Get Ready!

Aloha precious readers and friends,

“Stay alert. This is hazardous work I’m assigning you. You’re going to be like sheep running through a wolf pack, so don’t call attention to yourselves. Be as cunning as a snake, inoffensive as a dove.” (Matthew 10:16 The Message)

We are nearing that time that the Lord is sending you out again into the world representing him and whilst you are there  a lot of changes, adjustments would be taking place in your life and you need to be ready to take on the task ahead of you, applying the wisdom of God and at the sametime live a stress free life.

Some of you are going off  to University, some of you going to the next year group in secondary or high school, some of you going off to college whichever category you fall into, you need to understand that no institution can make you into anything.  You are already whatever you are going to become in this world.  So going back to school and to your new level of achievement is another opportunity to sharpen your talents and skills.  

Education is part of the preparation period of development into your future.  God has placed a little part of Himself in you and He would call on you at the right time to represent Him in the field that He has planted you into- which means whatever you are studying to become or aspiring to become; doctor, lawyer, engineer, computer scientist, pastoral work, name it; God is going to demand the use of your skill someday.

So it is not playtime going back to school.  And for those of you who just graduated it is time now to exploit what you vested your time in developing and fine tuning.  Look for opportunities to put your fine skills to work if there is none, create one.  You will be surprised the ideas that the Lord will begin to upload in your mind when you decide to go to work. Going to work does not necessarily mean working for a corporation.  It simply means exchanging your knowledge for what it is worth.  Therefore, don’t limit yourself to waiting for another person, organisation to determine your worth, you can decide what you exchange your time and knowledge for.  You decide on an hourly basis what your time is worth and go for it.  Whether you decide to work for yourself or apply for a job, it is up to you.  What you don’t want to do is to fail to take a decision regarding what it is you want to do.  Everyday we wake up, we wake up to a world in motion with unlimited possibilities and you need to know what time it is for you.  

Tip of the day: Get yourself up through the excellency of Christ your model, His word your waymaker and  the Holy Spirit your enabler.  It's time for you to get ready to enforce new strategies into your life.

What you want to do is to start strong; soaring on higher heights and breaking your own record. Just like the eagle does after it has plucked out its old heavy wings and taken out the old claws that can’t hold its preys any longer and hitting its old blunt beak against a rock to break it, to make way for new sharper and a pointed one to grow in its place.  All this so it can rise, soaring to new greater  heights that it had never touched before.

“But those who wait upon God get fresh strength.

   They spread their wings and soar like eagles,

They run and don’t get tired,

   they walk and don’t lag behind.” (Isaiah 40:31 The Message)

Start off taking some me moments talking to God and spend time listening to what He is telling you.  It is a sign of maturity if you can get alone and think to initiate change in your life.  The reason why people fear change is the lack of preparation.  Therefore preparedness for change makes change a lot easier to accommodate and successful. Come on guys, I have good news for you, this precious word places you already in the spot of victory and I suggest, okay, hold on, I recommend it become your new language from today. Speak it until it becomes part of you.

“ I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”( Philippians 4:13 KJV)

Let’s break it down even further from The Message translation

“Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.” (Philippians 4:13)

So, get ready!  Condition your mind to let go off the laziness in the last season that was making you submit your homework late or going to school late all the time... Make up your mind no one is going to wake you up in the morning.  It is your responsibility to go to bed early and wake up early. Having said that, start getting yourself into a routine a habit of waking up, spending time with God and getting your daily wisdom and direction for the day in His Presence.  Listen up, going into the presence of God is not an option.  As I have found out it makes all the difference to my day. Well, you could choose to do it or not but I promise you when you meet with Jesus in the morning before your day starts the light bulb in your mind is on the alert for the rest of the day. The Holy Spirit will constantly remind you of what you are suppose to be doing and what you are not supposed to be doing.  

For those in or going to Uni, you will need this for when the temptation to ditch lectures comes, or do you think angels will be attending your lectures and doing your course work for you?  That certainly isn't what soaring high like an eagle means.  Neither does it mean play Xbox all day all night when you have to revise.  No angel nor the Holy Spirit will do what you are suppose to do, for you.  It’s an all hands on deck affair.  So you just can’t fold your arms and expect bubble gum to rain from the sky.  That ain’t happening.  God has shown you what the end result looks like.  You have strength available to you, you will not lag behind in whatever it is that you have to do in the season for the rest of the year, God has already made you a success.  

