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The Divine Principles of Greatness (Pt. 2)
By Tolulope A. Adegoke
“Principles are clearly penned and planned strategies of actualizing or fulfilling a purpose or goals, which are usually encrypted in simple modules in a bid to make it easier for whoever that is hungry enough to take the bold steps behind its creation. Talent isn’t just enough! Principles involves processes that polishes or fine-tunes our talents into effective skills, and skills into the realms of productivities and fulfilment that comes with the deserved profits, from the values which commanded it to fruition.” – Tolulope A. Adegoke
A principle is a moral rule or belief that helps you to know what is right, which affects your life and outputs. It is a fact of life that can bring out something from nothing.
The principles that you subscribe to would determine the level that you operate on (Colossians 2:8, 20).
The Principles of Identity
Who are? Your identity speaks or describes your person and essence in life. If you do not know ‘who’ you are, you cannot know ‘what’ you are!
What are you? (Psalm 8:4)
There is a perception that man wants to see of you; if you fall for it, you will automatically subscribe to it. You can only know ‘who’ and ‘what’ you are by the Spirit of God (Romans 8:14). You are a spirit being, living in a body that consists of your spirit and soul. Your identity is critical. Check out your identity with God. The exemplars of greatness in the Scriptures knew who they were.
Identity is critical for the manifestation of what you have been created to become by God! Your soul is the breath of God (Genesis 1:28, Genesis 2:7)! God has created us to be moral and intellectual beings. We have been sent to reign on gods on Earth…given us dominion to reign on Earth.
The Principles of Vision
Where are you going? When do you intend to get there? What are the pictures of your desires? What do you intend to achieve? You see with your subconscious (the combination of your spirit and soul). It is as far as your eyes can see…whatever you see in the spirit must be documented and worked upon (Habakkuk 2:2), because they will affect your being on Earth. Anything without ‘dating’ would not produce the deserved sacrifices needed or required for its clear manifestations. Believing in manifestation is what makes it happen. When you pray, you must believe to see it happen. What you do not believe, may not yield. Your confession depicts what is in you. Vision is spiritual, no matter your kind of business. Everyone, organization and nations have their vision; and that is what drives their mission. Looking is not seeing, and it takes sights to see depths! The following are kinds of vision:
The Eye-sight
The Insight
The Foresight
The Hind-sight
Activate your future by living in its realities, by writing it in past tenses.
The Principles of Limits
A limit is a boundary, a restriction that creates hindrances to movements or progress. No matter how large your goals are, if you do not break out of your comfort zones, you will deliver as expected. You need a higher law to break through in your values… you can only breakthrough through a higher law. The Airplanes flies through the law of lifts or flights. There are no limits! You, therefore, need to break through in your thoughts and works.
The Principles of a Sound Mind
Your soul is the domain in-between the physical and the spiritual. It is in charge of your subconscious mind. Fear and Faith are forces that are powered through the mind! Fear is an unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain, or harm. Fear is a limiting force that retards a person’s ability (divine or natural). which I suffice to say, Fear is simply believing in the power of the devil over God. And Faith is simply believing in the power of possibilities! That is God over the devil! 2 Timothy 1:7 reveals that “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind”. And the Holy Bible reveals that the word Fear not was mentioned (three hundred and sixty-five) 365 times, which means that it is a daily dosage for all. Fear distorts and distracts our sanity, and when one’s sanity has been tampered with, the sanctity of such a person may no longer be preserved. As soon as the sanctity of a person is polluted, safety is not guaranteed!
It is always about what you ‘want’, not what you do not want. You must develop yourself to decreeing and believing the positive sides of life…the ones you so much desire. Proverbs 23:7a reveals that “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:…”
The Principles of Alignment
Success and greatness are functions of alignment. The goal is the value…which are the principles you live by; it is the principles by which you believe! You believe drives you. Your values must, therefore, align with your core beliefs (vision).
The Principles of Power
Power is the ability to direct and influence yourself and others. One important thing about power is that “power only bows to Power! And God Almighty is the overall Power!” Greater is He that is you than he that is in the world! Romans 13:1 reveals that “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. While,1John 4: 4 confirms that “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world.” Your biggest asset are: your thoughts, mindset, imagination and actions. They reveal what rules over you. You must activate the power within you! Power only answers to usage. The powers you do not deploy will fade away. Use the power within you to influence the powers without. In the Holy Bible, Eve became prey as seen in Genesis 3: 3-15 because she failed to use her inner power as given her by The Creator in Genesis 1:26-28.
The Principles of Work
Work is an activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a result. The Holy Bible reveals that since the very beginning of creation, God worked as seen in Genesis 2:2 “And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made…” And Genesis 2:19 reveals that “And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. While Exodus 20:9 “Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:”.
Proverbs 18:9 “He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster.” Also, Ecclesiastes 9:7 (KJV) reveals “Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works.” Ecclesiastes 9:10 unveils that “Whatsoever your hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whether thou goest.” For every work, there is a reward. No food for a lazy man. If you do nothing, you gain nothing!
The Principles of Time, Chance and Seasons
Ecclesiastes 9:11 “I returned and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.” Time and chance happens to everyone under the sun. All we need to do is to know, have a clear understanding of what Time it is, and taking swift bold steps, so as to be able to maximize the chances unveiled in it, just like the sons of Issachar guarantees greatness as seen in the Scripture 1 Chronicles 12:32 “And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had the understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do; the heads of them were two hundred; all their brethren were at their commandment”.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 “To everything, there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” Make good use of your times and chances…it waits for no one, it respects no one except its Maker (God Almighty).
The Principles of Rest
Rest means to cease work or movement in order to relax or recover strength. It also means to allow to be inactive in order to regain strength or health. Genesis 2:3
And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
If the Scripture above reveals that The Creator rested on the seventh day of creation, then as a human being you need rest after every labour. Ecclesiastes 5:12 says “The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.”
The Principles of Waiting
To wait means to stay where one is or delay action until a particular time or occurrence. It also means to defer something until a person’s arrival. This word has both spiritual and physical advantages as seen in Luke 24:49 where Jesus Christ was speaking to His disciples saying “And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.” Also, a verse of the Psalm 37:9 “For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.” That means, you do not wait on ‘who’ you do not trust. It is wise to wait only on God, because He does not fail nor falter.
The Principles of Gratitude
It is said that what you do not appreciate will definitely depreciate. Gratitude increases the value of a vessel (person) or in a thing. Gratitude emits love, then attracts grace which binds us together as one before God. Also, a portion of the Holy Bible buttressed it in the Book of Psalm 30:12 “To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee forever.” As a people, we must always be grateful to the Maker, because He is the Giver to all that gives and receives. Also, you must appreciate one another as humans to continue getting or attracting the very best from ourselves.
The Principles of Fellowship
Two good heads are better than one. The power of a union can conquer oppositions. Matthew 18:20 reveals that: “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Also, in Leviticus 26: 8 (KJV) “And five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.”
The Principles of Quietude
In quietness lies the truth. As my daily mantra says “Calm, quiet and available is my soul before My Maker, God Almighty (The Creator of the Heavens and Earth).” Virtually all the great men of old and today practised and practices quietude as a daily routine. Another word for it is meditation. Meditation thrives in serenity. Meditation powers our souls to activate our spirit man which compels our bodies to obedience and align with the Divine will. Here is the factory of inventions. It is a process that leads as follows:
BrokennessàHumilityàCompassionàInspirationàRevelationàIlluminationàCreativity beyond human comprehension (Divine Order). A man who cannot quiet his spirit man will not consistently hear God. And, if you do not hear God, you will lack direction and productivity!
The Principles of Choice
God has given unto every man the free will and determinism to choose according to how he purposes in his heart. Deuteronomy 30:19
“I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:” The choice you make decides your future. We all are products of our choices.
The Principles of Planning
You must permit yourself to perform well. You must perform well to perfection by training well. Lean on knowledge, from it you may find wisdom. Acquire skills for accessing and actualizing desired intentions or goals. Never ever relent following the above steps over and over again. True vision exposes, then empowers our individual or corporate missions. There will be no fulfilment of mission(s) without effective planning. It is effective planning that compels you to sit well to strategize properly; if you do not sit well, you will never ever discover or unlock a passion (solution) to pass on unto the next generation.
The Principles of Impacts/Giving
A gift is a thing given willingly to someone without payment or expecting anything in return for it. It is a present. The Bible records it in Acts 10:38
“How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.” Nothing that we have is really ours, we all our channels leading to one another to bless one another. Stop being a container! It has been given by God Almighty to be given unto men that needs it. God is a great exemplar here in John 3:16 “ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” 2 Corinthians 8:9 further reveals that “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes, he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich” Jesus Christ lived a selfless life. He is our perfect example. Hebrews 12:2 finalizes it by saying “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
The Principles of Submission
2 Corinthians 10:5 says “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ…” Learn obedience by what Jesus Christ suffered! Develop an attitude of victory through the finished works of Jesus Christ on the Cross!
Thank you for reading.
Please learn and apply where necessary.
Watch out for the Book titled: “The Power of an Empowered Zero” (From Zero to HERO) by Tolulope A. Adegoke. Foreword by Dr Yomi Garnett (CEO/Chancellor, Royal Biographical Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania U.S.A., U.K., Abuja, Nigeria.) Edited by Ola Aboderin.
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
The importance of timing cannot be overemphasized. Timing is everything in life. It is critical to one’s success. You can lose your money and get it back in many folds. You can even lose your health and get it back all things being equal, but when you lose time, you can hardly get it back again.
The importance of timing can be seen in crops. Every crop has a season, a good farmer won’t plant maize when it’s time for oranges, nor will he plant pears when it’s the season for mangoes.
Time is very instrumental to the success and failure of anyone. Imagine having a meeting or interview at 9:00am and you arrive at 10:10am, it will take the grace of God to be interviewed. As an employee, apart from one not being able to diligently do his job, one of the fastest ways for an employee to lose his job is by being late to work.
When I was in New York Law School studying Taxation law, I did a course titled, the Problem of Timing. During the semester, I learnt about cash and accrued income. Let me do some academic exercise here. In cash income, just like the name entails, one is paid in cash as soon as the work is completed. It’s just like going to the market to make a purchase. One can either pay directly with cash or with debit or credit card. But Accrued income refers to revenue a company has earned by providing goods or services, but for which payment has not yet been received, one will have to do the work first before getting paid. This is applicable when one works in either a public or private organization where one is paid either weekly, bi-weekly or at the end of the month depending on the stipulated mode of payment.
It’s important to note that before the money is paid either in cash or accrued, one would have earned it. It’s just like one learning g before earning, and one will have to update to upgrade. These are just the practical principles that will work with life.
In the same way, in life there’s a seed time and harvest time. It’s a universal principle of life. Whether as a parent, entrepreneur, student or employee. As a parent, if you don’t train your kids very well, they will grow up to reflect the opposite of what you desire. As an entrepreneur when you invest in your business, you will get the reward in due time. As a student, if you take your studies seriously, your grades will improve, and as an employee, you stand to get promotions and opportunities when you add value to your work. In summary, one will have to put in the work before recognition comes on.
To understand how seedtime and harvest work, imagine where parents tend to like one child more than others just because they see potential in him, or he’s smart, hardworking or even creative. They fail to understand that every child is different and as such their timing can be different. Some kinds take time to develop.
I personally believe there’s something so unique about each individual which God has deposited in everyone of us. It’s just a matter of time for it to manifest. Your timing of manifestation is different from your siblings and colleagues.
