Rejection Residues

Dear friends!

As 2019 draws to a close, the beginning of a new decade nears. Social media is awash with people making conclusions about how the last decade has been for them; comparing pictures from 2009 to current 2019 pictures using #DecadeChallenge, some of the #TwitterMomentOfTheDecade posts have had us laughing all over again at funny viral videos from the past ten years. I ponder on my life in the last decade and the theme that seems to have run through the past ten years of my life is rejection. There have been highs and many lows, I have been happy but I have also been deeply (I would say mostly) sad, life broke my heart while at the same time, mending it. I have also learnt some of my biggest life lessons in these past ten years, so I have decided to write on rejection and its residues:

Rejection is one of life’s realities that everyone on Earth will sooner or later come to experience in some measure. Some people are faced with the reality and sometimes, perpetual existence of rejection, earlier in life than others - a child whose father or mother is not present during their childhood feels rejected and could easily spend their teenagehood and the rest of their adult life nursing wounds that come about as a result of the rejection they feel. Some people have their parents in their lives but don’t feel accepted or loved by them, as such, they grapple with the perceived dismissal and seeming or evidential lack of acknowledgement.

Every individual will first be confronted with the ideas of acceptance and rejection in their home life because our parents and immediate family are usually our first points of contact on entering into this world. By extension, our extended family and family friends tend to have access to us quite early on as well.

However, as we grow and develop mentally, emotionally and physically, the next stages of our lives call for us to step out into the world to experience life with people outside our homes. People who have mainly experienced acceptance and love from their family and close friends may for the first time experience rejection as they interact with peers in school. Some people scale through their primary education, secondary education and maybe even tertiary education without any form of rejection or bullying from peers. From experience, I can tell you that most people, by the time they have spent a few years in university, have experienced rejection; if not from peers, from an internship application, a job application or an opportunity very much wanted.

The older we get, the more we try to branch out into new spaces that interest us and zones outside our comfort, the more prone we are to rejection. Rejection is not necessarily a bad thing, it is part of life. Learning to manage it healthily goes a long way towards one’s personal development and fulfillment.

God’s Acceptance

God loves humanity. God loves you. God loves me.

Unfortunately, man fell and sin cast a shadow on the beautiful relationship God had with man, still God chases after us. The whole bible is an account of God making efforts to draw near to us so we can draw near to him. Unfortunately, many of us do not even pay attention to his gentle promptings - “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me (Revelations 3:20).” God doesn’t force his way into our lives, he waits patiently for us to sense his promptings, he waits until we are ready to allow him in.

God loves us so much, he died in our stead and one of the surest things is that he always accepts us and he will always accept us. An old song describes it so well - Nothing you can do could make him love you more, and nothing you have done could make him close the door.

Before man sinned, God loved us.

Scripture says we are created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). The first man and woman experienced God’s love in the beautiful garden of Eden where they had all they needed and a God who cherished his relationship with them.

When man sinned, God loved us.

And the Lord God made for Adam and his wife garments of skins and clothed them (Genesis 3:21). God made sure to cover Adam and Eve’s nakedness, giving them some protection and comfort even though he was still to be separated from them due to their new sin nature.

Living in sin, God loves us.

God proves his love for us in this: while were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).

When we reconnect with the Father, He loves us.

Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God (John 1:12).

Even when we slip up from time to time, He still loves us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow - not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below - indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).

Unfortunately, the wrong ideas that we have to be perfect before we come to God and that Christians must be/are perfect is what is widely known and propagated. Those are lies. Firstly, God wants us to come to him and open up our hearts to him just as we are, plus no Christian is perfect. Christians are people who have simply allowed God into their hearts and (hopefully) choose to daily grow in relationship with him.

In Hebrews 4:16, we are admonished to approach God’s throne of grace boldly, especially when we need grace and mercy. This means that even when we have done something wrong and in need of mercy, God wants us to approach him boldly.

The freeing truth is that God accepts us. He loves us just as we are and even if nobody on Earth wants us, God wants us. This is the best starting point in any conversation on rejection.

God loves us, God wants us, God is for us, God accepts us.

God loves you, God wants you, God is for you, God accepts you.

God loves me, God wants me, God is for me, God accepts me.

Even with people and spaces where we are thoroughly accepted, our starting point should be God’s acceptance, such that in everything we do and anywhere we find ourselves, we know that our heavenly father accepts us, hence we act and make moves from a place of acceptance and not for acceptance.

Why Do People Reject Others?

