One of the most amazing things about culture is the way of life. It amazes me every time  I travel to a different country find many different ways that people live and interact. One can be amazed at the reception they get from individual families and at the same time be shocked by the community, and thus from the different encounters, they make conclusions. This however, depends on individuals and their perspectives on life. Our different experiences may determine how we react to other cultures. Culture in itself is a people’s way of life. Below are a number of definitions just copied off the internet.

• Culture is the systems of knowledge shared by a relatively large group of people.
• Culture is communication, communication is culture.
• A culture is a way of life of a group of people–the behaviors, beliefs, values, and symbols that they accept, generally without thinking about them, and that are passed along by communication and imitation from one generation to the next
• Culture consists of patterns, explicit and implicit, of and for behavior acquired and transmitted by symbols, constituting the distinctive achievement of human groups, including their embodiment in artifacts; the essential core of culture consists of traditional ideas and especially their attached values; culture systems may, on the one hand, be considered as products of action, on the other hand, as conditioning influences upon further action.
• Culture is the sum of total of the learned behavior of a group of people that are generally considered to be the tradition of that people and are transmitted from generation to generation.
• Culture is a collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from another

These definitions all tie into the collection of ideas and behaviors of a society, transmitted over time to each new generation. The way of life of a people identifies them uniquely from another group. One of the things that anthropologists scholars emphasize on, is for us to appreciate the uniqueness of every culture. From experience, in as much as a culture looks similar to another, how they practice it may be different. The media has portrayed the beauty of many different cultures and anthropologist have dug up hidden cultures that have not yet been explored, making them fascinating. Based on the definitions, we need to ask ourselves if culture is a bad.

There are in every culture beautiful aspects that makes life look like paradise. When you take a look at this image below, it shows so much grace and beauty in how the women dance and smile in Korea.

  Taking it home to Africa, I will find children presenting during school events or the beautiful women of Rwanda gracefully dancing. They all give us glimpses of beauty and music in our cultures and these aspects of culture should by all means be appreciated and valued. They should be promoted and encouraged so as to pass on to the next generation.       Even people from outside have come to appreciate other cultures and their outfits. As I tried to look for artifacts of cutlure that represented Cameroon, I came across a photo that surprised me. I realized I knew a number of the people within the photo, and it gave me so much pride and joy. I would like to share with you the following photo of a friend.  Watching people like these beautiful ones on this photo appreciate another’s culture, gives us pride and joy, because culture invites others to be apart of its people.

However, culture becomes questionable, when valued aspects of it becomes a threat to individuals within it. What happens when culture become a threat to human security? Should we hold unto it and claim it as ‘part of our culture’ or should we revised those long held traditions? Let me get personal here. We live in the 21st century and my generation and the new generation are embracing different cultures and practices that are both good and bad. However, when our children and our young women pressured into doing something they do not want to be a part of, where then do we define beauty? Culture should be beautiful and inviting, such that others would like to be a part of it.

When did watching volleyball become a crime? Ghoncheh Ghavami, a British-Iranian woman has gone on hunger strike after being held in a Tehran prison for more than three months for attending a men’s volleyball match. What crime did she commit in the 21st century for watching a game of sport? As a government, what part of your culture are you selling to people? I know some people out there will tell me that she should have asked inquired. That will not be wrong. Was this only done to her or to other foreign women who had gone to watch the game? It really pains and hurts me when a country treats their own like dirt and treat outsiders like people. If you are going to enforce a law then let everyone be governed by the law. By enforcing such a law, a government might lose allies and create enemies and from within the country, nobody would want to be a part of it.

If you do not agree with me on the volleyball scenario, then help me understand the beauty in giving your 8-year-old daughter into marriage to pay off your debts to a man three times her age. In Nepal and especially Yemen, there’s no age limit at which a child can be given into marriage. Stories of children around the world have been told, and World Vision is an organization specifically tackling some of these issues. A report online on September 9th last year revealed that an 8-year-old girl died on her wedding night at the hands of yer 40-year-old husband. It is reported that she died from the trauma and physical practice of sex. Weddings are meant to be beautiful, celebrated by all and loved by all. In cultures were weddings are celebrated at the interest of one party, it deprives the bride the beauty and joy of being a wife. Children are decorated and given into marriage without their consent and they have a party thrown for them, and yet they are unaware. Child marriage was band in Yemen, but some people refused to have it legalized. Saying that their religion does not define the age at which a person should not be married. In the same country, an 8 year old was given into marriage to pay her father’s debt and two years later, she took her case to the court. How can a child be married at 8 and divorced at 10? She will never want to marry again. Read the full story by Cynthia Gorney ” Divorced at Age 10″.

Don’t get me talking about our cultures which basically take away the voices from children, such that they grow up believing that their opinions do not matter. By the time someone wants them to have a say, they will not know where to begin. I don’t need to go looking for an example far away. I grew up in a culture where I barely spoke, looked a grown up in the eye and questioned anything done by the grown ups. I went to school where I was basically told to do things a certain way and accept what the teacher told me as right. I did my best not to upset anyone and always tried to please people, not knowing I was doing harm to myself. When I tried expressing myself in the University, I didn’t know how to logically express my thoughts, such that my professors thought I was immature. I lost confidence in my abilities and skills and always thought myself inadequate. It is in my year as a master student that I started fighting back in my writing, my blogs and my daily life. I want to do everything and anything to speak out.

