UP FROM THE ASHES CHAPTER TWO

It was late December 1902, five years after we returned to Nri, my native land, five years after we were freed from captivity in the land of Benin. While the Harmattan breezes swept over the coast of Lagos, and while most people kept warm by the fireside, I had someone keeping me warm in bed, though not out of my volition. This had been my lifestyle since my aunt Adanne brought me here a couple of weeks earlier. Each night, as I lay on the cold mattresses of my bed, and as Aunt Adanne’s men thrust me; I shut my eyes and wept. In the dark recess of my mind, all I could see were images of that cold night at the Benin slave camp. It was like living my most painful memory all over again. Every day. One night, after taking my shower, I sat on the bed, waiting for the man Aunt Adanne had collected money from. His name was Chukwuma. He was a dark skinned man probably in his early thirties. As he walked towards me, I was scared, nervous and angry all at the same time. So I moved away from him towards the headboard.

“Don’t worry honey, I would be gentle with you,” the man whispered as he climbed onto the bed. He unbuttoned his shirt and started crawling towards me. I felt like screaming but I didn’t. I also felt like slapping him and then pushing him away, but I didn’t. All I did was just sit there and sob.

“Please, I don’t think I’m ready for this. I…don’t…I… don’t want to do this anymore,” I said tears rolling down my cheeks. As those words came out of my mouth, I wasn’t sure what his reaction was going to be. I closed my eyes right after speaking, thinking he was going to force himself on me like the other men did. But as I continued sobbing, he stopped, sat on the bed and told me he wasn’t going to touch me if that was what I wanted.

“Why are you doing this?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” I said, my words muffled by tears. I couldn’t think of anything else to say. Should I confide in this man who seems caring? Maybe he would help me get out of aunt Adanne’s house forever. Maybe he was sent by the gods to save me. Or maybe he would tell Aunt Adanne all I told him and then continue with his life as if nothing ever happened. This would only worsen my situation. So, I don’t know was the best answer I thought of.

“I have a sister your age,” the man said as he buttoned his shirt. “I, um…also have a wife whom I love very much and she’s given me two boys: Ejike and Chijioke.” He smiled mildly. “I love my family very much, but recently my wife and I have been having problems in our marriage. I work with you aunt. Yesterday, after work, I told her I was having problems with my wife and that we were no longer intimate. That was when she mentioned you. Honestly, I feel guilty about this,” he continued facing the floor. A couple of seconds passed before he lifted his head and continued. “Please do all that you can to get out of this house; I don’t think your aunt has any good intentions for you. You are a beautiful young lady who should be doing something meaningful with her life,” he said as he stood and made for the door. All I did was nod as he spoke. In the silence that followed, he walked back to the bed, gave me a hug and kissed my head before leaving the room. I couldn’t believe it. I was surprised-and pleasantly so-at this sudden turn of events. His display of affection and concern suddenly brought back memories of life with my mother back at the slave camp. If only mama were alive, she wouldn’t have let me leave the village even if I wanted to. I was her only child and she loved me very much. In that moment, as I sat on the bed, wiping tears off my eyes, I recalled the story my mama had told me of how they were captured by Oba Ewuare, the Benin monarch and marched out of their home town in chains and fetters. It was the story of how we were forced into a life of slavery by the Benin Empire. I still remember the expression on mama’s face as she narrated this story. It was an expression indicative of disgust, hatred, anger and yet hopes in what the gods could do to save the Nri people.

