Inside Out 2 turns us Outside In

I recently got to watch Inside Out 2, the sequel to Pixar’s 2015 major ‘emotion’ picture (a tag line that the marketing team should get a raise for) which took the world by storm. I must say, this story moved me in ways beyond words. In this article I would be spoiling some details

Pixar: House of Feelings

Pixar has always excelled at making compelling stories out of the most unexpected characters, giving them arcs that are relatable to us in diverse ways. With each story and character arc, Pixar has succeeded in connecting with the hearts of viewers of all ages. With Inside Out, they took it up a notch. After giving toys feelings (Toy Story), giving vehicles feelings (Cars), giving rats feelings (Ratatouille), giving fishes feelings (Finding Nemo) and even giving monsters feelings (Monsters Inc.), Pixar actually gave feelings feelings! Inside Out is the story of a young girl names Riley Anderson, and of how her feelings played a role in the transitions of her growth through a life changing experience. With characters such as Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust and Anger residing within her mind, Inside Out took us through the rollercoaster of emotions she went through and taught a valid lesson for all: sadness is an important indicator that we need support, and it should not be shut down.

With Inside Out 2, Riley is becoming a teenager, and her feelings are about to get even weirder. Growing up to be a kind and exceptional young lady, her sense of self has been based on her core goodness, which is echoed in her words, “I am a good person.” But with puberty, new emotions develop that challenge her sense of self. Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment and Ennui (with little cameos by Nostalgia) take up Riley’s headspace, as she tries to become like others she admires. The original five emotions (Joy and the gang) are literally bottled up and are set on an adventure to recover the Riley they know and love.

What got to Me

At the climax of the movie, Anxiety has made a mess of Riley’s life. At this stage Riley has lost her sense of self and her primary motivation is to get other people to like her. I could identify with this so much because, even beyond my teenage years, the desire to be affirmed and accepted has been a primary motivator for me and many of us for a long time. With Anxiety at her wits end, Riley realizes that, truly, she is not good enough. This pushes her into a panic attack.

When we realize that our attempts to align with the world’s perspectives and opinions will never truly succeed, if our goal has been to meet their standards, we would feel less than you ought to be. Many young people have found themselves here.

But this is where the emotions surprised me. Anxiety finally admits to Joy, “We don’t get to decide who Riley is.” And Joy realizes it too. All this time she had been trying to return Riley to her usual self by discarding any bad or painful memories, but now she allows Riley to learn from her mistakes those memories. Riley then gains something that is a valuable factor for everyone’s growth: self-awareness. Yes, she hasn’t been a good friend. Yes, she has messed up. Yes, she is not good enough. Yes, she wants to be at her best, but never measures up. But in that moment, Joy hugs her (it’s hard to describe this if you have not seen the movie), and the other emotions join in.

Awareness of our strengths and weaknesses primes us to be in the best position to receive the help we need and, best of all, to show grace to ourselves.

The makers of this movie did a really good job of illustrating the value of self-awareness in our growth, whether we be adolescents or adults.

My first key takeaway was that our emotions are only ‘indicators’ of how we feel. They should not be ‘directors’ of our actions, or determinants of our identities. Our feelings are not permanent. Know what is true and stick to it, no matter how your feelings go.

Also, awareness of our strengths and weaknesses primes us to be in the best position to receive the help we need and, best of all, to show grace to ourselves. The earlier we learn this, the better we would be. This is underlined at the end when Riley is asked if she made it into a team (something she had always desired), but while she wants to be on the team she is more open to the possibility of trying again if she fails. This time, she sees herself as more than her achievements or failures, and she can master them for her growth.

One of the biggest contradictions many believers face is reconciling our acclaimed righteousness with the failures and weaknesses we find in ourselves occasionally. Sometimes it feels hard to acknowledge them, and sometimes we may even feel they disqualify us before God and the people in our lives. But our weaknesses are reminders that we need the Savior, and He is always ready to help us.

Our worth is not in other’s perception of ourselves, but in our Creator’s. He sees us at our best and at our worst, and He loves us still.

And so also should we.

You are not your failures or your successes. You are you. It is the true you that can grow.

Thank you for reading. Have you ever experienced an event that made you more self aware? Please share with us. It might encourage someone.

My Questions in the Light of You

I’ve got so many Questions
many things I can’t deduce
Everyone thinks they’ve got the answers
And it makes me think, “What’s the use?
Must I believe everything they say,
Accepting what they say is true?
What if they’re wrong?
What do You think I should do?”

Maybe someday I’ll get the answers
to the questions that fill my mind
May not be now, or even tomorrow
Or after ten more years are left behind

Maybe I’ll get to ask You these questions
on the Day We finally meet
Maybe by then, my quest for understanding
will finally be complete.

Or maybe…

Maybe…

Maybe by then I would be overtaken
By your Awesomeness and Beauty
the Questions may just fade away
into mere inconsequentiality
Compared to You, my questions are nothing
just a chasing after the wind
‘Cause all I’ll need to know, You’ll tell me
So I can be all You made me to be.

You know what?
I think I’ll just start gazing at You right now.

(Originally written Jan 21, 2014)

Teach me, Lord Jesus

Some people are reading
their Bibles each day.
They’re learning how God works
And what He would say.
They’re growing and feeding
On Heavenly Food.
Lord, teach me to study
That I may think like You would.

Some people are praying
And seeking His face.
They’re gaining direction
And strengthening in Grace.
He’s sharpening and pruning them
Enlightening their gaze.
Lord, teach me to pray
that I may follow your ways.

Some people are serving
The Lord with their all.
They’re giving their best
‘Cause they’ve answered His call.
They’re spreading the Gospel
And doing what He pleases.
Lord, teach me to serve
As you want me to, Jesus

May I be Your sacrifice, given to You, living to please You in all that I do.
That I may be Your gift to all; to Gentile and Jew, ’cause You’re all that matters, Jesus. It’s true.

