Passion and purpose

(A book review)

Book: Encounters of a bedside nurse – inspiring insights on impacting individuals

Publisher: Haven Publications, Lusaka

Book author: Grace Zimba

 

In a continued bid to read and review books by Zambian authors, I came across this little gem right here in Lusaka. Look beyond the very basic cover design and formatting, and you will find words well worth reading. Nurse Zimba offers insight into the life of a very important care-giver that is often overlooked.

The autobiographical story that Grace Zimba narrates in eight chapters is a brief but insightful record of her calling to be a bedside nurse. She uses the word “calling” rather than profession, to draw attention to her lifelong passion, and she is right to do so. She speaks of a common scenario, “It is amazing how a number of us find ourselves treading the career pathway paved by people who seem to want us to pursue what they think should be our dreams… and consequently [many] have walked through life as frustrated individuals”. She identifies the passionless life as a life “off-track” from our true purpose. We sacrifice our callings for any number of reasons and we serve there with little passion, and we find in this booklet an example of passion and conviction. The nation would be a very different place is every place was filled with people who were passionate about their task!

Service which goes unnoticed and often not appreciated, is still important when one serves a higher purpose. Nurse Zimba is characterised by a deep personal faith that raises the bar for her work as a caregiver and the compassion she shows her patients. She was catechised and baptised at St John’s UCZ church in Kabwe, but in her own words, that was not her turning point. As a teenager in 1978 she witnessed the change that took place in her sister’s life after experiencing transforming faith, and she was drawn to hear the gospel as well. She narrates, “My turning point came in 1978 when two youths, Evans Chibesakunda and Mwiche, visited our congregation at St. John’s. The two young men were zealous for God and they formed a youth group and began holding meetings on Sunday afternoons. I refused to attend the first meeting, but one of my elder sisters attended. When she came back, I noticed that something had changed about her. She was not the same person that I had known all those years we were growing up together.”

When she finally heard the gospel, the demands for repentance and personal faith gripped her heart, and from then on Grace Zimba would never be the same. All this would impact of her attitude towards nursing and impacting people’s lives. One of those principles was empathy, “understanding another person’s condition from their perspective. While we may not fully understand the extent of pain being experienced by the hurting individuals, empathy implores us to place ourselves in their shoes and feel what they are feeling.” She drew this principle from the command to do unto others what you would have them do unto you. She explains what this looked like in practice. “When on duty, I need to observe my patients and take note of those who have been abandoned by their relatives. As a nurse, I try to fill the gap. Society will always categorise human beings according to their economic status and social standing as well as levels of their education; but before God, all people are equal.”

Later in the book, nurse Zimba talked about the challenges of nursing family members, of a suicidal patient and dealing with patients who are stigmatised. The value of this book is not in the poetic lines or vivid descriptions, but in the frank tone and matter-of-fact approach of a real life story. We also see the kind of faith in action that needs to spread and take the place of so much theatrics that has taken the spotlight in Zambian church circles. Whether you agree with every conclusion or not, the book shows us a deep conviction that will surely inspire others to ask if they have such a passion; and if not, to not waste another moment living without passion and purpose.

A blunt axe and New Year resolutions...

It dawned on me ... the problems is not always how we execute the New Year resolutions. Sometimes the problem is the resolutions! This may sound bizzare, but give me a minute to prove my case!

Often we sit alone, dreaming of an alternate reality we want to create. In a few minutes, we have our goal for the next 365 days, and we get to work. But notice the flaw. The plan is often vague, a cloudy image of ourselves seated by a lakeside sipping something colourful from a glass with ice and a little umbrella. Then we say "That's the bulls-eye!" This dream has more about the destination than the journey! So to make our resolutions more practical, we need to do a number of things. These are things I am doing for myself, and hopefully I will bring a better report for the next year!

1) Plan the steps in the journey, not just the destination. Consider, how will you get from point A to B to C?

2) Consult in the planning making process. Don't just consult on the execution! You may be trying to execute a flawed plan! Be sure you have the right skills, or help, for this goal. TO rely on simply thinking positive will be a positive mistake!

3) Put the plan through the furnace! Find the most ruthless (but honest) friend you can find to put it under the magnifying glass. Be ready to even reject the plan and start from scratch.

