miles away from my home country . The future looked bleak and my experiences were full of hopelessness and desperation .
I went through one hardship after another , with no solid help coming my way . However , the grace of God held me over and over , and I kept on racing with no finishing line in sight . I needed a miracle every single day in order to pull through . I lived life like a captive fish in an aquarium .
Deep down in my heart , I knew that I had a date with destiny but I could not figure out the meeting place . Within my soul , I knew that there was a bigger purpose for me out there , a better future and a greater destiny waiting for me somewhere , but my prevailing circumstances would not allow me to take hold of all those prospects .
In the midst of my storms I accidentally came across Dr . Schuller ’ s phenomenal book . I read it over and over . I wrote every moving statement he made in that book in my most cherished diary .
I remember it was a borrowed book . Believe it or not , I never gave it back to the person who lent it to me , and he didn ’ t bother to ask for it . The longer he took to take it back , the more I read it like a Bible every day . It is an amazing book .
Being a foreigner , I saw how many other non-nationals survived in Kenya or tried hard to go abroad for greener pastures . After reading that book , I made up my mind to live an abundant life and to live it fully irrespective of my social background . Some of my friends left the country , but I stayed on . I decided to dream , to dare , to venture and to be , and years later I can see the fruits of my life philosophy , which was influenced by Dr . Schuller ’ s book .
I may not quote that book page by
‘‘: It is said that reading is dreaming with your eyes open , and that a reader lives a thousand lives before he dies , but the man who never reads lives only once . By indulging yourself in the habit of regularly reading great books , you will be able to empower yourself with a lot of insights that will make your lifetime achievements look like achievements by many people from different places in the world .’’
page , but the three most moving statements that revolutionized my life are ; “ There are not great people in this world , we are all ordinary individuals but the difference between us is that some people have got bigger dreams than others ”; “ The poorest man on earth is a man without a dream but the most frustrated man on hearth is a man with a dream that never becomes a reality ”; “ No one has a money problem ; it ’ s always an idea problem and the right idea will always attract money .”
Think about these quotes . They changed my life and they can change yours , too . Books are powerful tools that can shape our future . A book is a device to ignite the imagination ; it enlightens our world and ushers us into spaces and places that we would never have been able to access . A good book has no ending . Thomas Jefferson once said : “ I cannot live without books .”
If you read history , all great men and women were significantly influenced by great books . Louisa May Alcott said that good books are like good friends ; few and chosen , the more select , the more enjoyable . The truth of the matter is that there is no friend as loyal as a book because a book will always be there ; it will never give an excuse no matter what .
The only important thing in a book is the meaning that it has to you . There are millions of books in this world but be selective ; only go for those that will have a positive impact on your life . Henry David Thoreau advises us to read the best books first , or else we may not have a chance to read them at all .
If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over , there is no use in reading it at all . C . S Lewis observed that he could not imagine a man really enjoying a book and reading it only once . I strongly believe that in order for a book to really take hold of your life , you should read it more than once . The more you read , the more it takes root in you , and under such influence , your life can be impacted in a positive way .
I challenge you to look for great books in your area of endeavour ; do not go for common books . I once read that if you only read the books that everyone else is reading , you can only think what everyone else is thinking .
86 MAL 15 / 16 ISSUE