GOD RESCUES YOU FIRST; THEN HE TEACHES YOU HOW TO FIGHT –THE PEOPLE STORY

 

He rescues you first like a weak lamb, then makes you a stronger

I found myself in the book of Psalms some few weeks ago. I’m re-reading the whole book again and I have noticed this amazing event that David recounts in the 18^th Chapter. If you just read with your own understanding you probably may not realize it: for half of the verses in the 18^th Chapter, David talks about God delivering him from the hands of his enemies.

 

“the Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies”

Psalm 18:2-3

“He sent out His arrows and scattered the foe, lightnings in abundance, and he vanquished them. Then the channels of the sea were seen, the foundations of the world were uncovered at Your rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of Your nostrils”

Psalm 18:14-15

If you read the verses carefully you’ll see how David describes the mighty acts of God in saving and delivering Him. David finds himself in a tight fix but He remembered one name God. He called on Him and of course God doesn’t fail. The other half of the chapter talks about how God strengthens David and teaches David how to deal with his enemies.

“It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect. He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet, and setteth me upon my high places. He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms. Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great. Thou hast enlarged my steps under me, that my feet did not slip.  I have pursued mine enemies, and overtaken them: neither did I turn again till they were consumed. I have wounded them that they were not able to rise: they are fallen under my feet. For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle: thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.  Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies; that I might destroy them that hate me.”

Psalm 18:32-40

In the second half of the chapter David stops talking like a wavering person. God has strengthened him to fight his own enemies. Not that he now relies solely on himself; remember the strength is from God. David knows he can’t be a victor without His God.

So why I’m I bringing this up? On a countless number of occasions we have fallen into ‘deep shit’ and ‘deep sea’: financial, marital, educational, social, emotional troubles, relationship and many others and it has happened once too often. And again one many countless occasions God has rescued you from those difficulties but somehow we find ourselves back in them and then we still look up to God for help. See, God helps you the first time but then He shows you how to help yourself out the next time. When God rescues you from a discomforting situation He gives you enough strength and wisdom not to go back. Ever heard the saying that no situation is permanent? You think that being in that condition is the end of it. If a man falls a thousand times, a thousand times he MUST rise. God has given you all the help you need here on earth. My Psychology lecturer said last week that with some of the problems that we face here on earth, we should stop going to God and crying about it, God gave us people to help us. He further said that by sharing your burdens your problems are divided into two. He cited an example of a girl who receives a breakup letter from her boyfriend. He advised that the girl should send the letter to a friend and both of them should read it. From then on the problems don’t become only one person’s problem but both of them. He said we shouldn’t worry whether people will laugh or not; for people will always laugh at people. The trick is the more people you share the problem with, the more lighter the burden is on you. Imagine a load of 100% shared among 50 people everyone get 2%. Now imagine one person carrying that entire load, that’s when depression comes in and then people want to commit suicide. When Joy and I broke up, of course I was carrying the entire load but then I quickly distributed it among so many people so much so that I felt I wasn’t carrying any of it. You’d think that probably isn’t the wisest thing to do but trust me from experience even if people laugh they help encourage you. That was why in no time at all I found myself with Nana. Ever heard the expression that when problems come, they don’t come in singles but in triples. Careful not to drown in the pool, that’s what people are there for. Okay! That’s enough, so that’s all people.

Look, God has already rescued you. Sometimes God wonders why you still are where you are and keep complaining. Remember all you need is around you, you just have to look. GOD FIRST RESCUES YOU BUT HE SHOWS YOU HOW TO FIGHT BACK.

 

PASSION FOR LIVING

Passion! I want you to say passion. Come on shout it. PASSION! I know I feel like a pastor in here but there’s some serious issue we have to address. Some define it as an intense emotion and blah blah blah… I want you to look at it in your own words. It is high time we operationalised certain key words for life. Let me ask you these questions?

•   Do you have a passion for life?
•   If yes, what is your passion for life?
• If no, why not? What keeps you going?

