Do you remember how I was worrying about what God’s plans were for my life? Well, he came through in ways I could have never imagined.
Let’s back up a little bit. As you may recall from one of my previous blogposts, I left my job at Ecobank and was left feeling like I had made one of the biggest mistakes of my life. The days following that decision were hard. Oh my, this adulting business. Can you ever really be ready? I think not.
Fortunately, I was able to continue working for the Baucham’s. I am glad I got that opportunity because they were of great support during the “did I make the right decision” phase. I still never gave up on looking for opportunities to get funding to pursue my postgraduate studies. Seeing as I had been unsuccessful for almost two years, I often felt like giving up as it was very frustrating. All the form filling, essay writing, if I had a penny for every application I wrote I wouldn’t have needed a scholarship.
Enough about that.
In April 2017, I got a job with MTN Zambia; a network providing company. I thoroughly enjoyed my job there. It wasn’t perfect, but it was so fulfilling. I was in the service centre working as sales support. It involved interacting with customers and I learnt so much. I worked hard, went above and beyond. In my 6 months there, I was employee of the month 4 months in a row and I got another award for being one of the top 2 E-learners in the whole of MTN Zambia for the month of September. Some days were stressful, some days were busy, not all days were Sundays but it was definitely an amazing learning curve. I remember how my job at the bank left me insecure- feeling like there was something wrong with me. I can’t emphasise how much it was a breath of fresh air to see myself thrive in another job.
One day in the month of May, I got a letter from Nottingham Trent University (NTU); one of the universities I had applied to, stating that my application for a 50% tuition waiver was successful. I could hardly believe my eyes. The value of the scholarship was huge, but....that meant...the amount I needed to still pay was huge too. I was excited and grateful but at the same time wondering why God gave me such an opportunity that seemed nearly impossible.
When I got home that evening, I told my mum about it and she surprisingly seemed open to helping me with the balance that had to be paid. She told me to research further on the costs involved, and I did. I looked at accommodation costs, trying to assess how feasible it was. It was so expensive. I started looking for ways in which I can get an accommodation discount and came across a volunteer position called a Residence Assistant (RA). At NTU, if you volunteer for that role, they take 50% off your accommodation. After looking at the job description it seemed pretty perfect! I immediately applied and within the week I had secured a place in the RA team.
Y’all, the journey ahead was something else. It meant learning to trust in God. I wouldn’t say I was the best at that. Most days it felt like things were falling in place. Eventually, it became official I was going to the UK to do my postgraduate studies. Now for the visa. My application was rejected.
After getting everything they required in order, I reapplied a few weeks later. Finally, God smiled on me. On the 2nd of October, I got my visa and had to leave 2 days after because I was already late for class by a week.
I never imagined all those years of tirelessly applying would finally pay off. I would have never thought that I would end up in the UK a year later. Despite the multiple applications I never actually believed it would work out. It often felt like I was knocking on something that wasn’t even a door. This post barely describes the extent to which it was all a stressful process. But behind a frowning providence he does hide a smiling face.
When I left Ecobank, I thought God would punish me for leaving, especially because I was advised against it. But through it all, I was reminded that I should never put God in a box. I should never “take away” God’s attributes from him based on my present circumstances or emotions. He is merciful, he is forgiving, he is sovereign, he is faithful. God is God and he will always be. My main regret is that I didn’t seek God's face more and trust in him more through the journey that led up to me finally leaving for school. Otherwise, it was definitely a journey worth taking.
Always remember:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your path straight” -Proverbs 3:5-7
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