Seeds & Jewels

It all started on a sunny afternoon many years ago. Hubby and I were out running an errand and suddenly, the car was overheating. Why? We couldn't understand.  This was strange as this car is regularly serviced. We managed to reach the auto-mechanic's workshop without damage to the engine. He assessed it and lo and behold, he says "there's a small leak". Apparently, water had been escaping through this route hence our predicament that afternoon.  Aha! God taught me a valuable lesson. The problem wasn't that water 'left' the radiator. No! The problem was the exit point. If the mechanic had emptied the the radiator himself through some means involving the lifting of the lid (an authorised route), it wouldn't have been a problem and we wouldn't have referred to it as a leak.. But you see, the situation that afternoon was different. Reminds me of the story of a woman with the issue of blood who touched Jesus and received her healing. Jesus said ...

Hello lovelies, I have been enjoying the presence of God with the company of some soul inspiring melodies, and I thought to share these tunes with you.  This is not a sponsored post; it is simply me sharing some of my worship inspirations with you.   Hence, I will be placing a link to the Youtube videos for you to add to your worship playlist. Be sure to share some songs from your worship  playlist in the comment section below. 

Three days, three layers of protection and One Man As discussed previously, rings are such an amazing piece of jewelry. However, t oday, I’ll be considering tombstones.  The tombstone - T his portrayed finality These were used in ancient times to seal up entire burial chambers as proof that one had crossed the Rubicon never to return. In other words, when you saw a tombstone sitting over a certain burial chamber, just forget it and move on with your life.

So, I was discussing this COVID-19 matter with the hubby today. Did we envisage this as a nation, as a continent? If we did, what measures did we put in place to ensure a soft landing for our citizens, our economy, etc.? This will not be the last of global health challenges and I am not a prophet of doom. If we think that after conquering COVID-19, then we can all live happily ever after forever, then we have it all twisted. Like never in our history, the world is and will be in search of problem solvers in states, countries and industries. People with ability, capacity, expertise and influence who will show up so God can show off. The bible stated clearly in Rom. 8:19 that the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.

We have a primary purpose on earth which is to draw men to Christ, in order to achieve this, we need to utilize the gifts God has blessed us with. Everyone wants to be great, (well almost everyone) and that’s a beautiful thing but not many people want to pay the price for greatness (that’s where the challenge lies). Today, my focus will be on 2 things; first, how does one get a seat at the table of greatness and secondly what guarantees you a permanent place there. Please fasten your seat belts as I trust God to bless a life or two this afternoon. My anchor scripture today will be Prov. 22:29 – seest thou a man diligent in his business, he shall stand before kings and not mere men”…

Rings are such amazing pieces of jewellery connoting several meanings namely as emblems of companionship, symbols of devotion, marriage, and authority, etc. They could be promise rings, engagement or wedding rings, birthstone rings, or signet rings, etc. Ever heard of the signet ring? This is a ring with letters or designs carved into it but that’s not all there is to it.

A friend of mine once sent me a 1998 Havard Business Review (HBR) article titled – the hidden traps of decision making. I found this an interesting read and years later, linking this article with certain occurrences in the bible opened my eyes to certain historical truths which I wish to share with you today. So, based on this article, there are nine traps or biases in decision-making, and one must consider them in order to make effective decisions.

How do you think outside the box when there does not exist a box in the first place? How do you imagine something that has never existed before? When I am asked to think outside the box, I immediately consider a picture of imaginary boundaries around a 6-sided object which I need to set aside in my mind’s eye to consider new perspectives. This box could be past experiences or circumstances but wait, what happens when there is no box. What guides your thought process? What do you do?

