You Are In The Nest

In this episode of "You Are In The Nest," the speaker emphasizes the importance of taking care of oneself and giving thanks to God, as everything works together for good. They encourage the listener to affirm that everything is working in their favor, just as Joseph did in his difficult circumstances. The speaker then discusses the qualities of an eagle, explaining that their strength and confidence come from the battles they face in the nest. They highlight the importance of mental strength and preparation for facing life's challenges. The speaker concludes by discussing the significance of the threshing floor, where the grain is separated from the straw, and encourages listeners to stay tough and face their circumstances in order to become resilient champions. Hey, good people. Welcome to part 2 of You Are In The Nest. You Are In The Nest. I really want to appreciate you for taking time out of your busy schedule to listen to this podcast, understanding the fact that we are in the jet age where everything is moving so fast as we try to keep up with life. We juggle between two jobs, trying to make ends meet, family demanding our attention, and so much more. So many things pulling us left, right, and center. But I really want to tell you something. Please take it easy. Take it easy and take good care of yourself. Hope life is treating you kind. Whatever you are in your journey, give thanks to God. For we know that everything works together for good to them that love God and are called according to His purpose. Romans 8 28. Everything works out together for good. Everything works out together for good. Even the so-called the bad time and whatever, it's still working out for good. Whether the enemy likes it or not, whatever they throw at you is working for your good. It's working for your good. Let me share with you this powerful affirmation. No matter how tough the situation may be, declare it over yourself. Declare it over that situation and say everything is working in my favor. That's a powerful affirmation. Everything is working in my favor. This will work in my favor. You know that was what Joseph told his brother when he finally revealed himself to his brother. If you remember the story of Joseph very well, that guy went through a lot of hardship just because of his dream. His brother planned to kill him. They threw him in the pit and finally they sold him to Egypt not knowing that they were selling Joseph into his destiny. And that's what I'm talking about. They never knew that they are cooperating with Joseph's destiny to get into where he should be. Declare it over yourself. You may not understand what is going on in your life right now. It may look as if the enemy is winning whatever it is in your office, at school, wherever it is. Declare it over yourself. This will work in my favor. That's what Joseph said. He told his brother, you meant it for evil but this works in my favor. And watch how God returns things around. How God returns the situation around in your favor. Believe me. Keep on keeping on and don't allow anything or anyone to demoralize you as you continue to journey. I pray you find wisdom in this episode that will benefit your life as you journey in this great ocean of life. I was born to conquer. I was born to reign. I was born to shine. I was born. Yes indeed. I was born. That's my affirmation. You need an affirmation that resonates with your spirit, with your soul, that you recite over yourself. You bless yourself with it. You shower yourself with it every day, every day. This strengthens you, gives you a positive outlook as you continue your day. Once again, welcome to part two of you are in the nest. As I continue to unravel the mysteries in the nest and I believe that it's going to bless your life and move your life forward in whatever direction that you are going. All right. Now, you will agree with me that the quality of a product is determined by what is put into it. The quality of any product is determined by what is put into it in the making of that product. So are champions made. The qualities of your life is determined by what you are made of. And that is what I want to unravel in this episode. Yeah. What makes you? What makes us? If you have listened to part one, I talked about the significance of the fight that takes place in the eagle's nest. If you really understand the eagle, if you have studied the eagle very well, well, this fight takes place not because of not enough food, but it's a fight for dominance. It's a fight for survival. How this happens, I don't know. Only God can tell. But all I know in my own research is this young eaglet at the early stage, they're going to turn against each other. Now, if the eagle lays three eggs, the chances of all the three eaglets taking off into the sky is very slim because of this fierce battle that happens in the nest. This battle for survival I think this is just how God wired the DNA of this eagle. And I believe this is what makes the eagle outstanding because they are coming from a place of preparation. They're going to face each other. They're going to fight the fight of death. Whoever wins and take off into the sky is going into the world with a winning mental attitude, depending on whichever survives. Sometimes they could fight till it's a win-win. But whichever one survives and take off into the sky is leaving the nest as a child. He has fought the greatest battle of his life. You can imagine an eaglet as young as they are engaging in such kind of battle at an early stage of their life. Imagine how this forms the mental attitude of this bird. So these birds are just not the king of the sky for nothing. They are coming from a place of preparation. Let no one think that this bird will be a pushover. Why? Because he's been tried and tested. He's been tried and tested. So let nobody think he's going to be a pushover. No. No, no, no, no. A thousand no. Do you know why? That's what winning does for you. That's what happens when you pass the test, when you overcome, when you have fought the good fight of fate. It boosts your confidence. It boosts your confidence. When you pass your test, it boosts your confidence. Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. You see, we see this bird as a rugged and a courageous bird, not knowing that so much has been invested in the making of the eagle. The eagle is coming from a place of preparation. You see, these are factors that make this bird what they are. If you have listened to the second episode of I Was Born, I talked about how the eagle builds their nest. The eagle's nest is not built with comfort in mind. It's an open nest where rain, storm, the sun beat them up there. Listen, I don't know who needs to hear this. Before you emerge, before you get to your place of elevation, there is a place of preparation. There is a place of preparation that you have to go through. And this is why the eagle can dare anything. They've been exposed to so many things in the nest. The nest is what prepares the eagle. They are exposed to the rain, they are exposed to the storm, and sometimes they are exposed to other predators. Because the nest is open, so they are vulnerable, especially when their mother is not around. Sometimes they have to defend themselves. So this bird understands how to survive. Let me tell you something that I've come to understand about life. The universe is mental and life is mental. And they that will approach life must approach it with a corresponding mental attitude. Corresponding mental attitude. You don't learn it at school. How to navigate through life is not embedded in our school curriculum. No, we don't learn it at school. There is no faculty of life's lessons in college. You have to go through it to experience it. You have to go through life. You have to go through some stuff to experience what life is, to experience it. And that is why it's been said that experience is the best teacher. Experience is the best teacher. If there is anything that I need you to understand in this episode, it's that you got to be mentally strong for you to survive out there. For you to be the man that God has destined you to be. Because the world you're about to face is the survival of the fittest. It's not for the weak, nor for the feeble. Only the strong survive. You need a positive mental attitude. And the only way to get it is through what you're going through right now. It's to strengthen you. That's how winning mindset, that is how positive mindset is built through adversity. Don't run away from it. Face it. Winners don't run away from adversity. Being a champion is not about how much punch you can throw. What makes a champion is how much you can get hit. It's not about how hard you can hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward without giving up. So to survive out there it's not bread and butter. Only the strong survive. Bob Marley said you never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have. And that's what makes the ego the king of the sky. When they survive the nest and take off into the sky those guys are unstoppable. So where you at right now you got to pass the test. You got to face it. You got to go through it to experience it. That's what makes a champion. Little things hit some guys up. Life checks you out and they could not survive. Some go into depression thinking to rise no more. Why? Because they are not prepared for this. Show me your scar and I will tell you who you are. Show me your scar and I will tell you the mountains that you can climb. You got to stay tough. Life will throw stuff at you. That's what I'm talking about. Life will throw stuff at you. Can you stand it? I'm talking about you are in the nest. The place of preparation. The threshing floor where the grain is separated from the straw. I don't know what your next may be right now. I don't know what you're going through. I don't know your circumstances. I don't know your situation. It may be different from mine of course. I've shared my story from the first episode. How we were being maltreated by our stepmother. You don't want to come home. Home is not a place you want to go. That was my threshing floor where the grain is separated from the straw as gold passes through the fairy furnace before it shines forth. Everybody loves gold. Everybody loves gold. But gold doesn't shine without the fire, without the furnace. And that's what makes gold admirable. The process that this shining object went through to become what it is. That's what I'm talking about. The threshing floor. I remember what Joe said in Job 23 10. When he was going through his trial, he said, after he has tried me, I will come forth as gold. Job 23 10. He understood the place of preparation, of trial. Here it is. What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. What doesn't kill you builds you up. Adversities are blessings in disguise. Believe me, it is the wing by which we fly. Because that is what sharpens us. It sharpens us. It builds character. Adversity builds character. That is when you know what you are made of. That is when you know your strength. That's why the Bible says, if you faint in the days of adversity, your strength is small. Your strength is small. Most of our characters are formed through accumulations of experiences. And when I say experience, I mean, I'm talking about those years of struggle. What we've been through and overcome. The sink and swim moments that we encounter on our path, the backstabbing, the betrayal, the loneliness, the defeat and the victory, the setbacks and comeback moments, these are things that constitute to our overall outlook on life, either as a failure or as a victor. This