A Regular Girl’s Notes on Life

Come let’s praise the Lord!

I am a member of a prayer group and we get together via telephone every Wednesday night to pray, we have been doing this for over a year now. It is always a wonderful time, last Wednesday as we were praying, a voice rang in my spirit…”and at midnight, Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises to God…

If you don’t know the story, Paul and Silas, were evangelists and they were locked up by the powers that be in that city. But that night they prayed and praised and there was a great shaking and the prison walls and gates were broken and opened, allowing them to walk out whenever they pleased. They didn’t, but I am going to end the story here because I wanted to illustrate the power of praise. As they praised and sang songs to the lord, there was a shaking.

As we were praying, I felt we needed to have a praise night. To sing praises to the Lord, to praise Him for what He has done and for what he is yet doing. To announce to the enemy that we are walking by faith and not by sight, to reclaim what was lost and to break every gate that is trying to prevail against us.

Today I took a praise walk. 5 miles. It was no joke. But it was amazing, as I huffed and puffed I sang praises to the Lord. Sure I got strange looks, which got even stranger when I started singing and dancing to my Igbo praise songs on my MP3 player, I am sure they were wondering what is up with this woman that is proclaiming that she can see everything turning around and that favor is her name?!! I answered telling them “Why you dey do like say, you no sabi my God!” LOL! And then I threw in an atilogu move for good measure.

Praise walking pays off for me in so many ways. First off it keeps my heart rate up, which according to my heart rate monitor is what allowed me to burn over 1000 calories in just over an hour, (I was moving fast y’all) and then in clears my mind and gives me joy. It reminds of who and whose I am. It fills me with the power of God, it renews my faith.

Have you praised God today?
I mean like crazy praise? I call it cardio praise! Praise Him till sweat is running down your face and back? Have you danced like that for God? The one who woke you up this morning? The one who gave your loved ones life? The one who put food in your belly? When people were staring at me, I just smiled, because if they knew what God has done and will do for me, they would be dancing too! Kimon!
God is awesome. It is said David danced before the Lord, so much so that Micah his wife became embarrassed and chided him. “Nonsense” he responded (I am paraphrasing) “If you don’t know that He is the Agu ne che mba! The Lion of Judah! Me I know, Ah beg, leave me to my dancing O!”

When the armies of the Moabites and Ammonites gathered against Judah, Jehoshaphat ran to the Lord. He praised God and prayed, saying “….we don’t know what to do but our eyes are upon you” (2 chronicles 20) and the word from God came saying to stand firm and see God’s deliverance because He would fight for them, they would not have to fight.

So that morning, they went out against the vast armies, but they didn’t come with weapons and more, they put together a choir! Jehoshaphat selected men to sing and praise the Lord. And they went out into the battlefield.
It is written that as they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against their enemies and their enemies began to fight each other and destroyed themselves. In fact by the time the people of Judah got there, all they saw were dead bodies and all that was left to do was collect plunder.

The battle is not yours, it’s the Lords!

If you are in the midst of a battle, if your enemies have gathered on every side, maybe you are feeling imprisoned by some need of lack in your life, maybe you are believing God for a loved one’s salvation, then after you have finished praying, praise HIM! There have been nights when I would do a praise vigil, in the midnight hour, I would awaken and dance and praise God. If I tell you battles that have been won on my behalf you will set your alarm too. Suffice to say, praise is powerful.

I mean God is good! Ain’t God good y’all! He is! So good that He is worthy of your praise anyway, but He has set it up that as you praise Him, things are transformed for your good! When you praise Him, blessings come down on you! Now ain’t that a good God! Even though we should simply praise Him because of who He is, He wants us to praise Him so we can be even more blessed! Hallelujah.

If you are standing in the gap for a loved one, the Bible says to lift him higher and He will draw all men to him. I have already given examples of how praise can set you free and give you rest on every side.

Please today take time out to praise Him. Sing to him in the streets if you can, for He is worthy! Don’t worry about who thinks you look undignified or crazy, give praise to your creator, the author and finisher of our faith. The unchangeable El-Shaddai! Kimon!
And if you want to join my praise night tonight, we’ll be meeting at midnight tonight. Leave a comment and I’ll email you the dial in number! You are more than welcome, but if you can’t, no worries, praise Him in your own space, in your own way and watch Him move in your life.

Popularity: 1% [?]

The other day I went swimming with my husband. Well he went swimming and I went paddling. You see I much prefer to hang out on the side of the pool where my feet just about touch the bottom and I paddle along nicely there, however according to David, my husband, that is not swimming.
“Come on out into the deep end” He called, determined to share with me the joy of doing laps. I shook my head. He came out to meet me and tried to show me some basic moves. “Just relax and let go” I stared at him blankly…let go into what, didn’t he understand the panic that rose up inside of me, the new sensation of being completely underwater was so uncomfortable that I kept jumping up gasping for air? Clearly not, because he kept pushing me to come out of my comfort zone, to go deep, so to speak.
I decided to take swimming lessons. So eventually I will really learn how to swim properly hopefully.
However I was thinking about how that experience is like a reflection for life. So many of us paddle along thinking that we are really living; we deal in the superficial, focusing on the aspects of life that keep us from drowning, (or so we think) a big house to live in, a fancy car to drive, a marriage that looks good to onlookers, designer clothes to rock and so on.
When something doesn’t feel right we address it on the surface. We feel inadequate because we don’t have what others in our social circle have, so we hustle to make it, in order to keep up with the Jones. We feel a little unsure with our looks, so we weave, paint and glue on, false pieces to embellish our sense of identity. We starve ourselves if necessary not to be healthy but to fit into a contrived version of beauty.
We only focus on what is on the surface. And I don’t blame anyone, going deep, going underwater is scary. You feel as if your lungs are going to explode and that life as you know it will no longer continue because you might drown.
Here’s the thing I am finding.
No matter how much you are paddling and how cool you look in your bathing suit with your hair not really getting wet, David was right, you are not swimming. No matter how comfortable your life appears and how glamorous you may be, if your life serves no purpose, then you are not living. Simply existing. If I can be morbid, you are a walking corpse, albeit a fabulously dressed one. Read more …

Popularity: 3% [?]

Sometimes, I have people send me email asking me for my advice on a particular topic. I usually respond via email but I would like to start a new trend here at life, love and faith and post the question with the identities protected and my advice, so you guys can show and share love to each person as well.

I recently got a note from a young woman that made me so sad. I could read her pain through the words. She told me that she had been involved with a man for 4 years and that they had a child together. This man sang in the choir at church and acted like a christian. She noted that he had a problem committing and then she said he had been cheating on her and had other women. He had even admitted to it. Then she asked me what she should do?

This was when I sighed.

I know to many of you this might look simple and straightforward. Some of you might shout “Ode!” and counsel her to get out of the relationship and shake your heads at how silly women can be.
Read more …

Popularity: 6% [?]

’smile’ from Nic Askew on Vimeo.

Popularity: 1% [?]