The Elevation Church

Tag: life

  • Lessons from Kintsugi

    Lessons from Kintsugi

    We are all broken in one way or the other, aren’t we? Of course, we are since we’re imperfect. Someone is having sleepless nights because of debt, some individuals are complaining of slow growth in business and unfavorable government policies. For some, it could be an unhappy marriage, unemployment or poor work conditions. The list is endless but here are two quick questions:

    • What do you do when faced with every day’s life problems?
    • What are you doing to help others solve their problems?

    Kintsugi is a Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver or platinum. As a philosophy, it treats breakage and repair as part of history of an object, rather than something to disguise. Believe it or otherwise, this philosophy applies to our everyday life since we all encounter challenges.

    Here are lessons from this great Japanese art:

    1. Stop Worrying and Do Something

    Luke 12:25, 26 & 31 – “who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? But seek His kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well”. We achieve nothing by dwelling on our misfortunes, rather we overcome problems by taking actions. Putting broken pottery pieces back together requires action and not worries; stop complaining because success comes after excuses go.

    1. Be Patient

    Repairing broken pottery by mending the broken areas require a great deal of patience. Life’s problems can linger for a long time, some problems may reoccur while others can emanate from the current problem you’re solving. Whichever way it comes, you need to be patient; don’t be too quick to act and don’t be too slow either. Trust in God to see you through.

    1. Be in Love at all Times

    There are certain issues in life that can impair our ability to give and receive love. It could be abuses, injustice, painful experiences etc. People in this context can be very unhappy and hate themselves. No matter what life throws at you, love yourself first. This self-love will enhance your ability to take care of you by solving problems that’s affecting you. Be courageous, stable, reliable, strong and emotionally whole.

    1. Be Resilient

    When situations of life break us into pieces, Kintsugi encourages us to see the beauty of putting back together the broken pieces. Sometimes, in the process of picking and fixing these broken pieces, we put our lives in order by reconstructing something more stunning. This philosophy teaches us to be resilient irrespective of life challenges, so we can be better versions of ourselves with all of our golden cracks.

    1. Help Others Solve their Problems

    We all have problems to solve and others do too. Broken pottery is everywhere; what do you do when you see one? The Bible says Jesus didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Jesus came to solve problems so should we. Let us endeavor to put smiles on other people’s faces. Remember, success is determined by the problems we solve for others.

    I hope this has inspired you to adopt the Kintsugi-attitude going forward.

     

    Written by Richard Agu

     

  • A Life of Contentment

    A Life of Contentment

    The world was bright, beautiful and less burdensome when we didn’t have to prove anything to anyone, when we didn’t have to impress some followers and friends whom we may never meet till we leave this world, and when we didn’t have to participate in a race of reality with fake fighter jets.

    The social media space has become an arsenal filled with weapons of mass distraction and a stage for fashion of oppression. What was meant to be a platform for self-expression has become a source of suppression, a dungeon of depression and an open field of oppression. Every selfie, story and snap seem to be an invitation for imitation and indignation.

    Some years ago, I was a teacher in a girls-only senior secondary school and I made it a point of duty to spend the first five minutes of my lessons sharing inspirational messages with my students. On a wonderful Wednesday morning, I entered into a class to teach the topic ‘Budget’ and typical of me, I said

    “Most of us use the money we don’t have to buy the things we don’t need in order to oppress those who do not even know we exist and also impress people who do not really like us while some of use the money we don’t have to organise flagrant feasts just to feed people who are not hungry”.

    One of my students whose family was planning a wedding ceremony went home to share the latter part of that statement with her mother and that made her to decide not to run into any debt in a bid to cater for the guests. Interestingly enough, I attended the wedding ceremony and it was more than cool. However, if she had decided to borrow more money to prepare more pots of soup, ‘hungry’ guests will not mind having as many take-away packs as possible while she would have had to deal with debt after the ceremony.

    One of my very good friends, Shirley Amos wrote, “You don’t owe anyone a success story”. I think we are better off being the best version of our true selves than to be the latest version of someone else. We don’t have to oppress ourselves just to impress people who will never get satisfied no matter how much we stretch ourselves to satisfy them. Sometimes, you don’t have to follow your mind, you need to lead your mind based on the principles of contentment and godly investment.

    Welcome to the age of social media where you don’t need any leadership quality to have five million ‘followers’, and you don’t have to be friendly to have five thousand friends. What was meant to be a revolutionary innovation has become a delusionary innovation. Photoshop has ridiculed what is left of reality, it is now possible for someone who has never been to Dubai to post pictures of him/herself having fun at Burj Khalifa and shopping at the breath-taking malls in Dubai. There are a lots of untold stories behind those sights, sounds, glitz and glamour. Fake lifestyle and falsehood have become fast food, na we dey rush dem. However, we can turn the table, turn a new leaf and change the narrative for good, for God and for humanity.

     

    Here are some useful tips on how to stay sane and contented in an insane and perilous social media age…

    1. The fact that you don’t blow your trumpet does not mean you don’t have one.

    Yes, you deserve some accolades but does it have to be gotten by all means possible? God didn’t create you to compete with other people’s progress; you were created to contribute your quota to make the world a better place. Focus on becoming a better person and you won’t have to IMMITATE anyone.

    1. Be the best version of yourself and not the latest version of someone else.

    You don’t have to tear your purse or terrorize your pocket just do what is trending; slay with sense and be a baller with brain.

    1. Take a break if you don’t want to break down.

    You don’t have to show or share everything. Not everyone needs to know what is going on in your life at all times. The moment you feel pressured to participate in ungodly act just to stay trendy, it’s time to take a bow. Don’t commit social suicide.

    1. Be attracted to purpose and you won’t be distracted by poor rose.

    If you are on social media for a genuine reason, you won’t be a victim of the purposeless prisons on social media. It is important to have principles guiding your use of social media; stay true to your principles; avoid undue pressure or immoral suasion from people who do not share your creed.

     

    Written by Adeleke Adeite

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