They just don’t want you… and honestly, there is no problem with this. As individuals, we gravitate towards certain people and pull away from others. Our likes, dislikes, personality traits, personality types, unique quirks and many more factors usually come to play when it comes to us deciding on whether to accept a person and allow them a little more into our spaces or whether to gently keep them at bay. The same also comes to play when other people try to decipher whether or not they want us close to them or not. There is no need to take things personally when a person you admire does not seem to have the same interest in you. I am pretty sure there have been people who really like you that you have not taken to as well.

They are insecure and intimidated. I learnt during my university and industrial placement years that many people get intimidated by others very easily. A lot of people allow their insecurities to consume them in such a manner that they are not confident in themselves. They are easily intimidated by what other people have, which they believe is lacking in their own lives; it could be a skill, beauty, a personal feature, possessions etc. They assume you will reject them so they immediately reject you.

They know you will not compromise. Some people are into dodgy activities which you may most likely not be aware of. Because they already know what your stance will be on their habits and doings, they choose not to include you in their cliques or invite you to any of their circles or events. A good kind of rejection, if you ask me.

You are not a good fit for them. An application for a position or an opportunity may be denied because whoever is at the helm of affairs with the authority to choose, believes you to not be a good fit for what they may be offering. This may or may not be true - I have seen people whose teachers told them they could not practise certain professions, go on to excel in those same professions. At the same time, there have been people, who having practically experienced an opportunity desperately sought after, decide it is not for them. There are those for whom it is a timing issue, for example, Moses had the passion to provide freedom for his kinsmen. In his premature move to stand up for the Israelites, he ended up killing an Egyptian, he had to run away from Egypt to escape punishment from Pharaoh. It was his destiny to lead the Israelites out of slavery but it was not yet time. We all know how well that ended, once God decided it was time 40 years later.

They are small-minded. There are people whose acceptance of others is dependent on what is popular in society, their fragile egos and general worldly standards. I find that a huge part of these people’s self-esteem is based on their social circle. They will often look down on people they believe not to be good enough, popular enough or rich enough for them.

How Rejection Occurs

I believe there are two types of rejection - outright rejection and subtle rejection. Rejection is outright when whoever is doing the rejection makes their intentions clear, either through words or signs to show that a person is not accepted or wanted in a particular setting or situation. A rejection letter from a job or university application is outright. A person who bullies or picks on another person sends them an outright message that they are not wanted or accepted in a given space. With outright rejection, you know exactly where you stand. You know you are being rejected.

Subtle rejection is more indirect and requires whoever is being rejected to read in between the lines. I think this is more common in informal relationships. The cues and the feedback we get from acquaintances, friends, colleagues and people we generally do day to day life with tell us where we stand in their lives, so also, the feedback they get from us gives them clues as to where they stand in our lives. When you are not invited to their events, they do not check up on you from time to time, they rarely reply to your messages, rarely honour your invitations and overall, their communication with you and actions towards you are inconsistent, distant and/or are negative; these are signs of subtle rejection.

Every relationship, friendship, allyship, acquaintanceship etc. is unique and levels of closeness differ per relationship, per friendship, per acquaintanceship etc. Jesus had many followers out of which was a distinct 70 (Luke 10:1), there were the 12 disciples who were closer to him and there were three who were closest to him: Peter, James and John. We cannot be close to everyone and not everyone can be close to us, however, we are called to love people.

Irrespective of whether people are in our inner circles or not, we are to love them, show kindness to them and make sure the fruits of the Spirit are evident in our daily dealings with everyone we cross paths with. This way, every single person we come in contact with feels accepted and loved. We should also gracefully and truthfully let people know where they stand in our lives while also clearly communicating that we value and love them. Maya Angelou said it best - “I have learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

I am a very straight-forward person so I let people know where they stand in my life and more importantly, I try to make sure I am gracious to everyone I come in contact with. Whilst rejection may sometimes be painful, I mostly deal with it from an outright position and I expect that other people will be outright with me too - I do not mind you rejecting me but at least, let me know you are rejecting me so I know where to position myself especially so I do not invest heavily where I am not wanted or valued.

When I think back on my life, especially my university experience at Sheffield, the most painful rejections I experienced were the subtle ones. I did not pick up the signs people were giving me to let me know that I was not wanted in their spaces. The inconsistencies were glaring and the negative energies were palpable but I had never experienced these things before, so it took me a while to figure out I was being rejected. I have learnt that a lot of people are not bold enough to let other people know where they stand in their lives and some want benefits they can gain from being close to you, without any form of commitment or loyalty so one has to read in between the lines and be discerning.

