FED UP!

(continued...)

           

              Mabel couldn't say anything. She just stared into space. 

  “Is it work?”

                Mabel shook her head.

  “So tell me what it is.”

                Mabel kept quiet and just sniffed.

  “Wait!”

Cynthia suddenly remembered something. She got up to go towards the bathroom

  “Don’t go there,” Mabel said and tried to top her by holding her hand. She removed her hand and went into the bathroom. She was shocked at what she saw.

  “O My God!” she exclaimed and came out with the suicide materials. She brought them to Mabel who bowed her head. “So you tried to kill yourself again?” she asked, sobbing. “What were you thinking?”

Mabel kept mute as the tears flowed freely.

  “I can’t believe you tried to do this again.”

  “The pain is too much for me…” Mabel finally said and sniffed.

  “Is suicide the only option? What would happen to those you leave behind? Do you know the kind of pain you will leave us in? Mummy will have High Blood Pressure and could die. You didn’t think of all that?”

  “You don’t understand the kind of emotional pain I am in right now.”

  “Whatever it is, there are other ways of handling it.”

  “I have tried everything,” Mabel said, shaking head. “I can’t keep going on like this.”

  “Oya tell me what happened.”

                Cynthia dropped the suicide materials, sat beside her and held her hand. Mabel used the free hand to wipe her face. Then she began;

  “It is Segun.”

  “Segun your boyfriend?”

  “Yes.”

  “What did he do to make you want to kill yourself?”

  “He jilted me.”

  “Aww. Tell me what happened.”

  “He said he wanted to marry me. I accepted because I love him so much. Then I let him get close. We started sleeping together.”

  “You did not tell me all this. Why did you hide it from me?”

  “I was waiting for the right time. I was excited that I was getting married to a man of my dreams but because of my past experiences, I decided to wait till he decides to come with his people before talking about it. Weeks turned to months and he did not talk about marriage. Anytime I stylishly ask him about it, he stylishly tells me that he is working on it. At a point, he stopped calling me like before. When I call him, he appologises and tells me he has been busy with work, trying to make ends meet to take care of me. I believed him. I noticed that the only times he called me were times he wanted to sleep with me. we continued like that until I got the shock of my life this morning.”

  “What happened?”

  “I was making my hair in the salon with some of my friends, then he walked in with kemi.”

  “Which kemi?”

  “The Kemi you know.”

  “You former colleague?”

  “Yes.”

  “What was he doing with her in the salon? Are they related?”

  “I ignored the fact that he came in with a girl, took excuse from the guy working on my hair and rushed to hug him. Do you know what he did?” At this point, Mabel’s voice was raised. She was bitter.

  “What did he do?”

  “He brushed me aside.”

  “What?”

  “That one was small...

(...to be continued...)

Chinedu Isaac 

FED UP!

It was 7pm in the night and the neighborhood was noisy as usual. Loud music was coming from a club not very far away. The voices of parents were heard giving orders to their children and ward. Oblivious of the noise in her neighborhood, she sat on the seat of the water cistern in her bathroom with her head bowed. She was deep in thought. A lot had gone wrong in her life and she was fed up. Then she came back to reality, raised her head and observed all options laid out in front of her. The bottle of overdose drugs was open with a cup of water beside it; the knife was handy incase she decided to slit somewhere; the rope was close by in case she made up her mind where to tie it. Her life was a mess and she had made up her mind to end it.

  “I can’t bear this anymore,” she said to herself.

                She got up and went to the suicide materials. She surveyed them and thought of which one to use first and which would end the pain in her heart silently. She made up her mind and took the drugs, poured them into her hand and lifted the cup with the other hand but she couldn’t get herself to drink it. Thoughts of her loving mother and sisters flashed through her mind.

  ‘What will they think of me?’ she thought. ‘What will they do?’

                She dropped the drugs and cup of water and leaned on the wall, sobbing profusely. Then thoughts of her miserable life flowed into her mind again. She stood straight, wiped her eyes and took the drugs again. This time her mind was made up. As she was about taking the drugs, she heard a knock on her door. She ignored the knock till she heard her name.

  “Mabel...Mabel,” someone called and knocked on her door.

