Yesterdaywas my birthday. And what an incredible day it was. I had been looking forward
to this particular birthday, not so much because it marked any milestone
age, but because this was another one of those few extra-ordinary years
when my birthday would fall on a Good Friday. I mean, how awesome is that? Yesterday
was for me, more than anything else, an incredible reminder that as our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ died and went to the Cross, He had me on His mind
and in His heart. He knew I would be born thousands of years into the future,
and He was mindful enough of me that He willingly bore the pain, the
abuse, the mockery, the crucifixion…. for my sake! He chose to look past my
every future shortcoming, the pain I would cause Him, my future disobedience,
my future failings. He looked past all of those and looked up to eternity. He saw
the ‘me’ that I could be, and loved me enough to give His life up for the
assurance of my eternal salvation.
He
chose me to be His own on that Good Friday so many years ago. On that day, He
validated me! He declared that I was worth it! Halleluyah! That is the same
validation that He gave to you, sis. By paying the price on the Cross of
Calvary, He wrapped each of us that would confess Him as our Lord and Saviour
in His eternal embrace. This is where we must get our confidence and our
identity, and this is my message to you today sis. Celebrate you! The great I
AM thinks the world of YOU! Know this! Bask in it! Let this be your full
confidence and assurance! Halleluyah!
chose me to be His own on that Good Friday so many years ago. On that day, He
validated me! He declared that I was worth it! Halleluyah! That is the same
validation that He gave to you, sis. By paying the price on the Cross of
Calvary, He wrapped each of us that would confess Him as our Lord and Saviour
in His eternal embrace. This is where we must get our confidence and our
identity, and this is my message to you today sis. Celebrate you! The great I
AM thinks the world of YOU! Know this! Bask in it! Let this be your full
confidence and assurance! Halleluyah!
Yesterday
I was bombarded with calls, text messages, emails, and visits, as is expected
by majority of us when we mark our birthdays. My heart is filled
with thanks, love and deep appreciation to every single person who honored me
by reaching out in one form or the other. My staff had kicked the celebrations
off the day before, recognizing my birthday fell on a public holiday. As they
trooped into my office, sang a very hearty ‘Happy Birthday’ and prayed for me,
not even they could have imagined how humbled I was by their outpouring of
love. Then there was the incredible chocolate cake they had delivered to my
home yesterday. Slurrrrpppp! My sista Enife had taken time to prepare and to
send a huge breakfast over to my family and I; her way of ensuring I didn’t spend
my birthday sweating it out in the kitchen. So much love, sis! So much love! And
how do I say thank you to my dear friends and their hubby’s who joined us for
dinner last night? You are each deeply loved and highly appreciated. God sure
reminded me that He is love yesterday. He surely did!
I was bombarded with calls, text messages, emails, and visits, as is expected
by majority of us when we mark our birthdays. My heart is filled
with thanks, love and deep appreciation to every single person who honored me
by reaching out in one form or the other. My staff had kicked the celebrations
off the day before, recognizing my birthday fell on a public holiday. As they
trooped into my office, sang a very hearty ‘Happy Birthday’ and prayed for me,
not even they could have imagined how humbled I was by their outpouring of
love. Then there was the incredible chocolate cake they had delivered to my
home yesterday. Slurrrrpppp! My sista Enife had taken time to prepare and to
send a huge breakfast over to my family and I; her way of ensuring I didn’t spend
my birthday sweating it out in the kitchen. So much love, sis! So much love! And
how do I say thank you to my dear friends and their hubby’s who joined us for
dinner last night? You are each deeply loved and highly appreciated. God sure
reminded me that He is love yesterday. He surely did!
As
I opened my eyes this morning to the sight of the gorgeous balloon floating at
my ceiling (thanks Igie), I quietly reflected on my entire day yesterday and I would
love to share something pretty profound that came to my realization.
I opened my eyes this morning to the sight of the gorgeous balloon floating at
my ceiling (thanks Igie), I quietly reflected on my entire day yesterday and I would
love to share something pretty profound that came to my realization.
First
is that it struck me once again, but perhaps in a deeper way, that there are
millions of people in the world who so inundated with problems, that their birthdays
– if they ever had the opportunity to know when their birthdays are, are of no
significance to them in the scheme of things and in the struggle for survival. Then
there are the millions of people who do know their birthdays but do not have
the wherewithal to begin to celebrate them in any measurable way. I was also
reminded about the fact that there are countless others who are, to all intents
and purposes, so alone in the world that they do not receive as much as a
single call, visit, or Happy Birthday greeting from anyone. Yes sis, there are
many in the world who do not have a friend, sister, brother, or parents to lean
on. That to me is one of the saddest things in the world – to be alone and
truly lonely. Thank God that you and I have Jesus, for in Him and with Him we
are never alone are we?
is that it struck me once again, but perhaps in a deeper way, that there are
millions of people in the world who so inundated with problems, that their birthdays
– if they ever had the opportunity to know when their birthdays are, are of no
significance to them in the scheme of things and in the struggle for survival. Then
there are the millions of people who do know their birthdays but do not have
the wherewithal to begin to celebrate them in any measurable way. I was also
reminded about the fact that there are countless others who are, to all intents
and purposes, so alone in the world that they do not receive as much as a
single call, visit, or Happy Birthday greeting from anyone. Yes sis, there are
many in the world who do not have a friend, sister, brother, or parents to lean
on. That to me is one of the saddest things in the world – to be alone and
truly lonely. Thank God that you and I have Jesus, for in Him and with Him we
are never alone are we?
