Today, 16th July, 2020, makes it exactly five (5) years that I moved with my family from Lagos to Akure in obedience to divine instruction; it was on a Thursday too. The conditions were not perfect at all, in fact we came to Akure with just the fare for the truck that moved our loads down here. It looked crazy and reckless. I had resigned my job with a Telecoms firm in Victoria Island, Lagos, just about two weeks before then, and also my pastorate with Foursquare Gospel Church (where I was properly, graciously and lovingly released), two Sundays before then. We were not sure how everything would turn out. We had no money and people to leverage as we start the work of the ministry, but we knew God is in it. We knew we heard God, we knew our future is secure in God. Thanks to my dear wife for her understanding, cooperation and support. Looking back, five years after, we have no regret. Even though, we are still very far from what God showed us and told us, but we know we are on the right path. We have seen the faithfulness of God and we are rest assured that it will only get better (Proverbs 4:18).
Friend, following God is an adventure of Faith. You may not know what the future holds, but you sure know He who holds the future. You may not know how things would turn out, but you know that it would turn out exactly as God has ordained it. The road would sometimes be rough. Your conviction will be tested. Your obedience will be checked. Your patience will be tried. Some people will not understand you. Some will mock you. Some will castigate you. And some will be waiting to see you fail. But in all, God will be there to hold your hands as He makes everything possible.
Perhaps, Abraham, who is called the Father of Faith, should have been called the Father of Obedience. Or what is Faith without Obedience? Your Faith is seen, not in what you say, but in what you do; your actions (James 2:18). It is not enough to say God told you, it is important that you obey Him. Even for Abraham, he once delayed obedience; “Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get out of country, and from your kindred, and from your father’s house, unto a land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). Abraham had probably been procrastinating his obedience to God, but thank God he later obeyed and that marked the beginning of the journey unto greatness for him.
You are where you are today because of what you did or are doing with what God told you. Listen, you cannot be putting off divine instructions year in, year out, and expect to be all that God has ordained you to be. You are only an instruction away from your next level in God. It’s time to revisit divine instructions. It’s time to go back to what God told you years ago. For me, coming to Akure to do ministry was what God told me since 2010, thank God I obeyed Him when it was time to make the move. I was scared, sometimes confused, but I couldn’t deny the reality of God’s dealings with me. I had to obey God. While I was already in Akure, some people were still calling me, thinking I would still take some time to hang around in Lagos.
Destiny is calling. There is no hanging around. I need to move with the glory cloud. I need to be in the will of God. This is where my provision, preservation and promotion lie. This is where the glory of my destiny would show. This is where rest and fulfilment lie. It is not about being in the nicest of places, doing things that are grandiose. It is being where God wants you to be, doing what He wants you to do. What about you? Are you where God wants you to be, doing what He wants you to do? Or are you just following trends and flowing with the tides? Year 2020 is sure a defining year, let it not meet you or end with you at the corner of disobedience. Let it meet you where God wants you to be, doing what He wants you to do. Let it meet you on a journey of obedience to God, and your destiny would be fulfilled. Amen!
© ‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria