Let them talk

Recently I came across a particular statement that was passed by a certain Hollywood actress. I'm sure she was getting interviewed. However, I'm not quite sure how the interview was going or what led to the conversation in which she made the statement I am about to share with you guys. She spoke about how she doesn't always go to church with her husband because "church folk are judgmental". Her husband isn't a pastor. However, he is a highly respected Christian motivational speaker who shares the word. He is also a well respected movie producer. She mentioned that it feels like she doesn't receive correction which comes from a place of love but rather it comes across as judgement. So she decided that she doesn't want to get discouraged and would rather "protect" her spirit.

Now this statement got me so worked up because I just didn't understand😂. Y'all can help me understand guys because you know I always appreciate feedback but I just want to talk about this for a bit.

I feel as a Christian you need to reach a point where you ask yourself "Who am I doing this for?". We should just be accountable for our own salvation and our own lives and not use people as the reason as to why we do or not do certain things. When you are doing things with God at the centre, everything else will align. If you're doing things with "people" at the centre then best believe nothing will fit right.

Galatians 1:10 KJV

For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.

Galations 1:10 NLT

Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.

If we are honestly speaking judgmental people are everywhere. With the number of trolls that are on Instagram😂👐🏽 are we still not on Instagram? Your boss doesn't like you for whatever reason, but you're getting paid right? The science teacher is a bum, but you're still getting an education. Don't get me wrong, I sympathize with her. I know when you come to the house of God you expect love, compassion and care, when you get the opposite it doesn't really sit well with your spirit. I for one understand judgement very well on both the receiving and delivery end. Most of  you know I'm a PK (Pastor's Kid) and it used to seem as if everything we do be it good or bad is so amplified on levels which are extreme. Generally because all eyes are on you. You could do something that any other member in the church would do but your story would be the headline😂✋🏾.

With such a platform I had to decide whether or not I was going to be an inspiration or a disappointment. I didn't ask for it but it was already giving to me so I had to now make a decision, and because I was placed in such a family there should be a good reason behind why God placed in it.

However, the most important decision I had to make was giving my life to Christ at 16. I know it sounds weird like I was born into a Christian home but I only gave my life to Christ at 16. But that's exactly just it. I was born into it. I had never made the decision. So I'd go to church because that's what was done in baba and mai Manyika's house😂 But I was doing it just for just. I didn't know who I was living for and when you don't know who you are living for you live for anything and everything. To keep things short I then gave my life to Christ because I was tired of living a life of constantly searching and I found what I was searching for in Christ. I dug a bit deeper into Christianity and God reminded me who I was in Him. So I decided to rededicate my life to him because I had side tracked a bit. I got re-baptized and since then I feel closer to God.

With that said yes I am renewed in Christ but still the furthest thing from perfect. So best believe I still mess up and there are people who still sound their sirens when I do, but I could not even be bothered mainly because my spirit is at peace. I don't go to church to be friends with people. My blessing highkey does not lie in friends. I have a few friends in church because God just so happened to give me good ones but it didn't just happen out of nowhere. There's a time for everything. A time to be alone, especially when you are still trying to find yourself in Christ so that no one distracts you. Friends will come when God sees the need for them to come and you will find the right company. 

I just feel like if you know that you and God are 100 then you would just praise and worship him believing that whoever is "judging" you will be dealt with by God. If you run away from the situation and stop doing things because of people then it probably means there's some truth to what they're saying and you just couldn't take it. I just believe that if you and your God are good then everything else will be good and he'll take care of the rest. Running away shows that you don't trust him, you don't trust that he will take care of the situation or you're trying to hide something from him.

Importance of Fellowship

Guys, there are trolls everywhere. I repeat EVERYWHERE that shouldn't stop you from doing things that you love to do. Even in church, because not everyone is coming to church for the same reasons. Some have even been sent by the devil himself😂 and if you let that get to you it means you don't know what Christ has done for you. You haven't acknowledged it and you don't know who you are in him. If people, creations of God himself, get to you more than the goodness and blessings that he has for you, you will miss out  on the power of God.

 
People argue saying that " I don't have to go to church to praise God " or "not going to church doesn't mean I don't take my Christianity seriously". I agree with you. God can even bless you in your room when you are by yourself. His presence will still shower over you. Doesn't matter where you are. However, my only question is so what will you be doing on that Saturday/Sunday. Some Christians identify the sabbath as a Saturday and some as a Sunday which is why I included both.

The bible emphasizes on keeping that day HOLY (Exodus 20:8). So what will you be doing👀? Yes yes, you will probably say that I can be holy in the comfort of my house or whatever but alsooooo😂 the bible emphasizes on the importance of FELLOWSHIP. If you have a good reason as to why you can't fellowship with others on the Sabbath and you and God are good and are at a point of understanding then it's fine yeah. For example, if you are a doctor who is on call 24/7 and some Sundays get busy. As long as whatever you are doing on that day Honors God then you and God should be good. After all he is the one who has blessed your hands by working through you to help his people. By using that gift and embracing it, you are honoring God. However, still find other days where you can fellowship with others if Saturdays/Sundays are too busy for you. Whether it's mid week prayers or youth services they will go a long way.

