2024 is here, and it is a leap year. By leap, I do not mean a year divisible by four, but one that will cause you to leap for joy, mount up with wings like eagles, and soar high. It’s the beginning of the year, and while some may say it’s still early days, there is no better time to declare intentions than now.

There is something about beginnings, and it can be studied if you are keen to observe the patterns. We serve a God without a beginning or an end, but there are many beginnings in Him. And what better place there is to start than from Genesis? Here are some patterns to learn from, as it was in the beginning:

TRUTH IN THE INWARD PARTS

Beginnings are times for frank talk and blunt honest self-assessment. It is the time to call a spade by its name and not a big spoon or some gardening tool. Things should be set aright at the inception without abbreviation or exaggeration. Beginnings are times to see things as they are and say it as it is. That was what we saw in the second verse of Genesis chapter 1: The earth was void, empty, formless, dark, and doomed. Real, honest assessment is necessary at the beginning for any meaningful progress to be made in the end.

While it’s important to enumerate and celebrate the high points, this kind of review must be concentrated on the grey areas where we had once suffered defeat and fallen short. Please, do not shy away from them; don’t explain it away or blame it on someone else. Take responsibility! You should be able to confront yourself and say ‘o boy, we slept too much last year. If we continue like that this year, poverty will overtake us o…’

BROOD!

Yes, brood. Sit on the eggs, long enough to generate some heat. Incubate the ideas and plans. Ponder on your purpose. Consider the promise. Meditate on God’s word. Did you know that a brooding hen may refuse to leave the eggs to eat or drink? In extreme cases, some may even starve to death just to ensure that their eggs get enough warmth to hatch and come alive.

Brooding can be draining and consuming, but you can’t afford to shy away from it. As you begin another year, It’s important to create time for critical reflection. Avoid noise and every form of distraction. Don’t just roam and wander! Ponder! Consider! Wonder! Be mindful of your purpose and God’s promises. Dream dreams! See visions! Make it plain! Meditate! Brainstorm! Imagine! Sit on it!

TALK ABOUT IT

Talk may be cheap, but there is hardly anything that can begin without words. Whatever emerges without words is either a fraud or a miracle; it’s either stolen or given but not created. As a matter of importance, it’s necessary to ‘talk about it’, even when you don’t know the first step to take. Joseph gathered his brothers, just to talk about it. David did the same and even continued after he was shushed by his brothers. While it both landed them in trouble with their siblings, it sure propelled them toward the realization of their God-given dreams.

Words must first go out if anything will exist on earth. We know by faith, that even the world that we see today was made by words. Of course, not mere words, but the very words of God. Those images and pictures in your heart, those thoughts and ideas… must first be expressed and released as words, to register its existence on earth. Don’t just think it, don’t just ink it; say it! Call a friend and discuss the matter, chat up your mentor, inform your Pastor…

Thoughts and ideas can be buried, but once words are released into the atmosphere, they gain a life of their own so much that even if it were impossible for them to find expression through you, they can find it through another. David was the one who thought of the Temple project, but it was Solomon, his son who built it. But the ‘Temple’ idea began its life the day David verbalized the thought. To participate in an election, you need to declare your intentions and pick up the Expression of Interest form. Well, interests and intentions are made known on earth through words. Even God’s intentions for you, once discovered, must be declared. Now is the time to speak up.

LET THERE BE LIGHTS

Lights: That’s what you need to govern the day and the night. You can’t just get enough of them. It is the most important thing needed after the word. The word must first create light, for it to find full expression. Light is the first thing you create with words, if those thoughts and ideas won’t end up as mere words without substance. Light brings clarity and direction to the vision. It chases away fear; clears doubts; introduces possibilities, and reveals the truth. I believe you know how to generate light: Of course, in the place of prayer and by the word of God.

Light comes first, but it must re-emerge as lights. And this second form, lights, must be constantly and continually generated. Can you recall a day when the sun forgot to show up in the sky? Genesis 1:14 says, ‘…they will serve as signs for the appointed times, seasons, days and years.’ Lights are signposts that signal the beginning of times and seasons, announce your present position, and point the pathway to the destination. Lights are a beacon of hope and without them, everything is doom and gloom.

CONCLUSION

What makes a year new is not the dates on the calendar. What marks the beginning of a year is not resolutions or themes, but lights. How much of it have you in your spirit? Let there be lights… as a sign for a new year, to separate the old from the new because, without them, today might as well be the 370th day of 2023 or 735th day of 2022. The Year 2024 will be a glorious one in the name of Jesus but don’t forget to own up, brood, begin to speak, and light up the year. Cheers!