4) The harder you work on the plan, the less energy will be wasted on a flawed plan! After all, "If an ax is blunt and the edge isn't sharpened, then one has to use more strength" (Ecclesiastes 10:10).

So my resolution this year is to sharpen the axe, to consult more and collaborate more. There is nothing more frustrating that trying to chop wood with a blunt axe. 

Then the rest is in the hands of divine providence!

Economic with the truth

One friend recently told me, "The only people who will tell you the truth are your enemies, (when they are upset and reveal what they really think about you!) or your close friends (who speak boldly about your faults and not just your strengths). That got me thinking.

We tend to be economical with the truth. How many times have you let that guy is his brand new polka-dot jeans and striped shirt go by; Even when he asks "How do I look?" and you simply give a thumbs up, restraining the laughter.

But then again, you can't always blame us. After all, we don't seem very good at digesting the truth! It is always easier to shift the blame and make excuses. That "log in the eye" tendency is universal. It is not limited to culture or location! We are quick to shoot the messenger.

A recent article in the Post Newspaper defended banks, saying they are not the reason that small businesses cannot access funding. He pointed to another common label - that Zambians do not pay back loans. And so even on economic and political issues, the finger pointing continues...

So we want the truth, but we want it sugar coated and in manageable bite-sized bits. What the heck, throw in the whole sugar bowl!

The problem is, this can lead to a lot of problems. On the large scale, justice is perverted. Enough sugar and even poison will taste sweet. This is lies we sell to the world. On the other hand, there are lies we sell to ourselves, like an addict who says "I can stop any time". Yer, right!

So want the truth, but only so much, or not yet, or on some topics but not others. We want honest leaders and sincere salesmen, but when the question comes home, the standard is altered somewhat. "Don't get caught" seems to be the standard.

Why do we have this love hate relationship with the truth? Simply because some truth is easier to swallow than others. The problem is, when everyone chooses which truth to hear, we end up with ... the world we live in! Perhaps that's why someone sang about the man in the mirror. Whether he managed to live up to that advice is another story altogether. The solution starts when we stop judging the truth, the truth should judge us.

How to analyse culture

Geoffrey Botkin wrote about the danger of being blind to the forces that shape culture, and being carreid along with every wind of change. He wrote, "People who are mentally unconscious cannot perceive what’s happening in the world around them. This cultural blindness causes men to stumble into slavery, or perhaps to surrender their collective future. Blind people are easily taken advantage of, and blind nations can become slave cultures or, even worse, comatose cultures. There is never cultural neutrality, and never an inconsequential idea." 

Read the whole article on "How to analyse culture" on the link below:

http://westernconservatory.com/articles/how-analyze-culture

How to read a book #5: Be conscious of the worldview of the author

Every writer has a point of view, an outlook. They have values, beliefs and conclusions about life - we all do. This means no one really writes from a "neutral" perspective. The idea of the "neutral" human being is an illusion. Unless you can find a human being who believes nothing and values nothing.

A worldview has been defined as "A particular philosophy of life or conception of the world" (Oxford English Dictionary). A less "technical" definition would be, how you look at life and explain the good and the bad that we experience and that we do. A more formal word, "weltanschauung" (borrowed from the German language) is also used to describe this "world outlook/view". But with or without definitions, everyone has their own view. To break it down, we can use Ravi Zacharias model; "origin, meaning, morality destiny".

Origin refers to "where does life come from? Where do I come from?" Meaning refers to purpose, "Why am I here? What gives meaning to my life? What is a well-lived life?" Morality refers to ethics, right and wrong. Destiny refers to the final "destination" of all life, and how it should affect my present choices. When someone uses these four headings to explain what they believe, they have given you their worldview.

How does this help understand a book? Know that every author has a world view. Read about the life of George Orwell, then read one of his books and you will see his values and perspective oozing out of almost every page! A world view wont necessarily be obvious all the time (e.g. in a Mathematics text book). But in novels and biographies it will be abundant.

I am not saying world views are bad - no human could live without one. I am saying, even as you read a book, evaluate the world view. Decide whether you can agree with it or not. Give credit for good points and spot the bad arguments. Part of good reading involves making value judgments about the content of a book, as well as evaluating and may be enjoying the writing skill. Also, be ready to have your own world view challenged in the process. 