I wanted to share these stories because in my dissertation on child soldiers, I came across many references to culture, as being one of the reasons why International legal instruments are not functioning well. Basically, the argument is that International laws didn’t consider culture when designing the legal instruments for protecting child soldiers. Let’s go back to the earlier statement of how we live in the 21st century. Children nowadays want education, a good future and they have big dreams. Their parents encourage them to go to school and make a better future for themselves and the family, and they know very little about their parents and grandparent’s past. They are oblivious to the cultural practices, and if we continue to uplift cultural practices that bring harm to individuals, then we not only promote oppression, but also murder.

In Sri Lanka, child soldiering was prone because of the cultural aspects such as adult domination. Children were not allowed to complain when they got less food and were to accept what the adult said as right. Due to this practice within the culture, the different armed groups found children cheaper to use than adults, because they would give the children less food. This qualifies as starving a child and they also beat them up when they refused to do what they were told. Using the culture as a means to harm children is utterly unacceptable in the 21st century. It really kills and pains the heart when people who can make a difference sit around and pass judgment over laws that should protect children from such practices.

The Bible says in Matthew 5:30 “If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell”. In our daily lives, we have friends and things that we love and care for. But if what we love and care for brings harm to us, then we should let go. If you have friends that do not add value to your life, especially if they always get you in trouble, then you should probably reconsider hanging out with those friends. In the same way, culture should build us and mould us and enrich us. However, if it start bringing harm to us, shouldn’t we re-evaluate it, so as to create harmony?

Maybe I have just babbled my way up till this point. If you have not understood anything I have said, then look into your culture and ask yourself if you accept every little thing that is happening. If not, what can you as an individual do to contribute to making a difference? Is Culture BAD?

Every night before I go to sleep, I try to read a psalm.  Surprisingly, I have gained more understanding this time than the few times I have read over the years. Last night just happened to be one of those days where I read Psalm 73, and the words would not leave me alone. The next block of words from the Psalms describes almost everyone’s feelings concerning what they see in governments around them. I don’t think that anybody can tell me that they have not felt jealous towards people who prosper. We see them driving big cars, seeming to have everything going for them. No struggles at all. They are free from common human burdens and tend to cure their diseases. However, the Bible describes them as  prideful, arrogant and people who clothe themselves with violence.

From their callous hearts comes iniquity; their evil imaginations have no limits. they scoff, and speak with malice; with arrogance they threaten oppression. Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth. Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance. They say, ‘How would God know? Does the Most High know anything? This is what they wicked are like – always free of care, they go on amassing wealth. Psalm 73:7-12

As I read this Psalms, a conversation I had had with some of my flatmates,  flashed through my mind. We had been talking about jobs and payments in Latvia. My flatmate from Latvia said that the highest paid people in Latvia are those people who work for the government, and even cleaners who work for the government get paid more than the average working citizen. How do these people get these jobs? They get the jobs through their relatives who work in government. In my course on African Politics, we discussed the patron client networks within Africa, that are putting our governments in jeopardy. Listening from this young man from Latvia, made me understand that Africa is not the only country with this problem.

From their hearts come iniquity, their evil imaginations have no limits. These words are taken out of the Bible, and they were written thousands of years ago. What we see today within our governments is exactly what the Psalmist wrote about. Our leaders stand in front of the screens and lie to our faces. They go around making promises which they will never fulfill, signing documents in the International Community that will never be carried out. The only people they higher are those related to them, while those with qualifications end up earning minimum wages lower than their qualifications. They treat those who have no jobs with spite, insults and hate. Where then is God in all these? Does he not know or see what is happening? Does the Most high know anything?

So many times I have had people ask me where God is in their lives. Based on their circumstances, they have declared that God does not care for them and have refused to have God play any part in their lives. How do I tell them that God cares and loves them without making them feel that I am just saying it? How do I tell a mother of two children that everything will be alright, when all she sees is her house disappearing and she would become homeless in a few weeks? Her claims for child care support have been denied and she has no job. Where is God in this?

The Psalmist had the same complains that we have today. The Bible is not a new book, but an old one. Everything that happens to us today is not hidden, and our thoughts echo the thoughts of those who had lived before us.  He continues to identify with our daily struggles by saying, “surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence. All day long i have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments”. How many of us have asked God for a miracle in the past few years and he has not answered? How many of us have pondered over these same issues and have had no answers? We seem to be the ones changing, and everything around us stays the same. The Psalmist stresses his frustrations over the circumstances around him, and is baffled by all that surrounds him. All I would like to ask you right now is to stop nodding your head and agreeing with all the questions and all that has been discussed. If we stopped at just asking questions, then our journey in life would be meaningless.

As I was reading the Psalms, I kept telling myself, surely there’s got to be more to this complaining. Please tell me there’s something more than just complaining. Sure enough, there was, for the Psalmist said “When I tried to understand all this it troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God: then I understood their final destiny” Psalm 73:16-17.  One of the reasons I chose to read the Psalms again was because I really wanted to understand the feelings and emotions. How did they do it? How did they have a personal relationship with God? How was their life different from mine? How did God react to their complains and yet still maintain the relationship between them?

