Honour Your Commitments

On Saturday, August 24^th, my husband woke me up and announced to me that the page-views on the blog passed the 10,000 mark overnight. My jaws literally dropped as I shouted, "Hallelujah!"

In less than two years of blogging, I've had visitors from almost 100 countries. From the statics, I could see how often visitors come to the blog and what they are reading. As my husband later wrote to me; "Can you imagine a few years ago that you will be sitting in a (little) corner in Geneva (from my dining table and hospital room to be precise), with all the limitations of not being able to move about freely the way you desired, that you will reach people from all walks of life, from all the continents of the world…" This is simply God's handiwork and it is marvelous in our sight. I give Him the glory.

I thank all of you who visit here and who have made my blogging experience an exciting one. I pray that your experience here will continue to be enriching and a blessing to you as it has been a blessing for me to share this space with you. I made a commitment to share with you weekly. With the exception of the times that I have been seriously indisposed, God has given me the grace and strength to keep to this commitment.

God Keeps His Promises:

Not one of all the LORD's good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled (Josh 21:45, 23:14 NIV), exactly, precisely, and punctually.  All his promises, no matter how many, in Christ are yea and amen (1Cor 1:20). That is why we can depend on Him and that is what gives us hope through daily life’s challenges. We know He will do what He says He will do. Indeed, there is no one like our covenant keeping God. We can always rely on God and trust Him to keep His commitment to us.

As children of a covenant keeping God and beneficiaries of His unfailing love, grace and mercy, to what extent do we reflect this character trait in our day-to-day lives in general and in our relationships in particular? Are you a faithful promise keeper? God expects us to keep every promise and vow we make (Numbers 30:2, Eccl. 5:4-5 and Ps. 89:34).

Marriage - A Test of Commitment:

Marriage is an example of one of the areas where we are called to honour our commitment. It is good to recall once in a while what we promised before God and our host of families and friends on our wedding day. The promise you made to each other is a commitment for life. The passage of time does not change or erase this solemn vow.

My parents-in-law, Mr & Mrs Sylvester and Maria Olumese (Papa and Mama as I fondly call them) celebrated their 50^th wedding anniversary on August 24^th, 2013. In the over 23 years since I have known them, I have observed them show utmost respect to one another. So many times I hear Papa say: "Hold on for my wife", "Talk to my wife", "My wife is here"…. It is always incredible to hear him refer to his wife with such tenderness.

Not once in all the years I have known them have I heard them argue or disagree openly in front of the children. And I am sure they do have disagreements. Mama has displayed a deep commitment to taking care of all of us, her daughters and daughters-in-law, when we have our babies. She spends one month with us, taking care of us and our home. I tell you, it is a blissful one month post-delivery. You don’t want her to leave, but after one month, she is going home to her husband, saying "he is alone at home with the dogs."

I give praise to God for blessing my life with such exemplary couple who continue to hold fast to their commitment to one another 50 years after exchanging their vows of faithfulness and fidelity. I bless God for them.

God remains faithful in all seasons and through all seasons. We can count on God’s faithfulness in every season we go through. His faithfulness endures to all generations, it never ceases, and it never fails. His faithfulness is an essential and integral part of Who He is (Ps 89:1, 8).

The vows we share on our wedding day are a reflection of the commitment we make to each other: "to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part".

The vows covers all life's changing situations, it dictates remaining committed to one another through all the changing seasons of life, good times and bad times. There is usually no difficulty in loving and staying together in good times, the challenge comes during the bad times, during the storm, when trust breaks down and when one fails the other. This is when the true strength of our commitment to our vows is tested.

I am sure that Papa and Mama in the 50 years of their marriage have been visited by the different seasons reflected in their wedding vows and today, we can testify that they have remained committed to each other through these changing seasons.

Let me come closer home and share a little about my dear husband:

If my husband is well and in town, you can be sure that he will be at the choir practice on Saturday. I have learnt over the years not to plan any event that does not include the choir members on a Saturday afternoon. Until about a year ago, when I had to plead that choir members should have one Saturday a month to spend with their families, you can be sure to find me alone on Saturday evenings, especially when both of my sons were also members of the choir. Such has been the degree of  the commitment of this my passionate bass guitarist to the church choir!

