To say that the only thing that unifies Nigerians is sports is not an exaggeration. If you want to be specific, football helps Nigerians to forget their differences, even if momentarily. The build-up to AFCON finals was not only intriguing, it was exhilarating, hope-instilling and as well disappointing. That is the name of the game. Some must smile while others agonise.

Verbal or written, communication has some silent rules worthy of attention. Many times we think we communicate when in actual sense we don’t. If you can, make your message as short and simple as possible because the attention span of most people is very short, particularly if you don’t have the skill to retain their attention in the first few lines. Desirable as it is to make your message as precise as possible, your message may also be short and still not communicate if it fails the simple rules test. If you use the right words and emotional connection, your message can be fairly long and well digested.

I used to have a boss. If you pronounce her name wrongly, she finds it highly offensive but she could still pardon you, particularly if you are not from her tribe or country but if you misspell her name, she would not even read your document at all. Truly and truly, if you want to get my attention, I won’t be asking for too much to request that you write my name correctly or at least pronounce my name in a dignifying manner without making me feel less of myself.

If you see an ardent football lover who is also a believer and moral crusader, he cares less about the faith the defenders of his preferred team profess. The tattoo on the body of his best striker does not matter to him. All he wants to see is a harvest of goals but none against his preferred team. Pray you don’t have an ailing daughter who needs an emergency surgery. The gender of the surgeon to open her up will not be an issue. The relevant question will be if the surgeon is a specialist in his/her field of medicine. Music is tonic to the soul. If you are a lover of music, you would have started humming and dancing to the music of a gifted musician before you realise the singer is an “unbeliever”. His inward and outward appearance is not too important.

Nothing good comes easy. Of all the rules of life, love stands tall. Even the book of life, The Bible, commanded that you should love your neighbour as yourself. It sounds easy but it is not as easy as it sounds to love. Nobody said it’s going to be easy but love is a beautiful thing. Difficult as it is to love your neighbour, it is more difficult for you to measure your love for yourself because no one is complaining of lack of love. Before you can love your neighbour, the first rule you must obey is to love yourself. If you are not the vigilant type, you may get carried away trying to show love to others without observing the first rule. It has repercussions.

Welcome to 2024. You might have achieved all your goals and more for 2023. Maybe you met it half way. It could also be that the hope for the realisation of your goals for 2023 was deferred. Own the moment, every season is for a reason. There are several reasons your goals might not have been achieved or delayed. Maybe you had some disappointments. Or perhaps you experienced scarcity of resources, but what if I tell you that abundance does not equate the fulfillment of purpose? If you have ever experienced scarcity, you would readily wish it away. I also would but there are more lessons to learn in scarcity than when there is more than enough of anything. Optimise your moment of lack so you don’t miss it when there is abundance.

The sun rises and sets just like every other day but the feeling is different. The moon glows to herald the twilight as typical of the day but the atmosphere is different. The stars glitter to attract the beauty of the skies but the excitement is different. It’s a season of love, a season of giving, a season of sharing. It is more than religion, it transcends faith. The season is not conscious of race, it is not colour sensitive, neither does it respect geographical boundaries.

It was a moment of sweet nostalgia for me yesterday as I was The Guest of Honour at the enrollment and rededication service of the 14th Company of the Boys’ & Girls’ Brigade of Nigeria in my home church, St Philip’s Anglican Church, Aramoko Ekiti. Seeing the young boys and girls being enrolled to the Company drew tears of joy from me as I recalled how earnestly I desired to be a member of the 14th Company of The Boys’ Brigade of Nigeria many years back. The experience was particularly humbling and exciting for me as I inspected the parade as The Guest of Honour when I remembered that as a growing child, I was a member of this particular Company, a moment I cherished as a young boy programmed for Christ.

I am delighted to introduce my new book, Feathers of Hope. Feathers of Hope is a perfect gift of hope you can give yourself or anyone you love and care about who places a high premium on self-development and relationship building. It is a practical guide to self-discovery and rediscovery. This handbook is particularly unique as it provides you with an inspirational message for each of the 365 days that make a year. Culled from my daily teachings, this book will help you navigate life’s challenges and strengthen your relationship with people towards achieving lasting success.

When reality dawns, the thing you never imagined could happen becomes a topical issue. That is a good time to appreciate the omnipresence of the Almighty as the only all-knowing God. The news was shocking but it is real, after all, that Pastor Taiwo has transited. His good life was long enough. Some people come into your life and become simply irresistible. Such was the story of Pastor Taiwo in my life. I came to Fountain of Life Church as a wedding guest in 1999. My wife (then my fiancée) invited me to her friend’s elder sister’s wedding. I had my local church at the time. It only took Pastor Taiwo to give the message to the newly wedded couple and I surrendered to his spiritual mentorship without any prompt. After the message, I looked at my wife and she looked at me. The message was clear. We have found our local church.