What
hit me more than anything else however, is the fact that there are many who do
have people around them, who do have the resources to make a splash of their birthdays;
but who are somewhat disconnected from all the love and goodwill around them on
that day ..…because they have truly not learnt to just love themselves – regardless. I realized that the fullness of my joy yesterday, the contentment
in my heart this morning, is because I believe in me. I have come to the place
of self-acceptance. I have come to the place of realization of my self-worth. And
no, I am not being arrogant in any way at all. This is just a truth that struck
me deeply this morning. My fullness of joy comes from the realization and
acceptance of the fact that I am worthy of being celebrated. Not one of my
friends reached out to me because they were forced to. No one forced the
fingers that typed the texts and emails. No one forcefully kept awake anyone of
those who waiting up till midnight so as to send in their birthday greetings at
the turn of the day. No one forced the visits by those who drove down simply to
see me for a few minutes and then continue with their busy days.
hit me more than anything else however, is the fact that there are many who do
have people around them, who do have the resources to make a splash of their birthdays;
but who are somewhat disconnected from all the love and goodwill around them on
that day ..…because they have truly not learnt to just love themselves – regardless. I realized that the fullness of my joy yesterday, the contentment
in my heart this morning, is because I believe in me. I have come to the place
of self-acceptance. I have come to the place of realization of my self-worth. And
no, I am not being arrogant in any way at all. This is just a truth that struck
me deeply this morning. My fullness of joy comes from the realization and
acceptance of the fact that I am worthy of being celebrated. Not one of my
friends reached out to me because they were forced to. No one forced the
fingers that typed the texts and emails. No one forcefully kept awake anyone of
those who waiting up till midnight so as to send in their birthday greetings at
the turn of the day. No one forced the visits by those who drove down simply to
see me for a few minutes and then continue with their busy days.
No
sis! For as many as poured of their love, time and resources into making my day
great yesterday, they each did so willingly and freely …because they believe
that I – as imperfect and as fallible as I am, am worth it. And the only reason
I am able to receive all this – fully confident that it is all from the heart,
is because I believe I am worth it; and because I choose to celebrate myself. If you haven’t
read my post ‘I kinda like me’,
please go look it up in my blog archives. It’s a lesson in loving and
appreciating yourself – warts, weight and all.
sis! For as many as poured of their love, time and resources into making my day
great yesterday, they each did so willingly and freely …because they believe
that I – as imperfect and as fallible as I am, am worth it. And the only reason
I am able to receive all this – fully confident that it is all from the heart,
is because I believe I am worth it; and because I choose to celebrate myself. If you haven’t
read my post ‘I kinda like me’,
please go look it up in my blog archives. It’s a lesson in loving and
appreciating yourself – warts, weight and all.
Hmmm!
I can almost hear the wheels turning in your head – asking if this is this
pride or arrogance. But here is the thing sis… I celebrate myself not because I
am ‘all that’, but because God clearly believes that I am worth celebrating and
yesterday He reaffirmed this. I spent too many years being unsure; insecure; always
wondering; constantly seeking the underlying motives to everything. I spent too
many years being focused on my shortcomings, on what I was not, and on what the
enemy had convinced me that I couldn’t do, have or become. I spent too many
years constantly replaying the voices from past experiences that reminded me of
my every sin, voices that tried to convince me that God couldn’t possibly love
someone like me. I spent too many years struggling with being different – in my
choices, my thinking and perspectives. I spent too many years struggling with
the ‘aura’ of me; trying so hard to fit into spaces and groups that I now know I
clearly wasn’t designed to be in; feeling inferior in the midst of near perfect
strangers; struggling with and against the essence of who I was, not realizing that
those were the hallmarks of distinction that God has put in me. I could go on,
but I think you might be able to recognize yourself in this space as well.
I can almost hear the wheels turning in your head – asking if this is this
pride or arrogance. But here is the thing sis… I celebrate myself not because I
am ‘all that’, but because God clearly believes that I am worth celebrating and
yesterday He reaffirmed this. I spent too many years being unsure; insecure; always
wondering; constantly seeking the underlying motives to everything. I spent too
many years being focused on my shortcomings, on what I was not, and on what the
enemy had convinced me that I couldn’t do, have or become. I spent too many
years constantly replaying the voices from past experiences that reminded me of
my every sin, voices that tried to convince me that God couldn’t possibly love
someone like me. I spent too many years struggling with being different – in my
choices, my thinking and perspectives. I spent too many years struggling with
the ‘aura’ of me; trying so hard to fit into spaces and groups that I now know I
clearly wasn’t designed to be in; feeling inferior in the midst of near perfect
strangers; struggling with and against the essence of who I was, not realizing that
those were the hallmarks of distinction that God has put in me. I could go on,
but I think you might be able to recognize yourself in this space as well.
