Favour Adebowale

Please don’t do it

Are you about to give up on your walk with God? Please don’t. Jesus didn’t promise us a smooth journey but He promised to send us the Helper. He told us the road is narrow (Matthew 7:13-14). A narrow road is generally uncomfortable as you might sometimes have to brush shoulders with other people or against the wall, you might have to wait for one car to pass before it’s your turn to drive. There is usually not enough space to be comfortable.

We are soldiers called to stand in the place of victory that has been won by our Commander the Lord Jesus Christ. Soldiers are barely concerned about comfort. They endure all that they need to in order to ensure that the outcome is victory. You are God’s soldier. You are God’s battle axe. So therefore, having done all to stand, Keep standing!

‘I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world’ – John 16:33

God has not called us to conform and be comfortable in this world. He has called us to stand out and trust Him. Challenges are very normal and the Holy Spirit is here on planet earth to help and provide support if you will let Him. In the words of Deitrick Haddon ‘Don’t give up on God, cause He won’t give up on you, He is able!’

What are you eating?

‘I need to start eating healthy’. If you are like me, you’ve thought that many times and have even started taking steps to take better care of your body but what about you as a spirit? Someone wiser than me said that we are ‘spirits having a human experience’.

Basically we are more spirit than human and should take care of ourselves as spirits just as much as we take care of our bodies. John the apostle was writing to one of his friends and he said ‘Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit‘ 3 John 1:2(NLT) ..
So I’d like to ask you the same today, I hope you are healthy in body as you are strong in spirit?

You are probably wondering how our topic today relates to your spirit? Do you know that what you eat affects your heart and organs just as what you see, and listen to affects you as a spirit? This is why we are encouraged to guard our hearts deligiently (Proverbs 4:23) because your heart can either make or mar you.

See, if all you do is scroll through Instagram and compare yourself and your life with others, you are going to be sad and depressed for a very long time. If all you do is watch documentaries on how people are raped, kidnapped or suffering, you are going to be in constant fear being tormented by what you’ve allowed into your heart.

So I ask you again, what are you eating? Are you feeding yourself on God’s word, are you listening to music that glorify God or the problems that you have? Do you listen to people who constantly bring negativity to you? What are you feeding yourself?

My charge to you today is to eat and feast on God’s word as much as you can. Thankfully today, technology has made everything easy, you can listen to your audio Bible, music that glorfify God and read e-books. If you have been blessed with spirit filled convenant friends you also have positive influence around you. Please tap into that and be free from torment. God has given you your life as a gift and it is worth living.
Live it and love it!

You are loved,
Favour

Bye August 2019, Hello September 2019

August was different from what I expected it to be. I thought I’d be fasting and praying (‘kabashing) ‘ most of the time 😏😅. Then I had to remove my teeth, medicine to take and fasting didn’t just cut it. Hehe.

So what then happened in August? I kept learning to GROW. Growth in my relationship with Jesus, growth as a person and growth as a wife.

September is now here and I honestly just want to know the Father in this season. There is so much of God to know, if we will just be patient with Him and sit at His feet. With His help, I hope to continue implementing my growth strategy in this month😅.

That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His suffering being made conformable to death….. Happy New Month fam!

You are loved,

Favour

How to settle in a new culture

Moving and settling in a new city/country isn’t always easy. It is even worse if they speak a different language. For example, if you speak English but have to move to Portugal where Portuguese is spoken. It can also get really lonely.(I know this because I have lived on 3 continents) So what is the solution? How can you easily settle in your new location?

1. Know that you nobody can satisfy you except God: Only Him can give you joy. Let your joy come from within (if you have the Holy spirit). The Bible tells us that the joy of the Lord strengthens us (Nehemiah 8:10b). Only when you are full of joy are you able to be positive.

2. You must be positive: If you hate your new environment and are ethnocentric about your culture then you will not enjoy your new environment at all. You will just keep hating it and will be unable to settle in. However, if you are positive and believe the best, then you will get the best. You will draw the energy you put out. For example:if you expect people to be racist to you, that’s what you will get. If you expect people to be nice to you, that’s what you will get. Just have a good attitude and believe God. You will be fine.

3. Get a community: You need people to help you get settled in. You need friends. I usually find mine at church. Join a small group, serve in church, attend functions and just immerse yourself in your new culture. Soon, if will begin to feel like home.

