If Only….

The TWISTED ROPE complains of discomfort
The COOLED METAL from the furnace wonders if it will enjoy malleability ever again
The RICH MAN who lives in a mansion is dissatisfied with his servants’ work
The STREET CHILD wonders what he did to deserve his pauperdom

The BARREN LAND, in cogitation, wonders if she’s of any use to her master
And SILENCE scavenges all day long in hope of finding the perfect ambience for merry-making
The MODERN DAY wishes his generation would to slow down a bit to savour the wonders of creation
And the OBEDIENT CHILD is beginning to have second thoughts because his world purports that, ”it sacks to be perfect”

The NIGHT is bitter because the sun refuses to grace her with his presence
And the SUN in turn doesn’t understand why the moon is so dependent on him
If only TIME would permit them to have a meaningful discourse to sought out their age-long quarrel
The HEART yearns for that glorious day when he would go on vacation without taking another life

I can go on and on and on and on…….and eons of time would not permit me to exhaust the list

I GUESS YOU’VE BEEN THINKING,

IF ONLY………,THEN MY LIFE WOULD BE……….

GUESS WHAT! YOUR THOUGHTS WISH FOR THE DAY HER MASTER WOULD LEARN TO APPRECIATE HOW BEAUTIFUL, MAGNIFICENT AND UNIQUE GOD HAS MADE HIM!
EVEN YOUR THOUGHTS ENVY YOU!!!

JESUS LOVES YOU (JLY)

BY prince

NOT UNDER BUSHEL

In innocent blemish,
Was I conceived and born,
To run a race of three-score and ten,
In a dingy and unwholesome world as this,
Where purity has lost its place,
And vanity's scepter, held up high.

With no guidance or discipline to uphold,
Soon my innocence was ruptured,
And corrupted, my blemish magnified;
As the subtle seduction so served,
Was irresistible to my wanting self,
In a world where perverts had the play.

Of boozing, I had my qualifications;
The shameless whore, my bed befriended;
I dined and wined on the gambling table;
And the deadly pistol, my only true friend.
Reverence I thought I received,
When all men shuddered at my behest.

Alas, my soul grumbled from within.
I made way to meet up with my inner man:
So entrapped, so emasculated, he was within.
There was truly no peace within,
And joy could only be part of my day dream.

My soul yearned for completeness,
Joy and peace unspoken,
A life beyond this world, yes eternal!
Then I met my saviour and the light to my path.
Now I'm saved and have it bright:
The wholesome light that cast out darkness.

Shall I hide it under bushel or let it shine?
Nay! Upon a torch I shall have it lit,
And send it in to those I left behind,
Not dreading their scorn or sour reproach.
I shall be the light to them that grope in darkness.
Not under bushel, but on a candlestick up high!

(my inspiration:Matthew 5:14)

.....Priscenyo

HEAVEN SENT (..the poem)

I walked on, on a deserted road
I looked radiant but inside, my world crumbled
Then came someone, or was it an angel?
Well he couldn’t keep my world from crumbling
But he caught my falling star.

Tears of dejection run down my cheeks
Sadness from disappointment filled my eyes
Then came someone, or was it an angel?
Well he couldn’t stop the tears
But he made me smile through them.

Today, I see through the eyes of gratitude
And light shines through my broken world
Father realized I needed someone; a friend
So He sent one
But it wasn’t someone that came to me
It was an angel…


.....Wumbornyi

HEAVEN SENT (..the story)

A few years back when I was in senior high school, I went for a club meeting. What we had scheduled for that day was what the executives called ‘angel -and -mortal’ and that was what we were to try out for the rest of the term. It worked like this; we all wrote down our names on pieces of papers and put them together in a basket. Now everyone was to pick a piece of paper from the basket and the person whose name you found written on that paper became your mortal and you, her angel. Now, angels were to watch over their mortals and pray for them everyday and mortals were to receive notes from their angels encouraging them and the notes were signed ‘from your angel’. This goes to say that mortals didn’t know who their angels were. At the end of the term, we got together and found out who our angels were.Personally, I thought it was a splendid idea! I didn’t know my mortal very well; she was my senior but I prayed so hard for her that by the time I was done I realized I was as concerned about her as I was about myself. Everyone was someone’s angel and everyone was someone’s mortal so you prayed and were prayed for.