Acceptance is very loud. When you are accepted, you feel welcomed, you feel loved, you feel well looked after. Anything less than this could be hinting at the possibility of being rejected. So when in a situation where it is not clear whether you are accepted or wanted, I suggest you ask yourself the following questions:

(i) Do I feel welcomed?

(ii) Do I feel loved?

(iii) Am I well looked after?

Your answers should give you an idea of how much the other person(s) values you. The ball is now in your court to act as it fits.

The Place of Privilege

It will be naive to discuss rejection and not talk about how privilege can influence whether a person is rejected or accepted; this is one of life’s unfair realities. Recently, I learnt about pretty privilege - apparently, the prettier or more beautiful a person is, the more likely it is that people (mostly through unconscious bias) will be nicer to them. A person that is privileged with wealth may hardly face rejection finding people to be friends with (although they may have to figure out who really is their friend and who is not), an intellectually privileged person may easily pass the psychometric interview test that many people struggle with and go on to get a highly placed job with ease, a good looking person will most likely find interested suitors with more ease than the average person.

Nonetheless, it is high time we were aware that being connected to the God of the universe, the one who created it all, is the greatest privilege of all because at the right time, God will take us exactly where we need to be, he will take us where we will flourish and prosper, he will lead us to the right places and connect us to the right people. All we need to do is trust him, obey him and hand over our lives to him for guidance (easier said than done). With God, whatever disadvantages we have automatically become advantages that work for our good because God uses the foolish things of this world to confound the wise (1 Corinthians 1:27). We are in the world, but as the bible tells us, we are not of this world, therefore we do not measure ourselves by the standards of this world. We live by heavenly standards and stand on God’s word as ambassadors of Christ that we are.

Loss & Rejection

Loss and rejection are very much intertwined. Loss often leads to feelings of rejection and a person who has been rejected often feels like they have lost something tangible: a person who loses their job will most likely feel rejected by their company, a person who has been excluded or rejected from a certain social circle may feel like they have lost out on potential friendships or relationships. It is hard to be rejected and not be at a loss at the same time, in some way, shape or manner and vice versa.

It is very easy for us to feel rejected by God when we face any form of loss but it is important to remember that we live in a fallen world where loss and death are inevitable; we pray against untimely deaths. Through it all, our God is sovereign. He sees all things, he knows all things and he has our best interests at heart; this we can trust!

The beauty in this is that new life is often born out of death as clearly explained in John 12:24: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. Our God exemplified this through his experience on the cross; Jesus conquered death by death so we can have access to a new life in Christ that is abundant and eternal.

Please know that for every area in your life where you have experienced loss, there is potential for new birth and new life. Talk to God about it and make sure to wait on him regarding what next steps to take, allow his peace fill you, let him massage your broken heart with his balm and let him nurse you back to health and wholeness. Life is eternal but we only spend a few days on this earth, David describes the days we spend on this planet as a shadow that disappears. The good news is a new heaven and a new earth await us where there will be no more loss, death or pain; this is our greatest joy and consolation.

Rejection Residues

Rejection, like any other unpleasant life experience, leaves a bad taste in the mouth. To healthily manage rejection, I believe it is necessary to be aware of the residues rejection may produce :

Validation Seeking: There is a tendency for a person who has been rejected to want to prove that they are worth the acceptance of their rejecter and therefore continue to seek validation. There is also the allure of them jumping at any form of acceptance (good or bad). This rarely ends well and as far as I am concerned, it is like going down a rabbit hole.

Isolation: When rejection is experienced over and over again (especially in a social sense), the natural human reaction is to withdraw and isolate oneself from other people.

Fear & Cautiousness: The more rejection is experienced, the harder it is to approach people and initiate friendships because previous negative experiences can induce fear and remind us of the possibility of being rejected again.

Reluctance to be Inclusive: Rejected people can easily fall into the cycle of rejecting other people, preventing them from getting close. In the process, they drive people who can be of help to them far away.

Bitterness: Rejection hurts and can hurt even more when it is about an opportunity very much wanted and longed for or an opportunity long waited for. This hurt can lead to hatred or anger towards others or even towards oneself which can lead to bitterness if not properly managed.

Rejection often leads to disappointment which even the bible acknowledges can be disheartening - “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life (Proverbs 13:12)”. Life happens to every single one of us but even the most devastating of circumstances can yield fruit. It is of essence that we make the most of whatever circumstances come our way, even the seemingly negative ones - we sift through and hold on to the good parts while dropping the negative bits. Some people have been through very horrible circumstances, yet they are in a much better place today but some people have also been through similar circumstances but they are still stuck with bitterness and filled with resentment.

