Maranathatalks

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I tend to hear, feel and even see music everywhere. Being a musician, I am admittedly a little biased, but, come to think of it, we all are musicians, that is We hum, we whistle, we sing and swing. Our everyday vocabulary is infused with musical terms: we resonate with people, things strike a chord, we feel upbeat or downbeat, we act in concert and on and on it goes. More importantly, we have within us two immensely powerful instruments, the brain and the heart. The brain is the keyboard that plays the music our mind composes. The heart is the metronome that beats the rhythms of our emotions; the soundboard that amplifies the subtle music that plays within us. So, in effect, we have all we need to make beautiful music. Or do we? Are we really creating our music? And assuming we are, do we actually truly play it on the stage of everyday life? Hardly. The question then is: What does it take to become the composers and the conductors of a harmonious life symphony? Today and in thre...

In every society, leaders are a reflection of their followers, because they are a feedback of what runs in that society,  The norms, values, way of life, etc. Leaders are not born, they are rather raised. What has been injected into them by their society, parents, peers, friends, mentors, co-workers boss, neighbors, etc is what they display when they are in position of authority. What is your thought please drop your comments and let's discuss.

                                    . This article came out of a great concern for a country, Nigeria, so rich and endowed but its people still living from hand to mouth. Acres of diamond was the title of a speech delivered by a minister named Russell Conwell. Everywhere he gave this speech, he was urged to repeat it, so much that he eventually repeated it over 5,000 times, verbatim. The story was about an African farmer who upon hearing from a travelling merchant of people going into the interiors of Africa in search of diamonds the diamond rush. He became so excited that he sold his farm and organized a caravan, then off he went with his team. After a while having lost money and forsaken by his group, with all hopes lost he jumped into the ocean, committing suicide, back at the farm with its new ow...

A paradigm  is a standard, perspective, or set of ideas. A  paradigm  is a way of looking at something.  It deals with how to think about something, your perspective and views, how you relate with things, actions and reactions issues e.t.c Bases on how  paradigms could be formed. Carefully follow the following illustrations What are the bases for your paradigms, are they mindsets, beliefs, informations, life style, way of life that was passed to you or you developed them?   So If I am opportune to ask you why you do some of the things you do, your response would probably be that you don't know but that is how things are done here, just like those monkeys who were never beaten nor receive cold showers.  Always remember you are a prototype of your paradigm, a defective paradigm would make you live a defective life. Infact it has the full capacity to limit one's life.  Thanks for taking time to...

Have you heard about this saying that; Promise is a debt? Keeping to promise is a great virtue and it's a virtue every one must have.  No promise is too small to keep, once it is a promise it must be kept. Promise of a help to struggling man is like seeing a sudden light in a dark tunnel, failing on that promise leaves the man worse than you met him, it breaks their will power to endure having given them a false hope. Promising what you cannot do is the height of foolish, especially if the fellow is known with that. It soils ones reputation beyond cleanning, it's really a tough stain. Unkept promise(s) kills the will power of the supposedly recipients. It destroys their morale to carry on,it dampens their spirit, distrup plans and ultimately makes the heart weak. Here is a story you need to learn from. One cold night, a billionaire met an old poor man outside. He asked him, “Don't you feel cold without wearing coat?”The old man replied, “I don't have coat, but I...

If you want to better yourself and your personality, here are some suggestions. Do one thing at a time; shoot for one goal at a time. Live in the present; grasp today fully.  Forget the mistakes of yesterday; let them be gone forever.  Stop nagging yourself and others.  Seek self improvement earnestly.  Cultivate self respect through an honest self appraisal.  Learn to listen to others; it liberates you from been bias.  Reach out for your goal; if at first you dont succeed, try again.  Dont be scared to try again.  Venture into conversations; do not be timid even if you make a mistake.  Exercise your imagination and initiative to achieve success.  Keep your self image well regulated Never forget to spend a moment every day thanking God that you can feel good about your self.  The worst of slaves is he whom passion rules (Burke).  He is a fool who cannot be angry; he is a wise man who will not be angry....

5 The Burning Monk 1963 Photo credit:  Malcolm Browne/AP This shocking photograph depicts Quang Duc, a monk who set himself on fire at a busy Saigon road intersection in 1963. He died protesting the  persecution of Buddhists  by the South Vietnamese government. The regime had made life very difficult for Buddhists, banning them from flying their traditional flag or practicing their beliefs and spiritual exercises. Thus the Buddhists decided that a message had to be sent. Quang Duc emerged from a car just outside of the Cambodian Embassy, accompanied by two other monks. He calmly sat down in a traditional meditative position while another monk soaked him in gasoline from head to toe. Quang Duc didn’t even flinch as the other monk struck a match and set him ablaze. Passersby were mostly stunned, but some did manage to stop and pray as the monk burned alive. His protest didn’t go unnoticed. The image made headlines all over the globe within hours. In the words o...

 Have you ever met someone whose life constantly seemed to be   falling to pieces ? They seemingly can’t do anything right and always feel like things are getting worse. And, unfortunately for them, they’re right. Alternately, most of us have known someone for whom things always seem to work out. It’s like everything they touch turns to gold, and their lives just seem to get better and better. And the fact is, their lives  are  getting better and better. The difference in these two types of people lies in timeless principle. We reap what we sow, and we get out of life what we put into it. Call it karma, call it the Golden Rule, the Law of Attraction or the Law of Reciprocity – it’s a universal principle that has remained constant through the ages. The value we get from life is equal to the value we create. That’s just how it works. The key for all of us is to start the process of value creation ASAP, and to continue expanding it throughout our lives. En...

Dearest, It is a mistake to think time is going. Time is not going. Time is here until the world ends. It is you that is going. You don’t waste time. Time is infinite. You waste yourself. You are finite. It is you that grows old and die. Time doesn’t. So make better use of it.And one of the worst things to do with time is comparing yourself to others. A cow eats grass and gets fat but if dog eats grass, it will die. Never compare yourself with others. Run your race. What works for one person may be that which will kill you. Focus on the gifts and talents God gave you and don’t be envious of the blessings He gave others. If a rose smells better than tomatoes, It doesn't mean the rose can make a better stew. Don't try to compare yourself to others.  You also have your own strength, look for it and build on it. All animals that exist, were in Noah's ark. A snail is one of those animals. If God could wait long enough for snails to enter Noah's ark; His door of grace w...

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It is time for photographers to accept the realities of their new responsibilities and to embrace the possibilities of their new role in visual storytelling. Photographers have a personal and ethical responsibility to address the issues of unscrupulous, deceitful image creation and publication—as do the institutions that they previously looked to too provide authenticity. It is no longer acceptable to play the ignorance card. The role of the 21st century photographer has changed and is constantly evolving. It is therefore the responsibility of the engaged photographer to understand that reality and to respond to those changes. Not purely in word, but also in deed. Just as the role of photography changes within the digital communication environment, so does the role of the person who is evolved in creating photography. We are not living in a post-photographic world, but we are living within a new-photographic one and that change demands a new type of photographer.  I’m so h...