Mandla Tembe

You do not want to see yourself in the same position for years.  You want to increase and grow. It's nice when one or two people are promoted before your eyes in one year, you can celebrate with them; but when this begins to happen year after year and it becomes a trend it can be very frustrating. The scripture tells us that promotion does not come from the east or the west but promotion comes from the Lord. We can therefore agree that the main person that you need to impress in order to get that promotion is God. God promoted the two men who doubled the talents he had given them. Paul also encourages us to work as if we working for the Lord.

It feels good to be happy and excited. Sometimes we wish that it can always be like that but the truth is, sometimes it doesn't happen. When disappointment kicks in, we are presented with two choices, either be stressed or be happy no matter what. What is it that causes someone to be happy even after his house has completely burned down. Is it the insurance? Of cause not. But it is; 1)Gratitude  This person says I might have lost my house but thank God I have not lost my mind or my family. In other words this person's focus is on the "have;" not the have not." 2)Hope  If we believe that something good is about to happen, it creates a feeling of joy. One of the ways I use to create a positive atmosphere is to play songs that affirms a positive outcome for my situation. I play that song over and over until it becomes the part of my thoughts.

The scripture tells us that God knows everything, nothing is hidden from God's sight. He knows the beginning and the end. It is an undeniable truth that we have all had doors close before us. It is very painful when you had faith that a do would open but it didn't open. When all that happen, some choose to walk in Johnny's footsteps; I mean Johnny Walker by the way. So they keep on walking until they find a Bar, take a sip hopping to wash away their frustrations only to wake up with the same bad news that the door didn't open. What do you do when a door didn't open? Remember God is not by any means surprised by a closed door. Sometimes God would allow a door to close so that when a much better door opens you will be available. We must therefore move on and believe that the best is yet to come.

The scripture tells us that God knows everything, nothing is hidden from God's sight. He knows the beginning and the end. It is an undeniable truth that we have all had doors close before us. It is very painful when you had faith that a do would open but it didn't open. When all that happen, some choose to walk in Johnny's footsteps; I mean Johnny Walker by the way. So they keep on walking until they find a Bar, take a sip hopping to wash away their frustrations only to wake up with the same bad news that the door didn't open. What do you do when a door didn't open? Remember God is not by any means surprised by a closed door. Sometimes God would allow a door to close so that when a much better door opens you will be available. We must therefore move on and believe that the best is yet to come.

Do you want to get to the next level? You are not alone, we all want to. It is also clear that between you and the next level; there are many obstacles. If we don't know how to deal with those obstacles it might take us forever to get to the next level. What do we do then? Remember you are not the first one to be facing those obstacles, some have gone before you. We must therefore be people who are teachable, be open to other people's point of view. I must warn you though, sometimes words of wisdom might not come from the people who talk like you or dress like you. Don't let the other person's indifference impede you from receiving what God has for you. We must accept the fact that we don't know everything.

Most of us are in a stage in our lives where we are waiting for Day X to come. Why? The main reason is because Day X promises us joy, happiness and fulfillment. Day X could be a day when you get that job you have been praying for or it could be a day when you walk down the aisle with the man or woman of your dreams to say, "I do".  The problem is, waiting can be very stressful if we do not know how to handle it. I personally do not like waiting for food especially when I'm very hungry. One of the things you can do while you waiting is to be grateful. Like in my case, I would say,"father thank you that I'm about to have a meal". In other words your perspective should not be on the delays but on the finished product. Be grateful where you are. Sometimes the very things that we mourn about are the very source of our joy. 

Surely, you are reading this because you have been to school; probably you must have studied subjects like languages, Mathematics or even economics subjects. But do you still remember that you were not accepted to the next grade or class because you had passed all of them with a hundred percent but because you had satisfied a certain standard?  What am I saying with all this? Understand, this, people cannot always meet your standard hundred percent. Just because they can't meet your highest standard that you have set; does not necessarily mean that they are bad people. In other words, if we want to create healthy relationships; we must accept people with the fifty percent or sixty percent they bringing in. 

Why Live by Faith. Most of us have a desire to achieve great things in life. Having a desire to achieve is never enough. People die with desires. Most of the time we hear of their desires during their funerals, "He always had a desire to start a business." What separates the one who has achieved and the one who hasn't, is the faith. Faith will cause you to keep going even in the mist of all the reasons why you shouldn't succeed. Remember, there will always be reasons why you shouldn't succeed. You cannot allow reasons to stop you from achieving those great dreams. Believe that God will help you succeed. Don't give up on your dreams. 

I had always wondered, what makes a champion? One day I noticed that a certain wrestler who was a champion at that time would use this important strategy in order to overcome his opponent. The wrestler would hit the opponent in the same spot over and over until the opponent could not handle the punches anymore. A certain man once said "If you hit a tree all over it; it will hardly fall, but if you hit it on the same spot over and over; the tree will easily fall." What am I saying with all this. Which area do you want to see a breakthrough in? Now everyday start focusing on that area. Pray about that area. Declare what you want to see happening. Do this until God gives you an answer. I believe that as you follow these instructions you will see your breakthrough earlier than you expected. 

 Throughout the Bible we learn that many great men and women of God had to apply a certain way of praying in order to see their miracles manifest in the natural. Some of these great people were, Hannah, Elijah and a widow. Hannah prayed to God for a baby and she got seven more children. Elijah prayed that it would rain and it did. What is unique about the way they prayed?  Persistence.  All these people were persistent. They prayed persistently until their breakthroughs began to manifest . Many people are against the idea of asking God the same thing over and over as if He is deaf. This is one of the tricks that the enemy uses against God's children in order to deprive them of their blessings. The enemy would say "hey you don't have to ask God about that because you asked him yesterday". In contrary to this Jesus encourages us to pray persistently. Luke18:1_8 If what you prayed to God for has not yet materialized; don't stop praying. Continue praying until you...

Covered with sack clothes, rolling on the ashes; David cried and wept before the Lord, praying that the Lord may heal his son he got through adultery. Nevertheless, God seemed to show no mercy towards David because the son died (2 Samuel 12). What do you do when God does not answer your prayer? You paid tithes, given to the poor and prayed all night, in fact, done all you know could cause God to answer your prayers but still no answer. You loose the deal. The child dies. After hearing the news that the child is dead, David Rose from the ashes, got rid of the sackclothes; put on the robe of royalty and went back to the temple and worshipped God.  The story does not end there, but we learn that in the end God blessed David with a son who grew up to become a king full of wisdom and wealth. Instead of his shame God gave him a double portion. May God do the same for you; may he wipe your tears of sorrow and put on you the tears of Joy. (If these short messages are blessing ...