“It was the eve of the eke market day and children were gathered by the fire in the cold of the evening listening to stories from their parents. It was like any other peaceful day in old Nri,” mama had said in Igbo. “Traders sat under the canopy of the odala tree, discussing sales, when suddenly, Ogidi, the chief warrior ran past our house, screaming at us to run for our lives. In a matter of minutes, confusion broke out throughout the village. Parents searched for their children as they sought for safety in their mud huts; children wailed as they searched for their parents in the midst of the stampede, confused and frightened about what was happening. You father jumped to his feet, and carried me into our hut. One man ran out of the bathroom naked, and a creeping child who was playing outside was accidentally kicked into one of the burning firewood. Ogidi was however too late, for before he could get to the market square, half of the village was surrounded by the Benin warriors. Our Igwe was ripped of his crown and throne; the council of elders, the Nze and Ozo title holders was dissolved and the entire kingdom was abandoned. In a couple of hours, the raid was over, the entire village was taken captive and we became part of the ancient Benin Empire. That was a day descendants of Nri kingdom will never forget. It was a moment of severe pains for pregnant women, some of which had miscarriages,” mama narrated and then paused. She heaved a mournful sigh, and then wagged her head before continuing. “I was pregnant with you at the time, but thanks to the gods, I managed to escape a miscarriage. I guess the gods had an important assignment which they wanted you to carry out.”

That night memories of my late mother’s life came flashing back and I thought, again, in passing that she would never have let me leave the village with aunt Adanne in the first place. But then, I wondered: why would my aunt, my own mother’s sister, my blood, treat me with such inhumanity? Maybe she wasn’t really my mother’s sister; perhaps, she was just another family relative from my mother’s side. 

to be continued...

UP FROM THE ASHES

                                                    [1]

Resilient, that’s the word that best describes me. I’ve been to the hottest parts of hell and back; I’ve watched my heart ripped out of my chest and then thrown back in place. I’ve wallowed with pigs and swam in ashes. I’ve been abused, depressed, dejected and suicidal. But in spite of everything, I refused to give up; I refused to let my past define me, because a long time ago, I came to the understanding that good or bad, life’s what you make it. So I decided to quit blaming God for what some may call my misery, and I decided to rise from the darkness that was once my life. But it wasn’t always easy. There were times I felt like I would be better of six feet below even in what many may have considered the brightest of days-which to me were as few as the number of hairs on my chin. But I was determined to make the best out of my life, not just for me, but as I would later learn, for others who would one day get to read about me. This is why I believe that no matter how bad it is, there can always be a silver lining in your dark clouds. Sometimes, you would have to dig through the clouds to find it, but trust me, it’s always there. Today, as I lie on my hospital bed, my eyes deeming with weariness and my bones shivering beneath my skin, I hear the sound of my ancestors calling me to return home to the Creator; but I smile and say to them, “After I tell my story.” My children and grandchildren have no idea about this conversation and ever since my hair became as white as a ghost and my skin as wrinkled as a prune, they’ve been pestering me to tell them about my life. Why they’re so curious, I don’t know. Today, they're all gathered by my bedside-all fourteen of them-eager to hear the story I once promised to tell them. To the optimists, it’s an inspirational story; to the romantics, it’s a love story; but to me, it’s a combination of both-a story about finding strength to live again after dying many times, and then finding love while doing so. It sounds easy now as I think about it, but finding love wasn’t easy for me at all. In a world where you’ve been conditioned to think men want only one thing from women, not only do you stop looking for love, you become skeptical of it even when it is true and genuine. I was opportune to find true and genuine love, once, but then fate took it away from me and Cupids decided not to pay me another visit. I don’t like to feel sorry for myself, no, not at all; no time for pity party, because such is life-you love, you lose, but you go on. Some things we pray will never happen, but they happen anyway. What do you do then? Kill yourself? Of course not. If you’re like me, you cry, and then you try to move on. But you don’t let go of the memory; you just don’t let it paralyze your life. So for the longest time, I lived with the memory of my lost love; I drenched myself in a fantasy that I will one day find him again. And just when I thought all hopes were lost, fate surprised me in a way that to this day, still fills my eyes with tears; tears impregnated with a feeling deeper and far reaching than joy, one akin to euphoria and sheer paradise.

The heat from the heater beside my bed spews hot air over my body. Yet, I shiver with a cold that’s been ninety years strong. I’ve always had an abnormal body temperature since birth, but now it feels worse than ever. Even with a gown and two thick sweaters, I can still feel my hands shiver as I reach for the bottle of water on my night stand. One of my grandsons hands me the bottle and as I let the water trickle down my throat, I’m convinced the next generation will never remain the same after hearing my story. I put the water down and my last daughter helps me sit up and props me against the headboard. Then, I take a deep breath and begin to narrate this story, my story. 

