Hi guys, today I’ll be dwelling on the second part of the wilderness mentalities series, in the last episode we dwelt on the first type of wilderness mentality which is;

• ‘ My future is determined by my past and my present..’

It was really insightful for me and for those that took part in it, I advise that you read part one, to do that click here.

   This is where I pop in our next wilderness mentality;

• ‘Someone do it for me; I don’t want to take the responsibility….’

When I got to this part of Joyce’s ‘Battlefield of the Mind’ all my brain cells were pointing accusing fingers at me and it isn’t just me but most of us do this all the time. We want the gram, not the work, we admire our icons and mentors forgetting that they had to make really hard decisions to get to where they are. We ask God for favor, blessings, and breakthrough but we are never ready to pass through the tests that come with it.

   Most of us admire others and feel sorry for ourselves while asking God unnecessary questions because we do not have the slightest idea of how heavy the cross was for those guys before they came to glory. How do we break away from this mentality;

• Take the first step and keep moving!

  In Genesis, God didn’t just call Abram, He started with his father, Terah. Terah made a move, he took his family with him, he started but he never got to Canaan, he got to Haran and settled there instead (Genesis 11:31) In the same vein most of us never finish what we start, we fail to realize that it’s not all about the goosebumps and ephemeral excitement. Never walk towards your goals on the foundation of emotions and excitement but on the reality of the responsibility that it would take to cross over.

   Most of us take the first step, we get that audition form or start that business and when the waves come, we run and hide under the shade of disappointment.

‘Go to the ant, …..consider her ways and be wise!’ (Proverbs 6:6)

   I wonder why God told us to learn from the ants, I remember how fun it was for me to scatter their march with my fingers and then watch them regroup and start all over. Most times, after all my manipulations, I end up leaving them alone because their determination to keep moving stressed me out. No wonder God told us to learn from them, they have no ruler or helper, neither do they feel sorry for themselves even as they are the smallest animals alive. This takes me to the second step;

• Treat Procrastination like it’s your Enemy of Progress.

‘He who observes the wind [and waits for all the conditions to be favorable] will not sow, and He who regards the clouds will not reap’  – (Ecclesiastics 11:4)

  Have you ever felt like you were meant to do something important, maybe work or school related, and then you decide to check Whatsapp or Youtube for five minutes and then you go on the whole day and before you know it, it’s time for dinner? Well, I used to call it the ‘five minutes rest.’ then I’ll go on and on, while making sure to postpone the work till the next hour or at worst the next day. Or those times where we have to do something important, instead of doing it we sit and tell ourselves that we are waiting for the ‘right time’

   We have to realize that if the farmers acted the same way we would all starve to death. Even without the rains, the farmer is tilling the ground, weeding and planting with high hopes for a bountiful harvest.

  You must learn to start NOW! Not a minute less, throw yourself at that job like you mean it. Whatever you set out to, do it well so much that no one would blink twice before recommending you to someone else. Some people would ask, what if what I throw myself at is not the thing for me? What if my career was just a mistake? Well, if it is not the thing for you, it would be the thing that leads to that thing in your destiny as long as you are in accordance with God’s Word and His purpose for your life. Most times we mistake procrastination with patience or the other way around. Once God has given you direction don’t just sit there and be ‘praying about it’ when He has already shown you what to do. Start somewhere and start NOW!!!

The next is to Be Prepared At All Times

One of the imprints that Abraham Lincoln left behind says, ‘Let me prepare now, tomorrow I will be needed.’ Notice the assurance behind this quote, this means that in the present times you may not be considered important or of any use but be prepared at all times. Your limelight might start to shine in the place where you least expect it.

  It is one thing to take the first step, avoid procrastination and keep moving and it’s another thing to carry the adequate knowledge with you as you move. No one goes back to a shoemaker that makes ugly shoes no matter how resilient and hardworking he is. Remember the parable of the ten virgins, five were foolish while the other five were wise. All ten of them took the first steps, they all kept moving with determination until they got to their destination but only five of them came well prepared. Do not take any opportunity with a pinch of salt, throw not just all of yourself at it but well pruned knowledge as well.

• No Man is Born Without a Gift

I listen to people say ‘e get anything wey I sabi do for this life sef’(Is there anything that I am good at all?) and then I shake my head and laugh, not because I am perfect but because at some point in my life I felt that I was just one extra human being following the live to die cycle of life without a cause. Well, I was very wrong about myself.  You are much more than you think you are, saying that you have nothing spectacular inside of you is telling God that He wasted His breath.

  Use what you have, all that you would ever need to succeed is inside of you, not outside!  I don’t know why I feel I should repeat that statement a hundred times so it drums in, okay, read this next part carefully. Jesus told a parable of the talents, a certain master gave five to the first, two to the second, and one talent to the last person. The first multiplied his twice making it ten, same goes for the second but the third buried his talent and whiled away his time wallowing in self-pity and rebellion. Your capacity as a person may not be the same as that of Will Smith and Kevin Hart, Adichie and Wole Shoyinka but that doesn’t mean that you have nothing inside of you.

  What if you compare yourself to Will Smith’s exploits and that ain’t your capacity? Or what Wole Shoyinka has inside of him is just the tip of the iceberg compared to what is inside of you? These are very strange but important questions that you need to ask yourself. God never gives you what you don’t have the capacity for, whatever He gives to you, He gives because only you have the capacity to multiply that talent a hundred times. Every man is born with a gift, find yours and use it according to His purpose for your life, quit searching out for what you already have.

Now, here comes the last and most important stroke;

• Cast Your Worries on God Not Your Responsibility

Most of us don’t see God as our Master, we see Him more like a genie who should do everything that we ask of Him good or bad. This is where we get it all wrong. We spend precious time praying about the most unnecessary things when He has given you all that you need to survive in the world. Peter made sure to tell people to cast their worries, their fears, their anxieties and their concerns in the hands of God but not their responsibility.

  It’s like giving birth to a child and then asking God to send an angel to help bathe, feed and train the child for you when He would not have given you the child if you didn’t have the capability to take care of it in the first place. As we seek God’s direction, let’s not excuse our laziness with ‘waiting on the Lord’ when He has clearly shown us the path to take.

‘Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that in due time He may exalt you, Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. (1 Peter 5:6-7)

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Have a splendid day!

The Nostalgic Pen