Friday, March 1, 2013

ANOTHER PLUS FOR SISTA POWER

book
Hello people

Welcome to another day in the ‘blogafest’ for Sista Power. Today I have the review from my sista of the heart; Audrey Joe-Ezigbo. Please see her blog here: http://uniquely-woman.blogspot.com. As I have been reading all the reviews that have come in, I cannot help but say that even for me the PURPOSE of the book Sista Power is becoming clearer and now I am praying that it will fulfill destiny. I actually saw Audrey’s copy of Sista Power and all the markings and shadings are any authors joy. Thanks Sis.
Please note that this post is longer than usual but that is Audrey’s signature and it all makes sense. Enjoy and thanks for reading to the end.

SISTA POWER: MY REVIEW – AUDREY JOE-EZIGBO
Unputdownable! I first came across this word (if one can call it that) about 20years ago. It stuck in my mind and has been the one word that describes each great book I have been blessed to read. Sista Power is a great book, truly unputdownable ! It literally held me spell-bound for a couple of hours as I read it from start to finish. A powerful message! Very real! Sista Power reads like a guided tour through to the realization of one’s innate potentials and resources, and towards the fulfillment of God’s design for one’s life.
Two days later, I started and again read the book all over, only more slowly this time. I simply had to! I can honestly say that Sista Power is one out of a very small number of books that have commanded my attention enough as to merit more than one read. My proverbial green pen marked, circled, and underlined! Every section was weighty, nothing trivial. So much I readily related with; principles that not only make sense, but which with proper introspection are easy to apply and will clearly bring about an acceleration of destiny and purpose. I loved the fact that the language used was personal; an honest, no-holds-barred conversation between the author and myself.
I am a lover of women, a believer in the power of working together. Since I first heard Bidemi share what the Lord ministered to her on collaboration a few years ago however, the word ‘midwife’ took on a new meaning in my life. I have been blessed to have Bidemi and some other lovely ladies as my midwives. I have understood more in the past few years than ever before, the power that lies in women that put all else aside and choose to move forward as a collective, holding each other accountable to build up themselves, their families and the world around them.
That said, Sista Power caused me to take a good hard look at other areas of my life, other relationships and experiences I have had over the years. I have had to give a million more thanks to God for the midwives He sent my way but whom I didn’t realize at that point were part of shaping my destiny for the season.
Many things struck me very deeply in the book Sista Power. If I really had to review it as extensively as I would wish, I would probably be reproducing the entire book. It was that potent. But here as a few of the things that really stood out for me:

‘Your pulpit is where you are!’
This is a clear call to action; a reminder that time is running out and I must be about my Father’s business. I am called to midwife others, even as the Lord sends midwives my way. ‘There will never be a convenient time for the work that God has called me to do’. Right where I am, I must ‘make myself available and stretch myself for the Kingdom’. ‘Life is not going to wait and midwives are constantly on the move’. People are in my life for a season and in that time, I must deposit as much as I can into those I am called to midwife; while submitting myself to learn and grow from those whose assignment is to midwife me. I may only have ‘a few minutes to make impact (as a midwife) and after that the opportunity will be gone’. To be able to ‘recognize the timing and be adequately prepared to walk in it’, I as a midwife must ‘be in tune with the Holy Spirit and with God all the way’. So true!
‘The Masters business requires haste’. Sista Power reiterates this often and it resonates deep within me. I cannot afford to miss my moments. My God is a God of accountability. I must be constantly conscious of the things that He requires of me and be ready to deliver on them. I may not need more than a few minutes to make the impact that I am called to make and after that the opportunity will be gone. My mandate is to die empty of everything that the Lord has put in me with which to bless the earth, to bless His children. I must use those few minutes well.

‘God thrives on collaborations’ and ‘Sista Power is about the common good!’
. There is a reminder that collaboration is not about recognition, for I have a God Who sees all things and is able to reward my silent labors. Sista Power is a reminder to take my identity in God who is the only One that completes and fulfills me.

‘What the world needs can only be found in God and not in a particular individual or groups of persons’.
There is a clear call for me to stay in my strength zone, to remain true to who I am at my core. ‘Any collaboration requiring you to reinvent yourself to fit into it is definitely not meant for you’. I need to know who I really and truly am, to believe in myself completely in order to effectively midwife others to become all that God has called them to be. This confidence in self is critical because ‘sometimes our collaborations may look like they are insignificant’. I must be a difference-maker, a value addition, even in my smallest of endeavors. The agenda is of God and not of self! The building up is for the collective and not for self.

Sista Power defines collaboration in a way that speaks deep to the root of what I truly believe the world needs today: ‘Collaboration is therefore a coming together of two or more people to further the purpose of God for their lives. The agreement is therefore between you, your collaborator and God Who honors covenants and agreements’. Sista Power reminds each of us that ‘God is pushing the original plan… He wants men and women who understand that it is not about them, it is about the Kingdom of God’.

The core message of Sista Power from my perspective is aptly summed up as: ‘Change is the objective, Kingdom is the goal, altering the status quo is the method’. The big question then follows: ‘Who will you join to push God’s agenda?’ This is where I leave it. I pray this great book will minister to every reader as it has to me. I pray the Lord will help each reader discover the power of collaborations in their lives.

Be blessed!

No comments:

Post a Comment