It’s the year 2020 and it has been an interesting year. We were barely in the first quarter before the visitation of a variant of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) virus called the Corona Virus (COVID-19) which was first detected in December last year. Not to bore you with the details and effects of this disease but to remind us of the fact that this isn’t the first time that the world would been plagued with a deadly disease. In fact, history is replete with plagues and disease outbreaks occurring from as far back as 429-426 BC in Greece (the plague of Athens)* till date. These include the influenza, smallpox, cholera, black death, yellow fever, malaria, bubonic plague, etc. Most of which have been managed effectively. With the morbidity and mortality that could result from these disease outbreaks and the economic implications for countries, world leaders aim to halt the spread and ultimately the effects of these diseases among populations as quickly as possible. Some...

Yes! I said so. Before you have my head, please read, you will be helped. Historically, wine was stored in wineskins, these were made from animal skin and had the ability to stretch to accommodate the fermentation process of new wine. Jesus while teaching John’s disciples (Matt. 9:17) uses wine and wineskins to illustrate his teachings. He teaches that it was unwise to store fresh wine in old wineskins because the subsequent fermentation process would break the skin and the wine would be spilled. In other words, old wineskins had reached their elastic limit. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Let us take a few steps down memory lane, in 2 Kings 4, a widow cried out to one of my favourite old testament prophets - Elisha seeking help. All hell had been let loose, her husband was dead, and her sons were about to be sold into slavery to pay her debt (double wahala!). Elisha asked a pertinent question: what hast thou in the house? Wise woman mentioned that she had a small jar of oil (never say yo...

Hurray! The first edition of Sofa Conversations was a blast. We had so much fun, learnt new things and made new friends.   (please keep reading)

“It just tastes wrong” the Judge said to Anna. Confused, Anna rushed back to the kitchen. What had she done wrong? She had followed the recipe to a T, yet even she could taste the lack of savour. Perhaps she could do it all again. Anna started, 1 tsp of baking soda, 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 cup of plant based milk, 1 tsp of vanilla flavouring, 1 tbsp of sugar and 1 tsp of salt. She threw these ingredients into the mixing bowl and mixed to perfection. Once she had achieved the desired fluffiness, Anna poured the mixture into a hot saucepan and fried in batches.

Have you ever considered the life of Joseph? Think about it, his life seemed riddled with irony. Loved and favoured by his father, yet hated and framed by his brothers. Trusted by Potiphar, yet tempted by Potiphar’s wife. Abased in the prison, yet exalted as a prime minister. In spite of all these, Joseph lived a life of service. Join Lesson 1 for the reading on Joseph here. We know the story of the “Coat of Many Colours”, or a tunic as referred to by the Bible. This was an outright display of Jacob’s love for his son Joseph. Joseph was Jacob’s son of his old age, his beloved, and the tunic sealed his place as the favourite son. To learn more about Joseph’s life of service, and the significance of his “tunic of many colours”, please read through Lesson 1 of the Strategies For Living Course. While the course may have ended, the materials are available for self-paced study without certification. Be sure to visit our course page  for more information.

Sofa Conversations was borne out of a need to create effective and safe platforms for women to be mentored, learn and apply deep truths and strategies from God’s word to excel in life, solve problems and be adequately positioned to fulfil destiny. ·        Are you a woman? Are you curious to understand what the scriptures have to offer you? (Keep reading...)

Hello everyone, I trust that we are keeping safe. Today on seedsandjewels.blogspot.com, I will be sharing an interesting article on evidence-based decision-making. So, I am a scientist and as one, we are trained to make decisions based on facts and evidence and nothing less. Research is conducted using a rigorous methodology, results are discussed, and peer-reviewed to ascertain validity and suitability for publication. Afterward, results can be quoted by colleagues and the public and utilized to make crucial decisions. So, you see, it then behooves the scientific community to ensure that all results are valid, and authentic. Nothing less.. The world system relies on hard facts to make decisions (at least this should be the basic minimum requirement). Our judicial, legislative, and executive systems rely on or should rely on facts and evidence to influence decision making. This way, we are assured that policies have undergone various decision-making processes before arriving at a...

