I woke up one Saturday to an air-conditioned morning. The room
so cold, I hugged the duvet ever tightly. Looking up to the painted wall,
I stared at the solid gold clock and it was just 6.30am. I picked my
Blackberry Porsche to ping some of my peeps. “Hey guys!!! Who is awake
to have a chat?” Ping I did for 2 hours and I remembered we’ve got a
party. My friend was hosting his pals at the village square to celebrate
his recent promotion at work. That’s the kind of gig for which we go all
out to impress. I got dressed for the kill, took a shot of myself with my
Blackberry Porsche phone (sorry I emphasized, couldn’t resist,
just in case you’d forgotten the machine I controlled) and instantly
uploaded to Facebook. I wore my New Musk perfume like a cloak and drove
away in my classy Discussion Continues. One couldn’t have asked for a
better in life. They call me “omo baba olowo” as I am certainly a king where I come from; a big boy in the city.
Monday came and I received the greatest shock of my life. (Looking back now, if Monday were
a person I may have strangled him for hitting me a deck.) Lying cozily
on my table was a transfer letter. Alas, I was being directed to move to
another branch in an entirely strange region. How on earth would I
sacrifice the Porsche(sorry, meant posh) lifestyle, my accomplishments,
and the enjoyment galore? How do I start exploring a new land where, for
crying out loud, I do not know what to expect? Gosh! I felt so dejected,
should I take the risk or perhaps lobby HR to help squash the posting? By
the way, my name is Abraham; kindly give me some minutes of your time.
As
I ruminated on Big Boss’ instruction to leave town to an unknown
destination, my gut tells me to trust and take the risk, especially as I
was sure and convinced it is the I Am who placed the demand. Fear
engaged me in a cold, tight embrace as should-I-or-should-I-not thoughts
flooded my brain. I faced the dilemma to embrace fear or perhaps kiss
the risk. Who would help me solve this challenge? So this is the point
where I leave my comfort zone. “Oh God! Why at this time do I have to
separate from my peeps? In whose house am I going to eat the next Sallah meat or Christmas chicken?” I gritted my teeth in response to painfully confusing thoughts.
You must be wondering: Did the
father Abraham really experience such indecision? Only my almost-instant
departure was recorded, but you sure don’t want to know the battles I
had to face prior to the move. I watch you from my bosom and see you face
similar fears; I know you’ve got dreams to pursue but the fear factor
wouldn’t allow you leave that comfort zone. You have embraced the job
like it’s your only surviving balm; you couldn’t take the risk of
pursuing that dream that could have brought you wealth, fame and glory.
You should have quit that relationship but you are so scared; the tall,
dark and handsome guys have all left town. You should have submitted the
thesis but feared your packaging didn’t meet global standard. You should
have applied for that job but your poor grades in school depleted your
confidence level. You daily told yourself you would take that step
tomorrow, forgetting that tomorrow never really dies. The bull wags its
tail at you in mocking jest; yet, amazingly, you couldn’t ‘romance’ the
risk of taking it by the horn. What if I never left my kindred?What if
Peter never took the first step en route the water walking sojourn? What
if those lepers had not gone to the Syrian camp? What if Moses had turned
back with the Isrealite at river Jordan? What if Esther didn’t approach
the king on behalf of the Jews? What if USA didn’t invade Osama’s
hideout? What if Seun Onigbinde didn’t resign from first bank to start
BudgiT? What if Deji didn’t pick up a pen to write his first article?
What if Chelsea had gone to Manchester City just to park the bus? (Lolz!)
What if Bishop David Oyedepo became so consumed with the magnitude of
the 50,000-seater auditorium dream that he refused to share? Hmmmm...,
for every glory there’s a story, and these stories were 99.9% of the time
planted in the same field where fear momentarily dwells.They grew via
risk-watering.
I see you daily - in pains
with the tie on your neck, sweating profusely even while the wind blows.
You know this is not who you are; the fear of fear became the beginning
of your wisdom. My child,your life revolves round your salary; you have
gotten hooked by the shawarma that dude sends regularly, but as long as this defines you, you won’t make a mark on this planet earth.
I
kissed the storm too. I chose to bear the pain. I left my kindred and my
beloved city. I waved my comfort zone goodbye. I took the risk. I
stepped out. I pursued purpose. I buried my fears. The rest,they say, is
history, but just in case you played truant in your history class,I GOT
THE REWARD. If you truly are my seed; if you truly want my blessings
as possessions (I’m sure you are one of those who sing “Abraham’s blessings are mine”), then you would follow my footsteps.
I pulled a Houdini through Twitter security to post this 5000-character tweet (yeah, being the
Abraham has got its perks) in order to remind you that it is very risky
not to take a risk. I am certain you would end well if only you dare to
take that very first step. Always bear in mind that if it brings an
element of discomfort; if it makes your heart pound; if it hinges on your
absolute trust in God, then it is most definitely a worthy dream. Be
rest assured that the BigBoss looks down from above,
stands with you, and is always ready to help you to fulfill it. I look
forward to seeing the real you “uncaged”.
Hey kids, let me know when you are less busy so we can catch up on Skype. I love you now and always.
Yours in trends,
@FatherAbraham (#OkoSarah, #Baba Isaaki, #Ore Jesu)
P.S
Until
you take that big leap you intuitively know to be right but lack the
support structure, the unseen forces over your life won’t be unleashed.
If you are experiencing no anxiety or discomfort about your moves,you
are living within your comfort zone allowing circumstances dictate to
you.
- Poju Oyemade
There are risks and cost to action. But they are far less than the long range risks of comfortable inaction.
- John F. Kennedy
So many fail becaue they dont get started- they dont go. They don't overcome inertia. They don't begin.
- W Clement Stone
.........for God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power,love, and of a sound mind.........
- The Bible
written by Olukokun Adedeji
written by Olukokun Adedeji
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