“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT)

If you ask many young, determined Naija persons what is on their mind now, their almost immediate response is how to “japa”! And to be honest, I don’t blame them. 

Every talented and focused individual should at least have a working system that supports and enables them to fulfil their dreams, not frustrate them and make things difficult for them.

It’s merely logical for everyone in the right frame of mind to find better pastures. Every farmer knows that the type of crop you want to plant determines the kind of soil you choose which in turn determines your harvest amongst other climatic conditions.

Right now, it would seem to many Nigerians that Nigeria is an arid, unproductive land. Hence, the urgent need to “japa” to give them an enabling environment to be “fruitful and multiply”.

I can’t even count the number of my colleagues that relocated last year and the ones that already have plans in motion to leave this year. The other day, I was on the phone with a very close friend and what summed up our discussion that night was how we could “japa” and leave this supposed mess of a country.

It’s not even just about greener pastures anymore, it’s also about security. People want to be able to have peace of mind and to be able to celebrate the holidays without being shot at by policemen. They just want to make their honest living without being harassed or accused of being yahoo boys. 

We want to be able to be in our houses and to travel when we need to without the fear of being kidnapped. We want a stable economy where even the poor man is catered for. These are the issues.

However, even before that call, I have been pondering on this whole “japa matter” which has become a fad and I have been asking myself some questions which I am going to throw at you.

Why exactly do you want to japa? Is it because everyone else is leaving? Have you even discovered your purpose? Do you ever wonder why international schools ask you to write a statement of purpose? It’s so that you can prove how that degree is relevant to your career and life goals (short-term and long-term). 

Can you categorically demonstrate how moving abroad is going to influence your goals positively? Do you even have a life map?

Trust me, if you’re purposeless in Nigeria, you’re going to be purposeless wherever you go. You will just be going with the flow. You will keep trying out things just because everyone you know is doing it.

Have you asked God what He would have you do at this juncture? For I  remember Isaac wanting to leave Canaan for Egypt because there was a famine in the land. This was an adequate thing to do because that was the exact thing his father Abraham had done when he encountered the same dilemma. But God specifically told Isaac to remain in Canaan. Thank goodness, Isaac obeyed.

Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold because the LORD blessed him. The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy (Genesis 26:12). The people of the land became envious of him and sent him away because of how enormously blessed he was by God.

Our success lies in our ability to hear what God is saying per time and our obedience to what He has told us. It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich without adding sorrow.

This is not to discourage you from your japa mission but to help you make an informed decision. What if you were destined to make it in Nigeria?

For some of us, our first instinct is to run when confronted with a challenge. What if we’ve been called to face this problem and deal with it headlong though? If we all leave, who will make the country work?

Even if you’ve got it all figured out, have you asked God what His will for you is? Just know that whether God gives you green lights or red lights, it’s all for the best. In God’s will abides our provision.

In The Right Brain God, by Michael Faust, it says “Anyone can jump on a bandwagon…You have to find a cause and commit yourself fully.” That’s the first step in giving meaning to your life.

Therefore, to japa or not, is at your discretion; the choice and all that comes with it.

Regardless, be intentional.  Discern and understand the objective and mission of relocating. Otherwise, you might have nothing to show for it at the end of the day. 

Commit your ways to God and He will establish you.

May God bless our undertakings.

God bless Nigeria!

About three years ago, I finished serving my fatherland (the popular NYSC) and because it was during the COVID-19 outbreak, I had to return home because I couldn’t get a job.

Towards the end of that year, I landed my current job. Of course, I had done some jobs in between but they weren’t as good as this one. 

Shortly after I got this job, a place opened up very close to us and I later discovered that it was someone I knew that was in charge of the place. We had served together and he gave off this vibe like he owned the place. 

I remember asking myself whether it was the 19,800 naira “allawee” we were receiving that he saved up and used to set the place up and equip it. I just brushed it off; concluding that he might have gotten a loan or that he had a sponsor that provided him with capital and afterall it wasn’t my business. 

