Hey Peace!

I'm incredibly grateful to God for how January 2022 turned out. For the first time in a long time, I had such a sane January and I've not stopped thanking God for it. You know that sanity and peace that comes from within, not based on physical circumstances; that type of peace that is pure, undiluted, devoid of taints of worry (you know the feeling of saying you're at peace but still paying attention to the tiny bits of worry that sips through your thoughts)? That's the one.

I truly hope you had a pressure-free January as well, especially if you read my last blog post. If you didn't, please don't be hard on yourself. Take deep breaths and take each day as it comes, committing every day to God's hands and asking that He steers the wheel.

And this is how I'm wishing you a happy new month. Welcome to the month of love. I hope you are all planning for Valentine's day? Don't be like me. I have no plans in terms of doing anything super special for that day because Hubs doesn't believe in Valentine's day (He will laugh because he says I keep saying it everywhere 😀. I can't help it) but we will definitely spend quality time together.

In the last few days since I last showed up here, a lot has happened that I want to share with you. I have stumbled on some deep truths (from the word of God; from wholesome conversations with a few people; and from insightful posts on social media) that have set me free and solidified my peace, but I will share in bits as the Lord helps me.

Today's post is a short one, just to remind you to look inward and realign the intentions of whatever you're doing with the purpose for which you are doing it. I'll break it down.

Since COVID struck, many of us have put ourselves out there to keep up with the new normal. We've broken out of our safe spaces and shells to get our voices heard and put out what we have to offer in the open. Initially, the thought/intent (for most people) was to have fun doing what they love and serving in the process - helping another person figure out how to do their makeup, how to cook a delicacy, how to dress well, how to be a financially smart, *insert whatever it is that you do*. 

However, in the process of doing that, some of us have lost focus, especially since a billion other people are putting their voices out there (usually with the same message as us), and some are doing it better than the others. 

The result of this is, sometimes we begin to shift focus from the original intent we had and the purpose for which God placed that gift in us to keep up with the trends of how to relay our messages, and then we get lost in the noise and all that pressure that comes with keeping up. We suddenly forget what is the most important (to serve, fulfill purpose) and we're concerned about metrics, algorithm, how many people liked and commented. I honestly don't know why I'm talking about this but this is the freshest of the many things I've learnt since I last posted on the blog.

We suddenly don't feel our service is good enough, not because it's not good enough in the real sense, but because the metrics doesn't show that it is good enough - no like, no comment, no conversion of any sort. We get so consumed in this reality of what looks like wasted effort that we lose our sense of wonder and the excitement that comes with living out God's purpose for us to comparison with other people that seemingly have the results, the figures, the numerous followership/comments/likes and all that. We judge our gifts, talents and purpose as inconsequential because it hasn't done well (enough), whereas your role is to plant the seed, do your part and leave the rest to God to do His thing.

What if we took a breather and just damn the metrics and human standards for once? I'm not saying be mediocre at your job, product or service. I'm saying for once, just do your part and leave the rest to God to sort out. 

You see everything I shared above is what I've been through and God is delivering me from (notice that I used the term 'delivering' because it's an ongoing process). I'm now focused on doing my part, doing what God has sent me, and letting Him handle the results; conversion in the hearts of people and so on. 

The same applies to posting on this blog. When God told me to come back to my blog (and not necessarily to start another short story series immediately), I was just like "anything you say Lord", because God has been teaching me true obedience without asking plenty Jamb questions. What I've realised is with realigning the intentions behind what you're doing with the purpose of that thing God has asked you to do, it really doesn't matter how many people see it, react to it, leave a comment or not. It really doesn't matter if it's just one person that is blessed; whose life is changed in the little corner of their room (and technically, one person is a whole lot to celebrate. See what the bible says about heaven rejoicing over the salvation of one lost soul [Luke 15:10]. Think of it in that light - one whole human being got blessed by what you did, wrote, said, acted out, published, etc.). It really doesn't matter what the metrics (set by human beings like you and I) say. What matters is you are doing what God has asked you to do with the right intentions.

The best part is you will experience peace; the type I described above; the one I experienced in January and I'm still basking in.

I really pray from the depth of my heart that your mind be freed from pressure to keep up (with whatever) and instead, it is filled with the peace of God that comes from realigning yourself to and with His will for you.

I'll stop here for today.

Let me know in the comments if you have any gists for me on how your January went and how you desire your February to turn out.

Till the next post,

Enjoy Peace like a river.🤗

***

Meditate on this:

Matthew 11:28‭-‬30 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” - [NIV]

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavily burdened [by religious rituals that provide no peace], and I will give you rest [refreshing your souls with salvation]. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me [following Me as My disciple], for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest (renewal, blessed quiet) for your souls. For My yoke is easy [to bear] and My burden is light.” - [AMP]