Prayer

30 Days of Intentionally Seeking God: Day 24

Preamble

Welcome here.

6 days until 30 days are complete.

Thank God.

Today’s post bears a similar theme to older topics in this series.

I am grateful to share it.

Let’s ride in…

Protect it

Protect your spiritual atmosphere.

Guard your environment jealously.

Guard your heart.

Sieve the incomings and outgoings.

If those words are not English words, forgive me

Protect your space.

Do not be careless.

Be interested in that aura you give out.

What is resonating in your atmosphere?

Be attentive.

Close it

Stop leaving your door open carelessly.

Stop allowing intruders enjoy your free space.

Dont give a chance to the devil and his minions

CLOSE THAT DOOR

My senior friend who I have mentioned repeatedly during the course of this series said somethings to me in one of our deep conversations.

“The area the devil attacks is a sign that you may have left a door for him to enter” (I paraphrased)

What she was trying to say was that as a child of God, the devil cannot easily disturb life without permission and in context we were talking of sexual perversions and strange dreams.

Why does certain strange things happen to you?

Why are you tormented by evil dreams?

Why are you finding it hard to be reasonable?

Why are you finding it hard to apply self-control?

A door has been opened

N.B I will share from my personal experience.

I noticed that whenever I paid attention (mentally) to certain thoughts and allowed myself to feed on things that did not help my spiritual life, it opened the way for unnecessary disturbance.

Sometimes, you do not need to give attention to extremely vulgar contents but little when fed on and ruminated on is enough.

From thought process, it permeates into other areas and soon your spiritual atmosphere is contaminated.

If something is pulling off weird in your life, first check if you have opened the door for it.

A word you said?

A movie you watched?

A song you listened to?

A book you read?

Conversations you encouraged?

Associations you ignored?

Pleasures you satisfied?

There will be a loop hole.

Connecting this post wih Day 23, dirty secrets are a good media for spiritual contamination.

If you cannot trace back the source, pray about it. Sometimes, the devil taunts us as a way to lure us into depression and a distance from God but always learn to refuse evil things.

Reject them in Jesus name

Sweet atmosphere

Let your spiritual atmosphere be pleasant.

Let it glow with the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Let it be conducive for worship.

Let it be free.

Ah fresh air……

Let it be easy for God to come down in your private corner.

Let evil tremble when you are around.

Let sin be confronted because you are around.

Let your atmosphere carry God.

That is why God gave you the Holy Spirit

Be God’s constant tabernacle.

I have been in certain environments and it felt so stiff and difficult to enter into an express mode of worship. It had to take extra efforts to break in.

On the contrary. I have been in some environments where it was so spiritually conducive and refreshing. It really felt so liberating to quickly break into worship without difficulty.

The difference between these two?

What has been fed into the environment.

Some environments reek of depression, anger, lust, hopelessness, and all dark emotons. This is because that is what has been fed into them.

Others are scented by worship, hope, life and freedom. This is because that is what has been fed into them.

Scenting your atmosphere

I am not a huge fan of incense or strong perfumes but I have met people who enjoy them.

In the old testament, incense was an important part of worship.

There were certain perfume combinations that were sacred and were banned from being used personally. It was meant for the temple alone. (Read through Exodus 25 -40)

However, through Jesus we do not need to offer incense anymore as He has completed the law.

Ephesians 5:2  And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. (KJV)

We rather will depend on prayer and worship to scent our environment spiritually.

Prayers are incense.

Revelation 8:3-4  And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.
And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand.(KJV)

Worship is a sweet smelling incense.

My favourite hair products have a refreshing fragrance and whenever I use them, I feel refreshed and good because they smell nice.

You get?

With God, we emit sweet fragrance of His presence. This in turn causes others to seek God.

Because we have intentionally decided to spend meaningful time with God, we spread His fragrance wherever we go. We carry His holiness that convicts others of sin, His joy that lifts depressed spirits, His freedom that liberates and His life that resurrects and brings results.

Let God find it easy to use you.

