2014: IT IS TIME TO GET BACK TO ……..!!

After four weeks of a family Christmas and New Year holidays in the UK, I came back packing some extra weight. You might ask what weight has got to do with it. Well, for me it was the first time in my life the scale will hit the 90kg mark (and I have always been on the slim side). Furthermore, for the first time since we got married, my wife said I snored while sleeping. She and my daughter even conspired to record it in case I argued with them (but save yourself the trouble, you won’t find it uploaded on YouTube. LOL!). Don’t get me wrong, there is no crime in snoring, but I know a passage in the Bible that says all things are lawful, but not all things are expedient….

It is not too surprising how I got to 90kg. What with plenty of food and drink literally on the shelf. The British weather did not help much; except it was absolutely necessary there was no need to walk the streets. I was also not there as a tourist.  That is not to say we didn’t go out. We regularly shopped ( In fact I believe Britain is all about work, shop and sleep, with little else in between!), went to church and on my son’s birthday, we all went to the Odeon to watch a movie (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty). When schools resumed, my routine consisted mainly of seeing the kids and my wife off, and then retiring back to the house. Though I usually strolled to the community park gym for some exercises, I knew I didn’t exert much physical effort. Spiritually, of course, I kept fit with the Bible, prayer and a number of preaching engagements in the parish church we attended.

If I am so concerned with 90kg, you might want to ask what I am doing about it. I am in the process of rejoining my health club, whilst converting my house to an exercise course. I jog through the rooms, toilets, sitting room, kitchen and stairs; do press ups hanging my legs on the table; etc.  Out of choice, I have resorted to that secondary school boarding meal schedule of 0-0-1. The popular staple, garri is off limits – very difficult for an Ibo man. If I must swallow, I may only consider wheat flour. Are there results to show?  When last I checked, it was less 3kg, and I am not giving up…. 

In addition to getting back to shape (work in progress), I have also settled down to my secular and spiritual business routines. And if you are reading this, it is evidence that I have gone back to blogging, which is really the main reason for this piece! I am not a professional blogger, or in contention with Linda Ikeji, but I am also prepared to improve on the delivery and outlook of my blog. To assist in this regard, I have engaged some friends to help with the packaging and presentation. So look out for a more engaging blog page and content. It is going to be interactive and I would like you to encourage me by sharing your thoughts, either in comments or as a guest blogger…. 

I don’t know what good thing you want to get back to and the bad ones you want to give up on.  But it is time you got down to it. I guess it is all about focus, keep doing that which needs to be done and discard the distractions. After all, the difference between one year and the other, at least on the individual level, is the cumulative effect of the things we do each day.

Last Line: Nehemiah overcame distraction because he was focused.  Nehemiah 6:3 NIV .‘‘So I sent messengers to them with this reply: "I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?" 

We all can succeed as Nehemiah, by the help of God. To find out more about God and how you can have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, visit any Bible believing church near you, or: CHAPEL OF DESTINY RESTORATION CHURCH, 2 Akinlabi Lane, off Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, by Round About Bus Stop, Ikeja. Lagos. I invite you to join us tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. Interestingly, I will begin a message series, “Why Should the Work Stop?: Nehemiah Principles of Focus”