Daughter of a Preacher Man.

   My father is a pastor and it is his job to go around the world setting up churches. So, as a result of this, I am a 'Pastor's Daughter', or a 'Preacher's Daughter' and I pretty much grew up in the church. This is the first time that I've mentioned this fact on my blog because I don't want to be defined as 'Kenny, the Pastor's/ Preacher's Daughter'. This is because in African and church culture, there is a lot of pressure with this role because the congregation's eye is on the Pastor and his family; they're watching intently to see if the Pastor and his family lead exemplary lives. I try not to let the fact that I am a Pastor's Daughter determine my life because who my Dad is shouldn't rule my life and my decisions. As a Christian, my life should be ruled by what the Bible says and God himself. Also, I am really against the idea of people in the church watching every single move of the Pastor and his family. I believe that people should focus on themselves and their own Christianity first.

  There is a reason behind this rant. A very good friend of mine from church came up to me the other day and started suggesting subtly that I need to behave more like a 'Pastor's Daughter' because 'others are watching' my actions and decisions. This upset me because (I really hope this doesn't come across as conceited) I always try to be the best person that I can be and lead a good, Christian life. There is already so much pressure and difficulty with trying to be a Christian in today's secular society and I do not need additional pressure from busybodies. This friend suggested further that I was endangering my Christianity because at uni, I go out clubbing and listen to secular music.

  I go out clubbing with my friends because I like dancing. That's it. I don't drink and I'm not promiscuous. Also, the Bible encourages us to go out and try and spread the Word of God and for me, I have the best conversations regarding religion with people in clubs. This is because people tend to open up more about their true beliefs after a few drinks. I also find that looking after people on nights out is a good way to show Christian love; it involves going out on a limb for people and it can be so rewarding knowing that you were there for people.

  I can understand where this friend is coming from because Nigerian culture is quite different from Western culture. Some Nigerians (particularly the older generations) just can't understand that you can go to pubs and clubs without having to drink, hence why they completely stay away from them. Also, the Christian Unions in Nigerian universities tend to completely isolate themselves from the non-Christians, and they're like an uninviting clique. I tried to explain to my friend that this is not the best way to break the stereotype of Christians as judgemental people who believe that they're better than others. It says in the Bible in John 8:7 that "Let him who is without sin cast the first stone." Basically, don't judge unless you're perfect and sinless. No one (except God) is perfect and sinless, soooo....

  I also tried to explain to her that different cultures call for different things. So, for example, involving myself with my friends' lives but not compromising any of my beliefs (e.g going out sans alcohol) and getting them safely back to college in their inebriated states is a better way to show love than judging them from afar with other Christians for drinking.

  With music, my friend believes that it's all black and white. In her eyes, secular music is the 'black' and religious music is the 'white'. To her, there are no grey areas and music has to explicitly mention God for it to be positive and uplifting. I disagreed with her. Sure, there are certain secular tunes that I would class in the 'black' area because these choons go against the things that I believe in and they encourage negative things such as misogyny, objectification ('She got a big booty, so I call her big booty'. Really, 2Chainz, really?), violence and racism. However, what about classical music, songs from musicals and songs that aren't particularly religious but still give good messages? As examples, I cite Einauldi, Céline Dion's 'I'm Alive', 'He Lives in You' from The Lion King and massive chooons from Five and S Club 7 like 'Keep on Moving' and 'Reach For The Stars'. Music's all about interpretation, right?
 
   Okay, rant over. I love being Nigerian, I really do. But sometimes, patronising friends and 'elders' that refuse to see and consider things from my own point of view really get me cross. 'Preacher's Daughter' Kenny out.

PS- I passed my first year of uni and I raised the most money during that telethon that I did a few months ago lol. Bring on Year 2!