The Psalmist had struggles just like we do today. He didn’t pretend to have everything going well for him. He brought his thoughts out in an open conversation with God. He expressed himself in all his confusion and chaos, but he didn’t complain like someone without hope. He realized that for him to get the answers he needed, he would have to go straight to the source, who was The Creator. He went to meet God and ask him all the questions. “Then I understood their final destiny”.  In as much as these people would get away with the things they do in power, they will not escape what God has prepared for them. Nothing was hidden from God in the times of Noah, Abraham and the Psalmist. When the people built the Tower of Babel, God said “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other” Genesis 11:6-7. In the same way, God sees all that happens on earth today. Nothing is new under the sun for him as Solomon pointed out. God sees everything that our governments do, and the pain they inflict on the people.

The next words of the Psalmist gives me a new perspective on the lives of these people who trample on others to rise. “How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord, you will despise them as fantasies” Psalm 73:19-20. In as much as we think it is unfair for these people to prosper, we should be grateful that we do not have to share in their fate. Their final destiny will not be as sweet as they had made their life on earth seem. Nothing is Hidden from God. Like the Psalmists, I do not consider wealth to be of great importance. I pray to God to grant me just enough to do his work here on earth, which he has called me to. It is hard to look someone in the eye who cannot see past their circumstance and tell them that God cares. But one thing I am sure of, is that he keeps his promises and we will not enjoy it unless we totally surrender who we are to him.

There are bits of facts about me that people do not know. This however, does not mean I will write them all out here for you. For the purpose of what I want to say, I shall share a little about myself. I was two and half years old with my twin brother when my father divorced my mother for another woman. I am sure many people can relate to this bit of information, which is exactly why I was prompted to share today as I sat praying for families loosing loved ones this morning.

MY BACKGROUND

I grew up moving from one village to another in my beautiful country Cameroon. Like many children in my situation, my mother moved in with her aunt who had grown up children of her own, so the house could not accommodate us all. We lived with them for about a year and half, and moved to her Uncle’s home in another village. There, my mother was not welcomed by her Uncle’s wife. She was made to feel worthless, insignificant and a nobody. I remembered many times I cried with her when she cried, and how she would wash my face with water and I will try to wash her face. Her aunt would not let her touch any thing that belonged to her. Now that I look at it, I thank God for how the family compound was laid out.

In most ethnic groups back home, the Man’s house is always separate from his wife’s or wives’ houses, so that he can have a place to host his guests. There’s always a guest room depending on the owner of the compound. Her uncle had a spare house, which my family of five was able to occupy. We lived in that place for about 2 years, and in that time period, my mother lost her mother. I only got to see my grandmother for two weeks and she died. Then my now stepfather came and married my mother. I honestly didn’t have a relationship with him. My little sister was born and we moved to his big compound, where we were not much loved either.

At age 9, I started schooling and a year later, I was taken to the capital city to live with my aunt and that’s where I met my now ‘grandmother’, whom I love dearly. Coming from the village, I knew only my native language Kom and no other language. Hehehe. Don’t feel sorry for me. It was a fun sight to behold. I spent half my days in class, speaking in my language when I was frustrated with those small children. These children were between ages 5-7, and I was turning 10 years old in second grade. FUN FUN, when you are called a grandmother. Now it looks funny, but back then it was not one bit. I thank God he blessed me with a mind for calculations back then. Some how I managed to come out 2nd in the class when grades came out the first term. The next term, I was off to third grade and finish that year. Then I was off to a private school where I finished primary, went to secondary, got moved to an International school where I graduated in 2009.

BECOMING ME

Over the years that I lived in the city, I saw families mistreat each other, I saw families loving each other and I saw families betray each other and families who just wanted to be loved. I saw people look down on others, stigmatize others and call others names, without fully getting to understand their situation. I was caution not to talk to strangers, which was for my own safety, especially men, who were classified as dangerous. Young girls like me where not supposed to be out late at night. I knew all that, and I had already made myself a promise to stay clear of men except for when I played football. HEHEHE. That could not be stopped. Once I learnt how to sprint with that ball, I found a way to get stronger.

Throughout my teenage years, I really longed for the love of a father. Every time my friends talked about their fathers, I wished I had one who loved me as much. I wished I had a father who could treasure me, protect me from all harm and still love me when I made mistakes. I cried some nights, because I didn’t have a relationship with my step-father and my own father didn’t live me with good memories either. I longed and longed for what could never be mine. STEP BACK. When I was turning 11, my “grandma” now asked if I would like to stay upstairs with her, while my aunt and uncle lived downstairs. I said sure. I never left again. I have been my grandma’s granddaughter for the last 14 years of my life. Our journey together was full of ups and downs. We hurt each other, cried together, learnt to love and laugh in our struggles to understand what it meant to be in a relationship. I was in reality the first child she was raising in her life, without someone else living in the same house to help her. We were both and still are from two different cultures, and it was hard trying to balance both cultures. I am so grateful that God has taught us both how to accommodate and two cultures together.

Like any teenager, I always thought life was unfair, she was unfair, unkind and didn’t care for anyone but herself. This was never true. I knew she loved me, because she never got rid of me and would still take me to my football games, basketball games and volleyball games. She would still be the one taking photos of me, encouraging me in whatever awesome thing I was gifted in. I have stage fright, but she encouraged me to take voice lessons, because she realized I could sing. I still have stage fright, so anyone reading this should not ask me to sing in any events. I love playing around with songs in my head, especially when I mix up verses. HEHEHE. We both learnt how to appreciate each other’s strengths, started talking about our cultural differences, and learning to say ‘I AM SORRY FOR…’ I can confidently say, my grandma is one of my best friends today, not just because she provides for me, but because I can share with her everything about my life, and know she will be there when I need her.

