Brexit!
That’s the word on the lips of the world now. And rightly
so! Its ramifications for the global economy are yet to begin to play out
fully, but they are bad enough already. Indeed, I was saying to a friend
yesterday that it’s all a bit much – by which I meant that if you are paying
attention to what is going on in the world, too many things of quantum
significance are happening at the same time. From natural disasters, to terrorism,
to the crash in oil prices, to this… to that, and now to Brexit! The question
on everyone’s minds now ought to be ‘what next?’ …for surely, many ‘what next’
situations are yet up ahead. These are the end time’s people! And it is
irrelevant if the end times last ten years or a hundred. In the scheme of
things and from the eternity perspective, it’s irrelevant. All that matters is
that we are prepared for the end.
so! Its ramifications for the global economy are yet to begin to play out
fully, but they are bad enough already. Indeed, I was saying to a friend
yesterday that it’s all a bit much – by which I meant that if you are paying
attention to what is going on in the world, too many things of quantum
significance are happening at the same time. From natural disasters, to terrorism,
to the crash in oil prices, to this… to that, and now to Brexit! The question
on everyone’s minds now ought to be ‘what next?’ …for surely, many ‘what next’
situations are yet up ahead. These are the end time’s people! And it is
irrelevant if the end times last ten years or a hundred. In the scheme of
things and from the eternity perspective, it’s irrelevant. All that matters is
that we are prepared for the end.
I am not about to launch into an economic expose about the
Brexit debacle, but it provides the Launchpad from which I will be sharing with
you today. Actually, what got me thinking about Brexit was the fact that I find
myself at the airport, all checked in, a whole two hours too early for a local
flight. Thankfully my children whom I am travelling with both came with their
laptops and so beyond the initial ‘So why
did you make us leave so early, mum?’ I have not heard a peep out of them
so far, lol. What has my arriving early
got to do with Brexit? I will explain. Just give me a couple of minutes to
laugh at myself again, lol.
Brexit debacle, but it provides the Launchpad from which I will be sharing with
you today. Actually, what got me thinking about Brexit was the fact that I find
myself at the airport, all checked in, a whole two hours too early for a local
flight. Thankfully my children whom I am travelling with both came with their
laptops and so beyond the initial ‘So why
did you make us leave so early, mum?’ I have not heard a peep out of them
so far, lol. What has my arriving early
got to do with Brexit? I will explain. Just give me a couple of minutes to
laugh at myself again, lol.
Any way…. I was supposed to have been on the 7am flight this
morning but somehow or the other, by the time I gave my secretary the go-ahead
to confirm the tickets, that flight was fully booked so we had to reschedule. I
was very intent on not finding myself spending three hours in the proverbial
Friday rush hour traffic however, so I made up my mind to leave really early.
What I didn’t think through was what would happen if my traffic projections
didn’t hold. So I harassed my children into packing and left home
this morning with very stern warnings about their making sure they were ready
to leave the minute the driver arrived to pick them up. Darling children that
they are, they complied (like they had a choice, lol).
morning but somehow or the other, by the time I gave my secretary the go-ahead
to confirm the tickets, that flight was fully booked so we had to reschedule. I
was very intent on not finding myself spending three hours in the proverbial
Friday rush hour traffic however, so I made up my mind to leave really early.
What I didn’t think through was what would happen if my traffic projections
didn’t hold. So I harassed my children into packing and left home
this morning with very stern warnings about their making sure they were ready
to leave the minute the driver arrived to pick them up. Darling children that
they are, they complied (like they had a choice, lol).
They were in my office at 1pm prompt, but it turned out that
the lady making the dress my daughter would wear at the wedding we were
travelling for arrived at the house after they had departed. We therefore still
had to wait for her to get to my office. I remember the strange look she gave me when I repeated emphatically that she must arrive before noon. That was probably the Holy Spirit asking me what I was thinking, lol. Well, much as I had told her the children would
leave home at noon, I’m guessing she had it figured that this was too early
for people trying to catch a local 5pm flight and so rather arrived at 1pm. Well, we finally left for the airport at about 1.40pm. And what do you know? The road was so free
that it might as well have been a very early Saturday morning. We arrived at
the airport at 2.40pm and despite my best efforts to drag my feet, the check in
counter was free and we were all done and settled in the waiting room at 3pm.
