HANDLE IT WITH GRACE

Happy Sunday unto you, dear beloved. I believe you are still well and in good health. 

After some time, Paul said to Barnabas, "Let's go back and visit each city where we previously preached the word of the Lord, to see how the new believers are doing." Barnabas agreed and wanted to take along John Mark. But Paul disagreed strongly, since John Mark had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in their work. Their disagreement was so sharp that they separated. Barnabas took John Mark with him and sailed for Cyprus. - Acts of the Apostles 15:36‭-‬39 NLT

I'm drawn to relationship lessons because I strongly believe that understanding people is the most important life skill. One I find has so many lessons is the one between Barnabas and Paul, in fact I think Barnabas was underrated.

For instance, notice how Paul had a problem with Barnabas when he gave John Mark a second chance, I personally think Paul was not an easy personality do deal with and this doesn't take away from the call of God upon his life but I have reasons to believe the Apostle was a difficult man to relate with and now I see how I used to be similar to Paul until a process of disgrace which dealt with my self-righteousness and led me to understand grace well!

Now, here's what fascinates me about Paul and Barnabas: they were brought together through fasting and prayer. This is when Holy Spirit confirmed their God ordained partnership, sadly they separate because of feelings (Acts 13).

To all of you who are reading this, never walk away from a God ordained relationship without getting divine clearance. And yes, sometimes divine clearance is given to preserve destinies, I have a story to tell about this! After their separation, there were now two missions instead of one, so twice as many people were reached separation is not always an evil agenda!

FAITH OVER FEAR

It can be easy to lose your peace when your focus is on all the trouble in the world. Trust me, I've been there. I've learned that true peace comes from personally knowing the living God. When God's spirit dwells deep inside of you, your heart and mind is shielded from the chaos of the world. I thank God that His perfect love casts out all fear. I thank God that He gives His children personal assignments to reach a broken world for His glory. With all that being said, this is me smiling because I know God hears our prayers, I know God sees every tear, I know God is working even when we don't see it, and I know how this story ends. 

INTEGRITY IS YOUR DEFENCE

Happy Saturday beloved, welcome this weekend with a smile! Remember; Live each moment completely, enjoy the wander, and enjoy the beauty of each moment. 

integrity

/ɪnˈtɛɡrɪti/

noun

1. the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.

2. the state of being whole and undivided

The word integrity evolved from the Latin adjective integer, meaning whole or complete as a virtue which is character. It is defined as "an undivided or unbroken completeness" or "a state of being complete or whole." #integrityiseverything #probity #honestyisthebestpolicy #virtueandgoodness #livestronglivewell

NO MAN IS AN ISLAND

Happy Friday beloved friends. I hope you all had a productive week! The key to success lies in leveraging relationships, maximising on your network and building a strong army of support around you. You must realise that God uses people to achieve most His work. The Bible tells us we are His workmanship (poiema), work of His hands, created unto good works.

Having learnt of such need for people, there are 3 human figures that everyone needs life in order to fulfill God's purpose for their life on earth and live a fulfilling life.

1. Moses the father figure

Their role is to nurture and guide the son in you. Part of that is to enforce accountability. An unaccountable person is like a loaded gun in the hands of a child. Humans since Eden don't like accountability, unfortunately without this role we have seen many anointed, talents, gifted and intelligent men fail and falter in basic issues of life (marriage, career, ministry etc.) Fathers do 3 main things: Discipline, disciple and direct. The Bible is filled with many such examples: Moses to Joshua, Eli to Samuel, Elijah to Elisha, Jesus to the disciples, Paul to Timothy.  

2. Jonathan the covenant brother

God created and wired us for friendship, yet sin has broken friendships and relationships. We can be tempted to have superficial friendships instead of real ones and to hide from real friendships because we are cynical about the possibility that they can exist. The Bible tells us that David and Jonathan were "tied and knit in spirit" and loved each other selflessly. The role of Jonathan's is to carry you across to your destiny at a practical level no matter the cost. I pray that God may restore this type of men, destiny helpers. While fathers give you blueprints, brothers will walk with you as teammates. Your success is their success.

3. Timothy: Son in faith

For every Moses there must be a Joshua. The need for them is that oil flows into empty vessels. When you run out of vessels then the oil ceases. You are blessed to be a blessing. They help to keep you young and relevant. They fuel your hunger for more. They are your pay it forward channel. Sons carry your legacy; they are runners of the vision. They are a self-correction mechanism. They tend to be an extension of your life journey. A king without a nation is like a successful man without a son or mentee! #honourpeople #respectthoseaboveyou #behumble #bewillingtolearn #observe #dontletpridecloudyourjudgement

LIVE PURPOSEFULLY

Happy Thursday unto you dear friend. I believe you are still fine and in good health. Sunrise gives glorious greetings in everyone's heart. Always, remember this: be thankful for each day, vutomi hi ntalo! It's a journey of goodwill and treasure, appreciate!

There are three things which you can never recover or regain from. The "words" after they are said, the "moment" after it is missed, and lastly the "time" after it is gone. Whenever a person remembers you only in time of their need, don't worry. The importance of a candle is only known when there's darkness. Life is a brief pause between life and death; live with purpose. #stayonyourpurpose #justareminder #enjoyyourday

LOVE OTHERS

Blissful Tuesday beloved, saying "yes" to love leaves no room for hate. Choose to love, to bless, forgive, be kind and above all choose God to guide you! 

