Category: Religion

Happy Easter Friends

Happy Easter to you all. Easter season is one of those times of the year where every Christian rejoice in remembrance of the resurrection of Christ.

Most of us who in one way or the other fulfilled their Lenten duties would be hopeful that God grant their Easter requests. I posted previously about Lenten duties, however some of those acts can be incorporated in our routine Christian lifestyle. We all ought have to be Christlike, isn’t it what Christianity is all about?

I hope you are having a fantastic Easter celebration? Mine is going really well😄 I went to church and having Easter feast with close friends.

I want us to pray specially for people struggling in their marital homes and those having difficulty in conceiving. I humbly pray that the ressurrected Lord grant their heart desires, may he give them the peace that the world can not give and sheild their home 🙏🏼

Papal message for Easter today addresses the need to end Syrian carnage while Archbishop of Canterbury emphasises on the relevance of hope.

Are you ready for an Easter joke?

Jesus was asked why he stayed longer to resurrect. “To find Judas”, he answered.

Do have a beautiful Easter season. May the risen Christ bless and meet all your needs🙏🏼

Blogmas – How To Survive Boxing Day Sales

Source: Telegraph UK

Still on the Blogmas spirit. I so much look forward to boxing day sales. Normally, I have lists of things I like to buy or simply names of people, whereby I will look at the names I will find something for them. Nonetheless, at times, I go beyond my list especially  when I see something I consider very useful.

During Christmas, my 25th is basically go to church and have a good family meal. Then comes 26th – the sales, sales and sales day. In the last few years, I would queue up at Next as early as 6.30 am. Even at that early hours of the day I am like number 200 or something above that in the queue.

When I eventually get in, I would browse the entire shop for items that catch my eyes. It’s really fun to see those nice and expensive clothes, purses, gifts and kitchen wares reduced to lower prices. Looking at my lists, you can tell the things I normally go for. I do take my time and fill my shopping bag before the deselection process begins, when am done. Normally, by that time I am exhausted and cannot wait to leave the shop with my latest purchases.

However, lately I mainly buy online and will be doing same this year. I go to the shops later in the day or sometime in the week to see or pick a few good things remaining. Luckily, I live close to a shopping arena, where there is Primark, Next, Sports world and the rest of them.

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Source: Synaptrading

My method of surviving the sales involves the following:

  • Gathering items I like first.
  • Choosing only the ones I need – at this phase, after gathering and I drop so many items.
  • Checking my budget.
  • Scaling down further to make sure I do not spend more than necessary and giving priority to items on list – Guys, I lose a few items at this stage too.  [I use this method online too].

Don’t worry, if I mention lists a lot, I jot down almost any thing.

Finally, by the time am done, I leave the shop with the items I really need. There are a few exceptions to certain things that I see and find very useful even when not included in my list. I will like to know what works for you.

Source: Tyannatells.wordpress.com

I have had so much fun putting up Blogmas posts this period, I even posted more than once in a week like I had thought at first. So, this is my last blogmas post – am not going to say unfortunately,

I wish you Happy Spending – Don’t  over do it.

Merry Christmas 🎄 to you and your household . I’m sending great tidings of love, peace and happiness your way 😊

Blogmas – Why Family is Important at Christmas

The remembrance of the birth of Christ is the essence of Christmas 🎄 It is a wonderful time for families to come together as one and celebrate. I appreciate this festive season a lot as it brings relatives together at the end of every demanding year. It’s a way for everyone to relax and forget about what they had spent most of their days doing, be it studies or work.

Most times, we get so got up in our private lives and forget the importance of quality family time. I can tell you that there are numerous families that only meet yearly at Christmas time. Do you agree? So imagine there’s no such period.

As usually, Christmas involves exchange of gifts 🎁 between families and friends and even alms giving. The joy on the faces of people when they are blessed with gifts they never expected is priceless.

Don’t forget, the gift doesn’t have to be that expensive. It should be what one can afford. The important thing is to remember that you can put a smile on someone’s face by being generous to them.

The season allows families to unite and iron out their differences too, if need be. It allows household to reflect on their relationships with one another.

In addition, the holy family of Mary, Joseph and Jesus is worth emulating. During Christmas, families can spend time reflecting on motherhood, birth, nurturing and the upkeep of the entire family unit.

I think Christmas is very important for families.

