I've been thinking.....

Hi people,

Can you believe it? The year is almost over. Yikes!

I’ve been thinking about how my year went and seriously I can’t say I’m totally happy with how I handled it all. I mean there were things I kept procrastinating and never did. Sometimes I feel like kicking myself.

Do you ever feel that way? That you’re not giving your best? To yourself and to God? I do.

One thing I continually do though, even when I feel less than my best is to latch on to God’s Grace. It not only gives me strength to be focused and make amends, he covers my shortcomings. He practically stretches himself over them and I’m good to go.

It’s totally amazing. And at those times, I feel like David when he practically shot himself in the foot condemning the rich man in Prophet Nathan’s cute little story. Yeah, I know, I haven’t killed anybody. Seriously, I haven’t. Neither I have taken anybody’s husband (I’m sure you know this is true, lol) but no sin is small sin o. Whether it’s failing to act when God prompts you or murder, like David committed, all join!

 But just like David, I’m on my face before the Almighty and the blood speaks!

Well, I’ve decided I’m changing my spots. Oh yes I am. So I’ll offload those retellings in my heart, even if I lose my sleep! (oops, that’ll be hard) or work my fingers to the bone. And I’ll definitely stop procrastinating! So help me God!

BTW,

I’ve been thinking of something. It’s been on my mind for about two years now, and it’s this, Should Christianity be equated to mediocrity? I guess not! So why do I hear a lot of naysayers when the issue of quality Christian media is raised.

Someone once argued with me when I said we could have an exclusively Christian broadcasting station in Nigeria. The arguments?  No content. ..No funding....It’ll lack committed followership, and so on... and I marvel.

Recently we started a Raves and Reels page on the magazine I write for, where we review inspiring Christian movies. A friend told me it was going to be a tall order getting quality movies. I tried, got a few, all foreign!

Maybe I have my head in the clouds, or down in the hot sand but I believe it can be done. We can have an Exclusively Christian TV/Radio station (not channel! nothing wrong with it but...) in Nigeria with 24/7, high end, unrivalled quality. 

What are the odds?

This Gospel can feed us o, for real, and it has to be preached. So, taking it into homes, engaging minds and inspiring souls sounds like a great modus operandi, don’t you think?

I seriously hope!

P.S.  Thanks to everyone following me here. You guys are the best. Looked up and it was thirty! Woah! I’m celebrating God in your lives today, Just said a prayer for you.

Stumbled on this amazing blog, I seriously think you should check out

http://temiville.wordpress.com

Well, I’m in December mood already and things are looking up.

Have fun y’all!

Roy.

Cram all your problems in a box, sit on it and laugh!

Imagine this. You wake up in the morning and can’t iron your clothes ‘cos ‘Nepa’ has gone nuts again then you rush out to work only to discover you forgot your laptop at home. Its midday and you want to draw some money so you head to the bank, you’re a little happy now ‘cos you got a ride there. You get to the ATM and start rummaging through your bag for your card then you realize you carried the wrong bag! :(

Seriously, little issues like these can make you want to gnash your teeth or wring somebody’s neck. I’m learning to take things in my stride and like I recently read somewhere, ‘learn to cram all your problems in a box, sit on it and laugh your heart out!’ :)

Anyway, something happened to me a while back that made me take this message seriously.

I had to ensure that the food column for a magazine was done right from the recipe to image of the actual meal. A cute little friend was responsible for the major details.

So, I call her on Thursday evening to tell her it’s urgent and she had to get all the materials ready by Monday, she says okay. She calls me on Friday night to say everything was set and the meal will be prepared on Saturday, will the photographer be around? I send a text to the photographer, who confirms on Saturday morning that she may not be available. My friend tries not to panic (she obviously spent lotsa money on the ingredients na) I assure her it will be fine, can she get another photographer to take the shots? She calls me on Saturday evening to say she couldn’t reach him. She goes ahead to borrow a digital camera. She tries hard but it won’t work. The battery is flat. She borrows a charger from her neighbour to charge the thing. She’s frantic now. We need those shots.

I can imagine the light bulb going on in her head when she realized she had a laptop with webcam.

Well, what had she to lose? She set up the table with the three course thingy and goes all acrobatic, holding the laptop in awkward positions trying to get a good shot. She got several, with her hands, head and hair showing up in odd places. She must have looked a sight! I was so sorry I missed an opportunity for a good laugh. :)

Monday morning, all fresh and rested, I pop in to see if she’s still alive with her hair in place :), we try the digital cam and it works fine. We set up the table again and had a good time laughing at ourselves as we tried to get the shots from all angles. We climbed on chairs and took odd positions as we did what we had to but were not trained to do.

