‬‬Engineer Godwin Ogubuike is one of the arrowheads of Firstlove Assembly Diaspora Fellowship, Europe Branch. He has lived in the UK for upward of 20 years. Most times when I land at London Heathrow, he will be on hand to take me to the hotel or wherever I am going. My last visit in February this year was not different. While taking me to the hotel, I asked how he and his wife have managed to raise responsible children in such a lax environment as they found themselves. I learned two things. Firstly, when his wife, a medical doctor by training, got to the United Kingdom, she decided to put on hold a qualifying examination that would make her practice. She gave the first seven years to attend to the children. Some felt she was playing the fool. Those who thought that way then now need their counsel to sustain their marriages.

neither a good marriage nor raising godly children comes at a bargain. There is a price to pay. Generally, to have a good life will cost something…We have to imbibe delayed gratification.

He told me another story. Their son loved sports, particularly soccer. He desired to be enrolled in a soccer academy and end up playing for clubs. He sat his son down and explained that going that route would mean taking him to trainings and games on Sunday, and it would affect his time for God. Today, the young boy is studying sports-related science as a compromise for what might have been missed earlier. Here is the point: neither a good marriage nor raising godly children comes at a bargain. There is a price to pay. Generally, to have a good life will cost something. We have to learn prioritizing. We have to imbibe delayed gratification. Lastly, we have to have a long-term vision with God at the centre of it.