Make The Most Of Time

It was 10:45am. I was in the kitchen hurriedly preparing a late breakfast. The phone rang.

“Hello, C’est Alain, malheureusement……..”

Everything else he had to say didn’t matter. I was elated. “Thank You, Lord,” I muttered under my breath. It was my physiotherapist calling to apologise that he could not make our 11:00am appointment for my Physio walk. Quite honestly, the last thing I wanted to do was go for the 2km walk planned for the day. It was wet, dull and cold outside. And my tummy and lower back were conniving to cause me distress.

I carried my plate of toasted brown bread and cheese sandwich and my cup of pomegranate tea to the dining table, and sat down to eat. I didn't have to rush my food into an already protesting tummy. Another thanks offering went heavenwards.

“So what are you going to spend the one-hour Physiotherapy time doing?” I am sure I had the Holy Spirit whisper to my heart.

I groaned—wasn't thinking about. But I had record keeping, work on the book manuscript, do some beading, call up a sister I needed to talk to, order supplies, and more on my to-do list. The pile of books just received and those pending to be read caught my eyes from the corner of my dining table. Then, I knew what I was going to spend the hour doing—read one of my waiting-to-be-read books. I pulled “True Confessions” out of the pile, studied the sunlit cover with the title embossed in black, opened it and began to read.

I learnt of Bola ‘Salt’ Essien-Nelson, the Author, through our mutual Sista, Bidemi Mark-Mordi. A link from her Facebook page took me to her blog: The Salt Chronicles in 2013. I was intrigued with ‘Salt’ as she calls herself. That is what she aspires to be—Salt of the earth, adding flavour to lives. I found the Salt Yellow Pages very informative. That’s what Salt does; she promotes others. I wanted my autographed copy of the “True Confessions” and longed to meet her in person.

In July, 2014 at the ROTH conference, I got the chance to meet her at last. It was the briefest meeting ever considering the fact that we had both looked forward to the opportunity of finally meeting at the conference. She came to my seat and gave me a huge hug. That hug spoke volumes. She wrote later that she felt if she hugged me long enough, some anointing will be transferred by osmosis! That’s Salt for you. But for me that hug made up for the time we could not share before, during and after the conference. Things didn't just go according to our plans. God’s plans prevailed.

 I spent the next couple of hours, adding my rest time following physiotherapy, reading the Dedication, Thank You, Foreword, Introduction and seven Salt Fables. Then surfed through to the end. This book is not going to be read in a hurry. It is the kind that you take sip, turn around in your mouth, and savour the flavour before swallowing. Published by Verbatim Communications, it bore the evidence of their characteristic good quality job. The pages were vanilla in colour, reminding me of vanilla cream cakes. The black lettering readily jump off the pages—friendly to the eyes.

The Salt Fables was as easy to read as reading Bedtime stories or folklore. Written in a simple language, I felt as if I was reading out to my children. Yet it was full of flavoured nuggets that will make you pause and ponder.

My take-away so far from True Confessions:

-          I wore a Teal-coloured bracelet with Never Give Up inscribed on it every day for three and half years. So the message from Once Upon a Barracuda and a Glass Wall resonated with me.

-          The Ping-Pong match in the name of loving that husbands and wives often play with each other was the message of Once Upon A Circle of Love. “When you fall in love, you cease to wait to be loved. You love instead….Genuine love given freely comes back.”

-          Ewa, Iyanu and Oge, though renowned and accomplished turned out to be empty in the things that matter. I chose to be Imole, the Light that radiate solutions. Because simply put; Beauty, Genus and Knowledge are not enough in themselves if the Light of the glory of God is not radiating through me. That’s the nugget I gleaned from Once Upon A Woman.

-          Effective communication results in vibrant and health relationship between husbands and wives. I ended Once Upon A Discussion praying, “Dear Lord, please reveal anything that would hinder my husband and I from communicating effectively. Do give us the grace to remove such barriers in Jesus name. Amen”

-          Is God your grocery shop or the friend you like to spend time with every morning and all day long? Find out in Once Upon A Friend.

-          Your now and your future is bigger than your past when Jesus comes into your life and give you a turn around. If you don’t believe me, check out the Award-Winning harlot sharing her testimony with the former notorious corrupt Zaki who dined with Jesus, and the hard-hearted murderer who became one of the greatest Apostles, whose letters are still touching lives for good till today.

-          I felt like tearing out Once Upon a Twenty-Seven Year Old Virgin, photocopying and sharing it with all my aburos in the Lord. I will do no such disservice to Salt. Rather I will make sure each of them get a copy this book, and encourage them to read it.

Insightful and enriching, it was great fun and relaxing reading True Confessions with the deep truths it conveyed. I strongly recommend the book. Both kindle and paperback editions are available on Amazon.

It was two hours well spent. Well spent because it contributed towards a specific goal. Though, I did have my physical therapy to strengthen my muscles and build my endurance that day, and obviously did not reach my daily goal for number of steps walked but I had a soul therapy, as I was encouraged to do some soul searching.  Subsequently, I exercised my spiritual muscles in prayers.

“Making the most of your time, because the days are evil” 

– Ephesians 5:16 (NASB)

The English Standard Version of this verse encourages us to make the best use of time. I have been pondering a lot recently on the use of my time. I pondered on how the things I spend my time doing contribute towards fulfilling God’s purpose for my life and to taking me in the direction of fulfilling my dreams and desires. It became even more important as I learn day after day that we must live each day ready for the coming of the Lord and to be prepared to fly away empty.

The import of this for me is that I have to be wise in the use of time. You can only make hay when the sun is shining. We have been called to make the most or the best use of every opportunity God has given us to impact lives for good, to make a difference in our spheres of influence and to fulfil our God-ordained purpose.

