ASK ME WHY II

Hope you read "ASK ME WHY I"?

We left off with Romans 8:28: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Another thing we need to note is that God’s will does not mean absence of challenges. Sarah was God’s will for Abraham yet they waited for years and even tried to help God before the promised son came. Eve was God’s will for Adam yet the apple challenge that sent them out of Eden came, the loss of one son and the banishment of another came. A sister, who was once counseled to sign into God’s will by the minister, ran back claiming she probably did not hear well and so she wanted out. Why? She miscarried after 5 months into the marriage by which time the husband had become impotent! Ms. Famuyiwa encouraged her to hang in there, the pull from other men she thought were better choices was stronger but she prayerfully faced the challenge with support from other M&WOG. Today, she has three children by the same man and others who had no clue of the challenge that made the couple’s bond stronger use them as prayer point, “Lord God, if only you give me X or Y, I would never consider divorce”. If God tested the trust of man-Jesus, if He tested the trust of blameless Abraham, what gives you the erroneous opinion you will not be tested? He did not say you will not pass through fire but that He will be there when (not if) you do. So how do you differentiate? The challenge that emanates from self will may kill, maim, dent or break your heart but that which comes out of God’s will would strengthen and build you if your trust can stand the test of time.

Ephesians 1:11. In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will. As Christians, because of the inheritance we have received most (if not all) things that come to us are in line with God’s own will! The instruction for Abraham to kill his son was in line with God’s will, the delay in conception for Hannah who was in a polygamous relationship was according to God’s will. I don’t know why Hannah entered a polygamous relationship but my Bible tells me God shut her womb! Later on God ushered the greatest prophet that ever lived into the womb of this polygamous woman. If you and I were to judge, we would say that Rachael merely took what belonged to her but perhaps God did not see it that way. Why did God shut her womb? I do not know exactly but I know that God may have delayed her conception for a divine reason. She was so upset that even when God chose to relocate her she hid the wooden gods and incurred the wrath of her father which led to her death in that tragic love story.

The questionnaire administered, unknown to the participants, had 24 profiles each for females and males. Participants were told to shade or leave un-shaded the profiles of those they cannot marry or can marry respectively. The analysis of the questionnaire which could not be done during the programme is far below and tells you more about whether we truly wait for God’s will. The questions I asked after and the interesting discoveries about the activity are as follows:

Questions:
1. What is the average number of “opportunities” you meet in a month?
2. Who shaded the most? Why?
3. Assuming these are part of the characteristics of male/females God sends you, one after the other, in 2 years and you shaded or shielded them?
4. So if you are still unmarried in 2 years who is to blame?
5. Are there people who partly shaded a box because they were unsure of how to answer?

Responses:
1. Female participants agreed that an average of 2 “opportunities” approach them monthly. Male participants say they meet an average of 12 "opportunities" in a month
3. Least: 1(F) signifying she was open to anyone except a younger man
4. Least: 24(M) signifying he wasn’t open to any of the profiles
5. Few participants partly shaded few boxes

Discoveries:
1. Choices were self motivated; nobody prayed before choosing
2. People chose according to physical description of profiles
3. Nobody asked further questions about the profiles
4. Most participants kept looking forward to better options until the profiles ended and they realised their options were not limitless
5. Participants seem to believe that God’s will should be “perfect”. Believers may pull out of a relationship when “imperfect” characteristics appear. Usually they site not hearing well from God as reason for breaking off an initial God’s will relationship

QUESTIONNAIRE ANALYSIS

Of the 31 CHRISTIAN men that participated in the activity:
 19 would not marry a woman who is ugly
 25 would not marry a woman who is flat-chested
 20 would not marry a woman who has a child from a previous relationship
 10 would not marry a woman who is not in man's class
 8 would not marry a woman who believes she is equal to man
 15 would not marry a woman who is very tall
 21 would not marry a woman who is fat (orobo)
 21 would not marry a woman who cannot cook
 13 would not marry a woman who expects to share house chores with man
 9 would not marry a woman who is very, very rich and accomplished
 20 would not marry a woman who is crippled
 23 would not marry a woman who has fibroids
 19 would not marry a woman who may not have children due to earlier abortion
 19 would not marry a woman who makes up heavily
 21 would not marry a woman who is a staunch Muslim
 15 would not marry a woman whose mother hates him
 17 would not marry a woman whose siblings disrespect him
 15 would not marry a woman who is too spiritual; does not allow hug/peck
 26 would not marry a woman who is dirty or whose room is always untidy
 19 would not marry a woman who is a divorcee or/and older
 22 would not marry a woman who is a stark illiterate
 22 would not marry a woman who drinks beer
 10 would not marry a woman who has a lot of male friends
 15 would not marry a woman who wants sex before marriage

Of the 27 CHRISTIAN women that participated in the activity:
 17 would not marry a man who is a divorcee
 14 would not marry a man who is separated from his first wife
 12 would not marry a man who is very ugly
 7 would not marry a man who is unemployed
 11 would not marry a man who has first school leaving certificate
 20 would not marry a man who has local accent/doesn't speak good English
 19 would not marry a man who has HIV/AIDS
 11 would not marry a man who has no dress sense
 19 would not marry a man who has low self esteem
 13 would not marry a man who is very short
 20 would not marry a man who has skin condition that makes his face swell
 19 would not marry a man who is crippled
 22 would not marry a man who is blind
 17 would not marry a man who is a Muslim
 9 would not marry a man who is younger
 16 would not marry a man who is not born again
 6 would not marry a man who is not from her race (Iraqi, Indian etc)
 16 would not marry a man whose father is a herbalist
 12 would not marry a man whose mother is very wicked
 17 would not marry a man who sees women as second class citizen
 17 would not marry a man who wants sex before marriage
 5 would not marry a man who likes phone sex talk
 16 would not marry a man who likes women a lot
 23 would not marry a man who smokes

WHAO! So who is left to be married? Where is God's will in the numbers?

Adam saw and accepted Eve with only a confirmation, “This is the bone of my bone, she shall be called woman”, no query! The confirmation stood only on the premise that Eve is God's will. Today we dissect and reset God’s will and fashion out our will from it. God sent Foluke an Adejare that drinks beer, has a lot of female friends and was a boxer; an easy candidate for illegibility! She confirmed him, signed into marriage and that seemingly foolish trust in God has etched out a global master piece whose trademark has become "Let somebody shout halleluyah".

In conclusion, man, woman is the ground through which Satan initiates a lasting heartbreak ONLY BECAUSE we do not trust God enough to blindly follow God’s will.

Thanks for reading.