My uncle played his part as well in trying to help me grow. He was tough and I called him ‘police’ because he never seemed to have a smile on his face. Any policemen out there reading this, please don’t take offense, for the era I grew up in, I didn’t see any nice policemen, except red-eye men screaming at you or making you feel worthless. He had clashes with my grandma in how to raise me, because both of them were brought up in two different cultures. So that’s how come I was torn between two cultures. Looking back, I think I was rescued in my teenage years by both of them in different ways. At time, I felt like I was torn between them, and it hurt so much.

All this while, I was getting to understand God’s love for me and the things people said about him. I was trying to see people practice the lifestyle that Jesus taught them in the Bible. Half the time, I would see people telling others what to do, but not doing it themselves. It was hard for me to accept Jesus, especially when those who told you of what he wanted me to be, didn’t live the way he wanted his followers to live. I found some amazing Christians growing up and their lifestyles made me want to have what they had.

FILLING THE VOID

One day when I was 16 years old, after wishing and longing for a father who could love me, I laid on a bed and spoke to an empty room. ‘God, I have heard so much about you. I have heard that you love me and that is why you sent your son to die for my sins. I have done so many things that I am not proud of. I love my grandmother, but don’t know how to show her. I want to change the person I am, but don’t know how to. I also wish to have a father, but I cannot have one. I see my friends having family that love them, and my family always seems to be mad at each other. Please Lord, if you can make everything right.. I don’t have a father, can you please be my father. The stories in the Bible showed how you loved and cared for people and children. I want to have that love as well and I want to live a life that is worthy of you. I am tired of hurting my grandmother. Teach me Lord’. That day was when I found my FATHER. I cannot say that I changed over night. I had began to experience spiritual attacks and that’s when I knew my battle has begun. I had nightmares of demons, people chasing after me to kill me. Nope. These were not my imagination or reaction to any movies I had been watching, for my movies were limited and I didn’t watch television. These were people I knew, in the village and some I didn’t know.

For two years I battle with them, as I turned my life over to God. I was breaking free, and the devil wanted to hold me back. He had fed on my anger and hate for years, and didn’t want me to go. The nightmares were no longer dark as usual, for in my subconsciousness, I was calling out to God. Like the Psalmists said, ‘6The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me. 7I will bless the LORD who has counseled me; Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night. 8I have set the LORD continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken…’ As I called out to him in my nightmares, I had would reach down and rescue me or a Bright light will surround me, so that the darkness disappeared. At 18 years of age, I fully gave my life over to God knowing he was never going to let any harm come to me. I found pure joy and love in him. I no longer needed a father, for what if my earthly father never gave up on us? I would never have known what true love really was like. I could never have found unconditional love. It was not always easy, but building a new relationship takes time and trust and love are built. Throughout my years at University, temptations came my way, but I vowed to stick with him who rescued me and gave me a reason to live. I have grown in my relationship with God and my relationship with my family as well. Everyone in my family is special to me, and I have learnt to love them for who they are. Everyone has their short comings and God has been teaching me how to love each one uniquely, as well as love outside of my family. There are many children roaming the streets, with no one to show them love and care for them. They feel unloved and not cared for, but God has been placing a huge burden on my heart for them in the past few years. SO EXCITED TO SEE HOW I CARRY OUT MY MISSION.

TO YOU

It doesn’t matter the life you have lived or the things you have done to fulfill a longing in your heart, only one person can fulfill that longing. You and I are created in God’s image, and he created us in such a way that we are connected with him in spirit. We may have family and friends who love us, and we can love them back. We can obtain all the riches in the world, but we will always have a void within us which can only be filled by God, because that’s how he created us. We will always have a part of us missing, which can never be filled by any human being. Once we allow God to fill it, we find true fulfillment. I am not one to say I can explain mental illnesses, but I do understand however that depression is not a good place to be in. I sometimes get depress for no particular reason, and the first person I run to is God alone, so he can point out the source of my depression. You might have been disappointed in your life, felt unloved, worthless and degraded. You might want to feel wanted and loved by those around you, and you might never get that want and need to be love. Maybe you have found other ways to fill that emptiness inside of you, hoping the pain will go away. Maybe you are struggling with guilt and shame, and thinking you are the worse person on earth. Maybe you think it is your fault that everyone around you do not like you or you did something that nobody wants to tell you about.

Take a deep breathe and close your eyes. There’s nobody else on this earth who knows you better than the one true Father in heaven. You are loved and cherish by God. The world has created mind blocks in our lives making us believe that the only way to flourish is by having wealth. For one to achieve this, we put others down to feel better about themselves, which in my view is call bullying. God teaches us something much more that enables us to flourish together, which is love. Only pure love will fill the void that people lack inside of them. God is extending his hand to you who have been shattered, broken, abandoned, been on drugs, been on the edge and have lost all sight of hope. He offers you freedom, joy and fulfillment. It won’t be an easy journey, but you are not alone in it. I am here for you, others are there for you and he is always there for you even in those moments when you think you are alone. He is sitting next to you, crying and wishing you would just acknowledge that you need him. You need to take the first step and call out to him and he will be there to answer your call.

