ACCEPTANCE

I was walking home a while ago and I saw a Ram wailing on the side of the road at the top of its voice; it would trot about a 100 meters and go back in the direction whence it came from repeating the movement again. It was looking for the rest of its flock and without them, he was panicking; his sense of safety gone and its survival, instinct had kicked in. The animal from birth had never existed in a vacuum. It has always had a pack; a support system, with which it feeds, drinks, sleep, walks, draws comfort so without its pack what is the ram? The only truth this ram ever knew was the flock so its survival instinct was borne of the acceptance of the fact that it needs the flock to survive.

Acceptance is to believe… the belief becomes the truth and your instincts, attitude and reaction to life events become shaped by this truth. We live in a society where people are increasingly suffering from doubts, insecurities, lack of self-confidence, depression, suicidal thoughts, and a plethora of negative emotions and perceptions that have gradually shaped our belief system of ourselves until that is all we have come to accept as the truth for our lives.

I woke up really early three days ago…usually when I wake up that early am either going for a run or walking to church so I don’t turn on the TV till I return but that morning I tuned it to TBN as I prepped for my morning run and Joel Osteen was speaking. This was a preacher I had previously seen pictures of on social media but never heard teaching the word. His message resonated so well that it stayed with me all day. That evening while I prayed in the chapel I opened the Daily Strength App on my phone to read the reflection for the day and coincidentally it was in line with the earlier message from Joel Osteen.

God does not make mistakes. He has created every one of us, as we should be. Every part, made divine. If we were to be 6 feet tall to achieve whatever purpose on earth to serve, we would be six feet tall. If the color of our skin were to be 10 shades lighter it would be so, if the family we are born into were not right for us we would not be there. If our nose, ears, belly button, ass, boobs, sexual orientation and gender were to be different then it would be so because God in his greatest wisdom gives us exactly what we need to be the best, most fulfilled versions of ourselves. Nothing is wrong with our bodies; our minds are as it should be. We look in the mirrors and see faults and limitations that do not allow us to excel while God looks at us and sees perfection in all its glory.

So where do these insecurities and doubts come from…why do we allow anxiety, self-hatred and fear to rule our lives? We don’t have to be perfect or understood in the eyes of man. Man is fickle and the people of this earth place value on the outside, they fear what they do not understand and they stand apart from anyone who does not conform to the average expectations of what people should look like but God looks on the inside

Look at David, small, gentle and the least favored. There was nothing in his physical body that screamed kingly material yet God saw beyond the surface and anointed him as favoured beyond man. For every battle or problem that came the way of Israel, God provided David with solutions because David had accepted the most important of truths…For as long as He served and loved the Living God, he need not fear or worry.

Rahab…the prostitute from Jericho who was instrumental in Israel’s occupation of the Promised Land through the victory over Jericho.  A prostitute was the person that God had chosen to help his people. He could have chosen anyone for this task but he choose her and her name is written in the bible as the brave woman who provided cover for the Israelite spies while they were in Jericho.

God does not see as man does. He has vowed never to give us burdens beyond what we can carry. We are enough for Him.

Do you doubt yourself because you cannot assimilate at the same pace with everybody else? Your mind is perfect ACCEPT YOURSELF and find where you excel.

Do you worry that your because you are gay, bisexual or inter sexed you have been separated from the love of God or unbecoming of his affections…You are perfect in the eyes of God…there is absolutely nothing wrong with you and I guarantee you that God accepts you as long as you accept yourself.

Looking for a job even with your stellar qualifications and its’ been years but nothing is happening; depression and the feeling of not being enough slowly creep in as you start to wonder maybe the problem lies with you…You are perfect! Hold firm, be confident and trust in the truth that God is with you always. That job He wants you to have will be yours and not even man will be able to take it from you.

God has placed every ability in us that we need to succeed in life. We have to accept the truth that every part of us is perfection.

I look in the mirror every day without clothes and I say to myself…Chima…you are beautiful and sexy…your face is a work of art without blemish, your skin glows. God I am wonderfully made, thank you and help me to use my body to give you glory.

We cannot afford to give into negative thoughts fueled by the devil because the devil drives into our subconscious words that we are not enough…we can’t attract men because we are not light skinned, our ass is flat, our height is under 170cm, our nose is too big, our forehead juts out in the most unpleasing manner. The devil helps us to find only faults in ourselves and fills us with so much self-loathing that we cannot look at our reflections in the mirror without seeing failure.

We must find our truth from deep within; In God and ourselves…The word of God is a constant reminder of the truth that he wants to live in communion with us. If we accept that we are enough for Him, we are enough for ourselves. We speak positive words with our mouth and fill up on the ammunition of His words. We walk taller knowing that our height is not a limitation. We look in the mirror, see everything made perfect, and not give anyone the chance to make us feel anything but a 100%; we wake up every morning filled with resilient hope that whatever problems we are facing, God is with us and his grace will sustain us.

It is a brutal world out there; social media controls the etiquette of how women should look… extremely light skinned, the ultra-squat bum, lean figure, pointed nose, masqueraded faces and artificial hair. We must rise above societal expectations of who we should be and find balance instead in what makes us happy and how God sees us.

Our happiness is most pertinent. Do not complain about changes you can make in your situation but ask for the grace to metamorphosize because God has given us freewill.

Keep praying even when it seems like the situation is not changing; never compromise on your qualities of happiness to settle for less than you deserve…work hard to achieve your goals and trust that in His own time the Creator of the universe will bring to perfection every plan for you.

1 Cor. 10:13 – “Every test you have experienced is the kind that normally comes to people. But God keeps His promise, and He will not allow you to be tested beyond your power to remain firm; at the time you are put to the test, He will give you the strength to endure it and so provide you with a way out”.

WHAT HAVE YOU ALLOWED YOURSELF TO ACCEPT AS TRUTH?