Mind over Matter: The Media

Got something on my mind to share, I hope you get through it and it gets through to you.

Sometime last year I found myself passively mulling over whether to get a TV for my apartment or not. 'Twasn't that much of a big deal but the subtle indecision of whether or whether not was there. Before long, I had this funny thought bouncing around in my head ..."who needs TV when I have internet". My decision wasn't so difficult because I find a lot of things on TV nowadays a tad disturbing. Did I say a tad, nah..more like really disturbing. And I won't limit it to TV, I'll say its more like all of media. There's a vicious web of entanglement that is being spun and broadcast over and into people that they're not aware of. There's so much going on that the mere thought of it all makes my heart skip - in a bad way. To those caught in the web, this allegory fits; "you think you have sweet bread but you end up having your mouth filled with gravel". 

This scenario I painted might have been an overly simplified approach to what I'm about to share because it's not so much about the TV. At the end of it all, I trust you'll get my point.

I have a lingering concern on how kids can grow up in this generation watching TV (and using the internet) and not turn out exactly the way they shouldn't?! We clamour about increase in unexpected teenage pregnancies, illicit drug use/substance abuse, outright inhumane crimes, daylight shootings etc. Its disheartening to find out some of what is going on with teenagers in schools. We ask how did such an innocent sweet-looking girl end up like that? I'll tell you how she did. Her path to destruction was a gentle but slippery slope of  self-indulgence fueled by the deception of the media. It definitely didn't start overnight. It started with what the music video she saw the other night and the picture she saw on facebook on her phone last week and not to forget the series she watched on the laptop last year. And like that, every now and then she's been lied to and every little lie she has been told has led her here. The innocent girl is implicitly made to believe that she cannot be appreciated for her character, her gifts, her abilities, her skills and achievements without being sexualized. It is fast becoming a generation where (it is widely assumed) every young girl wants to be like queen B *I wonder who made her queen and whose queen she is). No thanks to Hollywood - and all the other '-woods' on the block, our young ladies have been taught somehow 'he' has to have the build of an athlete and if he doesn't talk smooth, forget it. Tall, dark and handsome is the 'dream man' ..and of course, he has to be rich. Having dropped me off at the house on first date night, he has to give the goodnight kiss on the front porch. There's the unspoken expectation that when he's ready to propose, he should get down on one knee to do it. It is normal for me to sleep with him (and by that I don't just mean sleeping on the same bed alright) if I would prove I love him.  And it goes both ways, guys go like "We should even get you pregnant before marriage to be sure that you can get pregnant at all. I mean who buys a car without testing it?" *Really? Girls are now = cars?? "She's gotta have the curves in the right places" *the clause make me wonder which places are wrong to have curves in. I mean the human body is full of curves right? ..anyway never mind*. If, in my group of guys, I haven't kissed or slept with my girlfriend since we started dating/courting , I get the "really..what planet are you from?" look. Its been made to look like the new cool is to have concurrent/multiple sexual relations/partners, flirt, masturbate, be gay and the list goes on.

The average movie has 'x' sex scenes (x is an integer that has a value > or = 1). It, literally, doesn't take so much effort to access pornography anymore, I mean like you don't even have to trrrry *check out BBA or wait NO don't! TV shows being punctuated with *beep *beep every minute just to mitigate the disturbing effect of the f-word and others in its category. I could go on and on. All these are subtle stereotypes that the entertainment industry has tried to build into our imagination overtime. No one is putting it across that If only the tall guys get the girls, what happens to the short or better put, the not so tall guys? We're not making it clear enough that hourglass, guitar, apple, pineapple and whatever shape category they fall into our ladies are all beautifully and wonderfully made by God and we love them just the way they are. So just quit trying to make yourself what God hasn't made you already with all the cosmetic surgery and what have you just because you feel the need for affirmation. You're God's masterpiece and you're amazing just the way you are! 

Can we face the fact that the problems we face today mirror the decadence our general sense of morality as a generation and civilization has suffered? It is apparent that the moral fiber of our society is now being controlled by media. Sadly, that moral fiber has been weakened by such a flurry and unprecedented level of nudity, obscenity, lewdness, profanity, violence etc in what comes out of the media. You have them coming from all directions at a thousand miles an hour. Appaling!