DO YOU CARE?

Do you care?
That when we died,
No one was there,
That when we cried,
Everyone left us bare,
That we have become helpless,
That our situation seems hopeless,
And all that we ask is justice,
To live with peace,
Like the other children of the world,
And to breathe a breath of fresh air,
Do you care?

With each break of dawn,
A new phase of pain is born,
As we are continuously abducted,
Our brothers and sisters mutilated,
Our rights have been trampled upon,
We have gradually become,
Children invisible to the world,
That not a word of our words are heard,
But visible we are to our captors,
Visible we remain to our abductors,
Only invisible to those who can help,
Do you care?

Our voices have been stifled by the hands of brutality,
Our cries drowned by the rivers of inhumanity,
Our plights have been ignored by a wave of indifference,
Our pain overlooked by a shrug of complacence,
And as we sit here in hundreds,
Lie here in thousands,
Unsure of what our tomorrow holds,
Unaware if there is even a future for us,
All we ask is do you care?

Deep from the realms of eternity,
Far beyond the borders of mortality,
We can hear the voices of those killed,
The cries of those mutilated
The pains of those battered,
The songs of those shattered,
They are the voices of our brothers,
The cries of our sisters,
The pains of our fathers,
And the songs of our mothers,
Who have been killed,
And whom we have been made to kill,
All they ask is do you care?

Would you fold your arms and watch us cry?
Would you fold your arms and watch us die?
When you can do something to help,
When you can reach out your hands and help,
Our voices can be heard through your voices,
And our future can be secured through your choices,
But do you care enough, to not just read this piece,
But do get up and do something to secure of peace and justice?

Dedicated to the Invisible Children Inc.
Join us on Facebook and let your voice be heard,
You can be a part of something bigger than just you.

BEYOND THE PAIN

Often times we are tied down by some of our past failures,
Sometimes the mistakes of our past prevent us from seeing a bright future,
We bottle up the past perplexing pains of our lives,
We live in the darkness of our sorrowful past, and fail to see the light,
We cry, sob, shed tears, stay depressed and dejected,
Wallow in despair, grope in despondency and feel unaccepted,
In the midst of it all, failing to see beyond the pain,
Failing to understand that within every pain is some gain,
Within every scar is a star waiting to shine very brightly,
And within every mess, a valuable and life-changing message can emerge,
If only we learn to look beyond the pains of our past, no matter how painful they may seem,

It may not look like it right now, but you have to believe me,
When I say there is still some good in your life, despite the many bad which screams at you,
The plan of the devil is to tie you down to your past, and deceive you into thinking nothing good can come from your ugly life,
He tells you you are worth nothing, and you believe it, continuing in your sins, thinking there is no other way to go,
Regardless of what your past has been, I want you to know that you are worth more than some of your past mistakes,
You are worth more than the troubles that you have been through,
There is forgiveness and redemption in Jesus Christ,
All you've got to do is, look beyond your pain, look to the future, come to Christ, just as you are and He'll make you whole.
NOTE: Your future is brighter than you think, so please move and don't be deceived by anyone or anything into thinking you are done. If God has not given up on you, you shouldn't give up on yourself. Peace.

STILL LOVED

Probably sitting there,
Wondering if He still cares,
Thinking about your past mistakes,
And pondering over whether He will take,
You just as you are with your imperfections,
Some have told you to just forget about redemption,
They have said there is no future for you in God,
That your type cannot be forgiven by God,
Not for the many sins you have committed against man and God,
But regardless of what your past mistakes have been,
Regardless of what the devil wants you to believe,
I want you to know that the devil is a liar and the father of all lies,
The master of deception who wants you to remain depressed and dejected,
Who wants you to feel unaccepted and rejected,
But I've come to announce to you,
That all of your sins were nailed to the cross a long time ago, even before you were born,
The blood of Jesus Christ was shed for you,
And in spite of your past mistakes and failures,
Just know that you are STILL LOVED by the one who first loved you and gave up His life for you.
So go back to Him in prayers, confess and forsake your sins and let Him come into your life.
JESUS LOVES YOU MORE THAN YOU CAN EVER IMAGINE. PEACE.