Believe me when I say, an apple does not fall far from the tree. It was a 20-year old young man who inspired me to start measuring my time in goals and to make time work for me. In his blog post, Time Mastery, Akan Nelson opined that by doing this we think of the long-term in the use of time, and we are enabled to weed out activities that don’t contribute to our long-term goals.

Living each day ready translates to making the most of our time and every opportunity God gives us to make a difference. Today’s blog post has a two-fold mission:

1.       To call our attention to be intentional and purposeful in the use of our time

2.       To spotlight my Sista’s inspiring work, which I promise will truly bless, enrich and inspire you.

Dear Friends, I encourage you to make your time work for you and take you towards living a purposeful life. This way, you will fly away empty having used all the gifts, potentials and skills God endowed you with, and you would have used them for His glory and honour.

Grace and peace be multiplied to you and yours.

An Unusual Instruction

October is my birth month. A few years ago, I resolved to do something different during the month to enhance my relationship with God—devoting more attention to dwelling in the presence of God. A personal retreat—sometimes through extended period of praise and worship or a deeper and extended study of the Bible.

Last September, I started a 100-day Ministering Gratitude to God based on Ps. 119:164. So I assumed this was what God would want me to do during October but on October 3^rd, God laid the message below on my heart.

“Write as an offering of praise and thanksgiving to Me.”

This was an unusual instruction. I was at a critical point in writing my book, which has been protracted for a long time. In September, God gave me a renewed resolve to complete this assignment. I was also at a crossroad in deciding how to divide my time between writing, beading (for income-generation) and the other activities demanding my attention. I had also just done a study of Leviticus; I understood from there that the offering we bring to God must be carefully considered and prepared, wholesome, choice and without defect. God deserves the best we can offer. So I needed to understand what God is asking of me.

How do I write as an offering of praise and thanksgiving to God?

I pondered on this question and posed the same to my husband as I sought his help in understanding this instruction. His response was that it is not about the quantity of time I spend writing but it is about my heart and motive. This helped me somewhat to address the conflict in my heart regarding spending time writing, and my desire to generate income by devoting attention to my beading business.

An Offering of Praise and Thanksgiving:

True offering of praise and thanksgiving must be in response to the works of God in our lives, that is, a spontaneous acknowledgement of the benefits we enjoy from God. True offering is expression of thankfulness, in obedience to God’s word, and with reliant prayer—relying on God to provide sufficient for our needs. It is an act of worship—giving to God the honour due to Him.

A sacrifice of praise is the fruit of lips that thankfully acknowledge, confess and glorify God’s name (Hebrews 13:15-16). It is to be offered constantly and at all times, in proclamation of the power and might of God (Ps 68:34), with genuine trust in God, and with joy (Ps 27:6).

An offering of praise cannot be acceptable to God if it is offered with wilful disobedience in our lives (Hosea 14:2), compromise in our relationships, and corruptions in our speech (Leviticus 1:3).

 It has to be purposeful.  Not an empty ritualistic sacrifice. It has to be from the heart with reverence and awe of God. I am not doing God a favour bringing an offering of praise and thanks to Him. He is not dependent on my offering but He demands my heart—my motive must be to please God, to pay homage due to Him and to acknowledge His goodness. Therefore, my offering of praise must  continually spring from a thankful heart. It is confessing who God really is to me. A sacrifice of praise and thanks offered out of a sincere heart is acceptable to God.

We have been called to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to God. We are also admonished that in all we do, we must do as unto God. It therefore means that my whole life must be an offering of praise to God. My writing is just an aspect of this.

Writing as an Offering of Praise and Thanksgiving:

I have no inkling of doubt that Writing is a ministry God called me to do. The ability to create with words is a God-given gift, which I am called to use for His glory. In understanding God’s instructions to write as an offering, I came to know that it applies to all my writings—the book and my blog are just channels through which I share the messages in my heart by the leading of the Holy Spirit, to inspire hope and encourage people.

It therefore means that I have to write with the following guiding principles:

-          In obedience to God. Whether in writing the book or writing the messages on the blog, it must be in response to the leading of God.

-          My writing has to be motivated by an appreciation of what God has done in my life. I must write with a grateful heart acknowledging God’s immerse goodness to me.

-          It has to be with compassion and sensitivity, and in response to the suffering of others. Therefore, I cannot write with calluses and hardness in my heart.

-          It will sometimes be at a cost. David said that he will not offer to God that which cost him nothing (2 Sam 24:4).

-          I will have to trust and depend on God to take care of my needs.

The last two posts on the blog “We Call, He Answers And He Reveals" and “Scars, Calluses And Hardness In The Heart" were the two toughest blog posts I have written since I started blogging. The decision to write these posts was very difficult.  Second only to the decision to be willing to share my personal life including my pains, trials, struggles and afflictions publicly on the blog, fully aware that it will not only make me vulnerable but also put my life and my family on display. And I had decided a long time ago never to be a subject of pity.

It was also challenging because I was calling not only myself but others to be vulnerable—be willing to open their pains and hurts up for healing, and to be willing to admit that there are scars, calluses and hardness in their hearts. And to willingly let go of those who have hurt and offended them. In sharing these hard truths, I was taking a risk as these persons may distant themselves from me in a reaction to this post. Following God’s leading had to come first before any other consideration if my writing is to be a sacrifice of praise to God.

Since I cannot exceed the truth in expressing the goodness of God, my offering therefore is genuine when it is about God's goodness. When this forms the foundation of my writing—the truth of God’s goodness—it makes my writing sincere and genuine.

It was, therefore, a joy on Monday, October 27^th to read “Six tips For Christian Bloggers/Writers" on Imperfectly Perfect Lives.  It confirmed God’s instructions to me.

