THIRTY AND THANKFUL!

So I am super excited today! Several reasons are responsible for this super excitement that I feel today... I, in fact feel like I am the only human on the mind of God, because I count my blessings and I am overwhelmed!

Firstly, I am three decades old today (July 6th). I thank God for life and good health to have lived three whole decades on this sick planet. I honestly wish one very special friend had not slept before now; one that almost knew me like the palm of his hand, but I will continue to cherish our memories G until I see you again! 🙏🏽 So, it’s been 30 eventful years; I had dreams and God has brought every single one to pass. I don’t want to bore you with the details; those who know know, God is still being faithful to me...

Secondly, one of my dreams was to get married before I am 30, and just so you know how amazing God is, am getting married in exactly 24 days. You think that’s not an answered prayer? Let me give you some details here... so one year ago I was babe-less, single as a monk, but I kept hope alive. Few months into the new year, I got the ‘green light’ that set me on the path that’s leading me to July 29th and into forever with my best friend. Honestly ehnn, God has been in the business of answering prayers since 0BC (even before time began). You should try Him!

What better way to mark my 30th birthday, than by saying farewell to bachelorhood in a bit? 😉 I am really hopeful for the new year and am sure it’s going to be more glorious than all the others before, but in the meantime, let me worry my head about where to spend my honeymoon 😜

So, of course life goes on.... Cheers to two more sets of 3 decades plus in fine health 🥂 ... But sure I can do with a few words of advise from you; THAT COULD BE YOUR BEST BIRTHDAY GIFT TO ME. Please feel free to send me a few thoughts (via SMS, WhatsApp, DM, Calls or the comment section of this post) on areas where you think I deserve commendations and those in which I require improvements. I really would love to hear from you!

“O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. I looked unto him, and was lightened: and my face was not ashamed.” Psalm 34:3-5

I AM THIRTY AND THANKFUL; HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! 🍾🍾

#30&thankful

#July6th

My Thoughts On Viral Dooms Day Voice Note (VN)

So the unfortunate incident of the PMS tanker explosion happened on Thursday, June 28, 2018, and since then this VN has gone viral about a certain man calling out some dates and some transport companies and asking listeners to avoid traveling in or out of Lagos using any of the mentioned transport companies on those dates stated... I do feel strongly to react to this VN, which I have received from at least 7 of my contacts already. 

Before I go into my reactions on the VN, kindly allow me to state the following:

1. This reaction may be somewhat long and maybe even inconclusive, owing to the ‘weight’ of the subject matter.
2. I am neither a clergy nor a Professor in religion, but just a Christian who loves and studies God’s word.
3. The views expressed in this reaction are obviously centered around Christianity only.
4. I also kindly request that you drop your religious bias as much as possible while reading this. I will be as biblically logical as possible too in presenting my thoughts.
5. Kindly share this reaction as wide as possible if you find it helpful in whatever way.
6. Feel free to contact me for further discussion privately, should you have any reactions to this reaction.

1. DOOMS DAY IS STALE NEWS

It is no news that terrible times are upon us. Even from history, there have been serious moments of persecution and killings; particularly of God’s people during the Dark Ages. Several scriptural references also confirm that terrible events still lay ahead (Matt 24; Luke 21). In fact, Luke warns that just before Jesus’ second return;

“...there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.” (Luke 21:25-26)

Therefore scripture sufficiently warns that the days in which we live are evil, and whatever we think we have experienced or are experiencing, are only just the beginning. Calling out just a few dates in June, July and August and marking them for doom leaves a few things to worry about, for instance;

• First, are these the only days that we should expect doom or danger? Can we be certain that after the advertised dates are over, we can rest from all the doom?
• Second, even if the predictions on these dates come to pass, would they be particularly more terrible than anything else that is likely to happen in future? If not, so what is spectacular about predictions on those dates?
• Third, why are all these predictions restricted to Lagos alone? Is the spirit of prophecy restricted by space or are Lagosians due for special punishment, and by who?

I will leave you to struggle with these concerns.

2. FALSE PROPHETS AND SATAN ARE REAL

God had spoken to His people via Prophets in the Old Testament (Moses to Israel, Eli to Hannah, Jonah to Nineveh, Nathan to David, and so on). This practice/medium was as a result of the bridge that sin created between God and man. Fortunately, by the death of Christ and the tearing of the temple veil ‘from top to bottom’ (Matt. 27:51), that bridge was closed; man could now talk to, and hear from God without any aid. However, God gave a few people prophecy (as a gift) to help in His cause (1 Cor. 12).

