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Understanding the Issue of Life

©2012 James K. Saah

Smashwords Edition

ISBN: 978-1-4657-6112-5

Published by Digital InQ (+ 233 243 652 700)

All rights reserved. Excerpts may be quoted in reviews.

All scriptural quotations are from King James Version of the Bible unless stated otherwise.

Other books by Same Author

1. The Finger of God

2. Seize Your Moment

3. Give Me Back My Baby

4. Breaking the Power of Offences

5. The Mystery of Success

6. Road to the Double Portion

Introduction

A promising young man who had saved all his lifetime, and was ready to establish his dream business, was approached by a close friend from his secondary school days to stand as surety for him. He was seeking to contract a bank loan to enable him to travel abroad. For the sake of their friendship and perhaps thinking that ‘travelling abroad’ was a guarantee for success in life, the young man willingly endorsed the loan for the friend.

There was a clause in the small print that held the guarantor liable in case of default. However, the young man was not too bothered. Apparently, his assumption was that the friend would immediately pay off the loan once he travelled abroad.

Unfortunately for him, the friend took the loan, travelled as planned and never showed up again. Naturally, when he defaulted on repayment, the bank moved to recover the loan from this young man who had stood as a guarantor. All his lifetime savings had to go into paying off the loan principal as well as the interest that had accrued. His ambition of building his own business could therefore not materialize.

In trying to help someone achieve his dreams, he had endangered his own in the process. A number of important questions come up here.

Did this young man think of the possibility that something could go wrong? Did he know enough about the proposed venture to commit or leverage his lifetime savings?

This is one of many scenarios that confront us in life on a regular basis in life. Most of us have committed similar or even worse mistakes and even paid dearly for having wrong understanding and approach to issues. This is often because we lack a deeper understanding of the issues of life and tend to dwell on our limited perspective. There are many issues in life that we do not fully appreciate till they come to a formal conclusion.

No wonder the Bible says in Proverbs 15:22, “Without counsel, plans go awry, but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.”

As a matter of fact, the situations and conditions we encounter in life are not permanent. What is confronting you today may assume an entirely different dimension tomorrow. Because times change easily, if you don’t have an understanding of the issues of life, you put yourself at great risk. You must understand the times in which you live and the issues that prevails in them.

To assume that things would always remain the same is naive. Many people have died because they failed to understand the times and seasons of their lives. They assume that all times are the same. Summer, Autumn, Winter and Spring bring blessings and challenges.

It takes different preparation and readiness to face each season of life. We experience different times in life: times of poverty; sickness; times of blessings; and times of affliction among others. These times and phases are inevitable; each one of us has passed through one or another of these experiences at a point in time.

In order to make progress, we must prepare for each time. If you have understanding of the times, its inherent dimensions, twist and turns, it gives you an advantage in life, especially over others who do not.

People tend to respect you because you know something they don’t know. Again, if you if you are going to live up to the days God has given you; you must have knowledge and understand the period in which you live. What you don’t know can destroy you.

Beloved, wisdom and understanding are essential for longevity on earth. King Solomon, arguably the wisest man who lived stated in Proverbs 4:7: “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom, and in all your getting, get understanding.”

Furthermore, take a look at all the advantages wisdom and understanding will bring you in this life. “Exalt her, and she will promote you, She will bring you honour, when you embrace her, she will place on your head an ornament of grace; A crown of glory she will deliver to you”.

This book is designed to reveal in practical terms the rudimentary biblical principles that will help enlighten you to understand issues in life. The ultimate aim is to lead you to a more successful life in Christ Jesus. Enjoy the red.

Bishop James Saah

Chapter One

UNDERSTANDING

“Discretion will preserve you; understanding will keep”. Proverbs 2-11

The scripture tells us that understanding will keep and protect us from any harm. Everywhere we go in life, we are faced with issues. We are faced daily with doubtful and ambiguous situations. How we deal with them mostly depends on our understanding. It takes more than mere human perspectives to really have a meaningful insight into the challenging issues that life presents us with.

‘Understanding’ means...

... to form a reasoned judgement about something. In defining ‘understanding’, one of the key words is ‘insight’. It is the ability to comprehend hidden meanings and obscure messages. Insight is the ability to go beyond the surface. To be able to receive revelation from God, we need understanding. If you are person of good understanding you can interpret issues from any perspective. We need understanding to be able to live in peace and security.

The Encarta Concise Dictionary defines understanding as, “The ability to grasp a meaning. The ability to perceive and explain the meaning or the nature of somebody or something.” Understanding can also be defined as “a penetrating mental vision and discernment.” Discernment is another key word for understanding. It the ability to make good judgements. A person of understanding has the power to form reasoned judgements. They are able to look at situation and read meaning s out of it whilst others are confused or unable to see the same things.

What it means to Understand

Understanding is a vital ingredient in our everyday life. It guides us in making decisions which in one way or the other influences our lives either positively or negatively. It is very crucial to our survival as children of God. People have chalked tremendous achievements in life because of major decisions they made based on their understanding of particular issues or situations in life.