4. Keep in touch: Thank God for the advent of the mobile phone. Technology has made life easy which means you can talk to your loved ones as often as you want. You should keep in touch with your family and friends in your home country/city. Trust me, it helps to just talk to people that care about you.

Above all, wake up each day trusting God to order your steps(Psalm 37:23).I hope you enjoy your time in your new city/culture.

‘You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail’ – Psalm 19:21

You are loved,
Favour

Have you told someone?

Have you told someone …..
about Him?
about His loving kindness and tender mercies?
that His mercies never end?
about His goodness as Father?

Have you told someone…….
about His love?
about the love that made die on our behalf?
about the love that made Him serve our punishment?

Have you told someone…
about the reality of Heaven and Hell?
of life after death?
of the hope of life with God forever?

Have you told someone…….
of the power of the Holy Spirit?
of the One who helps us through life?
of the one who is able to help us raise children supernaturally?

Have you told someone……
of the One who gives us direction for daily living?
of His ability to heal all types physical and mental illnesses?
Have you told someone about Jesus today?

Living without regret

So I’ve been reading alot about Jesus. Hehe.. I mean I’ve been reading the gospels. The fact that Jesus was super bold to stand against injustice and challenge norms despite his age! Can you imagine? He was in His early 30s 😁 and for some reason, thinking about it makes my heart leap.

One would think, the Creator of the universe would bid his time and wait till He was in His 40s to fulfil His mandate for mankind. But no, the Lord was in prime and was challenging man-made customs and hypocrisy as the Holy Spirit led Him.

If you come from a traditional society like me, there is a huge chance that you worry about what people might say if you take that step of faith? What will my relatives say? How will people look at me? How will this affect my family? At one point, the Lord told His mother and brothers that His congregation were His relatives😁. He took a stand and pursued His purpose till He fulfilled it WITHOUT REGRET.

Now, I am not encouraging silliness or absurdity. The point is that as long as the Lord leads you, you should step out boldly, paying no mind to society. You should basically walk in love and seek to represent Jesus😊.

The nice thing about this is that He was led by the Holy Spirit and therefore He wasn’t alone. Now it’s your turn, take your stand and pursue your purpose as the Holy Spirit leads you and you won’t have regrets.

Acts 4:31 ‘And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness’

YOU ARE YOUNG! YOU ARE BOLD! YOU ARE FEARLESS. Go for it!!!

You are loved,

Favour

How do I overcome jealousy?

Today’s post might be a little strange but I am convinced the Lord will have me write about it. Recently I’ve struggled with jealousy and did not even know that it was jealousy till the Lord showed me my heart. (Don’t judge me). Jealousy/envy can refer to the thoughts or feelings of insecurity, fear, and concern over a relative lack of possessions. Envy can include emotions such as anger, resentment, inadequacy, helplessness or disgust. No wonder the Bible says that “For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there” James 3:16.

You see, many of us struggle with this thing and yes many times it is unplanned. People do not go about deciding to be envious about other people. You just catch yourself feeling bad about someone else’s gift or journey. The deal though is that God is not glorified when we cannot find happiness and joy for other people’s progress. No I am not here to beat you with a Bible. We are human and sometimes we have to deal with our flesh but praise God we can walk in the spirit and shut the flesh. However, if you find yourself in this situation, here are some steps that can help your heart.

STOP COMPARING YOURSELF: 2 Corinthians 10:12 gives us a basis not to compare ourselves. You are different, your journey is different and you are special. It is not wise to compare yourself to anybody because people deal with stuff that they do not post online and you might not necessarily be able to see.

ASK GOD TO HELP YOU: In my experience, I did not even admit it to be jealousy, I tried to coat it with some excuse but fam, you have to tell yourself the truth and ask the ONLY One who can help you. If you need to keep your distance, do it for your heart and for your journey with the Lord. We can only see God work in our lives when we are pure in heart. To be pure in heart is totally possible and God will help when we are honest with Him! “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8

REMIND YOURSELF OF HIS PROMISES: If God is able to do good things for other people, He is able to do them for you as well. Therefore you remind yourself of His word, His promises and His plan for your life. One of my personal favorites is the fact that I am the apple of His eyes. Exodus 14:14 tells me that the Lord (Who is also my father) will fight for me, and I shall hold my peace.” I don’t need to do anything, I just trust Him. He has won the battle against life, comparison and despair.