We know that grace is the free and unearned favour of God, a divinely given talent or blessing. About.com Christianity explains grace as ‘God’s unmerited favor. It is kindness from God we don’t deserve. There is nothing we have done, nor can ever do to earn this favor. It is a gift from God. Grace is divine assistance given to humans for their regeneration (rebirth) or sanctification; a virtue coming from God; a state of sanctification enjoyed through divine favor.’ in other words on the same website, it is God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.

I don’t know about you, but I find it very weird to hear people praying for a good 5 minutes asking God for his Grace. God offered his grace to us when we were still sinners. Jesus death on the cross for our sins was not because he had to, but because he wanted to. When we acknowledge that great love, in believing that Christ died for our sins, he was buried and rose again, then we received salvation. We are set free from sin and its consequences. 

We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. 1 John 4:13-16a.

CONFESSION OF SINS

This tells me that we received his grace, his free gift, when we acknowledge our sins, and his atonement for our sins. If we sin again, all we need to do is confess our sins, because he never took back his grace from us. His grace once given remains with us and we are accountable to him every day of our lives. So when I hear Christians asking God for grace upon their life, I question whether they are asking for salvation or what exactly grace means? I understand grace as God’s free gift to me, which I did not deserve. That grace was already offered to me and is still stands with me since I accepted it. Now if I sin against God, I know that I have to admit my sins and believe that he is faithful and will forgive me as his word promises in 1 John 1:9. In prayer, I believe we need to acknowledge God’s grace that was given to us, and confess our sins, when we realize how foolish and weak we have been. 

I think we need to remember this, I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me: and that life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me. Galatians 2:20. God is faithful and will not abandon his children. His grace is always with us, and we ought to live in faith knowing he will never undo what he has already done for us. We need to live in acceptance of the grace that’s always there. It becomes questionable when we keep asking for it, when it is there.

I thought I should share this, because it has been on my heart for a while and more strongly last night. We pray to God because we are faced with situations that we don’t know what to do with. Yet we recognize that he alone can do something about it. We have no power or authority, but he has that power and authority, which he grants us to do the impossible. His grace allows us to come to him and allows us to have faith in him. Brothers and sisters, have faith and trust in God’s promises in his word.

1 Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore;
    those who are loyal have vanished from the human race.
2 Everyone lies to their neighbor;
    they flatter with their lips
    but harbor deception in their hearts.

3 May the Lord silence all flattering lips
    and every boastful tongue—
4 those who say,
    “By our tongues we will prevail;
    our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?”

5 “Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan,
    I will now arise,” says the Lord.
    “I will protect them from those who malign them.”
6 And the words of the Lord are flawless,
    like silver purified in a crucible,
    like gold[c] refined seven times.

7 You, Lord, will keep the needy safe
    and will protect us forever from the wicked,
8 who freely strut about
    when what is vile is honored by the human race.

Read more at https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/search=Psalm+12&version=NIV#yhVYTdYEkrqFxe8o.99

A few days back, I read Psalm 12 above and went to sleep. For days, the words within the Psalms kept coming back to me and this morning, I decided to write on it. David calls out to God for HELP, because he cannot trust anyone around him. There’s no one who does what is right and the faithful to him are gone. Who is still loyal and godly? He then calls upon the Lord to silence those who think they know everything. David’s agony over the lost of faith and justice pushes him to call out to the Lord for help. 

God hears David’s cry and tells him “Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, I will now arise…I will protect them from those who malign them.” Hearing that answer, David confirms the truth about God. He points out one ultimate truth about God that I often forget, which i believe most of us do to. How many times do we often stop in our tracks to say ‘The Words of the LORD are FLAWLESS?’ David understood God’s authority and that’s why he ran to him in the first place. When God heard his cry, he reminded himself of God’s faithfulness and it is probably through his experiences with God and the difficult situations God pulled him out of. This verse kept coming back to me, and I would find myself walking on the street reciting the line over and over in my head. When i prayed, I found the words coming out of my mouth, reminding me that God’s word is true and he is without fault. 

One of the things that had been plugging my mind as well had been the issue of Israel and Palestine, and the innocent people who were bombarded 24/7, as well the issue of Boko Haram in Nigeria and now cross-border Cameroon. After reading this psalms as well as the previous Psalms, I prayed so much for the innocent people who were killed, abducted because of someone interests and personal achievements. Where is justice in targeting the defenseless and the innocent?

It just so happened that a friend who is visiting had similar questions on the issue of Israel and Palestine. God chose the nation of Israel for a reason. Should we stand by and watch innocent people get kill? What would Jesus do in the situation in Gaza? Will he say kill the Palestine and save Israel? Will he extend his love and healing to both sides? The people of Gaza are civilians who have nothing to do with the war. When launch a bomb, does it differentiate between a soldier and civilian? No. It does not have a mind of its own. It has one objective alone, which is to land somewhere and explode, which will cause destruction to whatever is next to it. In a news article, Ibrahim Hamamra expresses his feelings and thoughts after his brother was shot, leaving behind 3 children. The artilce says ‘Ibrahim, his eyes red and face pale, says feelings were running high on the day of the protest in Husan, “because of the scene of the massacre in Gaza. People’s emotion erupted and they wanted to express that. [Israeli] settlers often come here, they shop here and nobody bothers them.” The clashes happened “just because of the incident that happened in Gaza”. Ibrahim says the violence began, as so often during Ramadan, after evening prayers when a group of Israeli soldiers stationed themselves at the entrance to the village outside the mosque. A couple of dozen young men began throwing stones, and the violence escalated.