Sigh! Where am I going with all this? Please be patient with me, my friend.
the lady making the dress my daughter would wear at the wedding we were
travelling for arrived at the house after they had departed. We therefore still
had to wait for her to get to my office. I remember the strange look she gave me when I repeated emphatically that she must arrive before noon. That was probably the Holy Spirit asking me what I was thinking, lol. Well, much as I had told her the children would
leave home at noon, I’m guessing she had it figured that this was too early
for people trying to catch a local 5pm flight and so rather arrived at 1pm. Well, we finally left for the airport at about 1.40pm. And what do you know? The road was so free
that it might as well have been a very early Saturday morning. We arrived at
the airport at 2.40pm and despite my best efforts to drag my feet, the check in
counter was free and we were all done and settled in the waiting room at 3pm.
Sigh! Where am I going with all this? Please be patient with me, my friend.
As I sat for the first few minutes trying to figure how best
to make use of time which I knew would NOT pass very quickly if all I did was
count the minutes, the British Prime Minister David Cameron came to mind. I
burst out laughing as the popular cliché,
‘Be careful what you wish for, because you might just get it’ also then
came to my mind. Are you familiar with this expression, sis?
to make use of time which I knew would NOT pass very quickly if all I did was
count the minutes, the British Prime Minister David Cameron came to mind. I
burst out laughing as the popular cliché,
‘Be careful what you wish for, because you might just get it’ also then
came to my mind. Are you familiar with this expression, sis?
We all know, as he readily admitted, that PM Cameron didn’t
wish for or conceive that Brexit would go through. Indeed he was so sure it
wouldn’t that he clearly didn’t make room for what the implications of an ‘exit’
vote would be. If he did, he might quietly have gone on with the business of
the day for yet a while longer, or perhaps he would have adopted a different
engagement level and strategy that would have shifted the vote in favor of a
‘stay’. But like I said, this is not about global politicking and economics.
It’s just that we have to sometimes question the things we press forward
towards, because when we do get them, there are oftentimes many other unforeseen
implications and/or complications that we then have to deal with or live with.
The British PM finds himself having to resign his position…which was not part
of the plan; and yours truly… for all my unwarranted hustle and bustle, now
find myself with seemingly unending time to kill in an airport waiting lounge.
And you know what? As VIP as the lounge I am currently sitting in is or may
get, an airport lounge is exactly ultimately just a lounge and not the most
comfortable place to be. Thankfully though, the Lord has helped me redeem this
time, and rather used is to give me a message for you and I, sis. Praise the
Lord!
wish for or conceive that Brexit would go through. Indeed he was so sure it
wouldn’t that he clearly didn’t make room for what the implications of an ‘exit’
vote would be. If he did, he might quietly have gone on with the business of
the day for yet a while longer, or perhaps he would have adopted a different
engagement level and strategy that would have shifted the vote in favor of a
‘stay’. But like I said, this is not about global politicking and economics.
It’s just that we have to sometimes question the things we press forward
towards, because when we do get them, there are oftentimes many other unforeseen
implications and/or complications that we then have to deal with or live with.
The British PM finds himself having to resign his position…which was not part
of the plan; and yours truly… for all my unwarranted hustle and bustle, now
find myself with seemingly unending time to kill in an airport waiting lounge.
And you know what? As VIP as the lounge I am currently sitting in is or may
get, an airport lounge is exactly ultimately just a lounge and not the most
comfortable place to be. Thankfully though, the Lord has helped me redeem this
time, and rather used is to give me a message for you and I, sis. Praise the
Lord!
Ask yourself a few questions, sis. What are you asking for
that is consuming your time, thoughts, prayer life – without a corresponding
question to God as to whether that is His will for you? What are you
desperately pressing forward with, despite signs and counsels for you to ease
up a bit? What are you seriously trying to orchestrate because it seems to fit
into some picture of an outcome that you desire for yourself? What are you
putting everyone around you under pressure for because you have already framed
what the outcome you think you need or desire is?
that is consuming your time, thoughts, prayer life – without a corresponding
question to God as to whether that is His will for you? What are you
desperately pressing forward with, despite signs and counsels for you to ease
up a bit? What are you seriously trying to orchestrate because it seems to fit
into some picture of an outcome that you desire for yourself? What are you
putting everyone around you under pressure for because you have already framed
what the outcome you think you need or desire is?
