A CAT WITH MORE THAN NINE LIVES!

I want to say again that I am an unbelievably lucky guy. Each time people have counted me out, the Almighty has restored me. It has happened so many times, I have lost count. On social media, a guy once described me as a cat with nine lives. Believe me, this cat has lived more than nine lives!

I am humbled by the incredible energy and protection the Almighty has given me. For a guy who has failed to go to church as often as he should, I have had the grace of God beyond measure. This gentleman has been fired with bazookas at close range. I have been suicide bombed! I have been left for dead. It just happens that whenever some people think they are departing from my funeral, they meet me on the road laughing and bouncing like never before.

OMG! I have repeatedly seen the treachery and betrayal of men and how they rationalize their duplicity and all the nonsense they do.

When a guy you thought was your guy begins to manufacture a dispute between the two of you when there is really nothing to quarrel about, your antenna should go up. He is up to something. Nine times out of ten, your guy is fabricating a justification for treachery which he is hatching. Sooner or later, it will manifest.

It is then that the guy you used to eat and drink with will tell everybody how horrible you really are and why he must perch somewhere else. It is all cock and bull! He has found a new chopping center and has decided to port.

The average human being is very selfish and always out for where he thinks his bread is buttered. Do not be surprised that the person who has behaved like he would go to the grave with you is in fact praying that you should die quickly. He has probably been eying your wife, your land or your position. He wants to grab everything that belongs to you. All the while, your guy has only been using you as his ladder. If he gets to wherever he has been climbing to, or finds a better ladder, he will create a scene and dump you like rotten pepper soup. Have you noticed the game of musical chairs in our politics? In our politics, no friendship is real.

I have learnt to be weary of praise-singers. If a guy begins to tell me that I am the best thing he has seen since man discovered sliced bread, my antenna goes up! I know that I am a mortal being and no mortal being is perfect. The guy is setting me up for the kill.

Your telephone rings and it is a call from a person you do not know from Adam. He is so nice on the phone. He reminds you of how the two of you met at an event you never attended! Once he thinks he has your attention, he will tell you about the huge demand for a special stone in a remote village that only he knows. You are told that anyone who obtains a good quantity of this stone will be richer than Aliko Dangote. If you have not given up on him yet, he will whisper to you about a secret NNPC contract that he wants to execute with you as his partner that will bring so much money that even Femi Otedola will be shocked.  My guy… 419 and half!

I have seen betrayal upon betrayal and the evil men do, in every colour. I seriously have to restrain myself from believing that there is no good man in the world anymore and there is no reason to do good to anyone. Fortunately, there are still good men left and there is good reason to do good to people. If I cannot do good to people what then am I living for? The Almighty might as well take my life because it has become a waste.

I have written in Saturday Breakfast several times that I verily believe that the true worth of a man is not in what he takes but in what he gives.

I have dealt with many who have made money their god. They do not believe that a man can do anything without expecting something in return. They do not understand the concept of giving and of sacrifice.

I have met many who do not understand why I do not think like them. Some believe that I must be hiding something. Someone has asked me how I can write and publish Saturday Breakfast without fail, 52 times every year for 11 unbroken years without being paid by anybody. Others believe that my philosophy is stupid. They believe that the fact that I own no house in Maitama or Banana Island is idiotic. Every day, they count me out but each time, the Almighty brings me back in a new way.

I have repeatedly emphasized that I drive on a full tank of faith. I serve a living God. The work I do is to the glory of the Almighty. The power I use is not mine but His.

My experience in 2021 has resharpened my faith that you do not become great by what you take but by what you give. The glittering wedding of TJ, my son and best friend, in New York City reiterated the fact that if you believe in the Almighty, He will never let you down. On my way to New York, I had no money, none whatsoever. With hatred in their hearts and no justifiable reason, some people conspired to use the police to instantly freeze all my bank accounts, both personal and business. They were sure they would grind me to a halt.  What they were unable to do was freeze God's love for me. The good Lord provided everything I needed in New York. He provided more than money. He brought love and happiness in full measure and made me a very proud father. Believe me, you might face trials upon trials but like Job, you will prevail.

Have you made money your God? May I advise that you do not worship men or money. Worship the Almighty and take care of the needs of His children. Do not fret about how you will survive. You will.

Please do not take credit for that which the Almighty does through you. It is not by your power. All glory and honour belong to Him. Drive on a full tank of faith with your tires pumped with love and do not listen to anyone who tells you that your dreams are impossible. I assure you, you will be a cat with more than nine lives!

See you next week.