LORD, I thank you for today. I thank you for everything. Help me to maintain an atmosphere of worship and prayer. May my atmosphere carry your presence. Help me to be a conduit of your presence and glory. May my life never be conducive for evil. Let it bring light, life and hope. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Conclusion

It is good to observe patterns in your life. Do not be negligent.

I have experienced what it felt like to be a spiritually stuffy environment. I do not want to experience it ever again.

It is frustrating

Practicing the act of remaining in God’s presence is intentional. It needs we remain conscious that God is with us. It needs we do not take things for granted. It needs we be careful and not careless.

Yes, seeking God is intentional

Thank you for being here. If this post blessed you kindly share to others.

Stay safe and God bless.

#daughterofabba

30 Days of Intentionally Seeking God: Day 16

Preamble

Welcome to day 16.

I will confess, I am late today.

Forgive me

Be Observant

If you are an introvert, one of your super powers is your ability to observe. You see things people miss. You notice cues. It is a part of you because you spend more time observing than participating.

Being an observant person is a high skill.

As a person in the medical field, it is one ability is highly needed. Noticing things your patients don’t tell helps you ask specific questions that will bring out truths and sometimes even when the patients refuses to still tell the truth, your ability to observe properly gives you a possible diagnosis that can be confirmed by other simpler tests.

During medical school clinical examination, it was one of the skills we were examined for: Observation.

I love to observe. I love to sit and just notice my environment.

I love to observe and then analyse people and situations.

I easily read cues and body language. It comes to me naturally plus I enjoy doing it. Being able to read hidden cues has been an interesting way to experience the world.

It helped me the times I clerked patients during school rounds.

Clerk: The art of asking patients questions about their medical conditions to come to a possible diagnosis.

It has helped to keep and set boundaries with people.

Although I already have many boundaries of my own🙈

It has helped to appreciate art and the beauty nature provides.

It has helped me to offer help when I was not asked but help was needed.

I love to observe because it is a way I can maintain stillness in a noisy world.

Watch

Watching is the same as observation but this is with a specific intention.

When you watch, you have something specific you want to see. Unlike observation where you just want to see something or anything.

When you watch, you observe for something specific.

Repitition is to make the point clear to you.

Still using the medical scenario, when we watch a patient we already have a possible diagnosis but we pay attention to a specific concern we suspect will spring up.

For example, if a patient suffered a stroke, we watch out for neurological deficts evident on the side affected.

As we watch out we get ready to manage these unfavourable outcomes.

You do not watch unprepared.
O.R.A

Making sure

As a Christian, we need to always watch our life patterns.

What is going on in your life?

Are you progressing?

Are you stagnant?

What is still bothering you?

What is affecting your relationship with God?

What tempts you?

Are you overcoming?

Do you exercise more faith and patience?

Are you loving others?

What is happening to you?

Those who don’t watch will fall
O.R.A

If you do not observe and watch your life patterns, you will fall too many times and possibly remain stagnant and cold.

Personally, as I observe traits and patterns in my life that causes me to slack in my relationship with God, I learn to apply ways that can help me.

Doing this also helps me lean on God for more strength and to run to Him more often.

In Day 15 post, the theme seemed overwhelming and after that post, I spent the next day rejuvenating by focusing and meditating on God’s word. I try to do this daily but I have learnt that when I feel more overwhelmed, I need to do it more.

When you watch you prepare
O.R.A

The Bible in many places mentioned watching unto prayer. Therefore, watching as a Christian has to involve prayer.

One of the ways I realize that I am slacking is my inability to maintain in the place of prayer and have communion with God. Therefore, when I notice this, I take a mental note of my current state and seek to return back to my original state.

Prayer makes us aware of our state with God because in prayer God screens our heart and gives us the opportunity to view ourselves from His lenses.

After prayer comes physical evidences. When we become less observant, we become more susceptible to temptations and things we have discarded in our lives.

The things we ‘put off’ as mentioned in day 14

We become more angry, less loving, easily jealous….and so on…

As we watch and pray, God reveals more to us because our eyes are opened to see.

