Connect from Transit Points

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

Genesis 49:14-15 

 “Issachar is no better than a donkey That lies stretched out between its saddlebags.  But he sees that the resting place is good And that the land is delightful. So he bends his back to carry the load And is forced to work as a slave.    Good News Translation

 “Issachar is a rawboned^[f] donkey lying down among the sheep pens.  When he sees how good is his resting place and how pleasant is his land, he will bend his shoulder to the burden and submit to forced labor. NIV

 “Issachar is a strong donkey,    crouching between the sheepfolds.  He saw that a resting place was good,  and that the land was pleasant, so he bowed his shoulder to bear,  and became a servant at forced labor. English Standard Version (ESV)

 Issachar is a strong donkey,lying down between the sheepfolds. He saw that his resting place was good and that his land was pleasant, so he bent his shoulder to the burden and submitted to labor as a servant.… Berean Study Bible

Transit points are not final destination points. They are connecting points to final destination points. They should therefore not become rest points but should serve the divine purpose of connecting you to your final destination. This is because a person in transit actually has no rights and privileges in a transit point. But in a final destination; either as a tourist, short to medium or long term visitor; a person has rights and privileges and is not likely to become a slave.

If Joseph for instance had consented to the sin of sexual immorality with Potiphar’s wife which appeared pleasant then – he was liked by his boss and colleagues; Joseph would have remained a slave forever, enslaved to Potiphar’s wife who would always blackmail him if he refused to continue in sin, assuming he consented the first time.

Even prison was not Joseph’s final destination. It was another transit point; a connecting point to his final destination. Significantly, Joseph took advantage of every transient point he found himself in. He used them as transient points and not final destination points as in the case of Issachar. Issachar chose to settle down at a transit point because the transit point appeared to be pleasant, pleasant in quote because that pleasantness was the reason for his slavery. Sadly, Issachar became a band of slaves simply because he chose to rest in the wrong place, a transit point which would have connected him to his final destination where people would serve him.

You Can Succeed

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

You can succeed if only you will dare because it is the will of God for you to succeed. Please see Joshua Chapter 1 verse 8. Also, you can succeed if you take the decision to succeed and dare the challenges and odds which the enemy throws in your paths to success. Success does not come on a platter of gold. It comes masked as challenges that you must purposefully in a very determined and tactical manner, strategically unmask.

People sometimes wear masks to cover up something which may be beautiful, ugly, unpleasant, too brilliant to showcase at a certain time or place; or amongst certain people who may want to devour it. Brides in certain cultures are usually beautifully dressed up but veiled, a mild form of masks. It is the responsibility of the groom to unveil the bride; to behold and enjoy beauties untold. Significantly and quite often, the journey to unveiling the beautiful but masked bride is not a bed of roses. Perhaps you should ask people from the ethnic groups where potential grooms are subjected to the indignity and pain of a good number of strokes of the cane, significantly not in secret but in public glare.

Beloved, it is usually the determination and courageous resolve of the groom to unveil the bride that keeps the real groom from bolting when the pain of the harshly delivered strokes of the cane become unbearable. He bears the pain in silence, masking his pain in order not to be mocked and considered an unsuitable groom for the bride. What an ordeal!

Fortunately, you do not have to be flogged publicly or privately to succeed as Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior has paid the full price for success in any endeavor of life for humanity. All you need to do is to latch on to Jesus and walk with him to and on Success Street.

In His time

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

In His time, He made you a blessing

Created to bless

Because you are a blessing

From an overflowing source that never dries up

Flowing through you for the benefit of God’s children

Placed close to you by God

To receive His many blessings

Through you, His conduit

Are you flowing or receiving only?

When you should be receiving and flowing

To ensure a continuous flow

Beloved, speed up the flow

By being always a blessing

Shalom

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ACT, DO SOMETHING

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

Healing come in diverse forms. Sometimes, Jesus the Healer requires you to act. He asked the man at the pool to rise, take up his bed and walk, in essence; act, do something by and for yourself to get out of the unpalatable predicament that ideally should not be your portion but which you have gotten used to because there appears to be sufficient justification for the excuses you make. For instance, the man at the pool complained of having no one to put him in the pool when the water was stirred coupled with his inability to get in to the pool before the other supposedly smarter people. He did not mention the fact that he was sluggish and his sluggishness was the reason he could not get into the pool before the supposedly other smarter people at the pool.