Watching him from my back corner seat on Sunday mornings playing his heart out on the bass guitar always touch my heart and assures me of his deep commitment to serving the Lord with the gift God has blessed him with.

Another area where my husband has displayed a deep level of commitment is in our marriage. I can truly tell you that we have been visited with seasons of for better and for worse, we have known seasons of in sickness and in health and seasons of for richer and for poorer in the 21+ years of our marriage. I struggled with my health for twenty out of these twenty-one years,

My husband faithfully stood by me through the rough seasons of sickness and ill-health to the extent that, one day in the midst of a very difficult and challenging period, I had to ask him if he ever regretted marrying me. The look he gave me before he responded with a resounding; NO, suggested that I needed to have my head examined! I am truly blessed to have this amazing man as my husband!

Commitment in the Marketplace:

What a massive difference it would make if every Bible-believing Christian will honour their commitment in their workplace or in the market place.

• Imagine we keep our promise to deliver what we say we would when we say we would.
• Imagine we give our best to be productive both in quality and quantity, irrespective of the environment where we work or whether we are acknowledged or not.
• Imagine that we honour the commitment we made when we signed our contracts and commit to being conscientious and hardworking.

We will stand out as people with exemplary work ethics who honours God in their work by keeping their promises. For a while, my husband worked in a very toxic and discouraging work environment. He is not a big story teller but what he shared when he came back home was heart-rending. He endured this situation for almost two years. The boys and I gave him all the support and encouragement we could muster. Above all, we prayed constantly for him. He made a choice to continue to give his best to his work irrespective of the injustice being done him.

Earlier this month, one of his projects, a publication that was strongly opposed made the front page in the organization's website and is now a reference point. Each time, I look back to those dark days, I just simply bless God for giving him the grace and the strength to hold true to his commitment to work as unto God in his workplace despite the opposition.

Are you a faithful promise keeper who honours his/her commitment in every sphere of life where God has given you influence? This is a call for you to examine the degree to which you are committed to the vows you made on your wedding day and the degree to which you are maintaining a godly work ethics at the workplace or in the marketplace.

How well are you representing God in your relationships at home, at work and in the marketplace? Remember that you are standing as God's representative in every area of influence God has given you.

In writing this blog post, I have used excerpts from three articles I wrote earlier:

 - Promise Keepers, July 15^th, 2011

 - Faithful Through The Seasons, August 5^th, 2011

 - Marriage is a Covenant (2), Sept 2^nd, 2011

It was illuminating and encouraging to read these articles over again. I think they are worth sharing again.

I pray that the Lord will illuminate your understanding as you meditate on the core message of this article. Will you determine to recommit to being men and women of integrity, who honour their commitments? God bless you richly.

Hold On To The Faith

I know a number of Christians who went home to be with the Lord this year.

The first person is Pastor Philip K. I wrote about him and the legacy he left behind in - A Legacy Of A Good Testimony. He went home to be with the Lord in February after a brief illness, and after fulfilling a long-term desire to hold a crusade in the Philippines. Many testified of how his life touched their lives for good.

The second person was my dear friend of almost 30 years, Funmi Adewole nee Salami. We fondly called her Sally. She was afflicted with colon cancer for about six months, and was called home to heaven on April 17^th. I was in coma at this time and only learnt about her going home two months later. My family and friends kept the news from me.  Sally touched lives while she was here and she is sorely missed. I will share more about her later on in this post.

Then in June, we heard of the home-call of Dr. Tayo Adeyemi, Pastor of the New Wine Church, Woolwich, UK. I knew Pastor Adeyemi at the UCH Christian Fellowship in Ibadan, Nigeria. We have a number of mutual friends. From what I learnt about him, he called many to pursue excellence and high standards in all their endeavours and exemplified this. He impacted lives through service to the people in his local community and in other countries.

A couple of months ago, our dear Sister in the Lord asked my husband and I to pray along with her for her friend who was very ill and had been evacuated from Abuja to South Africa. We prayed. Last Sunday, we learnt that Sis. Phebean went home to be with the Lord on Saturday night. Our Sister testified that Sis. Phebean held on to her faith until the end.