Also, knowing that satan is real and able to DECEIVE THE WHOLE WORLD (Rev. 12:9), God gave several warning about counterfeiting this gift of prophecy. Some of them are;

1John 4:1- Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world

Isa. 8:20- To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them

Matt. 24:24- For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect

Hence, we must be careful to always match prophecy with the word of God, it’s almost easy to tell a false one when we are rooted in God’s word.

3. DOOMS DAY, SO WHAT!?

Notice the prophecies, warnings or messages in scripture, some of which are found in Jonah 3, Exodus 5, Daniel 2, Matt 24:29-31 (which was Jesus Himself speaking), you would observe the following important indicators;

• Every Prophet always made significant reference to and acknowledged God as the source of their prophecy or message or warning.
• More importantly, the messages were two sides in most cases, if not all. How do I mean? There was always an ‘assurance of hope’ or a direction on how to escape the wrath that was coming, after every negative prophecy. God never left His children in fear and anxiety.

Check that VN again and see if it meets these two specifications above? 

CONCLUDING THOUGHTS 

2Cor. 2:11b warns that we must not be ignorant of the schemes of the devil. We know he exists and that he is at war with God’s people and constantly trying to ‘prove a point’. We do not need a prophecy to tell us that the days are evil, much less one that confuses us by prophesying about disaster in Lagos on June 23rd, but disaster strikes in Plateau. God is not the author of confusion!

However, these do not replace the role of caution. ‘Watch and pray’ is the command we have from God. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline”. (2Tim. 1:7)

Nigeria has become a religiously-sick country; so many religious practices that it’s difficult to separate the false from truth. Some have resorted to selling their conscience to the highest bidder, and these ‘men of God’ would do all it takes to buy our conscience. Do not be deceived!

As we continue in the coming weeks, months and years, rather than fret over a few dates and ‘transportation in or out of Lagos, or travel by air in Nigeria’, believe the promise of God over your life in Psalm 91.

Shalom! 

For reactions: 08099539328 (WhatsApp ONLY)

Hello there!!!

It’s been a while I was here... Guess I have been busy or maybe overwhelmed with happenings in the polity. Happy holiday to those it may concern, I’ll come back to that soonest.

The past few weeks have been awash with significant happenings; the ‘transmission drama’, declarations of June 12 as new democracy day, signing into law of the #NotTooYoungToRun bill after a notable last sentence in Mr President’s May 29th speech. I still haven’t found out if that is the official name of the bill as it is in the books, but who cares right? Declaration of candidacy for 2019 and the opening of party conventions and most recently the glamorous trip of Nigeria’s Super Eagles to Russia and the unfortunate loss of their first 2018 World Cup fixture to Croatia. Pretty interesting country I must say! 

Well, today I have just a few sentences to write, and my emphasis is on religious tolerance. Religion in all its intent was to foster love, encourage unity, and deepen morals, unfortunately, a few have turned it to a ‘weapon of mass destruction’, turning brothers against themselves. As we celebrate, rest, or labor during this Muslim holiday; after one whole month of fast and prayer, we must resolve to love more, discard intolerance and respect one another’s beliefs... Evangelism must appeal to reason and not emotion, violence must be renounced in all its forms as a tool for religious advancement.

Let brotherly love continue!

SEVEN WAYS NOT TO LOVE

So relationship seminars and talks appear the in-thing now... everyone has a solution or two about how to make your relationship right. But as far as am concerned, no one ever has all the explanation on why relationships go sour, or how to make them better.

In Prov. 30:18&19, Solomon; the wisest man in all of human history (and future), acknowledged that he didn’t seem to understand this mystery called love. If you ask me, that’s the way it stays; A MYSTERY! All we can ever do is share from the experiences we have had; whether or ourselves or others...

I have found several devastating ways NOT TO love, particularly, in an relationship with the opposite sex, and I’ll quickly share:

1. Don’t LOOSE YOUR IDENTITY while loving... 

Many young ladies and men do not even recognize themselves anymore, just because they are in a relationship. Your partner decides your friends, hobbies, occasions, e.t.c. That sounds more like bondage than love... Run!

2. Don’t love out of PRIDE...

If you feel you are doing him/her a favor by loving them, you most certainly would not love them genuinely. So what’s the point! Besides, God resists proud people (James 4:6)

3. Don’t love in REVENGE...

Are you in love with him/her as a way of getting back at someone for breaking your heart? Or are you claiming to loving him/her now because you feel it’s time to pay him/her back for all the emotional stress of getting her/him to say Yes? If this is the case with you, then you are mean! Vengeance belongs to God (Rom 12:19)

4. Don’t love DENYING REALITY

He/she is always hitting or raising their voice at you, but your thinking is always “he/she will change”. Or you sincerely think that He/she can’t break your heart because you think they love you too much to do that? My dear, people fight very to keep their spouse in a marriage, what makes you think a anyone is bound to remain in a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship with you? Wake up! Give it your best, but do that with your head.

