It was a soul-stirring and spirit-lifting session of worship, praise, edification and counselIng as members and friends of First Love Assembly gathered for a unique programme titled “Breakfast With Pastor Simeon Afolabi”

Held at the prestigious Marriot Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, the event was conceptualised as a non-denominational gathering of christians for the purpose of networking, sharing ideas, edification and counseling

In his short exhortation, Pastor Afolabi said the benefits of the session included to help people depressurize, create a convivial atmosphere for networking as well as stem the tide of discouragement that has been a major clog to the personal development of a number of people.

He went further to outline causes of discouragement as: Negative reports, Unmet needs, per review and iron cast perspective about a subject.

According to him, in today’s world, we are swarmed with negative reports, noting that while bad reports tend to slow people down and kill their enthusiasm, good reports fire them up to achieve greater things.

Michael Effiong james, Arin Olabode, Sola Olabode & Kemi James

He also stated that when needs are not met either by God or by man, that should not spell doom as there are still many rivers of life to cross. he said not meeting a need now does not mean it will not happen.

Pastor Simeon also noted that some people put themselves in a fix of discouragement by benchmarking their progress with those of their classmates or age mates. He said if this is not done with caution, peer review can be counter productive. He admonished all to live their lives according to God’s standards.

Noting that 40s is the old age of youth and 50s is the youth of old age, he revealed that life was all about perspectives and that people should always look at the brighter side of life.

He then urged everyone to not always wait for big wins before thanking God and celebrating but ensure that at intervals, they should celebrate milestones which will serve as a tonic to power them to higher accomplishments.

Pastor Afolabi also advised the congregation to always have the big picture in mind, revealing that the big picture is never achieved in a hurry but through a slow and steady process.

In addition, he appealed that people should consistently engage in words of affirmation . In his words “Words are powerful, speak to yourself” He then quoted Psalms 42 and 45 as Bible passages to illustrate this.

He noted that God has made a number of things available to us through the supply of the spirit. He urged all to allow God to act in their lives through divine intervention.

The session was attended by professionals from all walks of life, and many attendees acknowledged that they truly enjoyed the session and would like it to support and attend again.

In his closing remarks, Mr. Sola Olabode, who took testimonies from participants, noted that the feedback was positive and there are indications that this platform of Christians will continue. He advised all present to make use of the serene and conducive atmosphere to make new friends that they can connect with later.

Pastor Umo Bassey Eno, the gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) who won the March 18, 2023 will today, Thursday, March 18, 2023 receive his Certificate of Return as the Akwa Ibom State Governor-elect.

Pastor Eno will be presented with the certificate at the office of the Independen National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Uyo, the State capital, along with his deputy, Senator Akon Eyakenyi.

The ceremony where his victory at the polls where he garnered an overwhelming 354, 348 votes to defeat his closest opponents, Senator Bassey Albert, 136, 262 ( YPP) and Obong Akanimo Udofia, 129, 262 ( APC) would be affirmed is certain to be attended by his family, friends and supporters.

Pastor Eno who had since extended an olive branch to all his co-contestants has pledged to deliver democracy dividends to Akwa Ibomites through the ARISE Agenda while running an all- inclusive administration.

The electoral umpire had on Saturday March 25 in a statement signed by the Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Barr. Festus Okoye informed Nigerians of its decision to present the certificates to the victorious candidates in accordance with the law.

The statement read in part thus:

“By the provisions of Section 72(1) of the Electoral Act 2022, the Commission is mandated to issue a certificate of return within 14 days to every candidate who has been returned elected under the law.”

“Pursuant to the above provision, the Commission has fixed Wednesday 29th, Thursday 30th, and Friday 31st March 2023 for the issuance of certificates of return to Governors and Deputy Governors-elect as well as State Assembly members-elect.”

He further explained that the presentation will take place in INEC offices in each state of the Federation as Resident Electoral Commissioners and Administrative Secretaries of each state are mandated to inform the recipients of specific dates for the presentation”.

l