A tale of compassion and faith

February 21, 2025March 7, 2025Leave a comment

Penspeak Communities across Nigeria have recently taken up Freestyle Fridays hosted by The Godzniel. This is a collection of poems from Penspeak Community UNEC freestyles in January 2025.

From the watchtower, Iruoma cried out:

I am compassion, a gentle breeze
That calms a raging soul and quiets pain to freeze
I run in obscurity, yet understanding I seek
To heal a silent wound that mouth can’t utter

Like flower that blooms in desert oasis
So am I, a savour taste to the broken soul
I’m a badge of mercy, worn by one who’s torn
An irresistible gentle word, that calms a storm

I see beyond the fist, the anger and pain
And serve a feast of kindness, to wash the heart’s deep stain
I’m a dose of hope, that keeps each day aglow
A beacon of light, in the darkest place I go

I am compassion, I offer listening ears
Pay attention and owe no debt to negligence
I am the greatest gift to humanity
The loudest voice of love
I walk enduring miles
Leaving trails of smiles

Taking the wheel again, Iruoma launched:

With heart swift and low on paths unknown
I plead to listen to the quiet whisper, that binds me whole
With convictions strong on choices made

I plead to heed the persistent voice of truth
With barns so enriched, and yards full of glittering gold
I pray to harvest, with mind full of sight

To sift grain from chaff, and separate truth from false
And with each step to embark, a journey of uncertainty
I pledge to trust the gentle guide

For He’s the spirit of the divine, with mysteries to unveil
He grants a sense of immortality, in the stillness, a peaceful knowing of secrets untold.
And moments to disobey in doubt, are times to will in regret

Not wanting the momentum to die out, Neche Goodnews took the baton on the relay:

“Wish upon a shooting star and make your wish come true”
Senior said to me as we stared at the night sky
“So, make the wish”, he said to me as I was beholding the awe of the star littered sky
I close my eyes and make my wish and open my eyes into the present
A decade had gone by but I still reminisce the days gone by
I fasten up my tie while facing the mirror

What a decade it has been
Peril and strife fought their way into my world but I persevered
The psychological breaks and lapses chipped away at my very soul but I didn’t derange
As I go towards my bag, a thought enters my mind and a smile is found on my face
“Your wish is profound and pure, its impact, ground shaking, all I might not see it actualised but I can behold its potential”
Senior said to me, that was one of our last conversations
“It’s no time to slack, the world will soon be in awe”
I say as I take my bag and leave my place

People see the outcome of reality
I behold a future of possibilities
My wish would ensure that
Until then, I carry on

See you next month!

Authors:
Iruoma
Neche Goodnews

Ye Wandering Soul

February 15, 2025February 14, 2025Leave a comment

Ye wandering soul
Hungry, thirsty and forsaken
Lost in an endless hole
Of rejection, struggles and pain
Forgotten in the pool of dejection, hopelessness and shame
Hear the clarion call of a mighty warrior
Calling you out of the pool of doom
From a pathway of damnation
From the enslaving arms of the wicked task master
Today, Jesus calls your name aloud
with arms stretched out towards you
Dripping with love and mercy
Full of Grace and truth
Offering you more than the world has to offer
Oh ye wandering soul
Don’t reject his loving embrace this time
Turn from this dead end
To the fountain of the living waters
To the all sufficient one
Who will quench your thirst and save your soul

Olufunke Ajegbomogun
(c) 2025

ROOTING DEEP

February 13, 2025February 13, 2025Leave a comment

There’s power in staying rooted,
In leaning into God’s word,
Where roots stretch deep in quiet places,
Unseen, but steady and sure.

The seed is planted in faith,
Watered with patience and trust,
No rush, no shortcuts—
Just the process of becoming.

It’s not flashy, not instant,
Not for those chasing quick results,
But for those willing to wait,
To trust, to grow, to endure.

Like the coconut tree that stands tall,
Bearing fruit all year long,
The waiting is hard, the work is slow,
But the harvest is always worth it.