Unforgiveness, Holding to Hurts and an Offering of Praise: 

As soon as I wrote the above caption, I realised that unforgiveness and offering of praise to God cannot co-habit—the two words simply don’t go together in the same phrase.

The Bible says in Matthew 5:23-24:

“Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.…”

From the foregoing, only reconciliation and forgiveness can co-habit with genuine offering of praise that is acceptable to God. Nothing else we do matters as long as we are harbouring unforgiveness, anger and malice, and holding someone—perhaps a child of God created in God’s image—bound in the prison of our hearts.

Simply put, our offering of praise cannot be acceptable to God if it is coming from an unforgiving and harden heart. We cannot truly offer praise with sincerity and in obedience to God out with unforgiveness in our hearts.

It means that I can forgive those who hurt me and be the first to make a move towards reconciliation and restoring a broken relationship as an acknowledgement and appreciation of the undeserved mercy God has shown to me. Though, it is never easy to let go of hurts and pain but when done in obedience to God, it becomes a sacrificial offering acceptable to God.

I received a novel titled, Burning Hurt, from a dear Sista in Nigeria last weekend. I read the book in five hours. It was the fastest I have ever read a book. Written by Unyime-Ivy King, Burning Hurt, confirmed to me in strong terms that hurting people hurt others and that we have to forgive to be free. We have to forgive to offer an acceptable sacrifice of praise to God.

In concluding this post, I want you to know that God loves the sinner but He hates sin. I am created to reflect the image of God, therefore like God, I can separate the offender from the offense, and give the offender a gift of mercy and forgiveness as an offering of praise to God. This way, I can deal with the suggestion that I am giving the offender a free-pass. It also means that I trust God to act on my behalf and vindicate me. Since Jesus, our Senior Advocate, has never lost a case we can assured that He will act in our best interest.

My dear Friends, you can stand on this truth.

God deserves the best in everything we offer to Him. If we are to live our lives for His glory as a 

living sacrifice acceptable to Him then we have to offer God our best in everything we do, starting with our heart.

I have a clearer understanding of God’s instruction now. I can write, and indeed live my whole life, as an offering of praise to God. What about you? Would you consider making every aspect of your life an offering of praise to God?

I Celebrate You

Last weekend was about celebrating our loved ones, the significant people in our lives.

I am taking it a notch further this week. I had a period of reflection as I laid on my bed after arousing from sleep on Wednesday morning, and my mind went to some relationships I have had the opportunity to forge over the past years and recently too. I took special note of some in particular.

The more I pondered on these relationships, the more praise overflowed from my heart until songs of praise burst from my lips. I felt truly loved by God Who in His infinite wisdom connected my life with different groups of people who have become tremendous blessings to me. Here are two of them:

1. Long-term old friends. These are friends that I have known for many decades but have not seen for many years. Yet, at a phone call they are ready and willing to give a helping hand. I will cite some examples later.

2. Friends I made over the internet or through other friends who I have not had the opportunity to meet face-to-face, yet they have impacted me in a remarkable way.

Let me share some of the stories:

I was connected with AH through a long-term couple-friends of mine. My friend had raised a prayer request on my behalf in her prayer group in Seattle. One of the ladies eventually moved to Europe and my friend connected us. We kept in touch by email. She and her family later relocated back to US. A couple of years ago when my son was going to college, I emailed her and told her my husband and son were coming to US. I could not travel with them, to settle my son in college because of my medical situation. Not only did she accommodate my family during that period, she helped them with all the college shopping and transferred my son’s stuff to the campus. My son has a place to stay in her home whenever he is transiting between school and home. I am yet to meet her. I thank God for blessing me with such a generous friend.

I have seen my Chief Bridesmaid only twice since 1992. But we have maintained our friendship via phone calls, emails and over the internet. She has been a tremendous help and blessing to me. At a phone call, she will make herself available to me to help sort out one thing or the other, and this has happened more times than I could list or write about here. She is one of the many great friends I have abroad who have positioned themselves to be a helper and a blessing to my family and me. They offer their homes to my children and my husband during many travels. My children indeed have lost count of the number of non-biological aunties and uncles they have spread all over the world.

My husband and my friend who I had not seen since 2006 pulled a shocking surprise on me last Sunday, when she appeared besides me in church. My jaws literally dropped. I spoke with her the day before, she did not let on at all. Through her, I became connected with another lady who put herself at my mother’s disposal to be of great assistance to her. The lady left a lasting impression on my mother. The network of generous helpers just keep expanding.

I have yet another friend whom I have never met. The only contact I have with her is over the internet. I still cannot remember how I stumbled on her blog where she share creatively crafted poems, haikus and short stories. But she has become a source of inspiration and encouragement to me. She visits my blog regularly and leaves a comment. Each time I read her comment, I simply bless God. Writing can be a lonely experience at times, you spend a lot of time on your own staring at the screen. As a Christian writer, you pour hours into your writing driven by the desire to reach the world with messages that reflect the light of God’s glory and touch lives for good. Each time, I post a blog or share a piece of my writing, it is with a prayer that God would use the words He gave me to touch at least one life.

When friends write back or tell me that the message was timely, they gained from it or they were touched by it, my heart sings for joy. Why? Because it confirms to me that I heard God right on that one. Secondly, it is an affirmation that God hears my prayer that the words I have written will minister to someone at precisely the time in their lives when they need it. Thirdly, it is a honor to be used by God to fulfill His purpose and a joy to know you are fulfilling your calling. It is particularly touching when such messages come from people I have never met or seen before. God is truly awesome.