GREAT WEBSITE FOR POETRY

Just discovered this great website for Christian and Inspirational poetry. Check it out and spread the word: http://p4cm.com/p4cmwp/ministries/poetry/

IS THERE STILL HOPE?

She was only fifteen when she had her first child,
She couldn't even tell who the father was,
'Cause there were so many people involved, so many possible fathers,
She had to drop out of school, while her mates continued to college,
But she was once the brightest kid on the block, the first to answer the toughest questions in class,
She had a bright future, she wanted to be Lawyer, an Engineer, a doctor or the first female president,
But somewhere along the way, she was deceived, lied to and lured into a life of promiscuity,
So now she sits up on her bed every night, staring at her son while he sleeps,
And as tears roll down her cheeks, somewhere in the recess of her mind,
She could hear the question which begs so loudly to be answered,
Is there still hope for someone like me?

He was voted most likely to make it in life,
He was the son every mother wanted, the pride of his father,
As long as he was concerned, the top was where he was meant to be,
And he was ready to work hard to make it there,
Everyone thought he had his life all figured out; success can never possibly by pass him,
But somewhere along the line, he was deceived, lied to and lured into life on the fast lane,
Someone told him, "four years in college is a waste of time, when a job is not assured,
So forget school and chase that green, hustle your way through and make that cheddar,
You can even be a rapper, a gangsta rapper, like that brother named, "what you call him?" topping the charts,"
He listened, and today with a murder case, a drug case, and three women waiting for him to come be a father to their kids,
He sits behind the bars of the cold, mean prison rooms, weeping over his life, wondering how he got here,
And somewhere in the corners of his mind, he hears this question, so loud and clear,
Is there still hope for someone like me?

Well, as much as I know, the downfall of a man is not the end of his life,
Failure is not falling down, but refusing to rise up after falling down,
And in the midst of that broken life which you consider throwing to the winds,
I want you to know that there is still hope for you if only you can look up to Jesus, the hope of the hopeless,
First forgive yourself, put the past in its rightful place: behind you, look for some good in the bad of your life,
Trust God for a better and brighter future, try not to make the same mistakes again, go back to the shelves and revive those broken dreams, try living them and watch yourself sail to the top-where you belong.
Peace.

TO BE FREE

She wanted to come home when she pleased,
Go out with whomever she likes,
Get her groove on whenever she wanted,
She wanted to do whatever she wanted, without scruples,
As far as she was concerned that was what it meant to be free,

He wanted to be the ladies man,
The hustler, the party-rider, the "it" guy,
He wanted to smoke that and this and see what it felt like,
He wanted to drink that and this and know what it tasted like,
He wanted to be able to have someone different, every night, to keep him warm,
As long as he was concerned that was what it meant to be free,

Fast-forward, a couple of years later,
She can't get her life together; every man on the block knows the color of her sheets,
She is all over the place, her life is all over the place,
She now needs rehab to get out of that which she called "being free, living my life,"
Now he can no longer control his urges,
He is addicted to the bottle, inseparable from the pipes, acquainted with the grasses,
The therapist has become his very close friend,
But he was just living his life, being free,
So I ask, is this what being free means?
Is this what living my life really entails?
If the freedom of the world will lead me to a life which I struggle to get out off,
I rather be a slave to Jesus Christ, doing His will alone, 'cause therein lies true freedom,

I guess all I'm saying is, let us really examine what we call freedom.

TILL THE WORLD HEARS

Even before I was conceived in my mother's womb,
I was given a mandate,
Before I was delivered into this vain and worthless world,
I was given a purpose, from my birthdate to my deathdate,
So I have a message in my heart,
So intertwined with my spirit it cannot be torn apart,
A message so alive in my soul, it cannot be stifled,
A mandate so lively in my being, it cannot be trifled,
So I say, it's a new age,
And I have a message,
I will shout it from the rooftop,
Sing it from the mountaintop,
Spread like raindrops,
From the north to the south to the ends of the earth,
With my own hands, my own feet and my own mouth,
Until the whole world hears it,