                It was her younger sister, Cynthia. Every desire to kill herself disappeared but she hesitated. Her sister kept banging on the door. She washed her face, hid the suicide materials and went to the door. She stood for a while wondering whether to open it as she was sure her sister would find out what she had tried to do. She opened the door.

  “Mabel, what’s wrong with you?” Cynthia said. “I have been trying your line all day but you did not pick till it became ‘switched off’”

                Mabel just stood there and stared into space. This time, she couldn’t pretend that all was well.

  “Oh big sis, what’s wrong again?” Cynthia asked.

                Mabel broke down and wept. Cynthia held her close and they stood for a while.

  “It will be fine ok,” she told Mabel.

                After a while, Cynthia held her hand and pulled her to the chair and they sat down.

  “Tell me sister. What is wrong this time?”

                Mabel couldn’t say anything. She just stared into space.

(...to be continued...)

Chinedu Isaac

MADE FOR THE PALACE

Now when Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, was come unto David, he fell on his face… And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father' sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. (2 Samuel 9:6-7). This is the story of Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan and the grandson of Saul who was king before David. According to the scripture, when the kingdom left King Saul, Mephibosheth’s nurse took him and ran away and in the process, he fell and became crippled. So he was left in Lo’debar. A man who was made for the palace was left in poverty and lack. This is an error! This reminds me of the story of the prodigal son whose father was a very rich man with servants who were feeding well and yet he was in a strange land sharing food with pigs. This should not be!

Unfortunately, this is the predicament of many believers today. Some have never tasted the ‘palace’ but are meant to be there while some been there but lost it. Why does this happen? Most time it is sin, just like the prodigal son who left the presence of his father into sin. When sin comes into your life, the devil is able to strike and bring about loss of blessings or stop you from getting blessed. The next is carelessness and not seeking Divine direction. Some people have made decisions that are very wrong and delayed their ascension to the palace of their lives. Another is the action of evil men who target and attack people’s stars.

Thank God there is always solution. For Mephibosheth, David remembered him; for the prodigal son, he came to himself and his father accepted him. Beloved, re-align yourself, make adjustments and God will surely connect you to your helper. Don’t settle for where you are: you are meant for the palace!

OKEZIE

(...continued...)

That evening, Okezie stood outside his compound eating roasted corn and coconut. After standing for a while, Ebuka came. They exchanged pleasantries. Okezie cut half of the corn for him.

  “Give me coconut na,” Ebuka told him.

  “It has finished,” Okezie told him, throwing the remaining coconut into his mouth.

  “wicked boy.”

  “I agree. Go and buy your own. Poor man.”

                After a while of normal gests, Ebuka asked him how his first day at work went.

   “It went well.”

  “Ehe?” Ebuka said expecting details. “Did they give you your job back?”

  “Someone else took over my job and the person cannot be sacked.”

  “O my God!” Ebuka exclaimed, throwing away the corn in his hand. “So what did they say?”

  “They gave me two options, either to employ me and reduce my salary or just pay me off.”

  “Chai! See what I caused.”

  “I have told you to stop saying that.”

  “So what will you do?”

  “What do you suggest?”

  “Me? I will not give you suggestion again o.”

                Okezie smiled.

  “I will still think about it,” he said.

                They kept quiet for a while.

  “Guy it’s getting late,” Ebuka said. “I need to go.”

  “Is true sef. I don’t know what to eat this night.”

  “I will not suggest to you,” Ebuka said.

  “Please stop it,” Okezie said laughing. “Let me get fries.”

                Ebuka took his leave while Okezie got some fries and went home. That night, he thought about the two options and wondered what to do.

  ‘if I get paid off’ he thought, “what will I do with the money? It may not be enough to start a business. If I take the job, I don’t know how small the salary will become.’

                After a long time of thinking, he decided to take the job back. He turned over and slept

                The next morning, Okezie was in the office…

(...to be continued...)

Chinedu Isaac

MY SON, GIVE ME YOUR HEART!

My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways. (Proverbs 23:26). The heart is the seat of emotion of man. I don’t mean the physical heart that pumps blood but the inner heart of man, the same place where Jesus said in Revelations 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Who has occupied your heart? Who runs your life from your heart’s seat of power? Who you give your heart determines how your life plays out. If Jesus has your heart, your life will be filled with good works and blessings but if the devil has your heart, then carnality and all manner of evil will be in your life.

Who has your heart is not known by what you say but by some other things we will examine. One is where you treasure is; “for where thy treasure is, there will thy heart be also.” (Matthew 6:21). What do you spend your money on? Things of God and spiritual materials or things of the flesh? Next is who gets your attention; “Attend unto me, O my people; and give ear unto me, O my nation…” (Isaiah 51:4). Do you prefer being in church or do you prefer being at work? Do you prefer staying with brethren or do you prefer hanging out with your carnal friends? The next is your actions; “Therefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” (Matthew 7:20). These are the acid tests to know who really has your heart.

Jesus is asking for your heart today. Give it to Him and see Him transform your life.

KEEP RESISTING

And when the devil had completed every temptation, he departed from him for a season. (Luke 4:13). In seeking to afflict the children of God, the enemy never gives up. If he was bold enough to tempt Jesus, the son of God, he will also seek to tempt and even destroy a child of God. In our opening scripture, it says the enemy left him for a season. This means he tried again at a later time. This is one thing most people don’t understand. They think that because they have overcome a negative situation, a temptation, a bad habit, or an affliction, the enemy will not try to bring it up again. This is not true. He always moves about seeking whom he may devour; “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” (1 Peter 5:8). If you don’t keep resisting him, you will fall prey again and again and it will keep getting worse and worse with each attack.

Apostle Peter understood this and tells us, “Whom resist steadfast in the faith…” (I Peter 5:9). The key word in that verse is steadfast.  As a believer, you are supposed to resist and keep resisting. When you do this consistently, you get to a point when the enemy does not bother you with those things he came with previously. James the apostle knew this and so he enjoined the believers, saying, “Be subject therefore unto God; but resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7). He will surely flee when you keep resisting. Start by separating yourself from people, environments and situations that give the enemy easy access and you will make your victory easy.

START FROM SOMEWHERE

He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. (Ecclesiastes 11:4). Many people desire to start things big. They make plans and adjust plans and keep making plans, waiting for when the conditions are perfect, when they have everything they need for the actualization of the vision or project. Even when it is obvious that God wants them to move, they still watch the environment and circumstances and delay. Beloved, do you belong to this category of people? Change! No man is already-made. Everyone you see now that has attained greatness or success started from a zero point and made conscious and consistent efforts to get there.

This does not mean you should not apply wisdom in your decisions per time but over-processing and over-analysing of decisions kills them. Habakuk 2:2 says, “And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.” Not that he that reads it may keep reading it. Run with the vision or it will rot in your hands. One thing that stops people from taking a step from where they are is fear of failure. It is better to fail trying than not to try at all. Beloved, take that step no matter how small it seems with the mindset that a journey of a thousand miles starts with a step and little drops of water will fill up buckets with time.

OKEZIE

(...continued)

The following morning, Okezie went to the office. He didn’t go as early as he usually did when he was working as he was not yet sure his job would be given back to him. He went when he was sure the workers had come. On entering the office compound, he met Okoro at the kiosk. When Okoro saw him, he went to him.

  “My man how are you?”

  “I am fine o,” Okezie replied quite taken aback by Okoro’s reaction. He thought Okoro was still angry with him.

  “I missed you o.”

  “Yes o. foolishness takes over a man at times.”

  “I understand. They told me why you did it. I don’t blame you my brother. Woman palava.”

  “Woman no send me o. na me go myself.”

  “You wan go see oga?”

  “Yes o. let me know whether my job is still vacant.”

                Okoro coughed. Okezie understood but pretended.

  ‘someone has replaced me,’ he thought.

  “Let me go,” he told Okoro. “ I will come back.”

  “k. even though I wanted to go out but I will stay in the kiosk and wait for you.”

                Okezie left him. On entering the office, some welcomed him, some didn’t, while the rest didn’t know what to think. He saw a lady with the instruments of a cleaner, which confirmed his earlier thought but he kept calm. He shook those who offered a handshake and went to the secretary’s office.

  “Good morning ma,” He greeted her.

