NIGERIA

I just recently finished a novel by Chimamanda Adichie- Half of a yellow sun. It’s about the cause, effects, and experience of the Nigerian civil war (the Biafran war). The story was so graphically written, and simply told; I felt the pain, hurt, and trials the Igbos of Nigeria went through. The book evoked deep emotions in me, and it took me a while to snap out of it and adjust to the reality of my real life environment (in which there is peace, thank God). The inhumane and insensitive attitude of the then Nigerian government towards the massacre of the Igbos had my blood boiling, and I was so close to developing hatred for the country Nigeria. I wondered how the Igbos could forgive, forget and move on from the deliberate and pointless tragedy inflicted on them; and felt like the Nigerian government and Nigerians in general should have become better for all that happened.
The book made me realise that Nigeria has never been a country to take care of her own. It’s the same now as it was then, you can see what is happening with the missing Chibok girls; it took our government THREE weeks to respond to the cry from the North, and even then they only did because the international community had immense interest in the situation. It’s sad to see that after decades passed, we have not once had a sincere, disciplined, ethical government; and Nigeria and Nigerians live with this exploitation and corruption as a normalcy.
 In a country like Nigeria, belief in a higher power is essential. The short-comings of man makes the mercifulness of God all the more apparent. We need to hold on to God, because He is really all we have. Nigeria needs prayers. We are a sick country, and we need God to help us heal. We have been blessed with abundant resources- mineral/natural resources, human resources, good weather, and a resilient attitude; we should be the Lions of Africa, but we are steadily declining. After years and decades of independence, we have no electricity, no good roads, poor education system; we have made no progress. The dreams our patriotic fathers had for this country have still not been brought to fruition.
It’s so easy to cast all the blame on our failing government, but we are all a part of our problem. If we can start to do things right, we can spearhead a change. If our predecessors have failed us, we can right their wrongs, if we have a dream for this country, we can work hard at it till we see it work out. I want to use this post, this article to inspire and rally us, the young ones to stand up for what is right, put selfish interests aside, and join hands to make Nigeria better than we met it!
God bless us all.

 

Can you call yourself a Christian if you do not like to do Christian things? Can you say you love God but are not bothered to change your little bad habits? Does it matter if you use swear words? Does it matter if you wear clothes that show your figure? What about prayers? How often is a “good Christian” to pray? When you pray, do you ask for specific things, or that His will be done? On the other end of the spectrum, should you neglect your former friends? Or still hang out with them and try to change them? Does saying “no” to people’s requests mean that you’re selfish? Does it matter if you don't take "rubbish" from anyone, and always speak your mind? Where do we draw the line, between having a personality and being a “good Christian”?

I had a conversation with one of the elder ladies in my church about living the Christian way, and she said that as Christians we have to be dead to our feelings, "Dead to the flesh", that's how she explained it. She said that we have to be like Christ was, and have mastery, authority and spiritual dominion over our thoughts, feelings, words, and actions. We have to learn to NOT react to situations harshly and rashly, no matter how inconveniencing or just plain rude. She said that's what being a Christian entails; we must be meek, show love and forgive easily. She explained that meekness is not weakness but rather strength, and makes us receptive to our true nature as children of God. We have to have an attitude of mind in which we feel free from the fear of giving up our so-called human rights. As is said in Matthew 5:5, “Blessed are the meek….”

I’m a very opinionated person. I have very clear boundaries around myself, which I expect people around me to respect, as I respect theirs. I am quite “nice”, but I always speak my mind. I’m not one to let people use and abuse me. And if someone wrongs me, I let them know, because if I don’t, the feelings and words eat at me inside. As a Christian, am I to let them walk all over me?

Sigh

It’s like the second you decide to become a Christian; the devil sends you all kinds of temptations in form of people, testing you to your limit. People expect you to go out of your way for them, while giving nothing in return. They take stuff without asking. They waste your time. They are rude, loud, petty and obnoxious. My list of personal grievances goes on.

I am learning to let go and let God. I am learning to not always have a reply for everyone. I am learning to calmly walk away. I am learning to accept apologies I never got, to forgive others for my own good, rather than theirs. I am learning to always stay positive, regardless of my immediate environment. And I’m finding that the more I do it, the less tough it seems. As a Christian in Progress, I’m finding that it’s an attitude worth imbibing, because when you let go of always wanting to be right, you let peace and serenity in. And as more time passes, and with more practise, you attain a much higher consciousness and spirituality, and your life is so much better for it.

 

Do what you love....

