Equipping young women professionals with young families to find fulfillment, contentment and joy as mothers and home makers without losing sight of who they are as women.

Volume 08, Issue 01: Expect More

2017 may have been great for you, but you ain’t seen nothing yet! You may have had a few things to celebrate: got a new job, a promotion, you graduated, won big favors, changed your neighborhood, address and maybe even status, got a new ride, signed great deals, soared high in business, tied the knot, enjoyed blissful relationships, brought forth a baby, got your weight back on track, made tons of money. Whatever it is that God made happen, gave you the grace to accomplish, you ain't seen nothing yet.

God never camps at one level. He keeps on doing great things. When I started paying attention a couple of years ago, by the end of every year since then, I thought each one was the best year ever, aspirations met, expectations surpassed. Don't get me wrong, none of these years were free of challenges or frustrations or disappointments or failures or tears. It's all about what you choose to focus on.

Taking stock of the past year in the last several days, like you I have noted that there were aspects of my life that were really great, in fact the best they had ever been. I couldn’t imagine wanting anything more. I was blown away and naturally content and didn’t have much of a request for anything else.

However, it didn’t take long before I was once again reminded that God doesn’t camp at one great happening or victory. He keeps on doing great things. God is always moving us from one level to another. His way is from glory to glory.

I thought I had not seen a year as great as 2017 on a personal level. God led me in a triumphant procession from battle to battle. Amazing things happened. I bet if you paid attention, you would say something similar or grander about your 2017. Then the new year started with some real shockers I almost bowed my head in despair. But it didn’t take long before I got my fight back on.

God showed up and turned things around. He set things on a level that leaves the greatness of 2017 pale in comparison to what is in store for the new year. I learnt, again, that sometimes trouble is a stepping stone for the next level of greatness.

I was happy with the awesome successes of 2017 but God had more in mind. He allowed the enemy to rock the boat to stir my appetite for more. Don’t be troubled by trouble because what the enemy means for your harm, God uses for your good. He turns things around and makes all things work together for your good.

I gleaned this from a quote I read somewhere. When faced with trouble, not only feel pain, accept it, learn from it, and fight through it. Turn your wounds into wisdom. Take a break to shed a tear but after you dust yourself off, get back and fight like you have never fought before. I think this says it all. Determine to rise above whatever trouble comes your way. Don't let it distract you from your journey.

Refuse to settle for the successes of 2017. Expect more in 2018. Don't mess up your opportunities for greater things in 2018 by reacting to situations or throwing in the towel. Get in agreement with God, get your fight on and respond to situations with a winner's attitude. God keeps on doing great things for sure. Don't miss out.

Lillian Chebosi

Volume 07, Issue 18: Finish Strong

This holiday season I once again faced the notion of being sloppy during the holidays when one of my sisters asked me how it is that I was up so early while away on vacation as I shared a scripture with with her as I always do after finishing my morning devotion. This wasn't the first time I had faced this question.

Each of us should have some personal standard practices that we stick with regardless of the season. I remember answering my sister that there are things I don't take vacation from. Some of these things are my time with God and fitness. I don't always get it right, but they are things my mind is made up on and settled.

So, even in the holiday season, determine to finish strong. Don't lose the ground you gained throughout the year just because everyone else is taking it easy. Don't get me wrong, rest hard and enjoy yourself, but stick to your guns on the core things of your life. Just because its the holidays doesn't justify slacking on your disciplines.

Finish 2017 strong and begin 2018 on a high note, with a new determination to soar higher. With God, things can only get better. Life with God is never dormant.

Travel light into 2018, leave behind the baggage of 2017. Don't be stuck in the failures and disappointments of 2017. Shake off the dead weight and look ahead.

Do not settle for the successes and achievements of 2017 either. Be not satisfied with yesterday's high moments. Trust God for higher levels. Raise the bar for yourself and stretch beyond your comfort zone.

2018 is going to be a great year. Its a new beginning. Embrace that. Don't miss out on the opportunities for betterment that come with a new year. Catch your vision for 2018 and run with it.

No doubt, there will be challenges, but you are stronger and wiser.

Happy 2018!

Lillian Chebosi

Volume 07, Issue 17: Respond and Keep Winning

I recently found myself in a waiting situation. I was working on a project with a contractor who was facing some internal challenges unknown to me, that resulted in delays in implementation of the project. The delays were so unpleasant I found myself getting frustrated day after day. My relief came the day I decided I wasn’t going to wait for the contractor anymore, that I was going to get on with the business of living and enjoy my life. At that moment, I decided I wasn’t going to call the contractor anymore, and that I wasn’t going to care when his staff came. I went to the site and rearranged the environment to restore normalcy the best way I could.

