DO YOU KNOW?

A couple of days ago, a scary event occurred in my life and though I could have written about it on the same day, I took a few days to write this piece because I knew there was way much more in the event than just the occurrence in its self.

I was at the bus stop on a rainy morning waiting to join the staff bus to work. I had called the driver to notify him that I was waiting and had just stood for what seemed like a few seconds and that was all I could remember. One minute I was standing at the bus stop, the next minute I was back in my house drenched in water and sand.

I have read stories of people dying and seeing white light at the end of a long tunnel and all that stuff, but that wasn’t the case here. I collapsed at the bus stop and I have no recollection whatsoever what transpired in that blank out period.

I thank God for my wife, for Tosin, my family everyone who made it easier for us on that day. My God will reward you for me.

As I lay in the MRI machine and was being examined, I couldn’t shake off the thought that if this had been my last day on earth and the Father was examining me to see if I completed the work that He sent me to do, what would be His conclusion?

Apostle Paul’s words to Timothy in 2 Tim 4:6-7 flashed on my mind and stayed there; “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith”.

He knew! He knew that he had done his job and that he did it well. He knew that he had finished his race. He could see his crown of righteousness. He could hear the well done My son. He was handing over to the next generation of guys that will take the world because he knew his time was up. He knew!

But I didn’t know.

Though still in the race, I had strayed off the course. I was pursing business, career and acquisitions and things that actually don’t matter to my Father nor the Kingdom. I was pursuing status and prestige the things that make you stand out in this earth that is passing away. I was pursuing vain knowledge of the systems of the world with no proper grasp of how our Kingdom works. I look around me and I also see men, people even churches pursing the same things. How to master the systems of this world with no idea whatsoever how the Kingdom of our Father works. Forgetting that though we are in this world, we are not of this world.

Apostle Paul was saying that there are things that he knew that were not lawful for him to utter. If you read the things he wrote, you will know the guy knew what he was talking about. He had learnt the ways of the Kingdom.

God had to take my life briefly to shake me into this reality.

You don’t have to die to know that you are not fulfilling purpose. Right now sitting or standing or lying where you are reading this post, you know whether or not you are accomplishing heaven’s mandate for you. YOU KNOW!

Please don’t get me wrong, this is not a cry for evangelism or any of those activities (that may be a part of it if that’s what your purpose here on earth is), this is a call to personal evaluation especially for believers who profess Christ Jesus as their Lord and Master.

I have over the last couple of days experienced a weakness in my body but yet such strength and resolve in my spirit to get it right and get it right I will.

I also learnt that life will go on. People may mourn your passing for a little while, but life will go on. The office will not shut down, at best one minute silence to recognize the dead (during which some people will still be sending emails) but that’s it, life will still go on.

So spend time with the people you love who love you. Reach out to the people who hate you and surprise them. Help someone who has no capacity whatsoever to return the favour. Live life today with no worry about tomorrow because tomorrow is not a guarantee. Actually, sufficient for today are the evil thereof. Know this, your Father in heaven has an idea of ALL the things you will possibly need and has made provisions for them all. All you need do is to ensure that you are walking in the path of His purpose for your life and you will meet His provisions on that path. You only struggle when you are off course.

So I leave you with this question; DO YOU KNOW YOUR PURPOSE ON EARTH AND IF YOU DO, ARE YOU LIVING IT?

#GratefulForLife

Musings

I had an interesting conversation with my mum some nights ago and its plain disturbing the direction things are heading to.

They have a target to double their number (ie attendance per service meeting) within a specific time and the leader in their region was offering financial reward every month for the individual(s) that bring the most number of people to church every month. My mum who is also a regional leader spoke up against this and it almost turned into a war of words.

I share insights with her whenever we have the opportunity to have those our very long talks and its fun sharing Jesus with your mum (some ladies will now come and want to bring their daddy into this discussion now lol). And as the years go by, we are beginning to agree on most of those things I have been pointing out to her about religion and denomination and the rot it is causing in the body of Christ.

From what I gather, some of the pastors have begun to doctor their books in order to meet up with this target. Everyone that came for first service is counted as part of the headcount for second service and combined you have a huge number #ridiculous.

Attendance in house fellowship meetings, eatery hangouts, even people that read the sign posts are tagged as ‘members’ of the church to meet up with ‘target’.

I paused at this point and prayed for the pastors that were involved in this that God will save their souls as they need to repent and come to Christ. But beyond that, my question was; what has God asked them (the pastors) to do? I know that God sets up every commission for a purpose and if you are pastoring people, there has to be something that God has told you is the intention of His heart over that assembly and that’s what you should be complying to.

There is the place for respecting constituted authority, but it has to be in the Lord (if you get what I mean).

Then I remember the passage of scripture in the book of Acts 2:46-47;

 ‘So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the LORD added to the church daily those who were being saved’.

And I am wondering that something is then not right if it is no longer the Lord that adds to His church and people now have to be paid to add people to the numbers. People are heading in the wrong direction fast and they are being led there by people who should know better. The sooner Sons rise up and take their rightful place, the better for the Kingdom.

My conclusion is simple, “Thou shalt have no other god besides Me. Thou shalt worship the Lord Your God, and ONLY Him shalt you serve”. Know this God for yourself lest you be led astray.

Selah!