The day the unexpected happened...(A Short Fiction Story)

As the thundering noise increased, the lights came closer and closer. I tried to free my leg again, but the pain from my sprained ankle was too much. “Help,” I shouted but no one came to my aid. The rattling of the strong steel wheels chugging towards me, made me aware of the imminent misfortune about to befall me. I screamed. The train hurtled towards me at an alarming speed. I screamed again and raised my arm to shield my face, then everything went black.
                                                                               *****

It had begun like any other day. My ten minute shower followed by Special K with Semi Skimmed milk, a boiled egg and a slice of toast. To say I was motivated to go to work would be a lie. It was almost half past seven in the morning but it was still quite dark. I disliked winter mornings. It took twice the amount of effort to get out of bed and go to work. Once breakfast was out of the way, I fixed my long hair into a ponytail, grabbed my coat and bag and headed towards the door. Bluebury Park Station was ten minutes away which meant another gruesome walk in the cold.

Apart from two or three dedicated workers on their way to work, my road was almost deserted. The trees looked bare and bony as their leafless branches lay exposed with bits of fluffy white frost scattered around like an old man’s beard. The buildings had an air of gloom as their grey concrete walls hung almost lifelessly in the cold musty atmosphere.  I plugged my iPod headphones into my ears and trudged along the road wishing I was on a Caribbean island somewhere.
When I arrived at the station, it was busy with people topping up their oyster cards and rushing to catch the next train. I glanced at the information board and realised that my next train was about ten minutes away. There was some kind of delay. What’s new? I thought to myself. With the kind of delays and overcrowding on these trains, they should have been letting us travel for free because we were certainly not getting what we paid for.
I gazed at the adverts that lined the sides of the escalators. I mused over the Biogut Plus an ad for a revolutionary yogurt that could do wonders for your immune system, the latest theatre shows, making a mental note, I need to watch something with the girls soon. My mind was brought back to reality as an overweight man with the most pungent smell pushed past me on the escalators, almost knocking me over. I sucked my teeth in annoyance but decided not to pursue it. I watched him as he ambled off onto the Westbound platform.

The train was still eight minutes away, so I found an empty seat next to two smartly suited  gentlemen and sat down. I took out my bible and started reading Psalms. I read Psalm 88 right up to 91 and then I suddenly felt a strong urge to pray so I started praying silently.  Shortly after, I decided to get up since the platform was beginning to get crowded and I didn’t want to miss the next train. I edged my way nearer to the platform and stood huddled up in my coat, trying to ignore the cool air coming from the tunnel. The train was now two minutes away.
Today was Treat Friday so we were scheduled to go out to some fancy restaurant for posh nosh with some of the office folk. Maybe I could –
It happened so quick I didn’t even have time to react. One minute I was thinking about gourmet meals and the next some burly hands were forcefully shoving me over the edge of the platform. As my body lunged forward and realisation of what was happening came to me, I screamed. My lungs deflated considerably as my scream sucked out all the air that was within me. I flew into the air face down and fell right into the middle of the track. I tried to get up but my ankle seemed to be having a game plan of its own. I felt the most excruciating pain shoot from my hip right to the tip of my toes. I had no idea what it was but all I knew was it was bad. I looked up and I could see people on the platform scurrying about and somewhat gasping at my misfortune.

“Help, someone help me!” I cried as I heard the rumbling of the train approaching. I remembered the scriptures I had read a few minutes ago in Psalm 91, “... shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty...He shall cover you with His feathers and under His wings you shall take refuge...for He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.”

The thundering noise increased. The lights came closer and closer. I tried to free my leg again, but the pain from my sprained ankle was too much. “Help,” I cried as I tried to move my body on my stomach. The rattling of the strong steel wheels chugging towards me, made me more aware of the imminent misfortune which was about to befall me. I screamed as the train hurtled towards me at an alarming speed. I screamed again and raised my arm to shield my face. At that moment everything went black

When I came to I was lying on a stretcher and a group of paramedics were attending to me on the platform. I sighed in relief - I had not become a statistic.
“What happened?” I asked the female paramedic in a green uniform who was attending to me.
“You fell onto the train tracks and you passed out from shock but you’re going to be ok,” she replied.
“Am I injured?”
“You have slight bruises and you sprained your ankle but other than that you’re ok. You sure had a lucky scrape young lady,” the paramedic replied.
“That wasn’t luck! I saw what happened,” an elderly woman with a Canadian accent said, “It was a miracle I tell you. As you lay there, I saw a group of Angels standing over you with their wings shielding you. It was unbelievable but right then I knew that you were going to be ok. Then as the train approached, one of the Angels put out its hands towards the train and brought it to a complete standstill. It was like one of those things you see in a Hollywood movie but this time it was happening right in front of my eyes.”
“...a real miracle...” I mumbled as the sedatives started taking effect and I nodded off.

Later I was told that my attacker was a mental health patient who had a strong dislike for Christians because his father who’d been a Missionary, had been had been killed during a mission trip in the tropical forests of some primitive country. Irrationally he had blamed the church for his father’s demise. Seeing me reading my bible had somehow caused him to snap and decide to attack me.

As I recovered from my minor injuries and battled the trauma of the ordeal, I prayed in my heart that God would give me the grace to forgive him. It was hard and I knew it wouldn’t happen overnight but I knew that with God’s help I would someday be able to let go of the resentment I felt towards the man who had almost brought my life to a devastating end.

Stylish and Versatile Blog Award

 Whilst the Hollywood Celebs were donning their Donna Karan and Viviene Westwood gowns and getting awards at the 68th Golden Globes Ceremony, I was getting my own Stylish and Versatile Blog Awards from two great bloggers: the lovely Blessing  and dearest H. Well here's the speech I'd prepared for when I win my Oscar, I'll just use it now...*urr uhh...clearing throat..* "Thank you ladies, I'm so humbled ...first I wanna say thanks to my mum and dad who raised me .... *wipes off tear*, I also want to thank my Lord and Saviour for making this possible, *pause for dramatic effect* I also wanna send a big shout out to my homies for their support..." lol OK enough of that...

