The story of my son, Jerry.

 

The above video was created by Jerry, my Spiritual Assistant. He came into my life and has gradually become my son. I watched the video, and I cried because I didn't think that was the impact or influence I had. I am humbled indeed. I hope this video inspires you.

Ps, I don't just "vacation" every year in Nigeria. I have projects I'm involved in there 

Our Cloak / Mantle

In Luke 8:43 onwards, it describes how the woman with the issue of blood touched the hem of Jesus garment, and virtue/power flowed out of him to heal her.

We have the Holy Spirit living in us, and we are Salt (adding flavor and being preservatives) and Light (dispelling darkness and illuminating). Anyone coming in contact with us, and touching our mantle, should experience Life flowing from us and affecting their reality. This is the faith we have, as we believe in the ministry of the Holy Spirit at work through us.

Arise shine!

"Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you" - Isaiah 60:1

Arise (qum): Hebrew word meaning to stand up, get up, to endure, to help, to stir up, to succeed.

Shine (or): To be luminous, to enlighten and inform, to be a source of hope, inspiration, and encouragement. 

Your Light (or): Illumination, source of happiness, purpose, fulfillment, etc.

Has come (bo): To come in, to arrive, to befall, to bring forth or birth forth.

The Glory (kabowd): the weight of the splendor or good sense of God.

Risen (zarach): To break out, to irradiate, to rise like the sun.

"Stand up! Be intentional to succeed and help! Allow the source of happiness, purpose, and fulfillment in you to inspire, encourage and enlighten. For the weight of the splendor of God is rising up and breaking out in you!"

Being whole vs Disability

The story of Samson found in Judges 16 can be viewed as a tragedy on the surface, but the core principle of the story is one of dependency and victory in brokenness, failure, frailty, etc. 

In verse 30, the scripture informs us that when Samson became disabled (blind and handicapped), he ended up killing more of his enemies in death, than when he was alive and whole and fully functional. When he was broken and made disabled from his wholeness through losing his sight and strength and that which he always relied on, he was brought to a new level of dependency on God. As he submitted to death, the grace of God birthed an anointing in him to accomplish a greatness he could never achieve in the peak of his wholeness and prime!

Die to self! 

"Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me" - John 12:24-26

Religious Christianity

Have you ever wondered why in Nigeria we pray so much, and quote Scriptures so much, yet corruption and two-facedness thrive and prevail the most? Are the prayers inauthentic? Are the people fake? Or can it be that it simply is the fact that spirituality and carnality can and do coexist because we are spirit and flesh? 

If that's the case, even as we expect the divine intervention of God, the reality of the treacherous heart of man cannot be ignored. Smack in the center of the manifestation of Gods influence and performance can be the very expression of the worst of man's carnality. Just take a look at Nigeria - prayers, thunder and lightning cohabiting with hidden agenda and schemes!

Divinely Ordained Loyalists

Some folks unfortunately have had the "privilege" of learning that part of navigating life is learning the value of being alone. Jesus was an expert at aloneness. He knew how to steal away and create the solitude needed to invest in his purpose and destiny through prayer. He also had his band of followers - his disciples, who sacrificed and abandoned all they had to follow him. He balanced the act of both being alone and having a band of followers. In the most trying time of his life, his ability to invest in his aloneness enabled him to survive the abandonment by every single one of his followers.

In this social media age, there is an obsession with follower count, reaction to posts, and likes clicked. I have always been an outsider—I never fit in, refuse to conform to the status quo and dance to the beat of my own drums. This nonconformity has bolstered my faith in being who I am. 

Having a followership has always amused me because I am a rebel and a bohemian. God covenanted Himself with me when I was despicable and discarded. My mindset is still inherently a rebel at heart. And I discovered that I have my tribe, my fellow marginalized folks who are disenfranchised and just doing their own thing. Somehow, like it was done for Saul when he was anointed king, and for David with his 600 followers, God is the author of followership. Not one's super stellar image or whatever. He causes your own to hear your heart and to follow your truth spoken. Faux followers will always be there to sing song whatever flavor of the month tickles their fancy. Once a reason to stab and betray shows up, they rush for it in honor of their true intent. 

I am hoping that in this new advent, I am fearless enough to invest in aloneness more like Jesus did. And to not get seduced by followership. The only relevant followership is the divinely ordained ones. The variants will always betray when they have the slightest excuse. So is there a relevance to their body count? 

Living in The Supernatural

Here are a few things about this event:

Shortcut: The disciples were operating in the natural and took the boat. And their route was long and tedious all night journey. Jesus operating in the supernatural, had a shortcut to walk up to and catch up with them.

The Elements: The natural elements had become a hiderance to the disciples, and were attempting to drown them. While Jesus was impervious to the very things that were attempting to drown them.

The Laws of Nature: The boat was operating by a law of nature. The elements was operating by a law of nature. Jesus came and overrode the natural laws because he operated on a higher law. The lesser laws always submits to the higher law, for example The law of aerodynamics overrides the law of gravity and enables a jumbo jet fly.

Stepping out the boat: Peter was in the natural, and saw the supernatural. It was scary yet daring. Unlike the others, he chose to step out of the comfort zone of the natural into the scary unknown of the supernatural.

Follow the word: The word received by Peter was "Come". As long as he was fixated on Jesus, and obeyed that word, he transitioned from the natural and operated in the supernatural. Unfortunately, he took his eyes off Jesus and became more aware of the winds and waves. And that sucked him right back to the natural. 

A recap of the points listed above suggests that we have access into the supernatural by faith. The just is supposed to live by faith. When we live by faith, we operate by the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus, which is greater than any known law. Jesus, The Resurrection and the Life is operating in us and for us. There is no limitation that can hinder. We defy natural limitations, and experience supernatural shortcuts. The very things attempting to drown us become stepping stones in our supernatural shortcut route. Yet just as easy as it is to receive the Rhema word to access into and operate in the supernatural, so it is easy to fall out of it if we allow what we see, feel, hear and process to become more significant and relevant than the Rhema word received, and staying focused on Jesus.