Summer in Savannah (9) Conviction to Grow Up

This morning I woke up feeling irritated and depressed. I know it sounds a  bit melodramatic considering I had only been awake for a few minutes but I was clearly annoyed. "With what?" you may ask.
I was mad because I felt that people were not treating me the way I was treating them.  The first few minutes of my day was spent mulling thoughts over and over in my mind about the way I am treated. The way I should be taken care of. The way nobody is considerate of my feelings. Let's just put it down to me just feeling extremely sorry for myself.

The Bible says in Ephesians 4:14-15 14: Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.

Sometimes we just need to grow up! You know, that morning instead of entertaining my thoughts by staying mad a minute longer. I decided to get into the Word. If this had been a few months back I would have gone to work feeling utterly annoyed , allowing it to eat away at me. I believe once I made the choice not to let my emotions and thoughts tcontol me, the Holy Spirit was ready to minister.
As I began listening to the Word, whatever issue that had been getting me down a few minutes before began to fade away and God was really showing me the benefits of abiding in Him.
It takes spiritual maturity to deny the flesh and pick up the much heavier cross.

I encourage you all, don't allow the worries of this world keep you from fellowshipping with God. I was so consumed with the "wrongs" done against me and how my desires had not been met by others that I almost missed God this morning. Let's face facts, we cannot rely on others for our own happiness. I've said it in previous posts before and I will emphasize it again. People will not always meet your needs but there is someone who can. His name is Jesus.
God gave me a word when I first came to Savannah. I was still pretty bitter about things that had happened in the past and I felt like being back in Georgia was somewhat a cruel reminder of that past. Bitter is an understatement : I was mad as hell! Literally, my anger and my hurt was not from  God and anything not of God is of the devil. Nonetheless, when I arrived God spoke to me clearly saying thus : "I will do for you what man could not ". A few days later out in Bryant County, GA in a small wooden Pentecostal Church a woman of God came up to me. She said thus: "The Lord will do for you what man could not".  Obviously hearing this I began to tear up inside. God was asking for me to come up higher, mature in Him and He will take care of the rest.

Go higher with Jesus, don't be afraid of the consequences. My Saviour is ready to fulfill His Word.
Psalm 25:5: Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.

Be blessed

Summer in Savannah (8) - How to put a woman in her place.

"A woman's place in public is to sit beside her husband, be silent, and be sure her hat is on straight." This was a famous quote by Bess Truman, the wife of former U.S. President Harry S. Truman.
As you know I am a sucker for provocative blogs and I love to get a reaction out of people. So I will try best to do just that in this blog.

Well, not exactly.

Bess Truman didn't really want to be in the spotlight during her spouse's presidency, she preferred to be in the background. I know, when I first read this quote I thought: "Ole Ms. Truman is trippin...". However little did I know, her husband often referred to her as "Boss".  This First Lady ran the White House like no other business. She was a strong-minded, intelligent woman who influenced her husband’s presidency. She was responsible for the smooth running of her husbands time in office. WOW! I was gobsmacked when I read this.

So how do we keep women in their place?

First off, the "place" of woman has never and will never be restricted to a 300 sq ft. size kitchen. No, we can venture out to the living room as well. Sorry, I didn't really mean that, I was just trying to be provactive again... No each woman is an individual and different and we all have different spheres for our life.

The best way to put a woman in her place is to: A) Find where she would like  her place to be such as homemaking, teaching, court room, Wall Street B) Encourage her to be the best of the best in her designated "place".

I really believe women of God need encourgament from both men and women to remain in their "place".

Hebrews 3: 13
"But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness."

This "place" is God given. The "place" is part of God's perfect plan. Don't try and step into another woman's territory. For example if a woman is called to run her home full-time and homeschool her children then let it be. God has called that woman to bring Him glory and fulfill His purpose by remaining in her "place". However, you on the other hand may be called to work as a Corporate Exectuive of a huge firm but you feel that your place should be at home. Wrong! If God has given you the talent to  run a business then you are going to get so frustrated trying to be something God never told you to be. Likewise, if your friends and family are not using Godly wisdom to encourage you and are constantly beating down your door for you to become something your not. Then this is not following Hebrews 3:13 and it is definetly NOT helping you find your "place" in the calling of God.

With all that said and done, I hope I have encouraged somebody.

Read my other article on how I have have struggled with the same issue.