I share my story here on the blog. God has given me special blessings, trials and challenges unique to me. It will never cease to amaze me how these resonate with those who read what I share here. To the extent that I can joyfully thank God that my pains are not in vain. It is for the gain of others. Because God comforts us in our trials and tribulations, so that we may be able to comfort others in their troubles with the comfort which we ourselves are comforted (2Cor. 1: 3-5).

I have made numerous friends through the Writers’ groups and websites I subscribe to, through a foodie group I belong to on Facebook (So You Think You Can Cook), and Bead Jewelry makers whose creative work inspires me. I got connected with most of them through the internet and many have gone out of their way to share very useful tips, suggestions and “insider” information. They willing pointed me in the right direction at no personal benefit. I salute them for their generosity.

It is a privilege and honor to be blessed with such dear friends I can call at a time of need, who would respond positively and rise up to be my helper and friend in deed. Many times, I know that it is not out of convenience that the help is offered and given, it is often at a sacrifice. It is only God Who can reward them with the good measures, pressed down, shaken together and running over.

There are those wonderful friends who pray for me, pray with me and simply take it upon themselves to hold on to the hands of God on my behalf.  You are precious gems of God’s glory. I bless God for you.

After I spent time thanking and praising God for all these numerous relationships He graced my life with, I was truly awed at God’s awesome goodness.

Today, I celebrate all my friends and all those my life have been linked with for one purpose or the other as designed by God. Each of you in your unique ways made me more and more appreciative of God working in mysterious ways His wonders to perform in our lives.

A study of Jonathan’s love for David is illuminating (1Sam 18-20). It is a great example of selfless and heroic love. I cannot begin to write about the selfless and sacrificial love my friends have shown towards me. 

Today, I want to celebrate every one of you, I am honored to call friend.

What did I learn from these reflections?

It is that one of the ways to keep friendships strong is to actively nurture them. Friendships require nurturing by the parties involved in it. It simply doesn't just happen. Here are some of the ways you can nurture your relationship:

- Pray for one another

- Be present in the relationship. Even when you are separated by thousands of kilometers, with a little effort you can stay in touch with each other.

- Be the best you can be for each other. 

-  Act in their best interest.

To you, my dear friend, especially those I have not met yet or seen in a long time, I say, I look forward to seeing you someday soon if the Lord wills. If not, I hope to see you before the throne of grace. Be sure to be present there.

In what ways are you nurturing your relationships? Share with us in the comment box below and bless someone.

“Dear Heavenly Father, 
let the words that I write today reach one person with Your love and grace.” 
-  Deb Kastner (31 Devotions For Writers).

Stay Focused

The holiday is over. My husband and sons have gone back to work and school. It was on Monday morning, I had woken up early with the readiness to start work on my tasks too. But as I laid on my bed pondering on all the things I desire and need to accomplish over the next couple of months, I felt overwhelmed at the magnitude of work that needs to be done.

When I was working on the timeline for the publication of my book with my publisher, I thought six months would give me more than enough to complete the work. Upon reviewing the work at the beginning of the year I was shocked to note how much work is still required to complete the work. With less than 2 months left to go, I am feeling an intense pressure and quite uncertain of how I am going to accomplish this task on top of the other goals I had set for the first quarter of 2014. My brain cells were working overtime that morning trying to figure out how these set goals will be accomplished.

I knew with all certainty in my heart that it is the will of God for this task—the completion of the book, to be done in a timely fashion. The clarion call has been so loud over the last four months that I cannot make any more excuses for a further delay in the completing this assignment without disobeying God. But it just seemed so hard to stay focused on the task and meet the writing goal set for each day. There were so many important things also competing for my attention and a few distractions as well if I want to be sincere to myself.

For my devotion a short-while later, I decided to use the 31 Devotions For Writers compiled by Susette Williams, which I bought recently. The Bible verse for meditation literally jumped out of the page at me:

“For I am the Lord your God Who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Fear not, I will help you.” - (Is 41: 13).

I was elated. My spirit was lifted high up. God upholds my right hand and He is saying to me, telling me not to be afraid, He will help me. He is assuring me that I don’t need to try and figure it out all by myself how all these goals will be accomplished. He is with me to help me. I meditated on the verse and read it in as many Bible translations as available to me until it sank deep into my spirit.

The writer of this devotion, Rachel Hauck, continued to encourage me that God is with me, with her inspiring words and her testimony of how God came through for her when she felt it was just too hard to put one extra ounce of effort into her writing and she felt so alone.

She wrote, “Writing is hard. Get over the idea or notion it’s fun, easy-breeze and a snap. Align your thoughts and actions with the reality that it takes hard work and perspiration to produce well-written article, poem, song or book. But also align your heart with the truth that God is with you. He will help you.” This has application for everything we desire, dream and envision of accomplishing in life. It will take some perspiration. It will require us to align ourselves with this truth.

My responsibility is to align myself with the truth of God’s word concerning the task He has assigned to me and stay focused on the goal, the work at hand. Yes, He will help me. He will hold me up and retain me with His victorious right hand of righteousness and justice.

Stay focused on the goal and task that God has assigned to you. He will not leave you alone or abandon you in it. Refuse to agree with the negative suggestions and thoughts telling you that it is too hard or it is impossible for you to do it. Truly, it will be impossible to accomplish your task in your strength without the help of God and His sustaining grace.

He has promised to make us fit for whatever purpose He called us to, just as He made Jacob, considered a worm, a weak thing, to become like a new, sharp threshing instrument.

Don’t let the magnitude of what needs to be done dismay you. Don’t let the magnitude of your expectations and desires terrify you and make you despair to the point that it looms before you like an insurmountable mountain. God is able to provide supernaturally all we need to accomplish the task set before us. He opened rivers on bare heights and fountains in the midst of the valley to provide water for His thirsty people. He made the wilderness a pool of water and dry land to become spring (Is 41:18). He is still the same God today, Who is promising to sustain, uphold and help you. We are assured that we will have constant supply from where we least expect.

