I WANNA DO MY OWN THING

“What is all this bullshit about living according to some rules in the bible anyway? You mean I am too stupid to make my own rules and live by them hun? I believe in God as the Supreme Being and that’s all there is. I wonder what some people gain by going to church, or wait all night praying when all they need do is to tap into their potentials. The most annoying is the fact that they can’t get away doing things they really love to do deep down in their hearts, they are confined by the holy book’s rule of living. Oh gosh! What a waste of my time. You know what; I wanna do my own thing. I don’t care if it pays as long as I am the one in charge of things, I am happy, in control and on top of my game. You could call me a Christian, my mother would love that but you must add liberal to it cos I wanna do my own thing”

The above excerpt was the status on my facebook some miserable years ago when I thought giving my life to Christ and having a relationship with him was the dumbest thing I could ever do. But I am so sorry about all that I wrote because I got so many likes and comments back then, things are no longer what they used to be. I find doing my own thing very unwise because I was missing out on all the help God offers me. I wasted my time trying to be among, I am not talking about the world’s definition of being successful which is having tush rides, cute babe, cash in hand, money in your account, nice house, important peeps and all that because I had all of that, I practically lived to get those things but in spite of it all I was wretched. don’t get deceived about the big boys and babes in town, they wish they could give it all up to be a Christian like you behind the glamour and glitz lies a miserable life wanting a way out but it’s hard not to be selfish, greedy, immoral, thief, fornicator, drunkard, prostitute, and so on ALL BY YOURSELF.

Until I got hold of this scripture, Romans 7:15-18 I thought I could do own thing and be the good guy, unfortunately, when I try to do good, evil is present with me. For I fail to practice the good deeds I desire to do, but the evil deeds that I do not desire to do are what I am ever doing. Because I didn’t give Jesus my life and allow his help to be a good man, evil followed me all about even when I purposed to do good. I thought giving my life to him was going to make me dumb, because I am the kind of guy who loves to be in charge. When I read it that I should cast all my cares unto God, I thought “so what I am going to do if you have to do everything for me?” I didn’t know it means that he was going to be working in me, teaching me how to live, how to speak, how to be a good man, how to live a life worthy of emulation and most importantly how to be the shinning light that he has called me to be, in order to prove himself mighty in me so others can see that Jesus is the answer for the world today.

Now I know that nothing good dwells in doing my own thing, I can will what is right but I cannot perform it because it is not by power nor by might but by his spirit will I ever amount to somebody valuable. It is in him that I have my definition, my goals and all that I need in life. I cannot do my own thing when all the help I need is in Christ Jesus. In case you have been misled by my previous status, please give it to him, he wants to help you become a better person, DO HIS WILL, DON’T DO YOUR OWN THING.

Shinning stars Magazine: WAKE UP CALL

Shinning stars Magazine: WAKE UP CALL: “Just shut up! Just shut up!” that used to be the words of my roommate while in school whenever her alarm clock rings in the morning. She ...

WAKE UP CALL

“Just shut up! Just shut up!” that used to be the words of my roommate while in school whenever her alarm clock rings in the morning. She hated the sound of it so much that she always wake up angry, yet, she never stop setting it so as not to oversleep. So many of us too hate the sound of our alarm/reminder on our phones when it goes on and on trying to wake us or remind us of what we are to do. To some of us, the incessant annoying sound of the alarm make us to wake up, while the sound make some other to click “quit” and go back to sleep. Ironically, we set those reminder/alarm so we can meet up with appointments or wake up early so why become angry when the alarm goes on?

Different things I guess, such as more time or sleep or simply tired. Our attitude to our alarm/reminder can be likened to our attitude to the grace and help that God has given us for the fulfillment of his purpose in our lives. See, on our destiny journey, we already have clear cut purposes on what to do with our lives (such as our work in his house, career, and so on ) and we pray God to keep us on track and  give us the grace to fulfill them. God answers and sends his grace and help to us in different ways and we begin to do well in his purpose including other areas of our lives. Gradually, gradually, time seems not to be enough for us to keep doing God’s work and meeting the demands of being in school/working, we get distracted and we begin to major on the minor.