Hebrews 10:24-25

²⁴ Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. ²⁵ And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

Colossians 3:16

¹⁶ Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 

Guys simply reading the Bible and praying is not enough. Like really it's not enough let's be honest with each other. I'm coming from a place where the Bible has so much, so much to learn from and you, on your own, isolated in your house😂will not be able to uncover all its secrets by yourself.

 
Matthew 18:20

²⁰ For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.”

This verse verse doesn't mean that when you worship on your own God won't be there, he most definitely will be there. But I feel because emphasis was put on this verse in the Bible it simply means that you experience God at a greater level when you are gathered with other people who follow and are seeking him, in one spirit and one heart. Than you would if you were by yourself in your room.

That is why Fellowship is important, we have to share. Share and spread the word of God, his love, his comfort and his power because God works through us. For example, for those who know the story of Noah, just to use something common. I could learn obedience from that story, because Noah listened to God regardless of how crazy everyone thought he was being. Where as someone else could learn to trust in God, Noah didn't have to go out and find the animals that God told him to put in the ark, they came to him and he trusted God for 40 days and 40 nights in that ark when the floods came. Now someone could have totally disregarded the obedience or trust  element from that story and there are probably more lessons that we could learn from it but because as people we are different. We receive things differently, we interpret them differently, we are spoken to by God differently. So we uncover the things which relate to us most be it obedience issues or trust issues. Now when you go to church, whoever is sharing on that day may uncover hidden secrets from even a particular verse that you read the week before. Things that you didn't even realise yourself when you were reading, because if we are honestly speaking we are at different stages of our walk with Christ. God has His servants that he has sent to lead us closer to him.

I'm not saying trust every Pastor, go to any church. No, because the bible even speaks of false prophets and how they come as wolves hidden in sheeps clothing.

Matthew 7:15-20
¹⁵ “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. ¹⁶ You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. ¹⁹ So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.

 Go where your spirit is at peace. The holy spirit speaks y'all. I always say this. You will feel it. Your spirit will be alarmed if something isn't right. Now when you've found where your spirit is at peace and you know your blessings lie there, don't depart from there. Even when the enemy strikes in the form of these judgemental people to discourage you, you will highkey not care😂 because you know you are learning in Christ and you will get better. God will provide the right company, even in church it's not everyone who you are meant to be friends with. Friends are prayed for my peeps. You ask for the right company. LET THEM TALK!

Handle people with care

Now for you judgemental people😂

Luke 6:37

³⁷ “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven. 

 It's not my story to tell, but everyday I think about the person I failed to handle with care. Sometimes I blame myself for how she turned out. She was just looking for someone who would help her in her journey to finding Christ. All I would do was judge and make her feel bad for the things she had done in the past. I never helped her look for a way forward, I never told her "it's okay, God loves you and you will get through this". I never told her that she had a bright future waiting for her and that God couldn't wait to use her in amazing ways. I never told her that she had been given a second chance in Christ Jesus.

I'd remind her of her mistakes everyday and somehow I thought I was helping her by doing that. I thought by reminding her I'd make her realise how terrible those things were to the point where she'd never want to do them again. Instead I made her feel worthless, to the extent that she thought to herself "so what's the point of even trying to change?". Have you ever made someone feel so miserable that they think their past will continue to be their future, that their wounds are irreparable and that God could never possibly forgive them. 
Well, that's what I did, and I feel corrupt for it all the time. I don't really know what she's up to these days, I just hear about her here and there. I wish I could take it all back. I always pray to God asking Him to forgive me for further breaking His already broken child who He trusted me with. I ask for a second chance to make things right, but all I can do for her right now is pray that she comes back to Christ and realizes that she is worth way more than I made her feel. She has the most amazing heart. Watching how well she connects with children always used to warm my heart. I know she will find her way back to Christ. It may not be through me but I know God sees the burden upon my heart.

Recently I attended a Leadership retreat. And Apostle AKA dad😂 said that "Ministry is an expression of a burden". When you see people in need, do you ever feel something? Like do you ever think of what you could possibly do to try help or change their situation? Or you could care less. Have you ever felt someone elses pain to the point where you cried for their situation? Have you ever prayed for someone more than they've ever prayed for themselves? Have you ever had a burden of wanting to be the reason that someone's life changes for the better? We should feel one another's pain, feel one another's happiness, feel one another's frustration and feel one another's struggle. It goes on and on. 

You can't help anyone if you don't have a burden for their situation. If you can't feel them and what they are going through.
I kindly ask that we take care of each other. 

Ephesians 4:2: “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." 

1 Peter 4:8: “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins." 

John 15:12: “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you."

God bless❤