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 12, Issue 10: Maximize Your Second Quarter

Are you in age bracket of between 20 and 40 years of age? If you are, you are in what is generally considered the second quarter of life. At the age of 20 you are most likely almost done with your first college degree. A few years thereafter is the stage when most people are starting their careers and getting married.

By the age of 30, most married young people are underway in starting a family, are almost completing their master's degree and are advancing in their careers. And by the age of 40, most people are settled in their careers and are raising pre-teens and/or teens.

It is in the second quarter that you need you maximize your gains. You can't wait for after 40 to get yourself on track. Now is the time to do the work, to lay the foundation for the future you want.

The second quarter is the quarter when you get ahead in life. It is where you actually gain ground. So take full advantage of it and rack up the points. Doing so will give you a better foundation for your forties and fifties and sixties and beyond.

Finances: Are you mastering your finances in your second quarter? Are you aggressively saving and investing now while you have the resources at hand? Take advantage of the time vale of money and start early. Save as much as you can in your second quarter.

Career: Are you advancing your career in your second quarter? Don't postpone your master's degree. Take advantage of the professional development opportunities that are available to you in your second quarter. Set yourself up for abounding success in your forties and beyond.

Physical Health: Are you taking care of your body in your second quarter? Are you eating mostly wholesome foods and exercising? Work to take care of your body in your second quarter. Your future life will thank you for it.

Relationships: Are you investing in good friendships in your second quarter? It's the friendships that you build in your second quarter that will carry you through the third and fourth quarters of your life.

Spirituality: Are you building your spiritual muscle in your second quarter? This is the time to not only be a regular church goer, but to deepen your walk with the Lord - to dive deeper into the Scriptures and to develop a strong prayer life.

Be intentional about maximizing the second quarter of your life. Doing so will give you a better foundation for the rest of your life.

For His Glory,

Lillian Chebosi

Volume 12, Issue 09: Radiate His Glory

I was presented with a test yesterday, without my knowledge at the time. The person who had deeply wronged me a couple of weeks ago sent me an email as she couldn't reach me on phone since I had blocked her number. She wasn't writing to apologize and seek reconciliation. She wrote to ask for my help with something important to her. She had found herself in a crisis and reached out to me to come through for her.

Right away, I knew it wasn't right for me to come through for her the way she wanted. But that I could help her in a different way. But what I missed to see in her message is the absence of an apology or remorse over what she had done to me. I went ahead and wrote a brief response, giving her options to consider to address her crisis.

The shocker came a few moments later when she showed up at my door. This person had earlier shut her door in my face when I had gone to her house to see her about the offense she had caused me. She had falsely accused me of something outrageous, busted me, then blocked me, hence denying me a chance to respond in my defense. I let her in and listened to her, then gave her counsel for her crisis. After she left, I sent her an email with a message of encouragement.

It was later in the evening when I reread her message that I found that this person sought me out not because she wanted to first make things right between us. She sought me out to take advantage of the kindness I could extend to her. I am glad I was wise to not give her what she asked for. But I do not regret giving her what I believe is what she really needed - counsel and encouragement.

What I glean from this experience is how important it is for us to represent God well, even when ambushed. I could have slammed my door in her face like she did to me. I could have taken her down memory lane of how she wronged and hurt me not so long ago. But I didn't bring it up. I listened to her, advised her and encouraged her.

We have a testimony to uphold. We need to demonstrate to haters and enemies that we are not like them, that we dance to a different tune. We need to offer kindnesses in exchange for ill treatment, and love for hate. We need to allow the Christ in us shine for all to see. We need to radiate God's glory in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in. I am grateful to have had the grace and wisdom to do that yesterday.

For His Glory,

Lillian Chebosi

Volume 12, Issue 08: Keep Weeds At Bay

Where we stay, we have a borehole water system that supplements the city council water. While the water from the city council is very clear and soft, the borehole water is discoloured and hard. The effect of this is discolouration of toilet bowls and sinks if left unattended.

I discovered a product that attacks the hard water stains effectively and efficiently. But by the time I embarked on eliminating the stains, they had taken root on my toilet bowls and sinks. So it took a lot of lengthy repeated scrubs each week to get them off. But once the stains came off, maintenance became a walk in the park. Now it takes me just a minute or two in each bathroom to clear loose hard water stains that keep forming each week.

However, this is the case only when I am diligent about attending to the hard water stains once or twice every week. Knowing how long and how hard it took me to tackle the stains in the first place, I wouldn't dare let them take root again. I would rather invest two minutes in each bathroom once or twice a week to keep the stains from setting than spend several minutes multiple days a week scrubbing off stubborn stains.

As Cathy Morenzie of Weight Loss God's Way amply put it in one of her recent blog posts, using the analogy of a garden, "it's better to never allow weeds in the garden instead of wasting time every year constantly pulling them out. Kill them right away before they take root".

It's better to watch how we eat than have to work hard to get back in shape. It's better to steer off regularly over working yourself than have to deal with the consequences of burnout later. It's better to spend a few minutes each day cleaning and tidying up your space than spend hours on end doing damage control. It's better to have regular health checkups and address minor health issues timely than wait to be shocked with a health crisis that would destabilize your life.

Are you allowing "weeds" in your "garden" and consequently wasting time pulling them out over and over again? Or are you routinely doing the work to keep "weeds" at bay? Are you diligent about quickly killing "weeds" before they take root in your "garden?"

For His Glory,

Lillian Chebosi

Volume 12, Issue 07: Joy Comes In The Morning

I recently had an awful experience with someone close to me. It was a case false accusation, something I don't remember ever facing before. It was heart rending. Being falsely accused, busted and blocked all at once is a horrible experience. It reminded me of a glimpse of what Jesus went through for us.

The best part about that experience is what happened after. I thought I was going to be okay, recover from the ambush over time. But God didn't miss a bit. First thing the next morning he reminded me that "Joy comes in the morning". That was amazing for me. The Bible says that sorrow may last through the night, but joy comes in the morning.

There is a clear distinction between those who know the Lord and those who don't. If we walk with God, we don't have to wallow in sorrow and stay downcast from an attack for days on end. He takes it away, rolls away the reproach. And in it's place clothes us with joy and dancing. How awesome is that?

God brings his word to remembrance just when we need it. I hadn't read, heard or thought about that portion of scripture in a long time. But there it was that morning, right when I needed it. I wasn't searching for it. I just wanted to pray, to pour out my heart to God.

As I stepped out my door for my early morning walk, my heart was intent on laying the issue before the Lord. I wanted to talk about what happened the day before with him, and ask him to heal my heart. But God had a different agenda that morning. He had me drop the offense and receive his joy. I received instant healing and recovery.

People may throw their trash on you. But God is in your corner and he won't let you stay downcast over it. Shake off the offense by the grace of God. It's bad enough to be falsely accused and called bad names, it's even worse to be denied the chance to say "it's not true, I didn't do that". But it wasn't my trash to keep, it had nothing to do with me. So I shook it off and moved on with the joy of the Lord. And so can you. Joy comes in the morning.

For His Glory,

Lillian Chebosi

Volume 12, Issue 06: Plan Ahead And Focus

What is planned and given focus gets accomplished. Doing this last year I found that it's not that hard to get things done if I plan ahead and focus on the details. I started with planning ahead a day at a time, but progressed to planning a week at a time. At the end of the week, I make a mental and digital note of what I want to do the next week to nail the day, including all the details.

I then consider what I am doing the next day before going to bed. For my workout, I remind myself the workout I am going to do the next morning so that when the time comes I don't waste time choosing. I also select the podcast or Bible plan I would be listening to while I work out. For my lunch break, I decide what I am going to read or write so I don't beat about the bush. How about you? What strategies do you apply to keep you focused on the goals you are going after?

When some of your goals are hard to tackle because they involve doing things you don't necessarily enjoy doing yet, you are just getting started at them. You will be prone to procrastinate taking action or bail altogether. If this is your situation, you are better off starting with those activities first thing in the morning.

If you want to win at getting a workout done for your health goal but you are not very fond of exercising, start your day with it. Get it over and done with at the onset of your day. Don't let something you dislike doing torture you all day and keep you from winning the day.

How you start the day sets the tone for the rest of it. Make the most of the early part of your day and it will motivate you to keep showing up well for the rest of the day. This proves true for me every time. If I am on time for my activities from the start of the day, I feel unstoppable and fulfilled.

In his book, Win the Day: 7 Habits to Stress Less and Accomplish More, Mark Batterson wrote, "what's the one thing you least like to do, but feel best about afterwards. That's your frog. It's often the hardest habit to establish but it pays the biggest dividends. Whatever it is, you've got to figure out a morning routine that works for you. If you want to win the day, you've got to attack the day. It's time to eat the frog." For me, this is getting out of bed as soon as my body is awake. Once I win at this, I can tackle following my calendar.

Even if you are just getting started at some of your goals, don't be intimidated. Tackling the activities will soon become second nature if you diligently put yourself out there every day. How do you do that? By planning ahead each day and keeping the activities before you throughout the day. Start the day with the activities you are most likely to procrastinate on and use that sense of accomplishment to motivate you to tackle the rest.

For His Glory,

Lillian Chebosi