God may not always get rid of what’s bothering us. Sometimes God chooses to strengthen us and enable us to endure the challenge with a good attitude – Joyce Meyer. Whatever your challenge is today, determine to respond with a good attitude. Besides, being miserable doesn’t make things any better.

I have learnt that you can be happy while you have a problem, while you are waiting for something that has delayed. The problem or delay doesn’t go away because you are sad or agitated, but a happy spirit makes the burden lighter.

I returned to my former state of happiness even though the situation hadn’t been resolved. The funny, you could say annoying thing is that no sooner had I resolved to not care, and rearranged my environment to work for me than the contractor came back on site to finish the job. It was like the delay was engineered to test my patience. Things started moving again after I passed the attitude test.

I recently read Sundar Pichai, an IT-MIT Alumnus’ cockroach management theory for self-development. He told of a cockroach that flew from somewhere and sat on a lady at a restaurant. The lady started screaming out of fear. With a panic-stricken face and trembling voice, she started jumping, with both hands desperately trying to get rid of the cockroach. Her reaction was contagious, as everyone in her group also got panicky. The lady finally managed to push the cockroach away, but it landed on another lady in the group. Now, it was the turn of this other lady to continue the drama. The waiter rushed forward to their rescue. In the relay of throwing, the cockroach next fell upon the waiter. The waiter stood firm, composed himself and observed the behavior of the cockroach on his shirt. When he was confident enough, he grabbed it with his fingers and threw it out of the restaurant.

Ask yourself, was the cockroach responsible for the ladies’ dramatic behavior? If so, why was the waiter not disturbed? He handled it near to perfection, without any chaos.

It was not the cockroach, but their inability to handle the disturbance caused by the cockroach that disturbed the ladies. It wasn’t the delay that disturbed me, but my inability to deal with the delay that disturbed me.

It is not the shouting of your father or your boss or your wife that disturbs you, but it’s your inability to handle the disturbances caused by their shouting that disturbs you. It is not the noisiness of the children in your neighborhood that disturbs you but your inability to deal with the disturbance caused by their noise that disturbs you.

It is not the traffic jams on the road that disturbs me, but my inability to handle the disturbance caused by the traffic jam that disturbs me. It is not your neighbor or coworker constantly packing on your parking slot that disturbs you, but your inability to deal with the inconvenience caused by his parking that disturbs you.

It is not the political situation in the country that disturbs us, but our inability to handle the disturbance caused by the situation that disturbs us. It is not whether votes are stolen or not stolen that disturbs us but our inability to handle the disturbance caused by the situation that disturbs us.

More than the problem, it is my reaction to the problem that creates chaos in my life.

Don’t react in life, always respond. The women reacted, whereas the waiter responded. I reacted to the delay and got agitated. Reactions are always instinctive, whereas responses are always well thought of.

A person who is happy is happy not because everything is right in his life. He is happy because his attitude towards everything in life is right. Respond to issues, don’t react, and keep winning.

Lillian Chebosi

Volume 07, Issue 16: Get Organized

I am reading from Benjamin P. Hardy’s work that I resonate with because I am a very organized person. Life comes with turbulence and distractions. Unless we organize the different aspects of our lives, we stand in the way of our own success.

It’s imperative to have a guidance system that shows our destination and when and how we are going to get there, and that we check against regularly to determine if we are still on course, or how far off course we have drifted.

Benjamin reiterates that small things, if not corrected, become big things, always. Even seemingly inconsequential aspects of our lives can create ripples and waves of consequences – for better or worse. I concur with him that one of the things that can help you minimize turbulence and other conditions distracting your path is organizing your life.

Life is busy. In this piece, Benjamin points out that it’s hard to keep everything organized and tidy, but once you’re organized, moving forward takes far less energy. Everything in your life is energy. If you’re carrying too much – physical or emotional, your progress will be hampered.

Few people have organized their lives to prioritize almost exclusively important aspects such as learning, health, relationships, and finances. No one cares about your success more than you do. If you are not a meticulous accountant about the important details of your life, then you aren’t responsible enough to have what you say you want.

So, how do you organize your life? Benjamin points out key energy areas to take charge of.

Environmental energy: Is your living space cluttered and messy or simple and neat? Do you keep stuff you no longer use? Does your environment facilitate the emotions you consistently want to experience? Does your environment drain or improve your energy?

Financial energy: Do you have unnecessary debt? Do you know how much you spend each month? Do you know how much you make each month? Are you making as much money as you would like to be? Most people don’t track their expenses. But if they did, they’d be shocked how much money they waste on things they could do without.

Most people find it boring to make time for the administrative details of their finances – to prepare and monitor personal budgets, not realizing that this lackluster behavior is holding them back from the very goals they’re trying to accomplish.

Until you can hone in on your finances, you won’t have a healthier financial life, regardless of your income. Until you take complete responsibility of your finances, you’ll always be a slave to money.