So here's the rules and regulations of the award:
1. Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to them in your post.
2. Tell us 7 things about yourself which people may not know.
3. Award 15 other bloggers.
4. Contact these bloggers and let them know that they have won.


And here's 7 things about me:


1. I don't like fish.
I may occasionally eat Salmon Fillets but that's as far as my fish eating habits will venture. The idea of bones getting stuck in my throat made me steer well clear of fish. Don't laugh, this is a serious matter. :)

2. I love dancing.
I have taken Salsa classes and it was invigorating especially when you do the fast cha cha dance...you should see me...lol, I have also done an African dance class and I'm now doing Bhangra dance. It's so much fun, I may just take a trip to India and get a dose of the real thing. I would also love to learn the Tango and maybe Ballroom at some point.

3. This is gonna surprise some of you, but for the record, I'm not Nigerian.
Yup, none of my parents are Nigerian and I wasn't born in Nigeria either so yes even though I am close to so many Naija peeps, I'm not one myself. *shocker* The reason I decided to include this one is because people always think I'm Nigerian even in my own church...he he he. I'm not sure why people think so, but maybe it has to do with the fact that I associate with a lot of Nigerians... lol
As to my origins, for those that don't know, this will be revealed in due course in another blog post... something for you to look forward to :)

4. Reading is my greatest past time.
I love burying myself in a great book and escaping to unknown worlds. In fact I've been reading novels since I was about 7. Now I read Christian novels mostly by Francine Rivers, Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker and I read a lot of Non Fiction stuff and Biographies as well.
I read the adult bible for the first time when I was about 6 (from Genesis to Esther skipping Deuteronomy, Numbers and Leviticus for obvious reasons...) because I couldn't find a book to read...that's how much I loved reading.


5. I am absolutely terrified of snakes.
I can't even look at them; if one appears on the TV, I quickly look away and change the channel or if it's in a book, I just slam the book shut. Uggh. One thing I like about living in a very cold country is you never see snakes...thank God for that. Better stop talking about them. ...uhhmm the hair on my skin is rising as I am typing this...


6. My knowledge of "circular" celebs is somewhat limited.
For example, I had no idea what Drake looked like, until my teen sister said she wanted to get married to him a few weeks ago so I decided to google him and check him out.lol On the same topic, I wouldn't recognise Lady Gaga or Nicki Minaj if I met them on the street. Am I bothered about that? hell no! I've heard of them (this wouldn't do their ego much good I reckon, lol) but I have no idea what they look like. he he he... don't laugh now, and No I ain't a bush person, I'm just not interested. I don't listen to their kind of music and I only hear it when I'm in the gym or shopping mall. Yes, it may shock you but I'm one of those people that hasn't watched MTV and similar stuff in the last 6 or 7 years...and I don't have time for celeb magazines either... lol
If and when I do listen to circular music it is mostly 80s or 90's stuff, jazz, classical or African. So if someone asked me, Beyonce or Brandy? it would be Brandy any day... :)

7. I'm a romantic and I love the the feeling of being in love.
Yes, *giggling* I love the idea of dinner by candlelight,  cuddly teddy bears with "I love you" written on them, long stemmed lovely red roses and the whole shabaz....hhhmmm maybe it comes from watching too many chick flicks. :)


That's it for me...

And now I'm gonna give the following Bloggers the award, here goes, in no particular order :


Rainjoy

LDP


ChizzyD

Mbini

oluSimeon

Temiville

FavouredGirl

MissDramani

Waiki

Maid of Heart

Vimbai

Jaycee

Tendayi

Statuesque

Patrina

Right that's all for now, now I need to go and let these Bloggers know the great news.... Take care folks!

The 10 Commandments to Keeping Your Man Happy

Hey peeps, hope you've all had a great week. Mine's been great, I managed to get myself in the gym after what seems like a life time, so hopefully I will be seeing the results of my continued efforts soon.
Ladies, I hope those of you with a "Mr in the Vicinity" have been getting lots of pampering from the men as they've been putting those commandments into action. Well, I think it's about time we returned the favour....

I'm sure by the time the ladies are through with their ten commandments and the guys with their ten, love will be sizzling : renewal of wedding vows, candlelight dinners and engagements rings, cupid working overtime....divorce lawyers will be out of business soon and guys will be poppin the question faster than the Reverends can get them all married. To all ma Singletons, this will be your year.... :)

And here they are: *smiling*


1. Thou shall watch football, baseball, boxing or whatever sport tickles your man's fancy. You will not complain when he begins to exhibit  weird behaviour such as *pointing at the screen wildly, calling out at the screen and jumping up suddenly through out the game*
You also have to memorise the names of every member of his favourite team and manager plus their stats.

2. Thou shall cook his favourite meal thrice a week sorry I mean, everyday of the week except Sunday when you will order his favourite take away.

3. You will keep your hands off the remote and surrender all your "soap watching rights" so that he can
watch Top Gear, Discovery Channel and Match of the Day.

4. You shall never, ever expect him to help with the cooking, washing, ironing or anything that remotely resembles a chore. If you have any mini me's, you will undertake to always do the homework with them, change diapers, take out the trash and so on.
 
5. You will entertain him and his friends when they come round to play on the PS3 Move, Nintendo Wii or X-Box Kinect, making sure their bellies are "full and begging for mercy", glasses never going below half, loud music playing in the background.

6. You should notice and comment on how big his muscles are developing after a few days at the gym because they will obviously be bigger and more developed than Van Diesel. And that isn't a pot belly you see...no it's part of his 7 pack.

7. You will always hold your tongue in the car when he is driving and never say I told you so after you get lost because he didn't listen to your directions. You will also not laugh or tell him off when he and another man in the car next to yours at the traffic lights, decide to test the strengths of their engines like it's formula racing.

