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Mystery Of Love And Success (1)
It is with great joy that I welcome you to this maiden edition of “Thinking Corner with Bishop Victor Uzosike” every Thursday. I will be sharing with you, undiluted, deep secrets about life, love and success as revealed to me by God.
These secrets are major keys to supernatural blessings and transformation of lives because God reveals them to His servants for the edification of mankind. It will be served fresh, spiced with power and authority to enable you live a happy and victorious life. Jesus told His disciples in Mark 4:11 thus:
“…Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the Kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all [these] things are done in parables:(KJV)
In ancient times, mysteries were kept from people; through parables and people would go around seeking for the meaning of those parables. Mysteries are key to human existence. Today, the penchant search for man to connect to a higher power is enormous. God has written His word and has made it clear that even the physical things we see are reflections of His divine existence.
Talking about mysteries of the Kingdom, love – genuine love is a key ingredient. It is so powerful that we find that Jesus could not explain everything to everybody. But he called his disciples and said to them, it is given to you to know. What you know, is what you can command. The knowledge you have is your power to command. This is why the secrets of God are hidden in His word. One of these great secrets is the power of love. This is captured succinctly in 3John 1:2 which says: Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. (KJV)
God’s agenda is key. He wants you to prosper. Jeremiah 29:11 gives an insight into this and says: For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. (KJV)
There is a major mystery I am about to share with you. I have personally benefitted from it; and as a custodian of this supernatural mystery, I position myself boldly as an oracle of God, that the mysterious power of God’s love is key ingredient to life’s success. This is why in Mark 12:29-31, Jesus Himself admonished us thus: And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments [is], Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this [is] the first commandment. And the second [is] like, [namely] this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. (KJV)
This is how the Goodnews Bible translates it in Mark 12:29-31: Jesus replied, “The most important one is this: Listen, Israel! The Lord our God is the only Lord. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second most important commandment is this: Love your neighbour as you love yourself. There is no other commandment more important than these two.”(GNT)
Jesus unveiled the mystery of the love of God and made it the highest commandment. He said that there is none greater than this.
You need to see the power of this love which was first reflected in Deuteronomy, by Moses when he gave the commandment of the love of God to the children of Israel.
Deuteronomy 6:5 says: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. (KJV)
You are not allowed to love anything more than God. Not even your wife because your soul belongs to God.
Why is love a mystery and why did Jesus make it the highest commandment? He said there is no other commandment greater than this. Why is this commandment so powerful?
God manifests Himself in love. And by this mystery, you cannot be blessed where you don’t love. You cannot succeed where you don’t love. If you hate a community, tribe or nation, don’t stay among them, because you will never succeed.
Daniel 4:17 says: This matter [is] by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the Kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men.(KJV)
I even found in the Scriptures that even the children of Israel, did not go into Egypt to hate the Egyptians.
Genesis 39:1-5 says: And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither. And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw that the LORD [was] with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand. And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all [that] he had he put into his hand. And it came to pass from the time [that] he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field.(KJV).
Joseph had one of the worst experiences anybody could have. He had his destiny truncated by his own brothers. In today’s world, Joseph could be said to have been kidnapped; violated by his own brothers, abused, sold out and made a slave. When a man is made a slave, it means that he has been stripped of all honour, rights and privileges. But Joseph waded through and rose in the midst of such traumatic challenges. He found himself in Egypt, a slave, but he prospered right in the face of the man that bought him. Your circumstance does not define you. It is the mystery that governs your heart and soul that defines your destiny. Joseph was able to break out of the cocoon and snare, simply because he loved the man. He prospered in the house of his master because God was with him. Anywhere there is genuine love for God, His word, His Kingdom and for the people, God shows up. Any carrier of love is a carrier of God. Many are wondering why they don’t succeed in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria or any other place they are residing, they toil and get nothing. Whether you are biologically from Rivers State or not, it doesn’t matter. Where you are, the key to your success there is genuine love. Every carrier of love is a carrier of God, doors cannot lock against such, neither will gates close against the person. Joseph was a slave but the Bible reveals that because he carried the love of God, he prospered in the house of his master. Every lover of God and mankind; any one that displays genuine love for God, His kingdom, His word, will be a carrier of God. Joseph broke through every limiting factor, smashed barriers, only by the instrument of love. My prayer is that the mystery of love and success be open to you as you read.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminialayi Fubara, has dissolved the State Executive Council.
The governor announced the cabinet dissolution yesterday in a statement titled ‘Government Special Announcement’, signed by his new Chief Press Secretary, Onwuka Nzeshi.
Governor Fubara directed all Commissioners and Special Advisers to hand over to the Permanent Secretaries or the most Senior officers in their Ministries with immediate effect.
He thanked the outgoing members of the State Executive Council for their service and wished them the best in their future endeavours.
The three-paragraph special announcement read, “His Excellency, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, GSSRS, Governor of Rivers State, has dissolved the State Executive Council.
“His Excellency, the Governor, has therefore directed all Commissioners and Special Advisers to hand over to the Permanent Secretaries or the most Senior officers in their Ministries with immediate effect.
“His Excellency further expresses his deepest appreciation to the outgoing members of the Executive Council wishing them the best in their future endeavours.”