Olorun mi, gba adura mi (My God, hear my prayer)
When you take all the ones we love
We’ll carry on and it won’t be long
I pray to be strong
Olorun mi, gba adura mi (My God, hear my prayer)

Lyrics of  Olorun Mi by Tiwa Savage

All these who have gone on before us, it caused our hearts to grief, then I realize that it could have been me. But God kept me living on. In His infinite unsearchable wisdom, and by His act of sovereign will, He chooses to call some home and He also choose to keep others living on irrespective of the severity of their afflictions and suffering. He does this for a purpose and a reason.

Some commonalities among these four mentioned above:

·        They knew Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour

·        They held on to the faith until the end. They did not give up on God despite the severity of what they suffered.

·        They left behind a legacy, having touched lives of many for good.

They have gone ahead of us to join the cloud of witnesses in heavenly places, and are cheering us on in our own race here on earth. Having received the goal of their faith, which is the salvation of their soul, they could be at peace and full of joy at their home call.

Their lives amplified one truth for me and that is, our residence here on earth is temporary, whether short or long, at God's appointed time, we will leave this world for our eternal home. It is written, if only in this world we have a hope, then we are of all men, most miserable.

Ijoba orun, l'ere onigbagbo o (2ce). (Heaven is the believer's reward)
Ma je'n ku'na Baba, mu mi de'le o.  (Father, don't let me miss it, Lead me home)
Ki n ma ku s'ajo, bii eefin. (That I would not die like smoke in its path)
Mu mi de'le. (Lead me home)
Aye l'oja, orun n'ile.  (The earth is just a passing through, Heaven is home)
Mu mi de'le. (Lead me home)

Lyrics of "Ijoba Orun / Mu mi de'le" by Lara George

Our Faith And Hope Are In God:

Each day brings us closer to that final day. We must therefore live each day circumspectly, holding fast and firmly to the confession of our faith without wavering or swerving. What then is faith? According to Roy Lessin: "Faith is seeing the sunshine of God's face when there are dark clouds around" (meetmeatthemeadows.com). Such faith is based on the Word of God.

We are filled with irrepressible and triumphant joy because we love God and we believe in Him though we have not seen Him (1Pet. 1:8). Imagine what greater joy shall fill our hearts when we see Him face to face. Just as gold that is perishable is tested, the genuineness of our faith, which is far more precious than gold, will be tested by fire (1Pet. 1:7).

"God tests us because He wants to establish our value" - Derek Prince

As Christians, we are assured that we have a living hope. Our hope must be set wholly and firmly on the grace to be bestowed on us when Jesus Christ is revealed (1Pet 1:13).

                                                               

The Legacy Of a Godly Woman - Funmilayo Adewole (Sally):

I met Sally at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria in 1983. We later became part of the same circle of friends after I gave my life to Christ in 1984 and started attending the Ibadan Varsity Christian Union Fellowship.

Sally got married to Bro Bayo (as we called him then) in 1990 and they later moved to Chicago in US. They became Pastors of the RCCG Jesus House, Chicago until her death in April. She left behind an aged mother and three children.

I listened to her last sermon on a YouTube video made by her church media to celebrate her life. It was in September 2012, just before she was diagnosed to have colon cancer. It was moving and illuminating. It was a preparation for her home-going. Here are some snippets:

"Have faith towards God."

"It is appointed for man once to die, then after that judgment."

"There will be a rising from the dead. There will be a resurrection of the dead."

"I hope you are assured that there is life after death"

Funmi imparted lives in many ways. She was an exemplary wife and mother, an educator, a mentor and an encourager to name a few. She believed strongly in the institution of marriage and counseled many. My Best Lady who was very close to her told me that she was at peace at the end of her life. She had the assurance of eternal life in Jesus Christ, who she served faithfully since she got born again at the age of 14 years. She left behind a legacy of love and zeal for God.

"Are you  going to leave behind a legacy

that will continue to inspire lives after you are gone?"

Watch this video made by Femi Usikalu to celebrate Funmi's life - The Legacy Of A Woman

Do know this one thing for sure - THERE IS LIFE AFTER DEATH. There is coming a glorious day when we will exchange this physical body that is subject to disease, pain and affliction for a glorious incorruptible body.

Therefore, friends, we need to make assurance doubly sure that we hold on to the faith and hope we profess until the end, and that we are ready to meet our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ when He comes for His own.

I started writing this post on Tuesday and earlier today, just before I finalized it, I got a text message that a very dear sister, who was a part of our family while we were in Ibadan, went home to be with the Lord on July 25th.  My family had been waiting for the right time to tell me, having just heard about Sally's death at that time.