8. You will steer well clear of his wallet. His credit cards are not yours, his cheque book is also not yours. And his money doesn't have your name on it. His money has other purposes other than your Jimmy Choo shoes and Prada bags.
9. You shall refrain from schooling your man about the toliet seat. Cut the man some slack, he can't be expected to remember to put it up before use, then put it back down. I mean c'mon.

10. Thou shall cheerfully pick up after him (yes the socks, the shirts, magazines, cups and other bibs and bobs) without a single word of complaining or mumbling. Infact you shall hum his favourite songs as you pick up his trail of stuff.

And if that doesn't work, then I don't know what will. Now Feminstas take a chill, before the lobbying and protesting starts, remember this is all done in the name of fun and games. :)

Have a lovely week and may you love and be loved this year. xoxo

                                                                 © 2011 Gospel Girl

The 10 Commandments to Keeping your Woman Happy

As I've been trawling through magazines, blogs and the like, the issue of relationships seemed to crop up quite a bit and I think it suffices to say that people are looking forward to new relationships in this new year or bettering the ones they're in. Many are even hoping to meet "Denzel" look alikes in 2011 and settling down in a cute house with a picket fence and living happily ever after until maybe a big bad wolf comes along....
Well to get the guys on a flying start this year, I came up with Gospel Girl's very own list of "must do's" to keep the females : happy bunnies.
So guys read and learn and ladies make sure your man reads and learns.
And please women can I get a big Amen at the end!

1.  As the heavens shower the earth abundantly with rain, shower your woman abundantly with gifts.

2.  Thou shall compliment your woman when she changes her hairstyle even if it’s the fourth time that week.

3.  Always go shopping with her, smile and look like you’re enjoying yourself as she prances from shop to shop comparing prices and searching for bargains. Never ever sigh when three hours later she returns to the first shop you visited and buys the first item she saw.

4.  When you do wrong, always say sorry. When you’re not sure whose fault it is, say sorry too and when it’s her fault you know you have to say sorry as well don’t you?

5.  Order or buy beautiful flowers for her regularly just to let her know how special she is. Flowers were not just created for decorating special events like weddings and parties. Duh, you didn't know that one did you?

6.  Text and call her frequently during the day so that she knows that you’re thinking of her. Even if you’ve run out of free minutes find a way of making it happen.  “Facebook” her or “tweet” like a bird on Twitter if you have to.

7.  Your woman loves to talk, so let her talk, when she is not talking encourage her to talk more. Let her talk to her heart’s content until she has nothing else to say about anything.

8.  Get rid of all action movies and always watch romantic movies with her like Titanic, My Best Friend’s   Wedding, The Sound of Music and 27 Dresses.

9.  Don’t forget birthdays and anniversaries.

10. Repeat points 1-8 several times a month and you will have the key to her happiness.

© 2011 Gospel Girl

Till death do us part...or maybe not...

So you and your "hubby/wifey to be" are getting closer to the wedding day, the wedding gown is ready, flowers have been chosen and the cake's been ordered and suddenly your partner says, "Errr honey I've been thinking, I want a pre-nup?" What would your reaction be....

 A few of my friends were discussing the issue of pre-nups, which are now legal in the UK after Paper heiress Katrin Radmacher won a £100million divorce battle in October 2010. The Supreme Court ruling against her ex husband effectively gave pre-nuptial agreements official status in English law. The 41-year-old heiress only had to pay ex hubby Nicolas Granatino £1million from her vast fortune. (personally £1 million is still a lot and that would have still been plenty for me...)

The Supreme Court’s ruling brought England into line with most of Europe and the US where pre-nups are legally binding. Previously in the United Kingdom, pre-nuptial agreements had no legal standing. "The divorce courts had the last word in the division of all matrimonial property and would ignore any pre-nuptial agreement if they thought that it was in any way unreasonable to either of the parties involved, particularly regarding to the maintenance and housing of children. For example, regardless of whose name a couple’s property was in, a court could order it to be transferred to the other. This applied to all property that was owned separately or jointly." (Weddingguideuk)

A pre-nuptial agreement (pre-marital agreement) is a written contract between a couple before they are married that sets out how their assets are to be distributed (or remain theirs) should their marriage fail. Hhhmmm.

This brings me to a very important question, should Christians have pre-nups?
Personally I think that pre nups indicate a lack of faith in your relationship and I don't understand why any Christian would even want one. It is almost as if you're saying, this marriage is probably not gonna work and if so I don't want the other person to use me and run away with some of my money. This seems to also denote a lack of trust in the other person and creates a shaky foundation for your marriage from the onset. But that's my own view. What do people think about this issue? Is there anything in the bible that can help people decide on the best course of action...?

If you were stinking rich and getting married, would you have one?

2011's gonna rock...

Two donkeys were in the field nearby Jerusalem . The one donkey said;

"I don't understand it, just yesterday everyone was throwing their clothes and palms on the road when I was carrying Jesus on my back but now I am back to being a nothing. Those people don't even see its me who was carrying Jesus."

The other donkey said: "It works like that my brother; without Jesus you are nothing in this world"

                                                                    ****

Someone shared this little story of the donkey and I think it highlights something that we should remember as we enter the new year.

We may have many goals and plans for 2011, but let's take the time to seek God's will for the year ahead. Let us ask Him to direct our plans Let us... "commit our plans to Him so that they will be established." Proverbs 16:3

They say life is what you make it, your attitudes and responses to life will determine how you will fare in life's journey. If life is sour and hands you  lemon, make lemonade...
Happy New Year and may it be the best one yet for you!

I am a Survivor!