Without passion for living, without passion for life, your life will be fruitless, unsuccessful, a failure, etc. I don’t care what dreams you have, what plans you have, which people you know. You may have all that but if you don’t see the essence of living, the meaning of life, the value of life…then all those dreams, plans, aims, networks…will not work out. As a matter of fact, if there’s no passion there cannot be any dream…any future.

I can almost hear someone saying of course that’s something I know. It’s nothing new. Yeah it is but how many people still have that passion for life in its entirety? Wait a second; what do you think about people who try to commit suicide or those who actually do it. Most of them want to take their lives because they don’t see the reason for living anymore. They are tired of living. Right? You know why? Because there’s no passion anymore.

You can have passion for a second. Everyone does have some sort of passion but guess what? PASSION can run out and when passion runs out you know the outcome…people try to take their lives, get bored with life, get depressed, get stuck.  For your passion to grow or run out depends on your source. And so my next question. What is the source of your passion for living?

If the source of your passion is fame, wealth, people, your job, your family, your society, your position, that bank account…what happens if those elements pass out, run out or is no more. Tell me what could happen to a person like that? Unless there’s another source or essence to continue living they get bored with life and you know the rest that follows with time. Don’t put your passion for living into things that are temporary… I know you know what things are temporary in this world. If you don’t know, ask yourself these questions if you want to know if your source is temporary. Can this thing ever run out? Is it permanent? Is it a life-long source?

You have to know that no-one can make you happy in this life but you yourself. Everything else that you depend on could go wrong, and then where else would you turn to. NOTHING! I have this theory that happiness is a state of mind. Just like passion, you make yourself happy. Definitely so long as we are all human, things are bound to occur but it depends on what or who your source is.

That’s why we have God that we all need to look to; we know that everything in this world is under His control. If everybody fails you, God won’t. Opps! Point of correction…WHEN everybody fails you, God won’t, when your plans fail, He says the plans that He has for us, no eye has seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man the things has in store for they who love HIM, when your money runs out, He would still help you make more because he owns the universe, (Imagine a source having everything in the world belonging to Him), when family is no more, He brings people your way. Your source -passion for living should be GOD and YOURSELF. Make those two beings your passion for living. Those two CAN NEVER RUN OUT! If it feels like nobody wants you, He still wants you and needs you…who knows? you could be the leaning pillar and foundation for someone’s life. When you’re bored and stressed up with the elements of this world, ask Him for strength and know one thing; He’s with you every step of the way.

I said two sources, right? Now yourself! I know now that’s difficult because if you find yourself in stressful environments it is difficult to pull inspiration out of your being. Find reason to continue going on.  Remember I said it is difficult but not impossible. It can be done.

1. Never give up on yourself.
2. Never say you can’t do it.
3. My personal favourite NEVER SAY NEVER!
4. You are the best source of passion for living. Don’t be intimidated by anybody and don’t let anyone or anything get to you. You are better. In fact you are the BEST there is. There can be no other first or same you apart from you…the only thing someone could be close to you is second. There’s no-one like you. That should ginger you every morning to live as long as He permits you.   

 

IF YOU DON’T KNOW HOW, JUST RELAX!!!

           Have you ever sat down in a class or a lecture and you were completely lost? or please don’t tell me you haven’t before? ok ok! So are you saying that you have never thought that some subject or course was too difficult and maybe you wanted to drop the course or just give up? I don’t know about you? But I know growing up; Mathematics for example has been a problem for many of my friends. Some just say, “as for math I’m not good at it or it is not my thing or it is so so soo difficult. Guess what? You thought wrong!!! Yea I know you know I was going to get to that! lol

