Starting Where You are With What You Have

So the Lord said to him, "What is that in your hand?" He said, "A rod." And He said, "Cast it on the ground." So he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from it. – Moses (at the burning bush)

     Take a survey, get on your street today and ask every willing volunteer the following questions; What to you dream to become? Why have you not become that thing? Most assuredly you will receive answers like I do not have the money, or It will not work in this place, or I do not have anybody to help me. These responses people have used to excuse their stagnancy and ineffectiveness. I dare say that all these answers are baskets used to carry water.

     We must all get our minds to understand that to succeed in any worthy venture you must start where you are. You do not need to go anywhere else. Take the first step where you are! Success begins at home. The thought that you must change location has made inactive cowards of us. Many think they would be successes if they were in the United States of America or some other “ideal” country their minds have built but they are grossly misled. Admittedly there are countries that have better economies and hence opportunities but no country assures a failure of success. Changing the location of a lizard does not change it to an alligator. In fact, changing the skin of a lizard to that of an alligator does not make it one, its “lizard-ness” is in its mind.

     Folks may then say, I will not change location but I still don’t have what it takes to achieve my dreams. True you may not have all it takes but you do have something. Everybody has something. It may be knowledge, wisdom, a family, a healthy body, time or beauty – doesn’t matter what. What is important is that you can use your limited resource to ignite the flames of your dream. God asked Moses a profound question: “What is in your hands?” and he said, “A staff.” How useful is a staff in fighting for freedom from the clutches of the most powerful living man of their time? Certainly it was little indeed. It was just that little staff that God needed to liberate Israel from bondage. That “thing” in your hands is more important than the combined power of all other resources you don’t have. 

             

Start where you are and with what you have. You may not be in the best location in the world, you may not have all the needed resources for you success journey, but to begin you don’t need the best location or all the resources.