Night

Yes
I came at you with vigour
Telling how much
I loved you.

I held your hand tight
And with all might
I got you too close
I didn't want to leave.

I whispered into your ears
Lots of sweet nothings:
the silent blows into the lobs
Made you all blush.

Yes,
I crept into your heart
With magical words
With solemn vows.

My fingers swept thru your hair
And your waist became a source:
So much went thru my loins
I could get a fit.

I heard you say
'Go on'
I pulled your lips next to me
And fresh breath hit me hard

Yes,
You took me to utopia
And I swear
I stayed there.

All the while
I was screaming your name loud
And the sweet nothings
My neighbour heard.

Yes,
My neighbour heard
And this morning
She packed her bags
And left.

Choosing to Love

One of the most important things I learned as I grew up was that as human beings we all have our flaws. That means I cannot expect to have people that are perfect. As humans, I know we are vulnerable to failure, wrong decision making, and all the things that sometimes seem to be the work of our own flesh.

But as I grew up, I decided my eyes need to be closed to the things that will make me feel people are repulsive. Yes, I am aware of the fact that people are human creatures susceptible to failure, but I also know there is a wealth of goodness in the world in which we live. I chose over the years never to look for the ugly in people. I chose to be grateful for every person I have met over the years. I chose that my differences with people might cause disagreement but will not make me, in any way hate them. In essence, I chose to love.

While we are aware that sometimes we will be betrayed, it is always important that we do not get into people's lives to look for the flaw that will kill the friendship or relationship. Once we do that, we actually will get all those bad stories about them. BUT, when we focus on the good, and appreciate that good, we realise we have a wealth of friends that we could never have gotten anywhere. When we choose to look for the good in people, the ugly has a way of disappearing for then we focus on what is important, and discard what is totally useless.

Are you the kind of person that looks for what to criticise? Maybe it is time you rethought your pattern of relationship! People are good till they prove otherwise, yet even when they do, they still are good. We make the choice to love them, keep loving them or hate them and keep them totally out of our lives.

I choose Love.

Walking in Ruins

No one understands the power of prayer like a little boy who has seemingly lost it all and then goes to his father to ask for another chance. I see that every day even in my own life. sometimes, life boxes us all in and we feel like it is all gone.

I was in prayer this week and Ezekiel 37 started making sense again. It seems to make sense normally when something terrible hits: a tragedy, a loss, a failing marriage, a financial crisis etc. As I rummaged thru my mind, the song Glorious Ruins by Hillsong started forming in my conscience and somehow hit a very interesting code:

When the world caves in
Still my hope will cling to Your promise
Where my courage ends
Let my heart find strength in Your presence

Truth be said, we all get to this point.Sometimes life cages us in and it feels like we have lost all the things that are most important in life. It could be a job, it could be that a disease hits and there are no answers. The first reaction in most of these moments is that we lose hope, we feel we have lost all there is to our lives and before we know it, we slowly are sinking down the drain.

Life does pour us some lemonade, somebody said, but the best way to deal with these moments sometimes is to sweeten the lemonade and make the best out of it.

God wants us always to keep on the knees, because that is where our greatest battles are won. Like Ezekiel, we need to keep in conversation with Him and ask for His guidance in moments like these. When Ezekiel is asked about the bones, he keeps telling God only You know. At the end, God asks him to speak to the bones. This is when it all unfolds, it is not just the bones, their dryness and the valley, it is a matter of faith and having to trust the God we are in constant communion with.

Keeping the faith can be quite challenging, but God gives us the chance every day to talk to Him, to let Him walk with us in the valleys if dry bones. Even when the world caves in, our hope needs to cling to His promises and purposes for our lives. That only makes sense if we do not let our faith be in circumstances but in the God we have believed.

Take time continually and speak life into the situations of your life. No matter how dry your life might be, there is glory in the testimony that God will give you. Go thru the process and you will be amazed at what He has begun in your life.

Celebrating Seven

Today, my wife and I make seven

I always choose to start this day with a thank You to God and look forward to the next year. I have also chosen to begin this one with a personal journey before God for the year ending 2017. I look back at this year and think about the amazing things I have been thru:

- Our girl made three, yesssss! She is a truly special gift to both of us and I am always humbled at the fact that she is part of our journey.
- I have made some personal choices about prayer, tithing and giving to God. I hate leaving my bed, trust me, but it is one of those things that have blessed me over this previous marital year. Not all prayers have had my desires, but I have seen God give me far better than I ever deserved.
- I have chosen to love my wife even thru the toughest of times. Yes, there are those moments when it feels like love is a hard examination paper. BUT, it is a command for me to love my wife. My deepest prayer has always been that I love her more each day and thru the eyes of God.
- This year has been one of our toughest. We got some very disturbing news about her health this year. If most people were so human without God, they would have immediately wanted out. I will not say it was easy. I did break down when the news came, but with each day, I saw God strengthen us.

