This was a line that caught my eye of an email I read this morning. Someone who lives in Iraq looking for a job elsewhere because of the circumstances in their country. This person is not alone in their desire to get out of where they live – to seek greener pastures – even if that means going to the desert of the Middle East.
People looking for jobs come from all over the world – from first world countries like the US to third world countries in Asia and Africa. They want out of where they are – they want stability, security, certainty of a good economy, a good place to stay, a job that earns enough.
The quest for contentment is not new and neither will it ever be. Traversing the world in search of a new country with a better economy, less violence and a more predictable future than the one you are in, is not necessarily the wrong thing to do, but truth be told, there are no guarantees that it will get you what you want.
I’ve had people say they want to work ‘anywhere but Africa!’ It may sound racist until you hear that it came from a highly qualified Sotho speaking teacher.
Africa certainly has its problems, but the people who are able to leave the continent to work in a first world country, are not the people most affected by the problems. The true sufferers cannot leave. They are the ones who are steeped in poverty, have little or no access to the basics of life eg water, let alone access to the kind of education needed to raise their standard of living. I think it may be left to the next generation to do that. I look at my domestic worker, Mavis. She cannot speak English and is only semi-literate.
BUT HER SON! He’s qualified in Engineering and is absolutely their ticket to a better life. He once came to our house for an affidavit to prove his mother’s income. Mavis came with him. She BEAMED as only a proud mother can. I’ll never forget looking at her face as he spoke to me. She almost wanted to explode with pride.
As I see South Africans want to leave South Africa, Americans wanting to leave America, Pakistanis, Greeks, Indians, Zimbabweans, Malawians, Ghanaians, Irish, Iraqi, Syrian, all in search of a better life, I think the lesson is to go if you want to go – fly – explore – travel – look for a better life – but in it all – when things are tough – when you are yearning for what you have left behind – determine to be happy wherever you are. Make the most of it. Be thankful for TODAY. Look for the good – ask God to take care of the bad.
And that goes for those who stay. Like me. I want to be happy wherever I am. I want to make the most of it. I want to be thankful for TODAY. I want to look for the good and I will ask God to take care of the bad.
Paul had major ups and downs. In Philippians 4:11-13, he writes:
Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.…
That’s the answer – whether you stay or whether you go, be dependent on God – you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. Keep focused on that.
Keep the smile going.
God bless you!
In His Grip,
Helga xx 🙂