When I got the leading to start decorating our church in 1993/4, Louisa was the first to joined me. She learnt all the rudiments and soon we were decorating halls for wedding receptions. She continued this activity long after I left Ibadan. She was also the church's typist for years. It was a rude shock to learn today that she is gone. Louisa was a blessing to me and to my family in many more ways than I can describe here. I could always count on her to get things done for me. I still don’t understand what happened but God knows it all and knows it best. She was in the faith at the end and that’s all that matters. Adieu, dear gal.

No matter how dire your situation may be, hold on to the faith, hold on to hope, don’t give up on God. He will not give up on you. Ultimately, heaven is the reward of those who hold on to the faith to the end. Don’t miss it.

There is nothing worth missing heaven for.

This post is dedicated to the loving memory of these friends who have gone on home. They live on in our hearts.

A New Definition Of Normal

It was with exhilarating joy that I walked into my house on Friday 9^th, 2013, knowing that I am back home to stay and not on a day visit. A number of things had changed, the three oxygen reservoirs were gone. And there were no more blue tubes lining the stairway and the floor in the sitting room. Hallelujah! It was pure joy.

On the following Sunday, with joy overflowing everywhere I was received back into the church. I walked to the altar and with my family besides me, we gave thanks to God for keeping me alive and for bringing me back into His house. We sang "Praise My Soul The King Of Heaven" and "I Am A Living Testimony" by the Mighty Clouds Of Joy. I could sing again. Isn't God wonderful?

I noticed another change, we were not in a hurry to leave the church immediately after the service, because I was running out of oxygen. We had time to share fellowship with the brethren and our friends. Praise be to God.

Dealing With Change:

After a few days back at home, I was quick to realize that our definition of normal had changed. We had to implement a number of changes in the way we do things in order to accommodate the changes that had taken place in my life. There were moments in these past few days that I felt overwhelmed by these changes. At such moments I had to quickly remind myself that I have been singing, "I could have been dead and gone, but You kept me living on. I thank You, Lord, I'm still alive."

Change comes to us in diverse way through our experiences and sometimes, through the challenges we face. It could be the death of a loved one, ill-health, loss of a job, loss of limbs, broken relationships, change in location, failed project and accidents to name but a few. In most cases, we are not given time to prepare for change. It could take just a phone-call.

Things may never be the same again after such changes. I watched a film yesterday called "Courageous." In it, the Pastor said, while counselling the grief-stricken Mitchell whose nine year old daughter just died, that dealing with grief is like dealing with an amputation, because every amputee knows that that you will heal but you will never be the same again. This hit me like a thunderbolt because I know just how true that is. 

Change brings brand new beginnings.

As I adapt to this new phase on my life, I know that there are some things that will never be the same again. A major change has occurred in my life. As the Pastor I mentioned earlier also said, you can choose to be angry with God for what you have lost and what you can not have again or you can choose to be thankful for what you had, what you now have and what you can still have if you entrust your life into God's hands.

Ultimately, your change, whatever it is, can become a change for good depending on your attitude and your posture towards God. Because God always work all things together for our good.

Job had to deal with a massive change in his life, after the loss of his children, property and health, but no where in the entire book was it recorded that he was angry with God. He did not sin or charge God foolishly. Notice his posture of resignation to the sovereign will of God in his period of adversity (Job 1: 21-22).

Learning To Persevere:

In my blog post last week, I discussed enduring hardships, trials and suffering. I had the opportunity to discuss with a number of friends during the past week on this subject, and it appeared that often Christians are ill-prepared to endure hardship or to persevere through it. As soon as something goes wrong and not in accordance to their expectations, they get angry with God become sour in their attitude.

Jesus learnt obedience through the things He suffered, and He is the Son of God. This experience made Him to be perfectly equipped to become the Author and Source of eternal salvation (Heb. 5: 8-9). Christ's sonship did not exempt Him from obedience, suffering or change.

How can we as His co-heirs think that in our walk with Him, we will not partake of His suffering if we are to partake in His glory when it is revealed. We also being sons of God are not exempted from suffering, challenges and changes. These are instructive in deepening our knowledge of God and by them we learn experience. If we endure with Him, we will also reign with Him (2Tim. 2:12).

How do we learn perseverance if we have no reason to persevere?

