Distinguished Family

Dear Distinguished, How are you? I know you would love to strangle me for being MIA (missing in action) for such a long time but please, forgive my inadequacies. I missed you. Did you miss me? A lot has been going on with me and I bet you can say the same too. On my part, I am too tired of relying on my strength. Guess what I did? I cast my cares on Abba. He loves me, so He has been so faithful this week - that should explain why I can write you. You see, cast your cares on Him. He cares for you. When I started writing this letter, I had the mind of sharing lessons from 'How to be a Blessing' with you. It was a session we had on Distinguished Teenagers WhatsApp group chat last night. But, I have changed my mind. Right now, the time is 00:53 am (WAT) and I'm vibing to Mama TY Bello's 'Green Land'. Yeah, you got that right. The same "the land is green, is green, oh oh; the land is green, is green can't yo u see?"  Oh how I love(d) this so...

It was that simple. Just trust and obey. Would you be glad your friend despised your instructions and later faced the consequences? After all, you did tell him or her. As little as it might be, every instruction matters and makes up little details to help at bigger decisions. Painfully we just sometimes or mostly despise His still small voice. It was painful when I still couldn't pay attention to how He spoke to me on that Sunday morning when I wanted to pick a pair of trousers for service. They were all Ironed sha. While I took another pair of trousers not paying attention to details, I was still happy I was rocking these new black trousers not until I entered the school gate and took a cab. "Pauuuuuuu" abi it was "praaaaa". Just imagine the painful sound of clothes tearing. I came down from the vehicle and returned to my room wearing the exact trouser I saw earlier on. That Sunday, I was late to church, and trust me, it wasn't nice. The Holy Sp...

July, the seventh month of the year wraps up in just a matter of five days. The ride has been a really long one, full of highs and lows, and many silent discoveries in-between. The advent of a new year is usually a noticeable pump in the adrenaline levels of almost everyone.  And as a teenager that you are, it is possible that you entered the New Year with ear-marked goals for yourself, things you looked forward to see yourself doing, things you looked forward to seeing yourself becoming. But, let me ask – how are you doing with these goals? How many of them have you ticked? Few? None? Relax. I’m not here to beat you, neither should you beat yourself. I honestly get this thing, right? I get that this is life, and we sometimes do not get what we anticipated – at least not very easily.  Life happens to our goals. I mean, you set goals for yourself and in the course of the months, get caught up in activities and things you did not see coming. No matter how great these activ...

I am very sure that it is not only in my Local church nor my Fellowship that the wind of evangelism is blowing mightily, covering our stare of mind with the urgency to reach out to men.  A witness, someone who can attest to the occurrence of an event, who can show proof, evidence to support his claim of seeing the event occur. You know what brethren? Glory to God we have every proof that Christ died for us! I get it, we were not at the cross over two thousand years ago, but we were there*lol*, Sounds funny shebi. We were there in His heart, if more than anything, He thought of us. So how does it make sense now that we have the proof since we were “abstractly" in His mind and not there bodily? 2nd Corinthians 5:16-20a(NIV)   So from now on, we regard no one from a worldly(I) point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,(J) the new creation(K) has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here! (L) 18...

                                                      "Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity (a god), or a deified ancestor."          The subject prayer is a broad one at that and a very crucial part of your walk with God in fellowshipping with him. One of the major area of developing a good and viable relationship with God is by praying. It is through our prayers that we speak to God and develop the ability to hear from him when he speaks. Prayer is a very important part of our lives as believers. God created us to be totally dependent on him Acts 17:28 (KJV) "For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of y...

It is commonly noted that whenever an Eagle is mentioned, or whoever an Eagle is compared to, strength, great emblem, power, ability to stand out irrespective of whatever hurdle, good vision will be denoted from such. An Eagle will not be able to do all of this if it is caged, kept, or hindered. In fact, if some other animals were to be kept with this Eagle in a cage, the Eagle will be thoroughly dealt with because its ability to fly above such situations is gone. (The ability to fly distinguishes all birds even in the face of danger). 📍For instance, Zoos cage Eagles for sightseeing (even though sightseeing will be of great benefit to some people, it is never a serious benefit to it because it was caged). In a normal sense, this Eagle will never choose to be caged but who knows how it loosed its guard which made it caged, probably, it was trapped, or it was even food that was used to get it trapped or the negligence of this Eagle.  📍 People lose their essence, their w...

Dear Distinguished,          I see you are good. I perceive all is well. I am privy to your glow. Ah ahn! No stain geng! See how you are thriving. After 10 weeks of zero communication between us, you are bubbling. Excited to hear from me eh? The feeling is mutual.  This week, I want to assure you, instructions will come.  Where you have been confused, answers will be given.  Tasks you have been stalling at for lack of experience, the ability will come.  Places you have been tongue-tied, you know how to break the ice.  Light will shine on the burdens you have been carrying.  Habits you desperately want to drop, you get steps on what to do.  And as for your many prayer points, they will become testimonies.  Selah,  The Distinguished. 

