Hey fam!
Hope you are having a great week?
For those who don't know, I am from Edo state, Esan - West to be precise. In my culture, when a man
Those who know me know that I am the one to keep grudges for the United Nations. I can tell you exactly what so and so did to me which is why I won’t speak to them or won’t do this or that for them. A few years ago, if I didn’t like something you had done to me, I wouldn’t be able to look you
For I know the thoughts that I have towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts of good and not of evil, that you may have an expected end
Jeremiah 29:11
Hey Sweetums!!!!!!!
Happy new month and cheers to the best week we’ve ever experienced YET.
I am excited to share these lessons from “Brunch With Mrs Black” because I am still reeling from the passion and love for Christ I witnessed in other young ladies. The knowledge gleaned also went a long way to affirm for me things that I already knew and cleared the air on the issues I had doubts about.
I am very sure that the other 19 ladies share the same thoughts and excitement too.
First off, let me explain how I came to attend this amazing session and learn from Mrs Bunmi George (AKA Mrs Black) alongside her friends Funto Ibuoye and Bisi Ola-Soetan. I was jejely going through my instagram and saw the picture above appeared on my timeline. When I saw the part that the number of ladies was just 20, I sharply sent the email to indicate my interest.
To my utmost delight, I got an email informing me that I had been selected to be one of the 20 ladies who would have brunch with Mrs Black.
Now that I have shared how I was chosen, let’s get right into the lessons learned, shall we?
"DISCLAIMER: I wrote this post based on my understanding of all that was shared at this event and hereby, take sole responsibility for the content therein. All three ladies answered these questions and more, the post was culled from my jottings of their collective input"
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| Bunmi George (Mrs Black) |
Q: How should I leave the known for the unknown? Is there anyone better out there?
A: The real question should be “Do you trust God?” Do you have faith that God has great plans for you and I? Let’s bear in mind that the Bible says whoever shall make sacrifices for God shall be rewarded here on earth and in heaven too.
If as Christians, we truly really do trust God, then we would know that He has got us covered all through both known and unknown, familiar and strange terrains of life’s journey.
Q: Will I truly have it all in a man? Are my standards in line with God’s will for my life?
A: This again points to how much we truly trust God. Why shouldn’t you have all that you ask for through Christ Jesus? Why shouldn’t your heart desires be granted?
The truth is God actually goes beyond our imaginations so quit trying to ‘box’ God up . That is not to say that we should be too hung up on so called standards or physical appearance, instead, we should also entrust the issue of meeting the perfect mate to God. Especially because it is God who orchestrates the meeting of a man and his wife; if you are truly a Christian, you can never miss what God has planned for you.
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| Funto Ibuoye |
Q: How do I handle the temptation to give in to sex before marriage?
A: It’s not the temptation to give in to sex alone o, it also includes maintaining sexual purity in our hearts too.
As Christians, we have NO business having sex outside marriage.
Handling this temptation really all happens in the mind, get your mind off it. You should also create boundaries that your partner agrees to, whether they are Christian brothers or not.
It is not about meeting in church or not, it is really about embracing God and living according to His statutes.
We need to understand that it is sin to engage in sexual activities before marriage, even the Bible stipulates that one of the most grievous sins is the sin against one’s body which is the temple of God.
So create boundaries, don’t create situations where you are alone for too long and make the decision to honour God in your relationship too.
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| Olabisi Ola-Soetan |
Q: What is stopping you from chasing God?
i. Going through tough times as Christians
Ai: Going through challenges or tough times doesn’t mean that God doesn’t love us. God loves us as much as He loves Jesus Christ so experiencing trials does not mean we are not being punished or undeserving of His love. Instead, we should look for the blessings in our valleys and praise Him during the storm because there is a lesson for that season.
We also need to stop basing the goodness of God on the seeming failings or difficulties we may encounter; instead keep acknowledging His sovereignty in spite of the challenges.
ii. I don’t feel the fire/passion like I did before
Aii: This comes when we may have fallen short or sinned against God, sin is usually accompanied with guilt and this guilt hinders continued fellowship with God. This guilt is of the devil as God doesn’t hold our sins or mistakes over our heads in judgment.
