A Burning Desire

"Mommy, he's doing it again." I yelled as I came running into the kitchen where I knew I would find Mother. I was so angry-no MAD-that I was breathing like a wild animal. "Shawn is taking my toys apart, again. I hate him. I hate him."

"Honey, don't say that. You know you don't hate him."

"But he keeps tearing my stuff up," I whined. "Stop him, Mommy, stop him." I grabbed her hand and pulled her with me so that she would catch him in the act.

We found him sitting in the middle of the rug in his room with my toys half apart, half together.

"Boy, I have told you a million times--stop breaking your sisters toys."

"But, Mom, I'm not breaking them," he says proudly as he shows her what he was doing with my Close and Play. "I'm just trying to see how they put it together. I'll fix it back," he said with confidence.

"You better fix it back, Big Head," I yelled with a frown.

"Stop it, Dawn. Shawn, you better fix it back just the way you found it" my mother said.

"Nah nah," I whisper behind my mother's back as she turned to leave. Of course, I had to stick my tongue out at him, too.

Shawn had a habit of taking everything apart in the house. I don't care what it was; he was taking it apart to see if he could put it back together again. The funny thing is he was always able to fit it back exactly the way it was. He couldn't have been more than 5 years old when this incident occurred. I was 7.

Not only did he take toys apart and put them back together, he would take apart appliances, furniture, electrical equipment, stereos, tape recorders, cars and anything else that came in or around the house-just to see if he could put it back together again.

While most boys his age were outside running and playing, he was inside with tools-fixing things.

For Christmas, every year, his request was always the same--he wanted tools.

He started with toy tools, but each year, his request became more sophisticated.

By the time he was 10 years old he had created and built his own lamps for his bedroom and a sturdy, seven level bookshelf for the Family Room that still stands till this day,

Whenever someone in our neighborhood broke something on their bike, he would whip out his tools which he wore, at all times, around his belt and fix it. It wasn't long before he put the Bicycle Shop in our area out of business.

He never charged anyone for his "services." He simply LOVED what he did.

When we decided to turn an empty, abandoned garage into a Club House-Shawn turned this burned down shack into a lavish, but small, home. When someone finally bought the home that sat on this property, they turned the Club House that he built, into a guest house.

By the time he reached 13, because of his love and desire to fix things, especially electrical things, my father had a talk with one of his friends who were an Electrician by profession.

My father arranged that my brother would become an apprentice and work, at the age of 13, as an electrician.

Every Saturday morning, my Dad's friend, would stop by the house and pick up my brother for work.

My brother LOVED it. Every Saturday night, he would rush in the house full of excitement, giving my brother and I full details of everything that he had discovered that day.

To be honest with you, neither me nor my brother were all that enthused or excited about his "adventures." Fixing things simply didn't thrill me. But he was so excited we couldn't help but get drawn in.

Today, he is still an Electrician and runs his own business, Current Control. He also does construction and some carpentry work.

The other day I was talking with my brother on the phone and I asked him if there was ever anything else that he wanted to do with his life.

He said that if he couldn't do what he was doing, he didn't know what he would do. There was nothing else that excited him more than being able to bring light to somewhere, where there weren't any light before he arrived.

His statement got me to thinking about DESIRE and how important it is in order for us to completely live our dreams.

I can't even begin to tell you how many beatings and punishments my brother received from taking things apart in our house. (Yes, I said "beatings." My parents are African-American and come from the old school where we got "whipped.) I thought my father was going to kill him when he came home from work to find the brand, new 50 inch screen television with its insides on the floor and my brother with a look of horror on his face to see that Daddy arrived home early from work. But no matter how many times he was punished, he never stopped doing it. He couldn't help himself. He had a BURNING DESIRE to fix things.

If you punished him and sent him to his room, when you came to check on him, he would have the electrical sockets that are in the wall-out of the wall trying to put it back together again. If you took away his tools, he would use a butter knife-there was no stopping him.

If you ever study the life of successful people, they always have a BURNING DESIRE to live their dreams. When you have a burning desire, there is nothing that will stop you. No amount of set backs, outside influence, negativity, punishments or beatings will stand in your way. If you have a burning desire and you seek help from God and believe, without a shadow of a doubt that God will make a way for you-a way will be made.

If you want to quickly manifest your dreams and change your life, you must first, develop a BURNING DESIRE to do so.

Solomon had a burning desire to live a life that was pleasing to God. In 2 Chronicles 1:10, Solomon says to God, 10 give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may lead this people, for who is able to govern this great people of yours?"

11 God said to Solomon, "Since this is your heart's desire and you have not asked for wealth, riches or honor, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you king, 12 therefore wisdom and knowledge will be given you. And I will also give you wealth, riches and honor, such as no king who was before you ever had and none after you will have."

ACTION POINT: Find your passions and develop a burning desire. Ask God for guidance and believe with all your heart that your dreams are now manifesting; listen to that quiet still voice that has all the answers you are seeking and DO -TAKE ACTION and in no time, all of your dreams and desires will be a reality.

Dawn Fields is a motivational speaker, life coach and author. She teaches how to discover your life's purpose and incorporate it into a career, in a really, down-to-earth, no nonsense sort of approach. Visit the web site at http://www.dawnfields.com and sign up for Your Life's Purpose newsletter by sending a blank email to mailto:dawn@dawnfields.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line. Tune in each and every Thursday to Your Life's Purpose Interactive Internet Radio with at 9 p.m. EST by going to http://www.dawnfields.com/radioshow.htm