Encourage yourself... Hustle real hard.

There’s loads of opportunities flying around in Lagos… you’re sure to catch one if you know the right people, or you're at the right place at the right time. I have caught deals out of the blue by hanging out with a friend and bumping into an acquaintance. You could be anywhere and find yourself talking deals the next minute.
Those million and one deals have lucrative life pimping effects accompanying them. The catch is, not all the deals go through… You have to be patient and STRONG!!!! It’s like holding three live fishes in your hand... there's always a struggle and no matter how well you hold on to them, they would wiggle out of your hand and you may be left with nothing or be lucky enough to hold on to one.

There are loads of frustrated people in their range rovers crying… hitting it big on one deal and living the life, but chasing some other to maintain it and it just doesn’t work out.
I’ve had hundreds of deals practically seating in my palms, some I choose to ignore, some I choose to pursue with passion. I have gone through the pain of long meetings (some I seat in not having a clue but pretending to… the profit is too big a deal to act uninterested), emergency meetings when I'd rather be sleeping, composing emails with language i have no business using, phone calls that make you broke (but then you don’t mind cos the profit…oh that profit) And just at the last moment, after everything has been agreed on, something goes wrong and one party (probably sent by the villagers who hate you :P) bails out because of some bank issue or the other, getting BG’s can be a pain, and our banking system and lack of trust makes it difficult for the business environment. Or some party at the last minute realizes he can’t do business with the other party just because he got some mail from some country(you wouldn’t believe the pettiness in it all)... All the holidays I planned and first class trips come crashing down in a mean mean way… talk less of the money invested in my hot pursuit.

It’s never easy… and if you’re not strong enough you would faint, you would give up, you would dust the hustle off your shoulders. I enjoy broking deals for people. It doesn’t matter what I’m doing, If I get a call, I’d get excited and energy I never knew I had comes bursting. No deal has clicked in quite a while. Like I said, you see the money, sometimes you even smell it and mentally book your trips and do all you have to do with the money, but it just turns somewhere when its time to hold it. It’s easy to get discouraged and ignore the next call. But I still stand strong and excited when the next call comes in…

Sometimes I wonder how David must have felt… there he was, anointed the next king by Samuel, you would expect an instant change in his life. But everything seemed to be stalled, he moved to the palace, not as a king but as a helper of King Saul, he killed the giant and won battles for Israel, he even married the kings daughter, but he wasn’t the King he was anointed to be …  he became a fugitive, living in the mountains, in caves on the run from king Saul. It was easy and even somewhat acceptable to think the anointing was just a freak show, a joke, it was easy for him to give up. For every battle he fought for survival, it was easy to throw his sword and choose not to fight anymore. He didn’t. He encouraged himself.

Once, he came back from a mountain top experience, won a battle with his close allies and supporters, trusted men whom he loved. He got victory only to come home to Ziklag to see his house in a mess, the wives and children of he and his friends had been kidnapped and their homes burned down.
These men who fought with him turned against him, 
"David and his men burst out in loud wails—wept and wept until they were exhausted with weeping. David's two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail widow of Nabal of Carmel, had been taken prisoner along with the rest. And suddenly David was in even worse trouble. There was talk among the men, bitter over the loss of their families, of stoning him."I Samuel 30:5-6(msg)

How many times have we felt betrayed by those close to us? How many times have we felt victorious on one end only to find the other side in total shambles? How many times have we gotten a signed deal only to hear the Banks wouldn’t assist you? How many times have we failed at a task?
This was David a man who was anointed as the next king some years ago, but living as a fugitive here, not sure if or when that promise would come. David who must have been tired of trusting, of waiting, of hoping, of fighting, of running…

David weary from another one of the many battles he’d been fighting to stay alive…. Now he had an internal one, like he didn’t have enough troubles… every one had turned on him. And so like any human who has had enough would do, he broke down and cried in frustration, the bible says they cried till they were exhausted with weeping. As he cried, he realized he could do no more In his strength. " ...But David encouraged and strengthened himself in the Lord his God " 1 Sam 30:6
He reminded himself and God of all the times God had rescued him.

"Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs it down, but an encouraging word makes it glad" Proverbs 12:25 

When all feels like it’s lost. When we really have no idea…. Then we’re left with the simple task of encouraging ourselves in the Lord. He’s promised us he would never fail us, lets remember that and begin to speak... “I am more than a conqueror in Christ. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, I am beautiful and wonderfully made, whoever finds me has found a good thing and obtained favor from God, before I was formed he set me apart. His plans for me are for good and not for evil.... the promises of God to us are spread out in the bible for us to grasp at whenever we feel down.

"And David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them? The Lord answered him, Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all."1 Samuel 30:8

I guess this verse is why I'm ever perky when my phone rings with a deal... I draw strength from God, asking for favor... if it doesn't go through, well there's always another phone call that would come, the failures are not enough to stop me, especially when i have had a taste of the success. Like God instructed David to “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”
I'll keep pursuing, knowing I'll surely overtake and recover it all soon (all those trips that came crashing down… I’ll recover ☺).

Whatever you're waiting on God for, a promotion, a breakthrough, marriage, a job, a deal… keep pursuing, keep applying, keep dating, keep working hard… don't give up easily, If David could wait, then you can... you'll overtake, you'll recover all you lost in your waiting, Stand on the promises on God and know that he is God indeed.

Sometimes it's hard to see God's plan in the midst of our concerns, but in these times we must remember "Great is Thy faithfulness." @Materwilliams




Comments

  1. iNyamu,
    thanks for these soothing words at such a time as this. May the LORD keep you fresh,on time and relevant,always AMEN.

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  2. Men Inyamu, you have no idea how much I really needed this word, at this very second. I came here really discouraged but now I'm leaving with a spring in my step. I'm greatly encouraged because I know that I will succeed at the end of the day and fulfill destiny. Thanks for writing this

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  3. Dis is so apt babe...im glad I read it today and.now...on my reader I almost brushed it aside till.later im glad I did.dis morning my hubs was jst telling me.hw a deal we were bth certain wld fall thru was cancelled or stopped cos of mgt decision.i was sad in my spirit cos I know all d energy he had put into d meetings and presentations.and PR only for.it not to go tru.i had even planned our holidays and all ard d profit frm it..lol bt interestingly he was calm abt it and was certain God had bigger deals in store evsn though he had no major deals in d pipeline....im glad I read dis cos I have been reassured dat great is.his faithfulness

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  4. This is so on point. The saddest part is that sometimes we get scared of the disappointment that we even fear to pray about it, as if if we pray about it and it doesn't come through then it will be a little harder accepting the fact that it wasn't God's plan for your life in the first place, if you get what i mean.

    I am reading through 1 Samuel now and though i have read it before and heard of David and Jonathan's friendship, i have never been struck by how encouraging it must have felt to have Jonathan by his side against all odds. Most times we need encouragement but i think it's even more awesome to be a source of encouragement to people going through hard times.

    Thank you so much for sharing and may God bless the work of your hands with success :*

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  5. And Fluffy will encourage herself in the Lord......

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  6. See ehn, I know this is an old post, but to say I've been blessed and encouraged by it will be the biggest understatement. I know God led me here, I will stand on his promises like you said, and I promise to be back to testify of his goodness when the work he's begun in my life is completed. God bless you real good.

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