No dustbin for Human beings

I believe there is no dustbin for human beings.

All created beings have a potential in them to blossom and yield much more than their present circumstances. God doesn't create junks, rejects, but He weaves into us a specific design that if discovered and nurtured could blossom for our benefit and those around us.

As we live our lives we go through experiences that shape us. Depending on how we handle these experiences, they could mean nothing, make us or break us. Intentional living makes us look into these experiences and try to find answers to the hard questions that they bring to us.

Every person on the streets, slum or whatever class, race, sex has a unique design and purposes for their existence. It lays in us to discover it and nurture whatever we so discover. Those who have watched a life transform into something beautiful can attest to this. On the onset it might always seem hopeless and that it all means nothing. But with time, dedication and love for the person, these lives turn around to be a beautiful flower of God; something beautiful for God.

The temptation we face is always to see someone in their current situation and subconsciously judge them, seeing them as people who are good for nothing or who nothing good can come out of. I remember being told that I will amount to nothing when I was going through a naughty stage of my life. Am still on a journey and I believe that there is something beautiful God is doing in my life. As I find my way through to my "gazebo", my experiences might not look like it but am on my way. My major assignment is still ahead of me. And this applies to every creation.

One of my core values is “uniqueness of individuals”. Each person is uniquely designed with a distinctive gifting, history, and calling. Everyone is good at something. We are all kinds of vessel, if we discover this and put it to good use, we will realize great potential that lies in all of us. This will be useful in whatever it is that God has prepared for us. To discover and embrace this we have to transform how we look at God, ourselves and His creations. Your view of who God is will affect how you view yourselves and in turn how you view His creations. A distorted view of God is dangerous as it makes us miss out on who really He is. I invite you to reevaluate your view of God… Who is God to you? How do you view Him? What does God mean to you? How do you view yourself with respect to your view of God? What's your understanding of God's work in your life? How does this affect how you view His creations? What of those who are presently in difficult circumstances? How do you play your role in helping every creature understand their uniqueness? Indeed, the same God who designed you as you are also designed the person on the street and has something special for them.

We are called upon not to conform to the standards of this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind so that we can test and approve the good, pleasing and perfect will of God. What does this exactly mean to you? How about to the people God brings your way on the streets, your neighbor, your community, those different from you? The mind is a powerful thing. Our minds have a way of deceiving us or making us experience great things in this life. We need to renew our minds and examine how we see God, ourselves and those he brings our way. This is not easy as we have to unlearn all that we have learned and believed in that might be contrary to what we are called upon. We then need to be like little children and learn afresh. Hit the restart button for your renewal process. Unfortunately, the more exposed or experienced you are the more difficult this may be to you… but whoever much is given much is expected. So you have no excuse.

If this resonates with you, go ahead and evaluate your view of God, self, and others. Start now! Then look for a small community of friends who you can do this with. Be accountable to a few. It’s about building a community of friends to share each other’s journey of life with, reflecting on your views.  You have to be deeply committed to each other and desire to see each other grow in this journey. You have to create a support, encouragement and accountability platform for each other. The community has to be a small as possible so that there is active engagement by all involved.

Find a community around you and see if these conversations make sense to you!!!

By Gabriel Odhiambo Achayo

Flexibility and Happiness

I believe in life; flexibility is key to achieving happiness.

I grew up with a rigid mentality with a desire to always have things go my way. Any thought that something would not go my way scared me and I avoided such things. Life has taught me countless times that being flexible makes you enjoy every moment as it comes. This, however, means that you have to be rooted in some principles to guide you in this flexibility. Every minute you choose to be flexible, it should be in line with your values and principles. How you spend your time, what relationships to nurture, how you spend your money, what work you do, etc should be based on what really defines who you are, and in line with your priorities.

Life has turns that we never clearly see where they are and when they will hit us. Every morning waking up to face the day is like waking up to face uncertainty and indeed the risks that, that day will bring your way. A number of mornings I have woken up with a clear plan for my day but evening reaches and I have either spent the whole of it in the hospital, or in meetings that I have chosen to be part of. What matters most at the end of the day in everything I did or didn't do that day? Do I go home with the disappointment written on my face because I didn't have my day go as I had planned? I need to learn how to derive happiness on those little tiny moments that brought meaning to my life.