What then should we be doing as Christians? David set a perfect example for us to follow. Cry out for HELP to the one who can do something about the chaos. Many times God has reminded us in his word of his sovereignty, and we like David should look to him. His word is flawless, when he says ‘I will protect them from those who malign them’,  therefore like David, we should say together ‘O LORD,  you will keep those innocent families safe and protect them from such people forever.’ 

Who is my enemy? Who is your enemy? What did Jesus say about your enemy? What did Jesus say about the oppressed? These are questions I wrestle with, when I think of the old Testament and the things that went on. Jesus came to give us a heart of love no matter what, but for us to trust and believe that his word is truth and should not be doubted. Before you think either of the countries should be destroyed, ask yourself if the children, men and women without weapons deserve to die. God’s love extends to everyone and that’s all he ask us as his followers, is to see things differently than the world sees it. 

I woke up this morning and was wondering how I would spend time with God. As I sat quietly, a conversation I had with a friend, on esteem flash through my mind. A voice said ‘Share your story’, and that’s when I knew what my conversation with God and the circle of friends reading this would be.

About 12 years ago, I got pimples on my face a year after I hit puberty. That didn’t bother me much, because I had seen my aunt’s pimples treated. Three years later, the pimples were aggravated, and I was blamed for pinching them and doing all what nots, which wasn’t true. It didn’t help that I was a sports person and spent half my days playing under the sun. After playing, my face would be burning even after the sun had gone down. We went and saw a doctor who prescribed some pills. The pills messed up my hormonal system. They were given in line with pills for my knees. So I stopped the pills altogether. The pimples disappeared for a while and reappeared.

For a while, I refused to concentrate on my appearance, because it just brought depression. I wondered what people thought when they looked at my face.  Over the years, people gave me all sorts of advice to do this; do that. I kept asking God why he could not just take it away. He was able to heal the lame, raise the dead and heal the woman who had been suffering for years. Why couldn’t he just take this away from me?

Four years at university, I refused to let it bother me, but towards my last year in 2012, I went to see a dermatologist. I was not too happy when she asked  me what I have been using on my face, and if the sun aggravated my pimples.  She prescribed  pills, cream and lotion and told me to come back after a month.

I had hoped for an explanation, a screen test on my face and the reason why I had had this for years. Well, I went home and obediently took the pills, and had my face burnt by the cream. Everyone asked me what I did to my face, which did not help me at all. I was sick from internal bleeding for a week and got a fever. It was about two weeks before one of my dear sisters traveled  back to her home country, and she wanted a roomie photo. Now looking back, I was not particularly thrilled about the photos, because my face looked scared and battered. I felt really ugly and unfit to see myself.

To cover my feelings up, I switched into my old self, which used to be ‘Tom boy’. As long as I acted tough, nothing could get to me. That was a lie I kept telling myself. I wanted to feel beautiful and pretty. It didn’t help that my friends called me pretty. I am grateful that they did.

After I moved to the cooler parts of Nairobi, the temperature improved my face along with aloe vera scrub and honey soap that I had found. My pimples began to disappear, allowing me to feel pretty and happy. It started dawning on me that I had for years, thought myself ugly because of my pimples. I had defined my happiness based on how I looked and what people thought of me. I broke down and told God I was sorry. I asked him to take it away once and for all. I was talking and not listening as I have always done half the time. I went back to see the dermatologist, but she was not there and I never went back. My face cleared up and I was able to take a photo.  Everyone wanted to know my secret, but I had no secret to tell. I just explained exactly what had happened, not to mention that I was in the hospital for a week going through other treatments. I do believe those many injections and pills had something to do with the quick recovery on my face. So for 8 months I enjoyed a cleared pretty face.

A week before my departure to home, Cameroon, , I went back to the campus where I had lived for 3.5 years. With the hard water there, my pimples came back like they never left. O my word! I could not believe it. “I am going home and was hoping to show my mother my face without pimples and now I have nothing to show but more pimples”. I felt back into depression, although I had smiles on my face. I lost confidence in many things and just wanted to hide my face, especially now that I had given up my coping mechanism and just wanted to be a normal lady.

I travelled to England and could not stand some of the stares people gave me. I just wanted to go home and stay with my family. I asked God to help me find my inner happiness. Tears flowed down my face as I laid there in pain and sadness. After praying for days on end, a peace came over me and I went and saw a dermatologist, who screened my face.  I was relieved when he found that I had been suffering from Acne.

There’s mild acne, which causes blackheads here and there, but then disappear, and there’s the aggressive acne that’s hormonal based. We are born with male and female genes, XY, and some people tend to have one of the others dominate. I was not surprised when he explained that I had quit an amount of male hormones that were aggravating my acne suppressing my female hormones. What are the odds taken that I have a twin brother?

So he gave me pills to take every day 2 hrs before I eat or 2 hrs after I eat. I was also given a cream to put every night. My treatment began in October 2013, and I have been on it till now July 19^th 2014. The first 3 months showed no signs of improvement, so he added another pill, which is used for birth control as well as treating acne. This is only used for aggressive acne and for the purpose of treating the acne. So I was placed on it for 6 months.

