Introduction
Today was a good day, a win for my email inbox. Every so often I get fed up with receiving yet another mail from the same service provider that I take that extra few seconds to scroll to the bottom of the email, find the ‘unsubscribe’ option, wait for the browser to pop up and then to see those glorious words, ‘You have been successfully unsubscribed,’ and today I did one of these!! I did it, I won, I am winning, I am taking back my inbox and empowering my life by getting rid of inbox clutter, and I was so chuffed that I actually felt prompted to stop procrastinating, and to write a blog about the significance of the UNSUBSCRIBE.
Greetings
Well guys, its 2021, dare I say it…HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Though, most of the pleasant emails I received at the beginning of this year all started with, ‘compliments of the new season’, sure I’ve probably read this liner before, but this year it’s been hitting me, people are reluctant to wish anyone a ‘Happy New Year’ and I think it’s because we’re nervous, not entirely because we don’t believe that it can indeed be a good year or not, but because we just don’t know where people are at, in their thinking, in their emotions etc.
The simple fact is this, by this stage, most people around the globe in countries where Covid-19 had an impact, have lost a loved one. Whether it be family, a friend or an acquaintance, most of us can draw a line to a deceased person and you know what, it sucks, and so what we’re most probably trying to do is to suppress ourselves just a little bit and we’re doing this out of respect for human life and the loss thereof. This is just sort of my thinking and its cool, I love that we are so deeply concerned for each other that we would consciously change our approaches and responses, so as to serve each other in a meaningful way.
Opening the Door on a Blizzard
Friends, we find ourselves in a very peculiar place, 21-days into the new year and I’m hearing a lot of this chitter chatter of, ‘new year but feels just the same as last year’. I am also guilty of having jumped on this band wagon a bit, but I feel like I need to caution us and encourage us to continue hoping and dreaming.
I also just think that from a logical stand point that if your life goes from valley low to mountain high at midnight on the 31st of December each year, then you need to get hold of me ASAP and tell me how you do this, but perhaps do it via a message as I need to accurately dissect the 365-day downward slope that takes place from 1 Jan to 31 Dec, each and every year, this sounds a bit like the yo-yo affect, back-and-forth, to-and-fro, no thank you.
Could someone rather hit me up with the secret to living life, consistently, this could work and I would be eager for this sort of implementation instead.
There’s a very simple children’s song that reminds us to be careful of what we see, hear, say etc., because Our Father up above is looking down with love and this should serve as a reminder for us to be mindful of what we’re engaging in.
This is true, in fact there are two passages from scripture that scare the living bejeebers out of me that speak directly towards this,
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5 NIV
But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. Matthew 12:36 NIV
To be deadly honest, I don’t need to go into a Word study here as its quite clear and simple for me, we are to take our thoughts captive and we are to watch what we speak, in fact the bible also teaches us that the tongue carries the power of life and death and I can give testimony that when I was going into a crazy work situation a few years back, the Lord reminded me, ‘Ryan, as long as you speak life, I will equip you for the rest.’
I took that reminder to heart and often share this testimony, because the days were I started off reminding myself to speak life and destiny into my situations, I felt the Lord carry me and lead me through those days, but the opposite was also true, when I would go for days and weeks without reminding myself to speak that life, I would find myself in a very dark place, with way more questions than answers, and more often than not those questions of uncertainty would weigh me down and would rob me of all joy. So much so that I was over my working situation and conditions, I was plotting plans to leave and surely the Lord would bless it, I thought to myself.
But rest assured, as I drew back to that place of my promised abundance, that place of being obedient to his Word and His voice, I found myself feeling empowered to be able to whether any kind of storm, as I knew that God was literally going before me and shining a light for where I was too tread.
You see, it’s very easy to become overwhelmed when we just let go of the wheel and let all the junk and garbage in, when we let all the spam mail flood the inbox of our hearts and minds, BUT we are not victims in the story of our lives here on earth, we are victors. God is calling you and I, right here, right now at the beginning of 2021, to come into agreement with his thoughts and to take up the challenge to UNSUBSCRIBE from the popular norms that are going on around us.
Friends, for me it’s to watch what comes out of my mouth, cause scripture also warns that this is a pristine indicator of the condition of our hearts, but this then begs the question, do I need to be bridled like a horse, or do I need some one-on-one heart therapy from the one whom Created me?
Mmm…I’m going to leave that thought right there.
So…2021, one thing that I am sure of for this year is that if we would just wholly and fully submit ourselves to our Maker, Christ Jesus, each and every single day, then we will start to see and live out a Miracle each day as Jesus leads.
Closing
In the words of Buzz Lightyear, “To Infinity and Beyond”.
Love you guys, keep rocking who you are!!