Merry Christmas 🎄 to you and your family😄

Blogmas- Christmas Favourite Song

I’m writing this post in the spirit of Blogmas. Blogmas is simply about bloggers or vloggers sharing ideas about Christmas daily. However, am gonna opt for weekly. I will paste a link below that explains Blogmas in details.

So, I’m sharing my favourite Christmas 🎄 song. I love the following songs: ‘Silent Night, Long time ago in Bethlehem, Noel Noel, Joy to the World’ but my the top on my list is ‘Away in a Manger’.

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yrics of these songs make me so much want everyday to be Christmas😄

‘Away in a Manger’ is my favourite Christmas song. I normally attend Christmas carols just to sing these songs that I love so much.

What is your favourite christmas song?

Have a beautiful Christmas 🎄 celebration.

The Link for Blogmas explanation:

https://www.thewildhideaway.com/blog/blogmas-post-ideas-and-tips/

One Pence

Hi my lovelies, I have a beautiful story to share with you.
It was a mini exercise we did in the church: please keep reading. So, during sermon, the priest asked if anyone had one pence coin and that they bring it out. We did.
One Pence

 Photo credit: depositphotos.com

We were asked to look at both sides of the coin, close our eyes and differentiate between the two.

Most of us weren’t able to do so. Then, he asked us to pray for the blind.
He asked that we look at the side with the picture of the queen’s head and pray for the country and other nations. We continued and turned to the side with the picture of crowned portcullis with chains and prayed for all prisoners.
Lastly, he made us hold the pence in the center of our palms and prayed for beggars.
It was an exceptional experience for me: having to meditate, think about different experiences and challenges people face in their daily lives.
I love it when the word of God is so simplified and yet mysterious.

Have a blessed weekend Friends.

P.S.

Sorry Friends, I had to re-post as the previous one would not open. Thanks to a loyal reader that made me aware.

Do You Think People Around You Know Truly Who You Are?

I enjoyed this lovely sermon from my priest; one of his interesting lenten season preachings. I would like to call this, my favorite.

He talked about the marvelous works of Jesus and how he did masked himself most of times as his power would be too much for anyone he comes in contact with to contend.

Photo Credit: www.taskforce-gaea.com

Applying the same masking formulae to humans, the reverse is the case. He told us that some individuals are living in pretense just to fit into the society.

He went further and said that such false way of living can momentarily be beneficial to us but most of the time it has an adverse effect on us.

He went on to tell us all to imagine what our lives would be like, if we truly show inner selves to people around us.
Take for instance:
     -A situation where we do not have to cover up to look accepted amongst our peers or colleagues.
     -A situation where we say something in honesty and people take our word for it.
     -A situation where we express ourselves freely without being afraid of being called names.
The list goes on…

It actually occurred to me that we live in a world where we most times find ourselves doing what is expected of us by the society irrespective of what we actually want or how we feel about them..

Do you think people around you know truly who you are?

P.S. It’s my first post for the year.
Have a beautiful 2016. 

My Easter Story

The holy week is one of those days in the church I look forward to. This is due to the variety of hymns being sang and all the Latin aspects that comes with the occasion.

Let me give you a brief account of my holy week. So, I was opportune to attend the holy wednesday mass which kicked of with the stations of the cross. Mmm… I really enjoyed that bit because that was actually the only time time I was able to partake in it with my brethren this Lenten period. Personally, I love it when am able to go to the church for the stations of the cross with the congregation than when am alone at home.

Then came the Maundy thursday. For me, this event started with singing rehearsals,the mass and the procession. It was lovely as the hymns were so transforming and sublime. They included Love is His word, Pange lingua gloriosi, Panis angelicus(one of my favourite songs) to mention but a few.

Oh! Did I mention that we had the Bishop in our midst too? He visited us and was the main celebrant. His sermon was brilliant as he talked us through the reenactment of Jesus last days prior to his arrest. He encouraged us to watch and pray with Christ. The washing of the feet was carried out as well. More so, those points in the mass where a priest says a part and the other says another part stood out for me. I had a swell time. It felt like experiencing catholicism in its full splendour.

The holy thursday ended with the carrying of the blessed sacrament in procession to the garden of repose. The parish priest encouraged us to stay for a little while and say some private prayers.

