What is your plan?

 This week, I have been reflecting on a few highlights of what is happening in Uganda and the USA. Security is of a big concern in both countries where kidnapping and shooting of people have been (Still are) talking points. What happened to strategic planning and thinking? Why does it look like systems are failing? Why is it easy to brush off the president’s messages and the messages of those in authority? What do the government and the police plan to do to prevent such from happening again? Is there anybody who can bring a lasting plan? Like many of you, I must say that I am not happy with the status quo in our countries and the world at large. All things and plans, no matter how good they are or sound, seem to be slowly dying.

 It is good to have a zeal for changing things, of wanting to make the world a better place but can the problems in the world end? It is hard to comprehend that indeed all-human knowledge and plans end. If all is ending, then what should be our ultimate plan? To answer the question one can say, “There is no plan except God’s plan. Jesus came to provide an answer to the problems of sin and death.  We could not solve them by ourselves. Instead of relying on our leaders to solve our current problems, can we turn our focus to Jesus the ultimate solution? Jesus overcame it all and helps us trump over the problems of sin and death.

The only thing that we possess right now is our soul. We should know that our soul will spend eternity somewhere. The main question that should throb into our minds should be about what the outcome of our personal lives is, or will be. Ezekiel 33:1-6 stipulates that leaders are stewards of God’s resources. In verse 4, Ezekiel says”Then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head”. How many warnings do we still need? We ought to think about how our lives will end. God’s plan is to have us live for him eternally. Ours is to grow in our walk with him, live eternal lives and focus on spending eternity with him.  My prayer is that whoever does not know God shall come to know of his ultimate plan and have his conduct transformed.

Stop figuring your life out

Today is the 7^th day of 2018 and yet I am still trying to figure out how my year will be. I have often found myself spending much of my mental time figuring out how things are going, how they went or how things will go. No matter how hard I think, there is always that unknown thing that surpasses my own understanding. Yes, I desire to know and understand many things but I have found myself needing more knowledge, wisdom and understating. Actually, there are times when I wonder what I got for myself.

Are you like me and have moments when you wish you knew what you could not know? Do you have moments when you begin to think that you are not good enough? Life may bring situations to us that are beyond our control. Some of these happenings may even be hard to bare. We try to look for solutions to our problems but instead sink farther into the very problems we want to solve. We end up blaming others or ourselves for every bad thing that happens to us. It becomes hard to let go and move on with life. This is perhaps why there are many problems in the world. The more we try to figure things out without involving God the more we escalate the situations. Our personal rest turns into anxiety and depression.

Biblical characters like David also faced difficult situations. They also had those moments when they failed to have their lives figured out. Lets us ponder on the Psalmist’s words “Yes, my soul, finds rest in God; my hope comes from him. Truly, he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge “(Psalm 62:5-7). David acknowledged that he could not figure things out. He, however, knew someone who had it all figured out. He was in a perfect relationship with this guy that figures it all for us. His name is Jesus. His trust in the Lord no matter what life brought to him (Good or bad) earned him the title of a man after God’s own heart.

Friends, I do not know what you are going through but I know the one who knows it all. He is willing to Journey 2018 with you and he will figure out every detail in your favor. There is no need of being overwhelmed by things beyond our potentials. There is, however, a need to surrender it all to God. We have to trust in the one who has it all figured out for our good and his Glory.

Who do you condemn?The sinner or sin?

As Christians, we should not judge or condemn people based on their actions. We should acknowledge sin and let the Holy Spirit do the conviction and conversion. The problem we have these days is that some Christians play as God. Manipulating scriptures to suite a few people’s interests at the expense of others is wrong. Discriminating people based on church traditions may draw the discriminated even further from the truth. As Christians, we ought to go back to the truth and ask ourselves of what Jesus would do whenever making decisions. Can one fight sin without fighting the sinner? Yes, with effective communication. Let us ponder on Jesus’ reaction when they brought an adulterous woman to him. The rest of the people accused the adulterous woman but Jesus’ approach was a different one. His response was one that condemns none but one that is compelling to stop someone from sinning anymore (John 8: 2-11).

Stop panicking and wondering

I love starting my day with quiet time and devotion. In today’s devotion, the word of God encouraged me to stop panicking when in difficult situations. Have you gone into situations where you fail to see God through it? When nights seem to be longer than they actually are?  When are you anxious and panicking? If you are in such a situation right now, I would like to let you know that God stays true to his sovereign plan and knows the end from the very beginning. I may not know what you are going through but God knows. Philippians 4:19-20 tells of the way God will supply all our needs according to his riches in Glory. Glory will always be to him forever and ever.

I have been following the political climate in my mother country Uganda and to be honest, am not so happy with what is going on. I have often been wondering whether God is even working things out for the good of the country. Been asking myself several questions like why do people react the way they do? How does the president feel when such is going on in the country that he claims to be leading so well? Why do honest souls die from gunshots? What happened to freedom of expression?

The more I ask myself these questions, the more my mind goes into a wonderland! I am reminded that God is never anxious and never gets confused. I thus trust in all that he is doing even in situations that seem hopeless. The solution to today’s political situations does not rely on people with political might; it relies on the sovereign God. I would like to request you to join me in praying for politics of not only my motherland but also for the whole world. It is my prayer that God will do what only he can do.

