Wambui's Reflections: THE ART OF WAR AND THE ELEMENT OF SURPRISE

THE ART OF WAR AND THE ELEMENT OF SURPRISE

By Wambui | image courtesy: Happify

Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist, yet whoever is least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

_Mathew 11:11-15

From the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it.

For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.

Whoever has ears, let him hear.

Preamble

John the baptist was the fore runner for Jesus. He was also the one who baptised Jesus. But it is good to know that at this time John the baptist was in prison the same time Jesus’ ministry was just beginning.

John the baptist was trying to understand what was happening in this season because things were not adding up. Jesus shows up, he baptises him then now he is in prison.

During the baptism, John clearly heard the voice from heaven say....”this is my Son in whom I am well pleased with and John continues to recall this event with alot of doubt.

John then starts questioning God that why should he be in prison? Was it really God’s voice he heard? Is Jesus really who God says He is?

The Disciples too join I and ask Jesus - are you the coming one and if yes how come John the Baptist is in prison?

Often people think, or ask themselves:...What is my ultimate objective in life? And our Ultimate Objective in life has a few parameters or points that make others say - that person has finally established themselves in life or has gained stability. Society does not make things any better, because they seem to put social markers that people tend to believe or identify with that is markers of stability e g. Are you married? Do you have children? Where did you go to school? Did you graduate? etc...these are just but afew examples of markers that are supposed to indicate whether, or not we have stability in our lives.

My take is that stability is but an illusion because even when for example you get married - your marriage goes through changes , for example, you start well madly in love then you get children and you now are dealing with attitudes of different people because they come with various challenges, a spouse becomes sick, or loses a job.

Eventually a marriage that was seen as a place of stability now changes face because you who is experiencing these changes gets to be transformed into different phases.

And when those transformations take place they have the ability to shake the marriage! So we end up doing a de-service to people by asking them about those markers of stability.

Success is measured by whetsher, or not you have made it to build something stable. That is why I see stability as an illusion in a world that promises change because people think that stability is a destination of life forgetting that Destiny is a Journey and not a destination!

So instead of chasing or finding stability, we need to find adaptability that is how able are we to adapt.

I personally believe this is the greatest marker in life’s success that is if you or I are able to fully grasp and learn the art of adaptability.

There are some businesses, or jobs that don’t take into account your IQ - Intelligence Quotient level or your EQ -; Emotional Quotient any more, now what they take Account of is your AQ - Adaptability Quotient. How well are you able to adapt.

Question

Can you adapt with me? Can you grow with me? Can you move with me? - that is can we go from meeting the president of a nation to visiting the homeless people in the streets....or are only okay when things are stable.

Woe unto you if you are only comfortable when you are stable because you will fall apart when the world does what it knows best and that is change!

Pray that God breathes into your life the ability to adapt when life changes.. When we adapt to various changes in our lives we learn more about ourselves meaning you don’t realise you can do certain things untill your placed in a certain environment and if you don’t realise the need to adapt then you end up missing out on what God is intending to transform you into.

We talk about your gifts making or creating room for you and bringing you before great atmospheres and great people’s environments...But what will keep you in that room is your ability to adapt.

You don’t speak in certain ways when you are in certain rooms and if you don’t learn to adapt then you are going to stay out not just for the reasons you think but it it is because you will have said “I cannot fit in this room”. We talk about standing out and I know this is very important, but in actual sense standing out is when your gift stands out, e.g. that is your ability to create stands out.

But there are somethings in you that should not stand out especially when you are in certain rooms.

You have to muster how to flow in every room, you have to know how to function no matter where you are...e g. The way you speak to family should be different from the way you speak in a corporate business but your substance does not change what changes is your delivery.

When we are unable to adapt we often get frustrated because we keep asking why is this delivery not working in the Atmosphere I am in?

People who understand the importance of adapting, recognize that the number one role in life is not to be a master, but a student.

The more I am willing to learn the more likely I am to grow. Because when I go into an environment, I don’t try to own the room but I try to learn the room before I speak. Because if I speak and I say something that disqualifies me from the room, I may never be in that room again.

But if I take time to learn the environment e.g. how do they speak? How do they dress? How do they show up? What is my role here? What are the battles in this room? etc The most important thing you can when you have been invited to an environment that is greater or bigger than what you think is yours, it is not to try and prove that you deserve to be there BUT to be silent long enough to learn where you are. And if you are silent long enough to learn what you are, then God will highlight why you are there!

- Sometimes we are so busy trying to prove that we deserve to be in the room and yet we do not know why God sent us to that room.

Our Meditation should be...

I am so disqualified and I don’t know why I am here but I know God sent me here so I am silent so that God can speak to me, I am afraid to use the language that gets me into this room so God has to show me how to speak in this room.

God show me how to speak in this business. God show me how to speak when I am dealing with this banker, when I am negotiating this contract etc....I realize I cannot talk to them like I talk to friends but I have to raise my language for the environment I am in!