Prayer

LORD, thank you for today. Thank you for my life. Thank you for everything. Today, I ask you for grace to be observant of things I should be observant about. Help me to see clearly. Help me to watch and pray. Help me to remain steady and not slack. Today, I ask for strength to remain and to seek when I get weak. In Jesus name I pray. Amen

Conclusion

I thank God for the power of prayer and communion.

When you are weak, do not fail to reach out to God. He will strengthen you.

These are the testimonies that strengthens faith. If you do not experience them, your faith will not grow strong.

Thank you for being here. Kindly share to others.

Stay safe and God bless.

#daughterofabba

30 Days of Intentionally Seeking God: Day 12

Preamble

Good day and welcome here again.

It is the 12th day and I am grateful for the progress of this series.

If you are new, welcome.

If you have been following, I am glad.

Lets ride in (as usual)

Check

Today, I was in the market and I passed some places I had not checked in a long time.

Weeks ago, I looked for certain items but limited my area of search to specific places. I did not bother to check further including the place I checked today.

As I walked by the many stalls, I saw the items I had searched for. They were available in different styles and I wondered why I had not bothered to check previously.

Fortunately, the ones I had bought were satisfactory but I may have gotten better ones if I had checked further.

From the market, I went to one of my most frequented super markets.

Whenever I visited it, I always made sure to check certain shelves.

These shelves contained my favourite skin and hair products. These products are difficult to find and in this store, they are cheaper than other places.

It had been more than a year one of the product was available but I always made sure to check no matter what I came to buy.

Today, I checked and I saw the product I had not seen in a year. Some days ago, I had checked and had gotten the other ones.

So by today, I had managed to get the complete product I had been unable to get for a year.

I checked again and again..

Stop!

Stop in your tracks and check.

Maybe you have been ignoring many things for so long. Now is the time to check again.

Stop and check….

Don’t Stop!

Don’t stop checking.

Don’t stop praying.

Don’t stop hoping.

Don’t stop expecting.

Don’t stop trusting God.

Don’t stop fellowship with God…

…….

Your prayers are not useless.

Your prayers are worth it.

Keep praying…

One day

Your prayers will become a reality.

There will be a manifestation.

There will be a testimony.

One day it will be a dance of victory.

As you pray with and in faith, God hears and God will answer.

God will do it….

I had checked the shelves consistently for months with hope to see the products and when I checked again I saw it.

The interesting thing is: I was suprised!

The same thing which I had been hoping for still suprised me.

With this, I can say thay when God does it, it will be a suprise…..

Psalms 126:2  Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them. (KJV)

Yes….when God does it, it will seem like a dream.

Finally!

When God does it, it will be perfect.

Keep Planting

You will harvest.

You will reap the fruits.

Prayer

LORD, thank you for today. Thank you for the planting season. Thank you for the season of waiting. Thank you for the season of harvest. Thank you for the moments of prayers. Thank you for the opportunity to pray. Thank you for the behind-the-scenes work. Thank you for answers to prayers; old and new. Help me never to give up in the place of prayer. Help me not to miss the time when answers will arrive. Help me to be ready for the harvest season. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Conclusion

Thank you for being here.

A little addition: I made a vlog recently that hs a mini link with this post.

You can vew it HERE

The vlog talks about what to do with answered prayers and desires.

Today’s post was practical and it was a pleasure meditating on it.

It speaks volumes to me and I pray it does same to you.

N.B Every poster done so far were made by me. Kindly feel free to download if you need it.

Until next post, stay safe and God bless.

#daughterofabba

Reasons You Do Not Want Help

Preamble

Hello!

Welcome again

That is if you were here in the last post

If not

A fresh welcome to newcomers.

I want to confess:

Shhshh do not tell anyone

This post is new. It is not one of the older drafts I have been talking about.

They are carry-overs from last year

Okay

That is enough. Let’s slide in

Heehaw!🏊

No, let’s swim in

You understand, right?

Help me!

A cry for help can either be very evident or come in the form of complaints.

Commonly, it comes in form of complaints.

In a conversation, the discussion shifts to a particular concern and soon the whole topic revolves around it.

