MY BEST MOMENT - TIME ALONE

LEARN TO SPEND TIME ALONE

It is often said that “time is life.” The length of time that a person lives is his lifetime. As we all know, time is forever moving and as long as it moves your lifetime keeps diminishing. Since time is life, what percentage of your life have you spent with yourself? How much do you know yourself?

Many of us are so occupied with a lot of activities; our lives are just so cluttered with people, things, events that are unnecessary but we can’t help it. We are so carried away with the outward that we don’t even care about the inward – the real you.

A time alone is a time of reflection, meditation and self-study. A life that reflects does not make the same mistake. Spending time alone helps you to know more about God and what he really wants for you.  It was discovered that the people God called in the bible were alone when he called them.   

If you do not know, you’ve given enough of your time(life) to friends, colleagues and to unnecessary activities. We all enjoy spending time with our loved ones; am sure you love yourself, please spend more time with yourself. It’s time to study yourself closely and understand why God has brought you into this world.

Excerpt from “The Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren

SECTION 2 (You were planned for God’s Pleasure)

God created us for his pleasure and he is happy when we live for his pleasure. ⁸ When we love God supremely and completely trust him he tends to smile at us.⁹ Offering ourselves to God completely; surrendering is what worship is all about.¹⁰ God wants intimacy with us; he wants you to open up to him as a friend. “It is a privilege to love God and being loved by God is his greatest pleasure.”¹¹ It is the level of your friendship with God that determines how much you get from him¹² The only worship that pleases God is “worshipping God with all our heart, soul, mind, strength.”¹³ When God feels distant, it is to test our loyalty to him, our faith in him as a friend.¹⁴

FURTHERMORE

Worship is not a measure of the music played, or the dance displayed, it is a function of the heart. God values the little kindness, care, love, patience we show to others and this is an act of worship. God wants all of Us - Spirit, Soul and Body. It is important to start being conscious of God’s presence in our lives. Involving God in the smallest issue, continual shorter conversation with God matters a lot to him than a seldom long session of complex prayers. Our friendship with God can only be sustained with our sincerity and honesty to him.

If each and every one of us will surrender all to God, he is ready to listen to us and provide solutions to whatever challenge we may be facing. The major barriers to worship are pride, fear, confusion, greediness. God cannot do anything without our will; the will is very powerful and God can only have his way if we willingly surrender to his Government.

WHAT DRIVES YOU?

They say “what we do is nothing compared to the motive behind what we do.” Something drives you, something triggers any action you take. Some actions are consciously taken either willingly or forcefully, some are not consciously taken but are usually decided by what the subconscious mind has stored. What stays in this part of the mind are the things we either permit consciously or as a result of repetition that we never took note off.

We must be mindful of what drives our actions; what goes into the deepest part of the mind. Our ability to decide what goes in will give us a hedge in this journey of life.  

I have written this because it’s been driven from my subconscious mind that I must write to keep people on the right track in this journey of life. And if it’s just one person that is transformed I am happy.

So, what is your why? What is your reason for existence? Your answers to these will drive you to your destiny. 

You may want to ask the questions? what is my why? how can I know my why?

Next week, by God's grace we shall focus on the topic "what is my why" as this, we unveil various questions about purpose.

EXCERP FROM "THE PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE" by Rick Warren

                                                               SECTION 1 (7 chapters)

Everything starts with God the creator, the real purpose of anyone’s existence may not be discovered without inquiring from him.¹ Our existence is not by accident because God planned every man’s coming, no matter the circumstance behind his birth.² What drives our lives really matter because it determines our actions and inactions.³ We are made for eternity and our existence in this world is for a while.⁴ The way we see life shapes our lives, our lives become meaningful when we start seeing it from God’s view.⁵ Life is a temporary assignment and God is the reason for everything. ^6,7

                                                      

                        THINGS TO NOTE

Motivational talks, philosopher’s view, etc. cannot actually teach you how to discover purpose but the only one who can teach you is the Creator-God. I have realized that the moment I started looking up to God for a revelation on his purpose for my life, the faster and better it has been for me. We all have been created for a purpose, our existence is not an accident. Therefore, our driving force shouldn’t be the treasures and lust of this world; it shouldn’t be the guilt, resentment, fear, materialism, need for approval; it should be the urge to fulfil God’s plans for our lives. There is life after death, man is made for eternity, our existence does not just end on this earth. So, we have to live each day as if it were the last day on earth. From God’s view, life is a test; life is a trust, and we are accountable for every action and inaction. Everything I do, every step I take should be to the glory of God.