Now here is what I recommend you do:

Sit down quietly and think; imagine what a typical day in the last season looked like for you and write down all the things that drew you back and then one by one pick them out and write down a new strategy- a strategy  that would ensure you always stay on top of everything you are doing:- from spending time in the presence of God to doing your homework/studies /chores include some me moment to reward yourself [Caution: Don’t over reward yourself, whatever that means, you know.]    

Let’s get moving to take our positions for the next season.  

R.

DESTINY

Dear precious readers and friends,

“Look at what I’ve done for you today: I’ve placed in front of you Life and Good, Death and Evil” (Deuteronomy 30:15 The Message)

The decisions you make today will determine where you will be tomorrow. Destiny is the sum total of decisions you make in your life.  In a world where there is so much confusion about what is right and wrong the only way to relieve yourself from the confusion humanity faces is to make a decision who to honour with your life and serve under your choice of leadership.  Whether you choose or not under whose leadership you will serve you are going to follow something consciously or unconsciously.  Rather it be consciously so you know exactly what you are dealing with than to follow blindly like a puppet; moving with every wind that blows.

“If you decide that it’s a bad thing to worship God, then choose a god you’d rather serve—and do it today.” (Joshua 24:15 The Message)

Your will, as a person is the initiator of your choices. Which means if you fail to decide what you want in life, you put yourself in the spot of selling yourself short of what you could achieve with your life.  Decision making is crucial to everything you do on this earth and believe me when I say you can’t live a life of assumptions. Don’t be aloof about what goes on in your life.  Know the why’s; why you are getting an education, why you need to listen to your parents, why you need to abstain from sex until marriage, why you don’t have to try drugs or alcohol and the list is unending.  Finding the answers to these questions would alter your experience and encounters at this stage of your life and the life ahead of you. The other option is that you will most likely end up mixing up with the wrong crowd and you will not even realise it or you will just live with your life on pause and not reaching your full potential at the different stages of your life and you wouldn’t know it.

It would have been better for us all if there were guarantees in this life that you would always choose right, but there aren’t, and I don’t know how to get things right either, but I know someone who is Righteous and is Right and makes things right for me all the time as I follow Him closely and He can help you too if you let Him. I am talking about The Spirit of Truth-The Holy Spirit.

“But when the Friend comes, the Spirit of Truth, he will take you by the hand and guide you into all the truth there is.” (John 16:13 The Message)

The Spirit of Truth-The Holy Spirit is the personal Helper who Jesus left on earth to help us get things right.  Howbeit, it is by submission that you can walk with Him not by addition. Let me explain that, you cannot just add Jesus and the Holy Spirit to your life like a carry on or a spare tire; picking them up as and when you feel like it.  NOPE!!! , you can’t do that buddy!  Submission to Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit is a lifestyle. When you decide to give Jesus your life and make Him the Master and Saviour of your life, the Holy Spirit comes in and begins to do life with you;- this for me has been the most priceless decision I have ever made.  From the moment Jesus becomes your Saviour and Master of your life the Cross of Calvary becomes your language. What you are saying from that moment on is His perfect Will over your will to deal with the unknown in this life. As you take that bold step, here is what Jesus says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”  (Jeremiah 29:11 NLT)

Submission to the Cross gives way to guidance from the Holy Spirit. That’s the choice you have to make for yourself either to do life alone or have guidance from He who knows the end from the beginning and has already put in place a perfect plan for your life.  But you will not know it until you make that decision either to submit or choose to do life alone and have Him as an  add on.  “I call Heaven and Earth to witness against you today: I place before you Life and Death, Blessing and Curse. Choose life so that you and your children will live. And love God, your God, listening obediently to him, firmly embracing him. Oh yes, He is life itself, a long life settled on the soil that God, your God, promised to give your ancestors,....” (Deuteronomy 30:19-20 The Message)

The promises of God is as new and fresh as the dew of the morning tomorrow. It’s your call.  Make a decision that would alter your destiny for the better today.

R.

AWAKE!