One more thing. Many world views are inconsistent. Someone may hold contradictory beliefs. The fact that one is a writer does not mean they have answered all the questions of life, or even answered any of them well. You may well be ahead of the writer in some perspectives. The fact that it is in print does not automatically mean it is correct or authoritative. Many people cling to philosophies that are impossible to live by, but never realise that. Some people are compassionate, contradicting their own harsh utilitarian philosophy. Others are cruel, despite their rhetoric about promoting human dignity. Read, and evaluate as you read. Remember to look out for the belief behind the story, the meaning between the lines.

7 steps how to read a book: #4 Spot the bad argument

Reading a book is an art. It requires skill, and the skillful are rewarded. The good reader but be able to distinguish between good arguments (points) and bad ones, otherwise he or she may end up swallowing the false logic.

I read a story about a man who wanted to test the wisdom of his three sons. He gave each of them an apple, and each apple was half rotten. One boy ate the whole thing. The second son threw the whole thing away. The third son cut off the rotten part and ate the good part. This shows how a good reader should be able to separate the good and bad in what he reads. Even the same author can have good and bad arguments. The analogy was applied to all of life. (I think the book was written by Richard Baxter). So lets identify some bad arguments.

Here are some examples of  false logic:


Birds fly.
A chicken is a bird.
Therefore, a chicken can fly.

 This argument is used is more complicated ways. For example, when some preacher is being criticised for spending the churches money, he may say:

Pharisees opposed Christians.
I am a Christian.
Whoever opposes me is a Pharisee.

Do you see the false logic? These kinds of arguments can be used in sales, politics or day to day conversations. And many times we are convinced before we reflect on the validity of the arguments. Another example would be, someone trying to justify his behaviour:

After all, everyone is doing it.

But that does not mean it is right! Many arguments are misleading, but we may be convinced because someone famous or trusted is speaking. 

Another example is a false "either/or" argument:

If you don't support Chelsea you don't know real football

The good reader must have a critical mind. Don't eat every apple, and don't eat every bit of the apple's you eat!

Rumours - GMO for the mind! (Poetry)

If you have lived long enough and have a little keen observation

I have no doubt you will relate to this common situation

WHen data treacles down the grape vine and changes form

The story modifies, twists and grows and amplifies, filled with lies

No one bothers to come and ask for your witness testimony (IF only!)

People receive the 'news' and accept it as fact; They swallow, digest and react!

My mistakes blown out of proportion, I'm painted as wicked as Nero!Others defend their image and get painted as heroes!

The crowds that used to greet go silent. (I wouldn't be shocked if they turned Kill-Bill violent!)

Written on each face, a scowl that tells me the rumour has taken root, found a cosy place
Yet no one has come to ask - No one wants a fact finding task or intercedes for grace

Those words become a mask to mask the truth that they wont ask

Gossip goes down like a t-bone stake, juicy, tender, GMO and fake

Wont someone give me a break!

But in all this atleast I know my real friends come to inquire because they care

For them, its more than just another juicy morsel to share.

So before you listen to a story that is seeping through the vine

ANd before you share it, think: Is it true, is it fair, will sharing it be kind?

Sometimes you have better things to feed your mind!

*Food for thought - No G.M.O. for the mind!*

7 steps - How to read a book: #3 Recognise the rhetoric (Or: A lot of nothing)

What is the difference between an argument, an explanation and rhetoric? An argument is an attempt to persuade using a conclusion and at least one supporting reason. An explanation is expanding on a point that  is already accepted as true (or assumed to be true). Rhetoric is different. Bowell and Kemp define it as “Any verbal or written attempt to persuade someone to believe, desire or do something that does not attempt to give good reasons for the belief, desire or actions, but attempts to motivate the belief, desire or action solely through the power of the words used.” An example may help. Imagine the following narration comes with a TV advert: 

“I look up at the blue sky, I see the lovely butterflies and I hear the sweet song of the birds. People are smiling and there is the sense of freedom on the air. That is why I use ‘Ka-blam’ washing paste. The smell of satisfaction!”

What we have above is not an argument, not even an explanation. It is a statement that tries to convince us to use ‘Ka-blam’, without giving us a reason. It just associates the paste with nice sounds and sights, for no reason at all. That is rhetoric. Modern adverts are rarely argument! (Although artistic adverts are very entertaining...!)

