FROM SYSTEMS TO PLATFORMS

PREFACE

    Having listened to a message on February 22, 2022, by Bishop T.D. Jakes titled "Unlock Your Limitations;" has jarred my memory as I sit trying to figure it all out and how to work against systems?

    He used the parable of Simon based in Luke 5:1-10 and said, "you need some folk that can help you, not pulls you down; what God is getting ready to do in your life, you need some help because what he's getting ready to give you, it's too big for your boat." (Luke 5:7).

    Having a faulty belief system stops you from getting what God has intended for you and cancels out opportunity and the very thing you are praying on. Bishop Jakes shifted from the message to praise and worship at minute 18:00 of the sermon when a man fell to the floor in the audience; perhaps he was sick in the body. Ushers and doctors ran to assist the gentleman, who appeared unconscious, and carried him to an area where they could attend to his medical needs. Bishop Jakes led the church into worship and praise for seven straight minutes. Suddenly, the gentleman stood up and began walking from an unconscious state- having served as three valuable lessons for me: the unexpected disruption, having a solid belief system, and taking heed to obedience.

UNEXPECTED DISTRACTIONS AND DISRUPTIONS

    At the very beginning of the service was an unexpected disruption that serves as evidence of the attempt of the adversary to distract the people and Bishop Jakes from delivering such a profound message. However, Bishop's belief system allowed him to remain rooted and proceed - knowing that "no weapon formed against me shall prosper, (Isaiah 54:17). The language does not assert that the weapon would not form, but it does assert that it shall not prosper."
 

A SOLID BELIEF SYSTEM

    While I may have heard in the past that it is imperative to have a solid belief system, this setup gave me a vivid visual which allows me to reshape and grow my mindset. In a time of calamity, there won't always be time to consult with someone else for advice. I took away from this part of the teaching that I must remove any cultural barriers that blur my cognition because conflicting beliefs kill dreams.

    "It's difficult to educate someone past their belief system. A belief system is more than a collection of beliefs. It's a network; it's a system where many find trapped for years and years. A system of benevolence, desperation, feeling inadequate, having to prove yourself, and validate who you are. Systems are invisible but manifest into tangible forms." (Bishop Jakes)

TAKE HEED TO OBEDIENCE

    My belief system had turned into one similar to Simon's, where giving up on my real estate business, purpose, mission, and core values faced disruption. I've taken all sorts of detours, including obtaining a degree that will never train my brain for the "right belief system." The evidence of this lies in Luke 5:5, where Simon said, "Master, we've been fishing hard all night and haven't caught even a minnow." Simon, like Keyna, reached a point of exhaustion; until the appropriate counsel came along and gave him divine and authentic words to take heed.

"Disruption and disobedience aren't always felt at the time of impact. People penalize you when you go against a system to make you submit to a system that is beneath your dreams for fear of being isolated, left out, and the human need to belong." (Bishop Jakes)

MY HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

    This message jarred my memory back to the 1980s when my parents migrated from Panama to Florida, where they ventured into business as real estate developers and served the under-served community. The ones that got turned away as "not being the typical qualified buyer or renter." My parents helped the impoverished, the immigrants, and the socially unjust. Remarkably, I recounted a memory. A street in a community named Immokalee, Florida, where my parents built homes, was named after my mother, "Dilsa Ln." A dirt road that did not exist before; was cut, graded, paved, and named after her.  

    This fond memory is quite interesting because I started my career in real estate on a similar ground in the late 1990s, moving into the Y2K era. I recall in the early days of Y2K, I went above and beyond the call of duty to ensure no client of mine would be homeless, even if that meant I needed to house them in my residence for a short-term stay; at the same time having to safeguard my three small children at the time. Meanwhile, I was running the battlefield to secure my clients "a home to call their own."

MY DISRUPTION

    It was the overnight fame, glamour, and a bank account with plenty of zero's behind it, that I thought had no end. For me, the disruption was in 2008 when the market crashed, followed by the heat of the impact that got extremely uncomfortable in 2014. Yet, I wasn't following the GPS and following in obedience. As always in times past, I thought, I could always figure it out. On multiple occasions, I had to reach a place of understanding and submission. Two of those occasions were the passing of my parents. My father, whom I considered an extraordinarily brilliant man, passed away in March 1997 when I was twenty-four years old. What did I know or even quite comprehend back then? Very little! My mother survived him for twenty-four years. She continued to be my biggest fan and cheerleader; until her passing in March 2021. Talk about disruption! The one that had witnessed many of my accomplishments was no longer around to affirm me on my path.

    Back to the drawing board, I went. By 2022, I said, "If I could only help the hundreds of people in New York City that reach out to me daily that are on some form of government housing assistance or live in a shelter." Nothing has changed from the era of my parents. The under-served community is socially and culturally stigmatized. It appears to be getting worse in this era of a global pandemic. For the last several years, I have felt powerless to help them.

MY JOURNEY FROM SYSTEMS TO PLATFORMS

    The instruction I received from this message is that I will need partnerships, strategic alignment, and proper backup to sustain what is for me. I cannot do this the way I did at the emergence of Y2K because I am up against a different era and a "system." It requires a network because it takes a system to overcome a system. How many fish have I missed? It doesn't matter. The lesson is not purported on the fixed mindset but rooted in the growth variable. Learn and move on. The fish are the reward for obedience, not righteousness.

    This message delivered by Bishop Jakes gave me powerful clarity. The housing climate for the socially and culturally stigmatized will not change in shallow waters. Implement a system to fight the system!

CONCLUSION

    I affirmatively believe: limitations, resources, and strategic alliances are no longer blocked. To the point that it will also strain my systems, and I must remain apprised of those potential strains. Similar to the story of Simon, I received awareness. My belief system, a culturally tainted system, went astray and settled for an empty boat. I have remained on the sidelines rather than in the game where I belong.


    In 2022, it's time for the next season. There is a higher purpose for the boat than what I know. You see, this isn't about a sermon; this is about how God used Simon's story as a vehicle to reveal to me that I need to forget the former things; and "launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught." (Luke 5:4) Read that carefully. It says, "NET(S)," not a NET. Do not put a period where a comma belongs. Where I have cried help in lack, I'll scream help in abundance.


    Similar to Simon, the beginning of my story reflected my value system of "bottom line profits." That is not God's mission or core values. For him, it's about making fishers of men. I am ready for much more than what I lost, gave up, in time, talent, or money. I am no longer on the boat that served as a tutor. I have stepped into my higher purpose and am ready to receive the table that has been prepared only for Keyna!

"Go back to your humble beginnings and finish your assignment; there, God will honor your obedience!" (Bishop Jakes)