Have you ever wondered how a baby comes to learn or behave a certain way? It can be learning how to speak, walk, or behave. Children learn through actions, and this is a concept you might be familiar with. Early in my childhood, I stayed with my uncle and aunt, they spoke Swahili as their home language, and as a 5-year old I adapted to my environment and picked up on the language fast. It became second nature and pretty normal but it was later when my tongue had to change because my environment changed again... So did I learn everything else as I grew up and it was easy to learn by watching those I was attached to. So even as an adult, the way I think, speak, engage with people, and more are qualities that all steamed from somewhere or someone.

As children, we can do nothing for ourselves but we do as our father does. This isn't limited to only what you have learned from your parents but this can come from any attachment you have had or currently have. Children respond a certain way, to the person they are attached to and an example that comes to mind is the attachment theory by Bowlby & Ainsworth where a child’s attachment to their parent was tested by how they reacted when the mother or father left the child alone in the room(feel free to read more on it). You would get to see that there is a positive and negative attachment therefore we can be in spaces and attached to things or people that cultivate a negative or positive character within us. What are you most attached to? Do you think it has influenced who you are?

The beautiful verse John 5:19 states how you and I can not do anything(absolutely nothing) for ourselves (let alone other people) but whatever we see our Heavenly Father does is what we do or ought to do because you are your Father’s son/daughter after all. Jesus is pretty clear how dependent we are on our Father and like a baby who depends on his or her parents to develop so are we dependent on God our Father. Let the world not fool you into believing otherwise, God our Father has created, walked, seen, spoken into the many things we desire to explore from business, fashion, writing, and more. The knowledge you seek to start or develop those interests or skills is in God. Do not make it custom to limit God to only spiritual matters but seek to have a deeper attachment with God and His Word and that depth will start reflecting in all the other areas you desire to grow in. Not only that, John 5:20 sneaks in something exciting, God loves you more than you can ever imagine and He is ready to show you all the things you desire to learn and know and this verse doesn’t stop there but it tells us how God will exceed all our exceptions and show even greater than we have asked.

As believers, we can not operate or create as the world does. Our businesses, our fashion lines, our online events, and more have to steam from a deeper source, and wouldn’t you want to showcase something the world has never seen or done? There are principles behind everything and God has all of it ready just for you. Do not waste your time seeking for how to better the world in the world but what you seek for is within if it wasn’t so it wouldn’t be missing in the world innit? We have so much about how important it is to have a relationship with God but this lays out how crucial it is because it is the foundation for everything.

Some Questions to ask yourself:
Have you been doing as your father does? Where is your relationship with God? What are your motives?

Start your journey today with God
-Chols

Ever stopped to wonder what components formed your identity or even the way you think? How we constantly changing as humans, furthermore what are the entities behind all those changes, and if those changes are purely influenced by us?

For a long time, I believed that I was the way I was because of my own “inner abilities” but I recently discovered that nothing is truly 'my own'. We tackled how as children we learn and act out what we see our parents do in my previous piece. This is not only regarding the way we behave but our thoughts are not our own either. Shocked? I know. When I pondered deeper into this, it was uncomfortable and weird to realize that even the way I think and how I think is something that I picked up "somewhere" or from "someone" and made my own. If my mind is not my own then is my body or spirit even mine? Nothing is owned by us but by the Spirit that leads us and that’s exactly what happens when we become born again, we are given God’s very Spirit to lead, teach, and guide us through life. We many times believe that accepting Jesus in us and into our lives automatically changes our whole life but the truth is our body and mind stay the same. However, we receive the Spirit of God and we became attached to God and all that He is and has but because our minds and body still need to learn this, we have the duty and obligation to surrender our minds to God’s Word and obey it(Luke 6:46-49).

I love how Romans 12:1 states that presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice is a reasonable service. In other words, the Word of God is telling us this is a fair and 'sensible' thing to do, almost like it's common sense to do this, especially as a believer. Why believer? This verse states that we present ourselves holy and acceptable unto God and that has nothing to do with our works or goodness but because of the Holy Spirit in us, which directly connects us to God. Even before our minds and bodies are renewed before we do great things in the name of the Lord before we lay hands on the sick, or prophecy upon the lives of many…God welcomes you as a Holy and acceptable living sacrifice.

I was a very weird child growing up and finding spaces or places or people that accepted me was a challenge and a burden I did not need to carry because in God I was already accepted and he would have gladly guided me to 'my people' but without the revelational knowledge, I lived an unfulfilled life. This is where the second part of this chapter comes in perfectly, the Word urges us NOT TO CONFORM to the world but TO BE TRANSFORMED by the renewing of our mind… Going back to the example of not being accepted as a child, I learned how to adapt to my environment and because I wanted to be accepted in a certain community or society I conformed to their way of thinking, dressing, talking. This is why it’s a big deal to NOT conform to the world because it requires you to change yourself and your course of life contrary to the identity and plans that God had/has for you.