Hey people, hope you all had a good Christmas...mine was a blast. Spending time with loved ones is always a plus for me. Plus Santa was nice to me, I guess I'd been a good girl so I did get the Nintendo Wii I wanted. So next year I'm gonna be as fit as a fiddle by the time I'm done with Wii Fit.I've been playing tennis on Wii sport and all of a sudden I feel like a pro (reality check definitely needed..*note to self, it's virtual*) Anyway I was thinking that Serena and Venus need to look out coz there's a new chick in town. Wimbledon here I come...* iWish *

For those who don't know me too well,  there's two things I'm fond of : Nandos Restaurant and Next (the clothes shop). I know some peeps don't like Next, they say they never find anything cool there but I always seem to get all my best wedding and party dresses from there and other bits and bobs. I guess those closest to me know that when they get stuck with gifts for me, a Next gift card always does the trick. This year I even got a Nandos gift card as well...so this chick is in for a treat. :) Anyway soon after Christmas, the sales usually kick in and people head to the stores with gift cards and bonuses to spend. If u know much about sales in the UK, you know there's not many sales like the Next sale. It's in a different league altogether...

I love my sleep so getting up in the wee hours of the morning to queue up outside Next for their 5am opening has always been a bit of a challenge for me but I do always make my way to the Sale eventually around 7 or 8 am. Yeah so maybe a lot of stuff is gone by then but eventually I always get nice things. This year was a bit of a frustration.When we got to our local Next this is what greeted us. A queue almost a mile and a half long....

So we headed to another big shopping mall which was better coz there was no queue outside but there was a mini China inside - people milling about everywhere... but my dream coat had disappeared and so had my dream dress. ugh. The place looked like the remains of a bomb blast, clothes and shoes everywhere. It was worse than Primark on a bad day, I kid u not.

Anyway when I prayed the night before, I'd asked God to hook me up with the things I wanted. I'd seen them a few weeks before the sale and I believed that I would get them in the sale at a good price. I knew God was faithful even in what may seem like trivial matters as long as one exercises faith. Lo and behold I did end up getting my coat and dress, plus jeans and boots all for a very good price. Another customer who had come very very early, later decided she didn't want the coat and same thing happened with the dress and both were my size. No wonder God says not to worry about what to wear at all in Matthew 6, He's got it all covered. :) The pic below sums it all up, like Destiny's Child said years ago, "I am a survivor!"

When your dreams seem to be slipping away ... think of "The Three Trees"

Once upon a mountain top, three little trees stood and dreamed of what they wanted to become when they grew up. The first little tree looked up at the stars and said: "I want to hold treasure. I want to be covered with gold and filled with precious stones. I'll be the most beautiful treasure chest in the world!" The second little tree looked out at the small stream trickling by on its way to the ocean. "I want to be traveling mighty waters and carrying powerful kings. I'll be the strongest ship in the world!" The third little tree looked down into the valley below where busy men and women worked in a busy town. "I don't want to leave the mountain top at all. I want to grow so tall that when people stop to look at me, they'll raise their eyes to heaven and think of God. I will be the tallest tree in the world."

Years passed and the little trees grew tall. One day three woodcutters climbed the mountain. The first woodcutter looked at the first tree and said, "This tree is beautiful. It is perfect for me." With a swoop of his shining ax, the first tree fell. "Now I shall be made into a beautiful chest, I shall hold wonderful treasure!" the first tree said. The second woodcutter looked at the second tree and said, "This tree is strong. It is perfect for me." With a swoop of his shining ax, the second tree fell. "Now I shall sail mighty waters!" thought the second tree. "I shall be a strong ship for mighty kings!" The third tree felt her heart sink when the last woodcutter looked her way. She stood straight and tall and pointed bravely to heaven. But the woodcutter never even looked up. "Any kind of tree will do for me." He muttered. With a swoop of his shining ax the third tree fell.

The first tree rejoiced when the woodcutter brought her to a carpenter's shop. But the carpenter fashioned the tree into a feed box for animals. The once beautiful tree was not covered with gold, nor with treasure. She was coated with sawdust and filled with hay for hungry farm animals. The second tree smiled when the woodcutter took her to a shipyard, but no mighty ship was made that day. Instead, the once strong tree was hammered and sawed into a simple fishing boat. She was too small and too weak to sail to an ocean, or even a river. Instead she was taken to a little lake. The third tree was confused when the woodcutter cut her into strong beams and left her in a lumberyard. "What happened?" The once tall tree wondered. "All I ever wanted was to stay on the mountain top and point to God..."

Many, many days and nights passed. The three trees nearly forgot their dreams. But one night, golden starlight poured over the first tree as a young woman placed her newborn baby in the feed box. "I wish I could make a cradle for him," her husband whispered. The mother squeezed his hand and smiled as the starlight shone on the smooth and the sturdy wood. "This manger is beautiful," she said. And suddenly the first tree knew he was holding the greatest treasure in the world.

One evening a tired traveler and his friends crowded into the old fishing boat. The traveler fell asleep as the second tree quietly sailed out into the lake. Soon a thundering and thrashing storm arose. The little tree shuddered. She knew she did not have the strength to carry so many passengers safely through the wind and the rain. The tired man awakened. He stood up, stretched out his hand and said, "Peace." The storm stopped as quickly as it had begun. And suddenly the second tree knew he was carrying the King of heaven and earth.

One Friday morning, the third tree was startled when her beams were yanked from the forgotten woodpile. She flinched as she was carried through an angry jeering crowd. She shuddered when soldiers nailed a man's hands to her. She felt ugly and harsh and cruel. But on Sunday morning, when the sun rose and the earth trembled with joy beneath her, the third tree knew that God's love had changed everything. It had made the third tree strong. And every time people thought of the third tree, they would think of God. That was better than being the tallest tree in the world.

So the next time you feel down because you didn't get what you want, just sit tight and be happy because God is thinking of something better to give you.

As the year draws to a close, maybe your life doesn't seem to be turning out the way you hoped, don't lose hope, God is up to something great. Merry Christmas to you and to yours.

God bless, love u all

Christmas is Almost Here...

