Indisputable: The Story of a Favored Son

By OKECHUKU K ENYIA

Overcoming adversity. Finding purpose. The relentless pursuit of destiny. In the book of Genesis, Joseph carries a significant dream that includes others who are to be connected to him for great purpose. These men and women from every generation alive on the planet right now have moved from the early stages of their walk with God into realms of

• Language: English
• Publisher: Enyia Strategies, LLC
• Release date: Mar 15, 2019
• ISBN: 9781732031135

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Indisputable: The Story of a Favored Son

by Okechuku Kelechi Enyia

4113 Russell Avenue

Mount Rainier, Maryland 20712

This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law.

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked

esv

are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked niv are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, , niv®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The niv and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Copyright © 2018 by Okechuku Kelechi Enyia

All rights reserved

Visit the author’s website at www.enyiastrategies.com.

International Standard Book Number: 978-1-7320311-0-4

E-book ISBN: 978-1-7320311-1-1

While the author has made every effort to provide accurate Internet addresses at the time of publication, neither the publisher nor the author assumes any responsibility for errors or for changes that occur after publication.

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter One: Origins

Chapter Two: College Life

Chapter Three: The Birthing Chamber

Chapter Four: Apocalypse

Chapter Five: The Crucible

Chapter Six: Awakening to Destiny

Chapter Seven: The Sunken Place

Chapter Eight: Staying Power

Chapter Nine: Is There No Balm in Gilead?

Chapter Ten: A Seat at the Table

Chapter Eleven: A Strategy for Metamorphosis

Chapter Twelve: Entrepreneurship and Higher Education

Appendix A: The Enyia Strategies Process for Discovering Your Passion

Appendix B: How to Get a Job on Capitol Hill

Appendix C: How to Succeed on Capitol Hill as a Staffer of Color

Appendix D: The Science of Advocacy: Hill Advocacy 101

Appendix E: The Inside-Outside Legislative Process Strategy

Appendix F: The Enyia Strategies Guide for Becoming a Successful Self-Published Nonfiction Author-Entrepreneur

Appendix G: Recommended Reading

Notes

Acknowledgments

I

’d like to

dedicate this first book to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who by the power of the Holy Spirit has enabled me to craft the contents of this book for the purposes of advancing the kingdom of God.

Lord, You shared with me on May 1, 2018, Your writing will be your weapon. I honor You with my life story.

I honor my ancestors, my great-grandparents and grandparents. Your prayers for generations yet unborn will continue to come to pass.

I honor my parents, Dr. and Mrs. Samuel and Irene O. Enyia, whose example I follow as a transformational servant-leader in my generation.

To my siblings, Chidiriayi, Ngozi, Onyinye, Amara, and Chimaobi—my constant prayer is for your continued success in every area of your lives.

To my uncles, aunts, cousins, nieces, and nephews—each one of you in some way, shape, or form has molded me into the man I am today.

To my fraternity brothers worldwide—we shall continue to transcend all.

Finally, to Apostles Matthew and Kamilah Stevenson III and the members of All Nations Worship Assembly—you provided, and continue to provide, the spiritual covering and language to encourage me to fulfill destiny. I honor you.

Introduction

In·dis·put·a·ble—unable to be challenged or denied; irrefutable, indubitable, beyond question¹

T

here is power

in your testimony and victory in your vision—let your life speak. The Holy Spirit intricately ties the shape of the future to those who cooperate with Him to bring it to pass. They have the ability to influence and shape the future because they know what wants to emerge based on what the Holy Spirit has revealed to them.

In every generation the hand of God moves on some to touch the heart of nations. They desire to be a redemptive influence in every sector of society. They carry an intense passion for God’s glory and began moving His heart in the secret place long before their public appearing. They embrace the seasons of isolation, humbling, and hiding as a gift from the Holy Spirit. They trust the process God is bringing them through in preparation for their life’s work. They are Spirit-driven in all they think, say, do, and feel.

In the Book of Genesis, a man named Joseph carried a significant dream that affected others who were to be connected to him for great purpose. He was thrown into a pit, sold into slavery, and sentenced to prison before his dream came to pass. But God took him from the pit to the palace in what seemed like a day.

There are men and women of all ages on the planet right now who, like Joseph, have God-given dreams. These individuals have moved from the early stages of their walk with God into realms of revelation of the Word of God that have kept them as they have faced the onslaughts of hell. They have had to walk through fiery ordeals that those who have chosen the easy road would not understand. Now, these men and women are looking for those who are hearing the same things from the Holy Spirit about what God wants to manifest in this season, people who will come together and function as one to bring the future into the now by faith.

