Wednesday, August 26, 2015

TGD RELATIONSHIP CORNER - HE'S TOO CLOSE TO HER

Good day ladies. How are you doing? As usual, I'll be sharing a fictional account of some true life stories for deliberation.

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Sharon and Leo have been in a relationship for 5 years. Leo finally asked Sharon to marry him 6 months ago. They are currently planning the wedding.

Leo is Sharon's dream man. She has prayed about the relationship and she has peace about the relationship generally. She has an issue, though, with how close Leo is to Amelia, his colleague in the office. From what she gathered, they are practically inseparable in the office. They spend all their spare time together. They are team mates. A few times that Sharon visited Leo in the office, Amelia was with them the whole time.

Sharon has told Leo about her discomfort with his relationship with Amelia. Leo thinks she's just being possessive and he usually changes the topic at such times.

 

Sharon will like to know:

1. If her concerns are valid.

2. If so, is that enough reason to break off her engagement to Leo?

3. If not, is there anything she can do about their unusual closeness?

4. Can she talk to Amelia about her concerns?

5. If yes, can you help with tips on how to initiate the conversation?

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

TGD RELATIONSHIP CORNER - DEALING WITH EXES


Good day ladies. How are you doing? As usual, I'll be sharing a fictional account of some true life stories for deliberation.

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Seun and Ola have been courting for 3 years and are making plans to get married. Before Seun met Ola, all the guys she dated are very intelligent, current and business savvy but they are unbelievers.  She loves these attributes but the Lord led her to marry Ola, who is a believer.

 

Her issue is that Ola is not so business savvy; he has missed SEVERAL business opportunities in the 3 years she has known him. The first time, she made a lot of fuss about it and it put a strain on their relationship. Subsequently, she pretends not to notice just to keep the peace.

 

Kunle, one of her exes, has approached Seun with a business deal. He is seeing someone else and they've been platonic friends for about 6 years now without Kunle making advances. She doesn't have romantic feelings for him anymore as well. She is seriously contemplating doing business with him as the potential income from the business deal is sizeable.

 

1. Can she proceed with the deal with Kunle?

2. If yes, what measures can she put in place to assure Ola that her deal with Kunle is STRICTLY BUSINESS?

3. If no, is it fair for her to try to bring Ola up to speed and do the business with him instead?

4. Are there tips she can try out to make Ola become savvy like some of her exes?

5. Will the same rules apply if Ola was the one with an ex who wants to have a STRICTLY BUSINESS deal with him? Will Seun be justified to ask for assurance that they won't cross boundaries?

6. Will the response be different if Seun and Ola were married? If yes, what's the difference?

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

TGD RELATIONSHIP CORNER - WHEN THE LADY EARNS MORE

Good day ladies. How are you doing? As usual, I'll be sharing a fictional account of some true life stories for deliberation.

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Itunu has been praying and trusting God for a future partner since she was 18. She is now 35 years old. She has a lot of stories to tell about the different insults she has been subjected to as a matured single woman.

Segun is a brother in church. He is in the same department as Itunu and has proposed to her. He is good looking. He is friendly and courteous. He pays attention to Itunu's emotional and spiritual needs. He is always ready to listen her.  However, he is not gainfully employed and does not possess many marketable skills. Itunu's concern is that if they get married, she will be the one bearing the financial burden in the family and that there is a potential for that to eventually cause marital problems.

 

1. Are Itunu's fears unfounded?

2. If yes, how can a woman manage a union where she earns more than her husband so that the man does not feel emasculated?

3. Is it okay for a woman to perpetually bear the financial burden of a family? Is there a way she can motivate/encourage the man to improve his earning potential?

4. In a case where the woman has been bearing the financial responsibility and after the man begins to earn more income, he refuses to be more financially involved, what can the godly woman do?

 

Please share your views and/or scriptural references. 

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

HOUSEWORK


TGD RELATIONSHIP CORNER

HOUSEWORK

Good day ladies. How are you doing?

I stumbled on this statement as I searched for today’s discussion topic. I think it’s worth talking about.

“Having a husband creates an extra 7 hours a week of housework for women, while a wife saves a man an hour of housework per week, according to a University of Michigan study of a nationally representative sample of US families.”

Seriously? Why will any lady sign up WILLINGLY (and even fast and pray) for 7 extra hours of housework per week. The statistic suggests to me that ladies put in 6 extra hours of housework that the man would have left undone if he was alone.  This makes me wonder if women just LOVE  housework, lol.

Seriously, can we talk about housework? How involved should a man be in housework? Which housework is in and which is out? How much of a boyfriend/fiancĂ©’s housework should a lady get herself involved in? What options are available to a lady whose husband won’t lift a finger to help around the house?

Please share your views and experiences. You can also leave us a comment on the blog using the link below.

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

TGD RELATIONSHIP CORNER - THE FIRST NIGHT

Good day ladies. How are you doing? As usual, I'll be sharing a fictional account of some true life stories for deliberation.

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Peace and Christian had been courting for 3 years and after crossing all the hurdles they had to, they are now man and wife. Peace married as a virgin.

 

It's their first time having intercourse and they're having difficulties with penetration. Peace is experiencing a lot of pains, though she's eager. 

 

1. What godly options are available to them?

2. What can a lady who is preparing for her marriage do to make the first night pleasurable for both of them?

 
Please share your views and/or scriptural references. Please keep your comments clean and godly.

Saturday, July 25, 2015

TGD Career Corner - Building Effective Business/Career Relationships (1)

Good day ladies. How are you doing? Sorry for the unplanned break. I needed to recharge. Who missed "Career Corner", lol?

 

Today, we'll start off on the series "Building Effective Business/Career Relationships". I believe the issue is broad enough to justify more than one session.

 

If you plan to succeed in today's business world, you need to be able to relate well with other people. No matter how sound you are technically (or how spiritual you are), if you don't relate well with people, your career/business will be adversely impacted. Here are a few tips to help you build effective work relationships.

 

1. Identify key relationships that have the greatest influence on your business/career and nurture these relationships, without neglecting other relationships.

Before I made up my mind on the career path I wanted to follow, I participated in the training by one of the banks that would then determine if one would be employed by the bank. Imagine my shock when I was told I had to turn in a resignation letter when I told them I was no longer interested in participating in the training. Anyway, one of the courses in the training was "Managing your boss". I didn't stay long enough to take the course but thankfully, I kept the course materials and reviewed it on my own. I've also been opportuned to take a similar course.

You need to realise that your boss and team members have a great influence on how your work experience will be. As a business owner, it is important to identify the customers that bring in most of your revenue and those that don't bring in so much. Keep in mind that some do not bring in so much revenue but might have some other value they're adding. You also need to identify the members of staff that do most of the productive work (that EVENTUALLY translate to revenue) and those who are not that productive. You'll also need to do this if your job requires you to manage others. 

 

2. Spend time to nurture these important relationships When I started working, I used to "face my work", send emails and expect people to be professional. After a few years (and after attending a few trainings), I realised that there is this thing called "people skills" and I lacked it! I also learnt that it was possible to learn it. One size doesn't fit all. I've learnt to manage my bosses as I've been blessed to have 2 bosses that talk a lot (and are terrific) and I'm more of a "get to the point" person. I'm learning how to LISTEN patiently, even if I think I know where the conversation is headed. In case you didn't know it, cutting people off because you THINK you know where they're headed is disrespectful.

 

I have a few more tips to share but I'll like to hear from you sisters.

 
Please share your views and experiences.

Wednesday, July 8, 2015

TGD RELATIONSHIP CORNER - SPIRITUAL INCOMPATIBILITY

Good day ladies. How are you doing? As usual, I'll be sharing a fictional account of a true life story for deliberation.

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Gbemi had been praying for a life partner since forever. God had given her signs of "he that was to come". She met Soji when she went for a professional seminar. He was one of the facilitators. They shared the same table during lunch and got friendly. She noticed that there was no ring on his finger. They exchanged numbers that day and Soji kept in touch.

 

Soon, they started talking every day and before long, they started meeting for lunch dates. The signs Gbemi saw of "he that was to come" were all present in Soji. After two years, he proposed and they eventually got married.

 

After a few months, they started having challenges with "doctrinal differences". They prays differently (one of them believes in chasing demons/enemies with prayers while the other believes in loving even enemies); one believes that only certain postures were permitted while praying. One believes in sowing anything/everything as money seeds to "secure your future" while the other believes in making solid financial plans as a means of "securing your future".

 

They both attend Gbemi's church but Soji does not genuinely believe all the doctrines in Gbemi's church. He speaks like them when he's with church members but he acts differently. Gbemi believes he is being hypocritical. The friction as a result of frequent disagreements is taking its toll on the marriage. Gbemi believes the marriage is getting in the way of her spiritual growth and is feeling very frustrated. Some counsellors have diagnosed their condition as "spiritual incompatibility".

 

My questions are

1. Is there really such a thing as "spiritual incompatibility"?

2. If yes, how can one identify it before saying "I do"?

3. Is there a way to "treat" the condition and still say "I do" to the same person?

4.  Is there a way to "treat" the condition after saying "I do" without parting ways with one's partner? (i.e, is there hope for Soji and Gbemi to still have a blissful marriage?) 5. If the answer to #4 is yes, what can they do?

 
Please share your views and/or scriptural references.