How do we learn to be steadfast during trials if we are not tested?

How do we learn patient endurance if there no challenges to endure?

Yet, the Bible encourages us to add all these qualities to our faith so that we can become fully matured. Because, if we possess these qualities in increasing measures, they will keep us from being idle and unfruitful in our knowledge of Jesus Christ. Whosoever lacks these qualities is short-sighted  and spiritually blind. We are therefore admonished to be all the more eager to make our calling as Christians sure.

Perseverance, patient endurance and steadfastness are essential qualities for fruitful Christianity. They only come through what we suffer when we go through trials and testing. All these bring about changes in our lives. They define a new normal for us.

Through this new definition of normal, we are equipped to fulfil our God-given purpose and destiny.

This song by the Brooklyn Tabernacle ministered to me in one of those moments when I felt overwhelmed.

For every mountain You've brought me over. 
For every trial You've seen me through. 
For every blessing, hallelujah; 
for this I give You praise.

Dear Friends, whatever change is taking place in your life at this moment, I pray that the superabundant grace of God may richly abound to you as you learn to persevere through it.

I Got To Know Him In A Better Way

Grace on the move.

Grace in motion.

Engraced.

These are the new "names" given to me by my husband, my brothers, and a dear Sista. I hope my niece, Gracie, would not mind me sharing her name.

Any of them could have been the title for today's blog post. But I chose "I Got To Know Him In A Better Way." Inspired by Donnie McClurkin's song: "Who Would Have Thought," after I read some of the comments I received by email in response to my last blog post. The only response I can give is that I got to know God in a better way through the things I suffered—through my trials, challenges and difficult circumstances.

 

HUG Intensive Care Unit - By My Bed 

Abounding Grace:

I got to know His rich and abounding grace. His grace strengthened me. Grace kept me through the thick and the thin. Grace sustained me. I could have been dead and gone but grace kept me alive, and made me a living testimony. Grace kept me smiling and cheerful through pain and distress. Grace held my head up when the natural reaction would have been to stay bowed down in sorrow and disappointment.

Amazing grace kept abounding to me. Praise be to God Who causes ALL grace to abound to us, that we having ALL sufficiency in ALL things, may abound unto every good work (2Cor. 9:8). Grace is God stooping down to reach out to us at our point of need. He is the God of all grace. After we have suffered for a little while, He will Himself restore us, making us strong, steadfast and firm (1Pet. 5:10).

The grace of God within us enables us to labour more efficiently and abundantly for God. Grace fulfils a purpose in us and it enables us fulfil purpose and destiny. The ALL sufficient grace of God is available to everyone who is a Christian.

"The grace of God is the favour of God bestowed to man who does not deserve this favour" - Harold L. White

As grace abounded in Christ and He went about doing good works, so also can the superabundant grace of God abound in our lives to do exploits for God and to bring about change in our situation, if we open our hearts to receive it even in our challenging circumstances.

You can only appreciate the import of grace when you are in dire need of the supernatural ability to live above your circumstances and the challenges besetting you. This brings me to the crux of today's message.

"Grace abounds like an ever flowing stream in the valley of adversity"

Enduring Hardships:

Hardships, trials and challenges will come to us at one time or the other in the course of our lifetime, if we are true sons of God. We must view them as God disciplining, correcting, pruning and refining us because of His love for us. We must need be assured that His grace is available to us to see us through them all.

Divine disciple is an evidence of divine love.

The Bible is replete with examples of many servants of God who endured hardships and we can see the outcomes of it as they were made strong to do exploits for God. Jesus endured the cross. Consider for a moment what He had to endure - the shame of the cross, separation from His Father, bitter hostility, grievous opposition from sinners and His visage was marred beyond recognition (Is. 52:14).

In considering what Jesus endured by going to the cross to die for our sins, we will not loose heart or grow weary as we run our own race and walk the path set before us.  

Some of Paul's letters to the churches were written while he was in the prison. He bore a thorn in his flesh, he was never married, he was imprisoned, placed under house arrest, shipwrecked and finally martyred under Nero's reign. But he wrote 13 Epistles which are still giving us divine direction till today.