You just stay focused on the task at hand. Take a step, a concrete and definite step each day, no matter how small you may consider it to be. And you will be amazed what God can do with your limited resources and determined effort. It is humanly impossible for cedars, firs or myrtles to grow in the desert, they need well watered and fertile land to grow. God’s provision and intervention will cause us to see and have provision in unusual places. God is able to render us fruitful by causing His grace to abound to us and by helping us at our time of need. We and all those who behold the outcome will give glory to God and rejoice in Him.

What a great assurance it gives to know that God will bless us with the grace to relentlessly keep at pushing ahead and not give up, give in or stay down.

http://holleygerth.com/free-words/

There is no technology yet invented that can translate dreams and visions into reality except you take deliberate and concrete actions to work it out. It requires hard work, discipline and determination to do so. Though not easy, it is the only way to living your dreams and seeing your vision become a reality.

A vision has to be accompanied by an action to become a reality.

Am I where I want to be yet? No. But am I making progress? Definitely yes. 300 words one day, 1200 on another, every single word is making a difference and taking me towards the goal. Concerning the other projects I have on hand, I know God Who is helping me with the writing is also ever present to help me with the rest of the tasks on my hand.

The words of the song, Push Back The Dark by Josh Wilson, inspired me to keep at it and to stay focused.

“Whatever you do, just don’t look back

Oh somebody needs the light you have

Whatever you do, just don’t lose heart.

Oh, oh, don’t underestimate the God you follow

He is the light that burns inside your soul

So keep on shining ‘til the whole world knows.”

Someone needs what God has committed into my hands to do. I afford to give in to the fear how big it is and how much work it requires to get it done. I prayed and asked God for the compelling motivation and the zeal to stay focused and keep at it until it is done.

What about you, friend? What task do you have at hand that seems almost impossible to accomplish? What is that dream or vision on your heart that makes you wonder, how can this be? I encourage you today, to stay focused and trust in the truth of God’s word. He will surely help you.

Sharing with you a complimentary blog post: Make The Next Move Forward

Right Where You Are

I have always loved to write.

I scribbled stuff here and there when I was a teenager. I wrote scientific reports, speeches and presentations as a professional. I wrote notes of events happening in my life. I kept a journal. My friends encouraged me to write my story into a book. I started without a clear direction of how to present it.

Turning Point

In all of these, I did not see writing as a gift.  Until two years ago, in response to my desperate cry, God opened my eyes to see the gift He blessed me with and revealed to me how to use it creatively for His glory. I wrote about this in Sitting On a Gold Mine. Click to read.

That was when I became a full-time writer and I took definite steps to hone my craft. I started to write articles, essays, short stories and fiction novels to convey the truth of God's word—to enrich lives and inspire hope.

After three months of writing, in June 2011, I began to share a weekly Enriching Lives. Inspiring Hope. Newsletter by email with friends and family members. And in November of the same year, it evolved into this blog.

That mailing list has grown incredibly. The page views on the blog grew exponentially especially in the last three months. I could never travel to the 80+ countries from where visitors come to the blog. The reach of the message is gone beyond my wildest imagination like the silver branching of a lightning bolt flashing in the sky.

A couple of friends drew my attention to the chain of reaction which is taking the message to the uttermost parts of the world. Another writer led an appreciation of creative writing as a gift from God. I sat back and reflected on my small beginning. I marveled at God's faithfulness to do exceedingly more abundantly that I could ever ask, think or imagine.

My wildest imagination paled at God's ability to do limitless possibilities.

Home-bound, I write from the corner of my broken glass-styled dining table top, and right where I am, from my little corner, God is doing amazing things with the gift He blessed me with, in such a way that not even I could share in His glory

In that corner, I spent many hours writing, researching and studying. In between, I glance out through the window into the sky with a twiggy dry tree standing in my line of vision. I watched this tree changed with the  changing seasons, yet reflecting God's unchanging faithfulness in keeping me through my seasons.

It can be lonely alone at this little corner but it gives me utmost joy to know what God is doing with message He gives me the grace to write from here.

In your little way, in the little corner where you are, God can boast about you when you give back to Him to use for His own glory and honor what He has given to you. You can make a difference of eternal value right where you are.

Something in Your Hands

There is something in your hands that you can give to the world around you which will make the message of the cross come alive in their lives. You always have something to give. God has not left you empty handed.

I once read the story of a woman in a Chicken Soup Stories for the Soul^©. Unemployed, she was filled with self-pity, despite being jobless she searched for ways to give. Feeling worthless because she thought she had nothing to give, she glanced out of her window at her garden and found flowers blooming. She ran into the garden, picked, arranged and shared them with her neighbors  One of them turned out to be a desperate woman, with an alcoholic husband, a diabetic mother and two children she could hardly support. The flower delivery evolved into praying together for each other, until despair gave way to hope, until she found a job and the alcoholic husband quit drinking.

The boy with the five loads of bread and 2 pieces of fish was willing to share what he had. God multiplied it exponentially, it fed 5000 men, women and children not counted and there were leftovers (Luke 9:13-17). Talk about superabundant multiplication.

The widow at Zarephath gave all she had left - a handful of flour and a little oil to make bread for Elijah, and her jug of oil never failed until God gave rains back to the land (1Kings 17: 11-16).

What these witnesses and many others like them did, still stand as a memorial and a testimony today, encouraging us that we always have something in our hands to give, which God can multiply beyond our wildest imagination, and with rippling effect.

