Online Reporter
Hunt For Greatness
Milton Kamwendo
WHAT you count, you magnify. What you magnify, you feel. What you feel, you often follow.
An abacus is a simple counting frame. Beads are moved across rods to calculate value. Similarly, every human being carries an inner abacus. Daily, we move the beads of attention.
We count problems. We count delays. We count insults. We count disappointments. We count losses. We count what others possess that we do not have. We count bills, burdens, battles and betrayals. If you count only your troubles, your heart becomes heavy. If you count only your losses, your hope grows weak.
If you count only your enemies, you forget your helpers. If you count only what is missing, you stop seeing what remains. Move your abacus. Count your blessings.
Count what is present
Gratitude begins by seeing what is present. The mind has a tendency to run towards what is missing. One missing item can dominate attention until ten present blessings become invisible.
You may not have everything you want, but you have something. You may not be where you want to be, but you are not where you used to be.
You may not have all the resources, but you have breath, time, lessons, relationships, ideas, strength, faith, memory and opportunity.
Count life. Count health. Count family. Count friendship. Count work. Count shelter. Count food. Count wisdom gained through pain. Count doors that opened. Count dangers avoided. Count prayers answered. Count battles survived. Count people who stood with you. Count the strength you did not know you had until difficulty called it out.
Thankfulness does not deny what is absent. It just refuses to ignore what is present.
Count the people
A blessed life is not measured only by possessions. It is also measured by people. No one moves alone.
Behind every life are parents, teachers, mentors, friends, colleagues, neighbours, pastors, spouses, children, clients, customers, helpers and quiet encouragers.
Count the people who have been a blessing to you. Someone taught you how to read. Someone corrected you when you were drifting. Someone opened a door.
Someone introduced you to opportunity. Someone prayed when you were weak. Someone believed when you were still becoming. Someone gave you a chance when you had no track record. Someone forgave you. Someone listened. Someone stayed. Count people.
Do not wait for funerals to appreciate people. Do not wait until relationships are broken to realise their value.
Move your abacus now. Count the people who make your life richer, lighter, wiser and stronger.
Then tell them about it. Gratitude that is unspoken remains incomplete. Send the message. Make the call. Write the note. Say, “Thank you. You have been a blessing to me.”
Count the lessons
Not every blessing comes wrapped in comfort. Some blessings come wrapped in lessons. Some of your most important growth came through seasons you would not choose again.
Pain taught you patience. Delay taught you endurance. Failure taught you humility. Loss taught you perspective. Pressure taught you resilience. Criticism taught you self-examination. Betrayal taught you discernment.
Harvest wisdom from difficult soil.
Gratitude does not call evil good. It does not romanticise pain. It simply asks, “What did I learn? How did I grow? What strength was formed? What wisdom did this season produce?” If you only count the wound, you may miss the wisdom. If you only count the disappointment, you may miss the discernment. If you only count the delay, you may miss the preparation.
Some things did not come to destroy you. They came to develop you. Move your abacus from pain to purpose.
Count the progress
Many people are discouraged because they compare today with an imagined perfect future. Instead, sometimes you must compare today with where you started.
You may not have finished the journey, but you have taken steps. You may not have achieved the full dream, but you have grown. You may not have solved every problem, but some things have improved. You may not have arrived, but you have moved.
Progress is a blessing. Small progress is still progress. A debt reduced is progress. A habit improved is progress.
A relationship restored is progress. A skill developed is progress. A fear confronted is progress. A plan started is progress. A conversation held is progress. A prayer continued is progress.
Do not despise gradual movement. Celebrate the small wins. They are beads on the abacus of grace.
Count before you complain
Complaining is often counting in the wrong direction. It adds problems, multiplies worries, subtracts possibilities and divides attention. Complaint makes the burden bigger without making the person stronger.
Count what is working. Count what remains. Count who is helping. Count what can still be done. Count the opportunities hidden in the challenge. Count the resources already in your hand. This does not mean you should ignore problems. Leaders must face reality. But facing reality is different from feeding negativity. Be honest about gaps without becoming imprisoned by gloom.
Gratitude gives perspective. It says, “This is hard, but it is not all there is.” It says, “We have problems, but we also have possibilities.” It says, “There is work to do, but there is also grace to acknowledge.”
Count to create energy
Thankfulness creates energy. It lightens the spirit. It renews courage. It strengthens relationships. It improves perspective. It changes the emotional atmosphere.A thankful person carries a different energy. They are easier to work with, help, correct and follow. They do not drain every room with complaints. They bring perspective, appreciation and hope.
We need people who can see problems clearly but still count blessings faithfully. Move your abacus daily. Count your blessings in the morning before the noise begins. Count them in the evening before sleep. Count them in seasons of plenty so that pride does not grow. Your life may not be perfect, but it is not empty. There is still something to thank God for.
Milton Kamwendo is a leading international transformational and motivational speaker, author and accomplished workshop facilitator. He can be reached at: [email protected], WhatsApp: +263772422634.
