Make it happen

Over the past couple of weeks, I have operated in a constant haze of thankfulness, marveling at the faithfulness of God in so many areas of my life and one in particular this period. What is it you ask? Hmmm!Well sis my second book 'Double Impact' is going through the final design stage prior to going to press. It is a wonder to me that I should have two books out within the space of a few months. Only God sis, only God!

More than the fact of this being my second book though, I have been on a praise high because in the course of the final reviews, my publisher kept calling me to say what a great book it is, how much she is learning from it, and how excited she is about the impact she expects the book to make on couples that work together. Double Impact is based on my almost 20year working relationship with my husband and contains principles and strategies that I believe have helped us continue to have great relationships both in the office and at home all these many years. My husband himself had traveled with a copy of the manuscript and when he came back, he pulled me into a very tight embrace, told me how proud he was of me and then began to rave about the book. When he was done, I could only but stare at him in silent awe, tears of joy and gratitude coursing down my face. I mean, how much more validation could there be, than that the other half of the story himself has been impacted so greatly by the book? Wow! Lord, I'm so grateful.

As my publisher (my very precious sista-sista Bidemi Mark-Mordi of Verbatim Communications Limited) and I reviewed the cover designs a few days ago, I found myself reflecting over the journey to the reality that is now the book 'Double Impact'. A few things ministered to me and these I will share with you today.

First is that God has put gifts talents and abilities within each and every one of us, by the very breath of life that He gave to us. The breath of life is an impartation of the Spirit and nature of God, and each of us is well able to do exploits if we would only but make a move. God puts particular passions in us for a purpose. He orchestrates our life circumstances for a purpose. The simplest of things which we see as our norm, can actually be platforms that the Lord will use to touch lives around the world if we are willing, and if we stop taking the 'ordinary' around us for granted. Working with my husband was and continues to be my 'ordinary', my 'usual', my 'norm'. It was just what we did and do. From day to day, year to year, we have simply reveled in the fact that we love each other and love being together - be it at the office or at home. As the Lord began to open up opportunities for me to teach and speak on business and entrepreneurship some years back, I started to notice that somehow, no single session would end without the issue of how I have been able to work with my spouse all these years cropping up. In my many years of simply dreaming about writing a book, I somehow never made the connection until the one morning - after a particularly intense class discussion the day before on the issue of couples working together; when the Lord woke me up and gave me clarity on what His assignment for me was.

Yes sis, the Lord showed me that there was a great big message within the 'norm' of my life. So my first question to you today is: 'What is it in your life that you have continued to see as 'no big deal', but which the Holy Spirit continues to niggle you about?' There is surely that 'something' sis, there surely is. Sometimes we don't see the assignment clearly because it looks so ordinary as compared to the many other 'exciting' or 'dynamic' things we see everyone else around us being/doing/achieving. Take time out to pray and reflect and ask the Lord to show you the greatness that is already around and within you sis. Open your heart to hear and receive from the Lord, and if He hasn't already, He will surely show you sis. If He has sis, then its time you worked your assignment to the full!

Secondly, you must make a move. No matter how long you talk about what it is that you want to do, you must make a move sis. I talked for well over a year about the fact that I was going to write a book about couples working together. I talked and talked until the day I realized I was being hypocritical unto myself, knowing full well that I hadn't put as much as a dot on a page anywhere. That day, I forced myself to sit down and write out an outline. Nothing came readily to mind so I spent some time in prayer, in praise and in worship. In the quietness that followed from there, the Lord began to drop things in my spirit and a couple of hours later, I had not just an outline of chapters, but clearly written down statements of what I expected each chapter to address. Make a move sis! Just talking or thinking about something will not birth it into existence. We are not God! It is only He that speaks and it is done. His commandment to us is to go ye and 'do' this or that. He is the One that said we should mix our faith with 'work' so that we can see the results that He has purposed. Do the work sis, make a move and watch the Lord in His faithfulness magnify your efforts.

Third, commit to keeping on, regardless of how many times you stumble or how many times you stop. Don't give up! Keep picking yourself up and moving forward. As I have said before, we are all in this marathon of life for ourselves, and not in competition with anyone else. What this means is that even if you sometimes get tired, sit on the track; whatever else you so, don't get off it. Stay on the track sis, and keep the prize in view. Even where you can’t see the finish line, move forward! When you don't have the energy to run then walk, or at least get on all fours and crawl forward. If you can though, jog for a bit. And when you feel that burst of energy, sprint! The collective result of your crawling, walking, jogging and sprinting efforts will all add up to one thing - movement in the forward direction, progress on the track. As long as you are still on the track and in this mental/psychological and emotional frame, the finish line is yet closer than before.

I can tell you that there were times when for months on end I wouldn't write a single line. I kept talking about the book though, and each time I opened up my documents folder, there it was staring at me. There were times when all I could do was go back to refine what I had already written before, and that was fine because that was a kind of progress. There were those times when I would open the manuscript, type three or four lines, then stare at it blankly, sigh and shut it down; mentally reminding myself that four extra lines was progress nonetheless, albeit minimal. There were then also those other times when I approached the writing with a tenacity that impressed even me, lol. The sum total of all this, one day I typed the final full-stop and the book was done. It has taken me five years from the day the Lord dropped the concept in my heart, but sis... my 'ordinary' is today a book that the Lord will surely use to minister to and bless countless couples around the world. Don't give up sis! That you haven't touched that project in months or years is not reason enough to let it die. Remember that it is an assignment from your Maker and He will hold you accountable to it. Don't give up! Do something! Move! Make it happen! The Lord Who is your strength and Who birthed the vision in you, is more than able to help you sis. He will strengthen and empower you, and He will help you see it to the end if you keep your eyes on Him.

Lastly, I want to encourage you today by saying that the things that the Lord put in your heart to do are usually quite big and sometimes pretty scary, especially in the space of your everyday reality and in view of what you might see as the ordinariness of your existence. But sis, that is exactly why the glory for the end result goes to God. That is why we need to look to Him alone to bring it to pass. God-sized visions require God to bring them to pass. Stop looking at what you are 'able' to do, for you are truly able to do absolutely nothing. Take the fear, the uncertainty, and the ordinary that you have and place them at His feet sis. Ask Him to work through you to bring the vision to pass. Ask Him to open your eyes to see, your ears to hear, to show you the connections and resources that He has already made available for you to make birth the dream. You can make your dream happen sis, you can! Certainly not in your strength, but in total submission and in full partnership with the God Who is your Source. Take your eyes off what the next person is doing sis. Work your stuff! It is the same God that we all serve. It is the same breath that He breathed into us all. Whether He has given you one talent or many, work it sis! Work it!

I speak over your life today and ask that The Lord will touch you even through something I have said today, and cause you to go back to the dream that He has put in you. I pray that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you will fulfill every assignment that the Lord has given unto you. I pray that the Lord Who gives us visions in the night, Who fills our minds with witty inventions, that He will speak to you mightily once again concerning your assignment(s). I pray that the One Who orders our steps and illuminates our paths, will show you the next steps to take on this journey. I pray that as you make a fresh commitment in your heart to see your assignment to the end, the Lord will also steadfastly help you stay on track. I pray that He will help you keep the prize in mind, so that regardless of the pace, you will keep moving nonetheless. I pray that as you commit to make your assignment happen sis, that the Lord will reward your efforts and walk you into the completion, for the praise and glory of His name. I am so looking forward to sharing in your testimony in the very near future. The Lord will help you sis, even as He has certainly helped and will continue to help me.

Be blessed sis...for you surely are!