Now my friends, I want to say this to you. Fill your minds with thoughts about good things. Think about things that are true, clean, right and lovely. Always think about things which people know are very good.
Philippians 4:8 EASY
https://bible.com/bible/2079/php.4.8.EASY
Hello there! Happy new month. Welcome to November. I wish you a continuous experience of the goodness of God and I pray that peace that passes all understanding shall keep your heart and mind through Christ this month.
It’s been a minute, and trust me it feels so pleasant to be bringing a word from the Lord to you. I have prayed and thought about resuming writing my blog to you for so long and amazingly this is the month of breakthroughs and there is no better time than now for my message to be coming to you.
Today, I will be sharing a little discovery I made on how the thoughts we hold on to can help us enjoy every moment in life or not, and I believe that you will be blessed. Let’s get to it!
During my undergraduate days as a student at the University of Ibadan, I constantly traveled through the Lagos to Ibadan expressway. I have traveled at various times of the day and this translated to me becoming so familiar with the road.
When I first began traveling the road, it was always so fascinating. I love the red soil by the roadside, the construction sites, the trees, the occasional herd of cattle that passed, the lineup of many campgrounds, and other activities that occur on the road. It felt like being in a moving cinema. With time, however, the journeys that once were fascinating, translated into being a necessary chore. I got bored by the sight and resorted to reading, writing, or sleeping any time I had to travel. I had literally “seen the road finish.”
Due to this mindset, I traveled a couple of other times and did not think much about looking through the window. I was so fixed on the familiarity of the road that I stopped bothering about enjoying the site. I resorted to waiting till there was a new site to see and a new adventure to embark on by road, rain, sea, or air before I could enjoy traveling again.
Then, two months ago, I had to travel to the Great Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, and believe me, I was so excited. I thought about the new sites to see, and everything just left me feeling nervous till the journey came. Do not judge my knowledge of Geography, but believe me I never knew that to get to Ile-Ife from Lagos State, I had to travel down the same express, so I was grateful and excited for the change.
The day came for me to travel, and some minutes after my bus had driven away from the terminal at Oshodi, I decided it was time to enjoy the site. I looked at every plant, grass, animal, and landmark we passed full of glee. I took breaks to read and reply to messages, but there was no sleeping as I was bent on taking the full view of this journey. The bus probably drove through the Redemption camp during one of the moments that I turned away because I did not notice when we passed by it as that would have sold off the truth about the journey in little time.
As the journey continued, we passed a strikingly familiar building but I waved it off as a coincidence as I continued to enjoy the view of the trees and the red soil. After a while, there was yet another familiar building, and this time, I couldn’t deny it. I had been traveling down the same road for over an hour and I was enjoying it. Howwww?!
At that moment, I began to reflect on the journey of life itself and how the many steps we take, challenges we face, and disciplines we have to give ourselves to are not always as intriguing or new. Hence, it is easy to give up on them in our mind and say “I have done this already” “There is not so much to that anyway”, etc, but once we change our mindset even when the process and disciplines may look familiar, they are leading us to an entirely new place.
Have you given up on your dreams because it seems like the same old story?
Are you missing out on the beauty of the present because you just cannot wait for the future to come?
As much as you look forward to the beautiful promises of a change, it may just be that the change you need is one of your mind and sight.
Yes, you have prayed, and you still may but you need to go back to being fascinated about the power of prayer. Yes, prices may be turning on their own in Nigeria but you should see the steadfastness of God and the blessings of believing in Him rather than the low sides of life.
My experience brought back to my consciousness the truth that we live from our minds as people. Hence, we must guide it and fill it with the best of thoughts because it greatly affects our sight and approach to life.
This month, choose to fix your gaze on the promises of God. Choose to let your mind and your confession be filled with the promises God has for you. The place where you are is not forsaken, your present has not been written off by God, there is beauty in your present and you mustn’t be downcast even as you walk into a more glorious future. Believe this, enjoy the process and sustain the right mindset!
Yes, God wants more for you in life, but the key to unlocking it is seeing that every season is a step to a more glorious one. Do not despise your little beginning, rather let it be the mark of the promise that there is more to come. Just like I was enjoying the same old road because my mind was fixed on the new experiences that were laid up for me ahead, go through your process full of joy and faith. Do not miss out on the present in preparing for the future.
I will leave you with these verses from the book of Ecclesiastes;
After looking at the way things are on this earth, here’s what I’ve decided is the best way to live: Take care of yourself, have a good time, and make the most of whatever job you have for as long as God gives you life. And that’s about it. That’s the human lot. Yes, we should make the most of what God gives, both the bounty and the capacity to enjoy it, accepting what’s given and delighting in the work. It’s God’s gift! God deals out joy in the present, the now. It’s useless to brood over how long we might live.
Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 MSG
https://bible.com/bible/97/ecc.5.18-20.MSG
I love you and I hope you fill your mind with good things this month.
God bless you.
Yours with love,
Sandra Attoh.
Diary of A Christian Law Lady 