Blessings That Accompany Rejection

Re-Orientation. Sometimes we want certain things so much that we start defining ourselves by them, but who we are is not defined by what we have or what we do not have, we are not defined by who is in our lives or what opportunities we get. We are who God says we are. Rejection can sometimes send a jolt down our spines that cause us to re-align our priorities and remind us that our identity is first in Christ Jesus.

Redirection. We human beings can at times be narrow-minded. We want what we want when we want it, but sometimes, what we want is not for us; it is smaller than what God has in store for us; it is meant to be temporary and not permanent etc. Rejection many times helps us to be re-directed towards opportunities that favour us and are aligned with destiny. There is a whole world out there outside of our peripheral vision. God has the bird’s eye view so we cant trust him when he orchestrates rejections that point us in the direction of where we are meant to go.

Humility. There is something about being rejected that humbles a person. And you will agree with me that we need to be humbled from time to time because the world does not revolve around us.

Empathy. It is very easy to dismiss other people’s struggles until we have experienced similar situations. It is easier to be empathetic with people who feel rejected and maligned by society when we have experienced rejection.

Charles Swindoll says “ Life is ten percent what happens to me and ninety percent how I react to it.” I agree. Now, this does not mean that we pretend that everything is fine and dandy when it is not. We are to own our experiences, feel them, acknowledge them and live the length, breadth and width of them, but we do not allow our experiences to control us. We submit them at the feet of Jesus. God is ready to walk with us through the fire if we let him. The good news is that he understands all that we go through for we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathise with our weaknesses, he faced the same tests we face, yet he did not sin (Hebrews 4:15). Let us cast all our cares on Jesus; including all rejections and any disappointments they may have produced because Jesus cares for us.

How Jesus Handled Rejection

Jesus dealt with rejection throughout his days here on earth and this is made very clear in scripture:

He was despised and rejected - a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care (Isaiah 53:3).

He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognise him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him, But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God (John 1:10-12).

We see Jesus distinctly rejected when he visits his hometown, Nazareth. The people who had seen him grow up, who he considered to be his closest friends and family could not accept that he was operating in such a capacity even though reports of all he had been doing had spread through the whole region. They kept asking “Is this not Joseph’s son? How can this be?”, they found it hard to accept him for who he was and at some point, they unsuccessfully attempted to push him over a cliff.

Jesus acknowledged that his townsfolk were rejecting him. In fact, he mentioned it to their faces, citing examples of previous prophets in Israel that were never accepted in their own hometowns and then he left. How interesting! The bible says “He simply went on his way.”

From this example, I learn that when rejection happens,

(i) we are to acknowledge it for what it is

and

(ii) simply move on

This is easier said than done but definitely not impossible. Jesus did not try to convince these people about who he was so they could accept him, he simply moved on.

Who / What has your Attention?

There is a correlation between what / who we direct our attention to and where we seek acceptance, for example, If you spend a lot of time on social media, you can easily become obsessed with getting likes on your posts. The more you direct your attention to thinking about the person you have a crush on, the more infatuated you get and the likelier it is that you will try to get them to notice you.

The key is to focus on things that bring value to us and pay attention to people that hold us in high esteem. At this point, for me, this will mean that I focus on my relationship with God, my family, budding friendships as well as my career and personal projects. Since God is the surest person to be accepting of us at all times, I say we direct a whole lot of attention and energy towards him.

My Confession

Thank you Lord because you love me

Thank you because you are for me

Thank you because you fight my battles for me

Before the foundations of the world, you chose me

Even now, you choose me

And thank you because you will always choose me

Thank you Lord for accepting me as I am

My Conclusion

If I were to summarise everything I have written so far on rejection, it will be this:

(i) There is always acceptance with God.

(ii) Go where you are wanted.

(iii) Go where you are celebrated.

As you can probably tell from some of my posts, Writing is one of the ways I shed old skin and say my goodbyes to past experiences, with the hope that I allow the invaluable bits cling to me while letting go of any unnecessary weight. This is my way of saying goodbye to this decade. I am grateful for everything - the good, the bad, the ugly, especially the lessons.

Happy New Year Folks!!

I wish you a prosperous 2020 and beyond!

xoxo

#LukeChallenge - Countdown to Christmas

Dear friends,

Hope you had a marvelous Christmas? Long-time, no see. I am genuinely covering my face because I have not posted since April. Another project I have been working on took my time. Hopefully, I will be more consistent in the next year!

