m2 SAM 15:And there came a messenger to David, saying,

The hearts of the men of Israel are after Absalom.

mThe above text demonstrates the fickleness of human
heart.
m2 SAM 5; Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto
Hebron, and spake, saying, Behold, we [are] thy bone and
thy flesh.
2Sa 5:2 Also in time past, when Saul was king over us, thou
wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and the
LORD said to thee, Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and
thou shalt be a captain over Israel.
2Sa 5:3 So all the elders of Israel came to the king to
Hebron; and king David made a league with them in
Hebron before the LORD: and they anointed David king
over Israel.
m The same people who sang praises to
David, rose against him.
m This demonstrates the folly of seeking
the popularity with people. Many a times
we sacrifice our relationship with God on
the altar of cheap popularity.
m Now they had rejected David and have
pledged allegiance to Absalom, David·s
rebellious son.
m 2Sa 15:18 And all his servants passed on
beside him; and all the Cherethites, and
all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six
hundred men which came after him from
Gath, passed on before the king.
m The six hundred men are the ones that
we read about in 1 Sam 22, when David
was fleeing from Saul in the wilderness .
m 1Sa 22:2 And every one [that was] in
distress, and every one that [was] in debt,
and every one [that was] discontented,
gathered themselves unto him; and he
became a captain over them: and there
were with him about four hundred men.
m Initially, it was as a group of ragtag
renegades that became transformed into
a crack unit.
m As they were around David, they became
like him. The exceptional military skills
that David had were rubbed of on them.
m Ragtag militia ² like the Mungiki and
Chinkororo.
m Crack unit ² like the GSU, and especially
the Recce Company.
 SWAT-(›

  ›
݄[1][2] team is an elite
paramilitary tactical unit in American law enforcement
departments. They are trained to perform high-risk
operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular officers.
Their duties include performing hostage rescues and
counter-terrorism operations, serving high risk arrest and
search warrants, subduing barricaded suspects, and
engaging heavily-armed criminals. A SWAT team is often
equipped with specialized firearms including submachine
guns, assault rifles, breaching shotguns, riot control agents,
stun grenades and sniper rifles. They have specialized
equipment including heavy body armor, ballistic shields,
entry tools, armored vehicles, advanced night vision optics,
and motion detectors for covertly determining the positions
of hostages or hostage takers inside of an enclosed
structure.
m The more people are close to you, the
more their philosophies and attitudes
become influential to you.
m Pro 27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man
sharpeneth the countenance of his
friend.
m You don·t expect to soar like an eagle yet
walk with the turkeys.
m Because I sat on the shoulders of giants, I
was able to see far.
m In John 11:32, Mary repeated the same
words that had been said by Martha, that
if Jesus had been there««.
m Mary and Martha had spent time
together in this situation.
m One would not have expected such words
from Mary, who was a worshipper.
m It was not a language of faith by of
frustration. You take on the vocabulary of
those people you hang out with.
m 2Sa 15:16 And the king went forth, and all
his household after him. And the king left
ten women, [which were] concubines, to
keep the house.
m Three lessons that can be drawn;
m 1Ñ Life has no guarantees, Despite the ˜
›

  ›... It seems that 


› ›
 as planned.
m  lexibility is an art that I have yet to master ²
like David refuse setbacks to dampen our
spirits.
m Mastering the art of bending in the wind .
m Perhaps we have been led to believe that
inflexibility is a mark of strength.
m Most of us grow up and create a game plan
for our life. It is what our teachers and
parents wanted us to do.
m Life never follows orders to the latter. And
even if it did, there is rarely a convenient
time for life to unfold its drama.
m The most stable buildings are not the most
rigid, but the flexible ones.
m Mega structures- a programme on national
geographic channel that showcases
architectural masterpieces.
m Tallest buildings are installed with dampers
that give them flexibility during instability.
m Seismic dampers provide complete
protection for buildings, bridges, towers,
elevated freeways; virtually any structure
that is subject to earthquake damage.
mLet Go of Your Attachment - Whenever we get
attached to something - a specific outcome, a
particular way of doing things, a rigid opinion,
etc. - we are, by definition, inflexible. Letting go
of our attachment to something doesn't mean we
negate our desire or intention, it simply means
we let go of controlling every aspect of it, forcing
the action, and our fixation on it being exactly
the way we think it should be. This is a process of
conscious "non-attachment" (letting goÑ, as
opposed to detachment (not caringÑ.
m 2Sa 15:25 And the king said unto Zadok,
Carry back the ark of God into the city: if
I shall find favour in the eyes of the LORD,
he will bring me again, and shew me
[both] it, and his habitation:

2Sa 15:26 But if he thus say, I have no

delight in thee; behold, [here am] I, let
him do to me as seemeth good unto him.
m The education system has been and still
is designed to be highly individualistic
and competitive, in which ´paperµ
examinations determine one·s life
opportunities, and the majority ´failµ
before attaining qualifications that are
needed for formal sector employment.
m Does not put into account the diversities
inherent in humanity, different people are
gifted in different ways.
m A child·s self-esteem often depends on how he
thinks he ´measures upµ to what people
expect.
m When expectations are realistic, it is easy for a
child to experience success and feel personally
valuable.
m On the other hand, when expectations are too
high or too rigid, parents often express
disappointment in their child·s actions.
m As disappointments mount up, they begin to eat
away at a child·s view of his own value and his
self-esteem begins to diminish.
m åenya is in dire need of soft skills.
m Confidence, effective communication, values
driven, high self esteem, focused, self-driven,
having an empowering attitude among others.
m According to Cox Report on American Business,
a staggering 94 per cent of all  orbes 500
executives attribute their success more to
attitude than to any other ingredient.
m The  orbes 500 was an annual listing of the top
500 American companies produced by  orbes
Magazine. The list was calculated by combining
five factors: sales, profits, assets, market value,
and employees.
m °emember that some things don·t
work.
m You are going to make a lot of mistakes.
Sometimes you will do everything right
and it will all still crash and burn.  ailure
is a part of life, and it is a part of eventual
success.
m The greatest glory of living lies not in
never falling at all but rising up every
time that we fall.
m History is replete with examples of people
who fell but refused to be bogged down by
setbacks.
m Ohomas Edison ²Many of life's failures are
men who did not realize how close they
were to success when they gave up.
m "Thomas Edison failed more than 1,000
times when trying to create the light bulb".
When asked about it, Edison allegedly said,
"I have not failed 1,000 times. I have
successfully discovered 1,000 ways to NOT
make a light bulb."
m Persistence therefore is of essence -Phl 3:14 I
press toward the mark for the prize of the high
calling of God in Christ Jesus.
m ´Nothing in this world can take the place of
persistence. Oalent will not; nothing is more
common than unsuccessful people with
talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is
almost a proverb. Education will not; the
world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence
and determination alone are omnipotent. Ohe
slogan "press on" has solved and always will
solve the problems of the human raceµ
m aon't Oake Yourself Ooo Seriously - Taking
ourselves too seriously creates unnecessary
stress, pressure, and worry.
m It demands that you be right every time (and
let's face it, odds are that you're bound to
blunder, blank out, blow a fuse and be sent to the
naughty stool whether you like it or not
m When we're able to laugh at ourselves (in a kind
wayÑ, keep things in perspective, and remember
that most of what we deal with on a daily basis in
life is not life or death - we can take ourselves
less seriously and thus have a more balanced,
peaceful, and creative way of relating to things.
m aon·t be afraid of change.
Teach and train yourself to positively react
to changes ² start from little things: for
example, move your furniture often, buy
new things for your interior, paint walls in
different colors. Being stagnant, you
become too vulnerable to life changes.
Besides, frequent little changes will make
your life more fun!
m Human beings don·t like change, old things
are familiar and comfortable. We cherish
comfort zones.
m 2nd Lesson- He decided to lose the battle
that he may win the war.
m Jesus lost the battle when he was
crucified but he won the war when he
said on the cross that all was finished.
m  ocusing on the endgame and not getting
swept up in current events.
m Do not lose sight of the antelope because
of a dashing squirrel.
m E.g. Airtel
m Hbr 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author
and finisher of [our] faith; who for the joy
that was set before him endured the
cross, despising the shame, and is set
down at the right hand of the throne of
God.
m  ocus-laser is focused light. Laser
cutting is a technology that uses a laser
to cut materials
m 3rd Lesson- he refused to be bogged
down by a setback.
m Phl 3:13 Brethren, I count not myself to
have apprehended: but [this] one thing [I
do], forgetting those things which are
behind, and reaching forth unto those
things which are before.
m Gen 23:1 ¶ And Sarah was an hundred and seven and twenty
years old: [these were] the years of the life of Sarah.
Gen 23:2 And Sarah died in åirjatharba; the same [is]
Hebron in the land of Canaan: and Abraham came to mourn
for Sarah, and to weep for her.
Gen 23:3 And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and
spake unto the sons of Heth, saying,
Gen 23:4 I [am] a stranger and a sojourner with you: give
me a possession of a burying place with you, that I may bury
my dead out of my sight.
m After Sarah passed on, Abraham decided
to bury him out of sight. He declined to
erect a monument, which would have
hindered his pilgrimage.
m A monument would have acted as a
constant reminder of the past.
m When things die in life, we should refrain
from erecting mental monuments.
m Otherwise we will become frozen in time.
m DECI.
m Deu 1:6 The LORD our God said to us at
Horeb, "You have stayed long enough at this
mountain.
Deu 1:7 Break camp and advance into the
hill country of the Amorites; go to all the
neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the
mountains, in the western foothills, in the
Negev and along the coast, to the land of the
Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the
great river, the Euphrates.
m °egret City
m

