DILIGENCE.

DELIGENCE

‘’Seest thou a man who is diligent in his business, he will stand before great men and not before an ordinary man’’ – Proverb 22:29.
These days our wishes are much more than our efforts. Everyone wishes to be rich and enjoy every good things of life with little or no effort. If you still think that wishes are horses, my dear, get up from your sleep. They are no more again.
Success in life is not based on luck; it is based on the application of this proven law of diligence from the bible. There are laws that make for success in life. No matter how much we wish, hope, pray, desire, cry, beg or even threaten, our yearnings can and will only be granted when we take steps to make them happen. The laws of life are fixed and indifferent to our feelings and opinion. If you refuse to take step to improve your life to being diligent, its your fault.
Tragically, most humans trust to luck. Too many of us live by trials and errors. No matter how long you live, life is too brief. Stop gambling with your life.

Many of us live as if we have all the time in the world, as if life is a rehearsal. Many of us even go to the point of waiting for our friends, relatives, husbands or someone overseas to help us take responsibility, little do we know that the best helping hand we have and will ever have are the ones at the end of our own shoulders. You better sit tight, think and get diligent. In case you don’t know, here are some consequencies of not being diligent:

You will be ruled.
“The hand of the diligent will rule, but the slack hand will be put to forced labour” Proverbs 12:24
No one likes living out of control, and we despise being ordered around by others. Yet, if we are lazy, our labour will be dictated by the demand of someone else. This principle can be seen most clearly in the financial realm.  aziness with finances leads to debt, and when we are in debt we don’t rule our money. Instead of enjoying our discretionary income, we are forced to use it to repay debts.

You will crave but find little fulfilment.
“The soul of the sluggard craves, but he gets nothing” Proverbs 13:4
Sadly, for those who lack diligence, their lives are defined by their desires rather than fulfilment. Absent of the discipline to live the life of their dreams, they are left with empty wishes.

You will lack understanding.
“He that till his land shall be satisfied with bread, but he that follows vain person is void of understanding” Proverbs 28:19
Today, television channels are filled with people who guarantee wealth without work, they promise you can buy real estate with no money down, make thousands of dollars; stock trading without a penny savings, etc. Solomon, in his wisdom cautions that those who chase after quick-buck assists and their get-rich scheme demonstrate only their ignorance. Individuals who work heartily reap the bounty of their effort. Those who try to cheat the system to gain wealth find themselves s the ones being taken advantage of.

Instead of standing before kings, great men, you will stand before mere and ordinary man.
Whaoooo ! What a tragedy !


STEPS TO BRING DILIGENCE INTO YOUR LIFE
Being truly diligent takes time and requires making a habit of applying diligence virtually in the important areas of our life. Solomon in his wisdom gives us three steps we can use quickly to bring diligence into our careers, our marriages, our parenting, our relationship with man and God and in our academics.

Wake up to reality
“How long will you lie there,” he asks. “when will you get up from your sleep ?, poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man” Proverbs 6:9-11
We think that we have more time than we actually don to achieve our personal and professional goals. Thus, we procrastinate doing what we know we should do. Days of inaction add together into unproductive weeks. Weeks of idleness accumulate as meaningless months. Months and months of lethargy turn into wasted years, and wasted years are the fruitless products of a life filled with regret and sorrow.
Life has more to offer than evening mindlessly surfing the internet, 2going, whatsapping and pinging with our blackberries. Make each day your masterpiece. Give your dreams a shot by taking steps to lead the life you imagine.

Define your vision.
“Without vision, the people perish” Proverbs 29:18
When we have no  vision, we lose our direction, our motivation, our joy, our passion, our energy, our creativity, and our commitment. Fortunately, the converse of this proverb is also true. Whenever you introduce a true vision into any area of your life, you gain new energy. Visions spark action and fuel initiative.

Effective partner with others
“A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire, he rages against all wise judgement” Proverbs 18:1
In todays interconnected world, the upper echelon of leadership has no room for lone rangers. Wise leaders diligently develop a team of talented performers and a network of friends and partners. In doing so, they become rich in social capital. Mind you, not anyhow people but people that will affect your life positively.

DREAM BIG
Dream nothing, become nothing. Never allow your dream to die on you.
Dream is not a wish, neither is it a fantasy or a carbon copy of others life, it is the beautiful picture of the future that is so engaging and that motivates us.
Your dream chooses your wife, friends and many other things for you in life. Your dream is always apparent to your present stage, that is why most times we frighten seeing how big it is. Whatever you are going to become in life is locked up in your dream. Imagine someone without dream !
To every dream, there is a seed, nurse it well and when it germinates, it will give birth to other dreams. Your dream introduces you to the best version of you. It is interesting to know this, it takes you from the realm of ordinary to extra-ordinary.
Do you have a dream ?  If no, start now, because if you have never started, you cant move.
I wish I could write more but space wouldn’t let me do so, but before I drop my pen, let me leave you with this word of advice.
If you take in air, it is an indication that you have an assignment. For this assignment not to be terminated, lay aside all weights and always remain diligent, focused and determined.
Be diligent. I love you all.