9904 Woodstream Court, Lanham MD 20706

Phone: +1 (240) 350-6426

http://www.joyfullivingministries.org
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DAILY NUGGETS FOR JOYFUL LIVING

Saturday, January 17, 2015
And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Hebrews 10:24 KJV
LIFE IS ALL ABOUT PRIORITIES
While at the park one day, a woman sat down next to a man on a bench near a playground. Thats
my son over there, she said, pointing to a little boy in a red sweater who was gliding down the slide. Hes
a fine looking boy the man said. Thats my daughter on the bike in the white dress. Then, looking at his
watch, he called to his daughter. What do you say we go, Melissa? Melissa pleaded, Just five more
minutes, Dad. Please? Just five more minutes The man nodded and Melissa continued to ride her bike to
her hearts content. Minutes passed and the father stood and called again to his daughter. Its time to
go now? Again Melissa pleaded, Five more minutes, Dad. Just five more minutes The man smiled and
said, OK. My, you certainly are a patient father, the woman responded. The man smiled and then said,
Her older brother Tommy was killed by a drunk driver last year while he was riding his bike near here. I
never spent much time with Tommy and now Id give anything for just five more minutes with him. Ive
vowed not to make the same mistake with Melissa. She thinks she has five more minutes to ride her bike.
The truth is, I get Five more minutes to watch her play. Life is all about making priorities, what are
your priorities? Give someone you love 5 more minutes of your time today!
Ours is an impatient world. Everything is done in a rush. Like in the United States of America and
other advanced countries of the world, everything is instant. Fast food kiosks are all over the place. You
see drive through fast food, drive through medication, drive through marriages and divorces, and
almost everything seem to have its own drive through feel. Parents dont have time anymore to raise their
children but leave them to the mercies of the television. All these have taken away from our society
today, the real meaning that life is supposed to offer. We are all busy trying to make money and at the
same time, very busy too trying to spend it. We embark upon a million dollar project that pays a million
dollar gain with a million dollar bills to pay and the price tag on the families are far beyond quantifying.
Life seems to be like a rat race. It is like making money and putting it in a safe with holes. Just because
the husband wants the wife to maintain her job after the baby is born, she goes through the
psychological pain of leaving her baby to an unknown person who cares for the baby (for the sake of the
money of course) while she goes to work. At the end of the week, her take home is $300 and the child
care cost is $275. Isnt this a penny-wise, pound-foolish syndrome? There are unnecessary sorrows we
bring to ourselves just because we lack the foresight of life, real life. Painful regrets that could have
been avoided if only we had handled life differently. Moral decadence that has eaten up the very fabrics

of the society because we left our responsibilities of raising children for others while we go in search of
money that dont even reward at all. If a poll is taken, chances are that children in juvenile institutions
mostly come from families who allow the televisions or the baby sitters to raise their children. Violent
children are mainly from families with absentees parents. Increased death tolls through violence in our
world today would have tremendously reduced if parents were available for their children. I do concur to
the saying that the love of money is the root of all evil. Parents, be available for your families. It is
not money nor houses untold that they primarily need but your presence to impact some morals to them
even at their formative ages. And dont you forget that life is all about the right priorities you make.
The father in our frontline story paid a devastating, painful and very costly price of losing his
elder son all because he was not there to either alert him of the incoming truck or give a fatherly
covering to him. He would not want that same fate to happen to his younger son. Hence, anytime the son
wants from him, he is ready to give even in the multiples of five more minutes. Beloved, it pays off to be
there for your family. Mums and dads must create the time to fill into the needs of the children. A story
is told of a boy of seven, who won a first place in a race tournament in his elementary school. When he
was called for the trophy, he went quietly to receive it. When the boy that took a second place was called
to receive his own, a big crowd of family members followed him. When the boy with the first position was
asked where the parents were, he said that they went to work because they had to pay the bills. The
patient of the father to give his child five more minutes is all it takes to build a solid confidence and
transform that life. Five more minutes will surely pay you off in time and in eternity. Five more
minutes can save a life from death if you are there to watch over them and shield them from impending
danger. Five more minutes of mums time or dads time can put back a smile on the face of a depressed
child. Five more minutes of your presence in your childs life, as a parent, can resurrect the spirit of the
child who feels abandoned while his watches his peers riding bikes with their parents or simply taking a
walk and having some conversations along the way. You may not value what you have until you lose it. The
father in our story preached this message better, Id give anything for just five more minutes with
the son I lost. Ive vowed not to make the same mistake with Melissa. She thinks she has five more
minutes to ride her bike. The truth is, I get Five more minutes to watch her play. Life is all about
making priorities, what are your priorities? Give someone you love five more minutes of your time
today! That is considered as making the right priority. You will be glad you did, and Joyful Living will
remain your daily Experience for just Five more minutes of your time spent for your loved ones. Amen?
Pastors Chris & Julie Akpama
Dont forget your COVENANT with God every day. Call the pastor from 6:30 pm till 9:30 pm @ (240) 350-6426 for encouragement and for
covenant prayers. Call expecting! Call believing!! Your miracle is possible with prayers!!! Amen? Acts 12:5-9

2015, A YEAR OF DIVINE EXCHANGE Isaiah 61:2-3