It used to be easier to watch TV with a kid in the room but nowadays who knows what you'll find *sometimes even ratings are not enough*. I have seen a little girl who couldn't as much as say her name with dance moves that belong only in a strip club *you can imagine my shock and please don't ask me what a strip club means*. In the bid to entertain/engage children, parents unintentionally open their children up to a lot of junk. Even cartoons nowadays are filled with cussing!! Did someone say haba..Oh you really should do your findings. It's no news that the child's first few years are very formative - in every sense of it. Habits, vocabulary, thinking patterns and mindset etc are all formed in the earlier years. Meaning the child, in trying to develop, relies on and more readily tends to imitate what (s)he sees and hears around. And here we are with all these 'dangers' all around them. Parents have the responsibility to guard and guide at least in those earlier years.. please filter it all! Then teach them. There's no better way to equip them against this than with the knowledge. And no, the media will never do a better job at teaching your kids for you. Teach them not everything seen on the TV or internet is appropriate. Teach them the truth in its purest form. Teach them who they are, and whose they are. If they don't learn it from you, they'll learn it from somewhere else. And guess what, the distorted (and destructive) version is what they'll most likely learn. 

Before we proceed, could we pause and take a look at the lives of thesepeople we allow be the models, I mean those we popularly regard as 'celebrities'. Without bringing them under the microscope, I believe terms like libidinous, broken, deceitful, hateful will conveniently come up in trying to describe them. They're either involved in one scandal or the other, divorced or something. The idea of the make-and-break circuit would perhaps paint a better picture of the married/family life some of them have. Ever so often, you read the headlines "Another celebrity found dead in his apartment:substance abuse most likely cause". And we trust these people to actually show us (and our children) how to live?! They don't know the least  of what living means! Let me take it a step further. To make it worse, a lot of them actually belong to one cult or the other.

There was this day I walked into an eat-out place to have a quick snack. Couple of minutes into enjoying my snack and mindlessly staring into my environment, my gaze rested on the big screen couple of metres away from me. At some point in time, I became aware of what I was watching and the fact that there was something wrong with it. Initially, I couldn't quite figure it out. I just knew that something was terribly wrong about it. It wasn't even the kind of 'wrongfulness' you find in a horror movie; this had a distinctive shade of horror and repulsiveness you normally wouldn't find in a normal music video. It smacked of darkness - I could literally feel the darkness oozing out of the screen. I wouldn't even try to describe what it looked like. It had my thoughts rambling for a while and then it struck me! She was one of them. On some other day it happened again, with another artist. Then it became fairly obvious. It was definitely an on-slaught from the pit of hell! All of the shaking, gyrating and twerking *I'm surprised I know that too* and all whatnot has now gotten way out of hand! If you still love watching those music videos and still listen to music from those artists, I suggest or rather I implore you to stop. Its all mind control! And in case you're not sure who I might be talking about uhnHun Ima mention names The Rihannas, Kanyes, Timberlakes, Mileys, Katy Perrys, Beyonces and the list goes on and on *you probably know the rest. sorry my list ain't that long.. don't watch that much TV* :D

I'll put it in perspective very quickly and maybe this will break it down.

While writing this, I remembered a cartoon I watched couple of years ago. In the cartoon, there was this evil genius that was trying to build a monster that'll wreak a lot of havoc on the world and fulfill his dark desires. His method was build the monster, hardwire the monster with an evil nature then unleash the monster on the world. How does he achieve the hardwiring? Simple, immediately after creating it, make the monster watcha movie full of violence and bloodshed. He was so sure by the time he was done the monster will wreck damage on anything it was told to. Simple right? Somewhere along the line,he made a fatal mistake! Mistake was, the monster watched a nice funny movie and ended up being exactly the opposite of what the owner wanted to make it. Picture a bullish gross looking creature with a warm disposition and a loving heart that is ready to give a hug at the slightest provocation. That guy knew a secret a lot of us aren't aware of and if we are we chose to ignore it. It was simple,  The mind is it! the mind is the remote control. That's why scriptures talk about renewed mind, guarding your heart. You know why? Because out of it are the issues of life. As a man thinks so is he. That is where your very life (personality, character, behaviour, habits, philosophies, values) stream from. You say ..but I can't do without music! There's tons of good music out there *consult me and I can send you some recommendations..and yes genre does not matter*

