AGGRESSIVENESS: YOU HAVE GOT IT IN YOU.

To be aggressive is behaving in a very determined and forceful way in order to attain a desired goal. For a talented man to become successful through his talents, he has to learn to wear, look and get immersed into the spirit of aggression and still act with aggressiveness especially for the follower of Christ because Christians are given the power of the Holy spirit by our lord Jesus Christ who himself is a warrior God. And the same Holy Spirit gives us the power of thinking to make worthy positive decisions.
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the father but by me”
(John 14:6)
So the bible, the word of God plainly tells us that there is a way and Jesus is the way -this means that we should never give up because the way is readily available and it also means that God has a plan for those who are willing to step out of the comfort zone, walk the path and work for success. Now what can I do? This is the question that most people ask mostly when they feel they are going down hill and things are not working out, and my answer is clear and simple. Never give up! If there is any thing better in this world then it is never to quit, but rather to keep pressing and pressing on. You know what, dearest? God does not give you the power of the Holy Spirit to quit but keep you going even when it feels harder that you thought it would. Just keep on and God will definitely find on the way. Take for example, Moses never gave up on his journey to the promised land even when he came face to face with the red sea, and what did God do? He surely made a way for him and his people to crossover.
Another good example of aggressiveness is in Luke chapter 5. The two men had to climb up the roof, remove the tiles and lower their sick friend down in the midst of the room from where Jesus was teaching.
“And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before Him. And when they could not find by what way they could bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus”(Luke 5:18-19)
Aggressiveness and determination cannot go unrewarded, “And when Jesus saw their faith, He said unto him, man, thy sins are forgiven thee.” (Luke5:20). Perhaps these two gentlemen were talent in helping the needy and the suffering, and they surely knew what it means to be aggressive. They knew that to have their friend healed they had to do every thing possible including carrying him atop the house. What an act of aggressive faith! But these were not the only ones with that spirit; also that woman who was suffering from a hemorrhage was aggressive to the extent of squeezing herself through a crowd, in order to touch His cloak and be healed.
While you read this, it is also paramount for you to understand that Jesus Himself doesn’t want the kind of spirit that quits. And this is because He’s not a quitter. Now, just imagine, if Jesus abandoned His mission to redeem this world, how would it look like? Why then should you quit? Luke chapter 19 tells yet another story of an aggressive man named Zaccheaus. Zaccheaus had to climb a tree when he realized he couldn’t see Jesus “….because he was little of stature” and he knew exactly where his talent lay. Still to show his appreciation to aggressive ones, Jesus gave Zaccheaus a historical visit. This really shows how God appreciates and rewards those that move out with determination to exercise their talents. So, you don’t need to wait, you have what it takes to become the best. Just wakeup and start on it. One thing to note about the people given as examples here, their aggressive spirit, works together with their determination and personal faith.
During the 2008 Beijing Olympics, American swimmer Michael Phelps set a world record of winning eight gold medals in all eight games. The secret to this overwhelming success is that every day he spends six hours practicing. And that is the kind of the kind of aggressiveness and determination if you are to have success at your disposal. However, to succeed does only mean being aggressive and determined, it also carries an act of faith. Firstly, have Faith in God, because he gave you that talent and ability to succeed. And, secondly, faith in yourself that you can surely make it to the top no matter what.
As if that isn’t enough for the examples, Genesis chapter one shows that God the Father is very aggressive at doing His work. He never stopped to rest a little, not until He finished creating this beautiful world. He is aggressive and determined to finish what He starts at, and so should be the people created in His image.
Quitters are failures. With talent you have to work around the clock to attain success and where it seems harder, press on, because success comes when you dig a little deeper. John Maxwell put it that, “Every person who has become successful has simply formed the habit of doing things that failure dislike doing and will never do” Failures are characterized of many things and no determination and less focus are just a tip. At school, failures never take hid to read and do research with zeal and purpose. At work, they tend to come late and demand to leave just as early as those who came earlier. I was very much surprised but encouraged to learn that Donald Trump goes to bed at 1:00am and jumps out at 5:00am ready for work. No wonder he is a multi billionaire.
Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying, “Every generation needs a new revolution.” You need to be aggressive at your way of doing things. And John C Maxwell simply but powerfully added, “If your vision-talent-doesn’t cost you something then it a day dream” to which I would like to make conclusion that there is only one time to make a difference in life and that is NOW.
OPPORTUITY VERSUS RESOURCES
Whenever the word opportunity comes to my mind, I quickly remember the words of my friend Ddungu Gaston when he said, “When an opportunity knocks at the door only fools can complain Of the noise it makes while others grab and use it.”
You find that God created this world with a lot of resources and opportunities for us human beings to utilize fully, first, for his glory and for our own development and success. Instead, we live our precious lives groaning and blaming God for our failures. By the way, what is the difference between an opportunity and a resource, and how do I know if there is one at my disposal? An opportunity is time when a particular situation makes it possible for one to do or achieve something while a Resource is something that one can use to help him/her achieve an aim or goals. So you realize that opportunities are timely, they come once at time and may never come again. Yet resources might be available for all the time. Therefore, if you have not been utilizing the surrounding resources, then you are in a total mess created by you. Donald Trump says that only an incompetent person could create and continue the mess but competent ones take their failure as a form of opportunity. Personally, I view failure as success turned upside down and inside out.