I have an intriguing story for you now; while I stayed behind and prayed,I watched a lady who had gone close to the blessed sacrament and prostrated. That got me as I have not seen that act of adoration being displayed in a very long time. It happened to be that I had seen this very lady on holy wednesday tidying the church premises. So, on my way home, I saw her on the other side of the road and I waved her and said hello(I kind of wondered why I was saying hello in the first place). 

She crossed over to me and asked for my name,that she had seen me the other day…We became friends. She told me her version of the celebration, how she cried when the blessed sacrament was to be taken to the gardens of the repose and asked God to forgive her sins.She told me that most times instead of thanking God she complains about what haves and haves not.  She added that in the garden of repose, it felt like she saw Jesus.”I felt someone holding me” she said to me. I suppose she really had a divine encounter. From our little  chat, my new friend does lots of charity work and believes in miracles. Bless her.

Do you know what? I was actually pleased with myself that I said that ‘hello’ at that time.

Have a beautiful Easter celebration. Many thanks for reading.

Taking Photos During Christening

Photo credit: stpeterslist.com

It was a friend’s child christening and I was opportuned to cover it. Hey! Don’t mistake me for a professional photographer yet. Camera was ready, mobile by the side and all were set for work. Lo and behold the Priest made a brief introduction and mentioned no snapping of any sort till he is finished. Did he just said that was the kind of look we had on our faces but I said to myself maybe he actually didn’t mean it.

To think of it, I have witnessed lots of christening and to be honest my parish priest do encourage photographs so I see nothing absolutely wrong with it. With that in mind, I pretended not to have heard this very priest. So when he concluded the mass and was about to begin the event of the day I started taking pictures not wanting to miss any part. He warned sternly that he doesn’t approve such. I then lowered my hand in an angle he wouldn’t notice me and my flash were turned off. Yeah! It worked till someone else snapped and he almost stopped the occasion, it was as though he couldn’t control his temperament but he then paused and told us the reason behind his no snapping policy. 
According to him, christening is a spiritual   birth and an act which should be considered sacred. He finds it displeasing to see how people see it as a fun party; where they take pictures and send off to the Internet or to show off. He urged us to reason with him and simply take a few photos with him when he has finished. 
Well, I kind of reasoned with him and that was very thoughtful of him. He Made some good points but I and my colleagues want to take pictures like we usually see in other christenings and for record purposes too and so was it. Unbeknown to us, one of my friend’s relative who sat at a different section recorded the whole event. Tada! By the end of the day we had  ‘the pictures’ and lots more, no offence though. 
  
If I may ask pls, what is your opinion in regards to taking pictures duringx a child’s christening? 
P.S Hope you had a great month? May the next month bring you favours. 

Coming Together As One.

Photo credit: prayinggodsword

I am delighted for having attended the “Ecumenical worship service for christian unity 2014” which took place at an anglican church in my neighbourhood. It was announced in my church and those who can make it were urged to come to, if for nothing else to at least represent our parish.

It was my first time in that church,as a matter of fact in an anglican church. When I got there, I met the first set of people who were from my church(catholic) and few members of the host church(anglican) who were running around to see that the day went well. Moments later our priest arrived and gradually the empty seats were being occupied. I admired the magnificent decoration and heavenly atmosphere.

The host Vicar welcomed the congregation, we were comprised of; Catholic( 2 parishes), Anglican, Reformed and Methodist churches, five different parishes were present. It was wonderful having all the churches in the area come together for such a unity service.

Meanwhile, over the years I have heard that the catholic and anglican ways of teachings are very similar to each other and had to testify to it that day. They were so true be it in the hymns, penitential act, readings and bidding prayers. Moreover, I loved the response during the prayers, it goes this way-
….Gracious God, hear our prayer,
    And in your love, answer. 
I equally noticed the prayers were based on the eight millenium development goals, which addressed the major global issues.  On the contrary, there was no creed nor communion; not that I expected them anyway.

The sermon was very inspiring as the Minister encouraged us to be good followers of christ. He admonished us to promote Gods name and the church although he spoke against people who worship a particular church rather than God himself.

