The Nation Newspaper

Category: Sunday magazine

  • Toyin Igbira battles illness

    Toyin Abraham’s name definitely rings a bell in Lagos social circles. She is a Lagos socialite, who is popularly called Toyin Igbira, and has been arrested many times for drug trafficking offences. Well, the news making the rounds is that all may not be well with the health of the mother of three and she is said to be hibernating abroad where she is receiving medical treatment.

    In her hey days, popular musicians sang her praise to high heavens. Igbira owns comfortable houses in Abuja, Lagos and the United States. She cherishes the company of highly-placed people and mingles with them. Her love for expensive jewellery, customised diamond ensembles and exotic cars is legendary.

  • Solveig Ojora stays put abroad

    Solveig Ojora stays put abroad

    FOR many who have been asking about the whereabouts of Sloveig, the widow of the late Gbegi Ojora, the popular son of Otunba and Erelu Ojora, we can tell you for free that the soft-spoken lady who is of Norwegian and Nigerian descent has relocated abroad.

    Sources say she could not get over the death of the man she had loved all her life, coupled with the gruesome murder of her father, Ahmed Onipede, who was a former special adviser to the former Lagos State governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, at his Badagry residence a year prior to Gbegi’s demise.

    Solveig, sources say, now lives abroad with her only son. Gbegi, who died three years ago, meant different things to different people, but one thing is clear: he was loved by all he came across because of his large-heartedness. He was loving, caring and accommodating. He was not haughty because he came from a rich home. Rather, he was humble.

  • Let your nails speak

    Let your nails speak

    HAVE you ever given a thought to why some people seem to have such gorgeous and inviting nails? How your fingernails look can tell or reveal a lot about you; if your whole being is healthy it will radiate on your face and fingernails.

    The entire skin, especially your fingernails, need to be taken good care of, they need to be pampered.

    Painted fingers are meant to suit and enhance looks. The essence of nail treatment and painting is to make the hand look sexy, cute and pleasant.

    However, a good number of women nowadays abuse their nails in a bid to beautify. Apart from having nail polish of different colours, some use wrong colours.

    Do not go for colour because others are into it, rather go for colour that suits your look and that blends with your wears. Too much nail polish of different colours will create a negative meaning.

    If you wish to have these perfect, alluring and inviting nails look at the following steps:

     

    •Moisten your hand with lotion

    Moisturise the nail bed and the cuticle-While there is little in the way of medical data showing that moisturising the nail bed will help nails grow, it can make cuticles look better and help protect nails from breaking due to a lack of moisture. Putting oil around the cuticle helps moisturize the entire nail, which will reduce the incidence of chipping, cracking, and splitting.

     

    •Avoid acetone-based polish removers.

    The one product that all dermatologists agree you should avoid if you have brittle nails is acetone nail polish remover. It has been documented time and again that it strips the nails, causing them to become brittle.

     

    • Don’t cut your cuticles

    Do not tear/cut your cuticles, this will break the layer of the skin and cause injury; instead look for remover or cuticle clips. Whether you have your nails professionally groomed or do them yourself, the No. 1 recommendation is leave your cuticles alone. The cuticle is the natural barrier to fungus and bacteria

     

    •Minimize the use of extensions {artificial}nails.

    •Keep your nails trimmed, either artificial or not.

    •After washing with harsh soap, moisten your hand with cream moisturizing lotion.

    •Your nail polish should be determined by what you wear and the occasion.

  • ‘Why many are spiritually blind’

    The Presiding Pastor of Christ Chosen Church of God, Pastor Isaac Balogun, has declared Nigerians must overcome spiritual blindness to achieve destiny.

    He blamed blindness on spiritual apathy, saying Christians must be alert to get the best of God.

    Balogun spoke last weekend in Port Harcourt when he was consecrated as the Senior Apostle of Christ Chosen Church of God, Nkpolu, Rivers State.

    In a chat with The Nation after the ceremony, the cleric said only living in the counsel of God will help man overcome all his numerous challenges.

    He attributed his elevation to God and commitment to kingdom affairs.

    Balogun said: “I want to thank God for giving me the opportunity to serve Him. To be frank, He has been a good God for me and my family.

    “My elevation today has been dedicated to God, but one thing I will not forget to say before Him is that He made the journey so easy for me.

