Hope of Glory

Story says,
God is my shield-
and Shepherd.
  
Story says,
That the Holy Spirit in me,
Will never leave me.

Story says,
Follow the ancient path,
For it’s the road to the peak.

Story says,
Be not afraid,
For angels of Yahweh are with me .
Fighting for me.

Story says,
Christ is in me
The hope of glory.

Story says,
I am more than a conqueror ,
And nothing can separate me from the love of Christ.

Story says,
Tell my servant David,
That I will make him great and his name will spread abroad.

Story says,
I am  salt and light of the world
A city that can never be hidden

Story says,
I will bless you with wisdom,
With loyal counselors and warriors
And I have given you many lands.

Story says,
Always remember that the Spirit in you
dose not make you fear, but fills you with power, love and self-control.

Story warns,
Let not the law and the habit of studying the holy book depart from me.
Meditate on it day and Night.

Story says,
The word of God is my sword of the Spirit.
And my shield is faith in God.

Story says,
In the Name of Jesus Christ
I have been anointed with power and authority and dominion.

Ugwu David C
©2023

Book Review: The Shepherd, The Overseer, and The Soul

Author: Funmi Adebayo
Pages: 150
Publisher: The Christ A Poet Concepts, Nigeria.
Reviewer: Adeleye Olaoye, Ubamara Ezenobi, Zoe Ziva, Ebubechi, Clement Victor

Funmi Adebayo, the author of this book, gives us this gem of a book through the light of the Spirit of God penetrating into 1 Peter 2:25 and Ezekiel 18:4. The Shepherd, Overseer and the Soul is a book aimed at building foundational knowledge on the role that the soul of a man plays in the life of a believer. The Author has broken this book down into 7 Chapters to help relate his message.

The author started by making clear that the human soul is eternal. It cannot be dissolved by death, unlike the human physical body. The soul is the representation of a man in the spirit realm. Therefore, what becomes of the soul of man is the reality of that man

He then further compared the mind as a signal analyzer. An example of a signal analyzer is an Oscilloscope,  it’s a device that analyzes signals of different forms and has a wide application in different fields and professions today. From the author’s analysis, the mind acts as the signal analyzer while the heart takes the final decision.

If man wasn’t already dead spiritually then God wouldn’t have bothered about giving him a new spirit and a new heart.

Funmi presents a compelling argument by clearly stating that it is not enough to just claim you believe in Jesus Christ. You must also prove that by obediently following Him. If you truly believe in Him, you will hear Him and do His sayings. God’s desire for His children to be tamable and coachable just like the sheep because hardly deviate from the path channeled by the shepherd and are much sensitive of intruders or strangers.

We are not of the world. Yet at the same, that does not mean we are not meant to be in charge. This is quite a salient point made in the book reminding us that we are the light of the world and while we remain here we are to be in charge by and for our Lord Jesus Christ and make known the manifold wisdom of God to the principalities and powers among the celestial ones.

Talking about God as Shepherd, Funmi posits that God is completely charismatic in his leadership; strong communicator, empathetic and relatable, confident, motivational. This in return gives us joy, loveliness and makes resources available. His final words were “As we have returned to the Shepherd of our soul, let us trust Him for the best in life. Remember He is the good Shepherd, Who gave His life, His soul, for us His sheep. (John 10:11.)”

Redemption Memo

It began like this…

Clad in purple and linen, cat-walking with stiletto strapped feet,
I miss my steps

Fall into a gully of mud
Stumble into the midst of men mouthing profanity

Stench ooze from me like box of putrid egg

I become crafter of maleficence, of deeds done in darkness

Yet, I am of tender days than to perpetuate impurity
You, of purer eyes than to behold iniquity.

Lord, seems mother said you do not appose your eyelids like the sons of men?

But why are these befalling me
Or why should I be falling?

Like Martha, this is how I feel:
Lord if you had been here, my soul would not have been ensnared in the tempter’s trap

Now I come with a bunch of sins, my back bent into a hunch

Have mercy on me, Lord, have mercy and vanquish this vile!
Let these things cease, like when you stilled the storm

Will you discard the memento of your purchase?
The one you stamped by your blood on the tree, like Rahab’s scarlet cord hung over the window in Canaan?

Up till now, the spies are over the gate of my soul, watching, waiting to devour & divide me as a spoil—this moribund mortal

But the redemption of my soul is costly,
And in it, you promised sin shall not have dominion over me

This is why tonight, I recite to you the memorandum of my redemption
I hope you heed my cry and help me.

Ayooluwa Olasupo Ìmísí
©2021

His Will, My Will

I love my freedom, it is my human right
Nobody can take it from me – they mutter
This attitude to life resonates “It does not matter”
Bringing in its wake much piercings and hurt

The human will though a beauty to behold,
Allows us to be who we want to be unperturbed
And to do what we want to do- undisturbed
Left unchecked, wounds multitudes untold

Truly, the world is filled with so many evils
Emanating from some freedom gone wild
Evils perpetrated by men of consciences-seared
Leaves behind so much sorrow and ills

Over 2000 years ago, someone thought of himself less
King of kings and Lord of all came visiting, cloaked in humility
Left his domain, came to our wicked world proclaiming liberty
Freedom from sin, replaced with dominion previously lost

When I placed my faith in Jesus, he gave me power over sin
His will now reigns supreme above my freedom- so cherished
Now I can say yes to my father’s revealed will – as my savior did
Making my world safer, brighter than it had earlier been

Ajegbomogun Olufunke
© 2020

Don’t Be Deceived

He came not for the righteous preachers
but forsook the glory to save lost sinners
from destruction of the night
into God’s marvelous light
…they that be whole need not a physician
but they that are sick.”

