Isn’t it wonderful to step into another month? With all the challenges that you have experienced this year, you are still here! I know many have experienced untold hardship, and I do not intend to minimise your experiences but think about it, YOU ARE STILL HERE!
So, before you begin to grumble about how your plans have been disrupted and how you have not been able to achieve all that you set out to do this year, let me remind you that you are still in the game, and you are in your right mind. If you were knocked out of the game of life, you would not be here complaining. Have you ever been to the mortuary and seen corpses grumbling and complaining? You are also in your right mind; you have not gone insane! That is why you can reason and know whether your goals or aspirations for this year have been achieved or not.
This morning, I was reading the story of Apostle Paul in the book of Acts in the Bible, and I was moved by all the things he had to suffer because of his faith. He was falsely accused, severely beaten several times, imprisoned, threatened with death, and suffered shipwreck, yet he maintained a positive attitude and stayed focused on his assignment. He may have felt derailed from his goal when he was moved from one place to another so that he would not be killed. After several previous moves, he was transported from Jerusalem to Caesarea in the middle of the night to escape the plot of the religious leaders who wanted him killed. After some time there, he was put on the ship to Rome, where he almost lost his life. He had every reason to complain to God and question His intelligence on how everything in his life would play out. Still, he maintained a positive attitude and made the best of every situation. Knowing that his assignment was to preach (especially to the non-Jews), he ensured he was doing that in every circumstance he found himself. Despite the lockdown (being in prison and having his freedom of movement ceased) that Paul experienced, he had accomplished so much more than many of his contemporaries at the end of his life.
Like Paul, I want to encourage you to make up your mind to keep doing what you can, as best as you can, in the circumstances that you are. You will be surprised how much you have accomplished when this year is over. Be grateful that against all the odds that this year has presented, you are still here!
So, congratulations because
- Against All Odds, you survived
- Against All Odds, you are still here
- Against All Odds, you are still sane
- Against All Odds, you are still making progress
- And against all the odds, you shall fulfil your destiny in Jesus’s Name!