Dear Precious readers and friends,

“Don’t waste your time on useless work, mere busywork, the barren pursuits of darkness. Expose these things for the sham ( false) they are. It’s a scandal when people waste their lives on things they must do in the darkness where no one will see. Rip the cover off those frauds and see how attractive they look in the light of Christ. Wake up from your sleep, Climb out of your coffins; Christ will show you the light! So watch your step. Use your head. Make the most of every chance you get. These are desperate times!”  Ephesians 5:13-16 (The Message)

Life is full of opportunities and whatever you do now as a young person is contributing to shaping your future.  This is the time for you to learn to be conscious of the kind of activities you engage in and the people you engage with on a daily basis.  And let me just mention, this is not to make you feel as if you are not supposed to enjoy your life as a young person.  By all means, do have fun!

At the same time though you need to be careful not to waste your time and energy on useless adventures especially those that you are lured into by friends or by your own curiosity or rebellion to get back at your parents; like taking alcohol, hanging out with suspicious people, taking drugs, stealing with friends for fun or engaging in useless fights and the likes of these.

Often we engage in some of these activities or get involved with the wrong people for the fun of it or out of peer pressure to prove ourselves or to have a sense of belonging.  Yet, these things or people have no relevance in our lives and rather influence us negatively.

Some of these people reject and abuse us, yet still, we are obsessed with hanging out with them and sometimes afraid of them so much that we hang on to their every word as though our life depends on them.

Sooner or later, we become engrossed with the roller coaster so much that wrongness looks like good.  We begin to do things on impulse because everybody is doing it in school or  in the neighbourhood or it is the trend online. We follow blindly, initiating ourselves into low lifestyles, all in the name of following the trend of the day.

Ask yourself, why do things seem so difficult and why do people ignore you or why are you not getting things right and it looks as if your life is spinning out of control?

“Jesus replied, "Your mistake is that you don't know the Scriptures, and you don't know the power of God.” Matthew 22:29 (NLT)

Now here is your opportunity to do away with your mistakes; those dead stuff: unprofitable relationships, friendships and associations; those bad habits, attitudes and behaviours that you try so hard to hide but they come to light anyway. Before these dead stuff become a real embarrassment and cause any further damage to your beautiful soul, here’s my recommendation:

1. Sit up and ask yourself these questions below with a reflective mind, focus on your person and lifestyle.
2. Truthfully answer them for yourself.

The greatest deception in this world is self-deception and you don't want to get caught up in its rottenness.  Be the leader that you were created to be and embark on this self-assessment.

Questions

a) "Is this the kind of person I need to be?"

b) "Are the people I hang out with right for me?"

c) "Do I really want to be like them?"

d) "What am I gaining out of my relationship, friendship or association with these people?"

e) "How is this relationship, friendship, group affecting my studies, attitude, behaviour, character, my choices and decisions?"

You see, these are desperate times! You will become like those you assemble with. It might not seem so now because everything looks normal around you but don't be deceived -the world is changing every day and there is more hostility around us than before. You infrequently hear good news being broadcast.
Howbeit, this earth is not for the devil nor is it hell. This earth was given to mankind; to you and I to live in it and have dominion over it! It is no human being's idea that we find ourselves here.  It is God's idea. 
So you can take control of your life by taking it out of neutral. Start with this careful examination in application to every area of your life to determine what you need right now in your life; identify the unprofitable relationships, friendships, and groups you have attached yourself to and do away with them.  
Life is like an hourglass. Time keeps ticking. It's your choice how life turns out for you. Don't waste your time on unprofitable things, wake up from your sleep and Christ will show you the light.

Make the most of every moment of your life. Don't keep your head in the sand like an ostrich and allow life happen to you.  A wrong turn today can cost you a lifetime. Every day you wake up is an opportunity to improve your life.

Remember also that every step is contributing to shaping your future.

Strategic change gives way to maturity.

Success for me is an ability to accommodate change and grow in wisdom and understanding in the process.

Fulfilment in life is dependent on your capacity to switch at the right time, make decisions and stick by them no matter what, revise and adjust your decisions to suit as you go along.

You don't have to find yourself in a corner before you take stock of your life.

You have options and I invite you to come away from the game of  "I’m stuck" because I found out it is not difficult to be a young person if Christ is your light. Let Christ be your light.

Look out for  the launching of our community 'TERRITORY'.

Do share the article with your friends and see you soon...

Cheers to getting your life back on track and in divine alignment.  

R.