Now, depending on your ability to discern, you can pick up the cry for help or if you are too slow, the person has to spell it out.

I need help

Maybe you are the one complaining and depending on what you hope to achieve after complaining to someone, you are supposedly seeking help.

A problem shared is a problem half-solved, right?

Complain

Complaining is a habit. It can become a pattern that easily manifests when a person has devoted time and attention to problems for very long.

Complain about the weather.

Complain about the country.

Complain about the neighbour’s cat that meows at night.

Complain about the stubborn headache that won’t let you catch sleep.

Complain about the mosquito trying to give you malaria.

Complain about….

The Reasons You Don’t want help

This should be the main part.

1. You like to complain

I already said this.

Complaining has become your habit so you are not sharing your concerns because you want or need help. You just want to vent. The main annoying thing is that because it is a habit, you are a chronic time waster. You want to waste precious time by always complaining and that is very stressful and unproductive.

2. You think you know

Maybe you are used to advicing others. Maybe you feel so matured. Maybe you are used to being the one listening. Now the tables have turned, you still do not think others can help you.

Self-sufficient eh?

So, instead of asking for help, you’ll do experiments even if it will cost you more.

Let me confess, I get put off by help I did not solicit for.

I know how to help myself. I did not ask you

Sometimes, I do not like to be infused with helpful options because I already have my own way of solving the problem.

I did not ask you

Other times, unsolicited help has saved me. So it depends..

It depends

3. You are traumatized

You tried to ask for help before and you were ignored, pushed aside or disrespected.

Ever asked help from someone uninterested in giving you help?

You are fed up with being disappointed by others, so why try hard?

If I won’t get help from others maybe I should help myself.

4. You have not found the right people to ask.

Maybe the people around you are so annoying.

Like they sit on your nerves!

The few times you asked for help, they were so clueless and did not offer to make an attempt to help.

They poke their noses too much. You ask them for help and the next thing they want is all the information about your life and your future.

Now you know that they are not really interested in helping you, they just want information about you for records.

Ever shared a concern about something bothering you and the person starts asking you unrelated personal questions?

I was not talking about my father. I was talking about me and the cat.

The people around you are too selfish to help and you know it so you just find a way to avoid asking for help.

5. You are enjoying your problem

Yes, you are complaining about it but it does not mean you are tired of it.

Maybe you like the way it makes you pitiful.

Eyah sorry

You like the pity you recieve and maybe the small coke and biscuit that comes with it.

You enjoy wallowing in your problems because you have formed a toxic relationship with them and it has now become one of your identities.

The fact that I complain does not mean I want a solution. I just want the pity.

Pity me!!!!

You don’t want help because you are too comfortable in what makes you complain.

A Problem solved

Is a problem resolved.

I do not appreciate perpetual complaining of the same situation especially when there are avenues to recieve help.

Many atimes, people want to be heard of their complains but are not willing to recieve and practice the help that is shared in return.

Why complain if you don’t want help?

Problems are meant to be solved.

Solutions can come in different forms and their sole purpose is to resolve problems.

When you decide to share a concern with a person, the end result should be that you get relieved and can make a move towards getting the problem solved.

Not encouraged or entertained

Sure, maybe you need listening ears. Someone that will not interrupt you. Someone that would just let you express yourself without cutting you off.

But the end goal of that conversation should be a step ahead before the conversation was made.

Complaining is a chronic habit and is often hard to stop.

It comes with a negative aura and can even end up in bitterness and anger.

What can be done?

Stop justifying your consistent habit of seeking unproductive attention by your consistent complaining. The person you complain to also has problems of their own. If you are always complaining about your problems then you will become the selfish one.

Accept help that is offered. If it is an idea or advice, try it out (as long as it is within a physically and mentally healthy perspective).

Stop rejecting help!

Please

Intentionally meet people that will help you. Sometimes, some of us go to people who cannot help us so that they can just listen to us complaining and after we drop our burdens with them, we leave them with the responsibility of dealing with our problems even though they do not know how to help.

You understood the above sentence, right?