After I shared the link to my first post yesterday, almost everybody I know was astounded. From the little they know of me, no one saw this coming, and everyone kept asking the same question, “Why are you doing this?”

Well, this was a question I was asking myself too. Starting this blog wasn’t planned. I don’t even know very much about this evolving world of IT, and domain names, and e-hosting, and websites. I don’t have a master strategy to go from blogs to columns to book-writing; or from blogs to heaven (which is all I want, hehehe). I just love to write, and I’m obsessed with God and all things spiritual. That was my impulsive inspiration. That’s why I’m doing this.

When you ask any established person how they found their life path, most simply say “Do what you love”. But how can you do what you love when you don’t know what you love? Or how can you do what you love when what you love makes no money? How can you do what you love when there’s no way into your chosen industry without “selling your soul”?

Sigh.

I think following your life path is a lot like driving at night; your headlights don’t illuminate the entire road you hope to drive, just 20 or 30 feet ahead at a time – and that’s all you really need. You do the things that are right in front of you, and the next step will appear. You just have to make sure that you are on the right road to begin with. People these days put a lot of their hope on “self”, they say “you create the future you want” by working hard for it. This is wrong. Like Proverbs 9:12 says, “If thou art wise, thou art wise for thyself; and if thou scoffest, thou alone shall bear it”.

We can never know exactly where and what we’ll be tomorrow, no matter what we do today. We have to learn to let go of always wanting guarantees, of always wanting to be in control. We have to let go of the thought that we have to make it by ourselves. Living from day to day, doing what I love is my strategy. I’m just positioning myself on the road that I want to go. I’ve made a decision to be content, believing in God that I will be alright (even though I don’t know exactly how yet). You don’t have to bear the burden of life by yourself.

We’ve been taught to always have a plan. “What is your five-year goal?” Aaargh, I hate questions like this. I don’t know where I’ll be in five years. Neither do you. You might have an accident and lose an arm or a leg. You might lose your family fortune or you might be dead. The future does not contain some magical wand that will make our lives suddenly okay. And the earlier we come to realise that, I think the happier we all will be.

Trusting in God does not seem very practical when you think about it. It’s not like money in the bank, you can’t see Him. But when you trust in God, you have nothing to lose. It makes living on this earth a little more bearable, it gives you assurance that a higher power is working with all the elements for your good; it is a win-win situation. All you’re asked for in return is a promise to love and respect Him and the people around you, a promise to shun evil and respect your body and self.

My five-year goal is to remain happy, to listen to my intuition. To love God more every day, and to make it seem like the normal thing to do.

What’s yours?

PS: Logging in and seeing 100 page views just made my night. I love to see your comments. Let's interact! God bless you.

I'm just a girl, a human like anyone of you. I have enough problems in the real world without bringing in the spiritual, but the truth is, the world is as spiritual as it is physical; if not more, and living in it as if it isn't, is merely living in denial.
What do you think of heaven and hell? Do you believe in them? Truth is, they exist! No matter how much we try to push the fact to the back of our minds, they are real (or will be soon). Do the thoughts of hell sometimes creep in your mind and scare you half to death? They do to me. And in those moments, I think to myself about how inconsequential everything on this earth really is.
I've always thought myself too smart to go to hell. Because we really have been forewarned, we have been told all the signs in the Bible. How stupid it would be to end up in hell. For all of eternity! All because we were chasing after the world and all its enticements, for the period of our SHORT stay on earth.
I fear pain, any kind of pain, even the littlest ones. I have a headache and I can't even cope (which is why I understand people who do drugs. Even the pain of being alive is enough headache for some). So I can't imagine being alive for all of eternity in a burning furnace! without the option of death or passing out. Oh the pain. Dear God, please spare me. This fear though is the bedrock of my wisdom. As it is said in the Bible- "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 9:10)
I want to do right by God. I want to secure my spot in heaven. I want to carry out the Great Commission- "to win souls for Christ" through sharing my Christian journey (via this blog :d). This is my first day, my first step towards being "perfect" (in His eyes).
If you have ever had this internal struggle, I'd like you to join me, and encourage me with your stories too. Let's be Christians together. Let's be the best versions of ourselves. Even while living in this world that is full of temptations. Christianity is not as hard as it seems when you think of it in its totality. We can at least try, day to day. That is what this blog is all about. "Christianity in Progress. Trying to emulate Christ everyday. Falling and starting over." I know God bless us as we try.
My name is Kelechi, and if you read this, I'd love to see your comments.
Please share the link too :d.
Kisses!