  “Morning Mr Okezie. You are welcome.”

  “Thank you ma.”

  “I guess your suspension is over right?”

  “Yes ma.”

  “Okay. Hold on to see the oga. He will let you know your stand.”

                With the intercom, she put a call through to the oga who asked her to send Okezie in. Okezie went in.

  “Good morning sir,” Okezie greeted when he entered the oga’s office.

  “Good Morning.” Oga replied. “Sit down.”

  “Thank you sir,” Okezie said and sat opposite his table.

  “You have come back to resume your job I guess,” he asked Okezie.

  “Yes sir.”

  “Tell me what you did during the suspension.”

                Okezie told him everything.

  “You must have learnt your lesson by now,” he said when Okezie was done. “However there is a situation now.” He paused and looked at Okezie who swallowed saliva and sat up. “When you were suspended, Okoro couldn’t handle the cleaning requirements so we hired Margret to take your place. She is not as good in cleaning as you are but we are managing fine.” He stopped.

  “Sir does it mean I can no longer work here?” Okezie asked with a lump in his throat.

                The Oga heaved a sigh and told him, “there are two options on ground now. Either we pay you off or we employ you and rotate the three of you. This means reduction in salary of three of you  and rotating how you work each week so that you have less work or giving you a day or two off. So what do you suggest?”

                Okezie kept quiet for a while.

  “Did you hear me?” the oga asked.

  “Yes I did. I want my job back but reducing the salary will not be fair to Okoro and the other lady.”

  “There is nothing I can do. We will not spend more than the office budget.”

  “Okay sir.” Okezie didn’t know what to choose.

  “You can take your time and think about it. Let me know what you decide tomorrow.”

  “Okay sir.”

                Okezie took his leave. At the kiosk, he met Okoro and Margret. Okoro introduced him to Margret and he sat with them.

  “So what did oga say?”

                Okezie thought what to tell them. Then he decided to keep the ‘pay off’ option to himself.

  “Oga said he will give me my job back.”

                Margret got interested.

  “So what happens to Margret?” Okoro asked.

  “Oga said all of us will work together.”

                Okoro and Margret jumped up in excitement.

  “So the work load will reduce,” Margret said. “These people make a person suffer. They don’t even want to see a single sand on the floor.”

  “Yes oo,” Okoro joined her.

                Okezie laughed and then dropped the shellbomb. “He said our salaries will be reduced.”

                They stopped dancing and sat back down.

  “Meaning what?” Okoro asked.

  “That’s what I asked him o and he said the office cannot handled more expenses that the budget.”

  “That’s not good na. You know that what we are being paid is not even enough let alone reducing it.”

  “This is not good o,” Margret lamented. “Upon all the work we are doing.”

  “He said working together will mean reducing the work load. We may have to get off-days or shorter work time each day.”

  “That one dey. But the money is important.”

  “I will reply him tomorrow sha.”

                Okoro held his shoulder and jocularly told him, “You know you are my man. Reject the offer na.”

  “Meaning what?” Margret asked. We need reduction in the work load”

                Okezie smiled.

  “Ehe, What do I offer you?” Okoro asked him.

  “Don’t bother yourself. Has Nkechi been coming?”

  “you are still thinking about her.”

  “Not at all.”

  “She doesn’t come frequently like before. She heard what happened and people made fun of her as the reason why a man went to do what you did. She felt bad”

  “Okay.”

                After spending some time with them, Okezie took his leave.

  “I will see you people tomorrow.”

                When Okezie left, Okoro and Margret looked at themselves.

  “What do we do?” Margret asked.

  “Nothing. It is his job. He has the same right as we.”

(...to be continued...)

 Chinedu Isaac

OKEZIE

(...continued...)

         Ebuka kept trying his line the whole of that day but Okezie did not pick. He did not tell anybody the truth about what happened to Okezie as it would implicate him also. When Okezie was not picking his call, he sent text messages but Okezie did not reply. Okezie was still bitter.

 The following day, Okezie dressed up early as usual and left the neighborhood. He went to a library and stayed there till evening when he came back. No one asked him anything as everyone thought he went to work as usual. He did that for a week and got tired of it. He was bored. He changed location to a construction site where he hung around for some days. Whenever he met people he knew, he always had one story or the other to tell them. Soon, he ran out of food stuff. Then he decided to go to the village and spend the rest of his suspension days.

