REFOCUSING YOU... !

The Lord has given you trouble and sorrow as your

food and drink. But now you will again see the Lord,

your teacher, and he will guide you. Whether you turn to

the right or to the left, you will hear a voice saying,

"This is the road! Now follow it." 

Isaiah 30:20-21 

  

God's desire is for us to have the best of Him and He is committed to helping us follow specific road maps leading us to it.  He has designed a specific pathway for each and every one of us and along the way, specific things for us to do. 

However, the truth is that we are sometimes as stubborn as the children of Israel that we don't see, hear or sense His leading, or teaching, not to talk of following His instructions.  Now because God's will for our lives is bigger than us and the fact that other lives are dependant on its manifestation, God will sometimes introduce certain situations to get our attention and bring us back on the right path. 

God will use the appropriate circumstance or event (pleasant or painful) to get our attention, and bring us back into the realms of His will.

Here are some ways He may use to get our attention:

• A Restless Spirit: Sometimes we will find ourselves restless from deep within.  It is feeling we mostly cannot understand or identify why it is there.  We can't focus, eat, sleep or think straight, we are just restless for no reason, it seems. The best thing to do at this time is to pray and ask God what He is trying to teach or show us.  Usually when this happens, He is trying to move our attention towards something. We will do well and save ourselves a lot of sleepless nights when we pay attention to a restless spirit within us.

• Unanswered Prayers: I can testify to this one and I am sure most of you reading this can. Think about it, you fast, pray, roll on the floor, shout, jump, scream, quote and support it with scripture, yet, the prayers are not answered. Yes, it can be extremely confusing and frustrating right? Everybody who takes God and prayer seriously must deal, sooner or later with the problem of unanswered prayer.  This is a hard one, however God is sovereign and every unanswered prayer situation is different and He helps us accordingly.  Some of my thoughts and how God has helped me with these are: I was praying for selfish reasons as explained in James 4:3, which reads "You ask and do not receive, because you ask(A) wrongly, to spend it on your passions.", I prayed, yet did not have absolute faith that I received what I prayed for.  There was the nagging feeling of "what if and buts and maybe", just as explained in Matthew 21:22, which reads "And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”. I had iniquity in my heart which I either knew or did not know about as explained in Isaiah 59:2, which reads "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear."   It could be also be other things such as praying for something genuine, but at the wrong time. When we pray it is important to ask God to help us understand how the answer or non answer fits into the greater scheme of things, the live of others and His Kingdom.

• A Spoken (audible) Word: God sometimes uses the words like He gave a messages to Samuel and to Eli the priest as we read in 1 Samuel 3:4-18.  A good way to know that God is speaking through other is when quite a few people, within a short space of time are saying the same thing which connects to a burden or a prayer in your heart. 

• Unusual Blessings:  God sometimes blesses us in unusual ways  which is meant to turn us towards Him. He shows us kindness love, even when we least expect it. It should encourage us to praise and thank Him and use it for His glory. Romans 2:4 explains it so well, it reads "You surely don't think much of God's wonderful goodness or of his patience and willingness to put up with you. Don't you know that the reason God is good to you is because he wants you to turn to him?"

• Disappointments: Is that a sigh I heard ripple through blogsville?.  Yes, we can all relate to this one right?  Just like He did with the children of Israel many years ago, God uses disappointments to bring some of us back to repentance, and back into the fold of His will.  Setbacks are meant to keep us from walking into a future we have mapped out for ourselves, as opposed to God's.  An example we find in the bible was when the children of Israel refused to follow God's command to take possession of the promised land. God judged them through disappointment for their unbelief and disobedience, to bring them to repentance and turn back to Him.  This we read Numbers 14:27-32 and the reaction of Israel when they realised their wrong is recorded in Numbers 14:39-40,  (please read for completion). They became remorseful, repented and turned to God in obedience.

• Financial Troubles: In Judges 6-17, we see how God brought judgement to the children of Israel through the Midianites. It was only when God took away all their material belongings, did they cry out to Him.  You see, they were dependent on and trusted in the riches they had and had no regard for God. What are we dependent on and trust in?  Our 'things' or God?.  When our trust is invested in the blessings of God (cars, houses, fame ) rather than the one who blesses - God , to refocus our priorities, He might take them all away.