For the past one year, I mostly made one prayer; Lord I know you are going to do great things today. Whatever you are blessing may I be part of it. Lead me to whoever you want me to add value to today. Show me who you want me to love today. May today be the best day of life to your glory and because of you. I want to love you today a little bit more Lord. Amen

This prayer has been to me a way of surrender to what God has planned for me. This is, however, easier said than done. I still find myself very rigid and always wanting to insist on my way. 

As I learn to always live life expecting a miracle and knowing that He who knows it all has great plans for my life and future, I found much joy and meaning. These moments of joy and meaning constitute happiness in life. Instead of wanting to tick some to do lists due to my rigidity, I’d rather in wisdom surrender to the one who knew all my days before I was formed in my mother’s womb. Based on the principles and values that I have learned from what He has made me interact with, I make effort to daily align my priorities with these principles. The principles of Love, Unity, the kingdom of God, God before self, God before others, purpose, bearing fruit, word of God etc form my guide to living in flexibility.

As a follower of Jesus, how do I learn more how to live by these principles, align my values to these principles and live my life always expecting a miracle as I work my to-do list and at the end of the day, celebrate these moments of joy that bring happiness in life.

Walking around looking for a happy life is like chasing after the wind, but living in flexibility guided by values that are aligned to the principles make life worth living and in it lies the greatest happiness. I have made a commitment to every day write down three things that brought me joy or made me tick in the course of the day. I invite you to try it. Sometimes they are more than three other times they are way less. But a day doesn't pass without me identify a moment of joy. This to me is happiness.

If this resonates with you, go ahead to evaluate your flexibility in life. Start now… Then look for a small community of friends who you can do this together with… Being accountable to a few and practicing with a few. It’s about building a community of friends to share each other’s journey of life with, as you find happiness.  You have to be deeply committed to each other and desire to see each other grow in this journey. You have to create a support, encouragement and accountability platform for each other. The community has to be a small as possible so that there is active engagement by all involved.

Find a community around you and see if these conversations make sense to you…

 By Gabriel Odhiambo Achayo

TRUE LOVE

I believe in true love.

Love is the most misused four-letter word in history. We confess love to people, items, animals, feelings, experiences etc. What does it really mean? For God so loved the world that he gave… God is love. God defines what love is. To truly understand love, you have to learn from God. He who lives in God lives in love. Love is a command, it’s an action. It’s not a thought, intention etc. It’s to be given to those around us.

Confessing love means I'm willing to trust you, care for you, be there for you, risk it all for you, sacrifice for you. It’s important to realize that after confessing; true love is in acting/living out the love.

Without God, all our loving actions are empty and doesn’t lead to significance and peace. We can’t love if we don’t love ourselves. The more we love ourselves the more we love those around us. In order to love those around us, we have to see ourselves in them. A reflection of our hopes, passions, dreams, wishes in them. This draws us to them. We cannot see this reflection unless we spend the time to listen, discover, and serve.

The question then is; is it possible to love everyone and anyone? Are there people who are unlovable, those we have no love for? What makes us feel we can’t love someone? “Psychologist have concluded that the need to feel loved is a primary human emotional need. Child psychologists affirm that every child has certain basic emotional needs that must be met if he is to be emotionally stable. Among those emotional needs, none is more basic than the need for love and affection, the need to sense that he/she belongs and is wanted. With an adequate supply of affection, the child will likely develop into a responsible adult. Without that love, he or she will be emotionally and socially challenged” Adapted from Five Love Languages.

Perfect love drives out fear. True love is perfect. Who has shown you love or you have shown love in a not ordinary way. What made this love happen? How do you feel when you are around the people you love or love you? Do you feel fear, or need to prove a point/yourself, or need to defend yourself? Are there moments you wish you could say something but you can’t cos you don’t want to touch that button. How do you balance respect and fear in the context of love? These are thoughts that you need to confront in your journey to understand love and offer love or accept love.