Who would have thought the gift of a bunch of flowers would have such a rippling effect? There is always something in your hands to give - your skills, talents, gifts, time, money, to name a few, and you can be creative with it.

Something You Can Do

There is something you can do right now, right where you are, which can impact lives for eternal significance, not by the magnitude of what you are doing but by the intensity of love, commitment and passion underlying it. There is something you can contribute that will advance the gospel of salvation.

Do the good you know to do. Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it. Whoever knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin (James 4:17). Cotton Mather noted "that the ability to do good in any case imposes an obligation to do it."

You can deliberately seek opportunities to do good to people around you if you pay attention to them and to their needs.

It may be the way you respond in time of great adversity and affliction that will speak volumes about your relationship with God, and show Him as the source of your hope and confidence. When you patiently endure persecution, you show forth a God-given inner strength and peace that many will long and ask for.

Be Persistent, Consistent and Diligent

We must be faithful and diligent to identify and passionately pursue the assignment God has for us. For most of us, the impact of our assignment may not be visible or quantifiable now, and it need not be.

My husband shared the story of someone who sowed some seeds in her garden, nurtured, watered and tended the plant. It grew over her fence but appeared not to be blossoming. All she seem to see was the green plant but she kept at it until her neighbor exclaimed at the beauty of the plant—it was blooming on the other side of the fence.

God is able to make the seed you sow into people's lives to blossom in a way you could never have imagine. Don’t give up even when you don’t see results.

A Gift And A Blessing

Creative writing is both a gift and a blessing to me. I am amazed at the way God is using this gift to open doors to me and to bless me. It does even much more:

• It holds me accountable —I am compelled to practice what I preach.
• I am motivated to stay connected to the source of power and inspiration. I frequently have to ask the Holy Spirit for inspiration when I share a message.
• Often, I go back to read again previous posts and I receive encouragement when most needed. I get a fresh revelation and insight at that moment that it is sometimes difficult to believe that I wrote the piece.

Everyone has a calling and a God-given assignment. It may be to your family, community or to the nations. Whatever your assignment may be—right where you are, in the workplace, marketplace, school, via internet or social media—you can impact the world.

What perfect example we have in Jesus. There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friend. But while we were yet sinners, Jesus came and died for us. In the short time Jesus spent walking here on earth, He left an indelible mark on the lives of everyone who came in contact with Him!

Let this Easter be reminder of the precious gift of life Jesus died to purchase for us, let us be encouraged to reach out with this message of love from where we are. I pray that this will be a special time of celebrating God's miracle of life and amazing love for you and your loved ones. Happy Easter.

Intimate and Unbroken Fellowship

This week's post is coming later than usual. I apologize. It has been a challenging week. This is a two-fold message. The first part is a preview of a post coming soon.  

The second part is a rewrite of an article I wrote in June 2011 and shared by email with couples on my mailing list then. I found the article while I was looking back to where I started from.

It is two years since I started writing actively.

A series of events these past couple of weeks ignited an appreciation of how God blesses us with gifts to be used for His honor and glory. As I reflected on how far God has brought me in this journey — writing to Enrich Lives and to Inspire Hope,  I considered my small beginnings, I could not but give thanks to God Who does not despise small beginnings.

I appreciate God for the gift of writing and what God has chosen to do with it in my life and in the lives of those He brought my way. My heart overflows with gratitude for the many helpers He brought my way in the process. I will put a hold on this for now until I bring you "Right Where You Are."

I was extremely blessed in the course of meditating and researching on a topic I was writing on a couple of years ago, that is, “The Promise (gift) of His Abiding Presence." It was about dwelling in God's presence, and having an intimate and unbroken fellowship with Him, our Saviour Jesus Christ and the Holy  Spirit.

Whilst reflecting on this subject, it was clear to me that God also designed and desired that couples should have an intimate and unbroken fellowship with one another and together with Him.

Building an intimate relationship requires closeness — dwelling in each other’s presence. Closeness deepens emotional intimacy, which is a God-given desire in every woman. I can attest to the deep longing of every woman for a deep emotional intimacy. Sometimes, this may be challenging for many reasons including distance especially for couples who have to live apart. But even in such circumstances, couples can still creatively maintain a degree of closeness that keeps their relationship vital and their fellowship unbroken.

In the series I ran last month — Couples Or Co-Tenants, we can infer that it is possible for one to be lonely in marriage even though you live together. So being physically together or sharing same space, though an essential ingredient, does not guarantee close and intimate relationship.

It is what you do together, how you share time and space in fellowship with one another, that ensures a deep and intimate relationship.

© Duccio | Dreamstime.com

Growing close together like an ivy beautifully entwined around a tree amplifies the degree of intimacy we ought to seek in our marriage. It is at this intimate proximity, when all the fences are down, we identify and lovingly close up the cracks in our relationship.

Jim Mueller wrote in Incredible Intimacy: “Over the last several years, our marriage has evolved into a deeper partnership, with increased trust, confidence and security. Our communications and conflict resolution skills have improved. We selflessly serve each other, always looking for creative ways to express our love and foster romance.”

Take note of these key phrases:

• Our marriage has evolved into a deeper partnership
• Increased trust, confidence and security
• Our communication and conflict resolution skills have improved
• We selflessly serve each other
• Always looking for creative ways to express our love and foster romance

Sit back for a moment and ponder a little bit on these facets of your relationship with your spouse. How have you fared? Can you identify one or two areas where you can improve and do better? I hope this will motivate you to take your fellowship with your spouse to a deeper and more intimate level.

The more you dwell in God's presence, the more you will desire that the life of God flow through you into your marriage, the more you will desire the purpose of God fulfilled in your marriage. The more of the life of God flowing into you from an intimate fellowship with God, the more you will submit to His leading to honor Him in your marriage as in every other sphere of your life.