• Tragedy, Sickness and Affliction:  I have learnt that in this life, tragedies will come, whether we like it or not. However, I have also learnt to regard them as a reason and opportunity to get even closer to God.  Romans 8:28,"We know that God is always at work for the good of everyone who loves him. They are the ones God has chosen for his purpose...". Tragedy, sickness and affliction, when we endure, we realise that God will eventually worked it out for our good and for His glory and it brings us closer to Him.

God will use the above and more if required to get our attention and bring us back on the right path if we have strayed.  God knows exactly where we are in our journey of faith. He knows when we start straying away from the path, and He will do whatever is required to put us on the right path.

God is such a good God that even the adversity He might allow is limited, just like He did with Job.  God allowed Satan to persecute Job, but limited him not to hurt or kill him. Job 1:12 and Job 2:6 - (please read for completion).   All He does is for our own good.

I encourage you to stay strong, and be assured that whatever you might be going through, God is right there with you. Stay focused and alert. If you notice any of these things patterns (or others),  happening to you time and time again, pause and ask "Lord what are you trying to tell, show or teach me at this time".  He wants to tell and show you all the good things in store for you.   

He wants to see His will come alive in you; He wants to make a beautiful and glorious testimony out of the very makings of you. 


Much Love , Remi

***pictures by photobucket***

BSL (BRITISH SIGN LANGUAGE TRANSLATION)

(PRESS PLAY)

God's Schedule --- Same As Yours?

"you saw my body as it was formed.

All the days planned for me

were written in your book

before I was one day old"

Psalm 139:16 (NCV)

Yesterday was our local area prayer meeting gathering, and it was awesome. God is good and a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him. We spoke and prayed about the need to always check our standing in God's will, to make sure we have not deviated off track and gone our own way.

During the discussion, a couple of individuals asked questions around what to do when God is silent and what to do when we have desires that we seem to be praying about over and over again, but nothing seems to be happening - well that we cannot see. This inspired me to put this post up.

Sometimes when we think or feel that things are not going the way we planned (that is our prayers are seemingly going unanswered), we start to fret. We have prayed, even embarked on a 3, 7, 21 or 30 day dry fast and still no outcome. At this point in time it might feel like God has completely abandoned us. However, I would like to suggest that maybe, just maybe God is working on completely different schedule and agenda for our live than we are at that particular point in time, and it might be that we align our will and desires to His? Selah.

God's master plan for our lives is not to satisfy us with a list of wants or shopping list - the house, the car, the business, the job and much more. His master plan is to develop a loving and personal relationship with us individually. It is through and of this relationship that He blesses us with the desires of our hearts, and that everything else comes as an addition to us - the house, the car, the husband, wife and much more.

Yes, whilst we are developing a relationship with God, getting to know and trust Him more, life will often bring its share of pain and suffering. However, we should be confident in the knowledge that God works everything (trials, tribulation and all) for our good, as confirmed in Romans 8:28.


You might read that and say, "but I know what I want and I want it now, for time is slipping away and I seem to be tagging along others through this journey called life". Hands up me, for I have said the exact same things a million times before.

By the grace of God, I have come to understand that a life placed completely in God's hands and guided by His Holy Spirit means that His timing takes precedence. To only way to live through life at the pace God has set for each of us is to live according to trust and live according to God's schedule. We must trust God that He knows what He is doing.


A few reasons why we should trust God's schedules for our lives are:

• GOD IS ALL KNOWING:  The opening verse of this post, Psalm 129:16, confirms that God has already written the book, with all the pages of our lives, which includes all the things that must happen - including your very act of reading this post. This means He knows our end from the beginning. The reality of this knowledge, when we start to fret should encourage us to pray as such "Lord let my today, and everyday, including my wants, needs and desires, unfold as it is already written in the pages of your book for my life - trials, tribulations, abundance and all". We must learn to COMMIT OUR PLANS TO GOD (click on link to read further), and let His Holy Spirit guide us. From experience, I promise that you will experience peace, rest and assurance beyond comprehension. For more on trusting in God, please read click on and read the "TRUSTING IN GOD KEY" post I wrote a while back.

• GOD IS ALL WISE:   It is foolishness to think that any human being can know the absolute best thing to do or say in any situation. We can try to do things to the best of our ability, but even then we will often make mistakes. Why? This is because we mostly make decisions based on an imperfect perception, of the present or future. God's wisdom is infinite and perfect. God takes His time to teach us all we know through His Holy Spirit, if we let Him. All wisdom comes from Him as declared in Proverbs 2:6, which reads "For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding".

• GOD IS ALL LOVING:   God loves us. His schedule and plans for our lives revolves around the fact that He wants the BEST for us. Our problem usually arise because think we know what 'best' looks like and when it is not happening, we get discouraged. God's thoughts towards us are precious as described in Psalm 139:17. Time is one of the tools God uses to teach the weighty lessons of patience. It opens us up further to have a deeper and closer relationship with Him. It is also prepares us for the good things He already wants to give us.

These are just a few reasons why we should embrace God's timing about everything for our lives. Yes, we have desires, because we have been given the power of imagination and we are meant to use these to conjure up dreams and visions and possibilities that in the natural will seem utterly impossible. However, all these needs to be in line with His will for our lives and once they are, has to happen in His own time.

The rewards of trusting in God are
endless as the blue sky on a summers day
countless as the stars in night sky
never-ending, much deeper than the deepest ocean
and the joy it brings more vibrant than a
million fireworks on display at the grandest celebration

As you live out the reality of each day, I encourage you to align yourself with God's schedule for your desires, hopes and dreams. Get close to Him in prayer, willingness and obedience.

I encourage you to trust God completely, knowing that the very essence of your life is in perfect hands.

Be patient and trust that the pages of the book He has already written about your life, will unfold more beautiful than you could ever dream or think; making Him famous along the way.

Much Love, Remi

Picture by ***google***

STRETCH OUT...

"...and said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."

He stretched it out, and his hand was restored"

Mathew 3:5

This passage is from the story of the miracle of Jesus, the healing of a man with a withered hand on a Sabbath day. Jesus asked the man to arise and stand in full view of everyone and then commanded him to stretch forth his hands in doing so, he was healed.

• For something to be withered it means it has become shrunken, or dry incapable of action. when something becomes shrunken, it means it is filled with wrinkles, and appears to be shriveled as in shrinking.

• To stretch means to draw out or extend to the full length or to be expanded to a larger size.

A woman cannot carry a baby to full term without 'stretching out'. It is hard for us to live out the realities of God's promises and our desires and dreams if we don't 'stretch out' in obedience, working diligently doing the Father's will.

As you start a new week, 'stretch out' unravelling shrunken dreams, aspirations and promises gifted to you by the Father. 'stretch forward', beyond your present limitations, from where you are to where you ought to be. 'Stretch out' removing all the wrinkles that cover your potential to attain.

I encourage you to 'stretch out' in action, faith, diligence, perseverance, excellence and in belief that, whilst you are faithful working on the dreams God has given you, He is always faithful to perfect everything concerning you.

'Stretch out' in faith, peace and love, expanding in victory on all sides; whilst making God famous along your way.

Much Love

Remi

**pictures by photobucket**

Pick Up Your Dreams...

As we approach the final month of this New Beginning year, it is likely that most of us will reflect back and think about all the things we hoped to have achieved by this moment, but alas the reality is not so. Why? Because life got in the way. We have stored the dream on the top shelf and promised to get back to it when “things get better” .

Today, even though the year is closing in, I encourage you to reach up to that shelf, pick up, and start running with your dream again. One day is enough for God to still bring forth into manifestation that which needs to be accomplished this year, as long as we let him.

What is a dream? The dictionary defines a dream as thus:

• to see or imagine in sleep or in a vision or
• a succession of images, thoughts, or emotions passing through the mind during sleep

Dreams are the intention of God, planted in the heart of man.

God has planted a dream in the heart of every single one of his children. Why? This is because he has a plan, a purpose, a destiny and good intentions for us. This we see in Jeremiah 29:11, which reads "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."

This plan God has for us, he communicates to us by planting a dream within our heart, writing it upon the canvas of our spirit and making our soul a witness to it. This is why every dream of every individual is of equal importance and relative to God's kingdom. One person's dream is not bigger or better than the next. The dream God has given each of us is the seed to our future and the experience (manifestation) is the harvest (living the reality) . Selah.