So we continued to work; we had some collaborations between us and everything was moving smoothly.

Fast forward to this year that we just started, he got a better job and had to leave. That was when I found out that he wasn’t the one that owned the place.

I’m learning that people only show you what they want you to see. Everything is not always as it seems. You only see in part; you don’t always get to see the full picture.

That’s why we get frustrated most of the time; because we’re comparing our real-life moments with people’s highlight reels. 

More importantly, I’m learning to stay in my lane and focus on my journey. When athletes run, they don’t focus on their competitors or spectators. They maintain their lane and their eyes are fixed on the finish line. 

Stay in your purpose lane. The most crucial part of success is discovering your purpose. The journey is a lot easier when you know where you’re headed. Yes, there may be detours, impediments, delays, cancellations, and all manner of setbacks but as long as you press on, you’ll eventually get there.

Don’t allow anybody to pressure you with what they show you. Some people are actually who they say they are; others are just fronting. I saw a quote somewhere that says “Don’t compare your back of house with someone’s front of house” (paraphrased). 

In other words, don’t compare your day one with someone else’s day ten thousand.

I remember when I had just gotten admission into the university, one of my senior colleagues that was in his final year at the time used to tell us that the only difference between him and us was time. Given time, we would all become like him someday.

Permit people and their progress to inspire you when you start to feel under a lot of pressure to be like someone, remind yourself that you aren’t on the same journey as them. 

Eventually, if you stay true to your calling and are diligent, everything will fall into place for you. In the meantime, enjoy your process and cherish every moment.

Because one believes in oneself, one doesn’t try to convince. Because one is content with oneself, one doesn’t need others’ approval. Because one accepts oneself, the whole world accepts him or her.

Rosalynn Carter

I used to have a colleague that always referred to himself as a genius and it would usually irk me but it has worked so far for him. He has accomplished great feats over the years. To me, I felt it was a display of hubris but I had to ask myself why I was triggered or threatened by someone identifying themselves as a whiz. 

Could it be that I expected him to be modest about who he was or to downplay his worth just to make me and others around him feel more comfortable?

Have you noticed that we sometimes feel intimidated by those who are doing the things we don’t dare to do? 

Have you also noted that people tend to see us more than we see ourselves? 

Have you asked yourself why you brush off compliments completely or never see yourself in the positive light that others see you? 

Maybe, it’s because you do not give yourself enough credit for who you are or maybe it’s because you do not know what you’re made of. If you don’t know how great or how incredibly talented you are, it doesn’t matter if the whole world tells you that you are, you will never fully accept that you are. 

A negative comment by somebody on your work or art or fashion sense and you could be completely thrown off balance because your validation comes solely from what everyone else thinks or says that you are, not from who you know yourself to be.

It is not sufficient to know what we’re made of but we must come to embrace them. Living in denial will not take us anywhere. Playing down who you are or what you’re capable of accomplishing is not humility. It is self-sabotage.

This is not to support toxic positivity in any way. I rather people become self-aware of who they are and what they’re made of and come to completely accept their true selves. This is the first step to living a fulfilled life. 

When you can stare at your truth in the face and acknowledge it without shame, then you become liberated. You become free to live in your truth and work on areas where you need to be better.

You need to be honest with yourself. Some of you have the most resilient of spirits so what are you doing hiding in your comfort zone? 

Some of you have been groomed and the world could do with your intellectual ideas right now, so why are you lurking in the shadows? 

So, instead of loathing those who have already identified what they’re made up of and are putting in the work to become all that they have been made to be and have begun to attain yields, why not take your eyes off of them and begin a self-discovery? They are not your competition. 

 You are just ignorant about who you are. Do the work. Put in the labour; all that it takes.

As this quote commonly attributed to Maya Angelou goes “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”

Be kind to yourself as you proceed along this journey. This kindness, in itself, is a means of awakening the spark of love within you and helping others to discover that spark within themselves.