Get a very good earphone that has a superb & independent Noise Cancellation mode to control the situation, while trusting God for complete healing and total restoration. Redmi Bud 3 Pro is highly recommended.

You could understand why Meghan Markle, who opted out of royalty this month after a year of being hounded and vilified by a racist, rightwing press could be referred to in some circles as the patron saint of good mental health.

That’s probably why the term “to Meghan Markle” was created this week:

“Meghan Markle, a verb, past tense – Meghan Markled: to value yourself and your mental health enough to up and leave a room/ situation/ environment in which your authentic self is not welcomed or wanted.”

Why shouldn’t a word be made for a person who not only realizes when love is not returned, but when to get the hell out? If you aspire to Meghan Markle it in 2020, here’s how.

To “Meghan Markle it” is an ode to self-respect, a sermon to owning one’s own boundaries, especially when it involves alcohol.

Do say: “Man, when I get go out tonight, I am so going to Meghan Markle it,” before going home early, getting eight hours sleep and not texting your ex.

Don’t say: “I don’t care about Meghan Markling it, I am going to dance on a table before texting my ex with some Beyoncé lyrics.”

On the matter of exes: the next time you get sent a text saying “U up?” at 3am from a deadbeat who has ignored you for weeks, you need to Meghan Markle it.

Obviously most people can’t just move to Canada to become an uber-influencer. But you could consider whether said love interest really respects you, and if not, how to leave them behind.

Do say: “I totally Meghan Markled my ex last night and never returned his texts.”

Don’t say: “I’m not going to Meghan Markle this time: they didn’t get back to my last 30 calls, but I think they have been really busy, to be fair?”

This one is slightly counterintuitive, because part of Harry and Meghan’s problem with royalty was that they didn’t have to work.

But for the rest of us, Meghan Markling it at work looks like understanding what an asset you are, and leaving a company when that is not appreciated.

Do say: “I’m considering Meghan Markling: they haven’t given me a raise in two years, and I’d have better options working as an Instagram influencer than staying in this loveless work marriage.”

Don’t say: “I’ll Meghan Markle it when I finally have time to update my LinkedIn, which is never.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/jan/24/to-meghan-markle-verb-how-to-use-it

Happy new year and welcome to 2020. But is it the start of a new decade? Opinions are divided on this matter, as many believe a decade counts from 1 to 10, since the Gregorian calendar has no year zero.

Proponents of a new decade believe we count decades from zero to nine. For instance, Andrew Novick, a scientist at the US National Institute of Standards and Technology tweets that "You wouldn't say that someone born in 1970 was from the sixties, would you?" So 60s as a decade mean a between 1960 and 1969.

Others in the middle believe that the argument is not necessary since a decade is simply "a period of 10 years". Which side of the divide are you? Is it #NewDecadeNewMe or just #HappyNewYear2020?

Well done boss! I have this Avensis 07 that works seamlessly when in reverse gear, but act as if in neutral when put in Drive. It won't engage until I rev the engine, but works perfectly once it has overcome inertia. The only exemption to this anomaly happens when the car is first started; it works well. I have changed gear filter & ATF, but without much difference.

Faith is opposed to logical reasoning. In the world view, seeing is believing, but with faith, believing is seeing. To face reality is to admit the obvious and that, to the world, is damn right honesty. A quick reality check confirms the true situation of things without embellishment or fantasy. But faith, though real, ain’t reality. It is what you’re expecting, not what is obvious. So if what you’re expecting is not what is delivered, then continue with your expectation. You might need to turn a blind eye on what you’ve been served and set your gaze on what you deserve.

For Christians, believing is seeing and seeing is receiving. It takes a ‘fool’ to ignore the reality starring him/her in the face while expecting some rarity. So every believer is a faith 'fool', assured of what is not yet come, hoping for what only the faithful God can deliver.

“Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” – James 2:17

A faith 'fool' not only professes faith but possesses it by taking action in the direction of His convictions. Faith, potent as it is, can die when not fuelled with actions. A ‘faithfool’ must therefore move from the starting point of believing and confessing to acting. It is the actions that take the 'foolishness' to the point of no return. And often times, it is at this point of sheer 'stupidity' and utter 'craziness' that results come. Faith in action speaks louder than faith in words.

Then comes the Faith test. The sole purpose of the faith test is to produce an important element called, patience. Patience is the substance that removes desperation from expectation. It also creates steadfastness and endurance. Steadfastness means to be firm in purpose and fixed in direction, constant and resolute, without wavering and doubts. Endurance is the stamina needed to continue moving despite the stress, fatigue and other adverse conditions.