m I had not really planned on taking a trip this time of year, and yet I found
myself packing rather hurriedly. This trip was going to be unpleasant and
I knew in advance that no real good would come of it. This is my annual
"Guilt Trip."
m I got tickets to fly there on "WISH-I-HAD" airlines. It was an extremely
short flight. I got my "baggage," which I could not check. I chose to carry
it myself all the way. It was loaded down with a thousand memories of
"what might have been." No one greeted me as I entered the terminal to
the Regret City International Airport. I say international because people
from all over the world come to this dismal town.
m As I checked into the "Last Resort" Hotel, I noticed that they would be
hosting the year's most important event -- the annual "Pity Party." I wasn't
going to miss that great social occasion. Many of the towns leading
citizens would be there.
m  irst, there would be the "Done" family; you know, "Should Have," "Would
Have" and "Could Have." Then came the "I Had" family. You probably
know old "Wish" and his clan. Of course, the "Opportunities" family;
"Missed and Lost," would be present. The biggest family there would be
the "Yesterday's."
 There are far too many of them to count, but each one would have a very sad story
to share. Of course, "Shattered Dreams" would surely make and appearance. "It's
Their  ault" family would regale us with stories (excusesÑ about how things had
failed in their life. Each story would be loudly applauded by the "Don't Blame Me"
and "I Couldn't Help It" committee.
 To make a long story short, I went to this depressing party, knowing full well there
would be no real benefit in doing so. And, as usual, I became very depressed. But
as I thought about all of the stories of failures brought back from the past, it
occurred to me that this trip and subsequent "pity parties" COULD be cancelled by
ME!
 I started to realize that I did not have to be there. And I didn't have to be depressed.
One thing kept going through my mind, I CAN'T CHANGE YESTERDAY, BUT I DO
HAVE THE POWER TO MAåE TODAY A WONDER UL DAY. I can be happy, joyous,
fulfilled, encouraged, as well as being encouraging.
 ånowing this, I left Regret City immediately, and didn't leave a forwarding address.
Am I sorry for mistakes I've made in the past? YES! But there is no way to undo
them.
 So, if you're planning a trip back to Regret City, please cancel all those reservations
now. Instead, take a trip to a nice place called: "Starting Again." I like it so much that
I made it my permanent residence. My neighbors, the "Been  orgiven" and the
"We're Saved" are so very helpful. By the way, you don't have to carry around the
heavy baggage anymore either
m 2Sa 15:19 ¶ Then said the king to Ittai the
Gittite, Wherefore goest thou also with
us? return to thy place, and abide with
the king: for thou [art] a stranger, and
also an exile.
m Ittai was a master of the sword and is
going to use his skills along with the 600
men to fight on David·s behalf.
m He was instrumental in David·s return to
Jerusalem.
 We need to master the sword Eph
6:17 And take the helmet of salvation,
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God:
 It takes time to obtain skill ² to become a
master swordsman. It takes diligence.
 Those who use the sword without
acquisition of skills will suffer the
consequences of Peter.
m Peter ² the fisherman who withdrew his
sword and chopped off a little boy·s ear.
He was a fisherman without sword skills.
m Such people take a verse out of context
and mislead people.
m Thereafter in the book of Acts, after he
had acquired skills, he exercised his
skills with tremendous results.
m Itis not only important to have skills but
also to maintain them.
mThis was a powerful statement that though he went he would come back.
mAnd that though he was down, he was not out yet.
mAnd that his was not surrender but a tactical retreat.
mMicah 7:8 ¶ Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall
arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD [shall be] a light unto me.
mDon·t let yourself get bogged down by those tries that didn·t make it
through. åeep fighting, move forward, and just mark it as a lesson learned.
Also remember that just because an idea doesn·t work at first, it doesn·t
mean it won·t in the future. A little tweaking ² or even just a little time ² is
often all that is needed.
mAll you can do is all you can do, and all you can do is enough.
m There is nothing you can do about your past,
yesterday is like a cancelled cheque,
tomorrow is like a promisory note, now is
like a blank cheque or a blank canvas, draw
whatever you wish.
m Quit pity parties, rise from the ashes like the
proverbial phoenix.
m Phl 1:6 Being confident of this very thing,
that he which hath begun a good work in
you will perform [it] until the day of Jesus
Christ: