THE GOD OF PATIENCE JONATHAN 26 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: 29 That no flesh should glory in his presence. 1 Cor 1:26-29 (KJV) In the history of Nigeria, no First Lady has taken the nation by storm like Dame Patience Jonathan. Surely the exalted office of a First Lady was brought into a position of reckoning by Miriam Babangida through her strategic women initiatives that gave wings to NGOs and unleashed a new set of leadership vested in the wives of Governors and leaders at all levels. But without a shadow of doubt, Dame Patience Jonathan is the most talked about, most ridiculed and yet most blessed First Lady this nation has ever known. She was born into a lowly home. Was average in her academics, but she managed to keep her heads above water and realized early enough where her strength was. Never too mindful of people’s opinion, she is boldly determined to chart her own path in life. Like every other character we have studied in this season, Dame Patience, has to step outside of her area of strength in order for her God to be known. That is the number one reason most of us will never know our God. We rely too much on our strengths and therefore leave no room for God to manifest His great and awesome powers on our behalf. Dame Patience is probably the boldest and most courageous First Lady this country has ever had. She is not unaware of her inadequacies which an unkind world will always remind you of. Many people are stopped by their perceived weaknesses. But not Dame Patience. Many people compare themselves to others whom they believe to be better and so they fail to take centrestage and celebrate the unique greatness that God has given them. Not Dame Patience. Many people are so afraid of criticism and the opinion of others that they can’t even wear the clothes they bought with their own money. Not Dame Patience. Most people are so incapacitated by their fears and especially the fear of making a mistake – is he/she the right marriage partner? Is this decision the right business decision? Will I be making a wrong decision in choosing this job or embarking on this ministry? The fear of mistakes hold a lot of people behind, not Dame Patience. Even the bravest can be hindered by the thought of ridicule, and being the butt of dirty and often cruel jokes. But not this woman. She has found her God and what a beautiful God He is! Permit me to introduce you to the God of Patience Jonathan. Set your bias aside for these 5 minutes and go beyond the woman – let us meet the power behind this enigma, let us meet the God that is not ashamed to be called our God. Let us meet the God that fetches water with the basket to put to shame the bucket and the golden vessels. Let us meet the God that selects someone everyone – including miserable house girls who do not know where the next meal will come from – believe they could do better than and places her over and above the best. Dame Patience had been a teacher. People say what can she teach? But how many professors and vice chancellors (not to mention lecturers and PhD holders) would rather give up their titles to be where she is? Come to think of it, in a country where PhD holders are employed – because they voluntarily applied - to become drivers of trucks, someone who cannot control the English language was picked by God to rule over all of them. Do you think God had no choice? Do you think God did not know she will end up as the President’s wife? Do you think it would have cost God anything more to make her the child of royalty trained at Harvard or Oxford? In a country where people are crazy about paper certificates, God picked a Dame Jonathan to show us that heaven does not need your certificates to bless you. Heaven does not need your control of grammar to bless you. Heaven does not need your conformity to rules made by man to lift you. People don’t have to like you for heaven to be on your side. The popular side is often not the God side, the voice of the people is definitely in this case not the voice of God. (I doubt if it has ever been). May your enemies be many, but may God be on your side. May man ridicule you, but may they answer to you because you are lord over them. The God of Patience Jonathan is proving her point daily in her life. And He desires to prove that point in your life too. What is the point? But celebrate this: God selected the world’s foolish to bring shame upon those who think they are wise; likewise, He selected the world’s weak to bring disgrace upon those who think they are strong. 28 God selected the common and the castoff, whatever lacks status, so He could invalidate the claims of those who think those things are significant. 1 Cor 1:27-28 (Voice) May the God of Dame Patience Jonathan be your God. May He grace you, when men disgrace you. May He make you a ruler when men believe should only be a beggar or at best a servant. May He make you a governor, when men believe you should only be the governed. Tell me, since 1999 (when this democratic era started) to date, how many Deputy Governors have risen to become Governor? Only one – Patience Jonathan’s husband. How many Vice Presidents in this country from 1960 has risen to become President? Only one – Patience Jonathan’s husband. The bible is clear on this one thing – A man’s gift is what makes a way for him. The bible continues by saying – houses and wealth may be gifts from your parents, but a GOOD WIFE is a gift from God. Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan got a good gift, now see how far a way that gift has opened for him. May the God of Dame Patience Jonathan be your God! I repeat it, “There is God o!”, and may that God use you to disgrace the people who think they are better than you! © OMG! DeepWords Devotional
Posted on: Thu, 27 Nov 2014 07:03:56 +0000
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