The man at the pool was comfortable; in point of fact very comfortable with his situation at the pool. To put it mildly, he had come to love the situation as it helped him to excuse away his destiny in addition to unknowingly celebrating his weaknesses. Weaknesses, you may ask! Certainly and quite a number! For instance, he loved to depend on people; to have people do for him what he could actually do for himself if only he put his mind to it. For example, he could actually find creative ways of getting into the pool without the assistance of anyone if he was really determined to do so. But like Professor Lazy who always comes up with a dozen excuses for not tilling his land when he should – a fierce lion was parading the street in desperate search of Professor Lazy; his body aching from inactivity required a little rest, a little sleep: the man at the pool hung at the pool for thirty eight years waiting for someone to put him in the pool.

Cash in Opportunities 2

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

Characteristics of the Blind Man

The blind man who sat by the road begging was positively inquisitive and asked the right questions. Please see verse 36 of Luke Chapter 18.

His hearing abilities were top notch. They had been trained to hear and decipher sounds in order to make the distinction between the footstep of one person and several persons. He heard a multitude passing by. His heightened hearing abilities greatly compensated for his visual impairment. He could therefore make distinctions by and from the sounds he heard. But he did not stop here. He also put other functional parts of his body to great use.

He used his voice judiciously to inquire about what was happening in his immediate and remote surroundings. That probably explains how he got to know about Jesus and the great miracles Jesus was performing. The blind man also used his voice to make demands or requests that would bring about positive transformation to his life. He cried out to Jesus to have mercy on him and significantly refused to be silenced by the people around him who urged him to be quiet. The judicious and positive use of his voice made Jesus pay attention as the Bible records that Jesus stood still and commanded the blind man to be brought to Him.

Again, the blind man knew what he wanted and was prepared for the moment. Jesus would not pass by him every day so why not make the most of the moment – take advantage of the great divine opportunity to request the restoration of his sight.

Beloved, it is indeed true that when preparedness, especially great preparedness meets with divine opportunity; great success is usually the outcome. Some biblical examples include Joseph, Daniel, Nehemiah, David, the virtuous woman, and many others. The blind man could have requested for alms, something he probably did everyday but definitely not at this moment because somehow, the blind man recognized that the Person he was standing before was greater than alms and had much more than to give to him. Jesus would give him his sight and with his sight restored, he would live a dignifying life free of begging for alms. So the blind man asked Jesus to restore his sight and Jesus willingly and lovingly did.

Cash in on Opportunities

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

The blind man who sat by the road begging near Jericho understood the full import of cashing in on opportunities. He realized that certain opportunities do not present themselves every day. He therefore took ample advantage of the opportunity of Jesus passing by him because he knew that Jesus in His earthly ministry may not likely pass by him a second time. He therefore utilized the one time life opportunity of meeting with Jesus Christ to achieve a life time goal of receiving his sight. Significantly, the blind man was expectant that Jesus would give him back his sight. He also believed that Jesus had the power and would be willing to restore his sight. If only he could come near Jesus. Fortunately for him, the great opportunity came as Jesus traveled to Jericho.

The blind man could definitely not see Jesus and he probably had no one to lead him to Jesus. Rather than lament and hold a pity party about what he lacked, he chose to utilize what he had in great measure – his voice and mouth to great advantage.

But he could hear and so heard the noise of multitudes moving around him. He asked people around what the noise was all about and they informed him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. What an opportunity! Though he could not see, he could shout. Definitely, Jesus could hear him. So the blind man raised his voice and cried out for mercy to Jesus. Though people tried to restrain him urging him to be quiet, he shouted the more to gain Jesus’ attention. Significantly, Jesus granted him audience and his life time goal was achieved as his sight was restored.

