Remind me...

Thank God for a new day and a happy new month to all my readers.

The link below is for a song by Jason Gray. I have been impacted lately by the song, and I thought I'd share.
To me, this song is a conversation- A prayer when going through the storms of life. Mine lately, has been grief. It's a desire for reassurance, a non- judgemental acceptance, and the comfort that can only come from the warm embrace of THE father's love. Whatever it is that you maybe going through... Please, be encouraged.

In agreement with Mr Jason Gray, "In the loneliest of places, and in the darkest hours" I pray God reminds us all, who we are and how much we mean to Him.

Much love from me and thanks for stopping by.

Click here

http://youtu.be/eKyY8zfjBMQ

Happy New Year!

Hello all, happy new yeeeaar! I know it has been a while since I last visited my blog. However, as the saying goes “there is no better time than the present”. I wish you all that you wish yourself, and in 2012… all I can say is, be passionate, be inspired, be fearless, and be happy.
To kick things off is a book review. I wrote this review a while back, but I find that the beginning of a new year is always a perfect time for some inspiration. I sincerely pray that you find joy, purpose and fulfillment in all the 365 days of the year of our lord 2012. Cheers… and here is to a great year and a great life. Once again happy New Year! Happy reading, and thanks for stopping by.

Book Review: By Amenze Osaghae.
Title : If You Want To Walk On Water You've Got To Get Out Of The Boat.
Author: John Ortberg.
ISBN 978-0-310-23927-7
Binding: Paper Back.
US$11.99/CAN$14.99

I am not afraid anymore... this was the thought that kept coming to my mind as I read through the pages of John Ortberg's skillfully written book.

Human beings are no strangers to fear, as Ortberg put it "every human story, is, at least in part the struggle between fear and faith". This doesn't mean that I will never encounter any situation that may be frightening, but I now have a renewed determination to forge ahead with courage, guided by wisdom. Knowing that the consequences of an alternative action has a price too high, one which I can not nor am I willing to pay. One quote from the book sums it up like this:

"Pushing through the fear is less frightening than living with the underlying fear that comes from a feeling of hopelessness". - Susan Jeffies.

This book is full of encouraging words and a series of meaningful questions aimed at guiding the reader to potentially discover what his/her calling might be, what is holding them back from being all that God created them to be; confront these issues and consequently overcome them. It's for anyone who has a deep desire to walk closely with God and do things that are greater than themselves.

Hopefully other readers will get what I got from this book and probably even more... that life is to be lived purposefully with exorbitant joy, radiating vibrancy, and time wisely used, treasured like a priceless gift that it is. It should be lived without fear. Storms (sometimes) should be expected even though we may be in the centre of God's will... Our spiritual gifts, talents, abilities and every available resources comes from God and should be used to honor the "Giver of the gift". As John Ortberg put it "offer Him your spiritual giftedness- not to be compared to anyone else- as fully honed and developed as you can get it, identified with pristine clarity, cultivated with relentless perseverance; deployed with unstoppable vigor, submitted with sacrificial humility- and (my favorite phrase); celebrated with raucous joy".

John Ortberg is a pastor and author of several other books including: God Is Closer Than You Think and The life You Have Always Wanted. He, of course, wrote this book from a Christan perspective, done in a simple and clear manner that was easy to read and understand. This book contains a lot of life transforming truth (anchored on the Bible) with pages upon pages of profound words. Most times this caused me to reflect, other times to pray and occasionally burst out laughing. The causal way John Ortberg used humor to put his message across made this book fun to read!

As he concluded his book he asked a question, which prior to reading this book, would have made me pause for a while before giving an answer. He asked, "If your God truly is a big God and you could ask Him anything, what would it be?" Without even giving it a second thought my response was:

I want to return to Him empty! Having done all He has assigned for me to do and having fully utilized the means He made available to accomplish the task. That the journey of my life reflect the praise and glory of His holy name. I wonder what your response would be. Why don't you read the book and find out?

What Are You Doing With Today?

...what I am to be, I am now becoming. -Benjamin Franklin

My take: Today, right now, at this very moment we are molding our future, our existence by various activities or inactivity, resulting from things we have decided to do or not to do with today. What a powerful God given ability! An ability, that is our responsibility to use wisely if are going to make the most of our lives, and be all God wants us to be. In light of this truth, you might want to ask yourself; what am I doing right now, as it relates to the 'dream' I carry in my heart and the goals I have set out to accomplish?

Everyone wants to know what the future holds. This is good, but I think it is better that we desire more to know what potential lies in every day, and how best to use the opportunity each day brings to our advantage. For, the future we wake up to, is more often than not, the results/outcomes of what we have done with the day before.

A lot has been written and said about the value of a day... I believe a lot of us already know and appreciate the significance of a new day. Yet somehow, the tendency to let a day slip by remains a common occurrence... After all, we often think "there is always tomorrow". But here is the kicker, "No one is guaranteed tomorrow".

We all hope and dream of a better future. Needless to say, if all we do with today is hope and dream, all we'll get in the future is... You guessed it-"hopes and dreams". What you will become, is determined by what you do with your "today[s]". This day is very important in the overall scheme of things, so don't let it slip by...