Amen.

Amen.

‘Along the Way’ is Coming!

Hi there! I’ve got a new book coming, and I’m really excited to share it with you.

Along the Way is a compilation of some creative pieces and lessons I’ve learnt in my walk with God over the years. I’ve learnt to see life as one big treasure hunt that God has placed before us, with new mercies every morning and treasures every day. With eyes open wide in wonder and hearts impressionable to His Word, there is so much He’ll show us along the way.

My dear friends at Householder Publishing are providing opportunities to pre-order the book in paperback form, so head on over to pre-order a copy. A book like this should definitely be in your library, I can assure you of that.

The digital copy/ebook is also available for pre-order over at Selar, so head on over to Selar to order a copy.

For more details, check out the book page right at this link.

Thank you so much!

God for the rest of us

Many times He’s called the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but these three men had very different stories. But theirs are pictures that many of us can identify with, showing a God Who is not ashamed to be identified with us and our past.

There’s this thing I read in a book called Changed into His Likeness by Watchman Nee that really revolutionized my understanding of how God came for each and every one of us. Take a look, you just might identify.

Throughout the Scriptures, ever notice how when speaking to the Israelites God is referred to as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It meant a lot to the Israelites because these guys were their ancestors. It was a reminder that the very same God that did awesome wonders in their ancestors’ day was very much alive and well with them.

But then these three guys were very much unlike one another. They each represent different personalities and show how God interacts with different kinds of people, and with us at different stages of our growth.

Abraham and Isaac

Abraham was the father of faith himself. Right off the bat, as soon as we meet him, God’s calling him to take a giant step of faith and Abraham (then called Abram) obeys. This man had a very amazing and exemplary walk with God. He experienced miracles, lived prosperously and fought and won battles all by God’s strength. See, God had a covenant relationship with Abraham that gave him an edge.
Abraham is like the picture of that stellar child of God. His life is marked with so many exploits and wonders done through God’s favor. He has testimonies of the miracles and wonders God has done in his life, of the many battles he’s won by God’s might. He talks casually about how God is His closest friend and how God reveals secrets to him. He’s that believer we all aspire to be like. If this is where you are in your walk with God, it’s legit, and it’s a good place to be. Oh the adventures you will have in God!

Isaac, however, is majorly known for being Abraham’s son. Not to belittle or invalidate his own experience, but much of what we see him doing is as a result of what his father has already done. His father got a wife for him (Genesis 24:1-67). One time Isaac was going to dig up wells but they were his father had dug years before (Genesis 26:18). He was basically living a life enjoying his father’s inheritance. He had entered into rest by heritage, enjoying the blessing of his father.
Isaac reminds us that, as believers, we have entered into a Victory already purchased for us. The battle has been fought and won, and we’ve been crowned ‘More than Conquerors’ through our Father Who loves us. All our accomplishments in Him are based on what He’s provided already. We won’t be speaking cliche when, like Paul, we say, “I am what I am by the grace of God.” (1 Corinthians 15:10)
This understanding is very important so that our confidence is never in the exploits wrought by our hands, but in Him Who birthed us. Always.

Meet Jacob

But Jacob … now here’s a real zinger of a story. Jacob was the quintessential picture of a hustler if there ever was one. He tricked his brother, Esau, into selling his birthright (Genesis 25:29-34), he tricked his father into bestowing his blessing upon him instead of Esau (Genesis 27:1-40), and he later tricked his uncle Laban into giving him the best majority of his herd (Genesis 30:25-43). He got tricked too, like any hustler has experienced, but he owned those scars. He went through life winning seemingly by his efforts, with the wisdom of the world. He had street-smarts, and they had worked for him for so long.
But then many years later, his brother, whom he’d swindled out of his birthright, was on his way. For the first time, the trickster was said to be greatly afraid (Genesis 32:7)
Jacob was so scared that he sent part of his family ahead in case Esau was ready to kill him, so they’d get killed first.
The night before their fateful meeting, Jacob fought with God. Or an angel of God, it’s not explicitly clear, but it’s heavily implied that it was God in human form (Genesis 32:24-32). They fought until daybreak. Jacob’s thigh got dislocated out of joint, leaving him with a limp for the rest of his days.
“Let me go,” the Angel of the Lord said.
“Bless me!” Jacob cried. “I won’t let you go unless You bless me!”
And God blessed him and gave him a new name: Israel. Jacob went on that morning to meet his brother, ready for the worst, but Esau instead embraced him.

Jacob is like the rest of us

I’ve come to love Jacob’s story because while most of us are not like him, he’s like so many of us. We may not all have tricked our way to the top, but we’ve all gone through circumstances that looked like we had to work our way out of. We’ve all had those times when we’ve come to depend on our efforts because they’re what have come through for us. We can relate better with the physical reality of the works of our hands than the faith the Bible speaks of.
Everyone of us will come to that wrestling place. It may be a difficult circumstance that causes us to realise that the arm of flesh can only go so far, as we start to wrestle in our minds with the idea that we really can’t do everything on our own. The question that’s played at the back of our minds comes to the fore: “Where has God been all this time? Is He even there?”
And in the midst of this, God is telling us to let go. Let go of the right to understand or work your way out of everything and depend on Him. We really can’t get beyond that difficulty by our effort. All He asks — all He expects of us — is to trust Him. To trust that He loves us enough and is powerful enough to get us through.
It’s a wrestle because letting go is a hard decision. It may leave us with a limp, like Jacob. The limp isn’t physical, but it’s a reminder that we will always need His help. It would be a constant reminder that you may have been able to sort out everything else by your abilities, but there are some things you know are way beyond you and show you need God’s help. It’s humbling, trust me. But like Jacob, that’s the only way we’re getting out of that fight.
Even the Apostle Paul had his own ‘limp’, but he called it a thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7). He prayed and prayed, asking God to take it away. But you know what God said?