I took part in the challenge to countdown to Christmas through the book of Luke. The aim was to read through each of the 24 chapters in the book of Luke, starting on the first of December up until Christmas Eve, so that by Christmas day, the full story of Jesus from birth through death to resurrection would have been fully taken in afresh.

Below, I discuss something I have picked up from each of the twenty-four chapters in the book of Luke during this challenge.

Luke 1: The secret things belong to God. Historians believe that there are about 400 years between Malachi’s prophetic ministry and John the Baptist’s birth. The Israelites knew that God had promised a messiah who was to come from David’s line. No one knew when this messiah would come, only God did. It was a secret! The church was also a secret that God had planned, which no one knew about until Pentecost when the HolySpirit came into the upper room. Just like Christ was quietly gifted to the world through Mary, I would like to think that God has more secret gifts planned for us, both in this world and in the next and this gets me excited!

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things which are revealed and disclosed belong to us and our children forever, so that we may do all the words of this law (Deuteronomy 29:29) [AMP].

Luke 2: God reveals his secrets to those who are loyal to him. Every time I read Luke chapter 2, I am fascinated by Simeon and Anna. Simeon is described as righteous and devout, Anna is described as a prophetess. These two were aware of the miracle that was right before their eyes when Jesus was presented (or dedicated) at the temple. In a time when the HolySpirit was not available to everyone, the bible says that the HolySpirit was on Simeon (how special!). The HolySpirit revealed to him that he would see the messiah in his lifetime; a piece of information not privy to everyone. The deeper we go in our relationship with God, the more committed and loyal we become to him and the more God lets us in on secrets about himself, our lives and the world at large.

There’s a private place reserved for the lovers of God, where they sit near him and receive the revelation-secrets of his promises (Psalm 25:14) [TPT].

Luke 3: Every generation plays a part. At the end of Luke Chapter 3, between verses 23 and 38, tracing through Mary’s ancestors, the genealogy of Jesus Christ from Adam is listed. I counted and there are 70 generations (individuals) from Adam till Eli (who I presume was Mary’s father); Abraham was 16th in line from Adam and David was 30th. How interesting! All these 70 individuals probably never realised how important they were to facilitate God’s plan on earth. Do you know you are important towards the fulfilment of God’s purpose on the earth? The generations that came before us did the best they could, we carry on from where they left off, making sure to make good choices that will put generations that come after us in good stead.

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9) [KJV].

Luke 4: Handling rejection with grace. We see Jesus rejected when he visits his hometown, Nazareth. The people who had seen him grow up, who he considered to be his closest friends and family could not accept that he was operating in such a capacity even though reports of all he had been doing had spread through the whole region. They kept asking “Is this not Joseph’s son? How can this be?”, they found it hard to accept him for who he was and at some point, they unsuccessfully attempted to push him over a cliff. Jesus did not try to convince these people about who he was so they would accept him, he simply moved on.

Coming to Him as to a living stone who is rejected by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up to a spiritual house as a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2:4-5) [MSG].

Luke 5: Jesus, friend of sinners. Jesus commissioned us to go into the world and make disciples for the kingdom, yet many of us remain in our church pews with our church cliques and Christian friends. We have separated ourselves from the world such that the world has no clue about who we really are and what we stand for. In today’s society, it is very easy for anyone to concoct a false image of who Jesus is and who Christians are and the world will readily gulp it in.

Matthew (the tax collector), the newest disciple of Jesus at the time, threw a feast for Jesus which was also attended by many of his tax collector friends. This led to the Pharisees and religious people of the day castigating Jesus for hanging out with sinners. Although we are not of this world, we are still in it and we need to remember that we are God’s ambassadors on earth. People who don’t know God are meant to see him through us. How will they see him through us if we isolate ourselves from them?

In our daily walk with God, we need to ensure that our interactions with other people (Christian and non-Christian alike) are led by the HolySpirit so we do not choose friends and acquaintances, or relate to other people based on a false sense of superiority.

I’m here inviting outsiders, not insiders - an invitation to a changed life, changed inside out (Luke 5:32) [MSG].

Luke 6: Love is the new law. The popular Christian song “Oh Holy Night” is argued to be Britain's favourite Christmas hymn. Chloe Wilson, one of the United Christian Broadcasters (UCB) presenters felt the result was incorrect as there were many other carols that people loved, so she decided to do a poll on her weekday, afternoon programme. In the end, it turned out that “Oh Holy Night” was indeed a favourite as it was the song most voted for! One of the beautiful lines of this hymn goes like this: His law is love and his gospel is peace.