The devil knows this and it is the reason he throws obstacles our way, which takes away our focus from working on and protecting the seed to our future (the dream). He knows that it is easier to attack and destroy a seed than it is to destroy a harvest. Selah. This means that we have a responsibility to protect and preserve the seed; to keep it alive, to feed it, nurture it, work on it, make sure it has sufficient light, has sufficient water, that the soil is in the right condition to help it grow, flourish and become a beautiful tree, a beautiful harvest.

We must do all we can do to keep our dreams alive, nurture it, feed it, work on it, pray on it and much more; to bring it into manifestation.

A while ago, I learnt that to keep my dreams in focus, alive and work it into manifestation, I must actively do the following:

• Write Down Your dreams: as we are commanded in Habakkuk 2:2- 3; Then the LORD told me: "I will give you my message in the form of a vision. Write it clearly enough to be read at a glance. 3At the time I have decided, my words will come true. You can trust what I say about the future. It may take a long time, but keep on waiting-- it will happen! Pick that dream right up, write it down and make it plain. To make something plain means to "make it clear, simple and distinct to the eye." Making it clear to helps us know the actions that are required to set the dream in motion.
  


• Speak your dream: There is creative power in the words we speak. Our tongue has a hand and when we speak, we send forth this hand to get that which we have spoken. (To learn more about this read one of my previous posts - Your Vocabulary). However, we must apply wisdom to who we speak to. We must speak our dreams to helpers of destiny. These are people that will attract resources and be of help bring the dream to manifestation. We must speak our dreams to God. In so doing we are expressing agreement to the dream. We must speak our dreams to ourselves. Sounds silly, but yes, we must do this to encourage ourselves and express our spoken faith.
  


• Sow into the dream of others: What we sow is what we will reap as we are taught in Galatians 6: 7 - 9. Therefore, we must do our best to find others who are doing what we are doing or want to do and then sow a seed into their dream. We can sow prayers, time, finance, help, support or much more. Seeds will produce after its own kind.
  


• Call in your harvest: When we have sown the seed, we must not forget to call in our harvest. Imagine this; "no farmer goes into the fields, sows and does not go back to collect the harvest." This means that we must go back and collect the harvest to the seeds we have planted. We must remember to refer back to it, bring it before God and claim the harvest. We must make a demand on our investment. "As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night." - Genesis 8:22.
  


• Discover God's purpose for the dream: The purposes behind the dream God gives us is way bigger and more profound than we could ever imagine. Our dreams have consequences that will outlive us. This is why we CANNOT afford to give up on our dreams!. We see a glimpse of this in Acts 26:16 when Saul met with God on a mission to Damascus. It reads "Now get to your feet! For I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and witness. You are to tell the world what you have seen and what I will show you in the future" I encourage you to draw on the power, strength and courage from the purpose of your dream.
  


• And finally, I was taught to guard my heart. If our hearts are defiled, then our dreams will be corrupted and life will move in the direction of our most dominant thought, hence making it our reality. We must take hold of our thoughts, imagination and steer them towards God's purpose for our lives.

So, today, I encourage us all to be a true dreamer, taking lessons from Joseph and start moving in the direction of our dreams.

Unless God has told us to wait, the next move is ours.

Lets start where we are. With our five loaves of bread and two fishes, with our small jar of oil, or with our dingy fishing boat. Everything does not have to be perfect before we set the ball rolling, we have to and must give God something to work with.

Do you need to go on that training course, to learn that language, write up that business plan, spend more time serving, or reading? Whatever it is, raise up, pick up the dream you placed on the top shelf a while ago and get moving. Give God something to work with and trust him to do the rest. A flicker of his fingers is all he needs to make it happen, thus, even with less than 2 months to go before this year is a wrap for good, God cans still bring forth that dream to manifestation for you.

"We must remember lives, souls, destinies in this and the next generations are dependant on the manifestation of our dreams and the testimonies that arise from them. "

Have an awesome time re-discovering your purpose, picking up your dream, setting it in motion and giving God something to work with to bring it into manifestation… whilst making him famous along the way.

Much Love

Remi Banjo

***Pictures by photobucket & coloriaart***

Lessons From Wall Climbing...

Well, I have acquired a new fitness obsession – Indoor wall climbing!!! Yes, I have discovered I'm an adrenalin junkie... I know I scare myself too!