Marriage is a beautiful thing. I remember the statement: What if God did not make marriage to be some place where we live happily ever after but to live holily ever after? It sounds madness, but staying married is the best gift I can give both my wife and daughter. It is the best thing for me too, because I am in a more stable state of mind. Has it been easy getting this far? No! BUT, I have chosen come what may, I am here to stay.

To Lillian Tibasiima: Thanks for being the most amazing gift God's given to me, after salvation. It is a joy to spend the years before and looking forward to many more years ahead.

For Emmanuel Okurut (March 15, 1990 – February 19, 2014)

We talked of tomorrow
And its dreams and bright future,
We spoke jokingly about love
And sometimes the cheekiness about it was clear:
'Not time yet.'
We spoke of days past
And walked the path of life together.
That hug was mine many a time
But I remember, 'Ok that hurt' with a smile
But it was mine many a time.
You went too soon my brother
It should have been me
But God chose otherwise.
In the prime of life, you are withered from us
But in the prime of a better life
You have gone on a better journey.
Go well, my brother.
I am glad to have had you aboard.

For My Lilly

I see a warm smile by me
Each time I wake up;
I behold beauty and love
Each time I hold you right
The trust I feel
Sends pleasure all over me.
And yes, there is a reassurance
In the stability in you.

If I never said I love you today
The vibes of expression are aroused.
I hold on to hope
That ours is forever.
So you burn me with a thirst
For just you and you and YOU.
Now it lusts deeper for you:

I will wait tonight
To express the fullness of Love.

Standing Out of the Crowd

While growing up, I got to notice two things I had never thought of as a young child: I had no father and my mother was struggling to look after me. I met my father at a later age, about 6 or 7, it was also the first time I met my elder sister. Was I happy to see especially my sister? I still am not sure, but remember being told by an uncle: That is Sarah and she is your sister. Sometimes I wonder why mum did not have the courage to tell me herself.

My father passed on a few years after I met him. I remember him as a man who came home on Sundays, drove us in his Audi vehicle, bought us biscuits and yes showed us to the world or is it the other way round. A few years after he had passed on, mum followed suit. My life seemed to have crumbled. But, somehow, I moved on with my life. And yes, it was quite a move on.

As a university student, then 21, for the first time in my life, I realised I had not had a dad. My mum had been everything to me. She was a tough lady. She had her way when she wanted, but I also remember one moment when she apologised for having punished me for something I had not done. For the first time at 21, I realised my dad had dared buy our love, and it deeply hurt. I was a heartbroken boy struggling finally with the life of young adulthood, and that made it even harder to live by. When I hit about 26, I met someone who told me good things about my father, I totally rejected the tale. I was bitter and angry at him for many reasons. slowly, I was struggling with issues probably I did not understand.

why do I share this? I got married and realised there is a lot more in me about my dad and mum than anyone else. Now that is the tough thing for all of us men. when I made 30, I smiled, I had lived a life fairly good. I have an amazing wife and a bright future ahead of me. But one thing stands: the people in my past had to be forgiven. I also have had to make resolutions in my life to tear myself from pain and be the right man that life can have.

Each one of us men can make the choice to love the women we have gotten married to or cheat on them, abuse them and make them waste. Every man in his natural DNA has the capacity to make decisions that will affect them either for the positive or the negative. My childhood and eventual bitterness into the 20s left me with huge consequences of battles with blood pressure because I refused to forgive, and when I did, the toll of life had seemingly taken over.

Life is for the courageous. I stand up every day to thank God for the woman He has given me in life to share my whole life with. I make a choice to love her, be faithful to her and make the most of our relationship. Is that easy? No! Our parents may not have been right models to us, but we have to make the right choices for the lives that we have been given. sometimes we do not have someone to talk to about these issues, but in all honesty, loving our wives is beyond sex, and loving our children is beyond gifts. I want to stand up for truth, for life, for love, honesty and integrity. I want to smile at the end of it all and be sure I made the right choices in life for both here and eternity.

Life may not have been a great affair, but sure, we can make the effort to make it count.

Are you holding on to the past failures?
have your parents failed you? Or is it your siblings who have made life hell for you?
Have there been friends that have made your life hell?

You have the choice to let go of the past and make the present count. Take the courage to make the right choices. Above all, for the people God has blessed you with in life: family, spouse, children, friends, workmates etc, make the choice to love them. You just never know where the rest will take you.

Stand out of the crowd and stand to be counted for truth, love, integrity and faithfulness. You have it all in your DNA!