CHANGE AGENTS

Who can you be that you are not yet? What can you do that you have not done? And what can you say that you have not said? In each person there are potentials! Each man was designed to be a person of influence, a person of success.

The simple way to becoming a leader is to become yourself. By fulfilling your potential you become an inspiration to people around you, earning their respect and the permission to lead them. You assume a leadership position by discovering your purpose and growing into the fulfillment of that purpose.

Sometimes, we want to be like someone else and that is good for a start, but somewhere along the line, you have to discover your point of difference. It is time for you to find your place in the scheme of things in this nation. You were designed to solve a problem. You have abilities that you have not discovered and you can do more than you think.

It is easy to think that others are more talented than we are or that others have better opportunities than we have but you need to realize that what stops us from succeeding largely, is not essentially what we think we are but what we think we are not. Each person has an area of excellence. Until you discover it you would not be an asset.

You have something that this country needs and this is the time for you to give it. Oliver Wendell Holmes, a former judge in the United States said, “What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are nothing to be compared with what lies within us”. In becoming change agents we need to have a sense of divine purpose.

You have not been called to meet every need in society. You need to have a clear conviction of purpose which births in your boldness and an assurance of success. Of all the problems in this country, which one do you really think God would have you solve? Change agents are also people who have gifts or talents.

This is needed to be able to secure the cooperation of others and to be able to attract others. Because you discover along the line that you cannot single-handedly do everything and as a leader, you will need to be able to mobilize people to join you on the assignment. Everyone has talents but most people do not believe that they do.

You need to find your unique ability because the kind of massive reorientation we need in this country needs to be
approached from every angle. Incorporate the message of Nigeria’s liberation into your unique ability. Whether you are an artist, a musician, or a writer, whatever your unique ability is, you can find a way of relaying this message of change to Nigerians.

The next characteristic of change agents is the desire for change. It is interesting to note that human beings can adjust to uncomfortable situations. We may cry out at first when things go wrong, but after some time we get used to it. That is how it has been in this country. Change agents are people who do not accept the status quo.

If there is any country that needs to be radical in its thinking in the world, it is this country but unfortunately, this is the part of the world that is fighting to keep traditions. For example, we do not need traditional rulers in this country but transformational rulers. You must have a strong desire to eradicate poverty, oppression, and whatever problems it is that you were designed to solve.

Another characteristic of change agents is dependence on God. One reason why many people think we should not bother about the Nigerian project is because it is overwhelming. Considering the fact that Nigeria is diverse in several areas and the thinking of the average Nigerian is so far behind, you wonder where to start from.

When you measure yourself against the problem you will feel insufficient, but when you measure God against the problem you know that there is a solution already. There has to be an absolute dependence on God. In other words, if God does not help then we are on a project that is destined to fail. I believe that God will use you and me to create a better future for our nation. There is hope for a better Nigeria if only we can arise and take responsibility for it. Please, stand up and be counted for change.

Nigeria will succeed.