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday told the National Assembly that it requires N873.78bn to conduct the 2027 general elections, even as it seeks N171bn to fund its operations in the 2026 fiscal year.
INEC Chairman, Prof Joash Amupitan, made the disclosure while presenting the commission’s 2026 budget proposal and the projected cost for the 2027 general elections before the National Assembly Joint Committee on Electoral Matters in Abuja.
According to Amupitan, the N873.78bn election budget covers the full conduct of national polls in 2027.
An additional N171bn is needed to support INEC’s routine activities in 2026, including bye-elections and off-season elections, the commission stated.
The INEC boss said the proposed election budget does not include a fresh request from the National Youth Service Corps seeking increased allowances for corps members engaged as ad-hoc staff during elections.
He explained that, although the details of specific line items were not exhaustively presented, the almost N1tn election budget is structured across five major components.
“N379.75bn is for operational costs, N92.32bn for administrative costs, N209.21bn for technological costs, N154.91bn for election capital costs and N42.61bn for miscellaneous expenses,” Amupitan said.
The INEC chief noted that the budget was prepared “in line with Section 3(3) of the Electoral Act 2022, which mandates the Commission to prepare its election budget at least one year before the general election.”
On the 2026 fiscal year, Amupitan disclosed that the Ministry of Finance provided an envelope of N140bn, stressing, however, that “INEC is proposing a total expenditure of N171bn.”
The breakdown includes N109bn for personnel costs, N18.7bn for overheads, N42.63bn for election-related activities and N1.4bn for capital expenditure.
He argued that the envelope budgeting system is not suitable for the Commission’s operations, noting that INEC’s activities often require urgent and flexible funding.
Amupitan also identified the lack of a dedicated communications network as a major operational challenge, adding that if the commission develops its own network infrastructure, Nigerians would be in a better position to hold it accountable for any technical glitches.
Speaking at the session, Senator Adams Oshiomhole (APC, Edo North) said external agencies should not dictate the budgeting framework for INEC, given the unique and sensitive nature of its mandate.
He advocated that the envelope budgeting model should be set aside.
He urged the National Assembly to work with INEC’s financial proposal to avoid future instances of possible underfunding.
In the same vein, a member of the House of Representatives from Edo State, Billy Osawaru, called for INEC’s budget to be placed on first-line charge as provided in the Constitution, with funds released in full and on time to enable the Commission to plan early enough for the 2027 general election.
The Joint Committee approved a motion recommending the one-time release of the Commission’s annual budget.
The committee also said it would consider the NYSC’s request for about N32bn to increase allowances for corps members to N125,000 each when engaged for election duties.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on INEC, Senator Simon Along, assured that the National Assembly would work closely with the Commission to ensure it receives the necessary support for the successful conduct of the 2027 general elections.
Similarly, the Chairman of the House Committee on Electoral Matters, Bayo Balogun, also pledged legislative support, warning INEC to be careful about promises it might be unable to keep.
He recalled that during the 2023 general election, INEC made strong assurances about uploading results to the INEC Result Viewing portal, creating the impression that results could be monitored in real time.
“iREV was not even in the Electoral Act; it was only in INEC regulations. So, be careful how you make promises,” Balogun warned.
The N873.78bn proposed by INEC for next year’s general election is a significant increase from the N313.4bn released to the Commission by the Federal Government for the conduct of the 2023 general election.
President Bola Tinubu yesterday expressed grief over the death of a former President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities and one of Africa’s foremost literary scholars, Professor Emeritus Biodun Jeyifo.
Jeyifo passed away on Wednesday, drawing tributes from across Nigeria and the global academic community.
In a condolence message to the family, friends, and associates of the late scholar, Tinubu in a statement by his spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, described Jeyifo as a towering intellectual whose contributions to African literature, postcolonial studies, and cultural theory left an enduring legacy.
He noted that the late professor would be sorely missed for his incisive criticism and masterful interpretations of the works of Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka.
The President also recalled Jeyifo’s leadership of ASUU, praising the temperance, foresight, and wisdom he brought to the union over the years.
Tinubu said Jeyifo played a key role in shaping negotiation frameworks with the government aimed at improving working conditions for university staff and enhancing the learning environment in Nigerian universities.
According to the President, Professor Jeyifo’s longstanding advocacy for academic freedom and social justice will continue to inspire generations.
He added that the late scholar’s influence extended beyond academia into political and cultural journalism, where he served as a mentor to numerous scholars, writers, and activists.
Tinubu condoled with ASUU, the Nigerian Academy of Letters, the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism, the University of Ibadan, Obafemi Awolowo University, Oberlin University, Cornell University, and Harvard University—institutions where Jeyifo studied, taught, or made significant scholarly contributions.
“Nigeria and the global academic community have lost a towering figure and outstanding global citizen,” the President said.
“Professor Biodun Jeyifo was an intellectual giant who dedicated his entire life to knowledge production and the promotion of human dignity. I share a strong personal relationship with him. His contributions to literary and cultural advancement and to society at large will be missed.”
Jeyifo was widely regarded as one of Africa’s most influential literary critics and public intellectuals. Among several honours, he received the prestigious W.E.B. Du Bois Medal in 2019.