FLOWERS FOR MY FATHER

HELLOOOOOOOO!

How are you doing this first Sunday of 2025? Hope you go church?

Welcome to today’s gist.

My father turned 70 today! It’s such a big deal for us in the family and especially for me, as you can probably tell by the fact that I counted down to today from October. To have my father see today is a blessing beyond words! I know everyone says this, but truly, my dad is my hero! And today I’m going to be sharing with you a couple of lessons that I have learnt from my father.

It was in watching my father’s faith that I learned to trust God for myself; I always say that I fed on my father’s faith till I became mature enough to have faith in God for myself. Growing up, there was nothing too big or too little to bring before God; I remember coming home as a young child in early primary school and going to meet my father to tell him about needing a pencil or an eraser or some other really ‘small’ thing and my father’s response was always to ask me if I had asked God first, if I told him no, he’d tell me to go and ask God first because God would have to give him the money to give me. And immediately after I’d go tell God, my father would have the money for me. Over time, I took to just asking God first before I went ‘to save time’, I continued in that habit till I started growing up and then I understood what my father was doing –he had been pointing me to God and telling me that God must forever be the first person I take my concerns to because only He will continuously be able to meet my needs. Now I’m grown and I know to always take my concerns to God, and I think back with so much gratitude at the fact that my father expended so much energy in pointing me to God.

It was also in watching my father’s passion for God that I got to understand that there is really only one way to live –burning for God. My father’s most valuable relationship is his relationship with God and from when I was a little girl, I’ve seen my father live out this truth. Nothing keeps my father from church; rain, sun, sickness, work, sadness, tiredness… absolutely nothing. If there was a meeting in church, you’d find him there at least 30 minutes before church start, and make dem born any member of his household well, come church anything later than 5 minutes after service has started make you see! Missing wasn’t even an option! He didn’t just stop at making us come to church, he went further to teach us the importance of serving in God’s house in one way or the other, ordinary church member kwa? Better go find one unit of church join dey serve if you know wetin good for you! And gradually I began to learn that God deserves more than my coming to warm the church seat, He deserves my loving service! You know one thing wey shock me when I small? One day my pastor came to visit us and he was talking with my father, now my pastor, God rest his soul, was someone I knew my father had immense respect for, but as they were talking, the time came for my father to go have his fellowship with God, the man just stood up and told my pastor that it was time for him to go and commune with God and he left him there in the parlor and went inside! I just dey look like film! You leave Reverend Suleiman go inside say you want go do your personal devotion Sir! You know the interesting part about the whole thing? E sweet my pastor, he said he respected a man that would not let his honour for a man surpass his honour for God. That incident, and many more like it, helped me understand the importance of having a personal altar and tending to the fires without fail. My father no dey neglect time with God oo and he didn’t just do it himself, he made sure we too always spent time with God individually and we did, grudgingly at first till we got to understand the importance of spending time with God and became in love.

I was talking recently with my mum and I said that if my father had been born in bible times, him for enter record as one of the father’s of faith: I never see who get faith like my father, in all the people I’ve met in my life. One of my father’s favourite sayings is “trust God foolishly” and boy does he do that! E no get wetin you want tell the man oo, my father dey hold God! No matter how dire a situation looks, no matter how much giving up seems like the better option, you can be sure that if there’s only one person standing and holding onto God’s promise concerning a matter, that person is Dr Salifu, the man faith no dey waver! There have been times in my family when we’d be trusting God for something and as time dey go, everybody faith go start dey shake but you see my father? Nothing go move the man! And he’ll stay holding God till the fulfillment of the promise comes. And while my father dey do that one, he still reminds us that “No” is also a very valid answer from God too! He taught me to balance having faith with submitting to God’s will, a lesson I’m always grateful to have learnt every time I face the fact that God’s will in a matter is different from what I was hoping for.

I could go on and on about the lessons I’ve learned from my father in my almost 26 years of being his daughter but I’ll stop here and I pray that you too learn a thing or two from the lessons my father’s life has taught me. Please, whenever you read this, do say a prayer of blessing over my father, thanks and God bless!

TUNES AND THOUGHTS: Our song today is "He knows my name" by Tommy Walker. This song is a reminder of God’s unquantifiable love, a love that is personal to you as an individual, a love that calls you His and bids you come. I pray that as you listen, you are reminded again of God’s great love for you.

Well, that is that about that as far as that is concerned. We are, hopefully, back to our weekly Thursday gists so see you on Thursday.

 

Love,

Achenyo.