TWO plants that sat at a certain porch looked infinitely different from each other.
One was beautifully bountiful, full of vivre and the leaves where dark green, stems strong, fully flourished fruit and flowers in full bloom.
In short, this plant was the epitome of good health.
Standing next to this plant was another, it was withered, scanty looking, weak, dry and flaky. The leaves were mostly grey and brown.
In fact, there wasn’t even much leaves and flowers to speak of and the fruit looked haggard and shriveled up. In short, this plant had death written all over it.
What was it that made these two plants so different? The difference lay in the care and tending of them.
In the first plant, the owner was very excited about her plant and ensured that each day she not only watered it, she also took time to speak to it, check for any unwanted growths, blemishes and spots and would immediately act on this, ensuring that the plant remained in perfect health.
She placed manure and fertiliser on time and following all horticultural instructions and as a result, her plant had the best fruit to show and eat. This was a direct result of the tending and caring that was put into this plant.
On the other hand, the second plant was watered only on the first week of being planted and as soon as it sprouted, the owner did not put their mind to this plant because they had planted another five plants.
Furthermore, she was not patient enough to see how this plant (or any other for that matter) would grow. When diseases showed up, she assumed that the plant would never make it and immediately neglected it, taking another shot at planting again – another plant!
As a result, our second gardener had so many new plants sprouting but all with the same features, withered, haggard, unkempt, dry and fruitless!
She was impatient and thus opted to plant new plants instead of tending to the old ones and finding the best way to get it back to good health.
As you can imagine, her final results were nothing but frustrating and wasted.
Whenever seeds are planted in life, it is absolutely cardinal that we take time to tend and water in order to see to it that the results looked for are achieved. Allow me to quote scripture here…
He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like.
A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.
All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.” Mark 4: 26 – 29.
If you notice the passage above, there are three distinct phases that must take place before the time for harvest is due.
These are the stalk, the head and the full kernel in the head. We will examine each one of these and see how they relate to our topic.
#1: The Stalk
Did you know that there is a difference between breakthrough and harvest? Many people confuse the two and thus fail to utilise each one occurrence and take advantage of the opportunities that lie within.
For instance, if job hunting and you get a positive response and start working, that is a breakthrough.
For those that support a specific party and they win an election that is a breakthrough. If you applied for a green card to live and work in the USA and it comes, that is a breakthrough.
In short, any situation that looked bleak and then gives in to the right conditions can be counted as such.
On the other hand, the first salary from the job is a harvest, the results of the favored party being made manifest (better roads, schools, legislature and the contentious constitution) is a harvest.
Remember this, there is a distinct and measurable passage of time between breakthrough and harvest and many people have killed their plants by forgetting this one fundamental fact – your attitude and actions play a HUGE ROLE in determining how your harvest will come!
Another powerful truth, when breakthrough comes, the stalk will be seen, but no fruit is ready!Some of the greatest opportunities (breakthroughs) come disguised and silent as such many miss them completely.
Most start looking out for a harvest when they should be rolling up their sleeves and getting down to work.
I have also come to learn that some breakthroughs will even come as calamities and tragedies. What looks like a bleak start (loss of a job, breakdown of a relationship, rejection, close of a company, bankruptcy etc.) may in fact be the very thing needed to galvanise you into action and show you opportunities that were before hidden in plain sight.
Think of the sky and stars. Many people think that the stars are not there during the day and only show up at night.
Well, it may surprise you to learn that they are there even during the day, only that the brilliance of the sun makes their light obscure!
So is it with opportunities, when the job or the comfort zone is tolerable, we just cannot see that opportunity, however, should factors change and desperation sets in, all of a sudden what looked like a dead end street in fact now has a way through, either a path or over the walls!
In the stalk phase, we need to learn how to tend our breakthrough springer.
This is best done by first eliminating weeds and tilling the ground.
Weeds can be considered as all negative factors that come to choke your breakthrough. These must be rooted out at all costs.
One must also till the ground to allow for air which nourishes the roots.
I will soon be launching the most audacious training consisting mastermind classes, mentoring and coaching to ever come to Zambia with strategies that will transform and empower those who take part.
If you would like to be part of this kindly head on over here and subscribe.
www.principlesforfinancialprosperity.com/subscribe.html.
Email – lordsoracle@gmail.com, Twitter @walter_mwambazi or www.revwalter.com.