So even if I get knocked down,
Even if I get pushed to the ground,
Even if I'm suffering in the valley,
Like an ever rising lily,
I shall arise and continue with this mandate,
For not even my circumstance,
Stands a chance,
Whether good or bad,
Happy or sad,
Regardless of my situation,
In spite of my disposition,
I'll shout it from the rooftop,
Sing it from the mountaintop,
Spread it like raindrops,
Until the whole world hears it,
For it is a message of hope,
A mandate of restoration,
And a purpose of reconciliation,
That the broken shall become the risen,
The crying shall become the singing,
The dejected shall become the accepted and the celebrated.
This is what I live for: to reveal God to my world in all I do.
And I will do this till the day I die!
So help me God.

MY IDENTITY

That I rock Gucci,
Wear Prada, and show up in Loui Vuitton,
That I rock Ralph Lauren,
Wear Versace, and show up in Steve Madden,
That I roll in Bentleys, cruise in Porsches,
And pull up in Rose Royces and push Lamborghinis,
That I eat specially made foods, dine and wine with A-listers,
The ballers, the pros, the big boys, those that matter from the world's perspective,
Does not mean I'm the clothes I wear, the cars I drive, the food I eat, the wine I drink,
Neither am I defined by the cash in my flash, or by those I roll with,
So who am I and what's my identity? 

My identity cannot be found in vanity,
My sense of who and what I'm worth cannot be seen in artificiality,
But who I am, if I'm anything, what I am, if I'm anything is found in Jesus Christ,
For I am nothing but a wretched, hopeless sinner who was saved by divine mercy and grace,
Scooped out of the dust by He who gave up His life and took my place,
So I live to glorify He who saved me by by His blood, I live to seek His face,
I don't let the standard of this world; the figures, the stats, and the charts,
Define my sense of who I'm worth, my only true worth and identity is found in Christ alone,
For if my satisfaction and identity comes from Gucci, Prada, Lui Vuitton and the designers series,
Then I am lost,
If my joy is based on that which is earthly and material,
Then I have missed my true purpose,
So though I like to look good, I realize that my image and beauty can only come from Jesus Christ.
He is my identity.

BEYOND DESCRIPTION

If I have to search through all the dictionaries of this world for the right words,
If I have to look through every library on our planet for the right lexicon,
To adequately describe you,
To exhaustively explain you,
It would be an exercise in futility,
It would be a wasted effort, in its entirety,
For you are beyond mental perception,
You are beyond human description,
Your beauty is beyond artificiality,
Your nature is beyond perceptibility,
You are God!

How can I ever describe you,
Who spoke the universe into existence,
How can I ever possibly explain you,
Who commanded our cosmos into a perceptible essence, 
Lord, I long for words to totally illustrate,
I long for words to really explicate,
You who ride upon the heavens with your name JAH!
You who live beyond our galaxy with your name ALPHA!
You who are seated on your throne, elevated in glory, with your name OMEGA!
You who are seated on your throne, elevated in majesty, with your name JEHOVAH!
When I think of you, and all you made, your awesomeness, your might and your power,
I'm speechless, dumb-founded, awe-struck, flabber-whelmed and over-ghasted,
For the mind of mere gullible and fallible mortals like us, cannot fully comprehend you,
'Cause you are God!

Lord, what more can I say?
If I say I'm amazed at you,
That will be an understatement,
If I say I'm in awe of you,
It will still not do you justice,
'Cause truth is, lord you are beyond description,
Beyond comprehension,
Far beyond perception,
And greater than human explication,
So I bow in adoration and total submission,
'Cause you alone are God!

