We Can Change Our Culture
Ashley Thaba | Monday March 22, 2021 15:53
Some of those choices are small. Should we have rice or pasta? Should we have chicken or beef? The choice has little impact on our life and those around us. There are other choices we make which have the potential to tremendously bless us and those around us, or tremendously hurt those around us and ourselves.
For almost a year from the small village of Rakops, the village leadership have called me in Gaborone and shared stories of bad choices which are hurting a lot of people. We have been told humbling stories about how when we begin to teach on our TV show, Talking with the Thabas, healthy family people began to say no one has ever taught us this. They began to learn a new way of doing things within the family.
We heard of suicides stopped, GBV cases reducing, divorces halted, and many more amazing testimonies. These stories are what led us here to come and teach how to make better choices. We are by no means perfect, but Percy and I have found our lives are truly healthy and happy when we make our decisions based on God’s word. So we are doing this 18-day family building campaign in Rakops village to simply passing on wisdom that was given to us through the Bible and some leaders who have taught us over the years.
Our desire is to see love replaced in homes where there is anger and violence. Our desire is to see joy and smiles replaced in homes where there is sadness and depression.
Our desire is to see faithfulness in homes where there are extra marital affairs. Our desire it to see peace in homes where there is discord and fighting. Our desire is to see healthier homes in Rakops because we believe if everyone’s homes are healthier, many of the negative things we have been hearing would improve and ultimately light would replace darkness. The home is the foundation of the society. Every one of us come from a family and if that family is healthy and happy, there is a good chance we will be healthy and happy. Our vision and prayer is that this 18-day campaign we are doing in Rakops would see so many people experiencing such radical changes in their homes that Rakops would be the first of many villages to see GBV, substance abuse, fatherless children, etc. decrease. May God bring revival and change to Rakops so that Rakops will be able to go and teach others what we are teaching in this campaign. A better Botswana can start with Rakops! A better SADC can start with one village saying enough is enough. Just because we have been participating in harmful cultural practices doesn’t mean we have to continue doing that. We are so excited because each day we hear unbelievably encouraging testimonies about how already after just one week of teachings, hundreds are already seeing positive changes in your home. Our deepest prayer is we could hear of countries all over SADC learning these tips and have stronger families for stronger nations.
I want to share with you a story from the Bible. The story is about a man named Joshua. Joshua led the Isrealites into the promised land. But remember when they came into the Promised land they had been in Egypt for 400 years plus 40 years in the desert. They had begun to worship ancestors, golden calves, and other gods. But now God had safely led them into a beautiful land that flowed with milk and honey. God had given them a new life but it came with a condition. They must leave behind 400 years of doing things they knew did not please God. They had to stop worshipping ancestors, stop using charms, and do only what God told them to do. IF they did that, God promised to bless them. But many were scared! They said “this isn’t our culture”. This is not the way we do things. We believe in God but we also believe in these other things. Joshua warned them in Joshua 24 – God wants to bless you but He cannot and will not bless you unless you turn to Him and stop worshiping anything else. Many said Joshua – this is hard! Our parents taught us to do this! Their grandparents taught them! This is all we know. And Joshua said in Joshua 24:14-15, “Now fear the Lord and serve Him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshipped beyond the river and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the river, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household we will serve the Lord!”
Can I challenge you? Will you be the one to say “There are practices my family does which I know do not bless us. They bring fear, destruction, and darkness but it is our culture. However, today, I am choosing that no matter what anyone else decides, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!”
Next week, we will do a part 2 on this challenge of changing cultural norms to align ourselves with a better, brighter and healthier future.
*Ashley Thaba is a popular motivational speaker, team building facilitator, author and the Producer of a hit TV show offering practical advice to strengthen families and improve marriages! Episodes of her show can be downloaded from her website – www.ashleythaba.com.You can view some of her work on her YouTube channel: Ashley Thaba. You can buy three of her books, Dive In, Making Marriages Fun, and Conquering the Giants, on her website. You can email her at askthaba@gmail.com or follow her on Facebook at: Talking with the Thabas