5. Don’t love for the WRONG REASONS

He has red lips! She has round eyes! Oh she has very curvy hips! My other friends are in relationships. He/she is so cute! Or even something as incredible as; “Aww, he has sexy baritone voice”. Like seriously!? I hope you can deal with it when the other things you have not noticed he/she has begin to surface.

6. Don’t love BLINDLY...

Love ought to be patient, kind, humble, selfless, tolerant, gentle, and NOT blind! If yours is blind, please see an optician!

7. Don’t love for SEX...

This is one VERY HARD part, but yet from a  VERY SIMPLE instruction. Yes, blood runs through the vein. Yes, ‘body no be firewood’. Yes, you might be so in love. He/she might even threaten to break up, or pick a quarrel or what else is worse? Despite all these, Yes, you can say NO to premarital sex! If you have engaged in it, don’t just stop, walk away from that relationship, because you will do it over and over again! It’s a TALL ORDER, but it’s the right thing to do! Flee sexual immorality... It is a sin like no other (1 Cor 6:18)

1Jn 4:8 - He that loveth not knoweth not God; for GOD IS LOVE. Love in its true sense, is a Noun!

If he/she doesn’t ‘know’ God, he/she cannot love you! You see the ‘know’ is in inverted commas, I hope you know what that means.

Love with all of your heart, but take your head along! 

Cheers!

HAVE YOURSELF A JOYOUS CHRISTMAS

Christmas is one holiday that has gained global significance over the years. The world over; December 25th is observed a holiday to mark the ‘supposed’ birth of Jesus. This short study is structured under three sub themes:

- The Birth of Jesus

- Origin of Christmas

- Celebrating Christmas

1. THE BIRTH OF JESUS*

This is one event that changed the destiny of mankind forever. Let’s begin with Gen. 3:15; ”and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”

One wonders why the use of the masculine pronoun instead of a feminine pronoun ‘her’ which is the correct pronoun for ‘the woman’. The answer is simple; Jesus was the promise in that text; He alone could crush the head of ‘the serpent’ (by rising from the death), while only suffering a bruise on his heel (his nail scared hands and riven side).

Some other texts that prophesy the birth of Jesus are:

Isaiah 7:14b; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Matt 1:18-23 was its fulfillment)

Micah 5:2; ”But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” (Matt. 2:1 was its fulfillment)

Here are thoughts from a Christian classic text; The Bible does not give us the precise time. Had the Lord deemed this knowledge essential to our salvation, He would have spoken through His prophets and apostles, that we might know all about the matter. But the silence of the Scriptures upon this point evidences to us that it is hidden from us for the wisest purposes. AH 477.2 Perhaps the same reason why the place of Moses’ grave was also not revealed to Israel.

2. THE ORIGIN OF CHRISTMAS

December 25th 336 AD, was the first record of a Christmas celebration. Prior to this time, Antiochus Epiphanes IV, on December 25th, 168 B.C.E., set up in Jerusalem temple a statue of Zeus, to commemorate the birthday of the Greek sun god. It is believed that December 25 is also the chosen birth and worship day of numerous gods, e.g. Tammuz, Nimrod, Ra, etc.

From the scriptural point, some texts give us an insight as to what time in the year Christ must have been born. Luke 2:8; ”And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.” Here we see that the very same night Christ was born, shepherds were out in the field grazing their cattle into the night. It most certainly would have been any other time of the year, except the winter. If it were winter, the cattle would be in their barns/ranches, and the shepherds in their homes; probably getting warm by the fire.

From the above, we see that both the Bible and nature discredit the idea that Christ was born on the 25th of December; or even anytime within the winter season. Instead, Galatians 4:4a gives us the closes hint as to the time of Christ’s birth; ”but when the fulness of the time was come...”

3. CELEBRATING CHRISTMAS

Now this is the part where there is a lot of controversy. If Christmas is not biblical, then is it okay to celebrate it? I will attempt this section by answering three questions: what does it mean to celebrate? Should Christmas be celebrated? What can/should we do on Christmas?

Firstly, what is a celebration? Oxford dictionary defines it as; to acknowledge (a special day or event) with social gathering or enjoyable activity; perform a religious ceremony; to honor or praise publicly. From this definition, one could conclude that celebrating Christmas would involve attending a gathering or congregation; social or religious, on the 25th of December, solely to commemorate the day. Other acts of celebrations could include speaking or writing to honor or publicly praise the day. 