He came not to condemn
but here to usher you
into a new realm of love
that’s more sacrificial than a dove
“for when we were still sinners
Christ died for us..”

He came for reconciliation
of men to their God
not for humiliation
of men by the Lord
“…for I am come not to call the righteous,
but sinners to repentance.”
then He taught them to live in true obedience.

Don’t be deceived:
He offered us liberty
to be law-free.
He gave us grace
to be performers of His holy scene
not as a licence to sin.
“For sin shall not have dominion over you:
for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”

Don’t be decieved!
Christ is here
calling you to believe
inviting you to live.
leave fear,
Come“, Love says.

Josh’ Oloyede Oluwafemi.
©2020

Dominion

How do you explain the distress of nations
With fear and depress so much to mention;
Countries running helter skelter for help
Doctors wondering whether their impact will be felt
The media hunting latest news to saturate the air
Now the air is filled with Panic and too polluted to inhale
A decent handshake is enough to be suspicious
You flee when your brother clears his throat because you’re cautious
You adjust when your sister worships God in tears because even tears is contagious
So what do we make out of Romans 16:16 where the churches of Christ are sent with greetings of kisses?

Borders shut down for safety
Airports closed up for security
Social gatherings suspended
With no clue of revert intended
Economic activities are on hold
Even the weather seems uneasy to the face of this wanton unfold of a virus
Causing stampede to world powers in such a way that is disastrous
Introducing new words and giving the people new tongues
So it’s either you social distant, isolate or quarantine.

The next thing we heard was an announcement;
Every religious gatherings is hereby ordered to stop until further notice
A subtle penetration into the church that the ordinary mind may not catch
But we the soldiers of Christ as a strong army are on the march
We are not at ease in Zion.

That enemy touring the towns  like a  roaring lion
is incapacitated as we pray-a-thon;
His frustration keeps increasing as we speak in tongues
Of course, these are signs that the end is near
But we are not engrossed in fear
We have the shield of faith with the word
We have come into oneness with the son
The confidence we have in the Father remains evergreen in our minds
As it is written, we are his witnesses from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth
So any other thing spreading from China to other parts is not a threat
For the birth of Jesus is a sure bet that we have been born to rule over death.

– Lady Nancy
(c) 2020

Power Source

As the antelope flees from the hunters gunpowder
As the boat drowns by the sea’s power
As the smokers eye fillls at the opium hour

Fire softens the beans for all devourers
Heat is what we produce to roast our beef at the tower
Looking down from great heights we don’t cower
Like the petals of a flower
Like lift from a stranger
We are helped and protected in dark and trying hours

Call it showers
We bask in the blessings of the Father
Safely hinged and bowered
To a God who has granted us dominion and power

Imani Dokubo
© 2020

Freedom

I want to be free to live,
A life free from difficulty,
A life with no tragedy

I want to be free to walk,
walk and never be stopped
Free to walk away from that sin that enslaved me,
Free to confront the devil that estranged me

I want to be free to speak,
Oh let my tongue leak, the truth.
I want to be free to spill out words that heal,
Words that plant and uproot futile roots

I want to be free to see,
See beyond diverse challenges,
See an adventure in the midst of peril

I want to be free to smile,
A smile that brightens and brings joy to a troubled mind and uplifts the weary heart

I want to be free to dream,
Dreams that are not assaulted by ferocious nightmares,
Dreams that give the assurance of a bright future

I want to be free to give,
Give without demanding to receive
Free to give myself up, just as Christ did for us

I want to be free to worship,
Acknowledging him who has dominion and lordship

I want to be free to love,
Unconditionally, exclusively and indefinitely

I want to be free to be the creators poet,
Free to get my papers wet,
With blue blood as they surge freely through my pen

I want to be free to write my piece,
Without chaos afflicting my peace

I want to be free to be the “me” that I’m supposed to be,
Not regarding people’s thoughts and opinions of me

I want to be free from pressures,
Free from peer pressures that accelerates my blood pressure
Free from living to measure up and forgetting his “treasure up”

I want to be free from the shadows of my past,
Free to take off this obfuscating mask
I know I committed crimes and crossed lines but I want to be free to bask in his ever redeeming light,
Free to actualize that in Christ, I am worth a Jew’s eye

I want to be free
According to God’s will
Flourishing like the flowers
Gushing with full strength like the waters
And as a tree planted near the rivers whose root spreads across like the garment of a diva

I want to be free expanding in knowledge
thrilling in the realm of possibilities
healing the broken souls with those words gifted from above

So, I desire to be free
Free from the seal of fear and jest
Free from imperfections and wrong decisions
Free the rain of confusion that overwhelms the kingdom on the inside,
Free from the floods of lust that empties grace
And takes away God’s face
I need to be free!
clothed with righteousness on the race
Nurtured on the way
Living to become my very best

Princess
The Alchemist
© 2019.