Simply Nirvana

What is poverty?

Consider that poverty has absolutely nothing to do with one’s bank account balance (or lack of a bank account).

I have found that poverty is a function of attitude: whether or not you believe that it’s always and ultimately up to you to invest your time, talents and resources to create what is personally meaningful.

My personal test for the poverty mentality in play: Is something unacceptable to my heart yet justifiable by my intellect? If I answer, “Yes,” then I know I am believing I cannot create what is personally meaningful.

Most people when asked, “What is the opposite of poverty?” reply, “Wealth.” I am certain the opposite of poverty is personal freedom. If you dream of winning the lottery, aren’t you anticipating that money will buy you freedom?

In communities throughout Kenya, we begin four-hour workshops with the question, “Who here is poor?” Almost everyone raises their hand. During the workshop people examine their beliefs and discover that they believe they are poor and their behavior reflects this belief. Once they realize that only their thinking is poor, their behavior changes.

Future performance then reflects their new attitude. Suddenly they actually see the resources they have been tripping over for years.

The biggest resource they again see is each other.

The following is a story from our work in Budalangi, Kenya:

Since my childhood, I had a dream of leading my people from poverty, oppression and illiteracy to good life and prosperity. To my understanding, I only knew that poverty would be eradicated if our people got access to adequate of money, friends, social security and material. Truly, this dream was running down my soul everyday until I was 10 years, when I lost all my parents through a fatal disease. Even though i remained optimistic that one day I will achieve this dream, as days move by, my dream moved far and far away from me. Our family of 4 went through extremely hard time forcing my elder sister to get married at 14 years in order to provide for us. Personally, this move renewed my hope of realizing my dream once again.

A year later, my sister whom we were depending on drowned in River Nzoia while fetching water with 3 months pregnancy. This occurrence did not only throw me in total darkness, it made me feel lifeless for almost one week. By this time i was in class 7, and I had to drop to take care of myself and other 2 siblings. This event marked the launch of my hard life which persisted for 39 years. Throughout these years, I still had hope that someday God will send helpers my way even with my little education. The hope of someday did not materialize pushing my frustrations further. At 17 years I got married to my first wife who divorced me one year later cause according to her my situation was a threat to her welfare. Again a year later I married again, but since my situation hadn’t improved she left after one and half years.

At this stage I decided to restrategize, so I mobilized 5 friends and started a church which we called Voice of Zion Ministries. This church grew well within the first one year attaining a  membership of 120 people. By this time i had started getting richer cause of the donations from the church. Little did I know that the others had already ganged up to throw me out the church for what they termed as unnecessary pride in me.

After this, I became completely impoverished–actually, I was living what I call borrowed self- esteem. Even though i married again, I was just complying to the universal obligation of familyhood, but truly I didn’t have capacity to sustain a family. To me it was not just extreme poverty, it was like getting into the middle of Vietnam war unarmed.

Thank Global Community Africa. They rescued me. The Alternative Thinking Training attended opened my mind and soul. At 50 years, I felt young, fresh and energetic again to recover my lost hope and put our scattered family back together. One of my greatest discovery during this trainings was that despite the fact the the law of nature took toll on our family, 90% of our problems were within our scope to handle but all along we didn’t take responsibility and hoped someday heaven will open up and drop manna. By changing my thought pattern and starting to attract what I truly needed, everything came my way. In fact within 6 moths after the training I made the bountiest harvest in my life and bought two motorbikes one for my transport and one for public service at a fee.

My family is now living well and free. Thank you Global. I invite you again to visit me to share my victory. Pastor Joseph.