I prayed very hard for God to bring healing in my heart, so that I could enjoy the benefits of the appearance. I felt like a load had been lifted off my heart, but then there was that lingering feeling; who was I trusting? I felt like I was betraying my trust in God. Then he brought me comfort through his word, reminding me of his love and affirmation of who I have always been in him. I am his daughter and he loves me for who I am. He wants me to be happy and doctors are his hands on earth. He will use them to bring healing to his children when they trust and obey him. As I marvelled at his love and trust, my facial appearance became smooth and shining.

I realized that in my years of unworthiness, I had found comfort in depression, which blocked out God’s voice. His healing could not reach me, because I had given up hope. I had trusted him to heal my knee and he did, so why hadn’t I done the same for my face? Being able to know that I was suffering from something and not just the foods I ate enabled me to know that I could be cured. True healing for me as I can see now, didn’t come just from the meds I was taking, but it came from the acceptance that I was pretty despite my acne. I made a decision to be happy even when everything is telling me no. I would say yes to life, yes to joy and yes to love even when my mind was struggling to comprehend what I was doing. It was not a coping mechanism, but a choice to be me. This happiness from within brought out the best in me.

God’s healing begins with our hearts, when we can truly accept our situation and understand that he is in control. I see myself over the years and my pictures today; I know I have a testimony to share.

”Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear” 1 Peter 3:3-6

Every day is learning experience for me, and I praise God and thank him for every situation that enables me to draw closer to him and to understand his ways. In the silence of my room two minutes after i woke up, I realized i have not really sat down to give God the glory. So I share this with you in hopes that it will help you find your true happiness and healing. True healing comes from a partnership with God inside.

For you created my inmost being; you knit me in my  mother’s womb. I praise you because I  am fearfully made…my frame was not hidden from you when I was made in that secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. Psalm 139:13-16.

Some years ago, God spoke to me through this passage about the marvel of the physical body – my own body, in particular. The body is a divine masterpiece, planned ages in advance, made of materials formed in the secret depths of the earth and knit together in the womb by the Creator’s invisible hand. I became concerned that I treat this masterpiece of my body with the care and hour due it; that I maintain it in the best possible condition to fulfill its God-appointed function.

Again and again throughout history, men have sought to construct a building to accommodate God. They have lavished time, labour and wealth upon it. At best, however, such a building can serve as a place to offer worship, never as God’s  dwelling. “The Most High does not live in houses made by men” (Acts 7:48).

God has a different plan. At the beginning of human history, he fashioned a temple for Himself with His own hands: the body of man. Then He worked out the plan of redemption by which that body, sanctified by faith in Christ’s sacrifice, could be offered back to Him to be a temple of the Holy Spirit.

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit,  who is in you, whom you received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price . Therefore honour God with your body” (1 Corinthians19-20).

MY THOUGHTS

At the beginning of human history, God fashioned a temple with his hands, whereas the physical building of a church is a place of worship, which God cannot dwell in. God’s spirit des come and flow a mist the believers, but when everyone departs, God departs. He comes to meet us in church as well as anywhere that we call upon yhe name of Jesus. God’s dwelling place however is our bodies, because he lives in our hearts.

As I read this message, some job descriptions and requirements went through my mind. Some of the qualifications they asked for was a physical avbled body thst could withstand harsh conditions.  What if God needs you to travel somewhere dangerous,  will your body be sble to take it? What foods and toxics do you allow your body to take? Keeping God’s dwelling place is not judt about abstaing from fornication, dressing it up and covering it. Thses things do matter very much, but in what condition do you keep it? I didn’t realise how terribly I had been mistreating my body till I went through surgery. I was told if I had waited any longer, my knee would have had to be amputated.  What would I have accomplished if God had called me to live in hard situations?  I began maintaining my body in a manner that was suitable for a princess and strong enough for a warrior. I am still on that quest, rebuilding the weakened muscles on my knees that were damaged through years of torment in sports.  I never liked fresh milk, but that has been placed in my diet.

Spiritually, I have been looking at my attitude towards people and my reaction to things they d and say to me. There are moments I think a good punch will put them down for God, but God’s voice inside of me and his wisdom tell me otherwise.  I have learn to filter what I watch, so it does not define my thoughts and actions.

Faith’s response: Help me Lord to maintain the temple of my body in a condition that honours you.

WHOSE INTEREST IS IT? Where do you draw the line with your personal interest and God’s personal interest? 

This morning as I read the last chapter of 1 Peter, a thought crossed my mind as I finished reading. How will I share with people what i have read? Should I just post the chapter for them to read or how should I explain the message it has placed on my heart? Flash backs of conversations with friends went through my mind. In relation to those conversations, I decided to write as God leads me, because those were topics I had wrestled with and trying to understand their situations. 

CHURCH LEADERS AND ASPIRED PASTORS

The Apostle Peter wrote both to the Gentile and Jewish believers in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Western Asia Minor and Bithynia, appealing to the elders to “Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers – not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock” Verse 2-3. When I read these verses, something a friend shared with me broke my heart. I think I mentioned it in one of my articles earlier. A pastor in a church does not listen to anyone and does whatever he pleases. He is always right and everyone else is simply wrong. This pastor expected the church to dig up money and maintain his home, so he can live a luxurious life, and people seek favour by selling themselves to him. If this is the attitude we Christians carry with us, then are we truly doing what God has called us to do? Another friend, Vera, shared about one of her parents, who were aspiring to be a pastor, but didn’t get given a position in the church. When that didn’t happen, the parent took out their frustration on her and does not seem to have recovered from that rejection. If God didn’t want you to be a pastor, should you be angry? What if he needed you to take up that degree because he had something else in mind? Shouldn’t you serve God wherever and whenever you are called? We are all missionaries in Christ and we are to shepherd and minister to the lost not give them a wrong impression of who Christ is. Show love and care. “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord not for men” Colossians 3:23. There are other stories, but let’s concentrate on the above examples. Think about them and reflect on your attitude and actions towards the work God has called you to. Are you obedient to him or to yourself?