I honestly do not believe that it is possible to have an intimate and unbroken fellowship with God and it will not reflect in a desire for a deeper and more intimate fellowship with our spouse. I urge you to check the temperature of your fellowship with God and of your relationship with your spouse, and challenge you to seek after an intimate and unbroken fellowship.

Today, I want to encourage you to have a yearning for a deep, intimate and unbroken fellowship that will keep your relationship vital and vibrant. Don't settle into the rot of stale monotony in your marriage. Be determined to do all in your power by the help of the Holy Spirit to create an atmosphere that will improve your closeness to your spouse.

Ultimately, the closer you and your spouse draw to God, the closer you are drawn to each other. The closest thing to heaven on earth, after your fellowship with God, is a rich and vibrant relationship with your spouse to the extent that both of you can jointly sing: "Your Presence is Heaven to me." 

What can couples do to improve how they share time and space together? Share your thoughts in the comments box below.

I share with you Your Presence is Heaven To Me by Israel Houghton.

Orange, Books and Midwives of Destinies

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Golden beams from the huge orange ball setting behind the forest ignited like flames of fire upon the trees. Dazzling tongues of orange flames hung on the trees in place of leaves. The forest was aflame with the brilliance of orange, gold and russets. Dry autumn leaves glowed beneath the trees.

The beauty of this autumn sunset was captivating. I was mesmerized as I drove past the forest on my way home a few years ago. I wished I had a camera with me to capture the image and share it with the world.

Orange—brilliant as light, it can't be hidden. It stands out.

The first time I saw an orange-coloured book was in October 1992. I had been invited for an interview for the position of Nutrition Officer in an international organization. I prepared as best as I could. On my way out of the office, I stopped by my big sista's cubicle. I happened to look up to the bookshelf overhanging her seat, and an orange-coloured publication caught my attention. I pulled it out and it was—…Nutrition Goals for the 1990s! Needless to say, I read the book all through the 150 kilometres trip from Ibadan to Lagos (located south-west of Nigeria), and half the night. The following morning, every question I was asked at the interview came from that book.

Three months later, I was called to take up the position. An orange-coloured book, which we later found out had been sitting on the same shelf for at least a year unnoticed, just at the right moment, stood out among other books, caught my attention and was used of God to midwife a dream career that spanned 15 years in three countries.

Orange - warm, visible, captivating and arresting.

SISTAPOWER

On February 12^th, 2013, I held another orange-coloured book, just a few days out the press—SISTAPOWER embossed in orange on the glossy cover decorated with a wind blown sunflower peeking at the lower right corner. The book glowed with the radiance of an autumn sunset. "Discovering the power of collaboration" was illustrated with a picture of hands connecting together. I knew in that instant this book authored by Bidemi Mark-Mordi will stand out among its equals to captivate and to touch lives.

The glowing cover compels you to open and look inside. When I did, the aroma of fluffy vanilla cupcake decorated with swirls of butter cream frosting tantalized my nostrils and made my taste buds to water. The flavours of vanilla perfectly captured the enticing texture of  the smooth cream bond paper used in SISTAPOWER. And the print is friendly to the eyes. Simply beautiful and beautifully written, it is sprinkled with graphic illustrations.

Armed with my orange highlighter, my pen and a notebook, I began my journey through the book. The foreword was written by Coach Anna McCoy, Founder, Women Act Now, USA, which spoke volumes about Bidemi's qualification to write this book.

In the introduction, Bidemi described how she received the inspiration and her mandate to write this book. It was explicit right from the beginning that she was not going to do this project alone. Writing the book itself will demonstrate the power of collaboration she sought put forward in the book.

"He was going to raise for me a group of women, who will make themselves available to work with me on my dreams and birth them together… " - page xviii

SISTAPOWER refused to be read in a hurry. It prompted a re-read of the Bible stories I thought I was familiar with. I swung like a pendulum between my Bible and the book. For everyone who would read this book, you will find there is no quick reading of SISTAPOWER,  it will prompt you to revisit the stories you thought you knew so well These will ignite with illumination as deeper meanings are revealed by the power of the Holy Spirit.

In the many stories shared in the book, you will see the power of collaboration at work. You will see how destinies were entwined—one person fulfilling his/her part so that the purpose of God can be fulfilled in the life of another. You will see the power of God at work connecting His servants to people, things and information, He had prepared ahead of time so that they can fulfil their destinies according to His plan. You will read of women who took audacious steps to do the never-done-before and therefore contributed to fulfilling destinies.

SISTAPOWER motivates every woman to be a woman of excellence in every sphere of her life starting first in her home:

"There is a usually ripple effect when a man is connected with a woman who compliments and complements him …" - page 29. It affects all the other relationships the man is involved in, including his work and business. Remember the Proverbs 31 woman? Her husband sits at the city gate with elders in the land, in a position of honour. The husband of such a woman is full of confidence and he has no fear of alarm (emphasis mine).

Books and Midwives:

It is amazing what God can use to midwife His purpose in our lives. Books containing vital and powerful information add value to our lives, and bring about life-changing experiences. I testified earlier to how God used an orange-coloured book in my life. Bidemi shared about two of the books which impacted her life.

"Someone brought me a book by Joyce Meyer…She immediately became my sounding board…No, I didn't have access to her, but her books proved to be very helpful in putting into perspective the issues I faced, and like Rick Warren, she helped midwife the confidence with which I stand today." - p. 64

I believe that SISTAPOWER, though a book about midwives of destinies, will be used of God to midwife divinely ordained connections and powerful collaborations in the lives of as many as will take time to diligently follow the principles shared therein. I am persuaded this orange-coloured book will elicit testimonies with far-reaching impact similar to the one I shared at the beginning of this article.