Summer in Savannah (7) - Get married, work in Starbucks, have my baby

I have such a hard time making decisions. One of my weakness is that I always settle for what will be an easy choice for me. I hate having preferences, I like things black and white (no pun intended). Just simple with no complications in between.
  Let me just share a little story for you :
A few years ago, I dreamed of living a simple life. I wanted to be married, get pregnant and work in Starbucks until my baby was born. Then once my baby was born I would stay at home, loving and caring for the child until the next baby was due. And so forth. Mum and Dad if you are reading this "I AM SO SORRY" for having such thoughts. But it was true I went through a period of wanting things to be just simple. I didn't want much. Not much drama but a regular, normal life. Well, with a name like Chizor which happens to sound like "Cheese", you can't really ask for simplicity. I just didn't want to venture out anymore, I was ready to get up and quit Law School in order to have my "Simple Life".
Now, please do not hear what I am not saying. If you are pregnant and are working in Starbucks then that's awesome but it just wasn't for me.
Whenever God had a direct message for me, He would always use animals to describe my situation. He often uses imagery of birds esspecially the eagle. Now, we all know that the eagle flies higher than the common bird and most importantly the eagle knows how to soar above the storm.
It's so funny but months prior to coming to Savannah, storms were hitting my life big time. Everything was coming up against me to stop me from coming back to Georgia. Yet the Word of God proved itself to be true for in Psalm 23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. Applying this scripture to my life - God put me back in Georgia, back in the place I was running away from and He set my table for His glory. I was obliged to soar above my storm. I was running away from drama and confrontations, I wanted to have the simple life. However, simplicity can be boring  especially when you serve an adventerous God.
Do I miss not having my simple dream? Certainly not! I still have my heart for the family and how important it is for me to see stable families. Nevertheless, God has put a deeper calling in my heart and I believe He is bringing that desire to completion this summer.
I have 5 cases which I am working on currently, that is 5 families I have to meet with and interview. That is 5 children who are under DFCS custody (Department of Family and Children Services) due to allegations of child abuse. I am required to visit the children in their various foster homes and report back to the Judge with a recommendation regarding their future welfare. Do you know how hard it is to be strong and not break down and cry when a 8 year girl is explaining to you (to the best of her knowledge) why her mother is incarcerated? Often I've felt like walking out of the courtroom in order to go to the bathroom and cry my eyes out due to the horrific child abuse cases I have to listen to. Do I really want to give up my simple Starbucks and baby dream for this? Yes! I do! Some may frown and tell me to my face that it isn't bibilical that I choose to one day be a child attorney AND a mother. I'm not going to argue with them on that one. All I know is this is the desire God put in my heart and since it is from Him, I will follow it through.
Goodbye 5 year plan, white pickett fence, stock broker husband, 2.5 kids and collier dog! Hello God's Pefect Will.

Summer in Savannah (6) Debi Pearl's NEW book - Preparing to be a Help Meet

Normally I prefer to swipe my credit card to buy the latest fashion accessories or purchase the latest edition of “Look” . However this month I decided to be a little different…*clears throat*. I …uhh bought the new book by Debi Pearl titled “PREPARING TO BE A HELP MEET”. There I said it!

My secret is out. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Debi Pearl saga of books, she is notorious (and this IS not be slanderous) for rubbing the modern woman up the wrong way. Let me warn you  some of the stuff she shares in this book will make your “feministic” blood boil. Well anyway in her first book “Created to be His Help Meet” she admonishes Christian wives attitudes towards their husbands. Her goal is for every Christian household to experience a heavenly marriage. I agree with her, God made marriage to be a heavenly institution. But is it just me or is our world as twisted as it seems ? If a woman chooses to stay at home is she being oppressed or living in ultimate freedom ? Those of you cynical intellectuals  who have read and mused over Betty Friedan’s criticism of the 1950s housewife in her book Feminine Mystique may argue that the Christian woman who chooses to stay at home is a slave to her home and is NOT free.

Nonetheless, I’ve been experiencing this tug on my heart and I believe it was from the Holy Spirit. I think the reason why so many of us young women hate the idea of Ephesians 5: 22-24 (Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands) is because it does one thing. That one thing is : it takes control out of our hands. Having spoken to a Pastor friend of mine (I’m sure some of you reading this know exactly who this pastor is), the Holy Spirit confirmed to me through the Pastor what He was already trying to tell me. You see, I attempted to call myself a Christian feminist but there were just too many contradictions in that title so I dropped it. I decided to buy this book to assess my walk with God as well as weigh it up with scriptures. I do not agree with most things Ms. Pearl has to say however there are certain Kingdom Principles which she incorporates into her teachings. That is the idea of submission to God and recognizing His Kingship in our lives. She shows this in her teaching of young women and their future husbands. I know it is an extreme book for me to read but I have a purpose for reading it. So, I’m going to read it and I will write a follow up on what I have learnt.