is where we build the mindset that we take into the world, especially from our early stage in life. Just like those eaglets had an encounter of their life at a very early stage. And that is what builds the mindset of the eagle. When they take off into the sky, boom, those guys are going as champ. So depending on the circumstances that you grow up, and that is one of the things that forms our mindset, our mental attitude towards life. You know, we all come from different backgrounds. My background, we're just an average family, but I was born into struggle, born to survive. My dad was doing well, is able to provide, but somebody is there. My stepmother is just out there making like a living hell, rationing food, making sure that you get into trouble with my dad so that you can get beaten. She will orchestrate problems to get you beaten. We get beaten almost every day. Coupled with those chores that we go through every day from school, and by the time you go through all this, you know, you are so tired, you can't even, it's very hard for you to do your homework or your assignment. We have to travel long distance to go get water in the river. It wasn't easy. So that's my own circumstance. Some are born with silver spoon, all they see is wealth and riches. Well, that's good enough. And some are born without a silver spoon, but today they are able to rise above that situation. You might be born in the ghetto, but that does not define your end. You might be born without a silver spoon, but that does not define your end. That's not your final destination. That's why the Bible said, though your beginning may be small, but your later end shall be great. But we got to be mindful and be careful we don't drown in our situation. And I believe sometimes God just puts you in a situation just because of where he's taking you to, just because of your destiny. When I was growing up, you know, some of my mates at school that are living well, living a luxurious life, you know, cats dropping them at school, cats coming to fetch them, you know, to pick them up at school. We have to walk down to school. Back in the days, I would look at them. I'm like, why can't I be like these guys? What have we done wrong? What have I done wrong? But you know what? As I began to grow, the struggle opened me up to life and I began to think within my spirit that I'm going to be a great person. If I cannot get it now, I'm going to get it for myself. If I'm being denied of it now, I'm going to get it myself. And that began to turn my mind around. I turned my life around as I began to journey in life. So it does not matter the circumstances surrounding you right now, surrounding your birth, what you're going through right now. Believe me, you can turn your own life around. Whatever situation that you are in right now, you are in the next. It's a place of preparation. You either rise above it or you let it drown you. And that is why I believe if you're tuning into this podcast, it's not by accident. It's not by mistake because I've been sent to talk to you. You know, I remember back in the days I told myself, I promised myself, I promised me that I'm going to share my story to be a blessing to upcoming generation who might be going through similar circumstances. No matter what state you are, you can turn your life around with God, with God on your side as you hold on to God. Because that was my anchor. God was my anchor. As we began to grow, I knew that the only way I could get out of this place is to go to college. College is the only exit to escape. We can't run away from it. We have to face it. That is the only exit. If we run away from the house, run away from the battle, run away from the hardship, you lose your education. My dad is not going to do anything about your life or about your education. And you know, to climb the ladder of success, you need some basic education. You run away from it, my dad gives up on you, he's not going to send you to school. So the only way out, face it and go to college. That's your exit. Period. And I came out from low self-esteem. This, you know, what we went through affected me mentally to the point that I lost my self-esteem. I felt I was nobody. But at a point, the Spirit of God began to rise in me and I began to see myself in a different light. I became aggressive to succeed. I see nothing but to succeed. I see nothing but greatness ahead of me. So for me, I can't be more than thankful to God for allowing me the opportunity to go through what I went through. I am so thankful it made me the man I have become. It wasn't easy, but it was worth it. Back then, you're like, those are moments where you are like, you wish you were never born. Why is my life like this? Why do I have to go through this? What's going on with me? Maybe I'm paying for the sins of my past life. You know, it was like all hell was breaking loose. You imagine as a little boy, you don't feel like coming home. Most times I cried, coming home. But look at me today. I'm on my way up. I'm reaching for the star. I'm not there yet. But through it all, I've paid the price. I've gone through the nest. I've gone through the place of preparation. I've gone through the threshing floor. You know, like David said in Psalm 117 verse 71, he said, David said, it was good that I was afflicted that I might lend your statues. Hmm. That was the guy that spent most of his adult life in the wilderness, even though he had been anointed as the next king of Israel. Even though God has reserved the throne for David, he was anointed as the king of Israel. Yet all hell broke loose against David. In fact, it looks as if if I was David, I would have said, was it because of the anointing that was upon my life? That was why this has to happen. Yes. Yes. The greater your destiny, the greater the ordeal. It looks, it seems like life was