    “The authority of the church finds me worthy of the crown but who am I to wear this crown?”

    He called on other ministers to remain faithful, assuring that they would be elevated in no time.

  • Wise associations

    He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm. (Proverbs 13:20)

    If you’re going to get the most out of your life, you’ve got to learn to recognise dangerous relationships, then know how to walk away from them. Be more discerning about the company you keep! Sever any tie that strangles or limits you!

    Why? Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” (1Corinthians 15:33)

    A dangerous relationship is like a leg with gangrene; if you don’t amputate it, the infection can cost you your life. Unless you have the Wisdom and the Courage to cut off what won’t heal – you would eventually end up losing a lot more, because whoever cannot increase you, will eventually Decrease you.

    Have you heard the story about the scorpion who asked the frog to carry him across the river because he couldn’t swim?

    The frog said, “If I carry you on my back you’ll sting me”. “The scorpion replied, “If I did that, we’d both drown. “The frog thought about it, found it convincing and told him to hop on. But when they were halfway across the river the scorpion stung him anyway. As they were both drowning the frog said in disbelief, “You promised you wouldn’t; why did you sting me? “The scorpion replied, “I can’t help it; it’s my nature to sting!”

    Today ask God to help you discern the dangerous relationships’ in your life and to give you the strength to disconnect from them. Your future depends on it!

    Re-evaluate your life and friendships

    Isaiah the great prophet could not commence the task that God called him to do until King Uzziah died:

    In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple

    (Isaiah 6:1)

    Abraham has to separate from Lot before God reveals Abraham’s inheritance to him.

    The LORD said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. (Genesis 13: 14-15)

    Unwise relationships and associations have destroyed the potential and the abilities of multiplied thousands of could-be winners.

    Below are few criteria on how to distinguish an enemy from a friend:

    Four characteristics of an enemy

    •Those who are more critical than they are complimentary and encouraging

    •Those who belittle and laugh at your God given dreams and goals

    •Those who embarrass and humiliate you

    •Those who drain your energy and waste your time through useless conversation:

    Four Qualities of wise associations

    •Those who speak words that builds your faith and confidence.

    •Those who see the worthiness of your God given dreams and goals

    •Those who become enthusiastic when you enter their presence

    •Those who remind you of your special gifts and abilities

    Become more selective, connect with anyone who celebrates you and disconnect from anyone who tolerates you.

    Pray this with me

    Dearest Father,

    Please give me the wisdom to choose friends who are godly. I pray that you would take anyone who is not a godly influence out of my life or else transform that person into your likeness. Take away any loneliness or low self-esteem that would cause me to seek out less than God-glorifying relationships.

    In Jesus’ name I pray that you would teach me the meaning of true friendship, teach me how to be a good friend and make strong, close lasting relationships. May each of my friendships always glorify You. annetheevangelist@yahoo.com

  • Engaging prayer and fasting for financial fortune!

    Recognize that prayer and fasting on their own, do not guarantee financial fortune. But they provide a platform for accessing supernatural wealth.

    How do prayer and fasting empower believers for financial fortune?

    This is a good question, particularly if you have heard me say that God’s prosperity plan has no respect for prayer and fasting, because it is a covenant.

    •Every provision of the Kingdom is only accessible by revelation: Understand that revelation is the key to every provision in the Kingdom and financial fortune is one of the provisions of redemption (2 Corinthians 8:9).

    Every of our inheritance is only accessible by revelation and prayer and fasting are boosters of revelation. Until we can see it, we cannot access it. Until we can see it, it cannot be given to us (Genesis 13:14-15).

    So, God’s Word is the highway to our inheritance, because every of our inheritance is only deliverable through revelation (2 Peter 1:3). Prayer and fasting are the spiritual platforms for outbreak of revelation. There are certain things we may not get, except we are in a fast. Why? There is a blindfolding force from hell that is against our breaking forth in revelation (2 Corinthians 4:4).

    There are certain things we will never believe, until revelation dawns. The devil does not want that to happen, so he blocks our access. Some of these hindrances will never go, except by prayer and fasting. So, prayer and fasting enhance our access to the needed revelation to access our provisions in redemption, which includes financial fortune.