Another example will do. You are discussing the teachings of some group, church or sect, then a friend says, “Only an idiot can believe such rubbish!” May be you are not convinced, but you are intimidated and laugh along with your friends. He has not given you a reason to reject that idea. Bowell and Kemp call this an “appeal to ridicule.” No reason is given, but a negative label (such as ‘rubbish’ or ‘idiotic’) is used to persuade.

We find rhetoric in some speeches, books, used by friends, con-men, salesmen, preachers and everyday conversation. A useful skill is learning to recognise rhetoric and distinguish it from arguments and explanations. Sugar coated words have a rightful place in life, but be careful not to confuse them for arguments. That is how con-men get away with so much!

7 steps - How to read a book: #2 What's the point?

We continue with the series by asking "What's the point?" I mean what is the main point the writer is trying to put across?

Piper wrote, "most of us write to communicate something, rather than simply to throw things on the page for others to make of them what they will". Good reading means we aim to discover this "something". You are trying to discover the "mind" of the writer.

Sometimes a novel will have one theme. Sometimes a motivational book will have dozens of ideas. Our focus here is on the kind of book that contains explicit points it is trying to put across. When we say argument here, we don't mean a loud exchange of words. Tracy Bowell and Gary Kemp in their book "Critical thinking" define an argument as, "a set of propositions of which one is a conclusion and the remainder are the premises intended to support the conclusion". By "premise" they mean "basis" for the conclusion.

So an argument is a statement that gives a conclusion, and a reason for that conclusion. For example: "Taking too much salt is bad for you. People who take too much salt eventually suffer from high blood pressure." The conclusion is that "salt is bad for you". The basis is the experience of people who have taken too much. That is the premise.

When we come to speeches and adverts, we may find it is harder to pin-point the conclusion, the point of the statement. Many speeches and adverts are "decorated" with phrases that add "flavour", but many times there is no real point that is being made.

When you read a paragraph, try and find the one sentence that highlights the point of the whole statement. There is a motive behind the writing, and your aim should be to discover that point, whether you agree with it or not. You can only react properly to the piece of writing when you have identified the point.

When we analyse and understand statements better, there is less chance that we will be conned by "sweet talkers" and lose ourselves in the eloquence. Good analysis is part of wisdom.

The next step will be identifying what is a good argument and what is a bad or faulty argument. But that is for another entry!

Born Again - a word everyone uses and no one defines

Language is dynamic. Over time, some words even lose meaning or fall out of popular use, or change meaning. The word "BOMA" (which refered to British Overseas Administration offices, or something like that) has come to mean something else. Strictly speaking there was no BOMA after independence, but we use the word anyway.

If you went into the street and randomly asked a few Zambians what "Born Again" means, you may come up with as many different answers as the people you interview! Some would say "people who attend a church with loud music that can be heard down the road". Others would say, "people who go for crusades" or "people who speak in tongues (charismatic  - but there are some charismatic groups who are not 'born again' but purport to have the same gifts)". Still others might say "those who listen to loud American preachers". Within the church some will say "a person who has repented" or "someone who has faith" or even "anyone who is baptized". How can such a common term have so many different interpretations?

It presupposes a radical diagnosis of human condition. It proposes that, what we need is not simply new resolutions or new attitude or even positive thinking or more self esteem. This view says what we need is so radical, it is called new life. We are naturally unconscious to the wonder of the Creator. We are naturally rule breakers with an attitude of apathy to our maker. We are masters of making excuses (while we are quick to point fingers when others do the same wrong we just excused ourselves from doing). Our spiritual compass cannot pick the true north. Going by this diagnosis, we do not just need a new record (forgiveness) but a new vital principle (spiritual life, regeneration). We don't just need the heavenly courtroom to cancel the record, we need a new condition in our hearts and mind. We need our spritual compass to come alive, to sense the true 'north' and gravitate towards it, to find satisfaction in Him who is greater than we can think or imagine.

In the book Titus 2:3-8 (simplified message version), we have a description of this change:

^3-8 It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back. But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there’s more life to come—an eternity of life! You can count on this.

 This tells us that our condition, not just our position (status) needs a change. It tells us about a change so great, that only God can do this to us, we are powerless to bring it about. But unless you accept the radical diagnosis, you will not see the necessity of the cure. But your natural eagerness to make excuses should be a clue that maybe this state of spiritual lifelessness is a reality after all.