Pretty much the same thing goes on in our everyday lives. Have you ever gone through trying times and it seemed as though your problems would outweigh you and you had no one to share your burdens with? You know, God knows that sometimes after talking to him, we need our fellow humans to support us too so He sends us angels. They come as everyday people and they come in the nick of time and they let us know that they’ve got our backs, and before we know we’re standing again. Sometimes when their job is done, they leave the scene. You see, God doesn’t want us to become dependent on them (for one day the arm of flesh shall fail you). Other times, we ourselves drive them away with our attitudes. Human angels don’t always come by, so when they do, you do all you can to make them see that they are appreciated.

Tyler Perry once said that in our lives there are leaves, branches and roots. The people who are roots in our lives don’t always come along, so when they do, you do what you have to do to make sure they stay. If a branch says he wants to leave, you’d better let him leave because he was never meant to stay. You may ask how to tell the difference. Just sit down and do some stock taking of your life. There are people who simply love you for you, they never ask anything in return, they cherish your advice and company, you know you can count on them to help so long as they can and even if they don’t go on their knees, they still pray for you one way or the other. Such people don’t flatter you. If you did something wrong, they let you know in very plain language that you were wrong. I guess by now you know the people I am talking about and you also realize there are very few of them. Those people are the ‘roots’ or the human angels in your life. Most often, its people like that that end up as our life partners. You have no business marrying a ‘branch’ because he or she was never designed to stay. Get the picture?

So what now? Just do what you have to do to keep those angels around because you need them and they need you. If a passing angel has to go, simply cherish every moment and time that the person blessed your life.Immortalise them in your heart. Right now I have to go tell one special angel what a blessing he has been. You also go on and do the same!


.....Wumbornyi

GREATER LOVE

“Therefore just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Husbands love your wives just as Christ also loved the Church and gave himself for…”
This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the Church are one.
– Eph 5:25-32

For the first time I get this whole women must submit and men must love thing. It has nothing to do with any of the two species or their personality differences or genetic make-up but everything to do with Christ (God).
All of mankind is the body of Christ (at least those who belong to God) and we have been prepared as the bride of Christ and Christ is the groom. To enable us have a little peak into the love that He (Christ) has for us, God instituted the marriage union. When God wanted the prophet Hosea to understand His love for His children, He sent the prophet off to marry a prostitute. And as much as the wife prostituted herself with a whole lot of men, the prophet still loved her and was always ready to forgive her. He loved her in spite of herself. And this is how God admonished men to love their wives (in spite of themselves); not because men have no heart and so must learn to love but because men are playing the role of Christ in marriage. Women were also to submit to their husbands because, that is the role of the church, to submit to God’s authority (men plus women (included) make up the Church)

Eph 5:1 says that we should be “imitators of God as dear children…” so we must all step up to the challenge and take on our respective roles and perform them efficiently.

I was beginning to sense a bit of unfairness in this whole thing because men have to do twice what women were asked to do. Thus men are asked to submit to Christ (because men also form part of the body of Christ) and then again they are asked to love their wives; but women are only asked to submit. Want to know why? God gave me an answer; men are to do twice as much work because Christ is greater than the Church. And the greater you are the more responsibility you have especially in caring for the weaker and not so great ones. Also, men are given the unique task of loving because love is the greatest gift of all (1 Cor 13:13) and with greatness comes Great gifts.

So men really are superior (in responsibility) to women because God is superior to the Church. That is just the way God made it! It is not because men are special or superior (in essence) to women. But it is because Christ himself (God) has given them that great privilege to be his imitators. You know how we are always saying that we women do not realize how powerful we are, I believe also that men do not know who God has really made them to be and how much authority and power he has given to them. With this whole “whatever a man can do women can also do better”, men are fighting back for their position as heads of the family, the Church and even the co-operate world. But what men need to realize is that God has bestowed greatness on them already. God meant for them to be in control.

