S4 | 13: Why Unbelievers Succeed More Than You
They don't pray. They don't fast. But they still win.
This came from our conversations last night at the Arena.
Most people are confused about the roles of the supernatural (God) and human effort (personal growth) in achieving success.
For believers especially, these questions simmer quietly:
Is it up to God or up to me whether I succeed or not?
If it’s up to God, why do people who don’t even know Him succeed while I’m stuck?
No billionaire has exclusively attributed their success to prayer and fasting. So why should I care?
The things I pray for in a third-world country are things a good government fixes without prayer. Doesn’t this prove praying isn’t the answer?
Before I answer these questions that fester in people’s hearts, let me be clear about my bias.
I Am a Church Boy
I believe in prayer and the supernatural. I’ve seen God’s hand in my life in ways I can’t explain. The longest I’ve prayed at a stretch? 12 hours.
I’ve studied my Bible for 4+ hours straight. I’ve preached the gospel, wrought miracles, prophesied, and brought glory to God’s name in many ways.
I’m a proud person of faith and a follower of Jesus Christ.
I Believe in Personal Growth—And I’ve Been Teaching and Practicing It Since 2016
That’s 10 years in the game.
I’ve been around this industry long enough to tell you a thing or two about it. I have a balanced taste of both worlds.
But most people still get confused about whether these two coexist or which one they should depend on.
Let me offer you the most unbiased and balanced perspective.
Sit back. Grab popcorn. Pour some juice.
How The World Is Actually Designed
Matthew 5:43-45 (NKJV):
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”
This text tells us something powerful:
God’s nature is not selective. His provisions are for everyone, not just Christians or believers.
His sun and rain fall on both the evil and the good, the just and the unjust. Which means believers and non-believers alike receive God’s goodness.
You can debate whether God exists or if everything’s just the Big Bang theory. But that’s not what this post is about.
Here’s what matters:
God designed the earth with structures and systems that respond when you align with those laws.
The farmer doesn’t need to pray for food (under normal circumstances). He understands the law of seedtime and harvest. He knows when it’s favorable to sow and when harvest is due. That understanding puts food on his table, whether he believes in God or not.
The process by which food grows? That’s a system God set in motion. This itself is supernatural (what you’d call an act of God).
Genesis 1:11-12 (NKJV):
“Then God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth’; and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.”
The system has been set in motion until eternity.
Anyone (good or evil, just or unjust) who plants seeds and waters them in the right circumstances will receive a harvest.
This answers the question about why people who don’t pray or fast have what those who do don’t have.
The laws and principles that govern profit and experiencing a good life are God’s laws, and they’re available to everyone.
If you follow them, the results will follow you.
Now... here’s the difference.
The Difference Between Basic and Mastery
Some people have mastered how these laws operate.
They’ve gone the extra mile. Done a deep study. Improved their chances of taking advantage of these laws.
This is where personal growth (man’s involvement) comes in to take advantage of the supernatural.
The farmer who uses basic tools (a hoe and shovel) will have a limited supply of food. Maybe just enough for him and his family.
But there’s another farmer who studied agriculture, understands mechanized farming, and uses technology in his practice. This one grows a rice plantation, exports it to feed the world, and becomes a millionaire in the process.
What’s the difference?
The extent to which both farmers take advantage of the laws of seedtime and harvest (which is originally God’s system and His provision for every man).
This simple theory explains why two people can be born from the same womb and have completely different lives.
They both have equal access to sun and rain from God (His provisions). But their efforts (personal growth) to harness these provisions give them different outcomes in life.
Yes, we can debate about those born into privilege versus those who aren’t. But that’s not the point I’m making.
Walk with me.
Story Time
I don’t come from much.
My parents did several “seemingly mundane” jobs just to keep the family afloat. We sold bread and akara. Plantain chips. Kerosene. Fufu (santana, white man, loi loi) at different stages.
The stage I got involved in (since I’m the last child) was farming.
We grew waterleaf and vegetables, and I hawked them around the streets of Port Harcourt
Humble beginnings.
In 2016, I started questioning why we were poor. I demanded more. Those questions led me to people and places that eventually helped me in life.
Remember, I’ve always been a church boy. At 18, I’d spend hours praying in tongues.