Christmas rocks. Yup, the Christmas carols, nativity plays, decorations, the music, lights and so on. It's my favourite time of the year and I guess many people can relate.
Last Christmas was great, we had a lovely family Christmas. Ate, danced, twas good. The one before was lovely as well. I have a video from that one, of myself and one of my BFFs singing "Santa Baby" with our stuffed bellies looking like they are about to pop. I would have shared the video but she would kill me so...I have to pass on that... *grin*

Anyway I asked some kids what Christmas was all about and here's what they said, "Santa, turkey, presents, reindeer, elves, playing games and watching movies." Ok so Santa may be cool and all that when you're a child but kids need to move beyond this. (though in my case I always knew he wasn't real; I never questioned the grown ups about it, I just figured it was a great way to get gifts. How can children even believe that a big fat Santa can fit through a chimney anyway?)

Not one of the children I asked about Christmas even mentioned Jesus. It's not surprising in this day and age, so many children live in homes where their parents never ever talk about God or anything mildly religious.
I think we need to share the biblical story of Christ's birth with as many children as possible otherwise we will have a generation coming after us who will have no inclination of the truth whatsoever. Take your kids, your nephews and nieces, your friends' kids, your neighbours' kids and any other kids you know to Sunday school, Nativity plays, carols for kids. Also when you buy them presents on top of getting them Nintendo Wii, PS3 and whatever else is hype these days also try to include things that will teach them the truth of God's words. There's plenty of stuff out there and it doesn't have to be boring...you can get games, interactive books, DVDs and so on.

A lady I know said she always buys Christmas cards with nativity scenes as opposed to ones with snow and Santa as she says they detract from the real meaning of Christmas. All I can say is do what works for you as long as you try and do your little bit.
 So as we tighten our dancing shoes and get our parteee on, lets share and remind everyone the real meaning of Christmas and above all folks lets remember to stay safe. For now enjoy this video ... I thought it was so cool I just had to share it...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZrf0PbAGSk

Forgotten

                                
                                         Somewhere in the Heart of Africa, 3rd of July

Keeta stirred. Her stomach hurt. She hadn’t eaten for days or was it a week? She couldn’t remember anymore. Several flies buzzed around her and her three sisters and brother all huddled together in their tiny shack. Someone in the corner coughed so hard, it seemed their lungs would explode.
A few rays of sunshine invaded the wooden shack through a big crack in the roof. It was almost noon but she was too weak to move. The memory of her last meal had almost faded. She and her four siblings had shared a measly roasted dry dove which Baba had killed. There had been nothing else after that.

Keeta slowly licked her top lip - letting her tongue move slowly across it moistening her chapped dry lips, whose cracks resembled the cracks of a dry dessert. Maybe today would be different. Some of the others said the trucks might come today. Keeta didn't want to hope too much. Last time she had hoped that they would come and they didn't. 
She had waited and waited.
And nothing.
Later she had heard Baba discussing with his friend that The Aid Organisation had run out of funds. The Aid trucks usually brought bags of supplies and big fat men and women would unload food, water and sometimes they had these special things called medicines which helped you feel better. Keeta had never seen people like those big fat men. Their skin always seemed to glow and they were always smiling. Keeta supposed if she was fat and had a glowing skin she would smile as well.
Nobody she knew smiled much. Everyone she knew was thin and bony.
Everyone moved slowly and never said much.
She shifted again.
The pain in her stomach was almost unbearable now. She closed her eyes hoping that maybe she could miraculously go to sleep and forget the pain and misery ruling her life.
                                                          
                                                        A thousand miles away
                                              5th Avenue - New York, 3rd of July

Mandy looked at the price tag again. $1 250 for a pair of shoes?  “Tiana this is too expensive. Why don’t we look for something cheaper?”
“Why? You can afford it,” Tiana said pouting like a goldfish.
“Yes, but just because we can afford it doesn’t mean we should buy it. Do you realise that there are people in other parts of the world that don’t even have a crumb of bread to eat? You don’t realise how lucky you are.”
“What do you want me to do mum? I can’t feed the whole world.”
“Maybe not, but it’s kind of like the story about eating an elephant. You don’t attack the whole beast. But you do it bit by bit. You start off by helping one person at a time. If you help someone and the next person also helps someone else, before you know it all of us would have helped so many people.”
Tiana rolled her eyes indignantly, “Eeeew, elephant is certainly not on my menu for today so forget that. Anyway mum someone else can help all those poor people, I mean does it have to be me?”

Mandy merely stared at the monster of a child she had created. There was no twinkle in her eyes except when she was getting something new which would inevitably find its way to the back of the wardrobe unworn and forgotten. This scenario had replayed itself so many times in their lives, it was beginning to grate on her.

“Right, I’ve made up my mind, I like these heels and besides all the other ones are far too common. I want something that will,” Tiana paused as she thought for a moment, “ something which will make a fashion statement. I want people to think wow, that girl’s shoe rocks.”

Mandy sighed. It was mostly her fault that Tiana had turned out this way. She had spoilt her from the time she was born and no surprise she was so used to having her own way without an ounce of consideration for the next person.  She could only hope that someday she would learn to empathise and find greater meaning to life than getting this, getting that and more getting. Hopefully she would eventually realise that there was more to life than a shoe that rocks.

A Lady Fit for a King

So everyone in the UK's been speculating and talking about the Royal wedding scheduled for next April between Prince William and Kate Middleton. The media's been buzzing about the future Queen. What will she wear? Is she going to get a lovely reception in the family or a frosty one as some of the previous brides who have joined the Royal family? Well only time will tell. I am sure that she will look dashing on her wedding day and I'm sure they will not spare anything in making sure that she will be adorned in the best bling and satin the world has to offer. I won't go into the technical logistics of where the £10 million or so required for the wedding will come from, it's a topic for another day.

Needless to say, once the wedding is over and life as the wife of a very important man starts, a huge responsibility will await Kate. If you are fortunate enough to marry a future King, you would have to get your act together, if it wasn't already together.

I was thinking about that in relation to all my girls in waiting. I know lots of Miss Independents all waiting for the day their Prince will show up and whisk them into a wonderful future. It's tiring and sometimes frustrating business waiting for "the One". Endless prayers, fasting, reading books, listening to Cd's, attending Singles Conferences...and so on. After a while, you're probably thinking for how long mhen, I can't take this stuff anymore. It may get hard and lonely at times but hang in there, God will surprise you when you least expect it...