SOME DAY, SOME WHERE

As I drove home from work today,
Listening to a song on my way,
The reality of this life saturated my mind,
As I reflected on the life we live,
As I thought about working nine to five,
Daily living, daily hustling, daily striving,
To make ends meet, to make a living,
And then a question came to my heart,
Is it possible for there to be complete rest?
And the answer came right back to me,
Yes, it is possible, but not in this world,
Then the words of this poem were vaguely formed in my heart,
And today, as I write, I pray they shall be clearly formed in your mind,

For someday, somewhere,
In a place beyond the sky,
A place void of all the sufferings,
A place void of all the "toilings",
We shall all be at home with out maker,
Someday, somewhere,
When the stars shall cease to shine,
When the sun shall no longer give its light,
When life as we know it shall be changed forever,
We shall be at home with our savior,
Someday, somewhere,
In a place where there is no night, but only day,
In a city beyond the sky, no yet known to man,
In a country whose builder and maker is Jehovah,
In a universe where the streets are covered in gold,
A place, a city, a country, a universe, and a world called beautiful,
We shall be at rest, at home, in heaven with our father,
So don't be discouraged, for our lord Jesus Christ,
Is coming back for us like He promised,
And yes, in His father's house, our father's house-heaven,
Are many mansions which He has prepared for us,
So hold on, for your home, you true and final home, is beyond the sky.

I LOOK TO THE CROSS

Sometimes in this misleading, deceptive, vain and turbulent world,
I'm caught in between pleasing you and the world,
Sometimes lord, I let my lack of change lead me to a change,
A change in my faith, a change in my attitude to your word,
So I complain, worry and forget the assurance of your word,

In the midst of a fast-paced society,
A world filled with so many practices, in its entirety,
A world where it is easy to get caught up in the mix and chase vanity,
A world where it is easy to think my life is all about me, me, me, only,
Sometimes even the challenges of my life push me to the ground,
Sometimes I fall, in a moment I let go off my faith, and follow the crowd,
But then when I find myself caught in between you and the world,
Where to turn to, my world or your word,
When confusion, frustration, and discouragement sets in,
I look to the cross,
For then I am reminded of why I'm here,
And the price that was paid for me to be standing right here,
Saved, delivered, forgiven, restored and changed,
I'm reminded of the blood that was shed for me,
I'm reminded of the fact that my strength can only come from Christ,
I'm reminded that my home and place of final abode, is beyond the sky-in heaven,
So I look to the cross, and then I take up my own cross and follow hard after my savior.
For if the cross doesn't move me, then I'm better dead than alive,
Lord please help me.

WHERE DO YOU STAND?

In his 2009 album, the Blueprint 3, American rapper Jay Z on the song Forever Young ft Mr. Hudson, was quoted as saying, "Slamming Bentley doors, hopping out of Porsches, popping out on Forbes' list..." Also, in the song Can't Shut Us Down by Cross Movement's Christian rapper, Sho Baraka featuring Lecrae, Lecrae was heard saying, "I'll do this till the day I take my last breath..." In case you are wondering and asking, why this comparison? Well, today as I reflected on a couple of things, prompted by what I had seen online about a very popular pop artist's open declaration of her beliefs, the question that came to my heart was, WHERE DO YOU STAND? Folks, we live in a world with a variety of belief systems, we are constantly bombarded by different notions and people's perspectives and views on life. And truth is, in the midst of all these, it is easy to lose grip on what your beliefs are, and on where you stand and why. This is one of the problems with our generation: most of us no longer have a mind of our own, we are becoming more like clones, accepting and believing whatever we hear on the radio or CD or see on the T.V.

Furthermore, back to my references earlier. Now I know that Jay Z has been criticized by many for so many reasons. Lecrae himself regardless of the fact that he is a Christian artist, has been recently criticized by some for some reasons. But one thing that I see in both artists, at least from their public declarations, is that they are sure of what they believe, whether you agree with them or not. In this world, some are clear on what they believe, what they want, and where they stand. For them it's all about fame, fast money, fast cars, fast life, girls, glamor, flash and cash. For many others it is God, Christ, righteousness, holiness, salvation and making it to heaven while taking others with them. One group lives for themselves but the other group lives for God. But what bothers me is the others who don't even know where they stand. They are neither hot nor cold, they are just in between; accepting, believing and rolling with everything that comes their way. That's what bothers me the most. Because at the end of this life, when we all stand before God, it's not going be a question of what your favorite artist believed, or even what your pastor, mother, father or anyone else you love believed, but what you believed. So I end with this question, WHERE DO YOU STAND?
Remember these quotes, "we shall all give account of our lives" and "the world only follows a man who knows where he is going."
I'd like to hear from you. Share with me some of your very core beliefs in life and why you have these beliefs. 

