During our high school Physics classes, we were taught some of the laws that make the universe operate the way it does: smoothly and efficiently. Among the laws we learnt were Hooke's Law, Snell's Law, Coulomb's Law and, of course, Newton's Laws of Motion. If it weren't for those laws, the Earth wouldn't be rotating for precisely 24 hours each day.

And you know what? Just as the universe is governed by a set of laws, so were we human beings designed to live by certain laws. For me, perhaps because I am a Christian, I find the Bible to contain the most effective set of laws. If we were all to obey biblical laws, we wouldn't be having such societal ills as rape, theft, murder and gender-based violence.

One thing I have discovered about biblical laws is that if we disobey them, we will be oppressed by those less intelligent than us. I am talking from experience since I have broken quite a number of those laws. Here's a quick summary of the sins I have committed and the biblical laws I have broken:

Sin I Have Committed	Biblical Law I Have Broken
Causing my parents distress by running away from home	Honor your father and mother so that you may live long... (Exodus 20:12)
Telling lies	The Lord detests lying lips... (Proverbs 12:22)
Over-eating (gluttony)	For ... gluttons become poor and drowsiness clothes them in rags. (Proverbs 23:21)
Over-sleeping (sloth)	A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest - and poverty will come on you like a bandit... (Proverbs 24:33-34)
Reacting in anger	Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools. (Ecclesiastes 7:9)
Sending my friends silly and perverse messages	Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up... (Ephesians 4:29)
Plagiarizing other people's writings (stealing)	He who has been stealing must steal no longer... (Ephesians 4:18)
Harboring bitterness in my soul	Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:31-32)

Having experienced the consequences of breaking biblical laws (guilt, shame, oppression and resentment), I am now endeavoring to walk in obedience to God's Word. I have succeeded in obeying most of the biblical laws: rising before dawn, thinking noble thoughts, remaining chaste, telling the truth always, giving my all to the work I do, and asking for permission before taking other people's property.

The one biblical law that I am finding hard to live by is loving other people and being generous. Well, I am generally a people-loving person; I sometimes lovingly stare at the photos of my friends and famous people. But man, don't I sometimes feel jealous when others succeed and when I hear folks donate money to those in need!

About three months ago for instance, my mother received money from my younger brother Symo. She then had the money sent to three of her siblings just to make their day. Her generosity made me a little jealous. I had to overcome the pangs of jealousy by reminding myself of the verse in the Bible that says "a generous person will prosper".

Such kind of jealousy and selfishness is what I am struggling to overcome. I want to be generous with my money and with my feelings. By being generous with my feelings, I mean wishing others well in their endeavors and being enthusiastic about their success as I am about my own.

Because the Bible says God is love, I believe we are never more like God than when we love other people by wishing them well, by helping them at their hour of need and by complimenting them for doing good work. Which is why I want to be generous with my money and with my feelings.

As I strive to be generous, my role model will be David Mwakima, a friend of mine currently studying in America. Even though Mwakima is younger than me, he has unfailingly helped me at my hours of need. Sometimes when I approach him for financial assistance, I fear he might criticize me for relying on him too much. But he never does that. He just sends me money while complimenting me for the progress I am making. How I wish I could be that generous!

The Bible is very clear that we should practise generosity. In 1st Timothy 6:17-19, St. Paul urges rich people not to be arrogant but to do good, to be rich in good deeds, to be generous and willing to share. I will strive to live by that law in my day-to-day living. And why am I keen to obey biblical laws? Because of the joy, peace and freedom they bring to our souls. So help me God.

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed reading the above story on obeying God's laws, you might also enjoy another one on "Practicing Generosity" that I wrote sometime back. Just click on that link in blue to dive straight into the story.

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We live in a mysterious universe. A very mysterious universe indeed. Scientists tell us that there are billions of galaxies out there in space. And each of those galaxies contains billions of stars. Right now as I pen this story, a star manyfold the mass of our third-rate sun is living out its final moments in a wild spin before collapsing into a black hole.

Here on Earth, a couple somewhere is making love as I continue penning this story. A baby is also being born and someone is breathing his last. I venture to imagine that while some are rejoicing for achieving their dreams, others are mourning the death of their loved ones.

The Bible exhorts us to rejoice with those who are rejoicing and to mourn with those who are mourning. I don't know about you but as for me, I must admit that I have found it difficult to live by that biblical teaching, especially rejoicing with those who are rejoicing. There are times I have been sick with jealousy upon hearing the success of other people.

Due to my struggle with jealousy, it reached a point when I had to avoid reading the newspapers for fear that I would come across articles about the success of people I know. I also kept away from social media where some friends have been fond of boasting about their accomplishments.

With time, I came to understand that the more we rejoice in the success of others, the more we attract the success we want. That insight has reduced the amount of jealousy I used to feel about the achievements of others. I have also taken to heart the following words by St. Paul in 1st Corinthians 13:4-6:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

As a result of improved attitude towards the success of others, I have for the past two years resumed reading newspapers. I have also been checking my social media accounts everyday to catch up with how my friends are doing. My goal these days is to celebrate the success of others and write stories about what we can learn from them.

On the evening of last Friday for instance, Dad asked me whether I had seen my immediate elder brother Paddy in "Business Daily", a Kenyan national newspaper. I replied that I hadn't checked the newspaper which I had brought home from my hometown of Kiserian. And Dad's inquiry compelled me to pick the newspaper to see if Paddy was in it.

Sure enough, Paddy had been featured in the "Business Daily" of that day. His photo was on the front page of the newspaper, and on its page 19 and 20 was a written version of an interview he had had with Jackson Biko, a renowned Kenyan writer. Paddy narrated to Biko about how he overcame a humble background to become the CEO of an insurance firm in Kenya called AAR.

In my prayers, I always ask God to prosper my loved ones in everything they do. Seeing a glowing article about Paddy in "Business Daily" was an answered prayer. And I thanked God for it.

That I rejoiced in Paddy's success is a testament to how much I have matured. Unlike in the past when such success would have left me numb with jealousy, I am now rejoicing to have seen Paddy's story in a high-brow newspaper. Honestly, I have matured up.

By the way, Paddy is married with two kids, drives a Toyota Prado and lives in a magnificent home. He has also travelled overseas and interacted with such high-profile figures as Mrs. Margaret Kenyatta, the former First Lady of the Republic of Kenya. And you know what? Despite his spectacular achievements, I have never seen him boast about his success on social media. He is such a humble guy.

Anyway, coming back to my topic of rejoicing with those who are rejoicing, I urge you, my beloved reader, to also form the habit of celebrating the success of others. That could help you attract the success you desire. Let it be said of you and me that when we saw or heard about the success of others, we never hated; we just waited for our turn. Adieu!

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed the above story about rejoicing with those who are rejoicing, you might also enjoy another one on "Wishing Others Well" that I wrote two years ago. Just click on that link in blue to dive straight into the story.

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