Or maybe the person you are going to may not know but instead of only offloading your problems on them, ask if they know a person that can help.

Be a person who seeks and wants solutions.

Okay, what can I do now? What can be done about this concern?

With this mindset, we will complain moderately then less, and find solutions more.

Solution Haven

In my few adult years, I am learning to tell God everything.

I am not being cheesy here

Sometimes, I get carried away and complain a lot to people.

It becomes obvious and even annoying.

Onyiyechi, you are complaining too much!

I can feel the change in my spirit. The uncomfortable sense that I complained excessively, leaving my listeners drained.

Therefore, I am practicising to share my burdens to God first and share the exact way I am feeling it.

God, these are my raw feelings. I feel hurt, disappointed and sad. What should I do?

How does God answer me?

He gives me a bible verse to read, propmts someone to reach out to me, leads me to visit someone who will share words of comfort, the message in Church hits me at the perfect spot….

This art of being honest with God is one I observed in the life of King David. It makes the relationship with God more personal.

Matthew 7:7-8  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. (KJV)

So instead of complaining, ask God for a solution.

Psalms 46:1  God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.(KJV)

God will send people to help you. He will give you an idea that will change the situation.

And if you are the one that someone comes to seek for help from, God will give you the answer to help.

So when next you find yourself complaining too much, crosscheck if you have asked God through prayer.

When you ask through prayer, your response will be different from complaining and even when you are sharing about that concern, it will be a form of encouragement to the listener.

Conclusion

Gratitude balances complaining.

Life is not favourable for everyone but there is something to be grateful for.

I believe

Sometimes, it is hard to find what to be grateful for especially when you feel like nothing in your life is working.

But, if you search for a reason you will find it.

I have noticed the difference in my life since I became more sensitive about this topic matter and even now, I am still learning.

When next you want to complain, pray first. You will notice the difference.

A conversation with my mother helped confirm this topic. This often happens with my podcasts and this time around, it happened with this topic.

We were having a conversation and she kept emphasizing on this topic matter. I had to stop her and say “Mummy, I am writing this topic as a blog post. Your words will help”

Yes, these are the unique moments I enjoy when creating these contents, and it gives me confidence that God wants me to share them.

That being said, its been a while I shared a podcast. Hopefully, I should share soon.

This post was started 3 days from the last day of March and it is finally shared on the 31st of March.

Happy last day of March.

Until next post, stay safe and God bless.

Your comments and questions are warmly welcomed.

#daughterofabba

WILL YOU LISTEN?

Preamble

Series of events inspired this post.

A previous post has elements of this topic but this post is unique in its own way.

I wanted to say some other thing..

I wil say it in the post…..

Ears

One ear

Two ears

The outer part is mainly cartilagineous. It is sensitive to touch and pain.

Aside from comestic purpose, the ear is the organ of hearing.

Sound gets into it, is balanced and sent to the brain to be interpreted as a sensible information which is then understood by the hearer.

It also has components that maintain body balance (found in the part called the inner ear)

The ears are either pierced or not, this depends on personal, cultural or religious preference.

As part of the body, it has to be cleaned and taken care of to prevent infection and damage.

When the ears are damaged especially the middle and inner ear, the sense of hearing is partially or totally lost.

What else?

Toiletting your ear includes using a cotton bud to clean excess wax.

Using other unhealthy surfaces such as biro cover tip can introduce infectious organisms into the ear. I am a culprit of that bad habit and I am working on it.

Okay…..before I deviate.

“Talk to me”

With the increase awareness on mental health, there is an increased usage of the phrase “Talk to someone”

If suicide occurs, the next words that are shared are “Why did they not talk to someone?”

Talk to me. I am here for you

How many times have we heard these words?

I have used it on this blog. I used it in ‘Why You Should Have Matured Older Friends‘

I advocate speaking to someone when you are overwhelmed. Someone you trust and you are comfortable with.

It is who you talk to about it that matters

Talking to someone that belittles your concerns or does not engage with you is not one you should take personal concerns to because they will drain you and make you feel worse after sharing.