TRY JESUS

Dejected, depressed, deserted and broken, is your situation,
Unhappy, discouraged, despondent and shaken, is your position,
Or perhaps, rich, famous and affluent, yet miserable is your description,
Or may be high, mighty, connected and well known, yet empty is your condition,
No matter your case, whatever your story, regardless of your pain,
I'd like you to ignore the skeptics and critics,
Look past the senseless and baseless debates,
And please try Jesus,
For He gave up the priceless prize of His life for your redemption,
So just try Jesus, 'cause I'm sure He would not fail you,
Why suffer unnecessarily when someone has already suffered for you?

Done drugs, sex, alcohol, done it all,
Tried rehab, psychology, philosophy, meditation, new age, tried it all,
Yet your life is far from happy,
You turn to certain T.V and radio shows, in a bid to find the right way to go,
Yet you still stumble and fall,
"Well, every way is the right way", you say,
But you know that all the ways you have tried so far haven't really given you joy,
You join the unbelievers and say, "What about other religions?"
And I say, show me one in which blood was shed, resurrection recorded and miracles followed,
Now that's the authenticity of Jesus-He didn't just come to lead a religion, but to give up His life for you,
We all should have died for our sins, but He took our place,
So quit doubting and try this Jesus,
Quit worrying and just try Jesus,
You may not understand everything yet, but start by trying Jesus,
Ignore the skeptics, critics, agnostics and atheists and just give the author of salvation a chance,
Try Jesus and I assure you, not by stories others told me, but by my own experiences, that He would not fail you.
How? You ask, just pray and say: Lord Jesus I believe you died to save me. I accept you today as my lord and personal savior.  Come into my life and make me fully whole. Amen.
If you said that prayer, you are saved by faith. Join a bible believing church and grow in your faith. For further assistance in your new walk and for prayers, you can visit: http://jesushousedc.org/
Peace. Have a nice day, and remember: Life is what you make it, so try and make it right.

FIGHTING FOR LOVE

When it seems like the struggles of everyday life,
Are beginning to get in the way of your love,
When things like who is making the most money;
Who left the toilet seat up, who didn't pick up the kids and the likes,
Start getting in the way of your relationship with the ones you love,
When it seems like the wife and family which once gave you joy,
Has now become the source of your worry and sadness,
When the seed of discord begins to crop up, and the winds of insignificant quarrels,
Begin to threaten the unity of your family,
Fighting for love becomes the only way to go,

Sometimes the love of your life may become the pain in your flesh,
But please remember that she is still bone of your bones and flesh of your flesh,
Sometimes the man who made your heart skip, may start making it bleed,
But always remember that for better for worse, was the pledge you made at the altar,
Nobody said marriage and family life was going to be a bed of roses or walk in the park,
But when infidelity, disrespect, secrecy, dishonesty and all other agents of marital destruction,
Begin to threaten your marriage, fighting for love may the only way to go,
And sometimes you may need to fight for this love by fighting with yourself and your own demons;
You might need to fight that nasty habit which always makes her sad,
You might need to stop the attitude which always makes him feel belittled and disrespected,
Whatever it takes, it is worth it; if peace and harmony is what you desire in your home,
If you truly love that man, if you truly care about that woman,
You might wanna consider fighting for her love, and waging war for his love.
'Cause after all is said and done, love, true love and the ones we love, is all we've got. Peace.

