Welcome to the July 24th edition of Faith & Life Lessons.
You will see this email full of tidbits from my week. My goal is simple. I hope that from how I live my life, you can find a thing or two that helps you as you try to live a life that matters. I am always trying to do one thing - make Christ-focused decisions in love, work, and life. And this was my week.
Like this?
Pay it forward by sharing it with someone that could benefit from it. They will thank you for it.
The Story of My Week
One of my friends from undergraduate came to town.
The last time I saw her was twenty years ago.
Interestingly, we were not tight while in school. We ran in different circles.
And this is not different for several folks I was in school with.
But things change as we all grew older.
It's a case of time and life has a way of renewing old friendships.
My wife and I had lunch with her. I also put my car and driver at her disposal earlier in the day.
Simple things.
Spending time with her and helping her get a thing or two that she wanted.
We have a WhatsApp group for the class group.
She let everyone know that my wife & I gave her a VIP experience.
Another person responded that we had done the same thing for him and his wife when they were visiting Barcelona.
We didn't really do much. They were passing through.
They were doing a multi-city trip as part of their wedding anniversary.
We showed up with a bouquet and cake.
Small things like these when you are in a strange place from a familiar face say much.
Things I Learnt
1-A Question That Makes Your People Problems Easier: one of the reasons I read and listen to what other people throw out is not because I’m looking for new knowledge.
A bigger reason is that I’m trying to find the right words to express something that’s already a part of me.
During the week, I listened to someone who framed a question that represents how I have chosen to live life in most of my relationships.
When people around me are not acting the way I like, I typically start with what I can do to change that.
I stumbled on a teaching - I can’t even remember which, which expressed this behavior with the question that is going on in the back of my mind.
The question is this “how am I complacent in creating the situation I am in?”
I have been using this line of questioning without knowing it.
For example, when I started teaching one of my kids, I decided on the sort of teaching experience we both would have.
When this wasn’t happening, I decided on what I needed to change.
First I needed to show up very patient. This is important because I spend my day giving direction to others based on clearly articulated objectives.
I don’t need to go into the ins and out of every instruction.
I expect to do that with my kid. So, I show up differently.
Second, I constantly define the ground rules of the whole arrangement.
I recall early days when I would be told “my teacher only gives me one or two tasks in this booklet per day”
I simply respond “that’s your teacher. I want you to do these number of tasks”
Eventually, my rate became the standard rate. On days I give less, I now get asked “Is this all I have to do?”
I changed first so I could make the experience better.
Or better put - as I wanted it.
It’s what I have taught myself to do.
It’s now my way of life.
2- Trained to Know God’s Heart: I was listening to Pastor Bankie during the week.
For the uninformed, he is a consultant pathologist with a professional career and leading a teaching ministry in Enugu state, east Nigeria.
He commented on why God didn’t release a compendium of rules with Christianity to address every situation.
First, it is impossible to have a set of rules that move with changing times.
Second, God's intention was not to set up a school house. It was to raise people who think like him.
Pastor Bankie referred to a conversation with a couple of his professional colleagues about women freezing their eggs.
The argument was on whether it was a sin or not.
According to him, it's not as straightforward.
For example, a woman undergoing cancer treatment could have her eggs frozen to protect them from the negative impact of the medication so she can conceive afterward.
On the other hand, another woman may freeze her eggs because she wants to spend the first part of her life living according to her terms. She wants to be able to come back afterward to still have babies.
Same action but different background stories.
Our biggest goal should be to learn to think like God and respond to life the way God would want.
Not through a fixed set of a rule book.
Postscript
May you open your heart to serve the people that God has put in your life in a way that honors the gift of God in you. Amen
Like this? Pay it forward by sharing it with your friends.
Was this forwarded to you? Sign up so you don't miss any edition. Click here
Tola - The Everyday Disciple
I help Christians like you who want to live intentional lives incorporate their faith into everyday life so they can make Christ focused decisions in all areas of life and truly live to make an impact and make God happy.
0 comments