Tsoknyi Rinpoche

These days, the hustles and bustles of life are becoming more real. We are getting more obsessed with the need for more that we do not often stop and think about how far we have come.

I think we’re so preoccupied with what we can be that we lose focus of who we are at the moment.

We forget that it is who we are now, that will get us to who we want to be. It is this body that we have now that will do the work for us to attain the heights we so long for.

But how do you expect this person to get you to your destination when you aren’t kind to them?

The fact that you want to get a Mercedes Maybach someday doesn’t mean you won’t take care of the Volkswagen Beetle that you have right now, would it? You don’t handle what you have carelessly because you’re hoping to get something better. 

What if that ” better” never comes? Even if the “better” eventually comes, how do you hope to take proper care of it since you’ve developed a “nonchalant” culture towards what you have?

It is commendable to strive for a better life but are you taking care of the one you possess now? If you cannot be kind to yourself now, do you think you can suddenly become kind to yourself when you become that person you have always envisioned? 

The truth is there’s always more to become, a mountain to surmount, a battle to win and a race to finish.

So, in this journey of your becoming, one good thing you can do is to be kind to the version of you that you have.

You have to talk to yourself kindly and with respect. Some of us go all out for others but never cut ourselves some slack. You have to love yourself enough to tell yourself the truth, even when it’s cold and bitter. 

And again, you would have to forgive yourself for all the mistakes you made when you didn’t know better. To be kind to yourself is to show you mercy because you’re human. 

It is to extend the same level of grace that you extend to others to yourself. It is to awaken your potential and tap into it. It is to give yourself rest when you need it and to take care of your spirit, soul and body. It is to set healthy boundaries for yourself and others, to nourish and nurture your essence with the right nourishment.

Sometimes, being kind to yourself would mean denying instant gratification for interminable rewards in the long run. It would mean imbibing discipline to do what is right.

Kindness means different things in the different seasons of our lives. So recognising how to be kind to ourselves in each season is equally crucial. You don’t just owe it to others to be kind to them, you owe it to yourself to be kind in each step of your fickle voyage. 

Brené Brown agrees when she says “As it turns out, we can’t practise compassion with other people if we can’t treat ourselves kindly.” Simply put, you cannot give what you do not have. The more we love ourselves, the better we can love those around us.

Of late, the surge in young people having high blood pressure amongst other illnesses has left me puzzled and it’s largely because a lot of us are just driven by the passion to make it big that we neglect our health and we do not sit to weigh the ramifications of our lifestyle choices.

So, please, today, be kind to yourself; be patient with your process. You need to be alive and in the right physical, mental, social and emotional space to get where you’re going and to remain there. 

If you cannot be kind to the person you see every day in the mirror, how do you expect to be good to the one you haven’t seen? Don’t be selfish, just be kind. Kindness is still in vogue and it suits you.

Tony Robbins was accurate when he said “The quality of your life is in direct proportion with the quality of your relationships” and the truth is most sane people only associate with those who add value to their lives. So how do you intend to have quality relationships when you keep behaving in ways that make you unattractive as a person?

If you want your relationships to thrive better, you must stop these behaviours if you’ve been indulging in them:

1. Sharing People’s News Before They Do.

I know you’re super close with them and you can get all giddy and excited or even emotional that you feel the need to quickly share your friends’ news to show your support and care but not everybody likes for their life to be put in the public space. Some people cherish their privacy. 

So before you share the news of your friend’s engagement or the death of their loved one with your community (both online and offline), normalise asking the person(s) involved whether it’s okay to share. 

So that you will not be wondering what offence you committed when your friends stop sharing their news with you.

2. Violating People’s Boundaries.

You don’t always have to understand a person’s boundaries before you respect them. You might not know what people are going through and this includes your friends. 

A lot of people are just trying to get by even though they seem “fine”. So when they tell you a certain thing triggers them and they ask you not to do it, please don’t do it.

Also, be sensitive. Don’t be that person that just opens their mouth “waaaa” and spills out whatever comes to their mind without processing or thinking about the implications of your words.

