Thursday, 31 December 2015

Your Destination Remains The Same; Don’t lengthen The Journey

If you are like me this is a period for stock taking. I like self-examination so I do it rather frequently and I have found that if we are true and sincere with it, we can correct ourselves before we incur the wrath of God. Despite my frequent self-checks through the year, I have found that at times like this, i.e. about the end of the year, I instinctively get into that mode. I am definitely not one of the resolution making people and have always been bad at it but I make decisions and give God all of my weaknesses again believing that every New Year reveals a better me but this is a matter of opinion. So what about you reading this blog; do you feel the same way toward the end of the year or would you rather be sad and/or moody through that period because of the mistakes you made, or goals you did not achieve or even things you truly failed at? I understand calling to mind the failures with a view to taking another look at one’s decision making process just in case it may need some adjusting or complete over haul but it should never be such that leads to depression. History is important to the extent that it helps us refocus more accurately and make better decisions; where it fails to achieve that or makes us depressed instead, then it may not be very relevant. We are encouraged to forget the past as we press into the future. Holding unto the baggage of the past as we enter into the future is like hoping to go forward carrying heavy weights; it just makes going forward much tougher.
 
Philippians 3: 13b “but I focus on this one thing; forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race…”
 
Having lived on earth for a good number of years myself, albeit very few compared to some others whom I respect very much for surviving the dealings of life, I can say with a certainty that there is no avoiding the issues of life no matter how bad or perfect one is. No wonder God prepares us for warfare and counsels that we must be wise and quick to hear and understand. To successfully go through this journey of life as a believer, one must be fully focused on one’s purpose and/or goal which you can only see through God as well as be able to let go of the past easily as one presses forward which requires strength and/or stamina. I have realized that our destination never shifts; the Promised Land did not keep shifting to make the journey longer, the Israelites made it longer themselves. God chose His preferred route for their journey with their best interest at heart but then they made the journey even longer for themselves by the many bad decisions they made. I believe very much that a number of us have made our journey to our Promised Land even longer because of some of our bad decisions. For all of us that fall into this category, it is time to stop making those bad decisions. How long will it be okay to keep making the bad decisions? The truth is Christ is coming soon and even if He doesn’t come soon, the day we go to glory Christ has come for us and much as we would love to live on earth forever nobody knows when their journey on earth will end; so we are running out of time and must advise ourselves – circumspection is required in the way we live.
 
Ephesians 5: 15 – 17 “So be careful how you live. Don’t be live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do.”
 
So please let us be focused on going forward in this New Year. I honestly believe every believer who desires to go forward shall indeed go forward. The word of God to us is “Go forward.” The situations do not change the word of God but God changes situations and causes them to align with His purpose for our lives. That which He spoke concerning us from the beginning is waiting for us. The manifestation point for each blessing that is ours has not changed. God has not made the journey to these blessings longer; they are still where they always were - that same place where you ought to have connected with them in the course of your journey of life but maybe you made a wrong detour somewhere and so may be needing “a course correction” to connect to them; be assured that it is never too late to make that correction. My Pastor always says “it is never too late to start again.” He translates a Yoruba adage to English which says “whenever you wake up or ‘come to yourself’ is your morning”. When ‘your morning comes’, do not be afraid to do what needs to be done. Please do not give up on the word God spoke to you whether it is about your life or a child or even a situation. In this year 2016, let us start to believe God all over again. Let us renew our faith and start our walk with God afresh. You may even want to buy a new bible just as a statement that we are renewing our faith and/or belief. Our God is still on the throne.

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