Discovering and Harnessing Opportunities

DISCOVERING AND HARNESSING OPPORTUNITIES 

Opportunities can best be described as a set of favorable circumstances that make it possible for one to actually achieve or accomplish a desired cause primarily for the purpose of advancing oneself. There is no question about the fact that opportunities are inevitable keys to achieving our dreams and actualizing our goals. Opportunities facilitate the fulfillment of a purpose by making it possible for one to do what one strongly desires.

Opportunities can come in different forms. It can be in the form of time, resources, circumstances, ideas, situations, relationships, etc. Opportunities are not impartially distributed. They don’t exist in favor of some ethnic groups/ regions/ sects, etc. Opportunities abound everywhere. This is a fact that must be firmly established in our hearts primarily as believers and secondarily as Africans because, an average African man believes his success is tied to one greener pasture somewhere outside the African continent. The truth of the matter is, there’s no greener pastures that you can’t find where you are. All it takes is to give it what it takes to discover those opportunities and maximally utilize them.

As real as opportunities are, they are however not carelessly found. They must be  intentionally discovered. They don’t just present themselves; one must take responsibility to discover them. Many of us have denied ourselves of many opportunities not because they do not exist but because we have not taken time to develop the skills necessary for us to discover them.

Remember that God created the heavens and the earth out of nothing because, before the creation of heaven and the earth, the earth was void, dark, and without form. There was nothing whatsoever that suggested that anything good could come out of the situation that God met on the earth. But while, the earth was dark and without form, God was not seeing darkness and formlessness; rather, he was seeing a beautiful world where in lies beautiful trees, mountains, seas, flying, swimming and creeping creatures, and most importantly an intelligent being called Man. God discovered an opportunity to create the world, and he harnessed it.

Listen, what is around us is nothing to b compared with the wealth of potentials that abound within us. The problem is that we have not taken our time to fully discover ourselves in God, and take advantage of the investments of God upon our lives. Many of us are beautifully endowed with potentials that are answers to various problems confronting humanity. Many of us are loaded with gifts that we are yet to explore, but we cry and lament of the situation around us yet God has made provision for our blessing and deliverance right within us. The earth was dark and without form but God was never discouraged as to the present condition of the earth at that time. I do not know the dark situations and circumstances that you have been through in life. Have you been rejected? Have you failed? Have you suffered disappointment from friends, relatives and acquaintances? And, maybe you are already of the idea that you can’t get up again. Listen to me, my dear reader, your failure does not determine your destiny. Falling does not end a man; it is the decision not to stand up after falling that brings an end to a man’s life. There is nothing that your life has been through no matter how rough that God cannot take care of if you will turn to him and take responsibility for your life. Your present situation is not your final destination bro/sis your best is yet to come.

One of the very interesting stories in the bible is that of David and Goliath. The whole army of Israel saw an adversity they could not conquer but David saw an opportunity for the name of the God of Israel to be glorified. What does this suggest to us? This suggests that opportunities, many at times, are clothed in oppositions - seemingly unfavorable situations and difficult circumstances. Most of the greatest accomplishments that have ever been made were out of seemingly insurmountable challenges. People believed that nothing good could come out of Nazareth, but God saw an opportunity to bring out the savior from it. Where you are is not as strong a determinant as what you do where you are. Who could have thought that the cross would be the greatest opportunity for God to demonstrate his love towards mankind? Obviously, no one would. But, it is not about what man thinks an come out of your life, rather, it is about what God has pronounced upon your life.

How then can you discover and maximize the opportunities? But before that, I need you to understand one very crucial thing. It is this:

There are many things you can actually achieve in life without God. Yes, there are opportunities you can discover and maximize which will not necessarily require the involvement of God but you know what? The truth is, a life without God is actually no life at all. Your life is as eternally valuable as it is lived for God. This is not being fanatic of religion. No! This is the real thing. Life does not end here on this side of eternity. Life continues after death, and what becomes your lot after this life is largely a function of the relationship you have with God now. You can be earthly relevant but not eternally relevant. Yes, earthly relevance is good but eternal relevance is better. If you want to live a life that truly counts, then knowing God is not an option but a necessity. This is the greatest opportunity you can ever maximize - the opportunity for you to have a relationship with God. This is what brings definition and eternal meaning to your existence.

