The Odyssey

The 5 th of December each year, is observed and celebrated as the World Soil Day to highlight the importance of healthy soils and to advocate for the sustainable management of soil resources.  The theme for 2019 is Soil Erosion, Save Our Future !   We are living in the age of Sustainable Development and each and every one of us has a role to play – to preserve our beautiful planet and combat climate change for the sake of future generations. Concerning the future, we must take into account the potential effects of climate change on soils and agriculture at large.  On the other hand, we must also consider the impact that agriculture and soils have on climate change and global warming. The current estimates indicate that 10-12% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions are attributed to agriculture, tillage being the major culprit. In addition, approximately 70% to land use change emissions are attributed mainly through deforestation, which agri...

“ And now these three remains: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love .” – 1 Corinthians 13:13 Caritas is a Latin word which denotes Christian love for humankind, unlike the Greek word agape , which means just Christian love, as distinct from erotic love or simple affection. On the other hand, the direct translation of the word caritas is charity.  Pope Benedict XVI says “charity ( caritas ) is love received and love given.. it is grace.” The source of this love is God, who Himself is Love (1 John 4:8). Caritas is transferred freely from God by Jesus Christ and poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit so that we may love each other as human beings as God has loved us. Hence the apostle John is pleading with us “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.”- 1 John 4:7 As objects of Gods’ love, men and women become subjects of charity, they are called to make thems...

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” – Hebrews 11:1 (NIV) When God created man, He said “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us..” – Genesis 1:26 (NLT). This is the first verse in the bible to indicate that God is not a single entity. Many verses show that He is triune (consisting of three parts in one). It is therefore obvious that human beings have similar image and some, likeness just like God (Gen 1:26). We know that the triune God is the Father, Son, and Spirit. Human beings are tripartite (consists of three parts) as indicated in Gen 1:26. These three parts are body, soul and spirit (1 Thessalonian 5:23). The word image in Gen 1:26 refers to the outward appearance of a human being (the body), while the phrase “to be like us” or word likeness in other translations, refer to the inward parts (soul and spirit) Many bible scholars use the word mind instead of soul when describing the second part of...

Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going .” Jim Rohn We all dream of living a healthy lifestyle - staying active, fit and feel energetic but not all us are motivated enough to actually do so due to the price we have to pay. Motivation is fleeting; it comes and goes, but habits stick for longer. If you value your health as you should, you need to start doing something now and stop relying on external motivations. It all starts by forming good habits with a disciplined mindset full of “get-it-done” attitude. Here are five habits that will make you healthier. 1.     Great Morning routine “ If you win the morning, you win the day.” – Tim Ferris. Develop a strong morning routine that will set the tone for the rest of your day. A good morning routine will not only help you win your day but all other important areas of your life.   Be proactive - prepare and plan the night before. Spend 10 to 15 minutes a night before...

“ Health is not just about nutrition (diet) and exercises, it is also about what you put in your mind and heart .” – Unknown In 1948, the World Health Organization defined (WHO) defined health as the state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.  I guess it’s safe to say we all know the importance of eating light and right as well as living an active lifestyle. Yet we still hang on to our old and bad habits eating junk food and sitting passively watching television after 8-hours sedentary jobs at our work places. As Thomas Moffet says, we are “digging our graves with our teeth” as we; 1)     Feed our bodies with high-fat, high cholesterol and non-nutritious foods, 2)     Poison our system with cigarettes, alcohol misuse, and substance abuse, 3)     Sit passively in front of our TV sets daily and spend long hours on social media, 4)   ...

“A person can be highly educated, professionally successful and financially illiterate .” – Robert Kiosaki Speaking of highly educated and professionally successful people who still struggle financially, Robert Kiosaki says what is missing from their education is not how to make money, but how to spend money – what to do after you make it. He goes on to say “Money without financial intelligence is money gone soon, if you want to be rich, you need to be financially literate...financial intelligence is the mental process via which we solve our financial problems.” The good news is, you don’t need a fat pay cheque to be rich, but financial intelligence and self-discipline so that you keep your hard earned cash and grow your wealth further. In fact, 80% of American millionaires are first generation affluent. In other words, they didn’t inherit any wealth from their parents and most of them started with nothing in their bank accounts but through self-discipline and f...

“Our prosperity as a nation depends upon financial prosperity of each of us as individuals ” – George S. Clason Robert Kiosaki, in his popular book called Rich Dad, Poor Dad says “The primary cause of financial struggle is not knowing the difference between an asset and a liability. In simple terms, he defines an asset as something that puts money in your pocket while a liability takes money out of your pocket.  A TV is a liability. A book is an asset. Wealth is power and you don’t have to quit your job to be wealthy. With wealth, many things are possible. Life is great and worthwhile when you have luxuries to enjoy. However, always make it a point to buy luxury items last because they are nothing but liabilities. Buy assets first. For all individuals, George S. Clason devised the following seven cures’ strategy for a lean purse. It is a practical method that can help you conquer your financial struggles and take you from rags to riches. Let’s look at each of th...