STAY POWER 💪

Sometime back I enjoined myself to a group of really inspired individuals. They had already started a business together and From all the simple algorithms and calculations they did, they were going to make it big! I just had to be part of this history! At first Everything went well, I really thought this was it; But a short while later challenges starting cropping up here and there, a few people started leaving the group, the workload started increasing and then slowly by slowly everyone went their own way. Does this sound familiar to you? I bet it does. We obviously lacked something, which in my opinion is called staying power!

Staying power is the ability to remain committed to your course, despite the challenges. Its the discipline to keep going until you reach the end, you know, when you can finally do the proverbial mic drop? Just like Paul did in 2 Timothy 4:7 when he said, “I have done my best in the race, I have run the full distance, and I have kept the faith.

I have had many friends come and go, but it really is the few ones that have stayed over the years that matter to me. They are the real deal. My day ones! I believe at times it takes more faith to stay than it does to leave. This very simple quality if you may, has all the attributes for Greatness written all over it! You need it for your marriage, your job, your business, your relationships, and many many other important day to day activities. Today I have a tip or two on how to preserve your staying power…

TIP 1: Find inspiration in your obstacles. Obstacles always show up as soon as you determine your goals. It’s annoying I know but these challenges come to us for a purpose. God allows difficult situations in our lives to make us stronger, to build our character, and to make us into the men and women He wants us to be. Without trials and hardships, you will not develop character and spiritual muscles. The Book of Psalms says, “As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion” (Ps. 84:6-7, niv). ‘The valley of tears’ which is the meaning of the ‘Valley of Baca’ is full of difficulties and trials, which of course we would rather not have to go through. How often does it ever enter our minds that passing through this valley can help us become stronger? Often, it is the only way we become stronger. In the midst of a tragedy, we discover a hidden source of blessings and support, receive strength and become better. In Proverbs 24:10, the book of wisdom, reminds us that strength and pressure go hand in hand. If you fail under pressure, your strength is too small. Only when you rise up over your trials can your eyes see new horizons, allowing you to see what you could not see before— new blessings, new prospects, new people, and a new life. So therefore be bold and go get ’em!

TIP 2: Do everything as unto God! Colossians 3:23 In all the work you are doing, work the best you can. Work as if you were doing it for the Lord, not for people. You can preserve your staying power and accomplish what you have decided only when you make a decision to do everything as unto God. Be responsible toward God for all you do— on the job and off. Remember that God sees all your deeds—it will give you extra incentive to work hard when you know that even the most secular job is still our way of serving God. For we serve God by serving people!

TIP 3: Practice Quiet Time. On a daily and systematic basis, it is important to find time to be alone in order to pray, read, study, meditate and listen to God. This quiet time will equip and guide you to accomplish your plans. Quiet time is usually the time in your day when new and fresh ideas will come to mind. When they do, write them down. It is important to keep track of things. You will remember things better when you write them down, and since you will always be able to go back to what you have written, it is another way to get closer to your dreams. Meditate on your decisions and ideas, and organize them to help you produce a program or a plan. Your plan is perfected as your knowledge grows

Tip 4: BE HONEST AND SINCERE TO YOURSELF. If you are not sincere with yourself, then you are not sincere at all. Integrity is measured by how much you are able to hold on to the promises you make daily to yourself, the ones no one else knows about. Measure your level of integrity by how often you keep the promises you make to yourself. The ratio of promises and faithfulness to those promises will tell you how well you have developed your character.

Tip 5: Which is closely related to TIP 4 is about Minimising your Decision quotient! Basically this is the distance between decision making and real action. Many fail to achieve their targets, not because they do not have valuable gifts, great ideas, or worthwhile skills, but because they are indecisive and complacent. There is no inner engine driving them through life. It is easy enough to calculate the quotient of our decisiveness. The perfect decision quotient is 1:1, meaning that each time we decide to do something, we do it! Companies specializing in thought leadership and process innovation say the most effective people in the world have a decision quotient of 3:4 or 2:4, meaning that for every four decisions they make, they act on two or three of them. People who simply talk about doing but seldom follow through have a decision quotient of 2:10 or 2:20—for every ten or even every twenty decisions they make, they act only twice. This is what Jesus was talking about when He said, “Let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’” (Matt. 5:37). I take this to mean that a deed must follow a word, an action must follow a decision. Do what you say and say what you do! So what’s your decision quotient? 🤔

I am sure there are many more tips to maintain your staying power. Please feel free to share with us your tips that have worked for you over the years. Love ya…

Jmy.