Story 1
I paid out of pocket for a course organised by the
professional association I belong to and I needed the receipt to claim my money
back from my organization. As usual (for me), I realised that I had lost the
receipt.
I was going to sit in my corner and mourn my loss but my
friend encouraged me to get to the association's office to ask to make a
photocopy of their copy of the receipt.
It would require some effort and every lazy bone in me
resisted the move, lol.
I finally overcame the inertia and went to the office.
The lady I met there claimed that all the booklets had been sent to Abuja. My
lazy bones were screaming "I told you so" but I couldn't imagine
going back with no receipt.
I rarely beg anyone for favors (one of the issues my
friends have with me, lol) but for some reason I refused to leave the office.
I remembered a post I had put up about "Lessons from
Nehemiah" so while standing there, I prayed to the God of Heaven to show
me what my next step ought to be.
As I stood there, a man came in to tell Madam that he
couldn't help her print her son's JAMB (or whatever it's called now) score from
their website. I watched them as they fiddled around trying to solve the
problem. After a few minutes, I asked if I could try to help. After performing
some 'magic', I printed the score for her, lol.
After that, the booklet that had been sent to Abuja
mysteriously reappeared in the Lagos office. She even stamped documents that
didn't need stamps and began to tell me the story of the boy whose JAMB scores
I printed...how she adopted him etc.
Story 2
I applied for registration along with some of my friends.
We all submitted our forms on the same day. I think I did the bulk of the work
that day sef and even lost some money in the process. Part of the verification
process involves checking with my university. One of my friends graduated from
the same department as I did (different years).
When the list of successful applicants came out, my name
was not there. Of course, my friends had to be sensitive and not be overjoyful
(My friends are good people, hehehe).
I got the number of someone in Abuja to understand why my
name was not on the list. The man kept telling me to call him back in 30
minutes then won't pick the calls.
After about 3 weeks of doing this dance, he finally told
me that my school has not responded to their request. It's surprising that the
school responded in my friend's case and not mine...Ironically, I was the one
that encouraged my friend to get registered.
I could begin to chase what's causing the delay in my
school or I could wait for the 1 month the man asked me to check back. I think
it's wiser to wait, right?
When David and his community were attacked and their city
burnt down as a result of their minding other people's business instead of
theirs (See 1 Samuel 29-30), the first question David asked God was "Shall
I pursue?"
I think that's a sensible question for us all to ask when
we are faced with challenges. Too many of us are holding on to careers;
businesses, relationships etc that we need to either let go or relax about
while some other gave in prematurely.
I believe our proper response to challenging situations
is to ask GOD what our next steps out to be. The best of men/women is still a
human being with limited wisdom.
I pray for the discernment to know when to pursue and
when to relax for each of us, in Jesus' Name. Amen
Have a fantastic weekend.
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