All the Israelites had as guidance towards living right was the law of Moses which although accurate, was usually misconstrued with wicked people using it wrongly as armour for their actions and a tool to control others. In Luke 6, the Pharisees were waiting to see if Jesus would heal a man’s deformed hand on the sabbath because then, according to them, he would be breaking the Jewish law which declares the sabbath day as a day of rest. Jesus ignored the Pharisees and healed the man showing us that love fulfils the law. So if you ever find yourself in a situation where you believe you are in the right, but whatever it is your actions are, clash against tradition, test the act from a place of love.

Jesus replied “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.'' All the Law and Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40) [NIV].

Luke 7: When men faint. We are human beings so our faith is not always strong. Sometimes, we faint. When life does not go the way we expect it to go or when pressures of life arise, doubt can easily creep in. John the Baptist was locked up in prison by Herod - an unfair situation he had found himself in because he spoke out the truth other people were muttering beneath their breaths. John who had previously maintained that Jesus was the messiah started wondering if indeed he (Jesus) was truly the messiah.

I believe John felt abandoned and expected that Jesus would speak up for him and maybe at least visit him; they were cousins after all. Jesus showed John the Baptist’s disciples signs, wonders and healing that was happening in people’s lives so they could pass on the message to John. Jesus also said, “Blessed is he who shall not be offended by me”. Maybe today you are disappointed because God has not come through for you like you thought he would, please know that God loves you. Wait on his signs and leading. It can be hard sometimes but choose to believe even if your faith is little. All we need is a mustard seed size faith anyway!

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life (Proverbs 13:12) [NIV].

Luke 8: Talitha Koum. Talitha Koum means ‘Little girl, get up!’ These were Jesus’ words to Jarius’ daughter who he brought back to life. More impressive was the faith of her father who believed that Jesus would make sure his daughter was well, even when news got to him that she had passed away. This Christmas period, let us remember that we can speak life into any situation which seems dead. When time was going and Jesus kept being interrupted on his way to see the twelve-year-old girl, he said to Jarius “Only believe!” Like Jarius, let us choose to believe.

But Jesus, having heard, answered him, “Fear not; only believe, and she will be saved.” (Luke 8:50) [BLB].

Luke 9: Embracing the hard truths. Life is full of challenges. Even Jesus acknowledges that we will have many troubles in this world but thanks to his sacrifice on the cross, irrespective of how things seem at surface level, we always win; we have won every challenge we will ever face before we face them because Jesus won every single challenge for us.

Jesus knew he would die. He knew he would suffer many things yet he did not run away from the struggle and he did not deny the pain. Instead, he embraced it and worked his way through it; being utterly dependent on the Father. Whenever we are faced with difficulties, let us not shrivel in fear, let us acknowledge them, let us count the cost and let us go to God for help because he will fill whatever gaps exist. After acknowledging his death would happen, Jesus went to pray as usual with Moses and Elijah appearing and talking to him about his impending death - no doubt providing some guidance and encouragement that Jesus needed.

When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you (Isaiah 4:2) [NLT].

Luke 10: Deserving of pay. Do you make sure you stop to breathe and enjoy the things you work for and all of God’s blessings to you? Or do you just Go! Go!! Go!! In Luke 10, Jesus sends out 72 of his followers in groups to towns and villages to heal the sick and to tell people that God’s kingdom is very near. Jesus gave instructions to the 72 on sending them out and one of the things he mentioned was this: “Don’t hesitate to accept hospitality, because those who work deserve their pay.” We need to make sure we take time off to rest when necessary and bask in whatever blessings God brings our way. Even God rested on the seventh day!

There is nothing better for people to do than to eat, drink and find satisfaction in their work. I saw that even this comes from the hand of God. Who can eat or enjoy themselves without God? (Ecclesiastes 2:24-25) [GW].

Luke 11: God loves to answer our prayers. The disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray and he did. To provide an outlook on why we are to approach God with confidence, he explains that we human beings who are generally evil make sure to get our children what they want. How much more will God give us his HolySpirit? Staying in connection with God is the key to a fruitful spiritual life. Jesus often withdrew himself from people to be alone to pray, If Jesus who was fully God and fully man needed to pray constantly, how much more do we need to pray? I am grateful that the disciples were humble enough to ask him to teach them how to pray. The Lord’s prayer has been a template for prayer across the years, all over the world!