You are patient when you can accept with joy, “WAIT”, as the response to your request without any negative mood swing, reduction in morale and enthusiasm, or drop in confidence and conviction. The patience required of believers is not latent (inbuilt). It has to be grown and developed.

“So let it grow, for when it is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

Your patience is fully grown when you are 0% anxious and 100% conscious and expectant, patiently waiting. Your expectation has grown to a level (100%) where even death cannot stop. Your dependency is now 100% in God. At this point, you can as well survive without what you are expecting: As if you’ve got no need of it; you’ve got Christ, your sufficiency.

It is at this point that you’re perfect and complete for you have moved from trusting God for… to just trusting God: Needing nothing, therefore lacking nothing. It’s a point of total dependency on Christ, your sufficiency, with zero attachment to what drew you closer to Him. It is then that you can ‘safely’ receive.

Here is a faith 'fool', the Syrophoenician woman, who pleaded with Christ for her daughter to be made whole. At first she got no response. She was simply ignored. Then she got a bad response which was worse than non-response. When you’ve not been answered, you’ll believe that ‘if I shout louder’, ‘once I catch His attention’, ‘If only I can get audience’… Your expectations is still not diminished. But when chased away and compared to a dog, only a few can survive this stage. This is the point where many fail the test of faith, give up and quit. But she was resolute and patient. She paid no attention to the insult and ridicule. She attached less importance to the shame. She patiently waited, and thereafter, got what she wanted.

She gave a believing and expectant response: “even dogs are permitted to eat crumbs that fall beneath their master’s table”. She is a faith 'fool'whose faith impressed the faithful one: “Jesus said to her, woman, great is thy faith: your request is granted.”

Today, I choose to be a faith 'fool', not making sense but making faith.
http://pearlnation.org/becoming-a-faith-fool/

Times and seasons are markers that make live measurable and more meaningful. Since time immemorial, the turning of times has always signalled a new beginning. Imagine what life would be if it was an endless loop of days without a comma or full stop? Humans would have had to bear a backlog of pain, failure, errors, mistakes and guilt forever. There would be no season to celebrate past victories and blessings; no reference point to the past or the future. There would have been no opportunity to begin afresh on a clean slate. Life as a lump sum without the punctuation mark called “years” would be boring. The only place where such makes sense is on the God side of eternity. We are, therefore, grateful to God for the concept of a new year; the idea of a fresh start; and the opportunity of a reset every 365 days or so.

Welcome to the year 2015, the Acceptable Year of the Lord and the year of His favour. It is a year of double comfort for God’s people, a conduplication of favour and mercy. There shall be an end to every form of hard service and warfare. There would be emancipation from all forms of bondage and slavery, and restoration of all rights and privileges. Expect double blessings for your trouble, double for all you have lost. Divine help will be the hallmark of the year 2015. I hear God say, I am here to help you: “I was the first to tell Jerusalem, ‘Look! Help is on the way! - Isaiah 41:27 (NLT). Let it be on record that God said it first. Tell Nigeria, tell yourself, tell your family… help is coming. Happy days are here again; better days are coming again.

However, there are instructions critical to the year 2015:

1. Commitment is the key to breakthrough; commitment exercised in patience, hope and persistence. Your commitment must be first to God, then to His work, Church, Family and then your dreams. The secret to JOY is still Jesus first, Yourself last, and Others in between.

2. Make a way for the Lord in 2015, a major road: Express, straight and smooth. Create priority space for God. Give Him unhindered and unrestricted access to the uncultivated and barren areas. Allow Him access the shameful and unfruitful portions of your life that you have fenced off public view. Give Him the keys to the dark corners of your life and let Him unearth every dead, hidden and buried glory.

3. Pull down everything that is raised (lifted) in your life: Altars, idols, habit, mindset, culture, tradition and stronghold… Deal with the ‘big deals’ in your life. God alone must be raised and praised.

4. Add finesse to your life. Smoothen your character, abilities and talent. Develop every latent gifts and crude potential. Address every weakness in you. Don’t ignore or cover up. Make up for every deficiency, curb excesses. Don’t ignore pitfalls, fill them.

5. Fill every void and emptiness with substance. Read the Bible and meditate on God’s word. Read books, listen to messages, attend seminars and develop yourself.

2015 is the year of the Lord’s glory. I pray that the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. Amen. [Isaiah 40, 41, 61].
http://www.pearlnation.org

Today is the International Left Handers Day. Happy Anniversary!