Summer in Savannah (5) I want to encourage you

"Life just isn't easy".  I am sure some of you are scoffing at that statement and whole heartedly agreeing.

It really isn't though. There is always one thing or the other coming up against us but our reaction to the situation determines the outcome.  These past few days I've been quite unsettled within my Spirit, I just felt so heavy and I allowed myself to become burdened with the worries of this world. I am a very antsy person and I do not like waiting for things. It's the worst thing one could ever do to me,is to allow me to wait. When I have to wait and be patient I am like a crack addict having withdrawal symptoms. I become fidgety and agitated. Most importantly I lose my peace.

Imagine if God gave you a specific Word but due to a slight personality disorder within you (i.e. impatience) you allowed yourself to work yourself into a frenzy because you could not see God's hand in a particular situation or you could not see how God was going to bless you through this. Remember the scripture that says thus : "For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless." Psalm 84:11.  I love that word "shield". No matter what you are going through Jesus is our shield, our protection yet His bright sun will give us light to direct our paths.  These past few days I heard the Holy Spirit whisper to me "Wait", He also confirmed this through several means.  Jesus was beckoning me to wait but I wasn't and I was losing my peace big time.

No matter what is happening around you, if it's that situation you are asking God to change in your marriage but still you see no change, or the sickness you are praying to leave your body, or you are believing for a complete deliverance of your child from satanic bonds. Hold fast! Meditate on this scripture: "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me." John 14:1.

I feel so convicted right now. I ask God day after day "Why?". Instead, I have my answer and it is always the same "Wait". "Do not be troubled".  I know how it feels, don't think I don't. I bet you are saying " Chizor you don't know what it feels like". No, I may not know your particular situation but here is a principle in the Holies of Holies : " Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!" Isaiah 30:18. I know what it feels like when you do not understand a situation but the solution is so simple. That is we as His children need to wait on Him. I believe I am speaking prophetically right now: there is a woman reading this blog so torn apart. I mean an emotional wreck. The pain is so intense that you feel like there is no way out. I tell you this, and this is the same Word the Lord gave me recently. "God will do for you what man could not". What you thought would last didn't. The people you believed would uphold you could not. However, I know my Jesus will do above and beyond . He will restore.

I have a confession to make on here. I have been slack in reading my bible and just some other areas of my life. God really showed me the importance of His word. No matter what happens never forsake His word.

In Christ

Chizor

Summer in Savannah (4) Letting go of past times

It's 12:35 a.m. and I cannot sleep at all. I feel as though I am seeing things in my life from an objective point of view.
I've put up walls- walls with broken glass and barbed wire around the edges. I've put up these walls in my life and it hurts knowing that I have to tear them down in order to be set free entirely.  I never really understood how much a situation could have such a tremendous impact on your life up until recently.  Walls are not good to have. I want to pour out my heart in this particular blog.
I've been in bondage and have allowed my issues, my regrets and my hurts to shut other people out in order to protect myself. Sometimes I don't know I'm doing it but I am very well guarded.
I realize that my "tough girl" attitude is getting old and that Jesus desires that I live in total freedom.

Jesus really has come and he HAS healed the broken hearted and bound up their wounds. He did it all on the cross. We as women or even men do not need to "protect" ourselves anymore, God has made a way so that we can live life and have life in abundance.

I'm going through yet another transitional stage of the healing process and this I believe  is the final stage but it's going to be the hardest and that is becoming vunerable again.
Hmm...you maybe asking yourself if I like someone right now? Hmm...well there is someone I have enjoyed hanging out with but all the time these huge barricades keep coming up. In summary I've been playing the hard-core rude "gyal" who isn't going to get screwed over- ever. But that's not a godly attitude to have.

Today, I released somethings and I am happy I did.

In closing,  I am succumbing to the idea of having to be vunerable to love again. No, I haven't found that special someone just yet but I am learning to accept that not everybody will behave as those from the past.

It's time to stop grieving as Samual grieved so long over Saul, but rather get up, fill your horn with oil and go to the house of Jesse because God has chosen something better for you (1 Samuel 16:1).

In closing, the apostle Paul wrote "Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead " Philippians 3:13.

God's way is perfect, inhale, exhale. Enjoy your life and let down those walls. It's a good day

In Christ

Chizor