The Vineyard

 

Years passed and I went by his field few days ago only to discover that it was all overgrown with thorns, it's surface was covered with nettle, it's stone wall was broken down..... .....and I cried

Unfortunately Some many of us today are like Ikem, or would soon become or end up like Ikem if we don't take precautionary measures...

Every individual on earth has been given a vast plantation where we're meant to grow our grape for either personal consumption or commercial purposes.

The mind of a man is his vineyard, and it is meant to be cultivated to produce different brands of wine. This mind, if not well tilled and cultivated, weeds and thorns will grow on them.

Just like the vineyard is meant to produce grape that will be used for different kinds of wine, so the mind of a man is meant to produce great ideas.

Process in Refining Our Vineyard (Mind) 
The refining of the vineyard involves the process of clearing, tilling, planting and cultivation and harvesting.

The same process if applied to the human mind will produce mind-blowing results....

Clearing processs: The clearing process involve taking off unwanted stuffs and irrelevant materials that has gotten into the mind knowingly or unknowingly. It include taking down thoughts, imaginations, strongholds in our mind, cutting off from unwanted friends and places.This process is called the renewing of the mind and I have discovered that the best tool to achieve this process is the word of God (bible) but it first begin with a willingness to change and accept Jesus into you life.

Tilling: The tilling process involves setting strategies or laying foundation for the seed of new knowledge to be planed upon the canvas of our mind. it is the sourcing for relevant materials that will be beneficial to our mind.
This is the point where you are to determine the kind of seed you want to sow, this is where you source for mentors, examine speakers before listening to them, ask questions to know the kind of books to buy, this is where you gauge the prescription by people before consuming it. (gathering or relevant knowledge)

Planting: this is the level you will begin to consume the relevant knowledge needed for the kind of plantation you want to be or have.
E.g, If your plantation is business: this is where you begin to read books relating to that field, attend seminars and conferences that will build you up, submit to mentor in that field,
If your plantation is music, ministry, drama, writing, speaking etc you begin to plant the seeds into your mind. (I.e consume relevant knowledge for your field.)

Cultivate: This has to do with nurturing of the seeds and knowledge already taken in.... You will achieve this by giving yourself to meditation and strategic thinking, as you consciously and continuously engage in this act, you'll discover that the seeds planted will begin to generate into ideas, inventions, exploration etc

I will advise that you most times cultivate on paper, think, think, think and write down the ideas that are emanating in a book.

Harvest: This is the visible part, this where you begin to implement the ideas either for personal consumption or for commercial purposes.

If you can discipline yourself to apply these process to your mind, you'll be amazed at what your mind will birthforth.

Your mind is your greatest asset, invest in it and poverty will run away from you for life. You invest in it by planting the seed of relevant knowledge.

The Seeds in Your Mind

One morning during winter, I was in the kitchen preparing breakfast for the family.  The weather that morning was extremely cold and it will be a sucidial mission for one to have a cold bath. Bearing this in mind, I decided to boil water in the spare burner of the gas cooker.

While the water was still on fire, all of a sudden my younger bro bounced in from no where and decided to help himself with the hot water from the kettle, I stopped him and asked him  who authorised him to take the water? He stood bewildered and he asked "who put the water on the fire?" I said I did, He was actually transfixed, in his mind he planned on boiling but then ... I laughed and  told him his plans on boiling water only ended up in his mind but wasn't carried out in reality.

In life, most times some of us are like that, we have so many wonderful, well structured concepts and innovative ideas all locked in our mind. We think about it, dream of them, envision it's reality but the fact is that unless you implement it or take practical steps to authenticate it, all you have in the whole wide world is still an idea.

If ideas does not results to visible manifestations as action, they remain mere thought and if care is not taken, someone else also has the same idea and is already working on it while you're still dreaming.

Ideas are just like seeds, just like every seed has the capacity to reproduce itself in greater measure, so does ideas. Just like no one has monopoly of seeds, same applies to ideas. The seed in your hands remains a seed until it is planted, it abides alone but when planted, it springs up into gigantic trees. Ideas in the mind of a man abides alone until it is acted upon.

The crux of the whole matter is not in having or getting wonderful ideas or being inspired, it is actually in implementing it.

We have so many young people moving up and down with business ideas, it's good to have ideas but it's not enough, implementing it is key.

Unless an idea is implemented, it abides alone in the heart of a man.

Practical and proven steps to turn ideas into reality.

1. Start with what you have: Most times when ideas springs up in our mind, we see big things that seems unachivable in reality because we don't have the resources to make it happen.
You don't need to wait till you are able to fix all the puzzles together, all you need to do is to start from somewhere.
You may see yourself speaking to millions of people in your mind and you are dreaming of when it's going to be a reality, all you need to do is to first bring together those around you, they may be 2, 3, 10 etc but you really need to start from somewhere. Stop all your excuses! Stop procrastinating!

Take action today! Yes! Now is the time, transform your ideas into reality by taking a step from where you are.

2. Sell/share it to trusted allies: "Without counsel, plans go awry,  But in the multitude of counselors they are  established." (Prov 11:14)

Another thing to do is to look for people of like minds or mentors to share your ideas with, these ones will help you in strategising your ideas, they will give you the push and the encouragement you require to move on.

I discovered that once your share idea you want to work on with someone close or higher than you, you become accountable to them. That's one thing I always do, whenever an idea comes up in my mind, after praying about it and am assured of it, I immediately tell it to a mentor or my friend, this is to keep my focused and accountable to my plans.

We most times become lazy in carrying out our ideas because we are not accountable to anyone. Please get an accountability partner! (if possible someone higher than you... I could also help you out with that *smiles*, just send me a mail to get started)

" Where  there is no counsel, the people fall;  But in the multitude of counselors  there is safety. "

3. Consistently keep on nurturing it till it's visible germination: yes! Nature your ideas by taking consistent action. In consistency lies the key!
 You may not be seeing the results at first, but then keep doing it, you may be speaking to just 2 people today, probably just 2 persons are viewing your post of facebook etc but don't give up, keep doing what you are doing.

 If there is a need to re-brand and restrategise, do that and continue but giving up should never be option.

"unless an idea in the heart of man is implemented, it abides alone but when acted on it germinates into inventions "

Plant that seed locked up in your mind today!