There is very little that the world can offer you and me, in most cases, it's not as fulfilling as you would like it to be because your fulfillment is in your Creator. The world may not be fulfilling but you have everything and more to offer the world because with the Spirit of God you have been given access to everything that God is and has which the world has never seen. This is where your big transformation of the mind comes in! Your superpower to have a mind like God, all at your fingertips because we are given the power of choice and this principle applies to everything else in your life. You choose to love, you choose to be disciplined in your finances, you choose to obtain an education, and never allow worldly standards or emotions to make you think otherwise.

For one to get to a place where they choose to follow God’s Word and give it access to your mind and life is when you actively start proving that you desire to walk in God’s good, acceptable, and perfect will. Our minds are defiantly not our own and I don’t know about you but I rather have my Heavenly Father who created me to operate the way I think and what I think than any worldly figure who is not operating under that authority and love.

Salvation is not once off but an ongoing journey where you intentionally work towards having a more and more Godly character and your Spirit is forever ready to teach and transform you daily.
Make a public declaration: “My mind belongs to God”
Questions to ask yourself:
What controls my thoughts? What do I spend most of my time taking in/learning? What changes do I want to make when it comes to what I take in?

Start your journey today, with God
-Chols

It has been a popular trend to sbawl nice things and most cases, things that you can't afford to have in that period of your life but it doesn't stop you from still desiring it and it shouldn't. Earlier this year, I uploaded a podcast episode called "I deserve better" and little did I know I would have a better "device" later this year. Within this testimonial piece, I will be sharing how God gifted me with a gift, I sbawled for a hot minute, and how that strengthen my faith and journey.

I have heard of many amazing stories of God coming through in difficult times and even though I have many of my own, this testimony I share with you showed me that truly it is not by my will or power but it is all God. Allow me to break this testimony into different segments for us to grasp the gems or lessons attached.

Problem:
For the past year and a half, I either had trouble with the functionalities of my laptop or it would stop working when I needed it the most like the time I had 20 page research paper to complete and submit but my laptop was like deuces. I like calling this the dark times of my academic journey and even in these so-called dark times, I was at peace that all would work out.

Many times, we can get so consumed by the problem that we forget God is still God even in the rough times and His peace is sufficient even in those very times. Jesus came to give life and life in abundance(John 10;10) and God's Word even in this time was so real and comforting for me. I believed it, still believe it and so should you!

Prayer:
Within the two weeks of exams remaining of my 1st semester this year, I decided to write it at a friend's student/leadership house. It was with this friend that I shared the challenges I was facing in my academic journey and little did I know she would not just pray for me but share this with the house parents and they prayed for me too even after I was long gone.

This year, I've seen the power of prayer and the beauty of how it can make a difference in one's life. It is not just praying that does the trick but believing in what you pray for and manifest over your life. Sometimes you'll find out that you are the answered prayer or solution to a problem hence be attentive to the Holy Spirit.

Answered Prayer:
It was a week in the new semester(at the leadership house) and my so-called fixed laptop died on me again. At that point, I was over it and was quite hesitant to tell my parents about it for various reasons. I continued to attend classes on my phone that week. However, there was this chilly day where my roommate and I decided to take a nap but as we tried, we were called upstairs and I got a bit anxious as we sat down on the couch and waited to find out what "this was all about" and the mother (who is American) of the house handed me her phone and I saw a young lady who greeted me and my roommate. I was so confused as to why I was talking to this stranger from America and before I could even entertain my confusion, I was told that this lady got me a gift, and right there I was handed a MacBook Air. I had very little words but a lot of tears and a lot of thank yous.

It was said to be a surprise and boy did it surprise me. I flabbergasted by how it all played out and how I didn't sweat, beg, or fight for it to happen. God is your father, He knows what you need, He knows how to answer and when. I would have never imagined that I would receive a MacBook Air(for free) overseas from a total stranger. So remember this, God's answer will not always look the way you have pictured it or planned it.

Planning:
This young lady was connected to my house parents and a few weeks prior to receiving my gift, she could and for the first time ever asked if there was a student in the house who needed help with ANYTHING and my name was the first that came up and what I needed. After suggesting different laptops, this stranger who didn't even know me, said she wanted to get the best and what she trusts which was Apple. If I share how the laptop arrived in South Africa, it will probably take a part two but just know that there are parties involved who knew nothing about me but the face I needed a laptop.

Many times God's plan will not include you. Over the years I have seen how He loves giving surprises/gifts. It is not our works that gain His favor but our faith, your faith works wonders and God does all the hard work.

Take Away:
God is good all the time and all the time God is good. I battled with a PC for the past two years but God was still good, kind, powerful, loving. The struggles I had to where I am and heading, show me that God is a Man of His Word. If there is anyone you need to be dependent on, it is Him.

•What are your take aways from this testimony?
•What surprises have you received from God?
•What are factors that strengthen or weaken your faith?