Do you know what happened in my case? Well, apparently there
are some major church conventions happening this weekend all along the same
axes on the major expressway into and out of Lagos. As a result, the Federal
Road Safety Commission (FRSC) had been proactively sending out bulletins,
emails, tweets, jingles, etc advising people to take the alternative routes
which they also very graciously proposed in order to minimize the anticipated
traffic gridlocks. And apparently, everyone – save for myself, had seen those
announcements. So as I was busy moving my earth to make sure I didn’t get stuck
in traffic, they had gone ahead to prime the people who would have constituted
my traffic, to have them take alternative routes.
are some major church conventions happening this weekend all along the same
axes on the major expressway into and out of Lagos. As a result, the Federal
Road Safety Commission (FRSC) had been proactively sending out bulletins,
emails, tweets, jingles, etc advising people to take the alternative routes
which they also very graciously proposed in order to minimize the anticipated
traffic gridlocks. And apparently, everyone – save for myself, had seen those
announcements. So as I was busy moving my earth to make sure I didn’t get stuck
in traffic, they had gone ahead to prime the people who would have constituted
my traffic, to have them take alternative routes.
Methinks if I had paid more attention to the prompting’s of
the Holy Spirit, I might not have been in such a hurry. And how like God the
actions of the FRSC were. I mean, think about it sis… isn’t this how God goes
ahead to make a way for us where there seems to be no way? Isn’t this how, when
we are busy doing our best to help Him get the results we desire, He is busy
working behind the scenes and around us, trying to resolve the things we think
are in our way. Isn’t this like Him to have thought out the things that are for
our good well ahead of us?…to have caused people to change their plans to
accommodate what His ultimate purpose for us is? Isn’t it like our amazing
father to go ahead of us and make crooked path straights? But when, as I was,
we are so focused on smoothening those paths ourselves, we miss the signs that
He has already finished what we are trying to start, don’t we sis?
the Holy Spirit, I might not have been in such a hurry. And how like God the
actions of the FRSC were. I mean, think about it sis… isn’t this how God goes
ahead to make a way for us where there seems to be no way? Isn’t this how, when
we are busy doing our best to help Him get the results we desire, He is busy
working behind the scenes and around us, trying to resolve the things we think
are in our way. Isn’t this like Him to have thought out the things that are for
our good well ahead of us?…to have caused people to change their plans to
accommodate what His ultimate purpose for us is? Isn’t it like our amazing
father to go ahead of us and make crooked path straights? But when, as I was,
we are so focused on smoothening those paths ourselves, we miss the signs that
He has already finished what we are trying to start, don’t we sis?
Hmm!
I can almost see the wheels turning in your head sis. And I
can so relate. You see, among the best of us, we do this every so often – my
very self included (Just so this doesn’t sound like a first for me. Far from
it, lol). The best part however – and this is what I want to leave you with, is
that the very self-same loving and gracious Father God that we serve does not
condemn us when we run ahead of Him. He just smiles and shakes His head and
immediately instigates a course-redirect. Yes sis, He knows how to extract the
treasure in the muck. Ever before we come to the place of acknowledging that we
miscalculated, He begins to orchestrate things such as to still bring glory to
Him – if we would hear, and if we would yield. And I can say this comfortably and
confidently because even in my over-extended airport wait, He dropped an
expression in my spirit that then had me pull out my laptop and begin this
post, right?
can so relate. You see, among the best of us, we do this every so often – my
very self included (Just so this doesn’t sound like a first for me. Far from
it, lol). The best part however – and this is what I want to leave you with, is
that the very self-same loving and gracious Father God that we serve does not
condemn us when we run ahead of Him. He just smiles and shakes His head and
immediately instigates a course-redirect. Yes sis, He knows how to extract the
treasure in the muck. Ever before we come to the place of acknowledging that we
miscalculated, He begins to orchestrate things such as to still bring glory to
Him – if we would hear, and if we would yield. And I can say this comfortably and
confidently because even in my over-extended airport wait, He dropped an
expression in my spirit that then had me pull out my laptop and begin this
post, right?
