Bicycle Built for Two

This past week was the first time ever, I saw a 'bicycle built for two'. I stared at the couple as they made their way along College street, close to my office and remembered the song my Mom used to sing when I was growing up where a proposal was being made by a gentleman to a lady, he had no carriage only a 'bicycle built for two'....

But even as I laughed with joy determined to call my Mom and let her know that I'd finally seen a 'bicycle built for two', the Holy Spirit whispered to me, that's how I want to guide you; you stay on the back seat, while I sit up front and watch out for any obstacles. I thought, wow! If that wasn't a visual lesson in letting go and letting God I don't know what is! From now when I want to take control and work everything out by my own strength, I'll remember the 'bicycle built for two' and visually see myself on the back seat and breathe deeply and let go!

Funny how the lady at the back seat was pedalling as well, but I got the feeling that the major force to move forward came from the front rider. Doesn't that tell you something too?

Stay blessed this Christmas season and as we go into the new year, remember to let Him be your guide.

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

The Season for Giving

What does Christmas mean to you? For me it has progressively changed from the excitement as a child, to the mad rush as a wife and mother...and now I'm so aware of the hurting this joyous season. I'm surrounded by them in the church, in my workplace and everywhere I go. People who are alone, or who have hurtful memories this season, or who battle depression.

How can I tell? You can see it in their eyes; the gleam is missing, the smile is forced and the loneliness lies bare for all to see. I recently cleaned out my closet of stuff and took a long winter coat I had used 2 years ago that was still in good condition to my friend who makes her home outside a large bookstore in downtown Toronto. Because I frequent this bookstore, I have chatted with her and eventually shared Christ with her, but that didn't make as much of an impact as when I gave her this coat. Her eyes welled up with tears and as we hugged I wished her a Merry Christmas and the joy of the Lord as her strength.

I tell you, giving her that coat probably gave me more joy than she knew, and as I cried all the way back to my office, I knew that this is what Christmas is really all about - GIVING. So give somebody your time, your stuff, your smile, your word of encouragement.....spread the joy this season. That is what Jesus would do.

Have a wonderful and giving-filled holiday!

Meditative Reading

I realized recently that I had never understood the real meaning of the word 'meditative' even when I thought I had. Meditative reading for me, meant thinking the Bible passages over in my head after reading and then trying to grasp the inner meaning....until recently.

Two months ago, I attended an 'Encounter' weekend at church and everything changed. I found myself lingering over every word I read, gone was the underlying rush to get through the passage, as if there was a prize for finishing a chapter or even a punishment for not finishing. Instead, a few verses a day was all it took to make me sit and meditate on the depth of the verses and ask for more insight from the Spirit; which I often received, sometimes a few days later.

Try it...sit still and read pleasurably and deeply, ignoring the thousand and one things shouting for your attention in your head. After a while you'll win the battle, and eventually the war - with greater insight and wisdom to show for it!

Eleven Days to Christmas

I'm writing this with a box of tissue by my side as I'm at home with a bad cold. We haven't yet had our first major snowfall here in Toronto, and Naomi my 10-year old daughter is already panicking that we won't have a "white Christmas"!

I remember growing up in Lagos, we never had snow of course, and the Christmas season consisted of preparing to make the long drive down east to the village to visit with grandparents and extended family; or staying back in the then capital city with family and friends. It was as exciting as excitement was then, we had no computer games but a good game of scrabble or monopoly was as good as it got!

Dad would buy a goat and tie it up in the back of the house; we would continuously peer at the goat and oftentimes threatened to drag our frightened youngest brother, Oge, to the goat if he wouldn't give us some of the candy that Mom had given to him as her 'last born'.....ahhh! the good old days...

Of course, my children have no clue what I'm rambling on about when I tell these stories and as for killing a goat you had as a pet and eating goat meat for Christmas, Naomi considers it inhuman and gross. So here I am, eleven days till Christmas, with a temperature outside of 9C, which is above seasonal, remembering when life was much simpler and easier.

Different Ways God Speaks

I know there are some who believe God only speaks through His Word, but I'd like to share on some other ways He has spoken to me:

• Through trials and testings
• Through dreams
• In open eye visions
• Through symbols
• Through licence plates (yes, you read right!)

I'll share a recent experience on the last example. I was returning from my Wednesday evening cell group meeting, wondering how Paul was doing in a particularly trying situation he had encountered on his visit to Lagos, and I suddenly looked up at the car in front of me to see the licence plate was "PK is OK"! PK are my husband's initials so that was a direct 'all is well' from my Father to me. Isn't He truly a multi-faceted Father? And He cares about each and every one of us in a very personal way!

That was not the first time I had seen a message on a licence plate, and now I begin to wonder if it was specially 'crafted' for my eyes only...maybe someone else driving beside me that evening would've seen a 'real' number...who knows? His ways are past finding out.

This Christmas season and the new year 2007, expect God to show up on your behalf in 'normal' and supernatural ways, that's our covenant promise.

Treasure in Common Clay Pots

Most times we don't see the treasure in us and even worse, we hardly see the treasure in others. But the Word says we have this treasure in common clay pots (2 Corinthians 4:7) we just have to go treasure-hunting to find it!

Remember when you did those fun treasure hunts as a little child? Well it's the same principle, but the clues are in the everyday temptations we face in which the Spirit helps us as promised and at the end of the experience we realize what He has been trying to teach us or expose in us, so the treasure in us can shine through.

It's much like diamonds - they reached the surface of the earth by volcanic activity over 100 million years ago! Wow! Lord expose the diamonds in us as we go through the different volcanic activities in our lives, to show that the power is from you and not from us...

Worship

His presence is near,
here,
beside me clearly
on my knees,
I see His awesomeness
in the reverence of prayer,
I touch His beauty
in the purity of praise,
I behold His majesty
and nothing prepares me
for the fullness of His grace,
face to face....
in worship.

JP copyright 1995

Stuck on a passage

Ever been stuck on a bible passage for months? Well I've been stuck on I Corinthians 2 for over a year now! Funny how each time I tried to move to another place the Holy Spirit kept drawing me back to that chapter; eventually I stopped resisting and settled in there for the long haul.
It started out being just another chapter on the wisdom of God to me, but over the past year and a half, I have dug deep and mined some nuggets of revelation out of it.

Just goes to show, if we hang in there like a dog with a bone, we will get the gold from the river. Persistence is one of the keys to faith...

Land of Moriah

I've finally taken the plunge and created a blog...a big plunge for me because though I love to write, I've never written for the world, so to speak.
I chose the name 'Land of Moriah' because that is a land we find ourselves in time and time again when we have to lay down and sacrifice our all at His feet, like Abraham was willing to do for the deep love he had for God.

That's essentially what this blog is all about: the deep love I have for Jesus my Lord and sharing my experiences in life, my walk, my faith (or lack thereof!) and my passion for more of Him! I hope you enjoy the journey with me!