Taka Sande's Blog, page 11
April 3, 2016
Comment on The Young Entrepreneurs Society (YES) Of Zimbabwe: Entrepreneurs’ Talk by Tafadzwa Munzwa
This is the only way of thinking which will liberate Zimbabwe from its continued crumbling economy. Entrepreneurial education has to be introduced to the mass population at the lowest level possible.
April 2, 2016
Comment on The Call to Preach the Gospel by Walter Daniels
Maybe I see “preaching differently, but I see _too much_ “preaching by mouth,” and not enough *preaching by living.* It’s “easy” to “talk” about being Christian, and annoy people by doing it. I hear that complaint all the time. The truth is that people _judge_ Christians by how they *act* all the time. And actions _don’t_ come close to matching words, very often.
So, no one pays attention to the “preaching with words.” OTOH, no one who knows me well, doubts what my religious beliefs are. They see me *try* to live what I say I believe; fail at it; and go back to trying. IOW, acting like a real, believing, Christian. Some, who were atheists, are now agnostics, because they see me try to live what I believe. They figure, “maybe there something to what he believes.”
March 31, 2016
The Call to Preach the Gospel
This is the second article in the series and it is continued from Open Letter To Every Christian.
What is Jesus’ perception and heart for people?
Thinking about the clarity of Jesus’ purpose and instruction regarding sharing the Gospel, I looked at my own life, and asked myself the question, “Why don’t I preach the gospel as much as I should?” A number of answers came to my mind. One that lingered long was, “Maybe when I see people in the world I don’t have the same perception and heart that Jesus had when He saw people”. In Matt 9:36-37, “When Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they fainted and were scattered abroad (ie. were harassed and helpless), like sheep without a shepherd.” When we see people (relatives, workmates, people of other faiths, etc) who do not know or serve Jesus, who are not born-again, what do we see when we see? Do we see enemies? Do we see inconveniences? Do we see demons? Do we see people who need to be avoided? But what does Jesus see? What is God’s heart? Paul writes something to Timothy regarding the heart of God for all men. In 1 Tim 2:1-6 Paul writes, “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone; for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men — the testimony given in its proper time
Surely if I had the same perception with regards to the desperate situation people who are living without Jesus are in, and if I also carry the same heart that God carried, then I would look beyond my weaknesses, my timidity, my busy-ness and my excuses, be prepared to stretch “myself” to walk on the water in this important area. My prayer is, “Lord, help me to see as You see and feel as You feel. My natural senses are deceptive”. Once our perception and heart changes, our actions will confirm our Christ-like conviction.
If God’s desire and has provided for all to be saved, where is the bottle-neck in the system?
There is no question about the heart of the Lord, that He not only desires that all be saved, but also has provided for the same. In Matt 9:37-38, Jesus said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
In the 21st century church, we have noted less and less real conversions to Christ. We either have nothing being done at all, or people being “invited to Christ to have their problems solved, or their needs/wants met” and not to fully give their lives to the Lord by surrendering their lives and all that is their’s as was the case in the 1st Century Church. As I thought about the lethargy, I was reminded of a common scripture; Rom 10:11-15.
As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile — the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
Rom 10: 14-15 are of particular interest. People want to believe but they can’t because they have not heard. People want to hear but they can’t, because there is no-one to preach (or share with them). Jumping to verse 15, we know from the “last words” of Jesus referred to earlier, that the Christians have been sent. Here is the bottle-neck….. Those that were sent are not doing what they were sent to do! If only the Christians could do what they were sent to do, then the people would hear; once the people hear, they could believe; once they believed, they would be saved. Ours is to speak, confirmation and conviction is done by the Lord through the Holy Spirit. Mar 16:20 says, “Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.”
Let us go out and preach, he is faithful to work with us and confirm the word!
Who Should Preach The Gospel?
Now that it is clear that the Gospel needs to be preached and preached urgently. A question arises, “Who should preach the Gospel”. From Mark 16:20, referred to in the previous paragraph, we learn that the disciples preached the Gospel. The word Disciple is derived from a Greek word “mathetes” meaning a learner or a pupil. In the context of the time when this was written, a master or Tradesman had a learner, who was taught a skill similar to how Apprentices are trained today. They learnt an aspect of the trade, and went on to practice that aspect that they had learnt. They did not wait to learn (ie. mental knowledge) and know everything before they went out and practiced. This caused them to stay close to the master or tradesman and continued learning as they practiced. How does this apply to us? When one gets born again, they have a super-natural realization of the need of a human being to give their lives to Jesus and be reconciled to God. As a “learner” we can start practicing what we now know. As we continue practicing, we continue to grow in the “trade”.
This brought me to the realization that even though I don’t know it all, I know something; that Jesus saved me from a life of sin and transferred me into His kingdom as I believed in Him. This is worth sharing! I could share a more sophisticated message if I knew how to, but, for now, I will share what I know. The Lord can work in the same way with my simple, few words in the same way He can work with a more sophisticated message!
This is true because as born-again Christians, when the Lord makes us new creations, He also commits to us and entrusts us to us the message of reconciliation. Read 2 Cor 5:17-20 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.
To reach our neighbour, our relative, our workmate or the stranger at the bus terminal, we don’t have to be “Evangelists”; we don’t have to have been Christians for many years; we don’t have to have gone to Bible School; we don’t have to be specifically gifted. We need to carry the Heart of the Lord and know that we cannot stay silent as many head to eternal destruction. We will arise, and trust in the faithful Lord who will work with us.
