Monthly Archives: December 2008

Adeolu Akinyemi
December 31, 2008

Essential Development Goals


Development is one of the segments of my yearly goals. I usually try to have something that covers every part of my being- spirit, soul and body. In case you don’t I suggest you plan to have that this year. Make sure that your goals touch every area of your life and focus on specific areas, I’ll recommend that ordinarily spiritual goals ought to be priority. When we seek first God’s kingdom, all other things are added. Today for example I am just completing my 365 days fast, that’s a spiritual goal that I set and the purpose was to keep me in tune with God’s direction for my life and keep me involved and active. I might not be able to justify the reasons to you, but the fruits of a consecrated life are evident – now and in time.

Today however my primary focus will not be on your spiritual goals. By all means set them. Have a commitment to fellowship with God, to have daily devotion, to be kinder, more impactful to others, to add more value, to be a blessing. These are by far the most important things in my life. The ultimate test of faith is not “what does my faith do for me?”, but what does it make me do for others?” Your spirual goals set the pace, but it’s your developmental goals, which are partly spiritual but largely soulish are the things that get you equipped to deliver your spiritual goals more effectively and efficiently. As you advance into the year ahead, here are a few things you must strive to achieve, and do not forget!

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Adeolu Akinyemi
December 28, 2008

Before We Get Serious


There are a lot of serious things on my mind as the year is getting wrapped up and closing up to give way to the next. I’m thinking finalizing my reviews of this previous year, I’m thinking of firming my goals for the next. All these are serious things. In reviewing I need to analyze where I succeeded and where I didn’t, where I need to focus better on in the coming year, and what I really need help with. In finishing up my goals I need to seriously get alignment from control towers, from God, the source of my life and the author of my purpose. All these are serious things.  As I write I’m on the Island in a hotel close to VGC where I’m meeting with some future thinking Nigerians who are bent on making Nigeria the most desireable country to live in. 

Those are all serious things, but before we get to serious, I think it’s good we unwind a bit, and laugh heartily.  Are there reasons to be happy and laugh? Yes there are plenty of reasons. One is that you are alive and well, and made it through to witness the last Saturday, Sunday and even monday of the current year. Most of us know people who didn’t make it past this year, we are not better than them, we are only still alive because there are still expectations that God has not given up on us that we can still achieve. I stumbled on some interesting true life resume occurences that I felt might be a good way to get you laughing into the end of this year. Sit tight and have a happy reading. Continue reading →

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Adeolu Akinyemi
December 25, 2008

Merry Christmas


With Christmas comes the memory of the greatest gift of all time. The gift of salvation bundled up and packaged as a baby.  All the prophecies from Genesis to Malachi had pointed until this event. The seed of the woman who would bruise the head of  the serpent, the prince of peace, the seed of Abraham, the Annointed one, e.t.c. It’s a season of gratitude, of appreciation of love, of remembering what our lives would have been without God’s gift.

Here is wishing a wonderful season, and hoping that you remember that the most important thing at this time is not the food, the clothing or the visits, but the message of love, of kindness, of hope, of abundant life. May this Christmas, be your best ever, may you do the things that will inspire the generations after ours. Continue reading →

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Adeolu Akinyemi
December 23, 2008

Try a Little Kindness


If you see your brother standing by the road
With a heavy load from the seeds he sowed
If you see your sister falling by the way just stop and say you’re going the wrong way
You’ve got to try a little kindness just show a little kindness
Shine your light for everyone to see
And if you try a little kindness you’ll overlook the blindness
Of the narrow minded people on the narrow minded streets

Don’t walk around the down and out lend a helping hand instead of doubt
And the kindness that you show every day will help someone along their way
You’ve got to try a little kindness…
You’ve got to try a little kindness…

I don’t know if you grew up around the same time I did, if you did, the chances are 8/10 that you will have heard this song by Genesis before. Can you remember? That big round “record” with a tooth brush like reader on the player :) Those were the days – the disks were disks, nothing compact about them. Right now I can perfectly picture where the records where kept, I remember this season, and I can hear a few other soundtracks – “Baba ore re ma po, baba, melo la o san”, “Odun nlo so pin o, baba rere”, “Won le ma so so ku so, so ko gbo, Let them say :) ”, “Who the cap fits, let them wear it”, “… e.t.c. All the collections all the sorts. I’m sure some of you can pick yours out from these, but first let’s get down to the business of today. Try a little kindness. Continue reading →

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Adeolu Akinyemi
December 22, 2008

Reason or Excuse -No Difference


 

It has been said, that it is not what happens to us that counts, but what we do with what happens to us. It’s also said, that it’s not what we have the counts, it’s what we do with what we have that counts. While these are truths that have the capacity of getting us to sigh and think deeply, I think there are some vital realities lost on us when we consider these statements. I’ll like us to consider some of the elements that defined as happenings and some of the elements classified as “what we have”.