                The village experience was worse as regards boredom. He had to stay with his grandma and a little cousin alone in the house. He didn’t move out often to avoid people seeing him and wondering what he was doing in the village. The few that saw him, he told them that he was on leave and came to spend some time with his grandma. He often thought about his mistake and what made him do it.

  ‘What if I go back to the office and they say they don’t want me again, what will I do?’ he thought. He regretted ever coming in contact with Nkechi and worse still, heeding the advice of Ebuka.

When it was exactly six weeks, he went back to his house in the town. He cleaned up everywhere in preparation for his resumption the following day. He packed the foodstuffs he had brought from the village properly.

  “Uncle good evening.” A little boy, one of his neighbours greeted him when he was out of his room. “Uncle Ebuka has been coming to look for you.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes uncle.”

  “So what did you tell him?”

  “The times I saw him, I told him you travelled.”

  “Okay.”

                Okezie thought of what to do about Ebuka and decided to forgive him since he had shown that level of remorse and they were good friends.

  “If you see him,” he said to the boy, “tell him I am back.”

  “Okay uncle.”

                Later that night, Ebuka came. Okezie was sitting outside enjoying the soft breeze. NEPA had seized light as usual but the moon was shining, so the place was illuminated.

  “O.k.” Ebuka called as he drew closer. “Is that you?”

                Okezie did not reply so he halted and advanced cautiously. Okezie didn’t feel anger or animosity towards him but just wanted to pull his legs.

  “O.k.” Ebuka called again and stood still, not knowing what to expect.

   “Come if you want to.”

                On hearing that, Ebuka practically ran to him, held his hand and asked him to forgive him for misleading him.

  “I am not angry with you,” Okezie said. “Sit down.”

  “I am sorry,” Ebuka said with a cracked voice as he sat beside Okezie on the bench.

  “I told you I am not angry with you.”

  “I really don’t know what came over me. See all I have put you through.”

  “How did you know I am around?”

  “I have been coming to check on you every day since that incident.”

  “Okay.”

  “What did your office people say?” Ebuka asked after a moment of silence

  “Nothing. They suspended me. It ends today.”

  “So you are supposed to resume tomorrow.”

  “Yes.”

  “So what do you want to do? Do you want to go back there?”

  “I don’t know how they will be seeing me now. I don’t even know whether my position is still vacant but I have no other option but to try.

  “Chai. All this because of a girl. See temptation.”

  “Don’t blame the girl. She did not send me to steal.”

  “I did. I am sorry.”

                They talked for a while and Ebuka took his leave.

(...to be continued)

 Chinedu Isaac (c) 2014

DO NOT DESPISE SMALL BEGINNINGS

For who hath despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel (Zechariah 4:10). Have you heard about the butterflies’ effect? In physics it describes how tiny changes in initial conditions (such as the flap of a butterfly’s wing) can affect weather thousands of miles away. Imagine, a fragile butterfly can alter weather patterns on another continent! Had it not flapped its wings, the trajectory of the weather system might have been vastly different.

What can you learn from this? You may feel insignificant at times, as fragile as the butterfly. It may seem like you are just flapping your wings when you are standing alone for truth and honesty in the work place or in the home. You say “what can I do in the face of a problem this big?” more than you think. Your faith, your words, your deeds, your prayers, your example, your kindness and persistence can release the power of God and activate the force of heaven to go to work in that situation.

God loves to use things that we consider to be insignificant, like Moses rod which parted the red sea or David’s sling shot that brought down the giant or a boy’s lunch that fed the multitude. Your flapping wings can initiate change that will influence lives around you for all eternity. Jesus said “if you have faith like a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain move from here to there and it will move and nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:20). It is not about the size of the seed you sow but about the God who can make it grow! It’s not about the prayer you pray but about the greatness of the one who answers prayers! It is not about how small you are now but the God that can make you bigger!