But you see, prayer didn’t have a direct reflection on my family’s financial situation at the time.
But what it did for me was crucial:
Because of the teachings and prayers, I had great relationships that helped me gain access to the right places and people at the right time. This isn’t something you can sort out by human wisdom alone. In most cases, God strategically orders your path to these people.
It also kept me out of trouble and harm’s way. My good conduct attracted a certain type of people and influence. All of this set me up for the future.
As crucial as these were, they didn’t directly change how poor my family was at the time.
But when I started taking personal growth seriously, I saw that there are laws God set in place that I needed to understand and take advantage of.
I read John C. Maxwell’s book 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth, and it set me on course to a life of personal growth.
As I grew, certain aspects of my life began to grow alongside.
The Ultimate Example
Here’s one moment that summarizes the influence of both God and Growth.
One time in church, I was led to sow a seed to my then-pastor. The money in my account was what I’d been saving to buy a laptop. At the time, I’d just started earning ₦50k monthly while in university.
I’d been trained to understand the power of giving. So I didn’t hesitate.
The next week, I saw a job opening I would never have seen without supernatural means (I don’t believe in coincidence).
I applied. In less than two days (for a job I wasn’t fully qualified for), I got employed.
Don’t get me wrong. I had the skills for the job, but not at a level that matched the role.
My salary grew instantly from ₦50k monthly to $750 as a student in the university.
In six months, after using my leadership and problem-solving skills to take on more roles, I was earning around $1,500 from the same position.
Now watch this:
→ I developed a skill and entered the job market (personal growth).
→ I followed divine instruction because of my relationship with God, and it opened access to new opportunities (the Supernatural, God).
→ I improved my skills on the job and opened more access to new roles by solving problems (personal growth).
If you paid attention to what you just read, you’ll realize:
It’s not God OR hard work.
It’s God AND hard work.
It’s not God OR growth.
It’s God AND growth.
It’s not miracles OR brain.
It’s using your brain AND trusting God for supernatural help (as a believer).
If you depend on just one part, you’ll be severely limited.
Be Followers of Them…
I learn from John Maxwell every day.
He once said:
“I know I am a person of faith. But personal growth has been the foundation of my leadership and everything my life has been built on.”
I once listened to a top Nigerian preacher, Apostle Joshua Selman. He said:
“Second only to my Bible, the industry of personal growth and development has greatly transformed my life.”
These are global examples.
Be wise.
The Real Purpose of Prayer
I teach people that prayer and fasting aren’t really for things.
They’re tools to help your relationship with God. To know Him better and follow His plan.
Can they influence your success? Yes.
But whatever the Sheikh in Dubai or Saudi Arabia can get without prayer and fasting is a providence of God made available to all.
It’s nothing special.
What’s special is the supernatural life with God.
Your closeness to God is what’s special. And the means to achieve that is God’s method: praying, reading the Word, and fasting.
And because the supernatural is always greater than the natural, if you spend more time with God, He will show you how to exploit the profit of this earth to your advantage.
And guess what?
When He shows you, you’ll find out He’ll also demand that you grow personally to access the things He shows you.
The difference will just be this:
You didn’t get what you got by striving like everyone else.
It’s God and Growth.
Embrace the confluence.
This Is Your Arena
Day 13 of 100 Hours of Personal Growth
If you focus on personal growth, you’ll outgrow almost any difficulty you find yourself in. If your strategy is both God and Growth, NOTHING shall be impossible.
No days off.
Stay strong.
— Multidimensionally yours, JG
PS: The comment section below is an unfiltered, unrestricted section. Feel free to share your thoughts and anything you think about today’s Substack. I’ll be reading and replying.
If you pray for open doors and you do not know what it looks like, you prayed amiss.
If you pray for divine connection and you have not learned how to nurture relationships and collaborations, that prayer will be answered. Just not as you are expecting.
God entrusts to our care the resources that we have learned to handle. He will not give resources to wasters.
Every desire we have is a seed, growth is the knowledge you need to nurture that seed to bear fruit.
It is God and Growth, not God or growth.
Thank you Sensei for sharing.
Involving God in your personal growth journey yeilds the best result.
As much as you involve God, also play you own part. Even the bible says faith without work is dead.
Faith in (God)+work(personal growth) is the real deal.