designed that way. I don't know why, I don't know how, but it looks like life, life is just designed that way. All hell broke loose against David. He was taken to the wilderness. That was his own place of preparation. That was his threshing floor. He lived in the jungle as a shepherd boy. He lives in loneliness, physical hardship, mental stress, and uncertain future. Imagine being anointed as a king. They told you you are the king and here you are in the wilderness. Are you going to be king of the sheep or what? I don't know who is listening to me. It looks like you're facing an uncertain future. You can't even understand what's going on. You don't even know whether you'll make it through. You're not even sure of your life. Hear me, God is working on you to make you what he wants you to be. You know, David was eventually brought to limelight by his encounter with Goliath. That was what announced David. God was busy preparing David for the greatest battle of his life. While his brothers were having fun in the city, but he was in the wilderness. And I believe somebody is listening to this now. Let this propel you. Let it strengthen you. Where you are is not to drown you, so don't let it. It's a place of preparation. That's your nest. While he was in the wilderness, God was busy orchestrating Goliath, organizing the battle for David. So he showed up just like that, but prepared. He showed just like that. He just showed up. He showed up, but God has already prepared him. I had someone say, I will study and prepare myself. One day, my chance will come. Your chance is going to come. Your biggest battle always precedes your biggest breakthrough. So don't you ever give up. Don't you ever give up. You are in the nest. This I understood at the very early stage of my life. And this gave me a positive outlook on life. You see, about that time was the story of Nelson Mandela. Remember back in the days, the slogan free Mandela in back in the 80s, how Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for the freedom of his people in South Africa. I was a little, a young boy at that time. That was about the time we were going through all this at home. He chooses to go to jail over his own freedom when he was on trial because the apartheid government believed he was causing chaos and they want to shut him down. He was arraigned before the court to be tried because he was given the option, shut up your mouth, go home and keep quiet. Forget about the struggle or you go to jail. Here's what Nelson Mandela said and I quote, he said, this is an ideal for which I am prepared to die for. This is an ideal for which I am prepared to die for. 27 years in jail was the price he paid for greatness. I keyed into his struggle. I keyed into the struggle of Nelson Mandela because it resonates with my spirit. I could relate with that story because I was also yearning for freedom. I was, I believe I was fighting for something. My spirit was yearning for freedom. My spirit was yearning. Something in me tells me, no, this is not how life should be. It could be better than this. So within me, I was having my own fight for freedom. I wanted to be free from the oppression of my stepmother. I want to leave home. I could relate to his struggle. This kept me going. While Nelson Mandela was incarcerated, he refuses to give up on his dream. Even though they tried to silence him by confining him in the walls of the jail cell, his vision still speaks volumes outside of the wall of the jail cell. The world was clamoring for free Mandela because this was a man who refuses to give up. I would die for this, not even going to jail. If I have to die, I die. That's what I'm talking about. That's the attitude. If I die, I die. I would rather die trying than not to try at all. I would rather face the struggle than to remain where I am. So if you are out there listening to me, keep on fighting, keep on moving, keep on keeping up. He was finally free, becoming the first black president of South Africa at the age of 75 years old. He was willing to pay the price. He was my childhood hero. He fought the good fight. So you either come out with a winning mindset or a defeated mindset. So this is one thing that makes the ego outstanding coming out of the nest with a winning mindset. That is why the ego can dare anything. So the question is what kind of mindset are you taking out there into the world? Because the world is as you see it. And how you see the world is largely dependent on where you're coming from or where you're emerging from. Either from a place of victory or a defeated mindset. These are things that builds our perception of life. As a young boy, having survived both physical and mental torture and hunger, I came out with a never say die attitude. Bulldog kind of spirit. You can run me over. I would stand my ground. I was determined to succeed. I see adversity as a tool for elevation. And that experience is the driving force that is propelling me towards great. I'm not there yet, but I know I will. So to all the young folks out there listening to me, you might be going through a hard time or facing a difficult situation right now. People may look down on you, see you as a nobody or maybe you can barely survive right now. Listen to this. You're coming out better, stronger and wiser. I promise you that. You are in your place of preparation. God is working on you. The Bible says we should endure hardness as a good soldier of Christ. 2 Timothy 2, 3 to 6. Let me leave you with a quote from Albert Einstein. There is only one road to human greatness through the school of hard knocks. Remember, winners don't quit and quitters don't win. This was the major lesson I learned from Nelson Mandela. Until next time, I was born to conquer. I was born to reign. I was born to shine. I was born. Keep on winning. Keep on shining. See you at the top.