GOD ANSWERS PRAYERS

And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; (Luke 18:1). God is not a prayer storing God but a prayer answering God. Some people say there are billions of human beings in the world and so God will not have the time to get to their prayer; others say God is up there and they are down here and so God can’t hear them; others have other notions. So they live their lives and take whatever comes to them as their fate. This is not right. God is interested in the prayer of His children. He is omnipotent which means He has the power to answer; He is Omnipresent which means He is everywhere; even in your room where you are praying.

In our opening text, Jesus went ahead to tell the story of a woman who had a need and went to a judge for help. The judge kept ignoring her but she persisted. The judge eventually answered her and gave her the justice she sought, and Jesus went on to say, "And the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge saith. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?" (Vs 6-7). Don’t feel that because the answer you prayed for is not forth-coming that God did not hear. When you pray a prayer of petition, God brings the answer when the time is right. A lady praying for marriage and is not yet ready will destroy her life if marriage comes. Whatever be the case, keep praying with this in mind; God is a prayer answering God!

POSITIONED FOR SUCCESS

This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. (Joshua 1:8). God wishes that we succeed. You may ask why He doesn’t use His Almighty power to make people succeed whether they want to or not. God made man in His image and so we are gods and have the same privileges and opportunities. He doesn’t act on man’s wills and decisions. This is the reason why for every provision He has made for His children, we still have a part to play. He wants us to succeed but there is a positioning for success. If you are not positioned for success, you will miss it no matter how hard you cry or what else you try.

How do you position yourself? The Word: how much of the word you have in you and you confess determines how far you will go in life. Let us look at some other ways. Prayer: “Thou will show me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” (Psalm 16:11). It is by continuous communication with God that you position yourself to receive grace to take you to the height of your destiny. Next is Divine instruction: “And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.” (Isaiah 30:21). One of the secrets of David was that he never went to war or did anything without consulting the prophet and seeking Divine direction. Thus he never lost a battle and was the greatest king of Israel that lived. He was a success. Next is Service “If they obey and serve him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures.” (Job 36:11). What are you doing in the house of God?

Beloved, position yourself for success and the sky will be your starting point.

WHO IS IN YOUR SHIP?

So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging. (Jonah 1:15). Jonah was a prophet of God but at the time of this story in our opening scripture, he was walking in disobedience to God’s instruction. God told him to go and preach to the people in Niniveh but he entered a ship headed for Tarshish. This brought troubles to those who were with him in the ship as a great storm arose. In a bid to save their lives, they threw all their things into the sea. They lost all their things just because a man of disobedience entered the same ship. It was when they threw him overboard that the sea became calm.

Beloved, who has entered your ship? It could be friendship, it could be relationship, it could be courtship, it could be fellowship, and so on. Whatever ship it is in your life, the presence of the wrong person will bring jeopardy and eventual loss of property, resources, and so on. The earlier you get them out, the better for you.

In another instance in the book of Acts, the people in the ship with Paul were preserved from obvious destruction because a man of Obedience to God was there. 

Beloved, who are those in your ship?  Jonahs or Pauls. Throw away the odd passenger and appreciate the right one so that your life and blessings will be preserved.

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LOOKING UNTO JESUS

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; (Hebrews 12:2). When as a believer you remove your eyes from God in times of hardship, problems and temptation, you have just plotted your downfall. If you begin to trust man due to one promise or the other they have made to you, you lose focus. Also if you begin to murmur and complain, you will short-circuit divine intervention in your situation.

In Matthew 14, Jesus was walking on the lake, and when the disciples saw Him they were terrified and thought it was a ghost walking up to them so they cried out in fear. Jesus spoke and reassured them. Then Peter said to Him, “Lord if it is you tell me to come.” The Lord said to Peter “come”. Peter stepped out and walked on the water towards Jesus but when looked away from Jesus, he saw the wind, was afraid and began to sink. Immediately he cried out and Jesus reached out and held him.

This is to say that a Christian, you need to look up to God; Peter was looking up to Him as he was walking, and he was moving very well but when he removed his eyes from Him, he lost balance. In your walk with God, who do we look up to when things are not going the way it should? Your parents, friends, or loved ones? Beloved, you can only get hurt and disappointed when you look up to people but when you look up to Jesus as the yoke and pain bearer, the storms of life will be over. So, look up to Him today and away from the troubles.