May the Lord teach us to count our days and apply or hearts unto wisdom, now and always in Jesus name amen. {Psalm 90:12}

You can do all things through Christ that strengthens you! {Phil 4:13} Make your day count. And while at it, pray without ceasing {1 Thess 5:17}

THANK YOU!

It's the beginning of a new month and soon a new year... And as the year winds down by days, or as my children would say by "30 more sleeps", I feel the need... An unwavering longing in my heart, to say thank you to those who have impacted my life this year in a profound way.

First and foremost, a resounding thank you to God my father, In whom I live and move and have my being[Acts 17:28]. To whom I owe my all, the lover of my soul. "The God of my first love"[my first love]... my Elohim, my Redeemer and my friend.

To my husband...
My partner for life. For your love, sincerity, understanding, encouragement, and faithfulness. For being a role model to our "priceless gifts"; our beautiful and blessed children. For being a protector of my heart, and our home... My tireless fighter, my warrior, my angle eyes, my love...

To my parents. I am blessed to have come through you...

To my mother. The strongest woman I know... You personify true perseverance... Stretching the bounds of endurance to limits that I can't comprehend... Love you mom.

To my siblings; an extension of who I am. In ways I can't explain nor fully understand, you all make me want to be an agent of change. You are a source of constant inspiration...

To OG. My faithful friend for over 20 years. Through out this year you where there for me like you have always been...

To Belinda. For being a voice confirmation... And using your life to be a constant reminder to all, to be good steward of everything we are given by doing whatever He[God] says!

To Bridget. For being a sister, a friend and a well of inspiration.

To Tosan. For being there at defining moments in my life. One of which was March 10th 2009. YOU ARE A "GOD SENT".

To Martins. For teaching me about intercession and ministering to others on a whole new level.

To Ede. For being you. Girl you rock!!!!!

To Shola. For making your life a Bible for all to read. That inspires me a lot. I see Jesus in you... Sometimes with you I wonder... "Human or angel"? I'm... kind... of.... leaning towards angel. lol

To everyone who has visited my blog and to all who have left words of encouragement. You are appreciated. God bless you all.

As we all know, this is the last month of the year 2009. Instead of thinking of the things that did not work out the way we expected this year, or the events that have left sadness in our hearts, or a bitter taste in our mouths, Let's all make December a month of remembering with grateful hearts; all the good things that have happened in our lives from January till date.

Have a pleasant week!!!

Keep The Faith.

The fact that the sun is behind the clouds does not mean that it is not shinning.-Tunde Adeleye

My take: Keep "The faith". Don't stop believing! No matter how things may appear... God is working behind the scenes.

Life is so much more than your eyes are seeing,
You will find you way somehow if you keep believing.
I have seen dreams that move a mountain,
Hope that doesn't ever end,
Even when the sky is falling.
I have seen miracles just happen,
Silent prayers get answered,
That is what faith can do. Lyrics from the song "What Faith Can Do" By Kutless

You Can Start Again.

Though you cannot go back and make a brand-new start,
My friend,
You can start now,
And make a brand-new end.-John C. Maxwell

My take: I take comfort in such words... When at times, the realisation of wrong choices, wasted time, opportunities, etc clings to my heart, triggering pain... that is almost unbearable; and I have to face the consequences... At such times though I take a step forward, and give thanks. For such realisation, also indicates that I now view things differently... I am learning, growing and I'm wiser.

Such words reminds me of the opportunity I still have to impact the rest of my life in a tremendous way. It reminds me that I have been given an advantage... That enables me make proficient use of my most precious commodity which is my "time" and appreciate the value of the treasure that is "today".

For, every time in consciousness and every day is a gift from God... A chance to change the outcome of ones life- to re-write if you may, how the story ends...

Such words reminds me of the restorative power of my God... Telling me to;
Speak to the dry bones and they will live again!{Ezek 37:14}
Telling me, that beauty can come from ashes.{Isaiah 61:3}
Telling me to rejoice{Isaiah 54:1-4}.[Regardless, of whether I am a late bloomer or by any reason deemed incapable of blooming]
Telling me that, He is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that I can ever ask or think{Ephesians 3:20}
Indeed with God, better is the end of a matter than the beginning!{Ecc 7:8}

The truth is, we may not always get it right... But let the faith we have in God give peace to our hearts as we completely trust Him to make it 'all right'. Even now; God is able to help us operate in the fullness of knowledge, wisdom and understanding. Jesus did it. We are like Christ, we can do it also.

We can all start again. Definitely not from our beginning, but right now from where we are.

Thank you Lord!

What's your take? It's always a blessing when you share...

A Way, With Words...

The great American novelist Mark Twain said that he spent a large sum of money to trace his family tree and then spent twice as much trying to keep his ancestry secret! He was like the family that reportedly wanted it's history written up so they hired a professional biographer to do it, but they were worried about how the document would handle the family's black sheep. Uncle George had been executed in the electric chair for murder.

"No problem," said the biographer. "I'll say that Uncle George occupied a chair of applied electronics at an important government institution. He was attached to his position by the strongest of ties, and his death came as a real shock." Culled from the book, "Today Matters" by John C. Maxwell

My take: The biographer sure has "a way" with words. lol