Having prayed for grace at the outset God continues to bestow his grace by reminding us of what are supposed to be doing through the books we read, the messages we listen to, the groups we belong to, and some other things in our environment. God ‘s grace can be likened to the alarm clock that continues to ring until we do shut it off. This grace serves as a our wake up call, reverberating in messages, sermons and in our inner minds prompting us from time to wake up to our duty. But these days what do we do with the help and grace we prayed for? We either ignore it of shut it off like the alarm clock. Again, this article is another wake up call to the duties we have neglected. What has God committed into your hands that you no longer have time for, what is that responsibility that God has put over you that you are gradually shutting out of your schedule, he is saying to you today “Awake and support the rest which you are about to throw off! For I have not found your works fulfilled in his sight” (Rev.3:2 paraphrased)

Don’t throw the little strength in you off, don’t throw the grace and help you prayed for away, it is understandable that you are tired having to cope with the pressures of living in a world like ours, but God says No! not yet time to give up and rest for your works have not been fulfilled. What are those things you know you are supposed to be doing for God that you have stopped doing or about to give it all up, now is not the time to sleep but to keep awake and strengthen what you have.

Interestingly, God’s assurance is that once you wake up to this call, he will shine upon you and give you light to see the way in this dark world of ours (Eph 5:14) such that what has been difficult to achieve will become easy because there is light.

Finally, when Christ’s light has shone on you and he begins to do exploits through you, you are to walk carefully, by living purposefully, worthily and accurately not as the unwise but as sensible and intelligent. Just  as we know that it is the wise man who makes good use of his time by buying up every opportunity and not by wasting it on irrelevancies. It is also the wise man who is not thoughtless about the plans of God for his life by  comparing himself with others but trying daily to understand the will of God for his life before taking major decisions.

Above all, the word of God says things will be a lot easier for us in our time if we fill ourselves with the holy spirit and not only with wine, foods, and ideas of the world but making the holy spirit and God’s word the center of our lives.

This is our wake up call! let’s throw the weights pressing us down away and rise to the call so that God’s light can shine on us and make us the shining stars that we are.

GREAT ACTORS!!!

“God is not with me, God is not with me, and I am helpless.  I am more like an animal than a human being! I do not have the sense a human being should have [Proverbs 30:1-2*GNB]

These were the words of a frustrated man when he finally saw himself for who is. Now imagine being shown a moving picture of what goes on in your mind, did I hear you say “Whao! It’s going to be a blockbuster and win an award for the movie of the year. Or are you saying “Gosh! Don’t even dare!” We can deceive millions with our make-up (not cosmetics), covering up our blemishes, our rotten minds and attitudes but deep down in our hearts we know who we are. Without beating about the bush, we simply know that we are great actors putting up so many acts to show off and impress others but the real us is ugly and irritating inside. 

Did you say “That’s not true” sometimes I do laugh when people claim they are not cut out for acting plays and the likes but in actual fact every one of us acts. If God were to open your hearts and make our thoughts a national daily newspaper, Will it be worth reading when all church members know that you joined the ushering unit for something else other than serving God’s people? Won’t that neighbour of yours finally get to know how much you detest her/him and wish something will move her/him out of your area? Won’t your sister know you’ve never been in support of her achievements but utterly jealous? Won’t your spouse/partner know you have ulterior motives for entering into that relationship and how deceitful you’ve been all along? Let’s see if your children won’t be shocked to discover that you’ve not been the Christian parents they thought you were. If God were to make your thoughts a bible study outline for a week will it worth looking at talk less of studying?

Can we now see how good we have been acting all this while? Making up to cover our defects. No one is wise [Prov 30:4] except if we can find anyone saying this does not apply to her/him in anyway. Now the exigency to work out our salvation is vital, Yes! we can say we are tongues speaking, demon crashing and all that, but we have to cleanse our hearts and keep renewing it everyday so as to be the best that God expects of us. Then our hearts won’t be a contrast to our charming, and cute physical looks.

Proverbs 30 is an antidote and a constant prayer with bible study coupled with conscious effort to have good and Godly thoughts will help us a great deal. Personally I have done things in year 2011 that I am not proud of but surely I don’t want to continue that way in 2012. Am I speaking your mind too? Then lets get up and get busy crying out to the one who loves us the most and wants the best of us to help us throw away the sin that easily beset us. Let us renew our minds, work on our inner self and flood our thoughts with those things that are true and right, pure and lovely which will be worth showcasing to the world by God. Let this be at the back of our minds this year that if God were to make our thoughts public, will it be worth reading? Great actors??? Not good for your health.

Shinning stars Magazine: YOU CAN JUDGE ME BUT…………………….

Shinning stars Magazine: YOU CAN JUDGE ME BUT…………………….: Yes! you can judge me but I did what I did because I had to do it, even though I can’t look myself in the eye right about now but I ...