My point exactly? She could have grumbled all the way, complaining about everything. But she chose to have a good attitude. We could have allowed a simple meal and a few shots steal our joy but we didn’t and what do you know, we actually caught up on some good old times while we were at it.

There will always be those pet peeves we can’t do anything about, won’t it be better to quit whining and have some fun?


So hey! I just crammed all my issues in a box; I’m sitting on it and about to roar with crazy laughter. Care to join me?

As long as you bring your box along sha! :)

There's no penetrating this wall of Fire!

I remember the last time I wrote about a near robbery attack. It’s been about a year now and it still amazes me. Not just because of the comical nature of the whole thing but because the experience gives new meaning to certain scriptures that are making too much sense to me right now.

I used to be a fearful person. I mean, I would get goose flesh just sitting in a dark room. And because I have an active imagination, it was so easy to conjure all sorts of images of things that could go wrong or crazy creatures that could jump out of the woodwork.

I remember telling my mum when I was little that when she left me in a room no sooner do I close my eyes than I begin to see ‘things’. She found that really funny but encouraged me to stop watching scary stuff on TV, that was the only reasonable excuse she could give for my over active imagination. That didn’t help because I hated scary movies and I vividly remember sitting with my back to the TV when my siblings watched Zombie, the flesh eater or any such hair raising drama.

Anyway, I struggled with that fear (plus fear of dogs!) for a long while, and then I grew up. I stopped being so fearful of the dark, when I was indoors, but it was a different matter entirely when I was outside the comforts of my house. I noticed this first when I had to leave home pretty early to get to work on time. I learnt something during that period that ‘as much as it lies within your power never work on one end of town and live on the other end!’

I would walk down the lonely road to the bus stop at 5am. After my Bolt! Experience it got worse. I would clutch my bag close while reciting psalm 91. (I wasn’t really praying it anyway ‘cos I spent most of my mental energy being scared gutless.)
However, reliving that experience all over again made me really look closely and I concluded that I must have been under strict military-like protection! That could only have been it. I had to redress my understanding of the scriptures in relation to my situation.

‘When I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.’ The road from my house to the stop couldn’t really be qualified as a valley neither did I smell any death shadows lurking around, so what on earth was I afraid of? (Don’t mind my analogy, hope you get the point sha?)

‘For I the Lord will be to her a wall of fire round about…’ Zech 2:5 Meeen, If that isn’t assurance of protection, I don’t know what is. Imagine me walking around in a ball of fire! Won lenu mbe, Matrix has got nothing on this!

I serve a God who is not so busy answering your prayers that he can’t attend to mine. He’s not too occupied with looking after you that he can’t protect me.

Go tell my enemies, I am under the rock, rolling around in a ball of fire! Gbabe!


See how Roy Bolted! HERE.

Bum Shuffle!

Omoshalewa stood by the bed watching her three-year-old daughter. The confusion and fear in her heart was palpable. The little girl lay methodically on the bed, snoring lightly. Her legs were folded in that characteristic manner Shalewa had come to dread. It would have been funny if it wasn’t so scary. She folded her legs just like a frog about to leap into a pond. How could her legs be so flexible as to fold in the manner? The plaster of Paris hadn’t worked. The treatments had all failed. She shook her head and headed to the kitchen, her heart silently begging God to spare her little girl’s legs.

It was Colonel Adejare’s birthday and she had committed to attending. She wished she didn’t have to but the Adejares’ were like family. Her older children had gotten up earlier to prepare for the day. The excitement was in the air; they always loved to go out and party.
She hurried with her chores and rushed to dress up; she wouldn’t want to pass up the free ride.

Three hours later, the birthday party was in full swing. She sat at a corner of the room with her daughter in her arms. The little girl watched as the other children ran around, playing. She tried to wriggle out of her mother’s tight grip and join the fun, But Shalewa knew she couldn’t. Her legs were not strong. All she could do was shuffle around on her backside and that she did well. In fact, she did it so well she had earned her self a name: ‘Idiya ju ese lo’. Meaning ‘faster on her bum than on her legs.’

At home, she would let her shuffle on the floor as long as she was well padded, but she didn’t want her doing that here, distracting everybody and probably hurting herself. Shalewa held on tight.

About an hour later, the little girl couldn’t take it anymore; she looked up at her mother, trying to catch her attention. She pulled at her sleeve and quipped,
“Mummy, gbe mi le, ma rin”. Meaning, ‘Put me down, I’ll walk.’
Shelewa smiled sadly, glad at her daughter determination to beat this thing. But she held on tight, shaking her head lightly.

