Sammy Adebiyi - Exploring the Greatness of God Through the Small Eyes of a Nigerian Pastor

Your Fear Is Lying To You.

Sammy Adebiyi — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 10:42:00 +0000

What would you have done a long time ago if you knew your fear was lying?

Me? I would have written my first book years ago.

For years I danced around the idea of writing a book because I was afraid that someone would hate my work. I was afraid that someone would leave me a 1 star review on amazon and I would never be able to shake their criticism.

Well, long story short, about 12 months ago I wrote and published a Christmas e-book and thanks to many of you, I got a lot of great instant feedback but you know what, it didn't matter.

It didn’t matter that I got tons and tons of great 5 star reviews, I still felt incredibly anxious as the days passed because every day seemed like a moment closer to the inevitable 1 star review that would derail all my writing ambitions.

And you know what? It never came. The one star review never came because Jesus loves me.

Just kidding. It did come. And guess what happened?

Jesus loves sick people

Sammy Adebiyi — Mon, 09 Nov 2015 10:23:02 +0000

So I started seeing a therapist earlier this summer.

Well, actually he’s a 'life-coach' but my boss calls him my 'therapist'.

Ha. Fair enough I guess.

Point is, I needed help bad and after a couple months of procrastinating (alright fine, it was more like a couple years), I bit the bullet, found a professional online and scheduled an appointment.

Does reading that feel as unspiritual as I did writing it?

For real y’all, why is it SO hard for us to admit that we need help? And why does it feel unspiritual to admit we are actively seeking help from a professional?
I suppose it’s just easier to pretend we’re all ok. It’s easier to pretend our marriages, kids, relationships, finances and lives are perfect.

Why I'm no longer a fan of miracles.

Sammy Adebiyi — Mon, 02 Nov 2015 10:16:25 +0000

Dear 'miracle', you’re supposed to make life easier not harder. So please get with the program because the struggle is real.

Sincerely,
Former #1 fan of miracles, now just number #2.

Please tell me I’m not the only one who thought “miracle” was synonymous with “easy button”, “you don’t have to try as hard anymore” and “fluffy pillows, ice-cream, rainbows and cute furry puppies from now on”.

I know we live in a broken world, but still, when God causes a miracle to take place in our lives, shouldn’t that be a guarantee that everything that flows from that miracle would be smooth sailing?

I guess not.

Remember Lazarus? Dude that Jesus raised from the dead? Yea, guess what? Lazarus still got the flu (should have gotten the shot bro), his health still failed him and eventually he died, again!

Holy Reconciliation

Sammy Adebiyi — Tue, 13 Oct 2015 19:36:59 +0000

Hey guys, I know it's been a while. I'll be back real soon I promise but today I’m giving space to my friend Sheridan Voysey, whose new book Resilient: Your Invitation to a Jesus-Shaped Life launches Wednesday October 21 (don’t miss the free giveaways here).

Resilient is a book of 90 readings tracing the theme of resilience through the Sermon on the Mount and beyond. Here’s an excerpt.

***

“So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person.” -Matthew 5:23–24

They sit beside each other on a straw mat—he in beige trousers and a white and purple shirt, she in orange-strapped sandals and a blue and yellow dress. They lean against the mud brick wall of a Rwandan house, close to each other. “I participated in the killing of the son of this woman,” says François, one of thousands of Hutu men who perpetrated crimes against Tutsis during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. “He killed my child,” says Epiphanie, “then he came to ask me pardon.”

Shark tank, stupid inventions & how to get stupid rich.

Sammy Adebiyi — Mon, 13 Apr 2015 09:24:16 +0000

Me: [Insert idiotic invention that I think is genius]
My wife: No babe, that’s dumb

Me: What about this… what about something to wear on your feet while walking from the changing room to a public pool so you don’t step on gross floors?
Wife: That already exists.