You should feel better after sharing not worse

Therefore it is not everyone that says ‘Talk to me’ that can be talked to.

To Listen

Listening is the act of intentionally understanding what is heard.

A person can hear but does not listen to what is heard

Listening is intentional while hearing is a function of functional ears.

Listening involves attention to what is said and understanding the purpose of what is said.

“Excuse me. Repeat what you said, I did not hear you clearly“

Listening is interpreting what is heard in the appropriate context.

“Excuse me. I did not understand what you said. I heard you but I did not understand”

Listening involves focus.

“After all I said, you did not still get me?”

Listening is intentional.

I repeated it on purpose

Why listening is hard

It is hard because we often have what we want to say before we hear.

We already have preconcieved ideas about the situation and we are not ready to change that in that moment.

We have a point to prove.

We are not interested.

We are bored.

We are only interested in what we have to say.

Talk all you want, I already have what I want to say

And for these reasons, it is common encountering situations where after a long conversation regarding an issue, the other person may still misunderstand you.

After everything I said?

For the times we misunderstood someone, the problem we had was in the listening and not in the hearing.

We heard them but we zoned out and did not listen.

And if we cared enough to have that conversation, we would ask the person to repeat the statement or expound it for us to understand.

Or we can simply keep zoning out and say what we want to say regardless of what the person has said.

This also happens when we are approached with a concern to get an advice. We can either listen and give advice that suites the person and the unique situation or bombard the person with general advice that we use for everyone.

Fixed advice. Advice templates. Prepaid advice.

I am looking for the right word, I hope you still got what I was saying.

Has there been a time when you shared a concern with someone and they already had fixed words that you already knew?

It felt like they had memorized the words and did not change it from what they had told someone else. At the end of the day, you felt weird because the words did not address you personally.

They did not listen to you

Because your concern was similar to what they had heard countless times.

Or what they had experienced many times

Listening involves putting yourself in the other person’s shoes and trying to understand where they are coming from.

Shoes, sneakers or boots

It means getting their perspective on the matter.

Does it overide your perspective? No

Does it help you engage effectively in the conversation? Yes

Can you still share your perspective? Yes

And beacause you listened, your response will certainly show that you did.

When the people involved in a conversation listen to themselves, communication is easier, even if they do not agree with each other.

The goal of communication is to understand what is shared and not only to say what we want to say.

God listens

When we talk to God, He listens.

God hears us and He understands us.

Every motion. Every emotion poured out in the place of prayer is understood by God who listens.

With this understanding, I do not pray as one whom God does not hear but as one who is listened to.

Why the repetition of words?

We repeat words mainly because we do not have faith. We are not sure if God is hearing us, so we repeat ourselves hoping to get an assurance within us that we are heard.

We often repeat ourselves because we are afraid that if we do not do that, God will forget.

It is fear and doubt that causes it

Jesus said

Matthew 6:7-8  But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask Him. (KJV)

I love how Jesus prayed and I have been practicing it for a while.

Father I thank you for you have heard me

Praying about a particular matter on different occasions is a different context. There are certain concerns that may need extended periods of prayers because they build our faith and relationship with God. In the place of praying about these things, we get to experience a deeper relationship with God as He uses these situations to transform our hearts. In all these moments we consistently approach the place of prayer with faith that God has heard us.

But sin is still a fundamental barrier

God hears us but God can choose not to answer us.

Isaiah 59:1-2  Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear.(KJV)

Sin seperates us from God and is also a reason why we feel unheard and thus repeat ourselves hoping God will hear after our many repetitions.

So when the assurance of God is lost, one needs to check if sin has lurked in and created a gap.

When we talk to God, He assures us that we are heard

Our confidence in being heard does not rest in our ability to be good in ourselves but in the confidence on God we call on.

If you believe God hears you, you will be confident that you are heard

1 John 5:13-15  These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
 And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us:
 And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him. (KJV)

And sometimes, the reason we do not have confidence is because we are afraid it is not God’s will.

We are afraid of what God will say

Will you listen to God?

God listens to us.

Do we listen to Him?

Do you hear God?