Beloved, the hitherto blind man had little or nothing at his disposal to deal with the challenge of visual impairment. But rather than blame anyone or circumstances, he worked at getting out of the predicament which made him a beggar.

Divine Exit Doors 2

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

Mordecai and the Jews in Shushan were sentenced to death with the irreversible laws of the kingdom and therefore could not appeal against the sentence. Yet within that seemingly concluded blockade, God in His infinite mercies, power and love for His own created divine exit doors out of the death sentence. Haman who requested for and paid for the death sentence against the Jews died on the gallows he had prepared to hang Mordecai on. The Jews got another decree signed which empowered them to arm and defend themselves. The people that had planned to kill the supposedly defenseless Jews for fun became afraid of the armed Jews who had received royal authorization to fight back their attackers. Please read the entire book of Esther for details.

The people of Jericho barricaded their gates against the Israelites. Without recourse to the use of explosives which bring down fortified brick and mortar, God created divine exit doors for His people. Please see Joshua Chapter 6 for details.

The satraps thought they had Daniel silenced forever when he was thrown into the den of lions. But God created a protective wall of fire for Daniel by shutting the mouths of the lions. After Daniel was released and the satraps as well as members of their families were thrown into the den of lions, the lions had a feast of human flesh. Please see Daniel Chapter 6 for details. Additionally, the King opted to serve Daniel’s God and made a proclamation that made it mandatory for everyone to serve Daniel’s God.

Shedrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to bow down to Nebuchadnezzar’s image. Consequently, they were thrown into the fiery furnace of fire. But God intervened and the fire had no effect on them. Upon their release, Nebuchadnezzar publicly proclaimed the worship of Jehovah God in Babylon.

Divine Exit Doors 1

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

There are always divine exit doors out of what usually appears to be a dead end because God always has the final say and God always makes a way where there appears to be no way so that His name is always glorified. Therefore, there are no dead ends; not even when you are hedged in by the red sea and the chariots of determined to annihilate Pharaoh are in fierce pursuit. Pharaoh and his host thought that they had total victory; after all the Israelites had nowhere to run to; no seeming exit door out of where they were; between the red sea and his pursuing army. But unknown to Pharaoh, God always has exit points known to Him alone until in His infinite mercy, He shows the exit points to His loved ones. The sea which appeared to be a natural barricade against the children of Israel actually turned out to be the perfect exit point for them. God Who created nature intervened in the natural course of events and the sea gave way for safe passage to the children of Israel. Unfortunately that same sea not only barricaded the chariots of Pharaoh and Pharaoh; but it also swallowed them after the Israelites had crossed on to the other side safely. Please see Exodus Chapter 14 for the full details of this story.

Esau appeared to have been hedged in by the mistake of selling his birthright to his younger brother for a meal of pottage. In addition, Esau lost his father’s blessings because their mother Rebecca asked Jacob to outsmart Esau by pretending to be Esau in order to gain his father’s blessings. Additionally, Esau married heathen women and lost favor with his parents. What then were his prospects for making it in life? Apparently, none! But Esau did not give up and did not give in. He prevailed on his father to do something to redeem his situation. Isaac then uttered what appeared to be mere words. But fortunately for Esau, he took note of those words uttered and he became restless and broke the yoke of servitude to his brother. He also became economically and politically prosperous – he did not bow down to Jacob and he had an army of four hundred men in addition to numerous material things. Please see Genesis Chapters 27 and 33.

Overflow

Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha

He daily loads me with benefits

My cup overflows in His paths of righteousness

The divine paths that daily drop His blessed fatness

I am blessed on all sides

Rehoboths to the left and right, backwards and forwards

He certainly loads His own with abundant blessings

Streaming from me to His own

Like the virtuous woman, I allow the flow

Recognizing that I am only His conduit

A divine blessing to bless other people

I am His vessel, receiving and passing it on

To ensure a ceaseless flow

Through me to God’s own

I am blessed to be a blessing

Overflowing my banks to many others

You are also His conduit

Blessed to bless.

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