THE BEAUTY I SEEK

It's not the beauty of cosmetic embellishment,
Neither is it the beauty of artificial adornment,
It's not the beauty of superficial glamor,
Nor the beauty of outward glow,
It's not the beauty of curvy figure,
Neither is the beauty of a frame shaped like the figure eight,
It's not the beauty of  boobs and booties, 
Nor the beauty of a spotless face, or mascaraed lashes;
Foundation, lip-sticks and eye-shadows,
It's not the beauty of pretty eyes and straight, spotless legs,
Nor the beauty that stops traffic, literally,
Neither is the beauty that make some brothers grow weak, literally and figuratively,
It's not even the beauty of "Who is that?"
Nor the beauty of "She is so fine!"
For all of these are aging, passing and ephemeral beauty,
That whose artificiality and lack of originality breaks down with the passage of time,
But it's the beauty that is ever glowing, that which is continuously renewed by nature,
It's the beauty that makes the heart merry, makes the soul glad and makes the spirit leap,
It's the beauty which is refreshed by the waters of time, nourished by the winds of the passing years, and preserved by the clock of age,
It's a beauty that shines outwardly from an inward location, a beauty you never get tired of,
It's a beauty that is divine, spiritual and natural, a beauty which can never be cloned,
It's a beauty of character, of integrity, of a gorgeous attitude, an attractive personality and a ravishing nature,
A beauty that doesn't strive for perfection but excellence; a beauty that strengthens, comforts, consoles, encourages and inspires,
Such folks, is THE BEAUTY I SEEK.

SATISFIED YET? TRUE SATISFACTION

This has been the question on my heart,
As I continuously meditate on where my satisfaction lies,
And time and time again, I realize,
That even if I had it all, I still will not be satisfied,
For sometimes I feel as though there lies a void within me, which I try to fill with material things,
Even when I know that vanity upon vanity is all vanity, I still chase that vanity,
Even when I know that this world is not my home, I'm just passing by, I still make myself feel at home,
For after all is said and done, I realize that it's only when I draw close to God, seek His will and not mine,
Live for Him and not myself, please Him and not others; it's then and only then that I become truly satisfied!
Here is a food for thought: Where does your satisfaction lie? Isn't in money, fame, sex, pleasure, materialism?
Take a moment and think about what really satisfies you and if you find out it's not God, you are bound to continually feel empty for the rest of your life, 'cause nothing can take the place of God in your life.
Satisfied yet?

SATISFIED YET?

If I was the greatest entertainer alive,
If I had a billion dollar in my account,
If I was the biggest boss in the industry,
A force to be reckoned with, too big to be ignored,
If I had it all,
Would I be satisfied yet?

If the prettiest girls worshiped the ground I walk on,
Ready to throw their dignity to the winds just to have me give them a kiss,
If my life was like paradise on earth, a heavenly bliss,
If my name was a money maker, and my presence produces the color green in abundance,
If I had a Bentley parked in the garage of my 200 acre mansion, a Porsche on my premise,
If I owned the record label, the clothing line, if my shirt says my name and fast cars were my collection,
If A-listers called my buddy, mayors, governors and the president had me on speed dial-the best connection,
If I could make one million dollar in a week, throw the largest parties, and pop the largest Vodka, 
If I had it all,
Would I be satisfied yet?
TO BE CONTINUED

UNTIL I MET HIM

Used to think I was the biggest boss,
Captain of my ship, so fly, so sharp,
Used to think I rule the world, king of my castle,
Used to think the world revolves around me, the throne to be watched, 
Until I met Him who created the universe at the command of His voice,

Everything was at my beck and call, I was too big to fail, to high to fall,
I was afraid no one, regarded no one, living in a world of my own,
Thought I was a legend, someone larger than life, seated on my throne,
Millions adored me, thousands respected me, and hundreds more looked up to me, 
I was at the forefront, the point one man, the world's greatest,
Then I met the I am that I am, the one who made something out of nothing, the miracle worker,

Used to think I was so connected like a spine to a bone,
When I throw a party, anybody who was somebody must be there,
Everything I did, I did it big, didn't think I was accountable to anyone,
Until that fateful day, when my fallibility and gullibility was revealed to me,
Then I realized that my financial and material security was nothing without eternal security,
I realized that I was nothing but dust living on borrowed breath, the breath of the almighty,
When I met Him who was, and is and is to come,
The one who destroyed a whole nation by the blink of His eyes,
He who sits on His throne, and yet the whole world is before Him-omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient,
When I met Him, I had no choice than to bow and submit to His supremacy,
And ever since my life has been filled with so much meaning and promise-the promise of a better place beyond this worthless world.