Late last year I started having problems with my car. My beloved car that was such a blessing, and came to me through some good friends .  That’s why I named her Bukata (Boo- ka – tar) as it means ‘something good from God’ in one of the languages of Zambia.  But then Buka started to struggle in her capacity to run well out on the road.

Due for a service, I took her in, but still she was no better.  After a couple more visits to the mechanic and yet still no better, I was contemplating the idea of having to sell Buka and get a newer model.  After all maybe Buka (born in 2001) was just worn out and ready to retire.  Did I really want to keep pouring money in to her until I found the solution?

Due to my limited working hours at that time and thus limited income, I was unable to get back to my mechanic.  It was during this time that I decided to look for any patterns of behaviour in Buka.

She ran fairly fine on a full tank, but once she got down to half a tank, she started to falter and pull back.  She ran great on long trips, but not so great on short trips.  But then some short trips were okay.  Sometimes she seemed to run better if I ran the engine for a while before driving, and other times it seemed to make no difference.  Some days she ran just fine, and other days she faltered throughout the whole journey.  I couldn’t work it out.  What was the problem?

Then one day, it occurred to me that maybe I had filled up with a dodgy dose of fuel, although this problem had now been going on for a couple of months.  Surely if that was the problem it would have resolved by now with each refill.  As Buka was down to half a tank (when she often starts to play up) I decided to fill up with some premium fuel (instead of the usual regular unleaded) to see if that made any difference.

That day she ran beautifully.  But then she would sometimes do that anyway, but then she continued to run fine.  The next time I filled up, I went back to the regular unleaded.  Initially Buka continued to run fine, but then she started to falter again.  So the next time I filled up with premium, and she ran fine.  So I filled up again with premium, and she continued to run fine.  And she’s been running fine ever since. . . .

There was nothing mechanically wrong with Buka.  It was just what I was filling her up with (the regular unleaded, cheapest fuel available, yet apparently compatible) that made her run poorly.

You know where this is going . . .

Just as the fuel I was filling Buka with was limiting her capacity to run well, likewise the ‘fuel’ we fill our minds with can limit our capacity to run well. You can try all other possible solutions, but until you find the actual problem, you’ll not have the solution to get the results you need, in order to run as you should.

Recently I listened to a pod cast by a preacher Steven Furtick, and one of his lines was

‘The voice you listen to will determine the future you experience.’

To think Buka almost ended up in a junk yard as scrap metal, just because she wasnt running well, which was because I was filling her up with cheap fuel.  Regular unleaded fuel might be compatible with your car, but is it the best for your car?  The cheapest option is not always the best option.

Regular words might get you by in life, but premium words will get you running at your maximum capacity.   Look at your patterns of behaviour, your patterns of thinking.  What are they telling you about the quality of the fuel you are filling up with?  Do you need to upgrade?

Is your future looking regular or premium?

Don’t settle for the cheapest option.  It’s gotta be premium all the way!  Only the best will do.