It’s a pretty cool activity, requires concentration and lots of body strength and discipline to say the least! I went through training and thereafter really got into the act of climbing. I teamed up with a friend of mine and he challenged me to get to the top of the wall. You see to get to the top means you get to leave your mark there, almost like saying "I came, I saw, I conquered"; but getting to the top was no small feat!

I was there for over two hours every other day just trying to get to the top of the wall! I experienced lots of falling over, getting half way, having to get up and start all over again and exhaustion! However, whilst trying repeatedly to get to the top, I learnt that:

I had to make sure I was firmly harnessed in. No harness, no climbing; well unless I wanted to break a few bones.

This reminds me that whatever we do, whatever move we make in this life, we must make sure we are firmly harnessed and anchored in God, anchored in his will. That we are To move without being secured in God, means we are without his coverage and direction, which means the fuits of our labour will mean nothing. This we are though in John 15:5-6 "5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. 6 Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned" Are you anchored in him?

I found out the nature and distribution of my body strength. I realised that I had more lower body than upper body strength. This meant that my strength was in my lower body and my weakness was my upper body. I learnt that if I concentrated on my strength and used it to my advantage, I could scale up the wall quickly and almost effortlessly! Awesome.

This tells me that each and everyone of us is unique in our make up, we all have specific strengths and weaknesses, which means we all have specific gifts and abilities which we must use to our advantage and to the advancement of the kingdom of God. This we are taugh in Romans 12:6-8, which reads "6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly." Do you know your strengths and weaknesses and are you managing them wisely?

I learnt that in as much as I wanted to get to the top of the wall on the first try, sometimes this is not possible; not because I did not believe I could do it, but more because I had to learn the best way for ME to get there; the best route for ME to take, the best combination of strength and skills for ME to embrace.

This tells me that our walk in life is personal, that God has a path marked out for each and every one of us, and the combination of cross roads, of trials and tribulations, of success and failures we must go through or face is different for each person. When we learn what our individual path in life is, learn it, we will eventually get to where God wants us to get to and what God has already ordained us to be. Are you walking in tune to God's will for YOU?

I also found out that I had to have a certain frame of mind before and whilst on the wall. I had to approach eaach ascend and indeed desend determination and a "can do - I can reach the top this time" attitude; a mindset that tells me even though I failed the last seven or so times, this time I can and will get to the top.

This reminds me that in life having the right attitude and frame of mind is very important. "Our attitude determines our altitude". To have a good and positive attitude means that we embrace the nature of Christ as we are taught in Philippians 2:5 which reads "You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had." What is the shape and nature of your attitude?

I found out that sometimes, I simply had to go back to the begining. Sometimes, when I get stuck on the wall and don't know how to navigate my way further up, I simply have to let go, and drop back to the ground, review my position and start all over again.

This reminds me that along the way, sometimes we will find ourselves in a rut due to variuos reasons. When this happens we must learn to pause and put ourselves through a "spiritual health check" as Paul teaches us in 2 Corinthians 13:5 5 Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith. 6 As you test yourselves, I hope you will recognize that we have not failed the test of apostolic authority. We must review our stance, go back to our source and re-align ourselves if need be, then start back on the journey ahead of us. Sometimes we simply have no option but to go back to the begining and start all over again, no matter how painful this might seem.

Finally, I learnt that climbing is quite good fun, but extremely hard work. This is because it uses all the muscle groups in the body, even the brain... imagine that!. And that the next day, the ache is nothing compared to all my gym or fitness activities to date, but it eases out with time.

This tells me that when we are living within the realms of God's will, we will experience extreme joy and fulfilment, but also, there will be times when we face trials and tribulations and we will need to use all the tools God has given us (prayer, fasting, meditating on the word, and much more) to get us through. There will be times when trials and tribulations will surely give us physical and spiritual ache, but we must be assured that this will ease in time as long as we hold on to faith and hope just like Moses did as we are taught in Romans 12:12 which reads "rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer"

Besides, God works everything together for good, so pain or not, it will surely all come together in the end.

And that was the lessons I learnt from my new spot indoor, Wall Climbing. Oh and by the way I did get to the top - eventually.

Have a great day climbing your way to victory, on the way to becoming who God has already ordained you to be; keeping your faith and hope alive, whilst making him famous along way with every ascend and descend you embrace.