As for the use of the term "born again", no doubt many who use it have no clue what it means at all. It is time we pay attention to defining our church terminology. Otherwise it may be just another public secret, like the word BOMA.

Understanding the Book of Proverbs

"A proverb is a concise, memorable saying, usually in poetic form, expressing a generally accepted observation about life as filtered through biblical revelation. From this definition, we can observe that a proverb is characterized as being concise and memorable, simple yet profound, specific yet general, usually expressed in poetic form, and observations about life as filtered through biblical revelation. To clarify our understanding of the nature of proverbs, we will examine these five characteristics in individual proverbs." - Dr. Robert V. McCabe

An interesting article on how to break down the Book of Proverbs:
http://www.oldtestamentstudies.org/my-papers/other-papers/wisdom-literature/interpreting-proverbs/

The good old days - Making sense of the endless longing

Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?”
    For it is not wise to ask such questions. - Eccl. 7:10

Every one has those 'gold old days' moments, when we recall some exciting moment in life. Sometimes it is even years later when we look back and say "Those days were so much fun! I didn't realise how good things were!" This is something good, a way of appreciating  the good things in life. A grateful attitude is also good going forward, it makes us less complacent, less self-pitying and more open to enjoy the good we come across today. This can also give us hope for making more golden memories in days ahead!

But there is a danger, a "twisted" form of remembering the past. We can create a "golden age" in our minds, and turn that into a debilitating excuse to stop really living in the present. We can get stuck in fantasies of that "peak moment" in life and refuse to do anything significant today.

Different people have different "peak" exciting moments in life. Others will talk of their early days (pre-teen), others speak of secondary school (high school?) days, other still college days, and others life after thirty. There is nothing wrong with such memories. They are good and we should be thankful. But the problem is when we begin to moan "Why were the old days better than these?"

The Pulpit Commentary describes someone who thinks like this as follows; "in his moody discontent he looks on what is around him with a jaundiced eye, and sees the past through a rose-tinted atmosphere, as an age of heroism, faith, and righteousness." He goes on to say, "Every age has its light and dark side; the past was not wholly light, the present is not wholly dark. And it may well be questioned whether much of the glamour shed over antiquity is not false and unreal." So the problem is, we forget the past had its own challenges. But because we no longer have to wrestle with decisions and danger, the 'past' has become a safe place. This mindset is dangerous for the present!
Sometimes the Pan-African philosophy can reach this extreme. As much as colonization was a horrible injustice, we must also remember that Africa was not a paradise before then! Wars, slave trade and abuse were real. In the desire to become Afrocentric, we must not imagine it was all garden of Eden two hundred or one thousand years ago. Like all cultures, we had our strengths and weaknesses. But in our attempt to paint a picture of the past, we must be wary of creating a false historical apex. Otherwise our goal will be an imagined point which did not exist. When we are deceitful are the past, we will fail to truly learn from history, and map a prudent way forward. We get stuck in a fantasy, and grumbling and complaining about the present.

In truth, the only garden of Eden was the garden of Eden. The root problem is not how the African paradise was disturbed, as much as that was unprovoked hostility. The root problem goes deeper.

Two things we need to remember. The first: 

 There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:

²     a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot,
³     a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
⁴     a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
⁵     a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
⁶     a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
⁷     a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
⁸     a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.

-Eccl. 3:1-8

Some things end simply because time is up. Our safe places are, at best, only here for a short time, not forever. At least in the present world. The second is, (I forget who said this), the dividing line between good and evil is not simply between countries, ideologies or parties, but runs right through every human heart. We are fragile and faulty, struggling internally and externally.

Once we accept the nature of our world, this will not placate our longing for permanent security, emotional and otherwise. Rather, it can only be a pointer to One who promises to fill our longing for never ending purpose, secure identity, love and spirituality. All the good things of this life, as really and truly good as they are, are only a hint of what the world always should have been. As C. S. Lewis put it, if we have desires this world cannot satisfy (but only hint at) this shows we were made for another (permanent) one. What we do with this hint, and how we satisfy the longing, is another matter entirely. But for Lewis and others, the answer lies in the Easter story, the one man who conquered the ultimate enemy that cuts short life - death itself.