I hear you say "but I watch it and nothing happens.." yea that's right nothing has happened yet. And that is because you don't sow a seed today and reap the harvest tomorrow. Give it time and you will see its destructive potential. They are designed to attack the mind in its most vulnerable moments. And guess what all humans have vulnerable moments.  Rather than add to you, it actually takes away from you. You think you got honeycomb in your mouth? I assure you it'll end up being bitter wormwood. Wake up! Mount guard over your heart. Work on feeding your mind with the right things. So how do I know which is the right thing? Simple rule of thumb is:Whatever is good, honourable, pure, noble, lovely, beautiful,excellent, commendable. Ask yourself how honourable or commendable do I honestly think this is? Engage yourself with something worthwhile. Find a challenge. Read a book. Learn a skill. Embark on a short term project. Write a blog. Watch a documentary. Take a walk. Pause and think - meditate. 

Its really a mind thing. Mind over matter, they call it? 

One more thing, I learnt a sect of those people call themselves something that sounds like light; indirectly claiming to have illumination. #Newsflash Jesus is the only true Illumination. He is the light that lights every man that comes into the world. Let everyone know that there's only one True Light and His name is Jesus. Every other kind of light and every other party or individual or thing that claims to be light apart from Him is nothing but darkness! We can't be afraid of the dark because we have His light! Darkness cannot comprehend this light we have - this light that we are in Him.

Sometimes it could look really complex and daunting but a lot of times it all boils down to a question as simple as this "will they influence you or will you influence them?" Be the light!

P. S there's a blog I encountered recently in which the blogger discussed and analysed the deadly consequences of watching TV.. and yes he used the word deadly. Find link below

http://www.mattmcwilliams.com/television-deadly/

DARE to DARE!

Call me strange but I'm just excited at the idea of walking on water! Just the thought of that moment that Simon Peter steps overboard and takes his first step on water makes me giddy. As I listen to a favorite track of mine "Walk on the water" by "Britt Nicole", once again my mind races to, in my opinion, one of the most spectacular events of the bible, and arguably, of all time.

I cant imagine the kind of pressure He must have had to handle in that instant. Just at that moment he steps out of that boat into the unknown, I can imagine all kinds of alarm going off on, in, under and all around him; the 'impossible' alarm, the fear alarm, the insecurity alarm, the goose bumps alarm (with literal cold feet), along with a flurry of thoughts assailing him. "Are you insane?", "it doesn't make sense, your body wasn't made for this kind of thing", "remember your wife, kids and in-laws, who'll take care of them, d'you really want to put them through all that suffering?", "are you born of a virgin like your 'Come'mander is?". But all those alarms were not enough to stop him. Before logic and common sense could catch up he was gone! He didnt have time for ratiocinations. He didnt have time to ask for the opinion of his petrified and unbelieving companions with mouth wide agape. The Word was already in motion and now was the time to act.

First, I find a puzzling dichotomous relationship seems to exist between faith and fear such that when faith is about to be deployed, fear shows up uninvited. But if you know what you want, fear has no choice than stand by while you go all out to claim your victory. Peter of all people knew what he was getting into when he stepped out of that boat. Being a fisherman with all those experiences of what a storm can do to a living soul, he'd probably had to save someone at a point in time. Looking down into those murky waters in the dark didn't help matters, the devil must have made sure he saw the boisterousness of the storm which must've sent shivers down his spine along with his life flashing before his eyes. So, the instant he started drowning himself, He cried out for help. Let me chip this in, its in the place of desperation that life breaks out upon us and Jesus reaches out and pulls us up. Once He got hold, nothing could snatch Peter out of his master's grasp, not even the sea in all its might and vastness. Essentially, Peter failed to realize that even though he had faith in motion, he had to choose what to do with his fears. Truth is, you're gonna have to do a lot of stuff afraid. But dont you ever doubt God's ability in you! I tried to find it, but I couldnt; the tie that fear is the opposite of faith. Rather, I found strong evidence that fear cannot survive in the presence of Love (I Jn4:18, 2Tim 1:7). Love then fuels faith. (Gal 5:6) In addition, Jesus didnt rebuke Peter for fear, rather Jesus said "..why did you doubt?". I came across an interesting acronym for fear- False Evidence Appearing Real. The threats your fear pose when you deploy your faith are as good as your enemies' threats while God serves you a six-course meal in their presence. They're helpless. In the light of God's Word, your fears are only a mirage!

