There are moments when a raging fire burns within me about Africa. Having had the opportunity so far to visit ten African countries, I’m always amazed at how some of the issues and challenges faced by African people are the same. Languages, currencies and the physical appearance of people may differ here and there but certain things are present in every country. Coming back to this fire, I’ve come to the conclusion that it will burn more exuberantly and dramatically as the years go on. I really believe with everything in me that there is more for the people of our continent. We deserve more and we can be more. The question, though, is how badly do we want it? Do we continue to blame seen and unseen colonialist and neo-colonialist forces? How far will blaming others get us? Our generation is tired of the song that focuses on the past. What’s useful to us is the future. This is not to say we ignore what was done. It’s a part of the history that can’t be denied but it’s not enough to feed our children in the future. Our desire is what will propel us there.
Recently, I learnt a major lesson about the importance of desire. Desire is the potent, living fuel that spurs human beings into action. Rarely have great feats been accomplished in human existence without that all-important spark called desire. Truth be told, nothing can stop even the so-called simplest of human beings if he or she is armed with the weapon of desire. Everything else seems to just follow on quite naturally if true desire is present.
I wrote in a past post here on 1Africa that our actions always prove to the world how serious we are about what we claim to want. But it’s quite tragic that many people don’t even have that initial spark – the desire itself! How unfortunate would it be if we were to look deep within ourselves and discover that we don’t actually want anything! I’m sure any careful study of the greats of this world reveals that, in many cases, those who achieved things – big or small – started with these simple words: I want to…
So, the question must be asked again: Africa, what do you really want? Will we keep looking back to the past or is there something in all of us that wants more? The wisdom required to look inward and make that kind of a determination can be found when we realize that God must be central to everything we are. We cannot ignore Him because He is able to guide us to make the best decisions. Here at 1Africa, we are passionate about encouraging our readers to connect with the love of God as a starting point to everything. If you’d like to know more, click on the banner below.