You need to know however that God is not a means to an end but an end in itself. You don’t serve God to get things. No. you serve God for himself. This is where all of life begins. The bible says, “in the beginning, GOD…” So, where everything begins is from God. If you do not have a relationship with God, then you have not started living at all, at least, living a life that truly counts. You need to pay the price to know God. Your relationship with God begins by you knowing his son, Jesus Christ, the one who came to die for your sins so that you can be saved. You can’t know God except by Jesus. He alone has the power to lead anyone to God. Surrender your life to him today, and begin your relationship with God. Then, as you begin to walk with God, he will be leading and guiding you in your life’s journey opening your eyes to various opportunities which he has destined for you. Having established a relationship with God, What are the keys that can enable you to discover and harness opportunities even in the face of apparent contradiction?

A. Be Perceptive

To be perceptive means to have the ability to perceive things that are not clearly obvious. Opportunities, as we have discussed, are not usually very visible to the eyes. They rather come in disguise. Only those who are sensitive enough can discover them. You must be very sensitive to your surroundings. How do you become sensitive?

1.      Following the leading of the Holy Spirit

2.      Staying updated by being conversant with relevant information

3.      Surfing the internet to obtain relevant information

4.      Reading books and other resourceful materials to boost your resource.

B.  Be prepared

In the story of David and Goliath, David was totally oblivious of what was going on in the city. He only came to bring food to his brothers only for him to discover that they were being threatened by this uncircumcised philistine — Goliath. He was grieved by the way Goliath was blaspheming the God of Israel, and not even minding the fear that was upon everyone, and even the King - Saul -, he offered to fight the philistine. Everyone saw an insurmountable mountain in Goliath but David saw a big fish — opportunity — that should not be missed. However, David’s confidence was largely built on the testimonies of how God had delivered him from similar situations with lions and bears in the wilderness. So, Goliath’s case was not exceptional. In short, David was prepared, and he never missed the opportunity; rather, he maximized it to the glory of God.

The fundamental key to harnessing an opportunity is to be prepared. Someone said, “Lucky is when preparation meets with opportunity”. Many people have denied themselves of various opportunities not because the opportunities were not available but because they were not prepared for it. Its one thing to discover opportunity, but it’s another thing to harness it. Opportunities in themselves do not profit you. It’s their maximization that squeezes out their potentials.

The question is, how prepared are you for opportunities. Even if opportunities do not come your way, by being prepared, you can create them. If opportunities do not knock at your door, it’s not because opportunities are not available, it’s probably because, the door is not available. What creates the door which opportunities will knock is preparation. How do you prepare yourself?

1.     Developing requisite skills— leadership, creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, etc.

2.     Cultivating your potentials

3.     Harnessing the potentials of information communication technology as we all know that we are in the technology age

4.     Language skills. Many people got jobs not because they really possess the requisite knowledge but because of language advantage. If you are in a place where they speak a language that is different from your indigenous place, take responsibility to learn the language because, you never can tell where it will pay for you.

C.      Be proactive

Having discovered opportunity through sensitivity, and getting prepared for it, you must be proactive if you really want to maximize it to the fullest. Many people are so passive in their approach to life that they will never find opportunity in life. Such people never get anything good out of life. The Bible, in Prov. 12:11 says, “he that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread”. To be proactive means to be willing to take responsibility for the opportunity you have discovered. As said earlier, many go from one place to another looking for greener pastures, whereas where they are, is green enough. The Bible says you should till YOUR land. Rather than running from one place to another, following vain persons, stay with the opportunities you have discovered where you are and take responsibility to harness it.

Being proactive means doing the required in other to get the desired. For instance, the opportunity you have discovered may require that you possess some extra qualifications apart from the one you currently possess, then go for it. If you will need to further your education, do so. Maybe it will require that you possess some practical skills, go and learn them. This is the way to harness an opportunity.

Thanks so much for reading. I hope you have been tremendously blessed by this write up. You can read other ones, and be blessed as well.

I am Olakunle Orimaye Paul.

I Write. I Teach. I Inspire.