    •Every story of financial breakthrough is traceable to divine guidance: Divine guidance is a vital gateway to realms of financial fortune. We become spiritually sensitive to divine leadings in prayer and fasting. Every supernatural breakthrough is traceable to divine guidance, because when God leads the way, all the gates will lift up their heads.

    •Abraham was guided into realms of financial fortune. When the Lord is leading, He guides us into realms of irresistible breakthroughs. When the Lord is our Shepherd, we shall not want. Goodness and mercy shall follow us (Psalm 23:1-2).

    •We engage prayer and fasting to cast out opposing forces standing on our path to financial fortune: There are forces that are sitting on people’s destiny that won’t let them lift up their heads. In the course of our prayer and fasting, we are to cast out the forces of wickedness sitting on our destiny of prosperity. (Zechariah 1:21).

    •So, we dislodge the horns of the gentiles in prayer and fasting. We destroy oppositions to any aspect of our destiny, including our financial lives, in prayer and fasting. Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:21).

    •We engage prayer and fasting to access higher dimensions of grace: We access grace in prayer, but we access great grace in prayer and fasting. It takes grace to align with the covenant demands of financial fortune.

    You need grace to be a giver, particularly when you are in need. That kind of grace was upon the Macedonian church (2 Corinthians 8:1-3).

    The altar of prayer is the throne of grace; we obtain grace to help in the time of need (Hebrews 4:16). So, it takes grace to be a tireless giver. Prayer and fasting, on their own, do not entitle us to financial fortune; they entitle our access to the provision by revelation, so that God can be committed to confirming it in our lives, particularly as we engage in the demands. In other words, we access the grace to align tirelessly with the demands of the Covenant from the altar of prayer and fasting.

     

    I know this teaching has blessed you. Write and share your testimony with me through: Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, P.M.B. 21688, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria; or call 7747546-8; or E-mail: feedback@lfcww.org

  • Nobody can stop the gospel, says Foursquare scribe

    No amount of oppositions, hostilities and conspiracies can stop the spread of the gospel within and outside Nigeria, the National Secretary of the Foursquare Gospel Church in Nigeria, Rev. Ikechukwu Ugbaja, has stated.

    He said the gospel is a living organism that is unstoppable by the “forces of arms and human hostilities.”

    Ugbaja spoke last week with newsmen at the Yaba National Headquarters of the church on the forthcoming International Conference for Ministers and Leaders (ICML) organised by the church.

    The conference with the theme making maximum impact holds from April 14-19 at Foursquare Camp Ajebo, Ogun State.

    Asked to comment on the ceaseless attacks against churches and Christian communities in the north, Ugbaja said those who imagine they can wipe out the gospel through the arms of flesh and ammunition are mistaken.

    He said persecutions strengthen and fortify the church as against the extinction agenda of the attackers.

    The cleric assured: “The gospel is here to stay. Nobody can exterminate Christianity out of this land. The gospel is a living organism that cannot be stopped by the forces of arms and human hostilities.”

    On the ongoing national conference, Ugbaja stated that Nigeria would emerge from the exercise stronger and better.

    He said the confab is necessary after 100 years of experiment, stating that Nigerians need to come together to discuss whether the project is working or not.

    “Nigeria is evolving and will work because it is still under construction. We’d get there by the grace of God and Nigeria will work,” he said in response to whether or not the nation is working.

    He blamed the woes of the country on leadership, arguing that “when God intends to transform a leader, he focuses on leadership. When you get the right leaders, everything else falls into place.”

    Ugbaja stated that the conference, which over 10,000 workers, leaders and pastors of the church have already registered for, would have 23 plenary sessions focusing on leadership skill development for family, generational thinking and stamina for ministry.

    There would also be 19 learning tracks, 26 units/groups and 13 regional Discipling A Whole Nation (DAWN) presentations.

    56 speakers are expected at the conference including the General Overseer of the church, Rev Felix Meduoye, Prof. Yemi Osibajo, Rev Nahor, Prof. Vuyani Ntintili from South Africa and Rev. Mike Adegbile.

  • SU seeks prosecution of sexual abusers

    The Scripture Union of Nigeria has called for concerted efforts to combat the rising wave of sexual abuse of young people.

    It urged churches and parents to collaborate to prevent further sexual abuses and bring offenders to book.

