Recently, I had an interesting conversation with someone and the discussion centered around the rise of ‘so-called motivators’ and motivational speakers in the world. My friend firmly held the belief that it is all a load of nonsense and that these people are just out to make a profit from people’s aspirations and emotions. For a time I, like my friend, was outraged and responded by snubbing any book title or magazine and newspaper article that promised me that I could ‘live my best now’ or offered me ‘9 keys to achieving lasting emotional freedom’.
Then, I switched on the TV and watched the news. After doing an hour’s rotation of the latest world news, I paused to think and my mindset began to shift.
I believe that, no matter what people tell us, whether in face-to-face conversation or in books, we are stewards of our God-given lives and, ultimately, we have the gift of choice and must decide what to do with our lives. We should generally not allow anyone to dictate how we must live our lives. However, when I look at the world we live in now, I realise that there is too little encouragement & motivation for people to become better & to do better. Switch to any news channel and you will more than likely be bombarded immediately with news of death, violence, exploitation, injustice, terror (that most abused of words), corruption and disaster upon disaster. You are more likely to hear about teenagers transforming into gunmen and shooting their schoolmates in suburban America or about rebel soldiers chopping off the limbs of the elderly in the remote villages of central Africa than about the beauty of generosity or tips on how to raise kids who are responsible, respectful, law-abiding human beings. At some level, I sincerely believe that it is possible to have one’s energy completely sapped by the amount of negativity that is all around us, leaving one to feel helpless and powerless. The rise in suicides, substance abuse and problems such as obesity (or its equally deadly opposite anorexia nervosa) and depression are testament to the extremely pervasive hopelessness in the world. The statistics are horrifying.
So, in the end I ask: what is wrong with having more people who, with sincerity, really do want us to live better lives, become better fathers & mothers, overcome fear, learn to manage our finances better or harness the power of having big dreams? I’d rather listen to the man who tells me that my words have capacity to improve my life and worth than the one who keeps drilling it in my head that at any moment I could trip on a banana skin and crack my hip. I salute the true life-givers – the ones who have a genuine interest in making human life more enriching for as many people as possible.
Our world is in an interesting state at various levels and we can’t escape the negativity we see around us. At 1Africa we believe that true hope is found in God. If you have questions about the existence of God or would like to know Him more and experience His love and peace, please click on the banner below.