One of the reasons God grants favor is to help us endure warfare. That’s what He did for Joseph the Dreamer. Joseph prospered despite all he went through because the Lord was with him. (See Genesis 39:2–6, 21.) This book represents the journey of a favored son—not so much because I asked for favor but because God gives gifts to mankind without repentance. (See Romans 11:29.) Being favored reflects the dichotomy that though you must face the various trials of life head-on, the anointing on your life is custom-made for who you are and empowers you to fulfill your purpose and mandate.

I invite you to journey with me—from my childhood, youth, and college years to my travels, medical school, career transitions, graduate school, Capitol Hill, and entrepreneurship—to see how God has brought His will to pass in my life despite the obstacles that stood against me. My prayer is that billions of lives will be impacted and souls saved by this story of one man’s transparent and indisputable prophetic journey.

Chapter One

Origins

Igwe bu ike. (In unity there is strength.)

—Igbo proverb

B

orn in Delnor

Hospital in St. Charles, Illinois, I was blessed to grow up in a two-parent household. I came from humble beginnings. My parents emigrated from Nigeria to pursue higher education after the Biafran War ended in 1970. The conflict was between the nation of Nigeria and the secessionist state of Biafra, which was made up of largely of the Igbo people, the ethnic group into which I was born.

My mom grew up in the village of Umuawa-Alaocha, and my dad grew up in the village of Oloko in Abia State, which is in the southeastern part of Nigeria. Oloko was the headquarters for ten villages that constituted Oloko Clan, which is situated in the Ikwuano Local Government Area.

Names carry great significance in Igbo culture. My first name means God’s gift or God’s portion. My middle name, Kelechi, means thank God. And my last name means friend.

My siblings and I were born into a rich legacy of ministers dating back to our grandparents and great-grandparents, who were also educators, engineers, political leaders, and entrepreneurs. For example, one of my paternal great-grandmothers, Nwanyeruwa Ojim, led the November 1929 Resistance (Ogu Umunwaanyi, or Women’s War of 1929)¹ against the British, who had colonized Nigeria in 1914.² It is important to emphasize that what had been erroneously labeled the Aba Women’s Riot was actually a resistance and a revolution that originated in Umuobasi Compound in Oloko.

From a sociopolitical standpoint, the power to define and control the narrative in this context is noteworthy and speaks to contemporary culture wars between oppressors and the oppressed around the globe. For instance, the British characterized this resistance as a riot, which implied an uncontrolled, irrational action. In fact, the Women’s War was a symbolic, traditional, organized campaign galvanized to amplify grievances against a culture and politics that sought to dominate and control the Igbo way of life.³

Ultimately, this revolt was led by urban and rural women, who covered more than six thousand square miles and mobilized a population of over two million people to oppose the British colonial masters’ plan to tax women through British-appointed Warrant Chief Okugo Ekoma. The corrupt so-called warrant chiefs were haphazardly selected by the colonial administration to help impose a culture of patriarchy as part of what was termed indirect rule, thus beginning the erosion of the matriarchal power of women in Igbo society.⁴

From 1924 to 1928, British Government Divisional Officer Sir Graeme Thomson, who was stationed at the Bende Division headquarters, precipitated this resistance when he decided to tax the men in the Eastern Region of Nigeria. In 1926, a census was conducted of all the men in Oloko Clan to determine the scope of the pending taxation. At that time, in Igbo culture the idea of counting humans was believed to bring about death, causing the census to agitate the resistance even more.⁵ Further, Warrant Chief Okugo Ekoma knew that taxing the men would result in trouble, but he did not speak out against it.

Then in April 1928, the colonial administration imposed taxes on the Oloko men and the neighboring communities of Aba, Umuahia, Bende, Owerri, and Okigwe. As the colonial administration began to reap the benefits of the initial taxation efforts, Chief Ekoma sent an assessor named Mark Emeruwa to Oloko Clan on November 23, 1929, to conduct a census of the women, children, and domestic livestock there. He was met by my great-grandmother at her estate, and she denied him the opportunity to proceed with the assessment.⁶

It was this valiant act of resistance that facilitated several days of protesting, after which the women were given written assurances that they would not be taxed. In this context, protesting generally involved blocking roads, chanting, dancing, and taunting the warrant chiefs. It also involved what was termed sitting on a man or making war with a man, a traditional method of removing men from power and disrupting trade in the marketplace.⁷

Even with written documentation, the women exercised due diligence by surveying the surrounding communities for additional evidence of imposed taxation before revolting in full force. The women did not necessarily wish to overthrow the colonial rule as it was; they wanted to be consulted on the selection of governmental officials and the drafting of policies that affected their daily lives.

Over the course of twenty-nine days, the British killed or wounded hundreds of unarmed women in an attempt to maintain power. However, the sacrifices brought about meaningful measures of success in that for several years following the Women’s War, head-counting and tax collection ceased.⁸ As a parallel, I’m reminded of the Dora Milaje, the powerful all-female special forces unit in the blockbuster movie Black Panther. I’ll talk more about the movie in a subsequent chapter.

