A Very Merry Christmas!!!

      When Christmas approaches in temperate regions it is often associated with snow falling most of the time but here in the tropics particularly in Nigeria, it is associated with the Harmattan season. My geography is a bit rusty now but I know it is due to a particular wind blowing across the Sahara desert. The wind is cold, dry and dusty.You know the period has come when you go out in the morning looking young and come back home looking "old" literary because you have grown grey hairs! It is actually the dust particles trapped by hairs that are uncovered. I remember when growing up my siblings and I after long hours at school would come back home arguing who was older.(seniority became proportional to the amount of colour change on the hairs on our head and eye lids)LOL!
    I decided to post a Christmas story from one of my throw back Thursday pieces. Do enjoy and never forget to be thankful.

                                 Once Upon A Nativity Story


           I remember everything so clearly as if it was yesterday. It was one of those nights, different from the others; its cold, a little misty and with clear skies decorated with diamonds of different sizes and a glitter each with a story to share. Always been fascinated with stars, could tell where the North star was pointing, the Belt of Orion, the Big Dipper from the Small Dipper. I wondered where this interest came from? Maybe a dream or a vision I cant tell but I saw a being like a human but much larger descend from the heavens and he spoke to me pointing to the night skies and said "look at the stars, there is a change in the times" and to my surprise I saw the star realign themselves and everything else.....a blur! This night had a certain feel to it, there was an East star that seem to dominate the skies but dint put much thought into it probably because I was so exhausted from working a whole day's job at the inn. Had to hurry up so I could help aunt Jane with the the remaining chores at home. I decided to take a short cut, took a path close to the hills covered with the finest pasture in the land where shepherds took their flock to for grazing. 

      As I hurried on, to my utter shock and total disbelief, a blinding light appeared and an heavenly being like an angel appeared to the shepherds. I was totally filled with awe and became as still as a log of wood. I looked on and the heavenly being spoke to the shepherds saying " fear not; for behold,I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a saviour, which is Christ the Lord. and this shall be a sign unto you. Ye shall find the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger" and suddenly the heavens opened and I saw a host of angels in the heavens and then the strangest thing happened, I saw myself in the king's palace. 

       I was at the entrance to the king's court, dressed in the most expensive silk I have ever laid eyes on. The jewellery from my head to my feet were extraordinarily beautiful. Then a soft greeting and an embrace from the queen as she walked towards me. I thought to myself this is getting better by every passing second. And she says "your husband awaits your presence" pulling me along as we walked through the palace hallways. In a low pitched voice I asked "husband"? and she says "yes dear, my son Prince Yonathan!" I wondered how I held the excitement within, finally I married the prince and am a princess!yeeaaa! I got to the courts and there he was my very own true love, my prince! He calls out for me to seat by his side. Showered me with praises and stares that made my eyes water, holds my hand as we sat together. He got up as if to kiss my cheek, held my face and started licking it over and over again and barking like a dog and I opened my eyes and there it was a German Shepherd... one of the guard dogs licking my face! oh well! there goes my fantasy dream! 

     Sitting upright for a while, I remembered what made me pass out in the first place. so I hurried up to the manger as described by the angel. I got there, didn't enter but I found a broken down window, squatted at the base and peeped through, there laid the most precious sight in the whole world;a baby boy wrapped in swaddling clothes as described by the angel. The baby boy had the calmness of an angel, the beauty of precious stones and the aura of a king. But wait!!! this was the couple my master rudely turned away from the inn saying" there was no room". As I looked on ,there were three men looking richly dressed with gifts and presented it to the baby: gold, myrrh and frankincense. Also the shepherds were there. I decided to head home because it was getting late. I got up and took a look at the skies and it was as if the stars were dancing and leaping for joy and there it was the East star that lighted the skies over the manger as if to announce the birth of the child! 

     As I walked on, I pondered on the whole events of this nights. Thought of the heavenly announcement, the gifts, the star, the child. Little did I know it was the beginning of the greatest story of love and redemption. 


God Bless and do not miss the reason Jesus came to the earth!
Merry Christmas World!!!!! God believes in your tomorrow, do not give up!

Happy Holidays!

#Ding dong merrily on high........!

Hello world!!!

    It is indeed a blessing to be alive and healthy in a time as this despite all the ups and down. The only thing we hold on to is God and He has been faithful and merciful all the way! Praise the Lord!

      This is the season of Christmas, a season of giving, we mark this because the reason behind the season is God giving us Jesus our eternal saviour and redeemer. I would like to challenge you all let this be a season of giving: yes giving! Giving thanks to God for all things you have been through since the beginning of the year till now. A wise man told me " you might have lost something but the reason you have not lost everything is because of God." If you say nothing is working around you, then let us do a quick review; your eyes see, you are not paying to breathe, your legs are functioning well, you eat without help, you use the bathroom any time you feel like and so on then give thanks.  "A living dog is better than a dead lion."

       Have this at the back of your mind: the fact that you see another new day, God believes in your today maybe you should start believing in yourself! So give thanks, give thanks to God!let everything that has breath praise the Lord! do you have breath? Yes, then praise the Lord!

                                       Affect Your Generation

    Each creature of God has potentials embedded in him/her but the problem with most
of us is that we keep dreaming and wishing to be something everyday of our lives
without taking bold steps to get there.

    To see far is one thing,going there is another. Due to the fear of failure,most

people prefer to be complacent concerning their dreams in life .What makes us so
afraid of failure? As if it was the ultimate scandal. We assume that because we
have made one mistake we are failures,therefore forever disgraced.

    What a ridiculous assumption. How many people are completely successful in every
department of life?No one. The most successful ones are those that learn from
their mistakes,turning them into opportunities.

    My dear reader courage is not the absence of fear,its going ahead in spite it. No one
can make you inferior without your consent,else you allow it. Remember the way
you see yourself today will affect your performance today. 

    

    God has not given us the spirit of fear but of power,love & of a sound mind . 

So affect your generation.

By Anthony Ogedegbe