The first, free and readily available resource is YOU and the opportunity is the life God gives you. You have that energetic body and the ability in you to make it happen and for success to begin flowing your way. Another opportunity and resource is the environment and surroundings. The almighty father created and placed us in regions where we can best exercise our talents for our success and his glory. It is rare to find competent a swimmer in Karamoja but pastoralists. Uganda is endowed with a good natural environment and two rainy seasons a year, provides her an opportunity for crop growing yet Libya is good at oil mining being in semi-arid region.
Fine, you have the talent but the surrounding bar you from exploiting and developing it for your success. I suggest you move to a place that can facilitate your talent and excellence. Several occasions teams have traveled to Europe for practice in preparation for major tournaments not because Europe is a very nice continent-Africa is better- but because it offers the right conditions for talent development and a step to success. A one but sure way to be successfully is to think success, and one way to have success is to question your surrounding. If the environment and people around you do not offer, an opportunity, then better step off and find a suitable environment less it rots within you.
The book Exodus tells the Israelites’ journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. God saw that the Israelites couldn’t effectively exhaust their God –given talents in Egyptian environment, thus He moved them to where they could worship Him and exhaust there full potentials. In his book Think like a billionaire, Donald Trump writes” Think of your self as a one man army. You are not only the commander in chief; you are the soldier as well. You must plan and execute your plans alone” for success.
Wise men search for more opportunities to add on those they find. Be curious. A successful person is always going to be curious. You have to de alive to your surroundings and hungry to understand your immediate world plus the opportunities they can offer you. If you do not do this then you really lack the perspective to see beyond yourself and abilities. Often ask questions and make research to find out what better opportunity does the new surrounding offer?
However, you should always do this mostly in your line of excellence to avoid self-confusion. It is not bad to know about what is actually happening in other fields though. Nevertheless, this should be done with great care since it might derail you. I know of a friend who is a netball genius, but when she discovered that d basketball is interesting she definitely joined and the next day she was in music but now, she is one of the street comedians in town. The last time we met she told me she is abandoning it to do something else. Isn’t this what the singer Fred Ssebata refers to as gambling? She is actually gambling talent and very soon she will be ‘retired and expired’
Therefore, when it comes to resource utilization and opportunity grabbing you mustn’t be over zealous, though. You cannot be good in all disciplines, you know only God is. What I mean here is that even multi-talented people need mentors to help them find where they are best. But still, such people should be careful while dealing with the mentors remembering that if we listen to others we listen to their dreams and many will not be shy to force their plans and dreams on us, thus the mentor’s job should be to teach you to be independent and guide you along the path to think independently.
Never look down on any opportunity that might run your way however small because in life the seemingly worthless things are the ones worth a huge value. In the world of talent and success they actually little things that really matter, and they are those little steps we make that push us up to the highest pick of a mountain. Take for instance; all believers are descendants of Abraham (Gen 15:5) and a once music-play-boy in King Saul’s palace, David became a powerful king of Israel- more than his predecessor. I know of a man who died form a pimple after surviving serious head injuries. I bring this example as an emphasis to the point of never under looking little things.
While you are trying to cease an opportunity do not fear making blunders, remember only those who do nothing make no mistakes and mistakes are part of the journey to excellence for they offer still another opportunity for you to learn even more. The queen of Hearts in Alice in wonderland once told her servants, “ Never let go of a dream until you are ready to wake up and make it happen” so mistakes shouldn’t shadow you from achieving your dream either. You don’t need to wait for someone to show you an opportunity for they might not. Better look out and then grab and engulf the opportunity. “What if the surrounding doesn’t favor me?” If you feel the place is so pathetic for your talent development and success the better move.
Edmund Hillary- The first man to climb MT Everest told a story. “In a small town an old man lived in the same house for nearly fifty years. One day he surprised he surprised every one by moving next door. When asked why he said, ‘I guess it is the gypsy in me.” Some times you’ve got to act you way without listening to anybody. David never listened to listened to his brothers before he killed Goliath. (1 Sam 17:26-54)
Fruitful opportunities come in several ways and many at times come clothed that we fail to see them with our naked eyes; we need wisdom provided to us by the Holy Spirit.
Dorothy stated as a volunteer at one primary school that never wished to employ her at the end of her volunteer task. Realizing the school had such a limited perimeter yet with out funds to buy land, she put her proposal writing skills at us and secured some money from which land was bought. To cut the long story short, she is the school’s Head mistress today. She made the board realize her potentiality and abilities after they had not thought of her as being all that useful. Now, what would you do if you were in her position, would you wait for the school to consider you before you considered your self? You’ve got to consider your self first and fast.
“If you think you can, you can. And if you cannot you are right.” Said Mary Kay Ash. Thus discover new possibilities for you life when you begin dreaming bigger dreams and living with more faith. Certainly, you will be astonished to discover that you are only an attitude away from success