John 15:13 says that, “…greater love has no man than this, to lay down one’s life for his friends”.

For the men: if all this greatness thing is beginning to get into your head just know that the greatest form of love is submission – losing one’s self for the cause of another. Greatness is therefore in store for everyone (man or woman) who is ready to lose themselves for the cause of Christ and also for others.

For the women: So women, we can also be great when we truly learn to submit.
AMEN!


....Karen

WAITING………….SOMETIMES, IT GETS YOU THERE FASTER AND MAKES YOU STRONGER.(the poem)

The days are too long this year
I think silently to myself.
In my mind, I see a picture of a farmer
dragging an unwilling plowing bull down the fields
The strain in its legs and the weariness in its eyes remind me a lot of myself and my days
It’s been 365 days since I sent that fervent cry up the heavens but still no reply;
I am weary on all sides.
Weary of all these emotions threatening to explode within me and crush me down.
I so desperately wish joy will come and embrace me and take me away from anxiety.
Let me be happy for just this moment, I say to myself
And so, Happiness feigns itself in me for a teeny weensy moment but soon goes rushing out the window
Just when I let my guard down for a minute, anxiety peeks through the door
Despair and Depression lag closely behind threatening to burst in.
Enough! I cry out and crumble onto the floor.
Help me Father, for I am tired!
In the mist of my tears, I hear the silence around me
Silence that is not too loud and obtrusive but that, that is quiet
“Quiet my child”, a voice whispers to me
Lie down and rest for a while. It gently says to me.
Be calm so that you may regain your strength.
Only rest for awhile and I promise I will wake you up to a brighter day in my own good time.
And for that day you will need your strength.
Only be patient my darling………
Because this wait is inevitable.

...Sena

The Father’s Love

Birds singing and chirping sweet melodies of the Father’s Love and Grace that encompasses all His creation.
Trees providing an abode to nest these little creatures without question.
Indeed no one knows- no one understands the nature and time of expiration of the contract between the high branches of the tree and the birds of the air.
Incomprehensible it is
Incalculable humanly
Yet conspicuous physically
Commuting all year long our little friend who defies gravity is never homeless

Cogitate deeply. Ponder carefully. And soon it is clear that their contract far exceeds just the provision of shelter.
The ever-loving tree feeds his longtime friend faithfully

A playground for mother and chicks; A runway for first time flights; And a refuge in time of danger.
All these privileges enjoyed without payment.
A mansion fully furnished. Cable present to provide a wide view of events everywhere, yet free.

Surprised? No need to be.
Wondering if the same could happen to you?
Perhaps you are saying to yourself,”what a relationship!”
Such is the life given to us by the Saviour. His is Wonderful. Others call Him Counselor.
He is the Mighty God.

Just as the relationship between the bird and the tree is incomprehensible, so is the Father’s love for you.
Do you seek rest? Do you want to be fed and never go hungry again? Or perhaps you need someone to love and comfort you.

Go no further. Strive no longer. But consider His offer.
He bled and died for you. His resurrection opened a new chapter in the history of the divine.

He did not leave you to be alone rather He sent you the Comforter.
Believe in your heart and confess with your mouth His Lordship today.
Enter into His rest and begin to walk in the supernatural by Faith.

JESUS LOVES YOU (JLY)

.......prince

WAITING………….SOMETIMES, IT GETS YOU THERE FASTER AND MAKES YOU STRONGER.(the story)

Isaiah 40:31
They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength,
They will soar as with eagle’s wings;
They will run and not grow weary,
Walk and not grow faint.


There comes a period in the life of every individual where he or she would have to wait for something to happen. It could be something as mundane as waiting your turn in a queue to purchase an item or something as extraordinary as waiting to hear news of a big promotion in one’s life. However, one thing that I have come to realize is that during all these periods of waiting, an end is always attained.