My grace is sufficient for thee, for My Strength is made perfect in weakness.

Can I put this in perspective? One of my pastors, Dr Samuel Oyeyinka, once put it this way. Do you realise that, to this day, no one can fully decipher Paul’s ‘thorn in the flesh’? Some have speculated that it was an eye defect because Paul once wrote about having to write in BIG LETTERS (Galatians 6:11), though that could have just been for emphasis. Some said it was the pain of constantly being persecuted. Some suggest it may have been loneliness from his singleness. Or, who knows, maybe it was a literal thorn that was lodged in his flesh! (creepy picture, I know)

Whatever it was, it was something so difficult that The Paul, writer of two-thirds of the New Testament texts, kept asking God why He didn’t take it away. That was his wrestle with God. This ‘thorn’ could have been any of many things but we really don’t know for sure what it was!
Why?
Now this is the best part.
It shows that, whatever it may have been, God’s strength and grace overshadowed it so much that it didn’t become an issue anymore! It was a constant reminder to Paul that he really needed God’s help, but to others Paul was just fine, even super-fine.

It did not impede Paul from fulfilling God’s intent for his life. Whatever this thorn may have been, Paul was still able to say at the end of his life, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:” (2 Timothy 4:7)
Because Paul trusted His life to God, God helped him walk despite his limp.
Wow!

The God of Jacob

Jacob came out of the fight with a new name, Israel. But do you notice that God was still referred to, more often than not, as the God of Jacob and not simply the God of Israel? Do you see how God was not ashamed to be associated with Jacob, with all of his crooked past?
It’s a reminder that, when we commit our lives to God, our past, present and future are committed to Him. He’s not ashamed to be identified with our past because not only has it been a part of who we’ve become, but He’s going to work it out into His beautiful glorious future for us. You would look back and see the beautiful thread God weaved through and out of that past. In the pain and hurts, He would strengthen you so you can even be a comfort to another going through theirs.

He’s not ashamed to be identified with our past…

This is why Paul would say, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon Me.” (2 Cor. 12:9)

My limitations are a reminder that God is able to help me. When I face my own thorns, those situations where I still have questions, I’ve come to a place where I deliberately commit them to God. It’s not always easy, but I’m willing to trust that if I trust Him with the parts of life I find difficult, He would help me walk. By His strength and grace I will walk on water with Him. Where I limp, I’ll trust He’ll help me walk. And if I get overwhelmed by the waves, I know He’ll carry me.

I’m learning to live from that place always, not just when I face difficult circumstance. When I’m weak and aware of my weakness, I’m at my strongest (2 Cor 12:10) because He has more license to work!
And, like Don Moen’s song, my heart constantly sings…
Lord I offer my life to You
Everything I’ve been through
Use it for Your glory
Lord, I offer my days To You
Lifting my praise To You
As a living sacrifice
Lord I offer You my life.

Abrahams have learnt this lesson of trusting God, early. That’s why they have such a close walk with God. That’s why God can do so much through them.
This, trusting in God, is the only life Isaacs know because Abrahams taught them. But they, like we all, will come to points where we have no choice but to trust God. A literal moment of truth. It stretches us, but it builds our faith.
We tend to define Christian life based on the Abrahams and Isaacs, but don’t forget that even the Jacobs are special to God. He also wants to be identified with their journey, to show forth His glory and awesomeness through their story. We all come into His plans through the door of faith, trusting in Him. He meets us right where we are.
Right where you are.

Faith is like coming to a cliff. Our Father calls us to step off. Our common sense tells us to stay on solid ground, and we wrestle. But when we trust Him and step off, we land in His arms.

The more we step off of these cliffs, the better we know the One waiting to catch us. Over and over again.

Let me finish…

Let’s bring this home, shall we?

Abraham shows us that we can have a close walk with God, and that we would see His strength and might working through us.
Isaac reminds us that we’ve come into an inheritance we did not work for. Christ provided everything that we would need for life and godliness. Our part is to trust Him, receive what He’s done, and walk.
Jacob reminds us that there’s a point where the strength and knowledge we’ve always known would not be enough. In those places where we see we have to trust God, we come to see His power at work in us and for us. The ‘limp’ may remain, but it’s an opportunity to see His strength in us.

No matter where you are, God came for you. In every stage, we’ll always be reminded of our need for God, and of how He’s enough and more than enough for us. He is committed to making your life a living example of all He can do.

And that’s why He’s not ashamed, but really excited, to be known in the mouths of the people as the God of (insert your name)!

Thanks for reading!

Who do you identify best with? Abraham? Isaac? Jacob? A mixture? Have you ever had your wrestling moments with God? Kindly share in the comments. You just might encourage someone 😊

Walking Stories

Ever since my Mum bought a new car, I’ve not seen vehicles the same way. It’s also changed the way I see people too.

Ever since my Mum bought a new car, I’ve not seen vehicles the same way. But it’s also changed the way I see people too.

Her previous vehicle was an automatic engine and it served us for many years. But then we hit the age-old challenge of having an American model car without having mechanics that were trained to work with its engine. So each time we took the car for repairs each mechanic would fix it to the best of his ability, but not necessarily to the car’s specifications. And, little by little, the car just kept getting worse like you wouldn’t believe. One time a mechanic, after working on it for hours, called it a day and told us the best person to fix it would be whoever fixed it last. It all came to a head when my Mum decided that she had had enough and was willing to just sell it and buy a new car.

Now my Mum can be very determined. Once she’s decided on something God help whatever stands in her way. For almost two months after her car was sold she walked and moved around by public transport, choosing that over repairing the vehicle one more time. In that time she sought information on getting a new and more serviceable car. And, thank God, she got one towards the end of last year.