Personally, I didn’t mature fast with my contemporaries. Overtime, I have seen much improvement in my personal and professional life. Maybe because I have added value to my work with the assistance of mentors and good friends, or God had to humble my colleagues and mentors . Why do I say this? During my formative years, I had little or nothing to show for it. I was looking at my contemporaries as mentor and seeing my mentors as small gods whose feat is unattainable, but now, the reverse seems to be case as I have developed capacity some of my colleagues are yet to attain, while I have even surpassed the achievement of my some of my mentors in some quarters.
In all these, they are all surprised how it happened. Some are yet to comprehend or articulate the feat. It’s just like watching a film where everyone slept and woke up to see the game and tides have changed. The secret behind it is the seed time and harvest time. I was probably learning the trade while in the wilderness, and when the training season matured and ripe enough to be harvested, I became attractive to almost everyone who loved the seed I was producing.
There are litany of examples of people, who have been in the wilderness during the seed planting season. Let’s take a case study of Joseph in the Bible, his journey to stardom took a little twist. Despite the travails he experienced in the hands of his siblings who sold him, his experience while in the jail, and with Portiphar’s wife, who tried to seduce him; they were all set ups for success. The moral here is Joseph seed time and harvest time was quite different, it wasn’t a smooth journey. Ordinarily, one would have cursed his siblings or his friends who were with him in prison and forgot him after they were released. But at the end of time, everything worked out for his favor. Joseph’s seed days were his dark days while in the wilderness.
Another inspiring story of note was that of Pastor Ibukun Awosika, the former board Chairman of First Bank of Nigeria. She once shared a pathetic story during her formative years of being in business. According to her, she sojourned for about 15 years. She cried because lines were not adding up for her and she wouldn’t do what her contemporaries were doing to get opportunities. At a point in her business, it appeared like she was in a race of own life because everything seemed to be against her, but at the appropriate time, lines began to fall in place for her. Appointments, business opportunities, favours and goodwill began to fall in place for her. Again, she had a fair share of seed time.
An interesting question I would like to ask you is, what’s your seed time? Have you ever been in the wilderness when you appeared to be fixed? It’s unfortunate many people are not willing to pass through the storms or experience seeds and harvest time. Amidst all these, one must do some work before they get opportunities. However, before such opportunities will come up, one will have to plant the seed.
In conclusion, seed time and harvest time is critical in the journey of life. Take a seat and determine what seed you would like to sow and what you’ll like to harvest.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design Your and Unleash Your Destiny . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
By Eric Elezuo
The Senate has suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghen for six months over her sexual harassment accusation and other disputes against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.
The Senate also withdrew her salaries for the period of the suspension, as well as her security details.
The chamber however, soft-pedaled on the salaries and allowances of her aides, who it was argued would not have any source of livelihood within the period.
Globacom is welcoming new customers on its network with the introduction of the e-SIM. The e-SIM activated in any Gloworld shop or Dealer outlet comes with an introductory free 5GB data when the customer buys a data plan of N1,500 or more.
Customers already on other networks can now join the Glo network with e-SIM as an additional SIM. Existing Glo customers can also enjoy this “SIM-less” freedom.
With the e-SIM, customers no longer have to worry about space for a physical SIM on their phones. The e-SIM is a software-based digital chip built directly into smartphones or wearable devices, thus eliminating the need for a physical SIM card for customers.
The use of e-SIM enables customers to have seamless switching between phone numbers without a physical SIM. It is ideal for upwardly mobile people who travel frequently. The e-SIM also guarantees security, as unlike physical SIM, it is harder to remove from devices. It is also eco-friendly and reduces plastic waste.
Globacom’s launch of the e-SIM enables enables it to cater to high-net-worth individuals and enterprise customers, and it also reinforces the company’s commitment to providing seamless and future-ready services to its customers.
A customer seeking to activate the Glo e-SIM needs to check the compatibility of the mobile handset by dialling *#06# on his or her phone. If an EID number reflects on the mobile screen, the device is e-SIM compatible.
“The customer can then proceed to the nearest Gloworld shop or Glo Dealer outlet to migrate to e-SIM. The process takes only a few minutes and the customer can thereafter begin to enjoy the use of an e-SIM”, the Marketing Department disclosed.
