Do you know that hatred is a virus, the worst virus there is? Hatred permeates your body’s engine and weakens the crankshaft. The piston and rings become loose and when you fire your engine, rather than get swift movement, what you end up with is smoke, lots of smoke! You wonder why your engine oil disappears so fast. Hatred drains you of happiness and rational thinking. Each time I see those who attack me with falsehood and hatred, they don’t look so good. They appear gaunt and spent and they all seem to be ageing fast. Hatred is wearing them out.
It is hatred that is driving the massive killings of thousands in Ukraine and the untold devastation visited on the men, women and children of Gaza.
I have spent much of my life wrestling with man’s hatred. I have little material wealth but OMG, I have faith and I am H A P P Y! I appreciate the grace that the Almighty has given me to work hard, focus on my challenges and achieve results that please Him. I walk with my head held high and love the gifts He has given me.
I have heard some people say that I am arrogant… Arrogant ke? No sir! What they call arrogance is confidence. If you believe in God, you glow in His glory. I am not so stupid that I do not understand that whatever wisdom and strength I may deploy do not belong to me but to the Almighty. If you think that I am arrogant, please bury the thought. I simply glow in the glory of God.
I have said before that I do not want to be Dangote or Otedola or Ronaldo or Donald Trump. I do not need to be a governor or a minister. I am Tony Okoroji and boy, I like it.
I know that the good Lord has given to each of His children our peculiar gifts. The problem is that rather than harness our gifts, some people are very busy with envy and covetousness and fixated on the gifts of others. Somebody should tell them that I do not want to be them, can never be them and no matter how much they try, they cannot be me.
When I say that I drive on a full tank of faith, I mean that I have full confidence that if what I am doing is to the glory of God and the good of His children, I cannot fail. As my tank is filled with faith, so are my tires filled with love and no obstacle or bump can stop me.
In their hearts, those who have gone after me know that I have done nothing against them and taken nothing that belongs to them. They are just driven by hate and so cannot think or act rationally. I was recently told by someone I used to respect that there are people who hate me because I am always winning. He actually advised that I should lose sometimes so that my ‘adversaries’ can be happy! In other words, I should be a failure so that some people can celebrate! People who do not work anywhere as hard as I do want recognition for what they have not done. See me, see trouble!
Everyone who knows me will tell you that I work 25 hours a day, 8 days a week. I never stop working and I don’t complain about work. Life is work. Work is fun. In everything I do, I seek perfection. I have repeatedly asked the good Lord to use me to do good to as many people as possible. Every day I wake up, it is my duty to put a smile on the face of someone.
Do you know that nearly everyone who ferociously attacks me is someone I have given my love to? They take and take and at some point, conclude that I have become their ‘mugu,’ available to give everything they want. Then, they make a demand that I cannot give. Come and see wahala oh! They are shocked that their ‘mugu’ can say no to them sometimes. After all, I am supposed to be there for their use. Suddenly, friendship turns to hatred. From being an exceptionally good person, I have become a very bad man, selfish, cunning and even a criminal! That is how the hate swells and the desire to destroy ferments.
Please, let them go with their hate. I do not want to be part of it. I do not want to dwell in it. Hate belongs to the devil. I deal with love and I am happy with it. I know that the Almighty will never let me be successful in destroying anyone who has done nothing against me.
I have witnessed some people concoct so much lies, repeatedly tell their lies until they even begin to believe their lies. They continue to run from pillar to post and ask themselves why their lies have been so ineffective. They get frustrated that they do not achieve what they desire. The answer is simple: love conquers hate.
I do hope that all of us will learn that man is not God and God does not dwell in hate. If you kneel down and pray that you succeed with your hate, you have not prayed to God but to the devil. You will simply continue to be eaten up by the virus called hate.
Try pumping your tires with love and drive on a full tank of faith. I promise that you will never be stranded along the way. God is love!
