A CALL TO TRANSFORMATION
By: AGHARA JOHN PAUL
According to Sir Newton, any object will
forever remain in the same position until an external force is being applied to
change
its position. Relatively, the beauty of the butterfly cannot be truly
appreciated until it has gone through the metamorphic process. And similarly, we
humans are like objects whose lives can be static or progressively changing
from one form of glory (success) to another. According to Newton’s Law of
Motion, our lives will constantly remain the same from one year to another with
no tangible proof of success until an external force is applied to our lives
that can change us. This change is what we call TRANSFORMATION.
Transformation
changes you and reveals the hidden glory in you. It exposes you to the great
wealth of potentials stored in you that has never been noticed. Scriptures says
in Ephesians 4:8 “WHEREFORE HE SAITH, WHEN HE ASCENDED UP ON HIGH, HE
LED CAPTIVITY CAPTIVE, AND GAVE GIFTS UNTO MEN”. This means every sinner walking
past you in the street has the potential to be a bishop, pastor, evangelist,
deacon or deaconess; every single human out there who looks to be a waste has
the potential to be a musician, writer, poet, fashion designer, a doctor,
lawyer, engineer or whatever they could discover is their gifting. But this
true identity Christ has bought for us will forever remains silent until we embrace
transformation to change our old man to see this new nature. CHANGE is the
WATCHWORD which many of us are so afraid to embrace because it will actually
change you from the person you are used to, to different species.
You can
change your name, your address, your cream, your haircut/hairstyle, you can
even change your clothing but not until you change your MIND, the same
experience will perpetuate itself in your life like nothing has ever happened
to you. True transformation takes place in your mind and this will ultimately
reflect in your outward appearance. Hence, the Apostle Paul said in Romans 12:2 “DO NOT BE CONFORMED TO
THIS WORLD (THIS AGE, FASHION, AFTER, ADAPTED TO ITS EXTERNAL, SUPERFICIAL
CUSTOMS) BUT BE TRANSFORMED (CHANGED) BY THE (ENTIRE) RENEWAL OF YOUR MIND (BY
ITS NEW IDEALS AND ITS NEW ATTITUDE) SO THAT YOU MAY PROVE (FOR YOURSELVES)
WHAT IS THE GOOD AND ACCEPTABLE AND PERFECT WILL OF GOD EVEN THE THING WHICH IS
GOOD AND ACCEPTABLE AND PERFECT IN HIS SIGHT FOR YOU (Amplified Version).
Let me
talk about three bullets or elements that can transform or destroy you.
SAFETY FIRST
Through
the years, our society, workplace, school system and almost every organization
has made us believe and accept that “Safety First” is the motto of humanity. But
safety first has done a great harm than good to the human mind that is longing
for transformation. Safety first has hindered governmental development,
industrial growth and the exploits of God’s creature. Safety first puts a wall
of limitation/barrier before the eyes of your mind that you dare not delve into
the oceans of deep waters where the big play takes place. It grows fears of
failure inside of you that ultimately hinders you from trying out new ideas and
concepts that will result to greater achievements.
Let me
shock you by telling you that Safety
First has never been the motto of dreamers or success driven leaders. Today,
I give you a new motto and this motto is called “SAFETY LAST”. Safety last
fights and breaks down the spirit of fear holding you back from pursuing your
dreams. Martin Luther King was never thinking Safety First when he led his
Freedom March to Washington Dc to deliver his “I HAVE A DREAM” speech. Mother
Theresa was never afraid to stand up for her beliefs. Talk about the great
Nelson Mandela who led South Africa out to freedom. Nelson Mandela was not even
afraid to abandon his legal career to go to prison for the cause of freedom.
May I inform you that pain births success at the end of the tunnel. Oops! Even
scripture says “Weeping may endure for a night but joy (success) comes in the
morning. The pain or loss of today shouldn’t make you lose the glory of
tomorrow. Never be afraid to pursue you dream which will transform you.
BONSAI EFFECT
Some trees like the iroko tree have the
tendency to grow as tall as it can get. Bonsai effect is a Chinese practice
that takes the tree/plants to put inside a vase/tray in order to limit their
growth ability. That’s how many of us had bonsai our lives. We have limited our
growth. Scripture says in Hosea 4:6 “My people perish for lack of knowledge”.
Most of us have stopped growing because of some sort of level we think we have attained
forgetting that we are not created to be limited in our successful
achievements. Don’t bonsai your life.
JAYPEE 101
We have often times blamed others for our
failures, shortcomings and inabilities to get successful results, but the
reality is that the finger still points back at you. The beginning of transformation
rises and falls on individuality. Jaypee 101 is the act of taking personal
responsibility and courage to pursue the vision set before you. Nobody can
change you except you. Jaypee 101 is the title of my upcoming book. Watch out
for it.
