A Place Called Mind: Bedrock Of Self Image

A Place Called Mind: Bedrock Of Self Image

The empires of the future are the empires of the mind.

---Winston Churchill

 “Everything that happens to you is a reflection of what you believe about yourself. We cannot outperform our level of self-esteem. We cannot draw to ourselves more than we think we are worth.”
---Iyanla Vanzant

“Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing.”
---August Wilson

In the corner of my room, i decided to take a stroll across the Earth and my mind flashed to the inception of life on Earth; the beginning of mankind and all the things on Earth, that we make use of and which we have dominion over being man. My mind got casted on countless awesome and amazing things that came into existence after the era of shapeless and formless Earth covered in darkness. Creation of the Earth and the fullness thereof is a beautiful and wonderful event to contemplate on, when one takes time to savor the goodness and loveliness of the Earth and the countless creations in it, starting from the ones in the waters and sea to the creatures in the air and the ones which maintain their place on land, you will have a cause to give kudos to the creator in whose mind this great design and creations were conceived from.

According to the Bible, it was accounted that this great creator of the earth and the fullness thereof, also agreed with His companions to form man (you and i) in their own image after their likeness to have dominion over everything He created before us, this i see as a confirmation that man, can create whatsoever he envisioned and could become just whoever he dreams and dares to be.

The mind is the origin of great and unbelievable ideas, dreams and visions; i call it the eye of the inner man that has the potency to see beyond external influences, filters the impurities of the past and magnetizes the would-be.

I would compare the mind of man to the electronic control unit of a car which interfaces with all the engine management sensors, adjust fuel and timing, and all other performance-related issues real-time as you drive. Though the mind of man can do much more super things, this only depicts that while you keep on driving (remain alive), your mind remain at your service carrying the potential to help you stay on top of your situation , do the impossible and turn your mess around into glamour.

Looking at the tracks of my life, i have figured out that many of the things that springs from my mind and i decisively followed with required level of actions always come to be, over time, at times it’s instant but many times it tarries till maturity time which maybe unpalatable experience if expedited.

Continuity!!!

Continuity!!!

“An ant on the move does more than a dozing ox.”

---Lao Tzu

“Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.”

---Abraham Lincoln

“I know that I have the ability to achieve the object of my Definite Purpose in life, therefore, I demand of myself persistent, continuous action toward its attainment, and I here and now promise to render such action.”

---Napoleon Hill

Day after day, Night after night, the sun shines and the moon never stop to glow, which signifies that the Earth is always spinning, and who can tell when the Earth would stop to rotate? Maybe when life cease to be. This is why man as an inhabitant of the earth must learn to move on in life, come rain, come sun shine, to be fulfilled on this planet because continuity is the foundation on which this world is built.

 Life don’t get any better, everything loses their good vibes and becomes tasteless the moment they cease to go on. One great visitor that comes knocking on the door of anything that is not fueled to satisfy its purpose, be it living or non-living is death. Uselessness and futility is the consequence and product of a halted entity.

As everyday come and go, i have gained an understanding that inactivity only activates decay and the good, better, and best only comes from steady and continuous actions. Many times, I feel very lazy and would just feel like sleeping, sit and do nothing, and just play and play and play, but each time i lose myself to this feeling and get drowned in the pool of inaction, the outcome has only been regrets because the activities i left unattended to, comes back to launch punches at me. Then i say to myself ‘what shall it profit a man, that gives himself to excessive merriment and idleness, and afterward bit his finger in regrets because a lot has passed him by’. Life always have its gaze on us, evaluating our actions and idleness, and at the time of reward, pays everyone judiciously according to your level of investment, which simply means whatever you sow, you reap.

One of Rishikan Jain’s quotes caught my attention and this is what it says “Stone is broken with the last stroke of Hammer. This doesn't mean that the first stroke was useless. Success is the result of continuous efforts”. This preaches about continuity in the course of action directed towards materializing and attaining your dreams and goals in life. Your persistent, continual and worthwhile actions are the strokes of hammer needed to break hardship, poverty, failure, mediocrity, obscurity, and frustration which are the stones in life.

Tell me of an athlete (Runner) who started a race and stopped along the way before the race finish line, and got a gold medal for that. Such a runner would only have to watch the ones that made it to the finish line collecting the deserved medal celebrating their victory. Nothing will change the story of such runner until he determines to persevere and run till the end of race finish line and possibly be ahead of other competitors before he could have a medal to himself. The bible also confirms this in 1 Corinthians 9:24 “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize”. With determination in your action and dedication to your course, nothing can hinder you from attaining success and fulfillment.

Who Cares?

Who Cares?