"What if I don't make it?" you may be tempted to ask. With the stakes so high, Peter could have played it safe with his heart racing at such an unimaginable rate but thank God he didn't so that people like us can DARE! Dare to dream, dare to believe God, believe Him for the next level, believe Him for our finances, believe Him for our academics and careers, believe Him for our health, believe Him for our families, believe Him to make good on His Word even when its not making sense. His ability is not in question. What d'you have to lose anyway? your life? you lost it to Him already so why wait? you don't have one apart from the one He gave you. Besides, I believe if Peter had the chance, he'll tell you confidently "you can't lose it on His watch". If it seems you lost it, you have His reassurance you're definitely about to regain it (Matt 10.39).

You'll never know what undreamed-of feats He can achieve through you if you never try! He's the God that is able to do exceedingly abundantly.... permit to rephrase "He's able to blow your mind". If only we can connect to realm of the supernatural via His Word, it doesn't matter how boisterous the storms get, they can only facilitate and expedite that long-awaited victory. At His Word, we can always DARE to cross that impossibility threshold.

Therefore I celebrate you as you DARE the unpopular, illogical and 'impossible' because all things are possible to him that believes in other words you're UNSTOPPABLE!

On the Wheels of Life

I've had a couple of mind-bugging questions linger for a bit too long. While some things here may or may not apply to everyone, I believe in here somewhere is something that can help us all along in our journey. "Why do we have low times?" What is it exactly that makes us feel out of rhythm with life and worst of all makes us feel out of touch with ourselves? Where we find ourselves lowered to great depths of despondency. My finding points to baneful events like a failed dream, a broken relationship, the loss of a friend, a fire incident, a car accident, a water accident, the loss of a loved one or even cherished possessions/documents, news of a relative fighting for his/her life in a battle with a terminal illness, and so on. But at other times, you just can't place it.

A truth we must face is that we come to places and moments in our lives like that where we just can't seem to get along with ourselves; we just don't want to hang around anyone let alone God. Our daily routines seem meaningless and nothing just seems to make sense. Falling into that apathetic state, we offer our friends and loved ones a cold and cheerless attitude keeping away the better part of us and leaving them to wonder and ponder our actions. But can I cut in at this point and surprise you that its not out of place. "What?" Someone may snap at me. I don't mean to sound like I'm making an excuse for apathy but we must understand the import of this.

I'll start by saying its all just part of the human make up and not just the human make up but the make up of the whole world. In the very words of the preacher in Eccl 3.1,5 MSG

"There's an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth... a right time to make love and another to abstain, a right time to embrace and another to part."

Let's elaborate a little further. We are familiar with the words of God that said in Gen 8v22 that

"while the earth remains, seed time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease".

Examining the above scripture more critically, you'll agree with me that each of these pair of seasons are standing at opposing 'corners of the ring' in other words they are contradicting seasons. Although, the seed time is a very stretching time for farmers considering the laborious farm processes like clearing, stumping, grubbing, tilling of the ground, making mounds and beds and the likes, but it is eventually compensated for by the harvest. We'll also agree that without the seed time there's no harvest. Taking a look at the temperature of our environment, the cold is something many love to enjoy in the tropics (though the extreme is not very welcome) but the heat... its like we just want to jump into a cold bath during those hot afternoons (without electric power supply). We can go on and examine summer and winter which has to do with the weather and temperature; day and night, while many will vote daytime as their favorite part of the day, others will easily be tagged 'night-crawlers' because they're visibly nocturnal. But as much as we favour one season above the other its important to note that no one season is complete without the other, they all lie in a precarious balance which makes the world go round. The same is true about the seasons of our lives which will bring along with them different experiences and consequently leave us with different feelings which most times will dictate what we would want to do or not do.