I’m still getting used to seeing the new car. Twice I’ve almost opened the doors of strangers’ cars and had to apologise because I’d thought they were my Mum’s car! But anytime I do see her new car, I don’t see it’s make or colour or engine. I see my Mum’s experiences in trying to fix the old car over and over again. I see the two months she had to move around and all she went through without a car, even on very sunny days. I see the many attempts she made in going to car dealerships to compare and decide on which one she could afford.
It’s more than just a car. It’s a story in itself.

And now when I see cars and buses on the road, I think of the stories they’ve been through. The Mercedes over there may have been shipped in six years ago and exchanged owners twice. The BMW behind me may have been driven past the border all the way from Cotonou. The Sienna that just whizzed past may be making that scraping noise because it has to pass through roads that are more pothole than road, every single day. Every vehicle is a story in itself, and is in the course of many more.

Walking People, Walking Stories

I realise that people are kinda like that too. Each person I meet is in the course of their own stories and are the product of some experiences too. No single person, from acquaintance to random stranger to the lady at the checkout stand, no one is just a prop in the middle of our respective stories. They have their hurts, their pains, their doubts and worries, their concerns. They also bear victories and joys, hopes and dreams, likes and passions. They’ve got thoughts and priorities, preferences and distastes, opinions and points of view.

It teaches me that everyone is different and special. Someone is going through a tragedy, another in a comedy, another is at the beginning of a romance or even a grass-to-riches story … they just may not know it yet. The average day can feel like a mix of a billion genres, I can tell you that.
No one is just ordinary. We are truly privileged to be living at the same time in history with the beauty of stories hidden in people-packages.
It’s a true privilege to exist with you, dear reader.
When we understand the wealth of time and experiences locked up in each individual we realise what an honour and privilege it is to be able to interact with them.

And as people are Walking Stories, so also are you. Your life may feel like a mix of genres, or even be in a place you cannot determine or understand. But don’t ever forget that you’re not just one in a million faces. You are different. You are special. Your experiences are valid.

God thinks so. And that’s why He’s intentional about making you the best you were meant to be. It’s why He gave His life for you, so that you could receive and be free from everything that could ever hold you down. He gives meaning to our lives and, in His eyes, we can see others as He does.

That’s one of the beauties that we realise when we come to see how God sees us all, and just what it means in the larger cosmic scheme of things when people meet and their stories coalesce or bump against each other. One interaction can alter the course of a person’s day or even their life, and influence how they interact with others as well. The battles you may be fighting now may make you wiser and stronger so you could better advice someone else fighting the same battle. You may not realise it now, but your perseverance now will not only aid your victory but also that of others that will meet you someday.

God is not lax about your life and experiences. It’s just like when Paul called Him the ‘God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. (2 Corinthians 1:4)
He knows what you’re going through and is able and willing to work it all out for your good.

If I had one more chance…

If I had just one chance to wrap this up, here’s what I’d tell you:

Value people. They are much more than they seem.

You are special.

Your story is valid and rich with so much. You are a treasure.

God loves you.

You may not have determined how your story has been, but you can enjoy the rest. Like Joyce Meyer says, you may be a product of your past, but you don’t have to be a prisoner of it.

There’s so much else to say, but I think these cover it. Working on this article reminded me of a 2009 song by Kutless called ‘Sea of Faces.’ I love the lyrics so much and it’s still one of my dearest songs (admittedly, my taste in music is frozen in time at 2012-ish, so most of my favourite songs came before that time 🙈)

“Sea Of Faces”

I see the city lights all around me
Everyone’s obscure
Ten million people each with their problems
Why should anyone care

And in Your eyes I can see
I am not just a man, vastly lost in this world
Lost in a Sea of Faces
Your body’s the bread, Your blood is the wine
Because you traded Your life for mine

Sometimes my life it feels so trivial
Immersed in the greatness of space
Yet somehow you still find the time for me
It’s then You show me Your love

And In Your eyes I can see
And in Your arms I will be
I am not just a man, vastly lost in this world
Lost in a Sea of Faces
Your body’s the bread, Your blood is the wine
Because you traded Your life for mine

If only my one heart
Was all you’d gain from all it cost
Well I know you would have still been a man
With a reason
To willingly offer your life

I am not just a man, vastly lost in this world
Lost in a Sea of Faces
Your body’s the bread, Your blood is the wine
Because you traded Your life for mine

Just one in a million faces

https://www.youtube.com/embed/jLHE4P-B2FA

An Afterword

The themes of this article reminded me a lot of my novel, Portal. Its still available for download here, or to read on Okadabooks, or Amazon if that’s more your speed.

Thanks for coming by. See you next time!

Back to the BASICS

When my stylus pen stopped working, I thought I had to wait to get another one before getting anything done…until I realised I’d always had another way out.

I’d just got some new illustration commissions and I was so excited to get right on them. It didn’t matter that I was going to be doing a bit of travelling for my other job ’cause I would still have my laptop and WACOM tab with me to continue the drawing and painting at night. Life was good. Nothing could go wrong.
At least that’s what I thought until I realised my stylus pen was not working. Way to jinx it, Emmanuel 🙄.
For a while it felt as though I really had no other option but to buy another stylus, and I’d heard it was really expensive. Come to think of it, as I write this, I haven’t really tried to find out the price of a new stylus pen. I probably should get right on that 🤔.

Anyway, the illustration commissions were at a standstill for a while until I realised that, hey, I used to do this illustration thingie for years, long before I even got a WACOM tab. Until I get a new stylus I could go back to my old way of doing things.
This old way involved drawing with a pencil on paper, inking the lines with a dark pen, scanning with a scanner, and coloring on a computer with software like CorelDraw or Photoshop. I call this technique DISC (draw, ink, scan, color). It’s been ages since I last tried this, but now it seemed like the only option. And it was a good one too!