Hello, my dear How are you doing? How are you treating life? For this is how to know how life treats you How are you holding up?  I know the times are hard, and things are a bit difficult I hope you are not giving up? It is just a little time more, and you will end up in joy Are you still in contact with God? He still loves to hear your voice  You may not feel like your secret place is hot And you do not have to; all you need to do is trust  What about the dreams you have for life? The goals you, on the New Year’s dawn, penned on a pad? Do not give them up to the devil’s lie, do not let another person’s myopia make you shy You can try, you should try, and you will see that you will thrive How are the humans in your corner and beyond? I hope you are not the reason someone stops seeing herself the way God does? I hope some people are giving another shot at life because you are kind Really, how are you doing? I hope you are doing life nice. © Feranmi Oyedele (Lam...

 The human nature is in way wired to test something if it's working perfectly before laying hands on it for further work. No wonder the Bible also says:, except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe. John 4:48. But as children of God, we no longer have this nature in us(the fleshy, human and carnal nature). As soon as we accept Christ, we now have the nature of Christ in us. Why? Because the spirit of the Lord lives in us, therefore we have the mind of Christ. ❗ No wonder, Thomas, a disciple of Jesus; one of those that was very close to Jesus while he was here on earth still doubted Christ when he resurrected. (John 20:24-28, Matthew 28:17). ❗ Matthew 14:31. Peter also doubted, he saw Jesus walking on water, but he still had that feeling of unbelieve to see such strange thing Jesus did. ❗ Doubting God is something that as believers we must never allow because it hinders alot of places that we should have normally accessed. We can say its normal to doubt as human...

Distinguished Teenagers was formed to reach out to teenagers all over and equip them to overcome hurdles which are peculiar to young bloods. As a community, she is committed to raising a set of young people set apart from the world, yet will bring impact to the same through the godly principles in God’s word. Click  Here  to read the full history of DT.  In a bid to bless lives outside the whatsapp platform, a blog was suggested and in March 2020, the DT Blog was born. The first post was uploaded on the 6th of March -- an episode of the weekly Meet A Distinguished (MAD) show which runs on our whatsapp group.  However, the blog was not fully functional until late March when we were all on compulsory lock down.  For the blog contents, a group of skillful writers on DT was formed and named DT PenTribe. They write as inspired by the Holy Spirit and over the past twelve months, we've had contents ranging from letters to poems, non fictions, feature storie...

Man after Gods heart sir, you didn’t handle this one well. A war was brewing in your family, yet you were silent about it. Or did you think that silence means consent? Oops.  Leaders everywhere would do well to always take appropriate actions whenever wrongs happen. The offenders must be corrected as deemed fit, though in love with recourse made to the offended. That they have the ability to forgive does not mean that the issue should be swept under the carpet and forgotten. Such winds later come back to shoot in the leg and can end up becoming ticking time bombs. “And Absalom her brother said unto her, Hath Amnon thy brother been with thee? Hold now thy peace, my sister: he is thy brother; regard not this thing. So Tamar remained desolate in her brother Absalom’s house… AND ABSALOM SPAKE UNTO HIS BROTHER AMNON NEITHER GOOD NOR BAD: FOR ABSALOM HATED AMNON, BECAUSE HE HAD FORCED HIS SISTER TAMAR” (2 Sam 13: 20-22) Prince Absalom, you kept all this in your heart and did ...

Part 2 Hello! Check out the previous part here   if you haven't 😉   wait, did I just read that well? You encouraged her, telling her,  “…Has Amnon your brother been with you? Now, HOLD YOUR PEACE my sister; he is your brother; DO NOT TAKE THIS TO HEART” (2 Sam 13: 20)  That was a wonderful advice, especially coming from someone in the Old testament where you’d hear of characters who would call down fire on their enemies or destroy a whole city. I would have commended your reaction; it would have a been a massive example of how we should learn to forgive people no matter how high the wrong may have been. Isn’t that how God loved us and forgave us in advance, even while we were still sinners?  “ For when we were without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a good man, some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom 5:6-8) But no, ...

If only you’d calmed down. If only you’d not given in to that beast. If only you’d spoken out your hurt and not hid it in. Why did you decide to stay mute but continue in internal ramblings and grumblings? So much that the sore festered and grew and starting having bold effects all around.  The nation of Israel would never forget in a lifetime the ruckus you caused in their history. Neither would Spiritual Israel fail to take lessons from your story either. Yes, I understand that you were wronged. I feel your pain. You were third in line to the throne and was living the life of royalty. Your princess mother married a powerful shepherd boy turned king, the mighty giant slayer King David. Life was perfect and all was going smooth with your two older brothers ahead of you and five more after you. (2 Samuel 3:2-5) “ …; and the third, Absalom the son of Maacah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur;” 2 Sam 3:3b I’m guessing royal picnics and family vacations to the relaxing pools...