God speaks just as He listens.

But do you hear Him?

And if you hear Him, do you listen?

Is that why you do not have confidence that He hears you? Because you may be disobeying what He has said?

Do you only listen when it favours you?

Speak LORD for your servant listens

Will you listen even when it does not agree with your preconcieved ideas?

Will you drop your prejudice and listen?

Do you know what God is saying?

What has God said to you before?

Sometimes, for us to hear God, we need to want to hear God.

John 8:47  He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.(KJV)

For us to listen, we need to drop our own ideas and be willing to understand what God is saying.

Hebrews 4:7  Again, He limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.(KJV)

Do you want to know more?

First check this post: FINDING GOD

Then this Podcast: ALLOWING GOD LEAD YOU

Can you hear God?

Conclusion

There would be a sequel to this post as God allows.

Before then, I would like to redirect you to somewhere where more on this topic is shared.

A friend has been sharing a lot on hearing God and I believe that you will be blessed after reading the posts.

Click HEARING GOD to be redirected.

Did this post bless you? Share, like and comment. I will respond to your comments and questions as well.

Art for this post was created by me.

Until next post, stay well and blessed..

#daughterofabba

Calm Down!!

Preamble

I will confess……..

This topic is not an easy one for me. Over the years, I have been learning to calm down 😂😂😂😂.

Sometimes, I believe I have mastered the art other times I flunk so bad that I realise I am still weak 🙂🙂

Sometimes, it happens without my notice, I just notice that I am on the edge without consciously planning to. I have to review my days to appreciate where the anxiety sprang from.

All said, I am sharing because I understand how it feels. This topic is not new on this blog.

Introducing Toons

😁😁

Today’s post would not be much grammar. I did something 😌 that resembles toons and will share today’s topic in that format.

💛

What it means to be calm

It is to remain unperturbed and peaceful in turbulent situations.

Calmness is measured by the presence of turbulence and not the absence of it.
O. R. A

To tell an anxious person to ‘Calm down!!’ won’t calm them instead it may aggravate their anxiousness.

A lot of things can disrupt our mental calmness and sometimes they may appear trival, however that does not minimize the negative effects they have on our functionality.

Ben & Bea

Ben & Ben are like me and you, they are existing.

They appear calm…. Because nothing is disrupting their calmness.

However,

And

Because they disrupt the calmness that seems to exist. They disrupt plans, they disrupt happiness, it almost like they want to ruin everything.

And because

It feels like punching empty air…….

This exhaustion is draining. It teases us and pushes us farther from where we are supposed to be in (The presence of God).

And

Prayer can never be over-emphasized. It reminds me of the hymn “What a Friend we have in Jesus”

What a Friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer!

Complete link is here: https://www.hymnal.net/en/hymn/h/789

All of the standards hit differentely. It plays in my heart any time I need the reminder. It is always a kind reminder💛

Psalms 55:22 Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
King James Version

Philippians 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God
King James Version

It is when we are consistent in praying about everything that we get the courage to keep moving. The exhaustion we experience may be so draining that we almost give up but in the place of prayer, God reminds us of all we need to know.

❤❤

Something else

I compiled the toons into this pdf.

You can simply download to view when you are offline. It is somewhat childlike 🙈.

Calm Down!!Download

Until next time…

#fromamedicalstudentfaraway

From Deeperlook

Preamble

Welcome today.

I will try not to repeat things you have already heard but I felt it proper to use deeperlook to show some empathy and concern.

First of all

It is always wiser to be concious about safety, not just for yourself but for people you will come in contact with.

There are always safety signs in areas where there is a risk of harm, and it is meant to prevent harm.

Now

Obey the guidelines stipulated in your locality.

Let me rephrase that

Please follow the guidelines in your locality.

In Nigerian English they will say “I dey kneel down dey beg you”

(I am on my knees begging you)

Please do not ignore it. Please do not disobey.

Some of them are very simple

Like:

Wash your hands: please if you have never been an avid fan of washing your hands, now is the time to practice it. On normal occassions, it is advisable to wash your hands after going out, going to the toilet or after a messy work. It is a proper hygiene etiquette.