           For some past weeks in my Spanish class (mind you my second semester leaning- beginner) we have been going through some so many ‘complicated’ tenses – subjunctives, imperative, subjunctive imperfect, conditional clauses – and understanding for a greater part of the class is a problem me included. I almost got fed up with the course and said I will drop the course after my second year when the option is given. I found the tenses so many and so difficult to learn all of them. I even talked to a senior who dropped it after the 2^nd year and he said that a greater part of the language was centered on the tenses we were learning. I was so pissed…2 options; either I learnt it anyhow or fail the course. I tried to learn it but I couldn’t, same frustrations over again! I came home last weekend and brought the books with me to study it but had no intention to. During the weekend, the Holy Spirit spoke to me and told me that He’ll teach me. “Teach me!” I said astonished. He said, “sit down take your books and let’s study.” I had earlier heard a testimony from a preacher who had the same experience the previous week so I obeyed. He said, “relax we are going to this together.” It was amazing it was as if I was seeing different things in my books, I had so much understanding about all the tenses. He taught me and I enjoyed it. If you have the one that knows all, just obey him…clearer and new ways to work things out will come to you.

           What I want you to know and always have at the back of your mind is this ( a quote from unknown source) – Nothing is difficult, it is just that you don’t know how to do it – everything in effect is easy, lack of knowledge brings difficulty. If you want to know relax and learn (let Him teach you). You know why I say relax…

           Just this week I had to teach my best friend, Judith concerning the Spanish tenses because she had skipped a few lectures due to illness and was completely about sea about it all. When I was teaching her, I saw the same frustrations I had when I didn’t know, I told her to relax when she was frustrated. Kept saying relax till we finished. I can tell you that although we haven’t finished going through all the tenses, she’s has more understanding.

           Never think something, course, writing, subject, doing even the little domestic things around, extreme sports, ballet, etc. is difficult. Remember you don’t know how, that’s why? Just relax and learn…everything is easy. RELAX!!!

 

Grand-pa’s in a more peaceful place

I talked to my mum last 3 weeks, and I got to know that her dad, my grand-dad passed on, on Tuesday to A MORE PEACEFUL PLACE. I remember the last time I saw him; he was in so much pain. It was a Sunday when my parents and I went to see him after church. He wasn’t able to go to church because of the pain. Grand-ma had been saying in the last week before the Tuesday that he acting unusually strange. Maybe it should have clicked but why would anyone think that his time was near.

            I remember my mother saying that when he was younger he claimed that when he was older he would prefer to die than be a burden to anyone. Well, words, words however much you refuse the power in it, they work. Warning people!!!

            If for nothing at all, I’ll forever remember the funny and humorous nature of the man. He was a really nice person who would joke about everything. The nice things my mind could form about the man was the way he related with everybody especially his in-laws. Many times when issues came up, he would agree more with his in-laws than his own children. I had seen it many times with my parents and the way he would joke about it would make you agree with him. There was one time (I don’t really remember the very details) but I think my mum, his daughter and my dad and the family went to see him on one of those Sundays (we almost always went there on weekends mostly Sundays) and my mum was drinking on of her concotions which she said would make her tone down and my dad was like, “you take this things way too much.” Thinking at least a father would go with his daughter, he would support my dad and say, “all these things don’t work, if you fat, you fat.” Yeah right! Even he didn’t believe that.

              It was nice growing up among my grand-parents, especially since they were the first couple I saw blessing their marriage in a church way when they were very old. I remember being a page-boy with my cousin Ben at that wedding. He had six strong, ambitious children with my grand-pa and they loved each other so much.

             Mum’s stories about grand-pa were mostly the stories he told them when they were young and that the man had so much hair all over is body. She said when they were children, she and her siblings would braid the man’s hair on his stomach or was it his back or both…hmmmmmm…the man was hairy. But then he lost all when I met him.

            You know the irony of his death. His wife, my grand-ma thought she would die before him but nope…God does is own things His way.

 

Grand-pa we love you. Rest In Peace.  

 

 

In Pursuit Of Happiness

I’m sure you have seen Will Smith’s movie on the ‘pursuit of happyness’. I love that movie unlike many people. Come on I love thriller and blockbusters even horror movies but sometimes we need some movies to draw us back to reality and not remain there in fantasy. I believe that man is constantly searching for happiness. We wish to be in the state of happiness but so many of us ever realize that state. Why? We allow so many things to get to us. My girlfriend calls those blocks to happiness, “necessary evils” but those things happen I know but we have to look beyond that. Just Thursday I asked my girlfriend a question, “whether she believed that man could be happy all the days of his days.” I’m asking you the same thing today, do you think that’s possible. I read Norman Vincent Peale’s book, “the power of positive thinking” and one thing I learned is that to be happy you have to work hard at it.