And as I did, I realised why I used to enjoy doing this back then. With the WACOM tab, I was limited by the size of my computer screen, but now I had a more spacious field. With the WACOM, I had to keep my eyes on the screen while drawing on a blank touch pad, but with the raw paper I could see what I was drawing as I was drawing it.
Don’t get me wrong. I’d pick the WACOM method in a heartbeat if it were available. It’s much easier and faster to edit and color digitally. Now there was no more Ctrl+Z-ing the mistakes ’cause this time I had to use an actual real life eraser. Once the pencil work was done I could ink it and make the lines clearer before finally erasing the foundational pencil lines. It was a bit longer, but I enjoyed it too.
This whole experience taught me some things:

The pencil lines were the first on the page, but they would be erased when the darker inks are drawn. They remind me of all the people that have added to and helped me along the way into becoming the person I am today. I am grateful because people like these are God’s gift to me. Others may not see these support systems when they see me, but I’m learning to appreciate them because I’m here because of them.
It teaches me to appreciate process. Finished products are the result of processing and building, of drawing and erasing, of planning and replanning and editing and so on. While I can still have the finished product in my mind’s eye (and rightly so) I should be patient with the process. As God adds to me and shows me things that should be erased, as I realise my pencil (the way I’ve been doing things) is getting blunt and may need to be sharpened, I am learning to appreciate the process. Process builds with patience.
I am also learning that there is always a way out. Sure I didn’t have my WACOM tab to draw, but I had a pack of A4 sheets and a scanner. I could always fall back to that. I’m learning that, no matter how much of a dead end things seem, there is always a way out. Sometimes what we need to learn is not to let lack make us forget what we actually have.
In my walk with God, I’m also learning not to get so used to new ways of doing things, or to results, that I forget the core principles. The reason I can excel in creativity or represent Christ in any way is not because of charisma, but because of what Christ is doing in me. The Gospel of Christ — that Message of what God did to put His life in us so we can be and do all He made us to be and do — is the core on which I stand. In the times when I’m becoming overwhelmed or side-tracked by how things may look, I’m learning to look to Christ. He is at the Centre. The Gospel is the core. I’m learning to go back to the basics, and to stand there and grow from there.
And I really should go find out the cost of a new stylus pen. Procrastination isn’t doing me any good. It could actually be more affordable than I assumed, and maybe I’m making myself suffer for no reason!
But seriously now, suffering or not, I’m actually learning a lot and I look forward to the finished work.

Thanks for reading! Have you ever had to adjust your way of getting things done? How did it go for you? Please share in the comments.

Thank you!

P.S.: It’s my first post this year, so ‘Happy New Year’ greetings are in order 😁

Got the Update?

From seeing how my phone needed updates, I learnt that I need updates for my growth in God. Updates of wisdom, strength, reminders of His love, godly perspectives and mind-sets, and so much more.

For weeks the apps on my phone have been reminding me to install the new updates. I’d become quite used to seeing the numerous reminders in the Notifications tray, but I put it off for later.
It came to a head one day when my Twitter app wouldn’t let me open it until I installed the latest updates. According to them, the new update would help to protect my app from recent security issues that previous software definitions were not prepared for. Now I saw reasons not to put off that update, so I set out to do it.
I could go into explaining the lessons I learnt from that experience, but there’s more.
One of the reasons I hadn’t downloaded the updates hitherto was because my phone’s storage capacity was quite full. Every time I tried to download an update my phone would require me to uninstall one of my other apps. All of them were important to me, so I would instead look for photos, videos, audio files or documents that I could delete to clear the space. It’s usually difficult for me because I find it a little hard to let go of these. I can be quite sentimental, I find.
But this time, I had to give in. I deleted I think over a thousand files that day to make room for the new update. Some were dear to me, some were easy to let go of, and others had me wondering what they were doing on my phone in the first place. In the end I cleared enough space and the download could go through.
The app’s now got a couple of changes in its interface but it almost looks exactly the same. I may never know why it needed the update or the security risks it’s protecting me from, and that’s probably for the better. Unless, of course, it’s a backdoor channel for them to monitor me (cue the ominous music: dun dun DUUUNNN!)
Not all my phone apps are updated yet, but I’ll still get to them.

Updates from Heaven

Do you know that just like my phone app needed an update, we also need our God-updates at every point in time? That every day, there are heaven-rooted updates tailored for you?
I’ll explain.
As God’s people we’ve received His Life through the finished works of Jesus Christ in Redemption. Our spirits are renewed so that we can be all God intended for us to be; His children bearing His nature. That’s perfect and, like Jesus said, “It is finished.”

In this world there are new challenges in every season and every day. Like Jesus said in Matthew 6:34,

…Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Now the life God has given us in Christ is powerful enough to face these challenges. Through the power of God at work in us, God is able to do exceeding abundantly above what we could ask or think, even beyond whatever adversity there is out there. But our minds and bodies are exposed daily to experiences in opposition to God’s Word.
Whether we like it or not, there could be circumstances to try and make you feel discouraged, people ready to ruin your day with unreasonable words, and news and online threads ready to order the course of your thoughts and mind-set for the day. It’s not all bad, but more often than not, they are content created without our best interests in mind.
In the midst of this, Lamentations 3:22 and 23 reminds us of the words you probably remember from that song;

It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Thy faithfulness.

Just to put it in perspective, just as the days are evil, the Lord has new compassionate and preserving mercies for you every day. Every. Single. Day.
Tailored for your specifications, beyond and above whatever could be thrown at you. 2 Corinthians 9:8 tells us

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

One of my former pastors loved to describe it as you having a full tank of water but having an empty bucket. It doesn’t change the fact that you’ve got water ‘cause there’s a supply available with your name on it. You receive from your supply when you turn the tap. He was talking about the grace of God available to meet our needs and help us give, but I think it also applies here.
For each and every task you are given and each circumstance we face, for everything that would lay a demand on the life in you, God is able to make all grace abound toward you so that you can have all you need to have an abundant supply for every good work.