In the meantime, I leave you with these thoughts...What have you done to prepare for your future King, oh thou fair woman of God?

Making your House a Home: A man can buy a massive house on top of a hill but only his wife can make it a home. But you can only do that if you know how to manage a home. Despite your busy schedule develop a habit of maintaining some kind of order in your home. Think of creative ways to enhance the place where you live. It doesn't have to be expensive, just make sure it looks good. Read home magazines, learn all you can from other people. Also make the hoover and duster your best friends. A tidy, clean home goes a long way in creating order in your lives. If you can't even take care of a one bedroom apartment now on your own, why should God entrust you with a man and a mansion?

Sacrificing and giving a Little : Has someone ever asked you for something? You know like the last tiny piece of cake and you want it badly. Would you give them the last bit or eat it yourself? Only you know the answer to that. Relationships require growing up big time. It's not all about me, myself and my beautiful I. No, I have to consider the other person. Think about how you act when you don't get your way? You may not be in a relationship right now but how do you handle yourself in situations where you're trying to decide something as a group and you suggest something but people ignore your suggestion and go with someone else's. Do you just shrug it off or do you make a big deal out of it and try to force your point home? If you always want to be right and always want to be the one to win and get your way, you need to start praying and asking God to help you to change your attitude. Learn how to walk in love and put other people before yourself. True Love always gives. That's why the bible says, "God so loved the world that he gave his Son".

Submission in a Feminist Society: These days most people are very much aware of their rights to this and their rights to that. I'm all for rights but I still believe that Godly women should submit to the man that God places in their lives as their husband. Yes, the Queen has to submit to the King, period.
Of course you can make suggestions and have your say but ultimately the man should make the final judgement call because he is answerable to God for what happens in your family. And guess what, you start learning how to submit waaaayyyy before you even get married. God will watch how you submit to different levels of authority such as your parents, church, the law of the land and so on. So are we really ready to submit?

Learn the Art of Effective Communication:  Communicate well with people around you coz this is the best practice before you get hitched. Always say what you mean. Do not assume that people know what you're thinking if you're not willing to vocalise it. You sometimes hear women saying about their partners, "I thought he would do x,y,z." C'mon gals, cut him some slack, if you want him to do something, tell him. It's not just going to happen because you expect it. In a nutshell, men are not mind readers, even though we would like to believe they are...

So maybe you've mastered all the four things above, good on you, I'm sure your time is nearer, keep trusting God and enjoy where you are now. There's more on this topic which I may put in another blog post in the future but in the mean time, I pray that God would mould all the Wonderful Women in Waiting to be Wise, Lovely Ladies worthy of the King that God is sending their way....

Be blessed,

Gobble till you Wobble...

Even though we don't officially celebrate Thanksgiving in the UK and even though I do give thanks every living day of my life, I'm gonna use this day to just give props to my heavenly Father and a few other peeps.

Thanks to the Lord above for
my mum who is a beautiful and special Queen even though she doesn't live in Buckingham palace;
my loving family and friends, I love 'em all dearly, especially my best friend who has made life such a joy...u know yourself, mwaah.

Thank u Lord for answering my biggest prayer request which I had on my heart for the last three years...you could have granted my request ages ago, but you chose to make me wait and I thank you for that wait because I grew and became strong through all the tears, the questions I lobbied at you and the tantrums I made you put up with...lol. At the end of it all so many wonderful things were birthed in my life, one of which was this blog...

Talking about the blog, I wanna say a big shout out and thank you to all of you my wonderful blog readers, for taking time to come and read the rants and musings in my corner and I hope something has at some point blessed you, touched your heart or made you laugh, at the every least.

Special thank you to Mbini who was the first person to break the ice and comment on this blog, thanks for that first ever comment you made and all your wonderful comments that keep coming. Also a big thank you to the following blogger babes: Rainjoy, Blessing, Maid of Heart, Miss Drammani and Mbini for being the Top 5 peeps that have commented on my blog on a regular basis. U guys rock mhen!

I'm also grateful to the following people for taking time to read my blog and commenting as well:  

Sulthana, Jaycee, TriBe, Waiki, Irene U, Patience, Simingaphi, Tamika,  Olufemi, Cathy, Busi K, Michelle C,  Treasured1, Favoured Girl, Amy S, Douglas D, Laura,  Shawn, Tisha, Sithenjisiwe, blackgold, Chido, Able Abe, doll,  Braids, Patrina, ChizzyD, oluSimeon, Seshe J and all the various Anonymous peeps. Keep showing the love guys. xoxo

Even if you have never commented...I suppose your "silence is golden"...lol, but seriously thank you for stopping by as well... Also last but not the least, thanks to Opeyemi for the tips you gave me and Mugove for your support with the whole blogging experience.

 Till the next blog post, happy thanksgiving y'all, especially my frenz Americana across the pond...

xoxo


P.S Due to other commitments I may not be able to blog regularly for a while but do come and indulge in all the previous great posts until I make a proper comeback.

The Cracked Pot

A water bearer in India had two large pots, one hung on each end of a pole, which he carried across his neck.

One of the pots had a crack in it. While the other pot was perfect, and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water in his master's house.

The perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream: "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you."

Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?"

"I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some.

But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again it apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?

“That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them.

“For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house."
Anonymous

Moral: Each of us has our own unique flaws. We're all cracked pots.

But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. We've just got to take each person for what they are, and look for the good in them.

There's a lot of good out there.
There is a lot of good in us!
Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.
Remember to appreciate all the different people in your life!

Thank you to the cracked pots in my life.
You have made life more interesting and beautiful.

I thought I'd share this coz it's such a beautiful and inspiring story and hopefully it will encourage someone...