Cross-Continental Transition

My parents got married in 1975 before my dad emigrated to the United States to pursue higher education. My mom followed two years later. Prior to that, my mom was a frontline nurse, and my dad was an Army battalion commander during the Biafran War (1967–1970). Twenty-nine years later, they co-authored a book titled After Biafra: A Nigerian Igbo Economic Development Revolution, which talks about their experience and provides solutions for moving the country forward from an economic standpoint.

I’m the oldest of six children—three boys and three girls, with ten years separating me from my youngest brother. My mom and dad are ordained ministers who manage a not-for-profit organization that cares for the poor and needy. My dad also has a doctorate in instructional technology and is a professor of communications. My mom has a master of health sciences and worked as a clinical therapist for several years. My particular interest in the sciences came from reading my mom’s nursing books when I was six or seven years old.

Speaking of education, I have a special place in my heart for historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) because my dad taught at Coppin State University in Baltimore when I was in first and second grade. In fact, I remember shadowing my dad on campus a few times and was in awe of what would later become a prophetic signpost pointing to what would come of my desire to relentlessly pursue higher education in the field of science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM).

I also vividly remember my mom leading me to Jesus Christ at the age of seven as we knelt to pray on the brown sofa in our apartment in Baltimore. I recall being very sensitive to the spiritual realm even at a young age but not having the language to communicate the things I would see or hear about people I came in contact with. My passion for activism also came from my parents as I saw their involvement in politics in Nigeria and in Chicago.

By and large I had an enriching childhood. However, growing up bicultural in the Chicagoland area had its own set of challenges. I had a mild stutter, and I bore the brunt of countless jokes about my name and skin color. Apparently, I was too dark-skinned and needed to go back to Africa. I was bullied periodically and got into the occasional fight.

On top of that, my desire to fit in and have a sense of belonging was very intense. I remember going to different Nigerian events and observing the social interactions and thinking, Why are they so backward? Retrospectively, it this thinking was a vestige of navigating two different cultures and trying to make sense of it all at such an impressionable age. I would also get embarrassed when my parents would speak Igbo in public settings because the casual observer would either look with sincere curiosity or mock them. Then I had to deal with relatives or family friends who consistently shamed my siblings and me because we didn’t know how to speak our native tongue. It was demeaning and birthed feelings of rejection that would later manifest in unhealthy ways.

Navigating mainstream society as a child of immigrants certainly presented its challenges. I did, however, always pride myself in at least being able to understand Igbo. I knew in my early years that I would need to be immersed in the culture for me to speak my native tongue fluently, which is eventually what happened several years later when I went home to Nigeria.

An Orphan Spirit

Growing up, I attended both public and private institutions. While I was consistently an honor roll student from grammar school through high school, I bottled up my negative emotions to the point that I developed a very short temper that would manifest very strongly in my first two years of college. This was coupled with very strict rules at home and a relative lack of affirmation that I now know I needed to grow in a healthier way emotionally. What further complicated my emotional development was growing up in an environment that was not necessarily conducive for the healthy expression of my thoughts and emotions.

It was either my parents’ way or no way, and I very rarely felt like I was being heard or validated. Granted, parents are the authority in the home, but what can happen in that kind of environment is that an orphan spirit can manifest. A spiritual orphan is a person who feels he or she does not have a home or a safe and secure place in a father’s heart, a place where he or she feels loved, accepted, protected, affirmed, or nurtured.

At some point, each of us has to deal with the manifestations of an orphan heart. Part of my story chronicles how I’ve matured to a place of wholeness and now understand sonship as a child of God. A book that I would highly recommend for more insights and deliverance in this area is Spiritual Slavery to Sonship: Your Destiny Awaits You by Jack and Trisha Frost.

Seeds of Destiny

My first job was as a paperboy. This was a good character-builder! My brother and I would get up at 5:00 a.m., fold about thirty newspapers, and either ride our bikes or drive around the neighborhood to deliver them. This is where I first learned the value of saving and budgeting.

In my high school years, I ran track, and played football and soccer. I ultimately developed a love for running track, with my best events usually being the long jump, triple jump, and 200-meter dash. I remember performing so well with the long jump that I went down state in Illinois to compete and placed second or third place. This was a great confidence booster.

My siblings and I were fortunate to attend a public school that was relatively diverse in terms of the student and teacher populations. I had the benefit of having been taught by teachers who either looked like me or had my best interests at heart. I want to give a shout out to my third-grade teacher, Mrs. Manley, and my sixth-grade teacher, Mrs. Taylor, who put me on a path of success.

I