When you respect people and their boundaries, it says a lot about your character and it makes people have a high regard for you.

3. Asking People For Money Because You Feel They’re Living Life.

When your friend just bought a house or returned from an exotic vacation, that is not the time to ask them for money. You might be tempted to think that they must have money in order to be able to afford that kind of luxury but you should be reasonable enough to know that what they just spent must have taken a toll on their bank accounts. 

Sometimes, they might have had to save for a very long duration of time that you have no idea about. Allow people to enjoy the reward of their hard work in peace. Don’t be a “winch“.That’s why they blocked you from viewing their status on social media (pun intended).

4. Taking Advantage Of Those Around You Under The guise of friendship.

You can fool people for only so long. Eventually, they will see right through you and your intentions. 

Nothing screams toxicity like keeping people around just to manipulate them and use them to do your bidding. Stop abusing people’s children. Relationships are a two-way street. It’s only when you give that you can hope to take. Don’t expect to reap where you haven’t sown.

5. Sharing A Secret Your Friend Told You In Confidence With Your Lover.

This is downright wrong. You shouldn’t be spilling your friend’s secrets to your lover. If they wanted a third party to know, they would have told you in the presence of your spouse. 

I know you tell your spouse everything but do not betray your friend’s trust in the name of “Spilling Tea”. You could ruin years of friendship over an hour of gossip. Remember, your spouse cannot be everything you need them to be and your friends make up part of your support system. So, don’t damage connections that you should be protecting.

If we must have quality relationships, then we must be value adding individuals with quality character traits. We all can do better if we’re willing to put in the work that it takes.

2022 must have been a great year for many but you can agree with me that a lot of us had our own share of “shege” served to us on a platter in different proportions. For some of us it wasn’t just “shege” but for others it was “shege pro-max”. 

Monday Ghandi & Desperate Worshipers (Dewmusik Int’l) after a successful wrap-up of their annual worship and intercessory meeting Beyond Desperate back in January 21st release sermon of the phenomenal gathering of worshippers.

Beyond Desperate, a meeting known for drunkenness in the Holy Spirit, Repentance from sin, reconciliation of the heart of men to God, impartation of prayer power, instant healings and miracles, sound of revival and deliverances from the chains of the enemy didn’t fall short as the ambiance of God’s glory was ineffable.

Pastor Meshach Alfa, Blessing Andem, Lucky Otutu & Raphael Egun all invited ministers who were instrumental in the leading of the Holy Spirit stirred worshippers through the course of an amazing time in God’s presence.

While Monday Ghandi & Desperate Worshipers prep to release awesome songs and enchanting sounds recorded in the event, Here is powerful sermon dubbed Greater Light by Pastor Meshach Alfa at Beyond Desperate 2022.

Listen/Download Sermon Below

In the latest episode of Trevor Talks, a podcast hosted by Christian mental health advocate Trevor Tyson, 2x GRAMMY-nominated Artist, Jamie Grace, discusses mental health, music & life.

Jamie Grace is a two-time GRAMMY-nominated singer, songwriter, and actress. Diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome, OCD, ADHD, and anxiety at a young age, Jamie actively advocates for joy, wellness, and mental health through the lens of music, film, and faith.

An entertainer at heart, she regularly creates fresh content, including new music and weekly videos and episodes of The Jamie Grace Podcast.

“I’ve spent most of my adult life trying to figure out the line between my clinically diagnosed anxiety and my character flaws and emotional weaknesses—and how in the world I should recover,” Jamie writes. “It’s the moments when we feel like everything is crumbling before us and completely falling apart that faith proves just how powerful it can be.”

In her new book, Finding Quiet, combines Jamie’s true story with practical life lessons that have helped her learn to let go, release herself from comparison, navigate relationships, find purpose, and much more. She vulnerably shares her lowest moments of pain and self-doubt, and leads readers through her journey in search of freedom, found in the quiet moments.

When she isn’t touring, Jamie lives in Southern California with her husband, Aaron, and daughter, Isabella Brave.