Thinking about what Jesus has done on the Cross should help us value one another, do away with selfishness, let love for people saturate you. Keep love and kindness in your heart. #loveoneanother #bekind #loveofGod #honourothers #treatpeoplewell

STAY ALIGNED TO YOUR PURPOSE

Dear friend, I wish you a happy new week. I hope you are still well and in good health. Don't rely on people to support the weight of your disappointments. Talk to God about it. He is our help in any time of trouble

I am so proud of how far I have come! Taking steps ordered by God. My words of growth today are: "Do what you have been called by God to do."

Not everyone will understand.

Not everyone will approve.

Not everyone will applaud.

Not everyone will affirm.

Not everyone will celebrate.

Not everyone will support it.

Not everyone will stay.

Not everyone will encourage.

But nonetheless, do what you are called to do. #livepurposefully #stayaligned #haveclearvision #liveyourdream #beencouraged #believeit #itwillsoonmakesense #stayonyourpurpose

STAY ROOTED IN GOD

Happy Sunday people of God! I hope you are still well and in good health. May God bless your thoughts and the heart of your mind to the glory of God! 

"What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter." - Isaiah 5:20 NLT

It truly makes me think of today's world and what state we are currently living in and surrounded by. Stay strong and rooted in God's word, He is our voice of truth, and our firm foundation. He is the same today, yesterday, and always.

RESPECTING TIME AND CHANCE

Happy Friday beloved. It's time to wrap off the week with a smile. Clap for yourself, you did it. Have a restful weekend!

The Bible tells us of an interesting event in Acts 20:7-12. It was Paul's last night in this village, so he wanted to impart as much as possible, thus a farewell party which was an intimate moment which was arranged on the third floor of the building.

There was young man named Eutychus (meaning lucky or fortunate) who sat next to the window, he fell asleep and fell through the window and died. Paul raised him up and finished the party then left. 

A few lessons from this farewell that nearly ended in tragedy:

1. Discerning the time

Failure to recognise the time or season may cause you to make a wrong decision that may result in inappropriate action thus sabotaging your dream, vision, destiny or purpose. All we know is that Eutychus slept in the middle of a very powerful speech (since it was Paul's last words). In the same way, I've seen a lot of people expend their energy and money on less important things or being overwhelmed by peer pressure, achievements and success that are the season or time.

The Bible guarantees us that "time and chance" happens to all (Ecclesiastes 9:11). The difference between you and the person who has succeeded in life could be failing to understand the season and time due to smoke screen of temporary pleasure. The difference between Isaac (God's provision) and Ishmael (Human effort to meet mimic God's provision) is timing: Isaac was God's timing while Ishmael was human timing). 

I pray that the exuberance of youth, immaturity of age and excitement of the moment will not blind you to God's timing for your life.

2. Sensitivity of chance

Eutychus, was sitting in the best position in the house, at the window. Window symbolises opportunity, connection, channel and revelation or future. He was at the door of opportunity, favoured and graced with a special moment of connection or network and privileged to be a channel of blessings for future generations. My experience has taught me that most distractions are at the peak of breakthrough or at the brink of delivery and at the height of pain when you are vulnerable. The sensitivity of chance or window is that failure to seize it might be to your demise (death of dream, end of era and shattered future). 

There was only one stone between David's success and being murdered by Goliath, only one chance. We are not always guaranteed a return of the same opportunity. For instance, Jesus tells a story about a party of ten virgins, perhaps bridesmaids or torchbearers for a procession, chosen to participate in a wedding. 5 of the foolish ones lost the opportunity to participate in the coming of the bridegroom because they failed to discern the sensitivity of time and chance they had. 

I pray that you will learn to know the sensitivity of chance and recognise that it might be the last one; So, give it your best!

Lastly, Eutychus slept; we know through Samson that sleeping at an opportune moment is a sign of sloppiness that can lead to distraction. A sleeping giant is as useless as a dead dog. Sleeping is necessary but the difference lies in the timing. Hence, the 5 bridesmaids who slept lost their position in the feast. #dontbeignorant #respectimeandchance #giveyourbest #beencouraged #dontgiveupyetyouralmostthere

GOD IS TRULY AMAZING

How amazing is God? Recently been experiencing a lot of anxiety. This year has me thinking more than I'd like because I struggle to thrive in circumstances I don't feel I can control. However, God literally removed everything I had been carrying for the past few weeks as I prayed for better days. Because He is the way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper and light in the darkness, I pondered, "Wow, why did I take so long to bring this before God?"

See what the Bible says, "Give your burdens to the Lord, and He will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall." - Psalms 55:22 NLT

POSITIVITY IS THE PLUG

Happy new week, dearest. I hope you are still well and in good health. I don't know about you, but I've made up in my mind that failure is going to have to work very hard if it's stepping into the ring with my faith! 

One can only be grateful to God. It gets uneasy at times but keep pushing. Keep your dreams alive, think about it everyday and see it as it unfolds with time. #bodymindandsoulflourish #happyweek