Have an amazing week,

A Life Lesson from The Apprentice

I'm not a big fan of Reality Shows, in fact I dislike most of them because they tend to go on and on about nothing in particular. I do however like 3 in particular, Come Dine With Me (coz I love food and you get to learn how to cook interesting stuff), Dragon's Den (I'm always amazed at all those intriguing inventions and ideas...and the ones that are not so great) and also The Apprentice(UK).

The other week on the The Apprentice(UK) a lady was ousted from the show after a dramatic showdown in the boardroom. She was given a chance to say something and redeem herself and had she been clever she would have used that chance to highlight her strengths and why she should not be fired. She chose to play dirty. She started going on about the other two candidates, how useless and incompetent they were and how Sir Alan should do the right thing and fire them. Sir Alan then pointed out to her that she was out of bounds. The only person who was allowed to judge the contestants and make the final call was Sir Alan himself. Because she tried to operate out of her jurisdiction, she ended up taking the cab home even though she had been a strong candidate herself.

As Christians we are meant to live our lives without being judgemental. Yes, people around us may be doing one wrong thing or the other, but it doesn't give us the right to judge and pronounce verdicts.
Yes, so that girl in church has a stud ring on her tongue and that other guy wears jeans that sag showing part of his Calvin Klein boxers, or that other woman smokes as soon as she leaves church or that man has a few beers on Saturday night before coming to church the next day...ohhhh how so unchristian like...we tend to think...

We may not agree with certain things but let's not judge and decide that these people are doomed and cannot be sincere in their walk with the Lord, for we don't know their hearts, only God does. Let us just love people and leave God to convict and deal with their "issues" which we may feel do not measure up to our standards.

The thing is if you tell someone not to do something and they stop because you told them to and not because of any conviction of their own, they are likely to keep going back to it. But if the Spirit of God grabs hold of them and gives them a revelation about the wrong thing they are doing, they are likely to stop for good.

You may feel led to advise and correct someone who may be erring (which the bible says to do in certain cases where someone is going against the word of God) but do so tactfully, in private and with love. Do not condemn them and decide their fate because we ourselves are not perfect and are living by God's wonderful grace. Let he who has no sin cast the first stone.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:1-5 
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye."

Blessings to ya'll

Mingling with the Rich and Famous... (I wish)

Hello peeps, hope you've been cool. You know what, I never did get round to telling you something interesting that happened about three weeks ago.

Deitrick Haddon (the American Gospel sensation for those who may not have a clue who he is...lol) was in London at the end of October and he came to do a concert in my church. The last bit is the most interesting but as a woman (we love explaining everything) let me tell you the whole story. Right, since I was so excited, I got there nice and early so that I could get a great seat and I'm pleased to say that I did get a fantastic seat by the aisle so that I could get my dance on. Yes I'd like to think that I am a good dancer, I reckon I have better moves than Paula Abdul and Michael Jackson...ke ke ke. No eye rolling please, I can dance. Anyways, for the first part of the concert I was at the door greeting people as they came into church coz that's one of my ministries in church. Yeah, I figured with the kind of dazzling smile that I have, the Greeters ministry was made for me. lol

Then when people stopped trickling in, I went into church to enjoy the concert. The supporting acts were great. MOBO award winning UK gospel artist Guvna B opened with a couple of tracks and got people on their feet. He's a talented bro and definitely going places. Then our very own UK gospel version of Beyonce took the stage, the fabulous Rachel Kerr. She stormed the place up with some up tempo tracks...

Then came the moment that we'd all waited for, Deitrick Haddon took centre stage and rocked the house. Wooah I was too excited and busy taking pictures, I even forgot to dance for a while. Then I put the camera in my bag and started dancing like David did in the bible. I didn't shake what my mama gave me seeing as I am a Spirit filled sister and all and also we were in church. But I tell you I did do a lot of dancing. All good things come to an end and before we knew it the concert had ended with an altar call.

As we left to go home, some peeps milled about in the foyer buying Deitrick's Cd's and DVDs. I didn't have any cash on me so I took a rain cheque. Then Deitrick came out from backstage and I walked up to him tentatively not sure what to say or do. I mean how is one supposed to act? Do you grin or wave? Reach out your hand? Bow? (ok maybe not the last one) but it's one of those situations where you wanna make contact but not sure how to do it. So I kinda grinned, smiled and mumbled something which didn't seem intelligible...Anyway he shook my hand, smiled and said hie back. I know he said one or two other things to me but I was too excited to remember what he even said sha.

Some blessed folk managed to get their new merchandise autographed by the man himself. That's when I started edging closer to the guy so that I could ask him if I could take a photo with him. Everyone else seemed to have similar ideas ...lol Anyway to cut a long story short I asked him and I did manage to take a picture with him, in fact not one but three. The guy is so friendly, passionate for God and down to earth...Damita Haddon (wifey) is surely a blessed woman.

I have to say that before all this I was wondering whether I should take the picture because I didn't look my best. I was having a bad hair day and after all the dancing and sweating my make up wasn't that great. So I was faced with a dilemma, go to the bathroom and fix up and possibly miss seeing Deitrick OR take the picture in my not so fabulous state. I opted for option 2. I wanted to share the photo with you guys but eerhh...my reputation is at stake here so I'll have to pass...lol

So now I'm working on my photoshop skills so that I can digitally enhance the photo I took with Deitrick, so until then all I can leave you with is this piece of advice, like the Girl Guides always say, "Be Prepared" coz you never know what is going to happen. :-)

All the above photos are copyrighted by me. © 2010 PCJ

Have a fab weekend!

Blabbering about what really counts

Whenever I see something nice I wanna talk about it. In fact it's hard to get me to shut up about it. Many people are exactly the same.

If you were single and you met a gorgeous guy and he asked you out, you would be texting, BB-ing or tweeting all your friends about him. If you go to Debenhams (or Bloomingdales for my American peeps..see I don't forget about you) and they have a sale on you will want to tell all your buddies so that they can get their hands on some fabulous bargains. It's human nature to want to share good things with others.