I
was listening to John Bevere preaching recently and he made a comment about how
God never intended that we begin to buy up real estate and dwell in the place
of our problems/challenges/ insecurities, etc. I think this very aptly
describes what many of us do with ourselves. As life buffets us with one bad experience
or the other; as people speak negativity into our hearts; as we compare
ourselves with the externalities we see in others; we slowly buy up prime property
in the lands of insignificance and inferiority complexes. But guess what sis? I
sold my plots, penthouse and all, many years ago when I came to realize that
God loves me just as I am and that’s exactly what you need to do too. Today, I see
God’s love for me so clearly in the things He does for me; and more so as times
like yesterday, I see His love in the people He put around me – people who love
and believe in me! They know I am far from perfect, but they love the ‘me’
that I am and the ‘me’ that I am evolving to be. They are giving of themselves,
pouring their time, love and resources into my life because my Father sees fit
to use them as instruments of His live and validation in my life.
was listening to John Bevere preaching recently and he made a comment about how
God never intended that we begin to buy up real estate and dwell in the place
of our problems/challenges/ insecurities, etc. I think this very aptly
describes what many of us do with ourselves. As life buffets us with one bad experience
or the other; as people speak negativity into our hearts; as we compare
ourselves with the externalities we see in others; we slowly buy up prime property
in the lands of insignificance and inferiority complexes. But guess what sis? I
sold my plots, penthouse and all, many years ago when I came to realize that
God loves me just as I am and that’s exactly what you need to do too. Today, I see
God’s love for me so clearly in the things He does for me; and more so as times
like yesterday, I see His love in the people He put around me – people who love
and believe in me! They know I am far from perfect, but they love the ‘me’
that I am and the ‘me’ that I am evolving to be. They are giving of themselves,
pouring their time, love and resources into my life because my Father sees fit
to use them as instruments of His live and validation in my life.
God’sinvestment in you and I is because He really and truly loves us, sis. He loves
each of us His children so totally and so unconditionally. He celebrates us! And
He is in us! Why then would we do any less than celebrate ourselves? Take your
eyes off all that you are not this morning, sis. Take your eyes off all that
you have failed to achieve. Take your eyes off all that you don’t have. Take your
eyes off all that you don’t think you can achieve. Take your eyes off the
people who are not/no longer in your life. Set your eyes on the Hill. Look up
to Jesus who sees YOU as awesome; Who counted you as being worthy of the Cross.
This is not a pride issue, sis. This is about being assured enough in your
eternal salvation that you don’t need anyone else to validate you…God already
took care of that.
When
you come to this place, you are more readily able to receive the love that
those around you share; you are so much more at peace; you are so much more
able to walk purposefully, evolving into the greatness that is packed inside of
you. Celebrate you daily, my sister. It doesn’t have to be your birthday. You don’t
even need anyone around to speak words of celebration or affirmation to you. Affirm yourself! Celebrate yourself just where you are! Celebrate
the YOU that God Himself found fit to love, to save, and to dwell in. Let your
peace and self-confidence come from within. You are awesome just like that sis.
Uniquely Woman’s definition of who are….an Awesome Work-in-Progress. Walk assuredly
in this truth!
you come to this place, you are more readily able to receive the love that
those around you share; you are so much more at peace; you are so much more
able to walk purposefully, evolving into the greatness that is packed inside of
you. Celebrate you daily, my sister. It doesn’t have to be your birthday. You don’t
even need anyone around to speak words of celebration or affirmation to you. Affirm yourself! Celebrate yourself just where you are! Celebrate
the YOU that God Himself found fit to love, to save, and to dwell in. Let your
peace and self-confidence come from within. You are awesome just like that sis.
Uniquely Woman’s definition of who are….an Awesome Work-in-Progress. Walk assuredly
in this truth!
Be
blessed sis….for you surely are!
blessed sis….for you surely are!
Beautiful! Such an encouraging piece to women everywhere. Know who you are, accept who you are and then you can make the changes you need/want to. It is only when we truly know who we are and that we are loved that change is a much kinder process.
A healthy appreciation of self that stems from a deep understanding of who we are in Christ is a must have for any Christian. For without it, the devil and people will make mince meant of us using our past and all other negative thoughts and emotions like the stuff you mentioned above. This is so on point for this season cos like I said in my blog on Good Friday too (seems we were on the same frequency), it was LOVE, not nails, that kept God on the Cross. It is being able to comprehend and fully bask in this amazing love that we are truly free. For thanks to God, no matter what anyone or anything says, as L'Oreal would say, we are truly worth it!
Happy Birthday Audrey! Happy Birthday!!! God continue to breath over and into you as you continue being his arms and feet in this world of ours.
Happy birthday, once again. You're lovely in and out. You are not perfect but you are who the LORD our God wants you to be. And that's all you should be. Blessings.