This place we're talking about could be a place of unmitigated misery that could pervade the entirety of the human existence i.e physical (disconnect from people around), emotional (low feelings), even spiritual but it is our responsibility to draw closer to God. At these times we actually 'feel' farther from God but the truth is God is as near as He has ever been but to help our feelings we need to 'break the ice'. How? Make an honest evaluation of where you are and go all out for the change you desire. Do something out of the ordinary. Pray in a different way, make a special study on topics and people you never did before, skip a meal (or fast), meditate, put pen to paper and write your thoughts or whatever your hands want to write (you'll be amazed at what you come up with), give an offering or sow a seed, call up an old friend, go out of your way to help someone in need etc. Explore the freedom God has given you to change and evolve. Lean on the Holy Spirit to help in you in your case, each situation is unique because there's something He wants to teach you at that point in time. Our night seasons are not so much to be despised. Can i quickly add that many of the great men that succeeded, made tremendous breakthroughs and had inimitable successes who we still hear of today got the tools they used in their night seasons. I've heard one too many great men talk about the fact that when they were in the darkest moments in life that was when God showed up and gave them the understanding of what they needed for their breakthrough. The Bible tells us that Abraham had a moment of darkness and horror before he had a breakthrough during which God spoke to him clearly. Gen 15.12. Job said in Job 35.10

"But no one says where is God my maker who gives songs in the night".

I believe strongly that God permits us to go through these uncomfortable and distressing times/seasons (and note my choice of words 'permit' and 'go through') for a number of reasons which amongst others may be to jolt us out of something we've been doing, to give us a wake-up call, to teach us something new, to take us out of our safe zone into new and unfamiliar terrains, to stretch and develop us a little further, to pull us out of a rut we could be stuck in and the list goes on.

Allow me to drive home my point quoting from Psalms 90.12 which says

"the righteous will fluorish like a palm tree"

and something that fascinates me about a palm tree is its ability to stand strong and thrive in adverse conditions. During seasons of dryness, a palm tree after having used up the water at the surface level, digs its roots deeper into the soil to get to a bigger source of water and nutrients thereby in the process establishing itself. This explains why this tree is so common in the tropics where the weather could be really harsh.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that as much as these periods of apathy and despondence could seem like a negative time or even a time of weakness, it can be turned into a time of strength. So our attitude to these times should be to seek out what God will have us learn. As long as we are connected to God in our times of distress and troubles, we can be assured that we're coming out stronger and better. These moments could stretch for as long as it takes but as long as we learn what we are supposed to learn, its worth it.

On the issue of ups and downs, I like to think of it as a wheel that rotates about a pivot point and in the process moves forward. In this journey called life, there's no doubt we will encounter different times and seasons. A Bible commentator said "to expect unchanging happiness in a changing world is sure to end up in disappointment". Somewhere on that wheel is each and everyone of us going up and down through over and over again the notoriously recurring happenings of our lives. But with Christ as the hub of this motion taking us through different moments and seasons of our lives, we can be assured that as much as we're going through the rotational motion we're experiencing the immensely anticipated translational motion. There's nothing as terrible in life as going in cycles without actually making progress, all motion no movement (something called 'going through the motions') which dulls the soul and spirit and leaves us dispirited. Whatever it takes to break the ice, make sure you're moving forward.

Cheers!

Blog it!

The title of this blog reminds me of the phrase 'blurt it out'. The idea is .... put it in writing. I know you're probably asking "what?". Anything! Just write down whatever is on your mind. Express yourself. Let it out. Don't keep it to yourself. Its probably going to be a source of inspiration or a life changer for someone out there.
Take for example, I'm writing this blog first to and for myself and then to anyone else reading. I discovered of recent, that writing is an art that is gradually losing popularity amongst this new and upcoming generation folks. So also is the habit of reading. There is the maxim that goes 'readers are leaders', but should I be quick to add that not only readers are leaders but writers are also leaders. Writing brings out a quality of imaginative thinking many never thought they had.
Something else writing does is it keeps memories alive. Note that not only pictures have that ability. Remember, 'the faintest pen is sharper than the sharpest memory'. Experiences and lessons well documented will save many a people the gross pain of repeating their mistakes and will give others a chance of learning from them. Who said you always have to learn from your own experiences alone, you can also learn from others. Have you thought of how the Bible came into being, some people sat down and wrote the things they saw and experienced in their times and today here we are, reading and learning from them.
Just decided to put this little piece together; hopefully, this will gear you into marshalling your writing and imaginative energy.
Do it today. Put that pen to paper, put those hands on the keyboard and write down something.
Cheers.