Why you can download the update

No matter how hard I try, that Twitter app update could never work on my computer. That particular update could never work for the Facebook app or the Instagram app on my phone either because it was not made by them or for them. The reason I can download the update on my phone is because the update is made for the app on my phone. It was made by Twitter for the specific version of the app that’s present on my phone.
In the same way, because I belong to Jesus, I am capable of receiving the updates of strength, instruction and grace that are my inheritance as His child. It is His delight for me to receive and walk in them. Because I have His Spirit in me, I can receive from Him.
In 1 Corinthians 2:12 it says

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

When we got born again we received the Spirit of God. And it is because we have the Spirit of God that God can reveal to us His will at every point in time. Like it says earlier in that chapter in verses 8 and 9,

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

God is willing to show you things beyond what you’ve seen, to let you in on secrets beyond what you’ve heard, and to cause you to conceive thoughts and ideas beyond what you’ve ever imagined. Just as He shared His plans with Abraham like a friend, He intends to have that kind of relationship with you. Even much more, because now you are His child.
You are the child of the Maker of all that is. Wow!
So just like a child learns to talk the more he/she hears us talking with, God’s updates are to bring you to His level of thinking so that He can relate with us and guide us well in all the peculiar circumstances that we could face.

So How do I Download the Update?

In Romans 12:2 Paul writes,Don’t be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to Him.
Have you noticed that the more time you spend with an individual who makes puns and cracks dry jokes, the more you’d find yourself deciphering puns? Soon you’d probably be the one others will be running after crying, “Don’t leave me! Take me with you!” (someone reading this in 2038 didn’t get this reference. Sorry, kid 😉)In the same way, we let God change the way we think (our mind-sets) by actually spending time with Him, by giving our time and attention to reading and studying His Word and in prayer. That way we can know what His will is and we can do it, empowered by His Spirit in us.
Paul also wrote about the importance of making the best use of time in Ephesians 5:15, 16

See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise. Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

When we live our lives by the wisdom of God we are walking circumspectly, making the best use of the time, and equipped not to give in to the adversity we may face in the day.This is why it is usually encouraged to start your day with a time set apart to read the Bible and talk with God. Some call it Morning Devotion, others call it Quiet Time, but nobody calls it Steve 🤷🏽‍♂️.Either way, the value is not in what we call it but in Who we’re setting out time for. It helps to set the agenda for our minds and to get His agenda for the day.

Clearing the Clutter

Just as I had to remove some apps from my phone, opening our hearts for His updates may require letting go of some things we’ve held on to.
It could be things we love and prize above all else. It could be our time, some of our friendships, some of our goals, or even the feeling of entitlement from our rightful achievements. It could be our media choices or our online presence. Sometimes the Lord may be instructing us to let go of some of these so that our attention can be on Him. For some of them, it is as He becomes our priority that we can have a healthy understanding of their roles in our lives. Otherwise they could become idols in our lives, distracting us from the Lord and all that’s important for our lives.
It could be things that have hurt us or guilt in our past. We don’t hold on to them deliberately, but they may have a hold on us, defining our approach to things and keeping us from reaching for all God has for us. I touched on this partially in my story, Portal.
For all, Jesus says in Matthew 11:28-30

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Offer your past, present and future to the Lord and trust Him with it. It may not be as easy as an instant thing, but trust Him with the process.
When we let go of things that have a strong hold in us, our hands can be open to receive all the Father has been trying to show us.

Spending Time with God

This is a lesson I am still learning. I wish I could come to this article from a place of mastery in this aspect, but I am a learner. And I don’t mean that in the Christianese sense where I’m really a pro trying to be humble, NO! I’ve literally found myself going through days without reading my Bible and I’m trying to work on that too. So, now that I’ve burst your expectations of me, hope you can see that I’m really a learner.
But it’s in spending time with God that we receive these updates.
In 2020 of course most of us may not be able to gather with other people yet, but I encourage you to be part of a church. Be regular and committed to the community. The teaching and fellowship (friendship) are essential for our growth. There are some things God would give you through your fellow believers, and some things He wants to share with others through you.
You can also set apart a specific time for it. You can find moments in the day to spend time with Him, cut off from your phone and other distractions. You can even take a day off to spend time with God. The Christianese term for these are ‘Retreats’. It’s allowed and very essential.
You can have devotionals and Bible reading plans that help you keep at it. Pray about what you’ve read. Bible apps like YouVersion can help with that too.You can have a prayer list of people and things you need to pray for and about. The thing is even as you pray He would show you more that you should pray about.

What if it’s boring?!

Don’t worry, you’re not an evil person for thinking that these times can feel boring sometimes. Sometimes it can feel like we’re not getting anything done. Your mind may have trailed off while reading a chapter and you’d find yourself 50 verses away from the last thing you remember in the narrative. You may have prayed for what felt like an hour only to check the clock to see that only 5 minutes have passed. If you’ve never experienced any of these then you’ve either not tried it out or you’ve got a special gift I really want to receive🙌🏼. Please, share in the comments🙏🏼.In these times, I like to be honest with God. I can sit and just talk with Him, telling Him what’s going on in my mind. Truthfully, these conversations don’t end there. They go throughout the day. Sometimes I get instruction or things become clearer. Sometimes it feels like nothing is happening.
But don’t stop. It is in seeking that we find.
Don’t look for a disembodied voice. The primary means of God talking to us is through His Written Word. Every other impression is by the Holy Spirit within us, not compulsorily by an external audible voice. He could use that, but my advice is not to set out looking for the spectacular. Seek Him.
I once heard a quote by someone that said prayer is like starting the day by saying, “In Jesus Name,” then going to bed saying, “Amen.” That’s because throughout the day you were talking with God.
Share your day with God. See what that does to your interactions.