I know that leadership comes from God and I am well assured that he can transform the hearts of the bad leaders into the leaders he wants them to be. God predestined us for adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ, according to the purposes of his will, to the praise of his Glorious Grace.

For further reading and encouragement please consider reading my main devotional text today; Ephesians 1:3-12. Wishing you a blessed day and a fruitful week.

Good Bye Colorado

If my life was a book, today would be the end of my chapter in Colorado Springs.  God has immensely Blessed me and always opens doors for me whenever I need one open!!. To note is that the doors he opens always have more to offer and most of them come through the people he brings along my paths. When I look back to where he has brought me from I feel like trusting his leading even more. He knows the way and mine is to only follow.  Meeting you (Reader of this post) might have been a portion of the chapter that needed to be written in the past 1.5 years and am thankful for all your input.  Based from the many conversations held over work and meals shared together; a number of you may be co-authors in my next chapter of life.  From Wednesday last week till today I have been going out for breakfast, Lunch and dinner as a way of saying bye to my friends.  I have had a limited time to say bye to all of my great friends and that’s why I have decided to draft a good bye message to whoever might be interested in one. 

 

I trust that the Lord will reveal the many other pieces of my next chapter and perhaps one of you would be the person that the Lord uses to do that. 

In as much as I don’t feel like leaving Colorado I feel like the Lord chooses me to leave and I must say good bye to you in love.  To all the people that I have met; just know that you have been a divine appointment to me and I will miss you so dearly. I look forward to seeing you again either in this side of the earth or in heaven. I will be heading to Pennsylvania tomorrow morning where I will eventually set off from to go back to my homeland Uganda at a time that is not yet determined. Who knows, maybe I will write another Colorado Chapter. Stay Tuned!!!!!!

Embracing Diversity

Uniqueness among us leads to diversity which can sometimes be a form of Entertainment. In the time I have been in the USA, my lack of knowledge on some American basic things has been a source of Entertainment to me and those around me, especially as I asked or was asked questions that seemed to be comic in nature. When I visited an American restaurant during the “Genesis” of my stay here, I got asked about the kind of dressing that I wanted. I thought to myself, do men here put on dresses? Do I have a wound that has to be dressed? Little did I know that all that I had to say was that I needed Italian dressing or a thousand Island. My culture is simply different from US culture and can often be distinguished by my accent.  Maybe that’s why people ask me about where my accent is from. Surprisingly those who call my way of speaking an “accent” also have an accent. Who does not have an accent??As I reflect on my stay in the “dream land” I realize that I have learned a lot about this culture and hope those who get to interact with me learn somethings about my culture.  God in his wisdom allowed us to be born where we were born. It’s not a mistake that we have so many cultural affiliations today. Our uniqueness is something that has to be embraced with open hands because of the following truths.

1.  Nobody will be you: God in his own wisdom made us so unique that even those with the same DNA have distinct values. So why waste time wanting somebody else to be like you simply because you think you are more perfect than him. We all have strengths and weaknesses and have to learn to bear with each other if we are to live harmoniously. No human is perfect, and just like no human is perfect no culture, ethnicity, tribe or clan is perfect. Being different from others does not justify that you are right and they are wrong. All that we should care about is building human relationships and reaching a mutual understanding.
2. We are here to serve:  God made us the way we are for a purpose, to serve him and those around us. Have you wondered about why you do what you do? Like it or not, what you do affects others, either directly or indirectly. We all work on products or services that are used by others. Not even those who claim to be self-employed are self-employed in the real sense because they will at least need clients. Instead of being obsessed with personal ego, power, prominence or position we should endeavor to do onto others what we would love them do onto us since we get things from others anyway.
3.  Value what we can do together: I have realized that nothing can defeat a united team and believe that every person has a something to bring on the table. I’m always amazed by the way our different gifting’s compliments each other. I know that my worth is not based on what I have (Talk of education, skill sets, resume, authority, net worth to mention but a few) but rather on how ready and willing I’m to let God use me wherever he leads me. Reminds me about the boy who had what the disciples considered little (only had five small barley loaves and two small fish John 6:9) and how God used that for his Glory.  I know that a team that has Jesus at the center can be unstoppable. If the world is to be a better place we have to let go of what divides us and cling on what unites us.

  

Being “You”

Have you had moments in your life when you wished you were someone else? Or wished you were born from a particular family/country or wished you had pursued a different career? Or basically found yourself drifting into wishful thoughts? 

If your answer to all these questions is a yes I would like to encourage you to develop pride and confidence in whom you are. I do not know what you believe in; Good Luck or Karma but I know there is a creator who designed you the way you are. He knew you before you were created in your mothers’ womb, watches over you and in his perfect plan, sees you through whatever life brings your way. You are the only “you “that God created. So unique and special in your own way. You may not be like your brother or neighbor but you can be “you”. 

The only person you should be in competition with should be yourself. You can determine to be the best “you” that ever lived. I love the fact that God created us in his own Image. Since we bare his own image, we can endeavor to be like him. Stop doing things because others are doing them but rather do them because you think that’s what God wants you to do. If you have the best Architect of your future (God) with you, you will never go wrong. 

We can overcome this technologically advanced, secularized and fast paced society if we remain faithful to the Biblical foundations. We have to silence the noise from our environments and get a peace of mind that the Lord gives. ''Be you''