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New book seeks to inspire faith

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WHEN discussing Christian motivational literature, we usually mention works that have been published based on a premise of personal development in line with Christian values set to forward the agenda for human capital development.

WHEN discussing Christian motivational literature, we usually mention works that have been published based on a premise of personal development in line with Christian values set to forward the agenda for human capital development.

By Beniah Munengwa

Title: Never Give Up On God Author: Nicholas Bhero ISBN: 978-0-79746372-1 Publisher: Impact 360 (2015)

As such, Nicholas Bhero’s Never Give Up on God falls into this category. With the intention of empowering souls to enhance the effectiveness in the world, Bhero uses his pastoral voice to encourage people to hang on to their belief in God, using the case of the biblical character Tamar as his detailed case study.

Beginning with the quote, “I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become”, the book sets the tone of revival implying that “temptations, persecution, inventiveness, insults and may come your way but they cannot deter a made up mind”.

Bhero’s book is, however, not fully elaborate on the issues that it highlights, but it works as a manual providing leads to what should be made right in life. After getting to know the “what” part to be worked on, a student of life will then go on to explore and discover more, using a clear map of the road to personal development set by the book.

Included in the text is a set of questions that the reader has to respond to as a way of discovering oneself. An example of the questions given is: “What do I really want in life?”

Such a question, spurious at face value, but empowers if answered for that is how a clear-cut purpose of life is discovered, explored and pursued. In a country where in time, hope is being preached all over, following changes in the corridors of power, drawing from the drawers a book from three years ago for hope and time management skills proves helpful if one is to desire growth and improvement.

The story of Tamar is that of great patience, survival, faith and resilience. Tamar falls victim to the wrath of Onan and Er, both of which were after “self-aggrandisement” behaving “like a python, which mesmerises you as it changes colours while drawing closer to you so that it can strike,” but through persistence, faith and hope, she survives.

Given that social media is arguably one of the biggest time consumers in the present day world, the author aligns it within the same category of time wasters like Onan, who did not want Tamar to have a baby in time. Bhero emphasises that individuals must be on the lookout for such time wasters that come in the form of people and media. On the same page, Bhero encourages individuals to be also on the lookout for procrastination and ill-planning.

The book, however, flows in a manner that migrates from one subject to the other even within a single defined chapter. This happens thanks to the author’s preaching background, a background that made his preaching voice encroach inconveniently into the passageway of his writing.

But a deeper appreciation of the Bible by the author allows him to cross reference Tamar’s story with that of Daniel, capturing how they survive, with the aid of faith and resilience. Through Tamar’s case, the author makes sure that he elaborates the cunning nature of people who manipulate others. The author does not end there, he goes on to draw examples of success from people close by, giving a special mention to Milton Kamwendo’s success story.

Then follows another illustrative chapter on the need for a person to invest in knowledge and information gathering so as to excel beyond the rest for in knowledge comes power. The author then strikes deeper when he emphasises the importance of investing in knowledge gathering as part of national policy. He is of the view that, only by investing in information will countries manage to succeed in moving along progressive and empowering lines.

However, my favourite chapter delves on the art of negotiation. The author’s shared wisdom demonstrates that in negotiation, tact, rationality, sober mindedness and less involvement of emotions empowers man as he tries to manoeuvre in the world in a way that does not place him at a place of regrettable disadvantage.

The importance of packaging and branding in the creation of an ideal character is also emphasised. Not only that but also the need for timing and positioning in embracing and harnessing opportunities if full potential is to be harnessed.

As a reader of this text, I strongly benefited from the revelation that although faith is a useful tool, it does not work alone. An astute development of resoluteness and strategic engagement with the world complement the remnants that come forth with being a Bible-centred person.

At the end of the book is a special and beautiful prayer set to recruit new souls to the Christian faith through the process of repentance. But some might ask, “What has the title Never Give Up on God have to do with the book?” My understanding is that in all you do, no matter how trying, do not lose faith!