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened (Luke 11:9-10) [NIV].

Luke 12: Public Acknowledgement. One of the ways through which relationships between people become solidified is through public acknowledgement. In this day and age where social media is the in thing, people post selfies of themselves as well as pictures of close friends and family on their pages. If you make it to someone’s Instagram page (for example), you must be very special to them. When someone in your life is very important to you, you talk about them, you introduce them to your friends, they are invited to all your events etc. In essence, the people we value in our lives are the ones we acknowledge publicly. Do you acknowledge Jesus publicly or are you ashamed of him? Do your co-workers and friends know you are Christian? If we were to scroll through your social pages, will it be obvious to us that you are the daughter of the Most-High? Jesus says if we acknowledge him before others, he will acknowledge us before the angels in heaven and if we disown him, he will disown us before the angels in heaven.

I refuse to be ashamed of sharing the wonderful message of God’s liberating power unleashed in us through Christ! For I am thrilled to believe that everyone who believes is saved (Romans 1:16) [TPT].

Luke 13: Nothing new under the sun. Luke chapter 13 begins with the story of the Galileans who had been killed by Pilate while making sacrifices at the altar. The story of the 18 individuals who were crushed when the Tower of Siloam collapsed is also mentioned. Not too different from the world we live in today, right? There seems to always be one disaster after the other: As of recent, I can think of the two 737 Max 8 crashes, I think of Grenfell tower, I think of mass shootings, I think of knife crimes, I think of how poverty is rife across the once prosperous nations of Africa… I could go on and on, the long and short of it all is that injustice continues to permeate the layers of the earth and we humans just cannot seem to agree with one another. Governments and people with higher authority majorly oppress and take advantage of the weak - this is not a new thing and it seems to be getting worse by the day. There is one sure thing though; Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. God never changes. In the face of injustice, he is just and in the face of lies, he is the truth. The uncertainties of this world can disconcert us but we joy in the certainty that because we are children of God and in the next world where moth and rust cannot destroy, we live!

Jesus said, “Don’t be troubled. Trust in God, and trust in me. There are many rooms in my Father’s house. I would not tell you this if it were not true. I am going there to prepare a place for you. After I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back. Then I will take you with me, so that you can be where I am.” (John 14:1-3) [ERV].

Luke 14: Don’t chase after honour. Instead of chasing after accolades, societal importance and honour, let us be known as people who choose to serve others. Humility becomes ingrained in us when we live a life of service towards other people. Being in an active personal relationship with God is to know that the God of the universe honours us. We can bask in the great honour God has bestowed upon us such that we become secure in who we are, and the prestige and importance other people desperately seek after do not move us. The bible says promotion comes not from the east or from the west but from the most-high God. Do not try to promote yourself, let God promote you. Who does God promote? - God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in good time (1 Peter 5:5-6). I pray we receive a heart of service.

But godliness actually is a source of great gain when accompanied by contentment [that contentment which comes from a sense of inner confidence based on the sufficiency of God]

(1 Timothy 6:6) [AMP].

Luke 15: Lost and found. After continuously losing my bank cards, supermarket cards and some I.D. cards, I decided it was time to stop losing things, so I got myself a very compact and lovely wallet. Just a few days into using my wallet, I could not find it after a trip to ASDA. I lost my cool - I stumped my feet, sat on the floor and started crying, by this time, my wig was already on the floor. I started dispatching my angels (it be like this sometimes), I kept praying “God, anytime I see lost items, I always make sure I try my best to get them to the owner, please don’t let my own item get lost.” It was a hysterical moment! As someone who normally would not care much about losing things and would just replace anything lost, this one hurt because I had taken so much pain to make sure that I did not lose any of my personal items again; now, it was not just one card that was lost, all the cards in my wallet including the wallet itself seemed lost. It turned out that I left the wallet in the supermarket trolley, thankfully, someone reported it lost to customer care! Have you ever lost anything really valuable to you? Other people may not think item you have lost is important, but to you, it is worth so much. Other people may not think you valuable but God values you immensely! God ultimately wants us found. He wants us found in him and he wants to restore any loss that may exist in our lives. We only need to be open to him.

In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents ( Luke 15:10) [NIV].

Luke 16: Smarts. The world we live in is very crooked. A lot of people cut corners, and commit illegal acts so that they have the upper hand in society. They believe in outsmarting others while trying to be smart enough not to get caught - this is the world’s kind of smartness! To be smart in God’s eyes is to be faithful, both in the small things and the big things. Jesus did say that the sons of this world are wiser than the sons of light. We cannot afford to be naive, we need to open our eyes wide so that we are both alert and aware of channelling our energy into truthful things while not being taken advantage of.

Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Matthew 10:16) [ESV].

Luke 17: Jesus, have mercy on me. Do you try to solve any issues that arise in your life all by yourself or do you ask God for help? If the ten lepers did not cry out for help, they would have not been healed. We have been given the gift of HolySpirit, the divine helper, involve him more in your issues and watch life become less stressful for you, as you take the steps he asks you to take. Whenever you feel overwhelmed, remember you can cry out to God for help!

Give your burdens to the Lord. He will carry them. He will not permit the godly to slip or fall (Psalm 55:22) [TLB].

Luke 18: A childlike faith. As children, we easily believe anything is possible but as we grow up and face life’s challenges, the awe, wonder in our hearts as well as the innocent lens through which we view the world slowly disappears. If not checked, there is the tendency to move from being soft-hearted to being hard-hearted. According to Jesus, if we are to enter God’s kingdom, we require a heart full of faith and humility like that of a little child.

And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 11:19) [ESV].

Luke 19: Making up for lack. Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus but he was short, his view was blocked by the crowd. He did not let his height deter him so he climbed a tree. Jesus saw Zacchaeus in the tree and asked to stay in his house. All of a sudden, Zacchaeus was hosting the person he was trying to get a glimpse of, height notwithstanding. God can meet every need of ours, including areas of lack, we only need to trust him. An important point to make however is that Zacchaeus made an effort to climb the sycamore tree, a solution to his view being blocked. If there are any areas in your life where you feel there is a lack, make sure to check for any other plausible solutions.

Young lions go lacking and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing (Psalm 34:10) [BSB].

Luke 20: Trap after Trap. The Pharisees wanted to get Jesus in trouble so they tested him time and time again with their numerous questions, which were always set up so that Jesus’ back would be against the wall. Jesus who was filled with the HolySpirit always discerned their motives and through divine wisdom, never once fell for their sly tactics. In Luke 20, we see how they unsuccessfully tried to get Jesus in trouble with the government by asking if it was fitting to pay taxes to a corrupt government. Jesus’ response, in summary, explains that in regards to giving, we should give the government what the government requires and give God that which belongs to him. One thing I learn from this scenario that corroborates with my life experience so far is that being an honest person who stands with the truth can often prevent one from falling into already set traps of the enemy.

… To keep satan from getting the advantage over us; for we are not ignorant of his schemes (2 Corinthians 2:11) [AMP].

Luke 21: From the heart. Have you ever wondered why you give (particularly in a church setting)? Do you give because the pastor says so? Do you give because everyone gives? Do you give because you want to be seen giving? As you probably know, none of these reasons are good reasons to give. We give because we love God and we want to contribute to his kingdom even here on earth; a huge privilege! I believe the easiest way to know what to give is to ask God. It is not about how much you give, it is about having a heart of obedience - the story of the widow’s mite illustrates this.

Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7) [NIV].

Luke 22: Betrayal. If you have ever been betrayed, you know it is a very painful experience. Jesus knew Judas was going to betray him, yet even till his last breath, he loved Judas. The way we treat people who are not so kind to us or who have hurt us greatly shows how much of a Christian we truly are. Jesus says we should be like our father in heaven who causes the sun to shine both on the just and the unjust. This does not mean we coddle those who intend to harm or hurt us. It means we set the necessary boundaries when it comes to how close they get to be to us. It also means that whenever we are in a position of power ourselves, we choose to love them and not chase after revenge.

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:44) [NIV].

Luke 23: Crucify him! Pontius Pilate could not pin any crime down against Jesus, so he sent him to Herod who could find no fault in him either. The crowd, however, was eager to have him crucified. The same people who welcomed him into Jerusalem shouting "Hosanna!" were the same people who cried “Crucify him!”; people can be very flaky! Like a lamb led to the slaughter, Jesus laid his life down for us.

There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends (John 15:13) [NLT].

Luke 24: Resurrection. After 3 days of being buried, Jesus rose from the dead like he said he would, trampling over sin and death. We rise just like Christ rose from the dead and through him, we have life everlasting and an undying hope. He gave us the HolySpirit who lives in us, keeps us alive and awakens us every day, not just in our physical bodies but in our regenerated spirits.

Yes, God raised Jesus to life! And since God’s Spirit of Resurrection lives in you, he will also raise your dying body to life by the same Spirit that breathes life into you! (Romans 8:11) [TPT].