When we fall short, we should ask for forgiveness and continue to enjoy the fellowship with God because He is faithful and just to forgive us.
Also, Christians should not be too accustomed to routines and schedules, as God is not impressed by that. The fact that you didn't read the Bible this morning or pray for 1 hour shouldn't cause you to feel as though, God isn't there for fellowship the rest of the time.
He would love to have us fellowship with Him every minute of every day; so we ought to endeavour to keep our spirits aligned to His as we go about our business throughout the day.
It is, however, important in our walk with Christ to build this fellowship deliberately and intentionally so that it would become our lifestyle.
Fellowship with God doesn’t only help us to be better Christians but it also improves our perception of God as He is revealed to us clearly.
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| Spot my head and brows. |
I know this post was quite lengthy but I truly hope it helps your fellowship with God just like it has helped mine. This session opened my eyes and understanding to how trusting and placing my focus on the things of God is how to truly have peace and joy in every thing else.
Don’t read this alone, please share it so someone else can be blessed..
CREDITS
Pictures: Instagram.com
Relationships
nowadays are rife with pain, hurt and distrust rather than love, peace, a sense
of fulfillment and such beautiful harmony that tends to draw us in, in the
first place. More often, the parties leave each other broken, abused and in
serious hurt, often leading to statements like, 'all men are
pigs', 'women are just heartless gold diggers' etc. How can this be avoided?
What's the root cause of this seemingly indestructible virus creeping into our
relationships?
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| Turia Pitt (Before and After) |
Turia Pitt is an Australian mining engineer, burns survivor, motivational speaker, Interplast ambassador and author. But the amazing thing is how been burnt while competing in an ultra-marathon through Western Australia's region in 2011 caused her to shine brighter than one would expect.
Social Abuse is when a person or group of persons
make you cut off from all your social network (could be social media, friends
or even family).
- Moving the
person far away, or cutting the person off from the support of friends or
family members
- Not allowing the
person to use the telephone or monitoring his/her calls
- Not allowing the
person to socialize like on social media, occasions etc.
- Claiming that the person's friends or family are "interfering"
The above
are instances to paint a clear picture in your mind of what this form of abuse is. I'm sure you all saw the movie 'Mean Girls';
where for you to be cool enough to be with a group of girls, you had to break
off from people in a cliques deemed as 'below' theirs.
Unfortunately, this doesn't happen only in the
movies or among teenage girls, it happens in all forms of relationships
'You're my
girlfriend/husband/best-friend/sister/son e.t.c! If you love me, you need to stay away
from so, so and so'
Sounds familiar, right?! This is common
especially when people are dating or married.
But wait!
Why can one not trust the opinions and judgment of loved ones? Is it protectiveness, concern, love? Or could it be for entirely selfish reasons?
Granted the effects of peer pressure could be
disastrous, but don't you think your loved ones have considerable control over
their decisions?
I think the most probable cause of this abuse is
insecurity of the 'abuser/culprit' and has nothing to do with the 'victims/abused' in this
kind of abuse. This form of abuse can only result in secrecy and distrust in
relationships. It is really hurtful and could lead to more forms of abuse, e.g Psychological Abuse, Emotional Abuse, etc.
Also, the constant monitoring, nagging and, ultimately, fights could
destroy a very health and beautiful relationship.
The popular saying "Live and Let Live"
comes to mind here. I am of the option that everyone should be allowed to relate with to relate with whom they please. Whatever lessons they learn form these relationships, be it bad or
good, will surely make them better and smarter at recognizing bad company in
the future.
*sighs*
I rest my case..
I rest my case..
#LetLive
#LoveNotHurts
#RAW
#SayNoToAbuse
P.S: This topic brought a bit of controversy at work, when my colleagues and I discussed it, please let me know your thoughts on Social Abuse
Photo Credits: www.huffingtonpost.ca
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A while ago while watching a broadcast of the 700
Club Nigeria, an Ethopian Tariku Fufa was featured and it struck me again how
quickly love turns to hate, even with the ones we have vowed to love.
