Say To Yourself...

“Lex!." Akin beamed with a large smile as he slapped Alex on his shoulder.

“My Guy!" Alex returned as he coughed out rounds of laughter.

“Guy, how far nah? (how are you)" Akin asked as he took the seat opposite Alex in the lousy restaurant. Only few customers were around. However, the music blasting from the loud speaker made it seem like there was about a hundred customers around.

“Guy, things are fine. God is helping us." Alex replied as he leaned back on the plastic chair and took a deep sigh.

“Big man! On this side of the world, Nothing is easy. Be like Heaven don close door sef (Heaven's door has closed)." Akin lamented.

The waiter came with a tray of doughnut and yoghurt. He carefully and professionally placed the sausage on yoghurt on the table before Alex who gave him a wide smile.

“Bring the same for my friend please."

“No please."

“Why?"

“I don't have an appetite." Akin replied, wearing a downcast look.

Against his words, Alex looked up to the waiter who held on to the tray with a straight face and said, “Please, get him food instead. Jollof precisely."

“Jollof with?" The waiter demanded.

“Plantain and turkey. You can also add a soft drink to it. He's not a fan of milk." Alex explained.

The waiter left immediately and Alex rested his eyes on his friend sitting at the other side of the table, who seemed lost in his phone.

Alex reached forward and snatched the phone. Akin quickly made for the phone but Alex was faster and he slipped the phone into his pocket. 

“You didn't call me here to bury yourself in your phone. What's wrong?"

“I already explained to you that everything is tight. Business is going downhill. Nothing is working. I might soon run into debt. I came over with the last drop of money on me. I'm not expecting anything till say, next month. I don't know if I'll survive till then. In fact, depression is already setting in. I..."

“Wo wo, slow down. There's too many negativity in your words." Alex cut in as he leaned forward waving his fingers to Akin, indicating that he didn't want to hear more. 

“Because everything is operating backwards. Nothing is working. N-o-t-h-i-n-g!" Akin complained bitterly bitting deep into his lower lip.

“Guy, these words you're speaking to yourself are too heavy. They're so heavy I can almost handle them." Alex explained as he pushed the snack in front of him aside. He was going to start speaking when the waiter returned with Akin's meal. He dropped it in front of Akin and left without a word. Akin stared at the food blankly without an expression on his face. 

“Dig in. We'll talk after." Alex said, nodded towards the food in front of his friend and rested his back on the chair again while picking up his snack and biting into it. 

“It's easier for you to eat. You have things going well for you."

“You're not wrong. I have things going well for me." Alex replied with a mouthful of snack.

“I can't eat. I'm sorry."

“You will eat because we'll need enough strength to wash plates thereafter." Alex stated and chuckled.

A deep furrow appeared on Akin's head. “Wash plate?"

“Yes." Alex laughed. 

“You think I have the money to pay for all of these??" Alex added and laughed longer and louder. 

“Nah joke abi you dey play? (Are you joking)" Akin frowned and he looked down at the food. 

“None AK. We're going to be washing the plates in the kitchen or we'll mop the floor to pay for all of these." Alex replied and took a long gulp of yoghurt.

Akin stared at him in disbelief.

“Eat while you can, for the journey is far." Alex added after he belched, and started another round of laughter.

“You dey laugh (you're laughing). You know I can hit you right now?"

“Yes, but you wouldn't because you'd end up at the police station... You cannot pay for your food, and you're assaulting a man."

“Do you know this thing you're laughing about is not funny?" Akin fumed.

Suddenly, Alex dropped the snack in his hand, and wore a serious look.

“I know they're both extreme. I mean, they're totally different scenarios, but if you cannot take me telling you you'll be washing plates after eating, because you consider it a bad and embarrassing thing, why do you say strong vile words to yourself??" 

Akin looked confused.

“I'm talking about your saying ‘things are tight.'"

“Because things really are hard!" Akin shot at him.

“The fact is true. It's not to be argued. But if your words agree with the facts, they become reality to you. AK, you're a believer. Your words carry power and weight. You shouldn't with the same mouth you use to pray to speak bad about yourself. You do not use the same mouth for blessing and curses."

“I didn't curse myself, I only said the facts." Akin cut in.

“The difference is not so much. Things are hard, agreed. But with the state of your heart and your mouth, you determine if your fact becomes reality to you."

 Akin folded his arm on his table.

“The Bible says in Ephesians chapter 3 verse 20 that, ‘Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.' Emphasis on ask or think! You're thinking everything is tight and will not be fine soon. If God were to bless you now according to the words of your heart, would you get anything? AK, the words of your mouth in the place of prayer and that of your heart should align. You shouldn't pray for blessings and be thinking you can't be blessed. The thoughts of your heart and your mouth are both important to God, and the answers to your prayers. You shouldn't speak against what you pray about. You shouldn't pray about what you speak against. Both work hand in hand. You cannot be praying that God should bless you, and you're busy thinking that you'll get into so many debts and then be arrested. One of the prayers will have to be answered, and it will be the stronger one."

“Lex, it's easier for you to say. You have things going well for you." Akin said dejectedly as his head fell.

“Yes. I have things going well for me because I'm trusting God to bless me. I'm paying for all of these with the money I lent from my sister. I'm hoping she wouldn't ask me to return it. My system crashed the other day and as a result, I lost a project I was working on. I couldn't deliver and the client insisted on getting back the money he had earlier deposited. He wasn't ready to listen to me despite my pleas. I had to sell off few things to return the money. When you sent a message to me that we needed to see, I sensed something was wrong, and we cannot meet and talk without having something to munch. I suggested we meet here and I thought it right to treat you to a nice meal. I'm planning on selling off the system because it's been more of a pain than it's been useful to me."

Akin looked deeply into Alex's eyes, “I'm sorry to say; but my situation is not as worse as yours. I'm even expecting a payment latest by the end of the month."

“Ohh, you see... You even have something to look forward to. I am looking to God's hand! Everything will not always go fine because we're believers. Bad things will happen once in a while because we're in this world. How we react to it is what's determines if we let the bad circumstance become our reality. There's a scripture that says something that when men say there is a casting down, I will say there's a lifting up!"

Akin smiled.

“The fact that I have nothing now, and I'm in debt doesn't define me. The Word of the Lord to me defines me! The Word of the Lord says I shall be blessed! The Word of the Lord says I that seek the Lord will not lack any good thing! It also says in the book of Matthew that my Heavenly Father gives good gifts. Therefore, He'll give me something good! If God says I'm blessed, even when it doesn't seem like it, I still hold on to that Word. God honours His Word more than His name! Cling unto the Word of God, and take eyes off your present situation!"

Dear reader, these days, the fact is things really are rough and not going too well. But as a believer, if you believe it's going to go on like that, that'll become a reality for you and you wouldn't be able to trap God's blessings in your bosom because you chose to believe the world's situation more than God's revelation of blessing! No matter how bad you think things are going, for someone else somewhere, it's worse. However, you shouldn't dwell on that. What you should dwell on is that in the midst of nothing, God will bless you with everything! In the midst of zero, God will make you a blessing. In the midst of famine, you'll have plenty to eat. 

Today, tomorrow, from now on, speak edifying words to yourself backed up by God's Word. Speak in line with what you're praying for.

Say to yourself,

1. Things will work together for my good! 

2. In the midst of nothing, God blesses me with everything!

3. I will not fail in my business!

4. My needs are met!

5. My bills are paid!

6. My health do not fail me!

7. I will not go hungry!

Add yours...