IfiokAbasi Okop
(c) 2025

Penspeak Online – 30/12/2024

December 23, 2024Leave a comment

Our last offering of the year is an event we are so blessed to share with the world. During the year, we were blessed to share what God has given us with some amazing writing communities in Nigerian Universities. 3 out of these communities were able to host a Live Spoken Word Event under the theme “Called”. It featured first-time writers and experienced ministers as well making a symphony of words to and for the pleasure of our Lord.

Penspeak Online is a selection of some of these ministrations for the benefit of anyone who may or may not have had the blessing of attending in person. The event is hosted on YouTube and will remain available on YouTube. The date for the live event is 30th December 2024 and time is 9pm WAT.

Go to our YouTube Channel

Stay tuned for more offerings on here and hopefully we will all have a Holy Ghost service at Penspeak Online!

God bless you and have a glorious Christmas celebration.

Saint Breathing, Fourth Form: Whole Amour of God (ch1)

December 21, 2024December 25, 2024Leave a comment

Thumping heart, whisper art
Fingers quaking from the start
Once upon an Igbo brat
Moonwalking to the book of Acts
Camels, and a Host of His
Any Bliss without The Lord is mythical,
Guise of magical, double check the decimals
Credit to The Lamb who calls us in a flash
Ages of holy texts – the Word made flesh
Living Lexicon; grace put my foot on another throat
That’s a no
No to sin and yes to God
No to hate and yes to love
Know my God and thus I’m strong
Strongholds don’t hold anymore
Every Jericho will fall
Saint Breathing, Fourth Form: Whole Amour of God

– Godzniel
(c) 2024

I choose this place

December 18, 2023Leave a comment

If light and darkness
Could fill the same space
At the same time

Then sin and righteousness
Could co-exist

Then I could love
And hate
And it would be cool

Or I could curse
And bless
With no fuss

Life could be easier
Being in every place

I could be the killer at night
And the healer when it dawns

And I could be the revealer
And concealer
Of truths or lies

But light has its place
And darkness owns its space

And in darkness,
I could sin
And hate
And curse
And kill
And lie

But in light,
I love, I bless, I heal, I speak truth
I am the righteousness of God

In the space of darkness
I owned not myself
I was bound
And did as compelled

But in the place of light
I live freely
Bonded only by love

So,
I choose freely
To stay with light
To live as light
To die as light

I choose the place of light
I choose this place

by Steven Kator Iorfa

Ode to Poetry

March 28, 2023March 28, 2023Leave a comment

Oh poetry, art of language divine,
With words that flow, in meter and rhyme,
You paint a picture with each verse and line,
A tapestry woven, with thought so fine.

You give voice to what lies in the heart,
Emotions raw, made into art,
With rhythm and sound, you play your part,
To heal and comfort, from the start.

You take us on journeys to far off lands,
To meet characters, in your written hands,
You let us feel what it’s like to stand,
In someone else’s shoes, and understand.

Poetry, you challenge and inspire,
With truth and beauty, you never tire,
A spark that ignites, with a single fire,
Bringing wonder to all, higher and higher.

So here’s to you,
dear poetry, we sing,
With each word,
our hearts take flight
and wing,
With you, we soar, our spirits take wing,
You are the soul of language, the art it brings.

Monopoly Of Power

February 19, 2023Leave a comment

After my long journey
into the league of darkness.
After my painful crossing
the bridge of conformism.

Here, I swim again.
Swimming in the pool of eternal truth
Rebaptizing my sense
in the pool of light .

Everyone has inherent right
To be as their wish to be.
As long as they affirm this power in others.
As long as they remain in this boundary.

I am holy in my own terms
You can be holy as you choose .
I am a king in my own way
You can own the world in your own terms.

There is no monopoly
There is no monopoly of life,
There is no monopoly of knowledge
There is no monopoly of love

There can be no monopoly of power
There can be no monopoly of creativity
There can be no monopoly success
There is no monopoly of God .