About Ronald J. Kwenda
Ronald Kwenda is a Professional Engineer of over 15yrs and Managing Consultant leading a Civil/ Structural Engineering firm. He also has a keen interest in mentorship, both in Business and Professional fields and Christian ministry. Having given his life to the Lord more than 21years ago, he is convinced that every Christian of any age, if they make themselves available, can be used by Lord and be a blessing in the body of Christ. You can reach him at engronaldkwenda@gmail.com.
Open Letter To Every Christian
The passage of time has seen a growing indifference of men towards the Existence of a living God and dimming recognition of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross that re-opened the door for men to be reconciled to the one, true, living God. Though it is apparent that judgment and eternal separation from God awaits those who are not Reconciled to God by faith in Jesus and the surrender of their lives to His leading, today’s Christian, who should understand the urgency of this, remains consumed with himself and seldom lifts a figure to reach out to those who will soon plunge into eternal condemnation, dying without having known Jesus as Lord and savior.
The call to preach the Gospel is more than a church programme to “add numbers” to the local church, but must extend to reaching out even if “our church” does not directly receive any direct benefit. It must flow from understanding why Jesus came into the world.
Why Did Jesus Come?
The term “Christian” in itself refers to “Christ-likeness”. This would imply that anyone ascribing to this must carry the same Objectives and Heart as Jesus Christ Himself carried. I hear many preaching/saying that Jesus came so that the Christian may have access to all that they desire/want, which mindset has, unfortunately crept to the centre of the purpose of why Jesus came. God is faithful to meet our needs, but can our Christian walk be centred on the meeting of our needs and us having what we desire? What does Scripture say about Jesus’s purpose of coming? Paul makes a staggering remark as he writes to Timothy in 1 Tim 1:15-16 “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners — of whom I am the worst.” This is amplified by a number of scriptures, for example: John 3:17 “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 12:47 “As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. Mark 2:16-17 “When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the “sinners” and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?’” On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
This makes it clear that the prime purpose for Jesus’ coming was to save sinners, which mission any committed co-workers must prioritise.
Jesus’ “Final” Instruction To His Disciples?
As I was growing up, when accompanying my mother to the bus as she was travelling out of town, I always knew something would happen without fail. The most important instruction would be given as the Bus was driving off! I see the same at death beds, as a loved one is about to pass, the very last words are treasured and considered important. I was considering this, and looked at some of Jesus’ last words before ascending to heaven.
In Acts 1:8-9 it says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. Again in Mark 16:15-16, He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Also in Luke 24:45-49, “Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.” Finally, in Matt 28:19-20 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
I found it interesting he didn’t talk about many things preachers/Christians spend over 90% of their time preaching about, praying about and pursuing. Yes, we need to talk about other things related to the Christian walk, but there must not be any disillusion when it comes to what the thrust of the most important message/sermon that a Christian can ever carry and deliver.
(This series will continue next time in part two as The Call to preach the Gospel)
About Ronald J. Kwenda
Ronald Kwenda is a Professional Engineer of over 15yrs and Managing Consultant leading a Civil/ Structural Engineering firm. He also has a keen interest in mentorship, both in Business and Professional fields and Christian ministry. Having given his life to the Lord more than 21years ago, he is convinced that every Christian of any age, if they make themselves available, can be used by Lord and be a blessing in the body of Christ. You can reach him at engronaldkwenda@gmail.com.
March 29, 2016
How to Activate your Creative Thinking
Critical thinking is about questioning everything 360 degrees. You performance depends on the answers you receive in life. They say you must learn to ask better question so that you get better answers. When you have better answers, you can do better things. So learn to question things. Learn to ask better questions.
If you want better answers, ask better questions.
Creativity is something all of us are naturally born with. The average person has 70,000 thoughts per day. WOW, that’s you!
Generating new ideas depends on what you already know and your imagination. This is the ability to dream. When young we were told not to day dream. That was wrong!
We know things by taking in information through our five senses. We do this through reading, discussions in forums and practising.
So, be a reader. I read on average one book per week. And be a writer. Write down your thoughts and ideas. Post them to the world via social media, blogs or forums.
Be a reader. Be a writer.
Try to discuss with other likeminded people. I am not talking about stuff discussed in pubs just for entertainment or in order to get someone buy you beer. I am talking about smart discussions. Join online forums and contribute.
Don’t just talk, do it. Try it. Play with the ideas and evaluate the results. Discuss and improve the ideas.
Five habits that sharpens your creative thinking process;
1) Play along your strengths, talents, passions and skills. It is easier that way.
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2) Ask questions in areas that you are passionate about, more curious and interested in.
3) Dream and brainstorm your ideas. Write down stuff, otherwise you forget. Perhaps carry a journal around with you.
4) Clone or copy others and improve on what they do. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Build from what has been done. Start from where they have left.
5) Find problems to solve. This mean you have to observe the world you live in and test your ideas in a real world.
After education the next best way people learn is by travelling. If you cannot travel far then meet and interact with new people in your area. Broaden your network circle by adding smarter people.
Travel and meet new people.
When you have ideas take them down from a pipe dream to a vision and finally action plan. Put dates to your goals. Break down your goals to daily task. That’s were most people lose it. They say ‘my goal is to write a book in 2016.’ And if you ask them what they will do in May 2016. They have no idea. Never mind asking them what they will do on 23 May 2016.
Have a daily ‘to do list’ that talks to your goals, plans and vision.
What do you think?
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© Copyright 2016 by It’s My Footprint, www.itsmyfootprint.com.
March 27, 2016
Comment on LISTEN: The Blessing Scriptures Book Interview by Taka Sande
Thank you Olvet for you support. I appreciate it.
Comment on Cultivating The Billionaire Mind Set by Taka Sande
Thank you James for your support!!
Comment on An Opened Letter: Christmas Box or Mail by Taka Sande
Thank you Fadzie for your support.
