SIGNS OF AN UNTRAINED MAN 

As young boys, we had a yearly routine. On the first of January, my friends and I would begin a trip of visiting friends. We would go all evening from one place to the other. We would get back later in the night. It was all a day dedicated to drinking, eating, and catching up with friends. 

One year, just before they came to call me, I began to ask myself questions about that decision of community tourism and the value it adds to me. It dawned on me that it was not profitable for my journey for that new year. I told them I would not be going with them that year. As we grew older, we all stopped the ritual. 

One of the signs of growth is stability. A baby runs all over the place excited about every new idea. A man sits down and appraises his decision before committing to it. 

You can even hide a lack of training underneath spiritual covers: A young man had spent some weeks on a mountain to pray. His pastor asked him to come back to church. He asked me what he should do because he still wanted to observe some vigils. 

I had nothing against going on personal retreats but I gave him a simple analogy from the scriptures: 

Esau wanted the father’s blessing. He went all the way into the bush to get ingredients for the delicacy. Jacob was at home and prepared the same delicacy. Everything that Esau sought for outside was available in the house. 

The righteous is compared to a tree and the planting of the Lord in the scriptures:

That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.” 

Isaiah 61:3 NKJV

A tree that will grow is not going to be moving from one place to the other. It is firmly rooted. The proof of growth is not the ability to jump around. The fact that he is in every conference does not mean he has grown. The fact that he has pictures with all the big ministers of the gospel does not mean he is trained. 

A baby is excited about walking all over the place. A man can walk but he does it in line with purpose and destiny. If you are trained, one of the first things to work on is the ability to sit to learn and receive from the Lord and God-ordained teachers. A dear teacher calls it “Bum-bum” training. Learn to sit down. 

Will you jump around again in the New year? 

Appraise the places you went to this year and ask which one added the most value. 

Hear the psalmist: 

The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree, He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, 

Psalms 92:12-14 NKJV 

Training gets you rooted before you begin to flourish.