    The National Coordinator of the group, Michael Ayodele, stated this during a media parley in Lagos.

    Ayodele said: ‘‘We call on all churches and religious bodies in the country to rise up and join this fight against evil and injustice against our children who it is our mandate by God to bring up in the fear and nurture of God.

    “That such evil is occurring in the church is a slap on our face and showing its occurrence among pastors and church leaders is a worse pain inflicted on our Holy God.

    “The church should be in the fore front of this fight to save our children and uphold our testimony.

    “While the occurrence of sexual abuse by pastors and church leaders, the silence or  inaction  to respond to such pastors to bring then to book is unacceptable and seems to confirm our connivance with evil.”

    He added: “We are saying that the voice of the church should be louder and discipline of culprits should be stronger to deter others from it.

    “Parents must therefore adopt positive parenting and properly educate their children adequately on social evils of our time and the way to prevent the children from them.’’

  • ‘God would visit Nigeria in anger’

    God will soon visit the nation and avenge the many injustices against the masses, the General Overseer of the Wind and Fire Christian Ministry Lagos, Prophet Azibuke Okoro, has declared.

    He warned leaders against acts of impunity, saying the grace of God has been overstretched over their lives.

    Okoro, who lamented the epileptic power supply across the country, said God has run out of patience with leaders over the exploitation of the masses.

    According to him: “The wind has already blown and God said His grace is expired on Nigeria.

    “He said I should tell all Nigerians to engage in incessant prayers and forsake their evil ways.

    “The recent stampede of the immigration applicants is part of the impunity we are talking about. If the nation had set its priority right, Nigeria would not have been in such a mess.

    “God said he will move in Nigeria with His strong hand. The wicked people have provoked me to anger with their sacrifices of innocent blood.”

  • Theme: It is not over!

    Theme: It is not over!

    Text: “…..there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again…..”(Job 14:7)

    When we take a cursory look at what is happening around us in the polity at such a time viz turbulence of politics, gross economic instability, unsecured security system across the length and breadth of the nation, unreliable transportation system, pervasive job insecurity, gross unemployment, public sectors taking turn to go on strike and avoidable human losses consequent on ill-equipped health sector, it is logical to harbor the thoughts of fear, dejection and hopelessness. We might actually begin to look at ourselves as failures or consider our nation as a failed state.

    Beloved in Christ, there is no bad case with God. There is no failed life or state before God! He has promised us that if only people called by His name can call on Him with humility and turn from our evil ways, He will hear from heaven, forgive our sins and heal our land (2 Chro. 7:14). Whenever we call on God and forsake our pervasive evil ways, He is able and willing to turn things around for us. He said that with men (family, leaders, security officers etc) some things are impossible, but with Him all things are possible (Matt. 19:26; Mk. 9:23).

    From our passage, God promised that there is no hopeless case with him. In fact, He said even a dead tree that had been cut down has hope of springing back to life. He said that even if the root of a tree has waxed old in the earth and the stock has died but the scent of water will bring it back to life.

    The Almighty God is God of all flesh with whom nothing is impossible (Jer. 32:27). He was the One who created the heaven and earth (John 1:3; Col. 1:16-17). From His glorious antecedents, there is nothing He cannot do. When the Israelites had no food and water to drink in the wilderness, He made ways where there was none – they had quails from heaven and water came from the Rock.

    When the Egyptians continued to harass the Israelites on their way to the Promised land, the Almighty God intervened and fought for them. The Red Sea that opened for them to pass through was the burial ground of their pursuers.

    Beloved, the Almighty God is a man of war (Exodus 15:3). Whenever you call on Him, He would intervene in your case, provide for you, change your story, restore your lost grounds and fight your battles for you (Joel 2:25). He has promised that even when people or institutions saddled with the responsibility of care, provision and security fail, He will never leave nor forsake us (Is. 49:15-16; Hebrews 13:5).

    It does not matter what you may be passing through at this time, God is able! When you call upon Him during this time of lent and pray for your family and our nation, He would hear you, wipe away your tears, make you happy and minister life to your health, marriage, family, business, places of interest and nation in Jesus’ name.

    Prayer: Oh Lord, let the scent of water touch every aspect of my life and restore all my lost grounds in Jesus’ name.