Ultimately, the big question that should be asked and wondered about is what kind of end would my period of wait attain? This question I think is the biggest weight one has to carry during any wait period. You see, it not only requires quiescence but a tremendous amount of patience and believe me, it may sometimes sap the life out of you.

Anybody who had to wait for something really important to happen in his or her life would identify with the many conflicting emotions that swirl in one’s mind and heart, threatening to explode and expose! Anxiety, I have found is a major culprit. Ever-faithful Despair is always there to support Anxiety and how will these two diseases keep up without Depression silently spreading its deadly spores?

I have had to wait for so many things to happen in my life-those times I call my defining moments. They always followed the pattern described early on but some way, somehow, the eye of God was on me and His loving and blessed hands never departed whenever I cried out in despair and frustration. His hands are always generous when you spread yours before him and patiently wait on Him.


......Sena

On the subject of depression.....

I wish for words to describe
This nameless feeling which seeks
To engulf me
This vast ocean of mixed emotions
Which threatens to drown me
In its bottomless depths
Feebly I struggle
As wave after strong wave
Of utter hopelessness overpower me
Deep in my heart resides
Emptiness, pitch black and endless
As a starless night sky
Gaping, abysmal
Sucking out the life from inside me
In my mind,
I wrestle with the unyielding arms
Of despair
That relentlessly pulls me
As I struggle for balance
On the thin thread of hope
Beneath which
The pit of depression yawns

MY STORY

As I child I would often find myself getting sad for no reason, only this sadness was not like the type you feel after you get a scolding or thrashing from your parents. This was more pronounced and seemed to come right after I finished rejoicing about something. I had extreme periods of highs and lows, and in a moment I’d go from riding multiple waves of delight to sinking to depths of gloom. After a while it didn’t surprise me anymore and I actually began to predict some of these episodes. I didn’t know what, if anything was wrong with me.

In my teenage years, it continued but this time I had actual reasons to be depressed and I recognised it for what it was. At times I would watch my friends’ faces radiant with the joy of youth and wonder to myself why I was not a bit more like them. I would wish desperately that someone; anyone would see the constant turmoil of my heart and help me. I tried to be more like everybody else, young, carefree and living in the present. But my subconscious would not let me. It seemed like the depression had become this living shadow, stalking me and silently daring me to be happy. Even when I wasn’t thinking of things of the past (or the present, or the future, it really didn’t matter) it seemed like they were always around, tormenting me and preventing me from being normal.

The depression was like an almost constant blackness beyond which was a thick wall. No matter how much I tried to reach out, I always ended up hitting against the wall. I didn’t realise it then, but I was held prisoner by my very own self. By allowing issues to weigh down on me, I was robbing myself of the peace of mind that every child of God should have.
Depression stems from several issues. Lack of self esteem, anxiety, fear, rejection, failure, anger, bitterness..........I could go on and on. It’s easy to get depressed when you go through difficulties in life. The funny thing is that you will always find something dissatisfactory with your life. Getting depressed about it actually does nothing to change the situation.
Depression can make you into a somewhat selfish human being who is always looking inward. You ignore the love all around you because you either cannot see it or don’t think you deserve it.

I’m no expert on how to combat depression, but I find that prayer helps. There’s something amazingly comforting about knowing that there’s someone to whom you can pour out your innermost fears without being judged or laughed at. I find solace in the fact that God is always with me and knows everything. Once you acknowledge his omniscience, you’ll find that it’s a bit easier because you do not have to carry your burdens.
Someone said that one way to extenuate your problems is to concentrate on those of someone else. Being a friend to those around you is good medicine for the troubled soul.

Count your blessings. We’ve heard that statement over and over again. It’s startling in its truth and simplicity. If you actually take time to appreciate what you have, as little or insignificant as it may be, you might actually find some happiness. And speaking of which, dwell on the things that make you happy. To this day, I love sitcoms and generally comedy because at least for a few hours, I get to escape into someone else’s imagination and be entertained.

Of course, all of this is easier said. But the bottom line is you have to yank yourself up and out of depression. Everything in life is a choice and you have to decide not to be depressed or you will miss out on all the beauty that life has to offer.

......................Mary