It was probably a day like any other; the sun, up in the sky; animals bleating and barking; the air must have smelled the same as yesterday, nothing special. The only difference being David had to take a break from tending the sheep to serve his brothers who were at the battlefield facing an intimidating enemy. 1 Sam. 17 Nothing major, however, a General, in fact, the Chief of Army staff of a world-class army fell that day and Israel got the victory. It was another sunny afternoon, houseflies taking advantage of the heat to stress the cows in the backyard as they flicked their tails driving the irritants away. Abraham, probably being driven out by the heat sat at the entrance of his tent when he noticed three men standing nearby and he proceeded to show hospitality. Gen. 18 Nothing major, however, something extraordinary took place and history was made, Isaac came to be. He was weary from his journey (Jn. 4:4-30), He had left Judea and was headed to Galilee but decided to pass ...

How do you think outside the box when there does not exist a box in the first place? How do you imagine something that has never existed before? When I am asked to think outside the box, I immediately consider a picture of imaginary boundaries around a 6-sided object which I need to set aside in my mind’s eye to consider new perspectives. This box could be past experiences or circumstances but wait, what happens when there is no box. What guides your thought process? What do you do? Sometimes, life throws us rare curve balls but I have observed that these may be pointers to God calling us to leave the shores and step into the deep. The bible is replete with disruptive, unconventional encounters of God with men and today I will be sharing a few lessons from them. Sometime in the 1 st century BC (see Luke 1), an old Jewish priest, Zechariah and his wife – Elizabeth had no children possibly due to obstetric issues. One day, while Zechariah was serving in the temple, angel Gabriel app...

Are you like me? Do you hold people to high expectations? People you have invested your time, treasure, and life in, expecting them to stick with you during your life’s darkest moments? You know, like the idiom says, ‘to whom much is given, much is expected?’ Do you expect loyalty especially where it has been sown? It only seems right, doesn’t it? Have your hopes been dashed, and you have concluded that humans are not worth it?  Then this piece here is for you. The Plot So, the plot is set in AD 33 in Gethsemane, on the outskirts of one of the oldest cities in the world, Jerusalem. Jesus had celebrated Passover with His disciples; it must have been such a solemn assembly full of mixed feelings. The Judas’ of this world having their consciences marked with guilt while the Peters’ boasted in their ability to stick long and strong. The Passover was over, and Jesus took His close buddies – Peter, James and John Zebedee to a place called Gethsemane (by the way, the name – Gethse...

Yay! Hello People, Today, I upload the final part of a 3-part series on the temptations of Jesus in the wilderness. So I remember when I was pregnant for my 2nd daughter, at some point, I could not wait for 9 months to be over. I started counting down but I also knew that it was best for that baby that she remained inside me until at least 37 completed weeks so I consoled myself with this fact. But, boy! at some point, I wished I could fast-forward the days and nights to hasten the process. Life is full of processes, for example, university degrees are not awarded after two days of attending school, they require that you spend a certain amount of time learning and being tested. Between the declaration of a thing and its manifestation lies a process. Seeking phony ways to cut short a process and arrive at your destination will most likely land you in trouble. The third (according to Matthew's account) temptation of Jesus reveals a clever plot to cause Jesus to abort a process and I ...

Hello People, So, as promised, this post is the 2nd in the 3-part series of the temptations of Jesus in the wilderness. I am particularly excited about this series because of all the juicy insights I have gleaned and their applicability in my life. I firmly believe that God's word is not just for some extraterrestrial beings somewhere in a spooky sphere but it is alive and active and is a mine of untapped treasures and riches which we must depend on to live life to its fullest and fulfill God's plan here on this side of eternity. On this note, I welcome you to the 2nd part of a 3-part series of the temptations of Jesus in the wilderness. You know I must admit, I was awestruck when my eyes opened to the subtle element of intentionality shrouded in this particular temptation. Read on and let us know if this blessed you... The Temptation of Pride   Today, we discuss the 2 nd temptation (according to Matthew’s account) of Jesus in the wilderness post-baptism. I know that the 1...