Have a hand sanitizer in place of soap: if you are indoors, soap is enough and a better option (because of water). Alcohol based sanitizers are recommended because they are effective against microbes. In my locality, the small shops have hand sanitizers for the buyers

Wear face masks if you are unwell or very uncomfortable moving around. Wear face masks (I have not been wearing any because I do move far from my locality)

Social distancing: avoid crowded areas. Every locality has their stipulations, kindly obey.

Pray…..

I believe in the sovereignty of God in every situation.

Proverbs 18:10 The name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.
KJV Translation

They are many scriptures to share.

Psalms 91:2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
KJV Translation

Psalms 91:3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
KJV Translation

And more……

Isaiah 53:5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.
KJV Translation

There are alot more but these that have been shared are comforting. Kindly check scriptures for more.

When all is well and when all is not

To all the health care workers

You have touched the world once again with your passion and love. Many of you have sacrificed your lives selflessly.

You have worked as a team

You have stayed together

To other non medical workers

Thank you for considering humanity by using your profession to spread awareness of the current pandemic.

Thank you creating relaxing videos and funny videos to ease the tension.

After this saga ends

Let us care for the earth. Let us stop doing things that will hurt nature. Let us stick with healthier options. Let us continue to be clean, wash our hands and obey safety guidelines.

Before I forget

Please follow quarantine rules.

Please!!

To end this post

I pray we get through this.

Prayers are sent to countries that are extremely affected by this pandemic.

Prayers are sent to every country.

Prayers are sent to everyone who reads this post.

Prayers are sent to every precious soul that is still alive.

This is a period to re-evaluate your life and return to God.

Hopefully, the next post would be a cheerful topic.

You can always reach me via email or my social media platforms….

🌻🌻

QUIET MEMOIRS VOLUME 4 will soon be shared.

And I did not go home, so this post is still👇

#fromamedicalstudentfaraway

SOMEBODY IS PRAYING FOR YOU🙏🌳🌿☀

It is more than a week my birthdate passed, my 365 days. It has been adventure being alive, an experience I am grateful to experience, not because I wished for it but because my life was spared to experience.

There are special times that prayers are needed like crazy, like the way you scramble for crumbs after starving for days without any meal.
I really missed sharing words. I still have more than 10 posts waiting for me. More than 10!🤒
This is my favourite month because my day is in it, and because it is a four letter word, and because June sounds pretty, and because June is June😇😘

But then, this month did not allow me express but I still love June like the way I love cats even after they try to scare me in my sleep😂😂. You can call it true love😂😂💝💝

You will need prayers, and someone would be praying for you. The times when you are weaker than you could imagine, strenght would come because someone is praying for you.
This topic is two months old but how beautiful it fits now. At this moment I am typing it and at the moment you would read it.

How beautiful are prayers, hearts in beautiful tune with maker, words that maybe no one can hear reaching the heavens. How beautuful it is to just pray and talk to God.
I am listenely to Even when it Hurts by Hillsong, and it fits beautifully. You can say that everythings is fitting beautifully when you surrender to God. When you surrender to His tender arms. How beautiful is the peace that flows after the tears are shed. How I love being there, in God’s presence, knowing He wraps me well.
I speak of what I experience. I share what I know. I share what has been real to me. I share as it comes because it comes from a real place.
Somebody is praying for you when you cry, when you worry. Somebody is praying for you when you doubt, when you are tired of life, when there are no answers to your throbbing questions, throbbing pain.

The song playing now is With Me by Gil Joe and Nkay. I love the song so much, like the way I love cats💝💝

Just as someone is praying for you, I hope you are praying for someone. They must not know because that is part of the beauty in praying for others.
Now playing Confident by Stefanny Gretzinger ft Bob. I love this song the way I love quietness. The way love peace.

I hope to post soon. I miss posting.
I hope you are doing well.🌿🌿

Philippians 1:4
Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy,

Philippians 4:6
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Colossians 4:2
Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;

James 5:16
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

#fromamedicalstudentfaraway