Persevere, It'll be Worth It.🏆

Don't give up on yourself, choose to stay the course.

Oct 29, 2023

💗 It’s that time of the year where some of us may be tired and in need of a break. For some others, it’s actually time to push yourself more than you have in the last couple of months and sow seeds. This letter is for you if you find yourself in a place where you know you need to push. Choose to lean into it and I hope this meets you where you are.

Resist the Resistance

There are times where I find myself at a threshold. I know I’m at the cusp of something new and I need to push myself like I never have. Some of you might be able to relate to this as well. Some seasons in life demand more from us. More time, hours and dedication. But what happens when the new demands of life are different from what you’ve experienced and so you’re at a cross-road between maintaining the status quo or choosing to push yourself in a new way? In times like this I’m learning to choose the latter. It’s important we allow ourselves to be stretched. I’m certainly not promoting burn out and over-working yourself but more so allowing yourself develop new capacity and a new level of determination and resilience. What keeps me going is remembering that things will not always be the way they are if I choose to lean into the shift and the new form my routine needs to take. There are seasons where we’re going to need to show up as a different version of ourselves. Maybe if we used to give into defeatist thoughts easily, we’ll need to be intentional about guarding our minds and really thinking about what we’re thinking. Or where we used to quit at the first try, we’ll need to reframe our mindsets and remind ourselves we are on a journey, we’re not always going to get it right at first.

But I have Little Strength, so What Next?

And I’m speaking to you who may be saying to yourself, I know these things but Rhieme I have little strength, where do I go from here? I’ll say to you what I say to myself, rely on God for strength. I’ll explain this a bit more. I’ve been thinking about how we sometimes place too much pressure on ourselves to sort out everything in our lives. But we forget that there’s God, who has all power and gives us the ability to do things at the highest standard. The Bible says we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. This means there’s a place for admitting to ourselves that on our own, we are limited. We need to rely on God daily to direct our steps and show us the way to go. I try my best to cultivate this lifestyle through my time in prayer and Bible study. In this time I receive direction, understanding and suddenly the fast paced world is slow and steady. I’ll invite you to do the same, it makes all the difference for sure.

Embrace the Shift

It’s key that we embrace the change of rythm in our lives. In an orchestra, when the rythm changes, it's clear the orchestra is moving in a new direction. To refuse to follow the new rythm as a player will simply cause noise and disruption. We can link this to our lives as well. When we notice that we’re entering unchartered territory sometimes it can be easier to pull back and not want to face this new avenue in front of us. However, on the other side may be something fresh that we’ve never experienced before. We need to embrace the shifts in our lives and not miss out on moments that our persistence could lead to the birth of something monumental. A landmark moment in our lives. I believe at different points in time we will all encounter destiny defining moments. These moments do not happen everyday but rather are the culmulation of preparation, consistency and alignment with God and it’s important we recognise them. It may not always be something ‘huge’ but it is still purposeful.

In 2022, I hosted my first physical event for a youth organisation I founded called, ‘Uncovered Conversations’. On the lead up to the event, I questioned having it so many times. There was doubt and a lot of last minute changes. But even in the moments of questioning, I’m glad I found time to be still and gain confirmation from God that it was His will for me to host this event. Choosing to be obey pushed me into a completely new season of my life. There’s so much that took place that I’m still yet to process, but resisting the feeling of giving up was certainly worth it. Think of a pregnant woman who is in labour. It’s uncomfortable and painful but she still needs to push. On the other side of her feelings at the time, is the new life of a child with so much purpose and potential. It’s the same with us, but the question is, are we ready to push ?

This is a picture from the Uncovered Conversations’ event I hosted. Looking back at it always reminds me, nothing is impossible with God.

Why Should I Try?

There are also times where we may wonder, what is the point of trying? For me, the purpose of trying is simply because I want God’s will to be fulfilled in my life. Everything I work towards is because I am pursuing alignment with God and I want to become who He has created me to be. It’s about fulfilling my purpose, recognising there are people connected to my life and ultimately making God proud with the life He has given me. I’m aware I have my role to play in this process and I certainly do not want to be passive about my life. So I choose to push even on days where I don’t feel like it. The worst feeling for me is to look back at my life and say to myself, if only I realised I was capable of doing x or had I known, this wouldn’t be the case.

So my question to you is, what does pushing look like for you? Does this mean putting in extra hours? Less commitment to certain projects to give your 100% to others? Only you really know, but I’ll like to encourage you to push. It might be challenging, but on the other side is something so beautiful. Remember you also have nothing to prove to anyone. Externally people may not see all that is going on behind the scenes and that is okay. It doesn’t invalidate the effort and hard work taking place.

There is Still Time, Continue

Some of us may feel as though we are ready to push and keep going but we believe we have lost time. I’m here to remind you, that as long as you have breath in your lungs, there is still time. All time belongs to God, He gives us time daily to fulfil what He has called us to do. So everyday is another day to take steps towards your destiny. The best part about trying again is, you don’t have to do it alone. We can choose to invite God into our daily routines, systems and allow Him lead. There’s a place for hard work, then there’s also room for God to take our our seeds sown in hard work and multiply them far beyond our imagination. All lost time can be restored. No matter how far you believe you have gone, it is not too late. Don’t allow a temporary dark situation in your life, be a sentence to the trajectory of it. After all, the Bible does say, the path of the righteous shall shine brighter and brighter. So to you who has the zeal to be persistent but you’ve been so bugged down by how long it’s taken you to get up, it’s okay. You are still here, breathing and that on is own is testament to the fact that you are here for a reason.

This is from an interview I hosted on Uncovered Conversations titled ‘Trusting the Process’ It it was such an apt reminder of working hard, remaining patient on the journey and allowing God to do the rest. Read here

So with all I’ve said, I hope you make the decision to give everyday your best. It will look different everyday but the most important thing is, you keep going. On the days where you’re tired, take breaks, rest is purposeful. You’re not here by accident, and you can choose to maximise your life in partnership with God and let it blossom into what it’s destined to be. Don’t let the fear of failure hold you back, with God victory is truly guaranteed.

As you go into the new week, hold unto these reminders:

Resist the resistance, being stretched isn’t a call to quit. Sometimes we need to lean into it and see the new capacity being built within us.
Rely on God for strength, on our own we are limited.
Lost time can be restored. Your story isn’t over, take steps towards what is yours. You want to look back and see you’ve made the most of the life that has been given to you.

Resources 💫

Podcast: ‘Ezii Like Sunday Morning’ w/ Ezinne Zara ft me: As we’ve been speaking on the importance of determination and resilience, I thought to share this podcast episode I featured on last year. We spoke on the importance of breaking limiting mindsets, upskilling and so much more. Listen here.

Message: ‘Girl Get Up’ by Sarah Jakes Roberts: This message was such a timely reminder of the importance of choosing to rise again. Watch here.

Gentle reminders 💗

Proverbs 20:24 ‘It is the Lord who directs your life, for each step you take is ordained by God to bring you closer to your destiny. So much of your life then remains a mystery’.

Psalm 37:5 ‘Give God the right to direct your life and as you trust him along the way you’ll find he pulled it off perfectly’.

As always, I hope this met you where you are. I’ll love to hear your thoughts, share them below.