YOU CAN JUDGE ME BUT…………………….

Yes! you can judge me but I did what I did because I had to do it, even though I can’t look myself in the eye right about now but I did it and that’s it. Really I wish I could detach myself from the girl that I have become but how can I? Biodun had come home that day frustrated after attending another job interview of “we will get back to you later’, she refused to talk to any of us and I just knew she was going to crash if something didn’t come up for her soon. Mum had threatened her a week before that she had to get a job or stop being another mouth to be fed in the house. It wasn’t Mum’s fault either, after training four children all by herself, she deserved to be left alone with her meager salary, she has a house full of graduates with no one having something to call a proper job. She was so understanding when we all came back home one after the other after the NYSC but the house rent had to be paid, four mouths still needed to be fed, bills were to be paid, and of course the four of us had to depend on her for everything, I guess of course she needed to transfer her frustrations on someone to ease off, Biodun being the eldest daughter was just the scapegoat, the other reason being her refusal to marry the ‘okay’ guys coming around but to wait for a better offer. Don’t blame us yet, we tried, our first Born Deji almost lost his life during the FRSC nationwide recruitment and his right leg had become limped as a result of that, it was only last year that he packed his things to go run ‘whatever things’ with a friend of his in Sagamu. 

You could say mum was still fair to me being the youngest but I wasn’t seeing things the way my other two sisters saw it, they wanted it honourably but it wasn’t coming their way, they kept applying here and there but come home perturbed.  Kemi my other sister had to take up crèche assistance with a little money to keep body and soul but Biodun an engineer would have it no other way. our rented two bedroom flat wasn’t what any friend could come visit in, it was all dirty because of all the old stuff, the curtains, chairs and all were just out of description and colour and I envisaged things could go on like that if mum retires next year with nothing to live on from us, she might just die as one unhappy woman who spent her all on the children who were unable to give back. So I developed a plan, girls who work in the big companies weren’t more brilliant than me but were just smarter so I joined the wagon, nobody cares where you work, just make a name for yourself, be the big girl in your own right, share exploits on BB, FB, TW and maintain it.

You may not know but it happened to me so I know that you attract your kind of personalities, after developing some good moves, people of like minds became my pals, I stared singing in the clubs at least that’s what mum and the rest of them knows but really it’s not that I am sleeping around its just stripping. But oh boy! Money keeps rolling into my purse, I have a manager who arranges all the places we go but it doesn’t go beyond showing, I actually don’t do the real thing. People believe we are into one creative concept, but you don’t want to know all I do every night. well I am making contacts having met with some bigwigs to get my sisters a job but even now, things have really changed, the house has turned new, bills are paid on time, food is in the store, good clothes are being worn, mum smiles more often, though she knows I am doing more than singing but has decided to turn a blind eye. My other sisters are enjoying all of it and I am sure I am getting them something soon because deals are underway. It’s so amazing how you might not be able to see eye to eye with crème de la crème during the day but have them watch you like the blockbuster movie of the century at night.

Well, now my brother has come home after hearing of my exploits, I thought he went to run things too but he came back all born again, a tutor in a secondary school. According to him, it’s a brand new kind of life, though he looks it but his preaching is so disturbing to my very soul. Business has been very bad for me ever since he came home, mum had become so soft crying to him as if he was God himself, in his own viewpoint, poverty had driven us to a dangerous corner especially mum and my sisters who had rejoiced in my daring acts. He scolded them because they knew I had something up my sleeves other than singing, his word have been hunting us down because we all love each other but what can I do? I don’t want to go back to that life where I can’t even do things I wish to do because I had no money or buy a gift  for my mother on her birthday, how long do I know she has left anyway? And if I keep waiting for things to turn around when will my life start? 

Deji had explained to us all that meeting family/personal needs is never an excuse for bad behavior, I don’t know how to tell all of them the actual truth but Deji has helped me to confess it to God. But temptations abound greatly, my contacts are calling me for money and my manager has threatened to dump me, yet no job is forthcoming. Deji says to believe, but it’s hard, he has offered to take me along to his place so as to stabilize in my new faith but it’s not so easy going back to living a life of needs and not wants but I am climbing my mountain one step at a time. Though you can judge me but…………..it was just that I allowed my feelings to take over the right judgment.  If God surely has a better life for me I think I want to hang in there to taste and see whether he is good or not.

THE WORD

The solution to every problem you face is contained in the scripture.
To be wise you must study it.
To be strong in faith you must believe it.

To be succesful in life you must practise it.