As he preached, a feminine voice was heard from behind though what she was saying was quite unclear. It happened that the voice kept disturbing us. She interrupted him and thereby gained audience. A man followed her immediately who without doubt wanted to drag her out but had to let her talk as she kept saying she wanted to say something-

“I have been through a lot in life, I know God.
I am Linda….As she talked she demonstrated, letting her hands go as free as they can.
I have been through ups and down
I will tell you you this:
Never give up and always pray!
Never give up and always pray!”(I was startled when she said that, some of the congregation were nodding like it was a divine message).
Waving her hands she said “God bless you all”
She made sign of the cross twice before she was led out.
The congregation applauded her.

Later, the Vicar ended the sermon by saying “United we move forward against divisions and promote christianity by the unity of all christians.”

To sum it up, I had a wonderful experience being that I learnt a lot that day and from my point of view, I believe that christianity is about coming together to worship God.

You can Do A Lot ‘On-Your -Own’ Through Him Who Gives You Strength.

There are times that people who we know quite well seem to do things that tends to put us on the edge and all of a sudden we begin to question a whole lot of things.

It is okay to keep reminding ourselves that no one is perfect not minding the fact that we are still able to find that one person whom we simply choose over others.

While I was chatting with a friend the other day, she sounded really worried and said a couple of things about her partner. She has a plan of how things can be made better and not that he is not willing to accept her idea but it seems not to be very convenient for him now. She complained bitterly. I tried to reason with her but I still made her see reasons with the guy too.

 ‘You can see he is busy with some other things now, at the meantime let him be.  It is not like he is rejecting your idea.’

Why are you this disturbed? I asked because she was furious and that got me worried about them both. Well, we had a nice chat and she was calm and felt better afterwards.

It would be nice of us if we continually evoke that initial passion we had before embarking on anything because it does not only motivates us but also keeps us on our toes as well. When you know that deep down you love someone, don’t cross yourself. Yes, be reasonable but that does not mean that it is going to be very rosy at all times. Love, they say endures all things that is why some people will seem to hurt you severally and you find yourself forgiving them, even before they apologize whereas same acts will be totally not tolerated with other people.

Try and develop a positive way of seeing people and things they do. It really helps and encourages a healthy lifestyle. Bearing a grudge is very bad because no matter how you mask it, it still finds its way and reflects in ones character. You might think that you are doing well and not showing whatever it was but people close to you can tell you act a bit different.

I would encourage discussing it, expressing exactly how you feel in the words that make you feelings or concerns well expressed. You have the right to be angry. There is no formulae in these things, think responsibly and do things your way. When you think the low-and-understanding voice is not working you can try out the high-angry voice, what matters is that at the end of the day you still go back to the normal.

Look at it this way, if you cannot have a quality chat with that very person whats the point going to talk all that through with another. You know them well and should be able to figure out when it is suitable to engage them in such conversations. Off course, you cant just initiate talk you tag ‘serious’ anytime and hope to get a useful response.

Always go for what is suitable for you. For instance, some people might like to chat after dinner time while some early in the morning. You don’t go and wake someone up at midnight because you were told or have read somewhere that midnight talk is the ultimate. Maybe, it was for the writer or for most people they carried out research on at that time but the truth is ‘we are all unique creatures’ some generalised findings cannot be applicable to all at same time. Don’t forget that some people don’t even sleep before that time while some about few minutes before 12, so are you going to wake them up? It’s either they babble first then talk, or later you get a warning for such sleep disturbance. Dozing while talk is going on can equally be achieved with that. I hope I was able make my point clear enough.

When something goes wrong and you still want to be with that person and they also want you, try to let them know how you feel. That’s your life and you make decisions based on what you think you two have been through or what you feel for them. However, when you simply go and offload the ‘problem’ to someone you might get a contradictory advice. Some individuals can probe and dig out some past and unresolved problems and put life into them. Believe me, it happens while others would help you deal with it in a better and reasonable way. Both categories of people do exist, beware of the former except you have loaded your gun and only need help with the trigger.

You can simply try asking yourself questions like, why is this that, why is that this, if I do this…that happens,  if I do that…what could happen? You can make a chart for them if need be.  You never can tell, it might help you solve certain issues and minimise times spent in consulting others. Besides, some times people tell us things we already know, though it is not usually the case. Always try your best and leave the rest.

When you learn to see good in people, things can only get better and better but when you do the opposite, even the tiniest fault that can easily be ignored by others will be magnified ten-folds before you.

NB
I actually struggled to write this without mentioning God a couple of times. Always put Him first in all you do.