Almost all of us allow so many things to get to us, we waste countless hours in getting out minds into thought processes that only weaken us and not strengthen us. I know things get difficult, it does for everybody. I know there are so many queer people that turn to get our nerves al the time and could draw out many reactions we would otherwise not have. It’s like the ‘evil twin’ – I hate that term.

Imagine a case when someone is shouting and yelling, just an argument. When you both yell at each other the fight continues until one person yells louder than the other or throws the harder punch. Good! Now picture this situation in which instead of yelling you whisper, the argument won’t go on…trust me, I know from several experiences. When most decided to argue things out with me, many times I know this would just be a waste of energy so I just whispers, “it’s fine, ok…I understand” It’s far better than continuing the long drag hurting you emotions. A man said that any time he was angry e would lie down; have you tried it before, when you re lying down it’s difficult to argue, you talk normally and cool off the argument. Another man also decided that when he was angry he would say in his mind, “For God so love the world that He gave,” about ten times before he reacted and by that time he was cool.

Why I’m I talking about this argument thingy; well so many of us get frustrated and angry about life and all the pressures we face in it. It read that way back in the 20^th century about 10000 Americans had to take sleeping pills to be able to sleep. Now I don’t even want to imagine that growth in number in the 21^st century, it’s crazily high. Why? Because people are running faster than their minds, rushing through this life, and then when they come to the end of it, or even right there in the middle they don’t know what they are looking for, they haven’t found happiness. Do you know that nothing comes easy? So being happy in a continuous state you need to put yourself in that mental state. Ok what I’m I even saying? I decided to resolve on it. A lesson learnt from Norman Peale in his book I mentioned earlier. I’d wake up and right there before I stepped out of my bed I’d tell myself that I’m going to have the best day ever, and I would go out there and smile and laugh at any mountain that came in front of me, it’s not easy at first but later you realize that the mountains begin to melt, because whatever anyone does can’t bring you down…nothing. Why? Because you decided to go out there since the morning you woke up and have the best of the day whatever came before you. There’s an example which Mr. Peale recounted in is book I’d like to share with you. There was this man who always woke up from bed always and he had to rush to work, he would come back tired and all worn out. Sometimes he would even miss his breakfast, I guess. One time he before putting his foot down on the floor, he notice a bed it’s nest near his bedroom window in the morning, the bird removed it’s head from under it wings, opened it’s eyes, took a look around and put his head back under it’s wings for some five minutes and got is head out again, shook his head and wings and starting singing flying down to probably look for food. The man saw and realized what many people never see and noticed before they die. You know what that is? He realized that even birds take some time to get out from their beds, they seem to take life easy and don’t allow things to control them, they take control of their own lives. He resolved to take his time when getting out of bed, relax and sing and he said that singing really helped him in the morning. I mean come on, what can stop a mind with a mental attitude to make himself happiness. Things will come, they always do. You ability to not let them draw you down is going to continue your happiness. Stop worrying.

Wake up every morning, and after saying you are going to have the best day ever day, ask God to move you through. If you encountered a problem during the day, I want you to say to yourself, “If God is for me who can be against me?” When the day ended, before you close your eyes, thank God for the best day he gave you, and hope that tomorrow will be better than the one gone by. Say this, “God, I know that those mistakes I made today were because I wasn’t listening to you. Help me Lord to listen to You all the time before I do everything. I know that those things that were so good came as a result of me listening to you.”

NO-ONE HAS ANY RIGHT TO MAKE YOU HAPPY THAT YOURSELF, I’D TRY BUT IT’S A CHOICE….DO YOU WANT TO BE HAPPY ALWAYS? IT’S NOT IMPOSSIBLE, WHY NOT TRY BELIEVING IT, BESIDES WHAT HARM WOULD IT DO.