Happennings

Success is not a function of unique good happenings, good things happen to all, it’s more a funtion of how we manage the happenings in our lives. Failure is not the odd collection of unfortunate incidents, it’s how we rise everytime the opportunity to fall presents itself. Here are a few things that have happened to different people, and how the reactions can be the difference between winning and losing. Continue reading →

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Adeolu Akinyemi
December 17, 2008

The Why of Wealth


There are days (a lot of days these days) when I lie down and ask myself what is really the most important thing in life. What really is worth one’s energies? Is it pleasure? Money? Impact? Wisdom? “ki la n le gan gan?” I have analysed it from a philosophical point of view, I have read the views of Aristotle – who rationalized from the need for pleasure, the desire for glory and the search for knowledge. Aristotle came to a point where according to him, the most important thing in life is the contemplative life. In the Nichomachean Ethics, Aristotle analyzes the quest of all life falls on the planes of a search for pleasurable, political or contemplative. He analyzes that all life is lived for some higher purpose, he analyzes that we all pursue happiness, and the talk goes on asking about what truly brings happiness. I would never do justice to his book in one paragraph, if you are interested, you can get more thoughts on this here, trust me though, it’s not going to be an easy read for the average mind.

I have also studied the bible extensively about the answer to the same question-”What truely is the purpose of life?” What are we here to do, and what will bring the highest fulfillment. I read the thoughts of the experiential and experimental biblical philosopher in Bible – The King in Ecclestiastes. After living a life where he pursues all that man can pursue to gain happiness – women, wisdom, fame, projects, e.t.c. He came to a final conclusion that the whole purpose of man is to fear God and obey his commandments. In my own thoughts, I have come to find out as well, that the highest priority a man can pursue meaningfully on this earth is to serve God’s purpose and desire. This purpose differs from individual to individual, but in the final analysis, life is measured against a standard, and that standard is the original intention in the mind of God for that individual. Continue reading →

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Adeolu Akinyemi
December 11, 2008

Prophetic Declarations 2009


I’m in the middle of gaining clarity for the year ahead, already however, I have clear pictures of what the new year holds. The first few weeks of this month have been very remarkable for me, I have had to attend a convention, where I spoke and where I also listened. The whole Ilorin experience was capped for me by Rev. George Adegboye praying for me. As the words of those prayers and prophetic declarations were pronounced, I really wished I had a tape recorder to capture all the wordings. It wasn’t an havazard prayer, it was very specific and in a particular direction. From that prayer alone, I could see what the new year was going to birth.

Maybe you have been in meetings lately as well, where you have been told specific things about what will happen to you in the new year. Or maybe you’ve just been by yourself praying and worshiping God when you heard his voice -”my daughter, my daughter, or my son, my son”. I’m sure you also heard some great things before this year, 2008 started. I’m sure also that some of these declarations did not come to pass. You know why they didn’t come to pass this year? Do you want to know what can make the declaration of this year come to pass or not next year? Read on Continue reading →

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Adeolu Akinyemi
December 8, 2008

How to Reap!


It’s almost 2am now, I’m here reminiscing on the events of the last 5 days. It all started on Monday morning at the Mini International Conference of Rhema Chapel International in Ilorin. I had been given an opportunity to speak in 4 sessions by one of the Men of God I love and respect the most – Rev George Adegboye. In case you don’t know Rev. George Adegboye, let me give you a short, yet apt description – He is the only man alive referred to as the Living Bible and Mobile Concordance. I certainly believe that his grace is a special one, or how do you explain that a man can speak for 1hr and continue cross-referencing verses of the scripture with absolute accuracy without mixing it or mincing words. How do you explain when a man reels out from memory what a particular word and references all the other places where the same word can be found all over the bible. Apart from all these, he is also the pastor of my pastor. He’s a man I’ve watched and loved from a distance, so you can imagine how delighted I was, when I heard his invitation to come and speak in his church’s international conference. I was excited.

The past 5 days have been fulfilling, exciting and rewarding for me. I have been a blessing, I have learnt, I have been blessed and I have come to meet a lot more people. Rather than 4 sessions, I was eventually given 5 sessions, and I enjoyed every one of those opportunities. The theme of the conference was, activating the power of God in your life. My focus was activating that power for financial empowerment. God is the one that gives us the power to get wealth,  God wills that we prosper,  He desires that we can achieve all that we want to achieve, He’s the author of our godly desires. All that power to create lies within us and what we need to know is how to activate it. Continue reading →

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