The little girl was unperturbed; she wriggled more, wanting so desperately to be put down. When she began to sob quietly her mother knew she was serious. She sighed and gently lowered her to the floor.
Omoshalewa watched as her daughter's legs shook slightly at her effort to maintain balance. The little girl spread out her hands, pushed back her bum and proceeded to take a tiny little step. The first step landed softly, much to her amazement. She looked back at her mother and chucked, revealing tender milk teeth. Folks watched with interest as she took several shaky steps again, before falling back heavily on her padded bum. Everyone clapped at her display.

Her mother clutched her chest, unable to express the joy bubbling through her system. But no, her baby wasn’t done yet. She got up with so much relish, placing her palms of the floor and hoisting her self up, bum first. By this time, everyone knew not to help her. This was her thing and she was doing it all the way.

Back on her feet, she took several shaky steps laughing all the way and finally landed in her mother’s arms.
Shalewa gathered her in her arms and swung her round; dancing to a tune only her heart could hear.


Fade to black.

***********************

Cast:

Shalewa --- Mummy Roy
Little girl --- Roy


***********************


What can I say?
I woke up this morning with thoughts of gratitude on my mind. I have so much to be thankful for, my legs :), my family, my career, my friends, my future and destiny, I can’t count it all.

I don’t know why he loves me, but he sure does.
August 18, means more than just a date to me. It’s the fulfillment of God’s promise to me. I came because he willed it, I live because he has planned it, and I will achieve everything he has laid out for me and bring glory to him because he has ordained it from the foundations of the world.

A special thanks to all my lovely friends for remembering my birthday.

God bless you! :)

Roy.

The Hottest, Finest Bible Dude Contest!!!

So there’s this thing that’s been going through my mind. Indulge me here. What if there was a contest to determine the finest bible dude ever? You’re probably wondering what on earth I’m taking about.

Well, I’m organizing a contest to determine who the finest, hottest dude in the bible is (or was) :D Judging will be based on physical attributes as described in the bible o!
If not, I know we could make Namaan look like a six-pack-sporting hunk in leprous flesh. :D

So some names readily come to mind. Are you thinking what I’m thinking?
‘Daaaavid’…. Almost every one will wanna start from him. Ok let’s see.

1 Samuel 16:12
“Now David was ruddy (had a healthy appearance), and had a beautiful countenance, and good to look upon.”

Ok, so David was fine, if you like the innocent boyish looking type. :D

Let’s move on. Next on my list would be….. ‘Absaaaaalom’. Oh Dang! I’m sure you don’t want to hear that name. Absalom? The usurper? the sick dude who slept with all his father’s wives and concubines? The murderer who killed his brother? Hell no.
But puhleaseee, the guy was fineee!. No beefing.

Check him out here, 2 Samuel 14:25 -26.
“There was no one praised for his beauty like Absalom. From the sole of his feet to the crown of his head he had no blemish. When he shaved his hair (every year) it weighed two hundred shekels.”

Phew! Am I hyperventilating or what? Think of all that in today’s terms and you have a ‘hottish’ bloke on your hands.

Ok, one more. You’ll most definitely like this one…… ‘Joseph’. Hmm, hmm. I won’t even waste time praising all his character qualities. You already know them.
But what about his physical attributes? Ok, so the bible doesn’t really describe him in so many words but he must have been a knockout, don’t you think? Mrs Potiphar practically came drooling after him like a puppy in heat.

Ok entries closed. I’m the judge here so the winner is..........

Absalom!!!

Duh!

So I think he won. But he’s still a jerk as far as I’m concerned. All that betrayal couldn’t make him a jewel in my eyes.


Get my point? Looks are not even half of what they’re cracked up to be. But we don’t wanna hear that these days. We have these stereotypes. He’s got to be fine, tall, dark and handsome. She’s got be shapely, a head turner. But does that make us secure?

Haba! Will a six-pack pay the bills? Does a 36-24-38 guarantee a great mother and a faithful wife?

The content is more important than the container, but that’s ‘Greek’ in this time and age. But it won’t be long before we realise a prize-winning container could be full of crap (excuse the harsh word) and we can’t understand why people on the outside still find it attractive.

It’s not impossible to find it all in one location. Quality content in a stunning container, many have. But isn’t it best to search first for quality content, then the show-stopping container will most definitely be a great bonus.


So, waiting to find quality content ‘by force by fire’ in a runway-worthy container? You could be wasting years on the sidelines.

Searching for a mouth watering container with no thought whatsoever for the content? Be afraid, be very afraid!