Principle Number Eight
The danger of Holding back
Pastor Maselo Mosomane
“Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’ ” Matthew 25: 24-25.
As soon as you gain few caps in the game of safety, a new skill is developed. Holding back! You become more careful than ever. That adventurous spirit is quenched. All the excitement you once had about life soon become stifled. The desire to explore is suppressed by the fear to lose. Life becomes a monotonous song played on a single cord guitar - a one-line song.
It sounds intelligent to hold back and watch; but holding back is stagnation. It looks safe from a distance but it becomes the most dangerous system when you draw nearer.
Of course an amount of care is necessary, as long as it is not to the detriment of your advancement. God did not call us into the kingdom of carelessness. He called us into the kingdom of order and decency; hence the Spirit through the apostle said; “Let all things be done decently and in order” 1 Corinthians 14:40. There are those guys who when an idea drops into their minds they would not even think twice. They rush into things in the name of faith. I think sometimes we need to check on our faith. Is it FAITH or FAKE? Any idea that is not willing to be checked and scrutinized for validity is not worth pursuing. Any thought or idea that refuses the standard of the word of God is not worth thinking about.
I think it is necessary that we wait on our thoughts or ideas until the dust settles in your minds. Any idea that cannot stand when the excitement is over is not worth the word itself. Ideas are not fruitful during their moment of excitement. Wait until the thrill is over. Don’t rush into things. Seeds don’t geminate until they fall into the ground and rot. Until their commitment to the course is irreversible; yes, until they can no longer be used for any other purpose but just that one. The same is true with ideas. Let them stand the acid test before they can be implemented.
I am against carelessness in dealing with the affairs of life. Life is delicate; it deserves to be lived with all the necessary care. God is not careless and His children should be like Him in exercising care. Can you imagine what this universe would be like if God was careless? Everything is in its proper place to guarantee safety until the end of times. God said; “let all things be done decently and in order.” 1Corinthians 14: 40. God is always perfect in all that He does because He is careful and orderly.
The problem is when your cautious attitude is informed by fear. Anything done out of fear is not of faith. Everything breeds after its kind. Fear will always breed fear. This is the law of reproduction. Everything produces after its kind. When things are done out of fear, the results are exactly what the seed was and even more for some yields thirty, others sixty while others yields hundred. Fear breeds fear. Faith breeds faith. When you act out of faith, you produce results of faith.
“And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.” (Matthew 25:25) One thing that holds many people from their destined estate is fear of loss. We become so preoccupied with what we have that we spend the whole of our energy trying to protect it when we should be multiplying it.
If you are afraid to lose, you are not free to make profit. The word profit means making more gain on your capital than loss. The speed at which gain comes in is faster that the speed at which loss goes out. Assets are increasing faster than liabilities. It is called acceleration of cash flow as against expenditure. Profit does not mean: no loss at all. There is no business that is immunes from loss. When losses show up, cowards dig foxholes and hide; unaware that profit and loss are two sides of the same coin. Every business operates on a double entry accounting system.
I think it is important to mention this point. On your way to Successville you are going to meet some setbacks: some of them really terrible. There is no smooth road. The road to Successville is not always even. Cowards are a rare species in it. There is a beautiful statement I once read that says: the stronger the wind, the stronger the trees. Trees in areas that have strong winds develop resistance by becoming flexible. They yield to the pressure of the storm but never break. When the storm is over, they take their positions again. The strength of the wise is not in their muscles but in their faith in what God said.
Setbacks are not a free advice to hold back. They are road signs to that great city - Successville. Setbacks make you stronger and render you equal to the task. Do not be intimidated. One thing I know is that problems are not growing stronger, but we are. Our strength is renewed day by day as we tenaciously endure the hardships of life and trust God. Glory be to God in Highness.
Jesus once said to his audience; “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13–14. Jesus is teaching us a principle of life here. If you want to be successful in whatever you do, do not be intimidated by setbacks and choose an easy way. The easiest route many choose is called “Holdback Crescent.” It is so named because after some time you will find yourself right where you started.
Do not choose a common route. Holdback Crescent is an easy route and there are many who travel there. Easy should never be your option. Be like Caleb and say; “Now therefore give me this mountain” (Joshua 14:12) When land was up for grabs and everyone was picking the choicest, Caleb chose the mountain – a land not conducive to farming. Though he was part of the group selected by Joshua to help divide the land among the tribes, and the fact that he was 85 years old, he did not take advantage of these fringe benefits. But Caleb said; “…give me this mountain”
Many people wonder why their success is short lived. Well, Jesus said that route is overcrowded. Every Tom Dick and Harry who wouldn’t bother to go an extra mile is a tour guide in that popular highway. Haven’t you learned that popular opinion is not always the right option?
Holding back, is an easy route and as Jesus said; it leads to destruction. People who choose that route hold back great inventions that could have changed the course of this world. Books that could have been written are held back. We are locked up in this old-fashion world system because someone endowed with the necessary talent to reshape the face of this earth and change the course of this world is holding back. He says, “I’m afraid! I’m afraid! I’m afraid! I’m afraid to lose popularity. I’m afraid to differ with the rest. I cannot risk losing people’s support. I rather compromise my position and satisfy the public opinion. I don’t want to upset so and so.”
Who has bewitched my generation? Who has brought this curse upon my nation? The world is waiting for someone to shout back with the greatest intensity of his voice; “I’m not afraid! I’m not afraid! I’m not afraid!” “If God be for us, who can be against us? Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Romans 8:31; Romans 8:37; 11Corinthians 2:14; Philippians 4:13) May we shout to the top of our voices; I WON’T HOLD BACK! I WON’T HOLD BACK! I WON’T HOLD BACK!
Success is for people who are willing to till new grounds. Though the soil might be rocky, they are willing to dig. They have learned a different lesson and know that it is only through digging that nuggets are picked. They don’t inherit success they make it. They are strong to withstand a different opinion. Opposition does not intimidate them; it encourages them even more. They consider advices but chooses God’s advice above man’s advice.
These are the guys that are made out of the right kind of stuff. They don’t follow the pack; they follow Jesus and lead the pack. They are pioneers; strong as spearheads ready to peers through any opposition. They dance to the beat of a different drum. I like that!
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