Secondly, should Christmas be celebrated? My answer is YES and NO, and here is why;

• There is no biblical injunction to do or not to do so.
• Christmas has an origin that is anti-Christ, hence, it is laden with so much deceit and rebellion.
• Celebrating and teaching that Christ was born on December 25th is false teaching. But like every other day, we ought to help the needy even on December 25th.
• Most of the activities (excessive drinking and partying, e.t.c) that many engage in on this day, have no Christian theme, and lead away from Christ, instead of to Him.

Thirdly, what then should we do on Christmas? This is where emotions are wiped up and most lose reasoning on the subject. We have established that Christmas has no biblical root, however, we must not cease to live our lives and ‘let our lights so shine before men’, even at Christmas! Jesus expects us; with every opportunity, even at Christmas, to point each other to His truth. There are some who may never be reached at any other time, with the Goodnews about Jesus, except at Christmas. Jesus expects us, like Paul, to “become all things to all men, that we might by all means save some.” (1Cor. 9:19-22)

I like how this author advised we spend our Christmas (this may be a little lengthy, but I’ll end on this);

As the twenty-fifth of December is observed to commemorate the birth of Christ... It can be made to serve a very good purpose... The youth should not be left on Christmas to find their own amusement in vanity and pleasure seeking, in amusements which will be detrimental to their spirituality... Their desire to make gifts may be turned into pure and holy channels and made to result in good to our fellow men by supplying the treasury in the great, grand work for which Christ came into our world. Self-denial and self-sacrifice marked His course of action... AH 478

By the world the holidays are spent in frivolity and extravagance, gluttony and display.... Thousands of dollars will be worse than thrown away upon the coming Christmas and New Year’s in needless indulgences...instead of expending means merely for the gratification of the appetite or for needless ornaments or articles of clothing, we may make the coming holidays an occasion in which to honor and glorify God... Christmas and New Year celebrations can and should be held in behalf of those who are helpless.

I hope you have yourself a happy holiday and remember to show someone that Jesus loves you and them too! 

Shalom!

LITTLE THINGS MATTER...

So am sitting here thinking on what to share with y’all, and am really impressed to remind you on the importance of ‘little things’, so here...

“It is oftenest through the little things which seem so unworthy of notice that great good or evil is brought into our lives". Many times we are complacent and think that 'it doesn't matter', perhaps those things we think don't matter are the most important; having eternal consequences for us. It is "Only by acting upon principle in the tests of daily life" that "we acquire power to stand firm and faithful in the most dangerous and most difficult positions".

We ought always to remember that to our every word or deed we have a witness—the holy, sin-hating God. Hence we must always inquire “What would Jesus do were He in my place?” and measure every duty by this question "WWJD".

We must always ensure that under the constant guidance of the Holy Spirit, we always act from principle (right thinking) and not impulse, bearing in mind that "The only security for any soul is right thinking", and by this we may be respected of all men and beloved of God.

(E.G. White, 1957; Help in Daily Living, E.G. White Estate Inc.)

May God help us as we ensue faithfulness in little things, self discipline and guidance by principle. May we, by God's grace "guide our hearts with all diligence", so that we can enjoy abundant life in Jesus.

Have a rewarding week friends!

57 Hearty Cheers!

It’s here again; this time it’s the 57th celebration of October 1st; day of Nigeria’s independence. Obviously, however, this years anniversary is perhaps the most decisive of many others before it. After exactly 50years of ‘celebrating’ independence in the heat of the civil war, Nigeria is yet again at a threshold as a nation; the indivisible, indissoluble unity of Nigeria continues to suffer a multiplicity of perspectives.

Among other issues, restructuring is the song that everyone seems to be singing in Nigeria at the moment. While I do not intend to complicate the debate, I am proposing a ‘more excellent way’ - mind transformation and love, will do the magic. 

How about if we loved each other the same; if we are first Nigerians before Hausa, Yoruba or Igbo? How about if we looked out for the interest of others as much and as sincerely as we sort ours? If we resolved to pursue peace regardless, trusting that the conquest of Peace always outlasts the victories of violence? How about if we simply choose ‘the more excellence way’; leaders and followers alike?

Meanwhile, it’s 57 hearty cheers; Happy Independence Day celebrations! For me, the best days for Nigeria still lie ahead, ‘the more excellent way’ will get us there a lot more faster.

Happy 57th Independence Day anniversary!