I'm no expert in love but I invite you to reflect further on this, find time to focus and try to identify, about three people who have loved you or you have loved in the past or currently. Try to reflect on these questions; What made you love them or them love you? Why did you love them or them loving you? How has this love influenced you or the people you love? How might your life be different if this love you give or receive hadn’t been there? What do you receive or give in this love that has impacted you or the loved ones? (a principle, sense of worth or destiny etc). Have you expressed to this person how grateful you are for his or her love in your life? If you can find a way to contact the person, take a few moments and make a quick call or write a note and express your appreciation!

If this resonates with you, go ahead to evaluate your love life. Start now… Then look for a small community of friends who you can do this together with… Being accountable to a few and practicing with a few. It’s about building a community of friends to share each other’s journey of love.  You have to be deeply committed to each other and desire to see each other grow in this journey. You have to create a support, encouragement and accountability platform for each other. The community has to be a small as possible so that there is active engagement by all involved. 

Find a community around you and see if these conversations make sense to you…

Written By:

Gabriel Adhiambo Achayo

Discipline of Reflection

By Gabriel Odhiambo Achayo

I believe life is worthwhile living on reflection.

“An unexamined life is not worth living,” said Plato. This is true and the only way to examine your life is to take time to reflect on your actions and past. Your past indeed can’t dictate your future but it plays a huge role in who you turn out to be depending on how you look at it. You are a product of your past; nature, choices, and nurture, be they good or bad. Taking time to reflect on your past helps you to access what God has been doing in your life and package it for the benefit your future and others. Looking backward helps you see clearly the WHY. We understand life backward but live it forward. You are able to appreciate the place of God, others, and experiences in your past. When you reflect you are able to identify if God is in any situation, what is he doing? How do you respond? And what lessons if any do you come out with. This helps you become more intentional as you live your lives forward.

God develops people over a lifetime according to some discernible patterns. God uses individual formation experiences to shape our character and prepare us for useful service. These experiences usually happening early in our lives are to get us ready for bigger responsibilities in later in life. You are yet to engage in your biggest assignment. The only way to do that is to be able to reflect on what has been happening, find the pattern and what they have all been preparing you for.

Some key questions to ask yourself are: Who am I? This is not what you do, your title neither is it your daily responsibilities that define you. It’s the real who you are that guides how you do what you do as you carry out your daily responsibilities e.g. being a parent, an employee, a sibling etc. The other question is where am I from? Our place of birth and growth might have something to do with this. But for this case, it's all about what you have gone through. What are some of those experiences that have brought you up to this point? What are some of the major life turning points that define you now? What has life taken you through? There are things that have happened to you and things that have been done by you? The other question is, Why are you where you are? Why are you at your current stage of life? For such a time as this, why are you engaged in what you are engaged in? Own where you are right now. The other question is Where are you going? Think about where you want to go. Looking ahead one month or 10yrs, where do you see yourself? This is in your attitude, relationships, title, money, responsibilities, spiritually, mentally, physically and any other area of interest to you.

 A genuine commitment to interrogate and reflect on these question would be key in helping you do the following: Identify if God has been at work in your life, interpret what God is trying to do, think through how to engage (respond), and imprint universal principle(s) you have learnt from life. These principles become helpful to your future and others.

Having a discipline of reflection is a very intentional way of living our lives. Sometimes we make a mistake of relying too much on previous experiences, what people know or what we already know and not taking the time to really focus on what is going on now as we reflect. This is sometimes misleading and you lose out on what God could be doing at the moment in your life. Even if you are really certain, it’s more rewarding to always be open to a possibility for something new, fresh and different.

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Whatever it is that you have gone through, you need to package it for the benefit of your future and others. Don't let your experiences and past go to waste. Learn from it and move forward a better person.

If this resonates with you, develop a discipline of reflection, and journaling. Start now… Then look for a small community of friends who you can do this together with… Being accountable to a few and practicing with a few. It’s about building a community of friends to share each other’s reflections.  You have to be deeply committed to each other and desire to see each other grow in this journey. You have to create a support, encouragement and accountability platform for each other. The community has to be a small as possible so that there is active engagement by all involved.

Find a community around you and see if these conversations make sense to you…