Un-LEash

For the first time ever, I did Christmas dinner. It meant if I spoilt the food, the day would be ruined! That may be a little dramatic but the point is made. How did it all start? A week ago, I asked my aunt (the matriarch) what we'll be doing for Christmas. Her response - she's not cooking...at least not until Boxing Day when we do the (now traditional) family dinner. It therefore left a very obvious gap in a very important part of Christmas. Being the person I am (not a chef but the type to want problems resolved) I volunteered. This was an agonising decision! OK...a little dramatic, but I was nervous. I had never done the entire dinner before (or rather main part of the meal). I, more importantly, don't cook on a regular basis. I find it something I enjoy on occasions when I feel the mood. And I like the non-typical foods. Nonetheless, I spoke with my cousin, went to the supermarket, and the plan was hatched. In the final analysis, the menu was:  baked chicken,...

Shall I compare me to an aging tree? Why not! Trees grow…as do I. But since trees have so many characteristics and comparable qualities, I will focus on just one: they typically grow a ring for each year of their lives and thereby expand their girth (and strength). Scientists can actually determine the age of trees by the number of rings they have. And interestingly, an analysis of the rings can tell of the events that the trees had to experience – favourable or harsh climatic conditions (such as drought, rainfall), pollution, diseases, etc. Just like the trees, we all grow rings. We celebrate our “rings” when we celebrate our birthdays (or perhaps at the start of a New Year). And just like trees, the characteristics of our rings are influenced by external and internal factors – the joys, triumphs, struggles, fears, etc that we face. If we overcome life’s obstacles and live past our pain and pride, our rings will be stronger for the next one to come. All previous celebrations of th...

A somewhat cryptic title, but no worries...all shall be revealed. A few weeks ago, my Toastmaster's club was to host a contest for humorous speech and evaluation. I decided I would take a chance and do the latter. Unfortunately, the contest didn't happen. Nonetheless, I took a chance and said I would represent my club at the Area contest. I had never done a speech evaluation prior to the Area contest. I had seen many during meetings, and been evaluated several times. But never had I done one. To therefore go into a competition was a step in faith. But since this is the Year of Crazy, Radical Faith, I did step. To my surprise, I won. I think I blacked out for half of it, being as nervous as I was. But it was a good experience and I appreciated the feedback I got from persons afterwards. Next was the nationals...and that is where the nerves kicked up a notch. I did more research, read more presentations, etc. I was fortunate that I was invited to do evaluations at another c...

One of the devotionals I read today was from a lady named Jennifer Duke Lee. Of course, it was related to one of the issues I struggle with, but that's not the focus of this (long-overdue) post. I decided to check out her website where I could " Take the 'What's Your Happiness Style' assessment ". So I did. The result? I'm a Giver. According to the test, I "struggle with feeling physically and emotionally drained from taking care of others". Not only that, but I am "challenged when it seems that others aren’t as generous as they ought to be". It also suggests that I am best matched with other Givers or generous-minded Doers. Do I agree? I think so... What else was more interesting? I read another devotional and the Bible text was Proverbs 22. Verse 9 of the passage reads thus: The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor (NIV). Sometimes it's good to see that God does not forget when...

Freedom... it's a very interesting concept. In the natural, it means that we can do as like, when we like, how we like. We can say what we want, vote for who we want, etc. The list goes on. The problem with this is that our freedom to do - perhaps based on our morals or even that of our country or religion - may very well threaten or relieve someone else of their freedom. I found myself reflecting on this as news comes to us from Orlando about a mass shooting that took the lives of at least 50 persons, and even as we remember the many occasions before (both home and abroad) that many lost their lives at the hands of evil. I also had reason to reflect on this because of what happened yesterday. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to spend a few hours in Miami, specifically visiting the Dolphin Mall. It was one of those I'm-enjoying-some-Le-downtime, where I was free to do whatever I wanted - relax, window shop, eat... I was loving it. I decided with a hours to kill that I'd...

Pastor asked me to prepare perspectives on fearlessness from Luke 23:1-12 . I was actually excited once I got started. The below is what I prepared and presented at church today. I must say it was an honour to have been able to present in this way, and to know that persons benefitted from it. I certainly did. When one thinks of “fearless”, one may conjure the image of one who can face any and many challenges or life-threatening situations with confidence and a “I dare you” attitude. One may think of a man in a lion’s den like Daniel, or even David fighting the lion and bear to protect His sheep. My thoughts on fearless is well beyond this. Here’s how. When I started to think about fear and fearlessness, the Scripture that I was led to was 2 Tim 1:7: For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind . At first, I wondered if this was because I knew this verse so well having heard it so many times before. But as I reflected, I saw the connecti...

2016 is my Year of Crazy, Radical Faith. There were some things I was relying on God to work out and that meant that I had to do my part and build my faith. In keeping with this thrust, I embarked on a special fast for 40 days. It started on Ash Wednesday and ended Palm Sunday. What was involved in the food fast: no flour, no sugar, no rice. The former two are pretty much in all processed foods which was the essence of my fast. This also meant no yogurt, no almond or soy milk, no juices from concentrate, etc. It also showed me how many of our foods are processed and contain these ingredients...quite a bit. What I could eat: all things natural, regardless of the preparation method. Milk (good ole cow's milk), banana, plantain, potatoes, oats, cornmeal, etc were included. As to proteins, I could eat fish, chicken, and nuts. The more important part of the fast was praying and spending more time in devotion. I tried to wake up for devotion on weekday mornings vs just praying as I...