James Allen said, “A man is what he thinketh.” It’s you choice.

 

A Worthy Cause

I’d always said that when the line was drawn

I’d be ready be go to all out

When the battle had come

My body, soul and spirit will be ever ready

 

Ready I was for the worst

So with peace I laid my head

Time seemed so fast when I was in my lover’s arms

Naked and vulnerable and comfortable my state lay

For the love of my woman was all I thought

 

One night when I was listening to the voice of love

The winds blew, the moon darkened

Ignored all those I surely did

For what was I to fear?

For she was near

 

Now time had changed

For our worst fear has come

Unaware my state was troubled

For the voice of my love was no more

Until a few hours into the OTHER DAY

The truth was made known

I said I was ready for war

IT’S WAR and I’M READY

To fight for a worthy cause,

LOVE

 

Lovely Love

              If I’m right this time: you are wondering why I use the same word twice in the subject. Maybe I just drew your attention to it. Well, it is as simple as simple can get, then again, it is not so simple. Lovely is an adjective describing a human being called Love in this script. She is the younger sister of a woman I adore very much, and will give up the whole world for….. but that’s not the issue now because on a topic like that there’s no end. I am going to briefly try to tell you about someone I have not spoken to for up to an hour. Like I said I’m going to try; Why? You know sometimes it is kind of difficult describing a woman because you could leave something out and I don’t want to leave out all the stops.

              The first time I talked to this woman, okay for the purpose of her age now, allow me to use, girl. She’s got a dozen in her. When we talked, the first impression was she had the same voice like her Big Sis. You know what I think now? I’m so off the point now if you ask me; she has her own unique voice. When you talked to her first, whether stranger or not, you feel like you have found a friend in her. Let’s say you mistook her friendship and wanted to use it as a leverage to talk to her sister, you will be making a big mistake. Why? Though maybe you would be talking to her elder sister, you will be missing out on someone full of some much virtue and best of all a confidante if it came to the worse. We still on her voice; day by day as we talk there’s this feeling that occurs to me and actually does happen that though she may be so young, she seems to have all the answers to all your questions. It makes you think twice about the statement of long ago; that some people have their mental ages way higher than their real age. That’s a tip people, don’t disregard young people. Like a preacher I know says it best; great things come in small packages.

                 I’m sure by now you are dying to know how she looks. Yo guys! She’s still a young girl; don’t even think about it, or else you going to have a problem with me. and that sure is not pleasing if her elder sister is added to the equation. Love is fine! I mean like FINE! The first time my eyes beheld her and that was a few days though not so (my cousin’s word) ‘dressy’ she was okay dressed. You know what caught my attention the most.

                Hey! Where’s your mind? We were talking about her looks. Have you ever heard the statement black is beautiful? I’m sure you have, unless maybe you haven’t stayed for long in Africa or been so close to them. We also love to rub it in. Well may I please correct that statement in regards to Love; the beauty of the African woman surpasses the mind’s eye. Don’t you dare try, try, and try to think I’m exaggerating. Dare not! I recall actually telling her the first day we talked face to face that, “I have to change my mentality about you.” I’m glad to have known her.

                   One other point I will touch on when it comes to Love will be her laugh. Maybe that’s what love really is. I mean love laughs at any situation despite the consequences and feels what you feel. Say what? I don’t really know her well, because Ed you have surely have just known her in a few weeks. Boi! Let me sound some knowledge into you. How long will it take you to realize that someone is full of love? I don’t know about you, but I’ll sure know in a few minutes. When I engage in a conversation with Love, the girl would not put off laughing. She is like one of those people to me if you feel so down, just a simple hello or hi from them will send you sky rocketing. I know if there’s something I can compare to her sister will be their way of saying hello’s and hi’s when any party talks to you on phone.

Frankly there’s simple loads more but like my best friend has started saying, “take it all in”