Certainly not because of its colour or the high quality presentation but because of its powerful and rich content. It is well researched and filled with wide-ranging Biblical truths which have application for our day-to-day lives if we want to fulfil God's call upon our lives.

In this book, Bidemi defined a paradigm that demands movement and action. It challenges the reader not to wait for someone to give us permission to participate but to be willing to lead the change ourselves in the different spheres of influence God has placed us. It encourages us not to do it alone.

"For each of us, there is an ability that has been given, which if we utilize properly, has the potential to bring about change and create value for mankind" - page 173.

"Gone are the days when you needed a pulpit within the four walls of a church building to be able to make divine impact… All God wants from us is to use what we have been given by Him, where we are, to bring about change and be the midwives of destinies." - pages 173 - 174

"… we have become an army of women spread across the continents, who come together daily to pull each other, hold each other accountable, pray for each other and love each other enough to contend that the highest possible good be made manifest concerning us." - page 185

Bidemi wrote this book with the passion of a woman who wants to see other women achieve their God-given potentials. In it you will find a selfless commitment to help another Sista birth and live her dream.

Published by Verbatim Communications, Lagos, Nigeria, SISTAPOWER is a manifestation of an audacity to dream and to dream big. It will be available in the international market in April, DV.

I encourage you to get your copy of SISTAPOWER and position yourself to achieve uncommon results which comes when women collaborate on significant ideas and provide exceptional encouragement to one another.

Bidemi, a delightful treat of fluffy vanilla cupcakes decorated with swirls of orange cream frosting, awaits you when SISTAPOWER is launched in Geneva.

I Missed The Cue.

The last two months of the year is an intensely busy period in many organizations. It is the period when annual programme reviews are conducted which provides the opportunity to track achievements of goals and targets set at the beginning of the year.

Many people go into the overdrive mode in the bid to complete planned activities in preparation for these reviews.

This is also applicable at personal level. It is the time we look back to the beginning of the year and evaluate how far we have gone in the pursuits of our dreams and personal goals.

I did the same too. I reviewed the year during October and I made some interesting discoveries.

I took note of the number of activities and tasks I had initiated which remained unfinished, and made a determined decision to follow through on them.

On top of the list is the book I have been writing for the past few years, which I had set a goal to complete this year. However, for several months during the course of the year, I experienced a series of what I have come to know as "resistance" to the work.

But a closer examination revealed that the problem I am experiencing with the work is not just about this resistance alone but I had contributed to the stagnation of the work.

How?

Every writer knows the crucial nature of creating regular backup files, right?

I heard this over and over again. I had a system of backing up my work but for a period of three months and for reasons which I can not seem to understand, I deviated from normal practice. Each time I was reminded, I told myself I would do it later.

I procrastinated. Then last August, the "unexpected" happened—my external storage drive crashed!

Time stood still.

In a flash, I recalled vividly that moment three days earlier when the Holy Spirit nudged my heart to backup my work. I remembered responding that I would do it as soon as I finished doing what I was doing. I did not.

I ignored the prompting of the Holy Spirit and I lost 3 months of work, which I struggled against "resistance" to do. I have no backup anywhere for some of them—not even hand written.

The help of the Holy Spirit is always available to us in everything we do. He is a friend and a partner we can not do without in our daily walk and work. We need His guidance, help and leading to navigate the minefield of life.

He leads the humble in doing what is right, teaching them His ways.

The Lord leads with unfailing love and faithfulness.

He will show us the path to choose.

He will instruct those who fear Him in the way they should go.

He is a friend to those who fear Him. He teaches them His covenant

(Ps 25: 9 - 12 paraphrased).

I can testify of the many times He had revealed truths to me, granted me insights and inspired thoughts which ballooned to make impact beyond my imagination.

So why did I fail to listen to Him when He prompted me to backup my work—I delayed and procrastinated.

The Holy Spirit is a gentleman, He will not struggle with us. He will not force us against our will. He speaks in still and small voice, nudging, prompting and giving us cues.

In the busyness and many distractions we face in life, it takes effort to develop a deep intimate relationship with Him. We have to intentionally find a quiet place and a quiet moment to listen to His voice.

It is important to tune our spirits to be in harmony with the spirit of God, to live each day in the consciousness of His presence and be aware of His function in our lives. As we take the time to dwell in the presence of God, our spirit become intertwined with His spirit making us sensitive and responsive to His voice and leading.

I know now that I must be careful not to miss any of the promptings of the Holy Spirit because the work He does both in me and through me are for eternal purposes.  So much is lost when we do not listen or respond to His voice which includes opportunities to make a difference to someone's life

The cost of not responding to the nudging of the Holy Spirit became glaringly clear this week when I realized that the IT guys could not recover any data from my crashed disk and I took note of how much I have to rewrite.

I asked for God for forgiveness. My disobedience is going to cause a further delay to the completion of the book. I felt truly sorry about that.

I prayed for the grace and strength to focus and get the work done without feeling discouraged.

As we approach the end of the year, with all the preparations for Christmas on top of all we still hope to accomplish this year, staying in sync with God and in tune with His Holy Spirit will position us where God can work in us both to will and to do of His pleasure.

It pays off here and in eternity to be lead and guarded by the Holy Spirit. He knows us intimately and can influence us at the deepest level to make our walk with God and our daily work more fulfilling and satisfying.

I encourage you to make conscious effort several times during each day to …

… PAUSE.

…Tune in to the voice of the Holy Spirit.

… He is waiting to give directions and teach you the way to go.

We simply can not afford to live a single day without the help of the Holy Spirit.