When your eyes are opened

For many years  I had lived in spiritual blindness until about eight years ago when the scales started falling off my eyes. I began to see, feel and hear the presence of God in my life. In 2013, I spent a lot of time writing the leadership blogs for We CAN Leadership Institute. The insights were just flowing - I could write three or four weeks' blogs in advance. I will never take credit for this inspiration. None of my writing was from me but from the of the Holy Spirit, after all who am I if not a vessel in the hand of God.

So the words came and I wrote.  At the beginning of this year, 2014, I was looking forward to learning more wisdom on leadership from One that is Wisdom...but nothing. No nugget, no inspiration to write, no word....nothing! Now, the easy thing would be to force myself to write up something, still I could not do it. But, one thing that came was the leading to study the Bible in a consistent and disciplined way, so  I started. I started getting inspiration for blog @jouneyintospiritualmaturity. The words and insights were flowing like a river as I studied the Word and continued my spiritual growth .

But nothing for the Leadership blog.- one of the passion that God has blessed me with. Jesus said we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world, for me this meant, clearly that we are leaders, we are to 'be' leaders in all spheres of life. I love learning and writing on leadership to equip, empower and enable people to fulfill their purpose on earth. I was praying and waiting for the leading and insights for the leadership blog.

One day, in the quiet of the day, the direction came, as always very clear. The leadership blog for 2014 will be written by other Holy Spirit inspired leaders. As always, I view myself as a babe in Christ still on my spiritual journey into maturity, I wanted to confirm this leading, so I started asking those that God laid in my heart. The result was the start of a new series of Leadership blogs @  www.wecanleadershipinstituteblog.blogspot.com, that will lift you up, inspire you and motivate you to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. I am truly blessed with the leadership of the Holy Spirit in my life.

What about you? What has the Holy Spirit lead you to do this year? Are you still resisting it or have embraced it?

Almighty God, thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit, to lead us, guide us, empower us and reveal your will to us. Help us to be sensitive to His leading and give us the grace to follow his leading in all areas of our lives. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

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Pruning for growth

I live in an area that has many trees. One day on my way from work, I noticed a row of trees have had all the branches chopped off! 'Why did they do that?' I asked myself. A few months later, I was intrigued to see leaves had started sprouting from the cut off branches. It did not need the branch to grow longer because it was still connected to the trunk which was still connected with the root that fed it.

Sometimes in life we go through a period when it seems we've been stripped of nearly everything if not all. We go through challenges that leaves us feeling vulnerable; maybe our job is gone, no income is coming in, our spouse have left us, we feel all alone and we are wondering why LORD?

Like those trees near my home, maybe we are going through our season of pruning. Maybe there are some dead leaves and branches that needs to be cut out of our trunk so that our lives can become even more fruitful and productive.

The trees were still able to produce green leaves because they were still connected to their root that gives them their nutrient for living. Just remain grounded in Jesus, the season shall pass and you will be even more fruitful.

Old and rugged but still productive

Over the past twelve months or so I have developed a passion for photography, not that I want to change careers but I am just fascinated by the stories that pictures tell.

A few yard from my home, there is this old tree, pictured below. It must be well over 100 years. It is one of the precious trees that are preserved by the city council; anyone who cuts it without permission can be fined up to twenty thousand pounds! 

On the lower part of the trunk, the bark is peeling off, it's trunk is rugged and cracked indicating its old age yet it still brings forth green trees every year. How come this tree is still bearing leaves in its old age? It is deeply rooted and connected to the source of its nutrients.

Every time I pass this tree, I am reminded about the children of God. Old age is not a barrier to productivity and fruitfulness. As long as you are deeply rooted in Jesus Christ, you will continue to get your daily nourishment and the life-giving nutrients to continue to be fruitful until Jesus calls you home.

Truly, those who are planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing. 

Why like a palm tree?

Palm trees inhabits every type of habitat from desert to rain forest with evergreen leaves. They are a symbol of peace, fertility and victory. Palm trees can reach great heights and have long life. A palm tree's life span can be up to 150 years. Palm trees have fibrous root that spreads out and grow deep, giving it a solid base that bends but does not break under the force of a wind. The Palm Tree is one of the most cultivated plant in the world, signifying fruitfulness in abundance.
As a believer, prophetically declare Psalm 92:11-13 over your life.