MARRYING INTO A DIFFERENT RACE

I know the importance of family history and the will and need to continue the family business, name, race and you name it. Culture is one thing we value and cherish, which is beautiful and amazing. Where do we draw the line between understanding God’s will and our culture? What if your child decides to marry outside of culture because they have fallen-in-love? Will you as parents deny them their happiness, because the man/woman is from a different country, race and colour? I know this is a sensitive topic to most sheltered families who have not had many encounters with different cultures. As Christians though, should we disapprove of our children’s choices, just because we don’t want to have mixed children even if both couples are God’s children? I have watched a number of my friends’ part ways because their families didn’t approve of the other’s colour. Isn’t that being racist? I don’t know about you, but find it appalling that we as parents tend to think we know what’s best for our grown up children even when God has already assigned them duties and responsibilities and have given them the freedom to choose. I am not saying you as a parent become useless, but how about you accept their decision and pray with them rather than look down on the person they love and cherish? God in heaven sees our hearts and knows our thoughts. Our every action shall be accounted for before him, and I would urge parents out there to think about WHAT WOULD JESUS DO? “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” Verse 7. God is a better judge than you are, so let go off your fears and set your heart on obeying him. Bless your children and he will do the rest.

Those are two major conflicting issues I have been wrestling with, not knowing how to lay it out. God has given me grace and understanding to share my thoughts. It is not easy to follow God without letting our own personal interests get in the way. We however have a choice on how we respond and react to those prideful desires and thoughts. Let us spread wide in the arms of Christ.

11 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. 13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. 16 Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. 17 Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.18 Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. 19 For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. 20 But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. 21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 1 Peter 2:11-21. WHAT EXACTLY DOES IT MEAN TO LIVE GODLY LIVES AMONG PAGANS? SOME ANSWERS PLEASE

In response to the above verses, a dear friend of mine gave her testimony. I only edited a few errors, but this is what she said. 

Wow sis, I can talk about this all day. Living Godly lives start with abstaining from committing sin, then abstaining from activities which don’t glorify God, and living as a light in grace and truth from the Lord. That’s the theology; the application however can take many forms. In modern terms the pagans would be the world, so it would be how we as Christians should live in it. We still have to interact with people because we are not yet dead but we can’t be “in” the world. To make it more understandable, I will give some examples of things which i have removed from my life. 1. Fornication: Most pagans believe its normal at a certain age to engage in sexual activities. I used to think that way as well. 2. Movies and TV: If you won’t engage in the sin, why support it by watching or buying it? 3. Doctrine of devils,  such as do what you will or only respect those who respect you. It is a lie and Jesus teaches us to love even our enemies and do the father’s will. And so on. Doing such things has sent friends away and most people don’t get it. But that is the blessing in that we can stand out as that light when we live for Christ and through our actions and convictions others will be saved or blessed.

ME: I could not have said it any better. It takes courage and strength to express what you have expressed my love. Many of us will die with the truth of what are lives used to be like. To have you confess all that you have left behind is such a blessing to many who are afraid to let go. Like you, I lost many friends, because I would not do what they did, I would not dress how they would and I would not go where they wanted. They thought I was uncool being me. I found pure joy in knowing that the one who knows me best thought I was cooler than them all. The language that comes out of our mouth is debatable, depending on what is acceptable to the world. When we speak like the world, gossip like the world and laugh like the world, then we become friends with the world, which tears at God’s heart. What music do people listen too? Is the music building your character positively or negatively? What music videos do you allow your brain to register? Sex and drugs or soul touching? There are secular songs that give encouragement, but those have lost their value today due to the market-demand for unhealthy things. The clothes you wear, do they glorify God? At night when no one is watching, do you feel guilty with what you are wearing to go out?

You are my sister in Christ indeed. For the things you have spoken the spirit in me fully agrees with and loves! I forgot to mention dressing modestly, I was recently convicted of that. I ended up deleting my facebook pictures which still depicted me in a worldly way lest other be confused by whom I served. Girl we can speak about gossip all day. Being false witness and having a spirit of deception. Not really gossiping but planting seeds of deception. All these things people of the world do without even knowing. Am baffled, reverse psychology has become a novelty, now. Sis I love telling people what I have done (which is plenty) because I know so many people think Christians are just hypocrites. As the Holy Spirit leads I share my testimony, there is power in that. And a loving God washing all sins and makes us white as snow. It’s a testimony of who Jesus is.

I’d also like to add that living Godly starts with Jesus himself who died on the cross for our sins. THE Christ. If there is no love of Christ then living apart from the world won’t happen and even if it does, it will simply be legalism and the law. Which as the word tells us is weak.

This is a testimony of a dear sister who speaks from her heart and life. What’s your story like. What are the lessons you have to offer others, and help a sister or brother have hope for their life?