up.”    - Anthony Gitonga in his book Made for Greatness.