I am loved by my Father God and so are you. Child of God, YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS.

You are loved,

Favour

Why you should stop trying to rush your current season.

Have you ever sat down to reminisce on past seasons? This has been me recently. I have been missing the seasons when I was in the university and when I was living with my parents. I graduated about 6 years ago but sometimes thanks to Facebook, pictures keep popping up here and there.

I can only wonder why I wanted to rush through those seasons. It was so much fun, although it had its challenges like every other season in life. It was great to not worry and think about bills or the ‘adult life’.

The thing about life is that in a few years, I would be missing my current season 😂. So what do we do? We enjoy our current seasons and enjoy it to the fullest. We take advantage of every opportunity the Lord brings our way, we share His love and when we feel bad, we recognise that it’s just a feeling and we talk to our Father God about those feelings.

So are you currently in a season and begging God to remove you? Chill Fam, God can but He probably will not as soon as you want it. Life is in phases and seasons and every season in life is for a purpose. You must learn what He wants you to learn and you must grow. So grow Fam, grow! Focus on the positive things, enjoy your current season, learn what He wants you to learn and just trust Him even if it’s hard.

And He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands and territories. This was so that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grasp for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and exist [that is, in Him we actually have our being]. Acts 17:26-28b.

Your life is safe in Him. Trust Him and enjoy every season and phase.

You are loved.
Favour

The ‘art’ of making friends

For many years as a child growing into a teenager, I never could fit into anywhere. It’s not that I didn’t want friends, it was just difficult to have a friend. Trust me, friends are biblical and they are important for our walk with the Lord.

“There are “friends” who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother”- Proverbs 18:24

God finally gave me a friend just as I was finishing high school and over the years, He has blessed me with some wonderful people. However, it did not just happen, even though God blessed me, I had a part to play. So here are some steps that I believe will help as you develop friendships.

1. Ask Jesus: the Bible tells us in James 1:17 that all good and perfect gifts come from the Father of lights with whom there is no shadow of turning or variation. God is a good father and He gives us good gifts which include gifts of men. When I was in university, a few years ago, I was worried as I left my home country. I wasn’t sure I would have friends or settle well and I talked to God about it. I asked Him for good friends and He sent me amazing people. The friends He gave me in that season really helped to shape and strengthen my life.

2. Be a friend: The bible admonishes us to do unto others what we want to be done to us. You want friends? Be a friend. Pray for that person, check on that person, don’t speak ill of that person, defend that person.That is what friends do. Now, I am not saying that you keep forcing yourself on the person. No, no one is doing you a favour by being your friend. I am basically saying, care about people and work on your character. I wouldn’t want to be friends with you if I get a vibe that you somehow think you’re better than me. You might not be thinking that but it might just be the vibe you put out.
People don’t care how much you know or how nice you are, until they see that you care.

3. Everyone is not meant to be your friend: Know that not everyone is meant to be your friend. Some people are acquaintances and that’s just it. Do you have common interests, do you pray together or do you gossip and compete? Friendships can also affect your mental health. God created us as relational beings which is why relationships can affect our state of mind and also longevity. So choose them carefully.

4. Be wise: Trust God for wisdom (James 1:5). Some people are wolves in sheep’s clothing and you might not be able to identify them immediately. Let God help you discern and don’t ignore your gut feeling. Also, make sure your friend loves God as much as you do and is willing to grow. You don’t need people who will bring you down to destruction.

I am who I am today because of the investments of some wonderful people in my life. If God did not bring my amazing sisters to me,
I would totally be a different person with a very poor self-esteem. We need men to progress in this life. Even Jesus had 12 of them and out of those 12, He had 3 really close ones. You cannot function by yourself. You need your ‘sisterhood’ or a ‘brotherhood’.

It is important to note that the ultimate friend is the Holy Spirit. You need Him!

It is my prayer that the steps above will help you in your search for Godly friends and partnerships.

You are loved,
Favour

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Hi everyone, thank you for reading my content.

I now have a YouTube channel where I share what the Lord puts on my heart..If this blog has been a blessing to you, I invite you to check out my YouTube channel.

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You are loved,

Favour