So sis, this is God using what was my miscalculation to
redirect me to one of my assignments that I have otherwise allowed busyness to
make me neglect. And I believe I haven’t just written an article for writing
sake. No! What has happened is that I have yielded myself to allow the Holy
Spirit minister through me to me, and to you. But as you read, there is a next
step sis. What God now needs you and I to do is to introspect, sis. God needs
you and I to reflect on our lives and the things which we currently are
allowing to constitute pressure points in our lives. He is asking that we
reconsider the things we are asking, praying, believing, and over-extending
for; and He is reminding us that He is in control and will work things out in
His own time and way. He is demanding that we reexamine where we are unduly
exerting pressure on ourselves, for we might just get what we are asking
for…but if those things don’t fit into His own picture, we will end up in
regret.
redirect me to one of my assignments that I have otherwise allowed busyness to
make me neglect. And I believe I haven’t just written an article for writing
sake. No! What has happened is that I have yielded myself to allow the Holy
Spirit minister through me to me, and to you. But as you read, there is a next
step sis. What God now needs you and I to do is to introspect, sis. God needs
you and I to reflect on our lives and the things which we currently are
allowing to constitute pressure points in our lives. He is asking that we
reconsider the things we are asking, praying, believing, and over-extending
for; and He is reminding us that He is in control and will work things out in
His own time and way. He is demanding that we reexamine where we are unduly
exerting pressure on ourselves, for we might just get what we are asking
for…but if those things don’t fit into His own picture, we will end up in
regret.
Sis, He is however also asking that we be at peace
concerning any mistakes we may have made as a result of our anxieties, and He
is assuring us that He is more than able to bring beauty out of the ashes of
our mistakes. But He wants us to grow sis, so He is asking for an increased
measure of intentionality about letting Him captain the ship that is our daily
lives, and steer us aright continually. He is reminding us to get up each time
we fall sis, for His everlasting arms are ever around us, ready to catch, to
help, and to uphold us.
concerning any mistakes we may have made as a result of our anxieties, and He
is assuring us that He is more than able to bring beauty out of the ashes of
our mistakes. But He wants us to grow sis, so He is asking for an increased
measure of intentionality about letting Him captain the ship that is our daily
lives, and steer us aright continually. He is reminding us to get up each time
we fall sis, for His everlasting arms are ever around us, ready to catch, to
help, and to uphold us.
More than anything else, He is saying that the only thing we
need to press into is Him. He is saying that as long as we are pressing towards His presence, seeking His face, His will, His way and His glory… then it means
our hearts are asking for the right things. And once we are asking for the
right things, we will get them sis. As long as our every effort is diligently
directed towards entering His rest and giving Him glory, we may just….no,
scratch that… we will surely get these. That is His word isn’t it, ‘Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His
righteousness and every other things will be added unto you’? It sure is
sis. It sure is.
need to press into is Him. He is saying that as long as we are pressing towards His presence, seeking His face, His will, His way and His glory… then it means
our hearts are asking for the right things. And once we are asking for the
right things, we will get them sis. As long as our every effort is diligently
directed towards entering His rest and giving Him glory, we may just….no,
scratch that… we will surely get these. That is His word isn’t it, ‘Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His
righteousness and every other things will be added unto you’? It sure is
sis. It sure is.
Personally, I am grateful to God for loving me enough to
constantly be my Help and Guide. His same help and loving guidance is always
and ever yours too sis. It is with this confidence that I assure you that God
will never give up on you, even as He never gives up on me. There is no need to
be careful what you pray for when you pray for more of God – more of His
presence, more of His will, more of His way, more of His glory. In the end, we
will get it sis… that heavenly crown of glory for all eternity? We will get it
in Jesus name, amen.
constantly be my Help and Guide. His same help and loving guidance is always
and ever yours too sis. It is with this confidence that I assure you that God
will never give up on you, even as He never gives up on me. There is no need to
be careful what you pray for when you pray for more of God – more of His
presence, more of His will, more of His way, more of His glory. In the end, we
will get it sis… that heavenly crown of glory for all eternity? We will get it
in Jesus name, amen.
Be blessed sis…. For you surely are!
I just read your post via email and I'm so glad that I subscribed. You truly spoke to my spirit today. I see myself all up in your writing. But you have inspired me to continue to trust God and allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide me. Be blessed because you are a blessing.
A word in season!