When my heart is overwhelmed…

What about those moments when we really don’t have the strength? When the day has just been terrible and we don’t feel like doing anything ‘spiritual’?
One of my favourite verses is Psalm 61:2

From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

David’s desire when his heart was overwhelmed is to be reminded of the One, his Rock, Who is bigger than that problem. Knowing that my world does not revolve around me because I have Someone bigger, greater and wiser on my side and at work in me, gives me courage to face the challenges. It’s one of the reasons we find another Christianese word in the psalms a lot: magnify.

O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together. Psalm 34:3

Or even Psalm 35:27

Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.

Ever used a magnifying glass before? It makes things look bigger. It doesn’t make the thing bigger but it makes my perspective of that thing to be bigger.
God doesn’t need to be bigger or more powerful or wiser or stronger. He already is! But sometimes I forget that the Greater One is for me and with me. That’s why I need that reminder.
I need God to be magnified in my eyes.
And that only happens when I look at Him. When I behold Him, I can see Him. Not literally now because I’m still mortal, but as I read about Him in His Word and listen to others talk about Him, as I listen to music that expresses His wonder, as I worship Him, I realise that I really am not as big as I thought, and neither are my problems. He is so much bigger, so much richer in love, and He is so much able to help me more than overcome.
We see this pattern in David’s life. One time when his people’s families were carried away by raiders, his soldiers were angry with him and mutiny was afoot. They were even talking about stoning him. David, whose own family was also carried away, was in great distress. But the Bible lets us know that he ‘encouraged himself in the Lord.’ (1 Samuel 30:6) And right after he asked God for direction, and God told him what to do to get his people back. His stability was in that place where God was bigger than everything else.
Our stability is in the Holiest Place like in the temple (Hebrews 6:19), where Christ is seated having conquered all and redeemed us. Where our sins are forgiven and we obtain mercy and find grace in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16). It is why we have the Spirit of God in us. You, God’s child, are evidence that God is more than able to deal with whatever problem comes your way.
You have access to the King and Conqueror of Eternity, especially at your weakest moments. He’s your stability.
This is what I do. I tell Him exactly what it feels like. Sometimes I just play worship music and sing along to Him. It helps lift my thoughts and feelings, and I worship along.
It takes our attention off our fears and limitations and focuses it on His strength available and at work in us. Like He said to Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9,

My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness

Share your experience

In recent times I’ve had a couple of interactions with friends who are also making a deliberate consistent culture of spending time with God. What’s your experience like? What lessons have you learnt?
Please share with us in the comments. It could be an encouragement to someone too.
Thanks for coming by!

Charge Your Phone!

Lately my phone battery has been dying at moments when I needed it for work or crucial discussions. It’s not that it’s faulty per se, no, rather it’s because I didn’t charge it when I ought to.
I used to charge it overnight so that it would last for much of the following day. When, however, I didn’t get it charged overnight it dies during the day. There were many moments during the day when it could have been charged, and should have been charged, but many times it felt like those were the moments when I should be using the phone.
One time I was using its WiFi hotspot to do some online work on my laptop even though the phone battery was low. Not only did my phone die that evening, but it did not come back on for hours even after it was plugged in to charge. That was the moment I realised that I had gone too far.

Yeah, I’m probably the worst phone owner out there. I’m trying to improve though, and I will.
But the experience taught me something. My phone taught me a couple things about my life.

I need a consistent power supply

Just as my phone needs to be charged for it to work well, my life needs a consistent supply of God’s Word if I’m going to live effectively. Every day, with every word we speak, every thought we think, every move we make and every breath we breathe we are expending life. There’s a saying that the source of a thing is what sustains it. We become children of God by believing His Word in the Gospel, and it is His Word that sustains us.
Or like Peter put it

For through the living and eternal word of God you have been born again as the children of a Parent who is immortal, not mortal.

(1 Peter 1:23)

God’s Word is eternal and abides forever. If I want to live effectively, I need a supply of God’s Word to frame my mindset. If God wants to speak to me, it would primarily be through what is written in the Bible.

Remember, the tree in Psalm 1 is planted by the rivers of water. That’s a constant consistent supply. We all need that. Like hugging a transformer and staying fully charged. Yes there’s a death, but there’s life ’cause God’s Word gives life😉

We afford ourselves of this opportunity when we connect regularly with our local churches to be taught God’s Word, when we listen to it being taught elsewhere, when we discuss and study it with one another and when we study the Bible for ourselves. The Holy Spirit helps us to understand. All of these are very important for our growth spiritually.

If it is not charged well, it would die

If I am giving out more than the quota of God’s Word that I am taking in, I will burn out.

As children of God, the inclination of our God-renewed spirits is to reach out to others. We may reach out to people with God’s love and message through our words, our acts of service, our social media, but primarily, our lives. Many times God provides opportunities for this. But if I have not been feeding on His Word regularly, I may be a blessing to others but I would not be in the best frame that God wants me to be. In explaining His Word I may have faulty situational explanations opposed to His Word, defined by my emotions and not His context. In some cases, I might even not know or be aware of what He would have me do. In some other cases, I might even refuse to do what He would want me to do because I don’t feel like it.
Notice the common denominator in these examples: my feelings. When God’s Word is not my priority, I am going to be live based on how I feel. Feelings change, people. But God’s Word endures.

God wants me to be fruitful. Psalm 1:3 paints a very interesting picture. Here, check it out:

…they find joy in obeying the Law of the LORD, and they study it day and night.
They are like trees that grow beside a stream, that bear fruit at the right time, and whose leaves do not dry up. They succeed in everything they do.