Listen to the full podcast episode HERE.

BM Bliss has shot us an arrow of encouragement in this song titled “MIGHTY WORKS” which was recently released. The song speaks of God’s omini-potency and love towards his children. He’s promise keeping nature, and enveloping grace.
MIGHTY WORKS carries words that speak of God’s amazing personality and works that injects trust in the mind of the listeners. A part of the song says “when fears arise, my FAITH will conquer”. And, the bible reminds of God being the author and finisher of our faith. So, God will conquer every sought fear arising from us.

The quality of the song is top notch. From instrumentation, voicing, down to recording. Beautiful backup vocalists.

The song MIGHTY WORKS solely aims at building confidence and trust in the Christian faith, which is also a form of worship. “Mighty are the works of your hands” as stated in the chorus is a direct worship to God as prayers took over at the fade of the song.

MIGHTY WORKS is sound to stick to either as an encouragement or prayer to God.

BM Bliss is a Nigerian Gospel Singer and Songwriter who made her first appearance in the Gospel Music scene with her latest single “Mighty Works” which was released earlier this month. You can learn more about her by reading through her Exclusive interview with Sounds4TheKing Media Concept below:

I am Faith Zicham and I have here with me a special guest, we’re glad to have you here Ma, welcome on board, Can we meet you pls?

I’m Blessing Masajuwa from Delta state, a native of urhobo, I’m 24 yrs old and I’m a student of Ambrose Alli university, studying Theatre and media Art in my 3rd year and my journey for music started 5 years ago and now I can say it’s the best part of me.

Wow! Beautiful, So about “music” How has it been?

It has been interesting, full of so many motivations especially learning new things and discovering some potential in me.

It means, music for you has been smooth. Without any form of hedge or problem?

Of course there are, they come up gradually, like the more I approach a new phase the more I meet some new challenges but then I like it because it shows growth and advancement.

So, how do you overcome those arising problems?

Some I discussed with those ahead of me while I learn from whichever one I failed

Talking about those ahead of you! Who is the one person you look up to in the music industry?

That should be Sinach

Wow! Well, I think you sing more like Judikay. But, that aside, your new single. Tell us more about it

Judikay? Nah! even though Mighty Works is close to her style but it’s the first I’ve written in that style.

My new single(Mighty Works)is a song of conviction and conclusion I wrote it while I was in school in my 2nd year, the song is like a box of my meditation cause it was birthed from the place of meditation, it reminds me that whatever God does surely comes out the best and nothing can beat it.

Wow! This is beautiful BM Bliss. Alright, so what should we expect from BM Bliss in the future?

By God’s grace, something bigger and unusual will come through; I will say the real BM Bliss will unveil.

We wait your unveiling. Anything you want to tell us? Your fans?

God bless everyone and it’s my prayer that my lyrics communicate deeply to your soul and bring you a sweet fellowship with God.

Amen. It is really a nice time having you here… And we hope to have you here again and again. Thank you! Dearest, BM Bliss

It’s a pleasure being here Zicham, Thank you.

On Resurrection Sunday, we heard such an impactful message about the stains we have in our lives. Pastor Michael presented such a powerful illustration about how the things we experience in our life can stain us. But, the good news is that God came to exchange our stains for a new life with Him! Check out this incredible Easter Sunday message and share it with someone who needs it!

Join Transformation Church for service online every Sunday at 11am (CST) and on Monday’s for Monday Night Prayer at 6pm (CST).

If you received Christ through this message, text SAVED to 828282.

We would love to hear how God is touching your life through this ministry! Share your story with us by emailing [email protected]!

If you would like to support TC financially you can give through the TC app, or online through our website by clicking here https://transformchurch.us/give/​. Text ‘GIVE’ to 828282 to give using your mobile device.

Watch Video Below

If you need prayer, email [email protected]!

For more information about Transformation Church, visit transformchurch.us or follow us on our social media platforms below.

Twitter | Instagram | Facebook