Now we've found something good in Christ, something a zillion times better than the gorgeous guy, therefore we should be sharing it with others at every available opportunity.

Now don't worry, I'm not about to suggest that you go out into the deep Amazon and preach the Gospel as a missionary(If God has called you to do that, Brilliant stuff...go for it!) No all I'm saying is we should be sharing the gospel with others whenever we can.

A few years ago, just before I started Uni...there was a meeting for some of the freshman where I got to meet some of the students I was going to be studying with.
I started chatting with one lovely girl and in the course of our discussion I told her I was a Christian. She asked me to tell her more and I eagerly shared how I had given my life to Christ the year before and how my life had started changing for the better. This girl and I clicked and we became good friends. A few weeks after we started Uni, I invited her to SCM(Students Christian Movement) at Uni. That very night, they did an altar call and she went up and gave her life to Christ. I was so happy and a part of me couldn't believe that it had happened so fast but all the glory belongs to God. She had a hunger for God and she started attending church regularly with me. I'm glad to say she is still serving God many years later, in fact she is in the Praise and Worship team in her church. She and I are still friends and she is now happily married to a wonderful man of God. Now isn't God good?

If your neighbour fell in a ditch I'm sure you would try and help them to get out unless you're a real Meany without any heart (which I know you're not)
If you saw someone driving along the road and you knew that there was a cliff a few metres ahead, you would do everything you could do warn them.

Now why is it that we know that people are walking through life and walking towards eternity without Christ and headed towards hell and yet we're too cute to care and witness the love of God to them. We are worried about what other people are going to say or think. We are afraid of offending people or being labelled bible bashers. Lets not allow the devil to stop us from fulfilling this one thing.

Jesus was disliked for talking about the Kingdom of God but that didn't stop Him. Here are somethings we can do to witness to people about our wonderful Saviour.

1.Invite people to church services or other church events like dramas, concerts etc.

2.Share the gospel in subtle ways with workmates, friends.

3.Hand out tracts or give people Christian movies to watch or books to read.

4.Go on outreach or Evangelism programmes

5.Live your life right so that your lifestyle can be a testimony. Who knows someone may be watching you and trying to decide based on your lifestyle whether they want to become a Christian or not.

Don't worry if you witness to someone and they don't immediately turn to the Lord. Keep praying for them and asking the Holy Spirit to convict them, by God's grace someday the seed you sowed in their life will take root and flourish.

Jesus said in Matthew 28:19-20, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Be Blessed,

It ain't over till the Fat Lady sings...

Red leaves, yellow leaves, orange and lots of brown ones too mixed with the refreshing green of the tender grass. That was the sight that greeted me as I walked into the park the other day. I couldn't help but marvel at the beauty that stood before me.

For a minute I stopped thinking about all the stuff I needed to get done, the things I wished I had or the pressures coming from different arenas of life. I sighed, took a deep breathe and just paused to take in the moment. I wished I had a camera so that I could capture that moment, when nothing else seemed to matter but the tranquility of being in a place where the surroundings reminded me of the goodness and magnificence of my Maker.

Life has a way of knocking you down sometimes and you think back to the time you were a child when everything seemed to be alright and if you had a problem you knew your dad or the school teacher could fix it somehow. No one placed great expectations on you other than getting reasonably good grades, no one expected you to be responsible for too much.

Enter the later years of life, rejection letters, disappointing emails, demands, work or the lack of it, dreams you reach for that sometimes seem out of your grasp, making it in a world recovering from recession, being a good Christian in a society whose values are upside down. It ain't easy, no sir, it takes tenacity, perseverance and the ability to lean on God like never before.

In such times I retreat to the rock that is higher than I and seek wisdom, strength and encouragement. He makes me to lie down in Pastures Green and sometimes when I lie there I don't want to get up and go back to facing the real world.

But get up I must at some point. He has given us grace to go through all things. His grace is more than sufficient. Set backs may come and obstacles will be many on the road that leads to destiny. But His word is true, He cannot lie, trust Him. Remember the things He has whispered to you in the secret place and may they remind us of why we started this journey and carry us to the place that our hearts yearn for.

Be blessed,

Say no to Size Zero

Over the years I 've seen one diet after the other captivate all sorts of women (and some men believe it or not) as they search to fulfil that quest of being slimmer and trimmer in all the essential places.
Atkins, GI diet, Paleo, Leptin, Special K two week plan... the list is endless.

Now I don't know for sure whether or not they work, but I do know that if you starve yourself for extended periods of time you will inevitable start to lose weight.
Now as Believers we are meant to keep ourselves well nourished with plenty of the Word so that we can stay in great shape. A well balanced diet with double helpings of the Word through reading the Bible, listening to word based sermons,some gospel music, reading books and blogs is essential...its up to you how you like it.

The problem is that a lot of people are only having snack bites of the word once or twice a week, sometimes never. Getting the word from the Bible is the main meal, all the other things are appetisers and snacks for in between meals and as we all know you can't really survive on snacks.
Now if you've always looked at the Size Zeros and thought c'mon you need to fix up and put some weight, I 'm sure the angels are looking down at some of us and thinking the same thing. Stop this dieting and getting yourself on a healthy feasting plan. Enough said, I think you get the picture.

Ask yourself some serious questions and be honest with yourself.
When was the last time you read the bible and are you reading it consistently?

Soak yourself in the Word and always pray for revelation before you begin your bible reading. I know sometimes it can get a bit boring and it feels like a chore but you can pray and the ask The Holy Spirit to give you a hunger for the Word and for it to come alive in your life. Believe me you will never see it in the same light again. You will begin to look forward to reading it like you do your Nandos chicken.

If you feed your flesh more than your Spirit, you will act fleshly, your thoughts and actions will mirror what you're feeding on, so guys lets all make it a priority to make time for the one thing that will ultimately have a long lasting and beneficial effect on our lives.

Joshua 1:8 says "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."
Lets give up the skinny diet and stuff ourselves with the Word, after all it's the only place where it's cool to be obese.

Be blessed,