Psalm 1:2,3

The kind of person that is spiritually healthy and fruitful at all times is one who finds joy in obeying God’s law and studies it day and night. And do you know the fruit that God wants to produce in our lives?

But the Spirit produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control.

Galatians 5:22, 23

I want to be loving, joyful, peaceful and at peace, patient, kind, good, faithful (trustworthy) and full of faith, humble and self-controlled, and I want to be like that all the time.

Love, for example, is a primary quality of God because He is love (1 John 4:8). And the Bible lets us know that love endures, it is kind even when it suffers long (1 Corinthians 13:4). Living just by feelings wouldn’t cut it. If I want my life to remain loving through all seasons, if I want to be fruitful in God’s measure no matter what happens, I need a consistent supply of God’s Word.

I’m not made to work 24/7

I’ve covered much of this particular lesson in my other article on REST so you can check that out too (thank you!). But I’ll summarize that here too.

Our phones were not made to work 24/7. They need moments to recharge so that when they are charged we can use them for all the tasks and fun stuff we desire.

We also weren’t made to work 24/7/365. God gave the Israelites a pattern of 6-days of work in a week with one day set aside to cease from work. While it’s not a law for non-Jews like me, the essence of it is very essential for every one of us.

Rest gives our bodies and minds an opportunity to recharge. To let go of the stress and work that have weighed it down so that we can later tackle it with revived energy, creativity, excitement and better coordination.

That meme or WhatsApp discussion won’t run away if you let your phone charge. The world won’t end if you take a day or a couple of hours to rest before heading back into the work you’ve been doing for hours. That rhythm of work and rest is essential to us all. When God rested on the seventh day, I’ll bet it’s not because He was tired.

I wrote a whole article about this subject that I really love, and I think you would too. Please check it out here when you have the time.

It is my responsibility

My phone is my possession and as such its well-being is in my charge. If its screen is broken, it’s my fault. If it is ruined beyond repair, I am responsible. The state of my phone and my other possessions says a lot about my attention to responsibility. If my phone battery is dying consistently when it could have been charged, then it means I have been lax concerning my responsibilities.

This makes me consider how I’ve been treating the people and systems placed in my charge. Do I only use them or am I deliberate about adding to them? Am I more concerned with what I can get rather than what I can give?

These opened up a lot I needed to work on, and much of that work is inside where no one else can see, except the Audience of One.
This leads in to something very important.

My life belongs to God

The phone may have been purchased by me, but does it make it mine? Who provided the money?

James wrote it this way:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

James 1:17

My life and every good thing in it is a gift from God. In taking care of it well, I am honouring Him. But when I do it deliberately for Him, life becomes a life of worship. The best way I can honour Him is to give it to Him. Like Paul put it,

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Romans 12:1

He also wrote it this way in his letter to the Corinthian church,

For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

1 Corinthians 6:20

In honouring Him with my life, I am serving Him rightly. In taking care of my phone, for example, I am honouring it as a gift from Him. This gives me a sense of higher responsibility.

Many times we forget that God is actually concerned even with how we treat our secular things. Jesus told a couple of stories to illustrate just how important this is.

Remember the one about the talents? Jesus told a story in Matthew 25 about a man that was travelling but he gave a couple of talents to his workers. And, no, he didn’t magically give them the ability to sing or play the violin. A talent in those days was a unit of money some have estimated to about $5000. The servants were rewarded for using and gaining profit on the money he gave them. But the one servant that kept the one talent he was given was said to despise his master, and was punished for it.

Jesus wants us to be responsible with the things He has given to us. Our friendships, our family, our secular work and ministry work are all important to Him. We honour Him when we see it all as an offering to Him, choosing to honour Him in them all.

And it all starts from honouring Him with our lives.

Let me finish…

So if I were to sum up all I’m trying to say:

Keep your phone charged!
Have a consistent supply of God’s Word.
God’s Word makes us fruitful and effective
Your life is a gift, a responsibility bestowed on you by God. Make it an offering to Him.

Yeah, I think that about covers it. This particular article has a lot more to do with actions so I’d better get to work.

Thanks for reading!

What have you learnt or are learning? In what ways can we honour God in our lives? Please share below. Thank you!

God is out of Time!

I originally posted this on Facebook on June 24, 2014.

God is out of time!
Really, He is. And that’s a good thing. Because God is not bound by the limits of the Timestream.

In the illustration above there’s this line drawn on a page. Time is like that line, with a definite beginning and an end (since our time is measured relative to the positions of the earth and sun and moon, we could probably say time began when God created them … probably). God drew that line on the page. Or you could say He is the page. That’s why He’s the Beginning and the End, because they’re literally in Him.

So time does not limit God because He is outside of it’s line. So don’t ever let yourself get worried that God doesn’t have enough time to get some things done. Years may have passed since His promises came to you first, but it does not mean He’s late. Also, the things He’s promised you may seem to require a longer time than is available … but time does not define or restrict Him. He can make all things align on your behalf.

In my ‘sci fi’-influenced mentality, I like to imagine that if God needed to, He could actually alter events in the past to create a new present. Perhaps that explains the ‘deja vus’ we experience once in a while (you know, the “hey, I’ve seen this before” feeling). OK, I know it sounds downright unbiblical, but I’m just saying He’s got that kind of power. He’s more powerful than you think He is.
He’s mega-awesome like that.

And if you’re in Christ that’s exactly what He did for you. The covenant required for your salvation, the price required for the sins you committed in these times– it was all done at that point in history when Jesus came and died and rose for you too. So whenever in history you are, if you accept His gift, you too can come to eternal life. It’s like He took your sins back in time and dealt with them in Jesus, and He died with them, and rose with the New you. His Grace transcends the limits of time itself, regardless of what you’ve done.

So yes, God is out of Time.
And that’s a good thing, too.

“My times are in Your hands…”
Psalm 31:15