Much Love

Remi Banjo

***pictures by google***

Welcome the 44th President - BARACK OBAMA

Congratulation to the 44th president of the United States of America

Mr Barack Obama

I pray that God uses you for his glory and that he continues to be your strength and shield and gives you wisdom, understanding and insight to rule as you should and to bring about change that is needed in America and indeed around the world.

This is the day the Lord has made we will rejoice, be glad with what God has done for us in it!!!

It is the day that will

go down in the history books

that will be talked about forever

that will be taught to our children's children

that we will surely never forget

that represents new beginnings

that represents the onset of change

that represents new meanings

A day that propels us into a new season!

Congratulations

Let change begin

YES WE CAN!!!!

Much Love
Remi Banjo

Lessons From Jonah.. Along my way

Yesterday, on my way to a business meeting, sitting on the train, I pulled out my bible and for some reason proceeded to read the book of Jonah.

A few verses in and I started laughing not so much at Jonah's silliness and his attempt to run and hide from God, but for the fact that I know I have done the exact same thing! God says, "Remi go left" and then I go right... ! Jonah 1:1 - 3

Reading further, my emotions switched from laughter to sadness as I learnt of the effects of disobedience to our environment, to people around us. Jonah 1: 4 - 7. Jonah's disobedience caused a ferocious storm to descend on the boat he was in, putting the crew on board in great danger. For a few minutes I pondered and thought how my disobedience in the past, has put lives, both near and far in great danger... Lord forgive me for being disobedient I whispered.

I read further, and my countenance was wrapped in amazement with the knowledge that, even in our disobedience, God still works everything together for good and for His glory. Jonah 1:14- 17. The sailors were in awe of God's power. After throwing Jonah off the boat, the stormed called immediately. This made them turn to God in worship and they devoted their lives to serving him. Jonah 1:15- 16 it reads "15 Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once! 16 The sailors were awestruck by the Lord’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him."

I kept on reading and was presented with the nature of God's mercy. In the midst of Jonah's disobedience, God was merciful enough to spare his life and he arranged for fish to swallow Jonah and keep him safe from harm and from death!

I read further, and learnt, that sometimes we have to be so lost, for us to be found. In the midst of his darkness, when he had lost all hope, Jonah turned back onto God. Jonah 2: 1-8

I thought about all the times when I felt lost and alone, yet this same feeling spurned me on to turn to God, my only hope.

I kept on reading and learnt about a God of second chances. About a God whose mercies are new every single morning.

After the fish threw up Jonah, God spoke to him again and gave him the same instructions he gave him first time. In doing so, God gave Jonah a second chance to make right, a second stab at mastering the act and skill of obedience. Now isn't that awesome? Jonah 3: 1 - 2 reads "1 Then the Lord spoke to Jonah a second time: 2 “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh, and deliver the message I have given you."

Jonah took that instruction and ran with it. Jonah 3: 3 reads "This time Jonah obeyed the Lord’s command and went to Nineveh, a city so large that it took three days to see it all"

Now I thought, how many times has God given me, a second, third, fourth, even 100th chances?I should learn to take up this chances and run with it, like Jonah.

I also learnt the seriousness, and ramifications of being obedience. In this case, Jonah's obedience spared the people of Nineveh from God's wrath. His obedience, made them turn from their evil ways and seek God's mercy. Their actions, which was as a result of Jonah's obedience, softened the heart of God and hence averted his anger.

Now, I am sitting on the train and wondering how many lives I might saved or how many dangers I might have averted for simply being obedient... wow!!! Thank you father!

And finally, as I came to the end of the book of Jonah, I was grinning from ear to ear for I was presented with a glimpse of the many natures of our God; a patient and gentle disciplinarian, the comforter, the loving and merciful father.

He was ever so patient with Jonah, even through his disobedience and anger. He was a gentle disciplinarian, after all he could have taken Jonah's life through the fish and being smitten by the sun, but he didn't, he kept Jonah so he could teach him some lessons of love and forgiveness; His love for us as his children and his forgiveness & mercy toward the people of Nineveh.

So, I sat there on the train, making my way to a business meeting and I whispered a prayer:

God help me to hear your voice

as you whisper deep within my ear

Open my understanding to your instructions

Enable my limbs to move in the direction of your will

Let your glory shine through my obedience for all the world to see

So how about you? What Lessons have you or can you learn from Jonah?

Have a great time perfecting the nature of obedience, whilst making God famous along the way.

Much Love

Remi Banjo

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