Have you ever tried downloading a large file from the Internet that is going slower than snails' pace? Or perhaps trying to load a webpage full of graphics with "Weak" signal? It's a bit frustrating at times. I'm having a similar challenge...with answers to some of my prayers. I'm convinced that God has a sense of humour, and I sometimes take a while to get the joke. There are times I see what seems to be an answer or the direction He's pointing to. And then I see nothing...silence. No conclusion. Just "loading..." (with a smiley face sometimes). As the saying goes, "no gall, no glory", or "no pain, no gain". The wait may be challenging...rather, the wait IS challenging. But things will be better (though they're good right now) so I may as well enjoy the journey. My [faith] muscles will grow stronger as will my endurance. The wait continues, even as I develop my sense of humour!

We're all born with free will...the freedom to choose what we do in life, how we live it, etc. Our environment and circumstances will have an influence on how this freedom is lived out. They certainly shape the persons we eventually become, be it good or bad. I reflected on this while listening to an audio series online , and the speaker was preaching on How to Dream Great Dreams. The essence of the message: Christians only dream great dreams (and see them realised) when they have daring faith in God. He is the one that will ultimately decide what becomes reality. This is not an easy feat, to say, "God, take these dreams and do what you want". While he spoke, an imagery came to me - puppets. A puppet essentially is dead. Its only movements are orchestrated by a master puppeteer. The psychologists and pretty much anyone will say that we should always strive to be free and not be someone's puppet. It's therefore seen as an unhealthy way of living. But I dare say...

This morning was a special work-related event. I therefore had the opportunity to sleep a little later than usual because it was closer to home than my office. Those who know me well know I enjoy times like these (i.e., I'm not a morning person). I drive out of my complex, and stop before hitting the main road. I thought the road was clear, but after I came out, a van going in the opposite direction passed me within a few feet. Had a hesitated a split second longer or had he been driving a little faster, I'd have been a goner...or hospitalized at the least. And it would have been my fault. It seems the reason I didn't see the van was because a pedestrian blocked the view, but I clearly didn't think they obscured enough of a view for me to miss an on-coming vehicle. Rewind to about an hour and a half before this. I woke up (as I do all mornings), but there was one difference. While I was doing my morning prayer, I had a weird feeling/sensation  that I was hit and the b...

It's me, your wife-to-be (did you smile at my rhyme?! :-)). I've been thinking about you recently, and wanted to share some thoughts with you. Hope you don't mind. I don't know if we have yet cross paths. If we did, I hope I was pleasant and polite. It's a fact that I can be a little "crazy" sometimes, but it's the fun kind. At least that's how I see it. There are some people that make me feel comfortable enough to show this side of me, so if you have seen it, I hope it was pleasing...or perhaps piqued your curiosity. If we have yet to meet, there is so much to get to know! Here are a few tips. One of the first and most important things about me is that I am a Christian; I seek after God and try to do more than lip service. I know you have been praying for someone like that, so the future is really about us figuring out how we build on each other's strengths to serve Him even more. I'm confident that you will put Him first in everything...

I was home 2 nights ago and decided to catch up on my pre-recorded shows using Flow's AVS (that system that allows me to record shows in case it wasn't clear). And it wasn't a smooth. It kept stopping and taking forever to load. I lost my patience. For some time, I've wanted to write a letter and so I finally did . Thanks to the Editor for posting it (though a few things were left out).

A few days ago (last week Tuesday to be exact) I had every intention of going to the gym for an hour and then heading home and then to help some of my girls. But intentions do not always manifest into reality. After work, I decided to head home...and somehow decided to drive Half Way Tree. It was OK to a point. By the time I reached Eastwood Park Road, I had enough of the traffic, and I was craving KFC biscults (weird, I know). I opted to satisfy my weird craving; the Springs had a KFC so I went there (drive-through). I was in a mood where I felt like sitting in a parking lot, eating my biscuit, and listening to Beyond the Headlines. Check. I had some books I needed to purchase for one of the girls, so being in the vicinity of so many bookstores was an opportunity I could make use of. Check. I decided to go into Bryan's Bookstore (they sell a lot of Christian literature, etc). I noticed a bustle, but didn't pay much attention. I passed a few booked by author Taye Diggs, but i...

2015 has come and gone, and now we are safely in 2016. Thank God! What a year it has been! As is now customary, 2015 had a special focus - the year of  Seeking the Kingdom . This is after a year of Building Faith. The theme was selected to further my growth as a Christian. When I started, it was my intention to strengthen my connection with God, more specifically, to let Him take more control of my life. No doubt this meant learning more about Him through the Word, and learning to hear His voice more. So it begs the question: did I achieve what I set out for? The short answer- sort of. The long answer: Growing is a journey. If one looks only at discrete moments, it may distort the picture. I had moments of weakness and failings, but I also had moments of triumph and success. There were times when I wasn't sure of God's leading in making certain decisions, and didn't seek it or if I did, it was after the fact. Other times, His voice was clear, sometimes through devotiona...