Me: Um, you know how I’m so picky and I never remember what I like in restaurants? What about an app that helps me remember?
Wife: [insert if you say one more word, i’ll claw your eyes out with my fingers stare]

Me: Yea, go ahead and laugh at me. I bet people laughed at Steve Jobs too. I bet that laughed at the pet rock guy. Or those friends who invented the paint brush capsule. Go ahead and laugh. When I go on shark tank and make so much money our bed is made of $100 bills, guess who will be laughing? ME, that’s who.

Alright, so maybe I didn’t say that last part. The rest is true though. I’m always trying to invent something. I blame the show shark tank.

Any other fans out there?

I love Jesus but still want to win at everything. Now what?

Sammy Adebiyi — Mon, 06 Apr 2015 09:07:30 +0000

If you’re not first, you’re last -Jesus.

JK. Jesus didn’t say that. In fact, I’m pretty sure he said opposite of that but we’ll save that for another post. Funny thing about that quote though is it reminds me of my number 2 strength according to a strengths test I took with my church staff team.

Competition.

Wait, what? Is that even a thing? Competition?

Oh look, everyone else on staff has cool super spiritual strengths like Includer, strategic thinking and empathy while I have competition? Boy do I feel like a schmuck.

Ok, honest moment. I didn’t feel like a schmuck. In fact, I secretly loved it. I loved it because I knew it was all me.

Doesn’t sound very spiritual but i actually think it’s how I was made. I think when God made me in my mother’s womb, he added in an extra layer of competitive sauce. He wired me with a drive to succeed and a desire to win at everything.

Doubt.

Sammy Adebiyi — Thu, 19 Mar 2015 09:43:29 +0000

Sometimes I doubt God is really listening when I pray.

I doubt if my prayers really matter cause praying feels like talking to myself. And when I think I hear God I often feel like I'm just making it up.

Sometimes I doubt God really wants to give me really good gifts so whenever I get something I really want, I get scared cause I think he’ll take it away soon...

Sometimes I doubt my calling and gifts. I wonder if I‘m just making all this up and I constantly ask my wife ‘do u really think I could do this?'

So what about you? Be honest...

Why Jesus no longer brings us Minnie Mouse stuff.

Sammy Adebiyi — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 09:20:28 +0000

Minnie suckers.
Minnie flip flops.
Minnie stickers.
Minnie candy.

Believe it or not, I’ve purchased everything on that list on my way home from work because my 2 year old is obsessed with Minnie Mouse. And, truth be told, suckers, flip flops and stickers are a lot cheaper than a trip to Disney world.

Also I absolutely LOVE how excited she gets when I walk in the door after a long day at work. I love how she smiles big, shuffles her feet in one place and then sprints towards me.

I love that she loves that I’m home and I love to reward that excitement with a surprise.

[Insert any gift that has to do with Minnie]

I'm not good at being black.

Sammy Adebiyi — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 09:04:27 +0000

Is God good or is He just really good at being good?

I grew up thinking that God was just really, really good at being good. You know, like Michael Jordan was really good at basketball. Yea, God was like the MJ of being good. The best. No one’s good could contend with his good.

But then 10 years ago I had a thought that changed everything...

‘God is not good at being good. God IS good’

Sounds like the same thing but there’s a HUGE difference. It’s like saying to me ‘Sammy, you’re so good at being black’.

No.

I’m not good at being black. I AM black.

7 spiritual expectations that make me feel like a failure.

Sammy Adebiyi — Mon, 09 Mar 2015 09:03:03 +0000

Sometimes i put expectations on myself that Jesus never puts on me.

Then i get sad when I don’t meet those expectations because I think God is not happy with me. When, again, he never placed them on me in the first place.

There are certainly things God requires of us but last I checked, none of them included these 7 things I put on myself (and maybe u do too?)

1. Be a perfect husband, dad and leader.

2. Life’s a sprint so get as much done as fast as you can.

3. One bad mistake nullifies all the good you’ve done and you have to start over again so don't make a mistake.