ME AND MY MINDSET

THE POWER OF THE MIND

You can imagine how this world would have been if there were to be a device that immediately executes the numerous great ideas in the Human Mind. My mentor said, “the richest place on earth is the human mind.” There is something funny about this unseen component, “It is only the mind that can stop the mind; nobody can stop what the mind has proposed to do.” The extends to which the mind can process thoughts is unlimited and that is why the Bible says “guard your heart (mind) with all diligence.”

The mind cannot be limited but it can limit us because it uses “garbage in garbage out” i.e. depending on what you have fed into it, through what we hear and see. When we were younger we had so many dreams even though most may seem vague because of our levels of understanding. We always thought we could do anything in the world without any hindrances because our parents kept that optimism in our mind. So, whatsoever we let stay into our sub-conscious mind affects our totality (attitude and Character).

There is usually this Joy that comes from a new beginning and as a result, we make various plans so as to change levels before the next beginning. This plan is the output of the mind and our ability to follow through depends on our mindset. There was actually a time I got tired of planning because it didn’t work out most times as planned. One thing I have learnt about planning is that, the mind must be informed about the reason we have made a particular plan and why we must follow through - the fact that there is no shortcut to success but a result of my daily input through planning.

THE EVIL OF CRITICISM

The act of criticizing is an expression of disapproval of someone or something on the basis of perceived faults or mistakes. It is also finding fault in something or someone. Virtually everyone does this knowingly or unknowingly. We criticize because we feel the right thing is not being done. Some find faults as a result of jealousy and hatred; they can’t help but see something wrong in others. It was said that “every man has a certain degree of jealousy.”

However, only a few people can withstand this act and others can be stopped from moving forward. No one likes criticism, only few can ignore and go ahead. It causes depression, devastation, demoralization, and many glorious destinies have been lost. Dale Carnegie said “Abilities wither under criticism but blossom under encouragement.’’ 

Criticizing does not correct in most cases, it arouses resentment and rigidity. criticism limits you and those you criticize. When you begin to see faults in others; of course, you are not going to see any in yourself. In this case, pride sets in and the proud do not like correction. 

Criticism is an act we can all control by simply following the golden rule which says: “do unto others what you want others to do unto you.” If a person has done wrong and you feel you should say something, first ask yourself the question of what you would have done if you were in his shoes. You might just have done the same thing, after all, no one is perfect. At times, we may sincerely want to correct and this is good. We do not have to criticize. Appreciate what you like about the person and point out what you want to correct with love. Let the individual feel you are helping and not jesting.

CONCLUSION: Everyone wants a feeling of importance, give them by seeing the good in them and appreciating it.

DECISION: I will Speak ill of no man, and speak all good I know of everybody.

THE PRODIGAL DAUGHTER

They often say "life is full of ups and downs" I never realised that until recently when I lost interest in something I love doing as a result of my carelessness. Writing to me was a lifestyle, a platform to inspire, to reprove, to correct and to lead the world through the right path (the way of the Lord). With my little experiences, I would like to share with you how quickly we could lose a gift when not utilised consistently. 

Right from the time, I discovered this wonderful gift, as far as I wanted to write I got inspiration from the Holy Spirit. Each time I picked my pen or made any attempt to start typing on my laptop, words just kept "flowing." This is an evidence that it is God's given and must be used for him. 

What held me back for a while?

1. I got too busy with things that yielded just little returns: It is quite a painful thing to know the right thing and not do it. Exactly my case, I knew I could lose this gift if I stopped using it. This funny statement "I will write later" held me back for a while. I became too familiar with the basic principles of greatness (paying the price at the moment).
2. I actually forgot those things I used to tell my self - (Development is a gradual process of growth). I wanted perfection, I wanted to get the attention of all my audiences forgetting that I have to go through the natural process of growth. The funny thing is that I always thought I could handle criticism but it did affect me unknowingly. 

3 things that brought me back to my right state of mind

1.   The fact that God will ask me about it. "What have you done with those gifts I gave you? How many lives have you impacted ?" (I do not want to fail God.)

2.    God could raise someone else to replace me.

3.    When I stop adding value I start losing value.

I have decided to tell this story because i know someone out there is like me, fighting to get back on their feet. Trying to reclaim their lost gift, just keep in mind these three things I have listed above and begin doing something.

My Dear friends, we are here on this earth not for ourselves but for God, and we must do all to please him. Start showing forth those gifts, they may seem crude now but as you use them they begin to refine automatically. Make God your confidence and you shall obtain the prize.

Remain Ever Blessed

Stay tuned as we shall be posting here every Friday. please visit, read and be inspired. Do not forget to like and share your testimony with us. 

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