Hello darling, how are you doing? My name is Feranmi and I am here today To make you smile, or maybe cry To make sure that in the end, none of these two leave you sad I do not know what definition it is you have in mind of love Love is beautiful, love is colourful, love is wonderful, love is sweet Love is patient, love is caring, love is enduring Love is everything And I am not here to tell you  That love is not all these things I want to rather make you know that  Love is and can be more than all these things I want to tell you about a kind of love Whose quality the world cannot exhaust I want to tell you about a kind of love That stays when even your shadow leaves in the dark I want to tell you about a kind of love That differs from all the meanings you have of this word A kind of love that sticks with you not because of the things you have But rather the things you lack I want to tell you about a kind of love that is more Than just a concept; for love is more than a concept...

Dear Distinguished,    For the past few weeks, I have been to you consistently and you've never thought of visiting me. Is that good enough? Is it? Don't even give me that I've been busy line or I'll put you in my visiting plan for next month. What stops you from visiting right away? Not as if I don't do same for you. This one does not even know the privilege of...  Oh please ignore that . I was cruising as usual. Talking about plans, how far vision2021? Sorry, I meant 2021 resolutions? You've not written it down? You don't like stress yeah? Or you're scared of not meeting up like last year? You think it's better not to make plans and fall by the way side? You're plain scared of failure? You believe dreaming big will only get your hopes high and then leave you dry? Or no matter how much you try, you may not meet up with the bar you set? Why can I relate so much?  Since we're in the same boat let's row together na. Abi? Let...

  Take it or leave it, communication is a central part of our daily activities as humans. In school, in church, at market, at home, everywhere, communication is one thing we all cannot do without.   Now, it is not enough to communicate, there's a need for communication to be effective. Effective communication, you will find, is always at the heart of every flourishing organization, family, and relationship.   You will easily find out, whether in your family or relationships, when communication is no longer flowing the way it should. Miscommunication leads to nothing other than misunderstanding, conflicts, bitterness, and at worst, the loss of relationships, or even opportunities. Relationships thrive off communication, so does every important thing life.   Whether you are a public speaker, writer, painter, or part of a project team, you want to be sure that your words are taken for what they mean, and not the other way round.   It is why you ha...

Dear Distinguished,    You know how we do it yeah? I tell you a story you can relate or cruise with, you read between the lines, get blessed and God is pleased with us. Sounds like fun?   I wanted to buy chebe powder from one of these fulani women few weeks ago. This woman is quite old, so I asked her the price first. Her reply made me exclaim 'omo'! She 'mal-heard' me and said I called her 'mumu'. Guy, I quickly cleared her o. Why will I call somebody's mother mumu? Something you can fight me for if you hear the gist outside.  I explained myself, she understood, and sold me the chebe balls at the price I was willing to pay. Wait, don't kill me. I know it's chebe powder but she sold balls for me and said I should go and grind it myself. Then she left. Peacefully.     At her exit, my colleague (I was at work)said "I like how you quickly cleared her. Make she no go carry you for mind". Then other guys started telling stories of th...

After grumbling and murmuring for a while, for God’s sake should I always be the one washing the dirty dishes we all used at home? Time and time again, I have always developed an idea and plan for my siblings to wash their plates after every meal. It seems the plan becomes something for the morrow. At every meal, my mind keeps focusing on the number of plates I would discuss with. “ A chat with the dishes ”. Has this not taken away the beauty and taste of the meal presented before me? Sincerely I’m tired of these chores. While I murmured and grumbled at the spills of oils and dirt all around the dishes, little did I know that I had begun to silence the echoes of love from the baby plate? She had always wanted to inform me about how I had focused on the wrong things like the discomfort I thought I felt.  She always wanted to tell me about how she’s evidence of God’s amazing provision and His mercies revealed while we ate as a family. She said all along she reminded me of...

This is an experience on how God comes through for us when we ask for things we think may not happen or what may look irrational or even what we think has to happen in a general or normal way.  ✔️ It was a Wednesday evening in school, days when exams were Knocking already, days when we had to read by all means. I'm sure you can relate perfectly. Myself and a friend (I will call her Aunty S), left the library for Bible study which was to hold outside the school environment. We were really tired that day and to think it was during a fasting period in church. We got to church that evening, listened to every bit of the Bible study, even though at a point, I was thinking of what to eat when I get back to the hostel that night. I wanted to eat something different instead of my normal rice, indomie or spaghetti (the major foods I eat in school). ✔️We finished Bible study, blessed as usual and we were set to  start our journey back to the hostel. On our way, we saw a Barbe...