Relational energy: Are your relationships the most meaningful and enjoyable part of your life? Do you spend enough time nurturing the relationships that really matter? Do you maintain toxic relationships that no longer serve you? Are you authentic and honest in your relationships?

Like money, most people’s relationships are not organized in a conscious manner. But with something so critical, we should take better stock of our relationships.

Health energy: Do you eat with the end in mind? Are you conscious of and in control of the foods you put in your body? Does the food you eat improve or worsen the other areas of your life? Do you exercise consistently? Does your body reflect your highest ideals? Is your body as strong and fit as you want it to be? Are you healthier now than you were three months ago?

Health is wealth. If you’re bed ridden, who cares how organized the other areas of your life are? It’s so easy to put our health on the side, such as foregoing sleep, overworking, not exercising, and making poor eating habits. Little things become big things, and eventually everything catches up.

Spiritual energy: Do you have a sense of purpose in life? Have you come to terms with life and death in a way you resonate with? How much power do you have in designing your future? Death, it turns out, is not your greatest fear. Actually, your greatest fear is reaching death and having never truly lived.

When you organize your spiritual life, you become clear on what your life is about. You become clear on what you stand for, and how you want to spend each day. You develop conviction for what really matters to you, and what is a “distraction.”

Time: How much of your time do you feel in complete control of? Is your time being wasted on things you don’t intrinsically enjoy? Are the activities you spend your time doing moving you toward your ideal future? Are you spending most of your time furthering your own agenda or someone else’s? What activities should you remove from your life? How much time do you waste each day? What would your ideal day look like? What activities could you outsource or automate that unnecessarily take up your time?

Until you organize your time, it will disappear and move quickly. Before you know it, you’ll wonder where all the time went. Once you organize your time, it will slow down. You’ll be able to live more presently. You’ll be able to experience time as you want to. You’ll control your time rather than the other way around.

Stop What You’re Doing and Get Organized

In conclusion, Benjamin reiterates that getting organized and conscious of your present circumstances - your environment, finances, relationships, purpose, and time puts you in a position to build toward the future you want.

The fastest way to move forward in life is not doing more. It starts with stopping the behaviors holding you back. If you want to get in shape, you’ll make more progress by stopping your negative behaviors than starting good ones.

Before you focus on making more money, reduce your spending. Detach yourself from needing more and become content with what you have. Until you do this, it doesn’t matter how much money you make. You’ll always spend what you have, or more.

This is a matter of stewardship. Rather than wanting more and more, it’s key to take proper care of what you currently have. Organize yourself. Dial it in. Your life is a garden. What good is planting if you don’t prepare the soil and remove the weeds?

People stay stuck because they never organize. They try adding more, or being more productive, or taking a different approach, but remain in the same position. So, before you “hustle,” get organized.

Lillian Chebosi

Volume 07, Issue 15: A Goal Everyday

I listened to something that resonates with what’s been on my mind. I like the way ideas we start thinking about get better and bigger by the day if we allow ourselves time to think deeper before implementing. I started thinking about doing a certain big project earlier this year. It is a very exciting project for me, something I am very passionate about, so I couldn’t wait to implement it. Looking back now, many months later, I am so grateful I didn’t have the resources to implement the project right away because time has expanded the project in my mind in great proportions.

It would have resulted in a huge loss to my sense of long term satisfaction if I had executed the project soon after I started thinking about it. The project has grown so much, I don’t mind waiting anymore, because when I finally implement, it’s going to be so fulfilling. This is the most exciting thing I have ever done. I am enjoying the wait as I revisit and fine tune the plans and details over and over.

Patience pays. Don’t be in a hurry to have your way, or get what you think you really want. Take your time to think through your plan even when you have all you need to implement it right away.

You only live once. Do what you feel passionate about. Some of the things we want to do are out of the ordinary and would probably raise eyebrows. But don’t be afraid to go outside the box, to think outside the box. Don’t be afraid to dream big.

As you dream, remember dreams without goals are just dreams. When I started thinking about my big project, my goals were and still are specific,  time-based, financial, realistic and around being considerate of the seasons the people around me are in.

Dreams without goals ultimately fuel disappointment. Have dreams, but have goals; life goals, yearly goals, monthly goals, weekly goals, daily goals. Try to give yourself a goal every day.

Understand that to achieve your goals, you must apply discipline and consistency. You have to work at it every day. You have to plan every day. We don’t plan to fail. We fail to plan. Without a plan for my big project, it would remain a dream in my mind. That would be such a flop.

You may for instance have a goal for personal health and fitness and plan to achieve that through nutrition and exercise. You can be sure to not get very far in achieving that goal if you don’t discipline yourself around what you eat and when you exercise, and do it consistently. We achieve our dreams a day at a time.

Lillian Chebosi