Many of the hymns and songs we love to sing were composed following challenging circumstances in the lives of the composers:

• "It Is Well With My Soul" was penned by Horatio Spafford after traumatic events in his life. The 1871 Great Chicago Fire ruined him financially. In 1873, he sent his wife and four daughters to England ahead of him. While crossing the Atlantic, their ship sank after collision with another vessel. All the four daughters died. His wife was saved alone. The hymn was inspired as Horatio passed the spot where the ship sank and his daughters were killed (Wikipedia).
• This song is still touching lives and grieving hearts till today, more than a century later. Who would have thought? Please take time to meditate on the lyrics at this link, http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/i/t/i/itiswell.htm. These lines stood out for me:
• "Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, That Christ has regarded my helpless estate, And hath shed His own blood for my soul."
• "Whatever my lot (my challenges or difficult circumstances), Thou has taught me to say; it is well, it is well, with my soul" (emphasis mine).
• "His Eye Is On The Sparrows" - This song was composed following the visit of Civilla Martin and her husband to Mr and Mrs Doolittle in 1905. Mrs Doolittle had been bedridden for near 20 years. Mr Doolittle was an incurable cripple who propel himself on the wheelchair in order to conduct his business. Despite their afflictions, they lived happy Christian lives, bringing inspiration and comfort to all who knew them. When the couple were asked the secret of their bright hopefulness, Mrs Doolittle's reply was simple: "His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches over me." The beauty of this simple expression of boundless faith inspired this much loved hymn (Wikipedia).
• Why should I be discouraged…. When Jesus is my portion? My constant friend is He.
• Andrea Crouch sang "Through It All." In this song you will find such lines like
• I have had many tears and sorrows
• But in every situation, God gave a blessed consolation, that my trials came only to make me strong.
• Through it all I've learnt to trust in Jesus, to trust in God, to depend on His Word
• He surely got to know God in a better way because in his lonely hours  Jesus let him know that he belongs to Him.
• He lost his father, mother and older brother in the space of one year in 1993 / 94 (Wikipedia). He certainly had his share of sorrow and challenges.
• See full lyrics at http://www.elyrics.net/read/a/andrae-crouch-lyrics/through-it-all-lyrics.html

We become more creative in our times of personal challenges and difficulties if we will open our hearts to receive God's abounding grace available to us.

Hopital Beau-Sejour Garden

I also can testify that through it all I have got to know God in a better way, to trust in Jesus, and depend on His Word and His sustaining grace. After 118 days in three hospitals, I certainly know more of God than I did before that one phone call on April 13^th. I have a richer experience of God as a strong deliverer because of all I went through during this period. I know for sure that Jesus cares for me. I have been pruned and refined, and the process is still ongoing. My testimony is richer. I know what it means to be sustained by grace.

There is so much more I want to write about enduring hardships and the abounding grace available to see us through them. This space is just not enough to do justice to the subject. I do encourage you to study Heb 12. Verse 15 says no one is to miss the grace of God. This grace of God changes lives.

"…Don’t be conscious of (or focus on) what you are lacking (or in need of). Be conscious of (or focused on) God's superabundant grace for you and avail yourself of it" - JosephPrince.com (emphasis mine)

I am grace in motion.

I am grace on the move.

I am graced for good works and to do exploits for God.

As I prepare to return back home on Friday, August 9^th, I know that grace brought me this far and grace will lead me on. I am in awe of God. He is been good to me. Words fail me to express my gratitude to Him.

Thank you all for standing with us through out this period of our lives. Thank you for your prayers, encouragement and support. My husband, sons and I give thanks and praise to God for blessing our lives with such a great family and circle of friends.

I share with you my special song for thanksgiving - Living Testimony. 

Make The Next Move Forward

My son recently introduced me to a game, in the bid of having something fun to do while I pass the time in the hospital. It is about moving coloured bubbles and aligning them according to their colours to get a score. There is a goal set for you at the beginning— to clear specified type of bubbles within a given number of moves or set time, and/or to achieve  a specified score.

At first, I just played without a clear understanding of the importance of each move. I soon learnt that if I want to achieve the set goal, each move counts. I learnt that I have to prepare the ground for an important move, I have to be strategic with the moves so I can clear the obstacles, and since I don't know what is coming next, I have to be cautious how I make a move.

Stepping Forward:

On June 20, 2013, I stood up straight and erect between parallel bars, with mixed feeling. Happy that after a long period of  lying flat on my back, then oscillating between the bed and the wheel chair, I was finally able to get off my rear, which by this time was hurting, and stand up even though it was for a few minutes.

At the same moment, I was upset as I looked at the provisional feet of grace and thought that was what I will have to move around with. The reality of what had happened suddenly dawned on me. I revolted against it. Focusing on the limitation it posed, the pain and the difficulty almost overshadow the joy of standing again. In the blog post last week, I shared how God ministered His peace into my heart and brought me through that valley.

Being able to stand up was such an achievement. At first, I was wobbly and unstable, and needed to be supported. The following day, I took my first step forward. It was with great difficulty and pain but I was walking, I moved forward as I took a few steps more. I never thought that putting one step forward after the other could be such a challenging task!

By the end of that week, I was able to walk the length of the parallel bars, a distance of about 3 meters. Since then and within the past month, I have moved from walking 20 meters to 200 meters with the support of a wheeler.  This week, I started walking with  the crutches, and as at the time of writing this blog spot, I have been able to walk a distance of 100 meters with crutches supported by the Physiotherapist. Praise be to God, I am moving forward.

Each step is taking me closer to my goal, and that is, to be fit and ready to go back home early in August. I am regaining my autonomy each day. I was able to go to the toilet unaccompanied and without assistance. The nurses, caregivers, therapists and doctors are amazed at the mileage I am making and the speed at which I am making it. They always express surprise at how much things I can do by myself now. One commented in French, that I am rendering her jobless!

My husband said that many will see me walking and will declare — "that is grace on the move."

Next Steps:

During my hospital stay, I have had time to ponder on my dreams, heart desires and fulfilling my destiny according to the will of God. I want to fulfil my God-given purpose. In line with the above, the following goals stood out in my heart, for which I am trusting God for grace, strength, guidance and direction to pursue.

• To be a motivational / Inspirational speaker:
•  My prayer is that God will qualify me as a vessel filled up by Him and poured out into the lives of the people He will bring my way across many nations, to inspire hope in them.
• Become an accomplished and published writer:
• The book I have been writing for years - "Empowered For Victory" now has a beautiful  conclusion to the glory of God. It is time to complete and release it, so that lives it is meant to touch for good will hold the book in their hands. There are a few more writing projects God has laid on my heart which I must now give attention to as well.
• I desire to have an income generating venture which will outlive me and be passed on to the next generation:
• I asked God for an innovative idea that will make a difference. I pray for wisdom and leading by the Holy Spirit to find and recognize this venture and to forge the right partnerships to move it forward

The only way to accomplish these dreams and goals is to conscientiously identify what needs to done and take the necessary steps towards achieving them. I am also conscious that many are the plans in person's heart but it is the Lord's purpose that will prevail (Proverbs 19:21). Ultimately, it is God's purpose for my life that I want accomplished. And that is why we must commit our thoughts and desires to God in prayer and wait in His presence for clarity and guidance.

Your Move:

Audrey Joe-Ezigbo wrote on her blog - "Uniquely Woman" - "Whatever the Lord lays in your heart to do… even if you are afraid, even if you are uncertain of the outcome… Just do it! Regardless of how daunting it might seem, make that first move and then leave the rest to Him."

You may find it challenging and daunting to take the first step but if you want to accomplish a goal or live a dream or walk in your destiny and the purpose God  has for you, that one step forward you must of necessity take. As you take each baby step soon your gait becomes steady and smooth, and you find yourself in a well synchronized rhythm, which takes you forward each step you take. Soon you are on your way and nothing can stop you.

However, if you do not pay attention to God's leading and direction, you will get distracted and begin to vacillate and dissipate energy. You are also likely to miss opportunities to make good moves. God has a limitless ability to help us and move us in the right direction when we yield and submit to His will. There is a difference between getting results and your desired outcome, and just getting busy.

Now is the time to begin to prepare what you need to accomplish your God-given goal, do not procrastinate a day longer, make that move forward today.

Today, I have the definitive feet of grace to take each step forward. It is a lot better than the provisional one. As God ministered to me, the feet of grace will help me to get my assignment done, so I am adapting to it everyday. I am enjoying moving around. It gives such joy, sense of accomplishment and liberty. I give praise to God.

Dear Friends, what dreams and desires has God placed on your heart? What are you doing about them? What is holding you back? It is my joy to encourage you to take the next step forward today.