“My friend...care for your psyche...know thyself, for once we know ourselves, we may learn how to care for ourselves" -Socrates” 
― Socrates

1 Peter 5:7-9 (NIV)

7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

Psalm 145: 8-9

8 The Lord is gracious and compassionate; slow to anger and rich in love.

9 The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.

There is one thing that I desire and wish I could gain, it may not count for many but it is the most important thing in life for me, and this is nothing than ability to turn deaf ears to news of calamities and possession of the insuperable power to influence change of havoc to absolute peace, seeing to it that everything that fell apart has fallen back into place magically and beautifully. One thing keeps beating me since I was a little boy that can give meaning to the pictures seen on the TV, newspaper and the voices from the radio. I dread so much every time I hear or know of any bad occurrence, whenever I hear of ruinous damage, death, sickness, armed robbery and so on, I suddenly swing mood, and feel bitter and sick because I always have that strange feelings that the evil events took place just right inside of me.

Aside the news on TV, Newspaper and radio, i can still remember very well of a particular radio program called ‘Nkan be’ which tells of terrible things happening around the world but Nigeria in particular, this radio program gained the mind of people and is broadcasted on several radio stations and TV channels, spreading news of havoc and calamities, all in the name of creating awareness and sensitizing people to be careful and beware of possible atrocities of their neighbors.  The atmosphere is always filled with fear after the program comes to an end before another episode. I feel very offended every time this program is on, the most painful thing is that it was tuned to by everyone in my neighborhood and everyone keeps the volume of their TV and Radio so loud that you can hear it from three houses away, I always say to myself then, there is no escape for you boy, all I end up doing is try as much as I can to close my ears and make my mind like nothing was happening around me. I hated every program that spread news of bad events with passion. As I grow older, i discovered that I am just that person whose mind only wants to feed on delicacy called good news.

I do ask myself, who cares?  Is it the man whose daily activities is centered on digging and spreading the bad news or  those that have great expectations for another  episode of  the showcase of evil events or  is it me that never want to hear bad news but only good news? I don’t want bad news but only good news because I want it to be well always with people and their properties; I always see it that the victim(s) of this evil occurrences could have been me or any of my loved ones and properties, if it does not happen to us today, who can tell where the stone of sorrow would strike tomorrow? This kind of thought feels my mind every now and then when I hear of terrible things happening around the world.

Where Hath Your Motivation Come From?

Where Hath Your Motivation Come From?

I remember someone said to me it's not good to be too optimistic and i see, that statement belongs to those who cannot visualize where their dreams leads them and are not ready to give it, all they have to make their dreams come true. Hey friend, keep the fire inside of you burning and do everything you can to disappoint the thoughts of those who see your dreams as chasing after the wind.
--Ogundipe Clement Shola

An unexamined life is not worth living.

–Socrates

There is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing.

–Aristotle

All of my life, until now, i have been motivated by inspirational statements people have made to me and i will never forget the disheartening statements from people, which almost crippled the strong man in me. But as situation of life gets clearer to me and i began to gain wisdom and understanding on how to handle the situations of life, life has become more meaningful and every situation i face gives me direction because i choose to listen to their voice, understand their tongues and the interpretation of their gimmicks.

It is almost two years now, when a friend who relocated to Saudi Arabia called me and in the course of our conversation said to me and i quote “Clement, i see you becoming so mega in the next five years, I don’t know how you will do it but you will become mega”. I became speechless because this is really prophetic and what else could I do than to claim it, open my inner mind to foresee how mega i really want to be, tighten my girdle and focus my energy on making this a reality and never stop going, even when hell appear as i journey on. Few days ago, I remembered this guy and what he said to me, then I said to myself laughing ‘you have got three years more, to make your friend a prophet whose prophecies comes true’. I have promised myself that I will never rest until my good is better and my better best, when the five years is due, I know he would reach me and say you are there, then I will say to him, I am on the train of super mega making. I am bold to say this, because only the heart that will, has the capacity to receive and make happen.

I  decided to use myself and my life as a case study, just to show i have my fears and flaws but i have made up my mind never to let them cloud my thinking and cripple the muscles where my strength lies. Someone said to me that, ‘i have always seen you like a perfect person who just know how to handle your situations, but look at me, I find myself always in a bunch of mess’, I was silent for a while then I spoke up, and told the person of how rough my situations has always been but my reactions to them only made them smooth, i had to open my life’s files for the person to see how crooked my places have been but they became straight whenever i respond wisely, positively, patiently and persistently to them and lean on God where my motivation and help comes from. You can always tap into this  Isaiah 45:1-3 (KJV) ¹Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;

² I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron:

³ And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.

 This is HIS promise for those who call unto Him when their strength fails and they are swept off their feet by oceans of challenges and confrontations.