A Man of Like Passions

I’ve been there too, exactly where you are now.
I have experienced the same longings and desires,
I was a man just as you are.
I was not made of stone,
I was made of clay but born of the Spirit,
Just as you are.
As I am, so are you in this world.
I know all about those hormones,
I know how easily your brain travels when the object of your affection is near
I know how quickly your mind gives up the battle it swore to fight
You could win this war,
But you’re fighting the wrong way,
You’re fighting as though you have already lost,
But its not over until you win,
I paid the highest price for you,
But you couldn’t even receive it without my grace,
How can you then carry on as though your stony heart is weapon enough,
My grace is all you need,
For my strength is made perfect in your weakness,
You will never win alone,
Isolated by the guilt that weighs you down,
Your mind has become his playground,
A door you opened when you took that first step.
Come home
I never stopped loving you,
I never stopped being your home,
I never stopped.
I am.
Everything you need and more,
Open up your heart and let Me in,
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life,
Keep your mouth open and don’t stop speaking,
Don’t stop affirming yourself in Me,
You are Mine,
Chosen before the foundations of the world were laid,
I know you inside, out
I’m familiar with your weaknesses,
I know it all,
Yet I stand with arms wide open,
Waiting for your return,
You are not defined by your mistakes,
You are not scarred beyond my ability to heal,
Come Home.

©Olamide Oti, 2018

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Book Review of ‘The Chance’ by Karen Kingsbury

I have not read a novel this year. My book list has mostly consisted of books on spiritually, relationship and growth. I have read books by Karen Kingsbury in the past and I am familiar with her style of writing, but nothing prepared me for how this book was going to hit me in all the right places.
The story is centred around two main characters, Nolan and Ellie, a boy and a girl who were best friends. They lived in the same neighborhood, and attended the same school, however their experiences were vastly different and this shaped the course of their lives.
Ellie was from a troubled home, her parents didn’t get along so well and eventually separated after her mother’s affair. She was estranged from her mother and best friend for several years because of her mother’s mistake. Her father was a man set in his ways. He believed in God but had not encountered his love and this affected his relationship with his family. He was bitter towards his wife and constantly wounded his daughter with his words.
It look 11 years to prepare all these individuals for reconciliation. Some of them had found hope and comfort in Christ while others had not. It was amazing to see how the love of God changes everything, even the things that we had given up on. The book also highlighted the power of prayer and how God works out His sovereign will throughout our lives.
Our desires, our hopes and our dreams are not without God’s permission. He put them there so that we would seek him for the keys to our destination. They are to draw us closer to Him and not away from him. The truth is, God never lies and even if He told you when you were eleven who your partner would be, or what you would become, it may not have been the earth shattering audible voice and maybe then you didn’t even know Him like you know Him now, He has not changed His mind.
Time is God’s tool to bring us to the place where we’re ready to walk in the shoes He made for us long ago. Faith knows that they will be a perfect fit.
“These three things will last forever- faith, hope and love- and the greatest of these is love.”(1Corinthians 13:13)
©Olamide Oti, 2018

Hope

In the waiting,
She’s changing
She’s enlarging from the inside out
And though it looks like nothing is happening
She knows His hand is at work
Weaving a story never before read
Painting a picture never before seen

And though it looks like everything is the same
He is bringing new wine out of nothing
Rebuilding what was broken beyond repair
His mouth is calling forth the future
Soon it will all burst out in living colour
She will stand in awe and be amazed
As darkness gives way to light
©Olamide Oti
29-05-2018

Of Burnt Bridges and the Road Less Traveled

there lies behind us
a string of burnt bridges
and the road less traveled
if we could sing an ode to regret
or paint a picture of pain
it would be a masterpiece
a sight for sore eyes
a remedy for broken hearts

but there lies before us
a promise to great to ignore
by the One whose lips never lie
of hope and new wine
of grace and new beginnings
so let us step into the promise,
as new wine bursts through old wineskin
paving the way to more…

©Olamide Oti, 2018

Come Home!

You have been despised and rejected,
tossed to and fro by lies so perfect they sound like the truth.
You have been told that no one has ever made it out alive,
That this maze of lies will soon be your grave,
and hell would be your eternal home.
You cannot imagine a better place for you,
Filthy, sinful you.

It would be another lie,
If you say you have never felt your heart stir
And you have never heard his soft knock on the door of your heart
He is here everyday
Like a broken record,
Knocking on the door of your heart,
Asking for an invitation

Your fate is not sealed yet,
Your time has not run out
Be brave,
Open the door to Truth
Choose the life you were made to live.
Come over to the other side,
To Love and Light
Come home,
To Grace and Peace
Come home.
©Olamide Oti
26-04-18

True love waits

In my darkest moments
When I was knee-deep in sin
Oblivious to my fallen state
Your love chased me

Even when my lips rejected you
You just chased me some more 
You despised the shame of unrequited love 
And waited… 

You knew the scales would fall
You knew the pain of regret would almost consume me
That I would need new eyes and a new heart 
You gave me You

Like a little child,
May my eyes always light up with wonder when you speak.

Ours is an eternal dance
To a never-ending song
You will never let go
This is your eternal promise

©Olamide Oti 
30-03-18

A place called love

Shame stripped us and we lay bare
Naked, shivering in the cold
Until Love found us,
Cut our hearts open and ripped out every trace of fear
Every wound received His touch Our bodies received new life
Our eyes are glazed over with love
Our hearts are full of joy
His glory shines upon our faces
Filling us with us with His light

Beneath His shadow, we are kept
He is our firm foundation,
Our peace
Our place of safety
In Him we have
Freedom,
Rest,
Hope.

At last, our wandering souls have found rest,
We have found a home
Love is our home.

©Olamide Oti, 2018

For Abba

My eyes strain to see the end from the beginning
Something only Yours were meant to do
You watch as I go round in circles
Turning to everything and everyone except You
Trying to carry burdens my shoulders are too frail to bear

Fear stares me in the face,
Daring me to step out in faith
Certain of my downfall when you promised to catch me
I say a resounding ‘yes’ to this life of reckless abandon
Like a child, I’ll live on every word that proceeds from your mouth
Obeying your every command
Joyfully carrying out your instructions

You are good.
Darkness gives way to Your light
You are powerful, all-knowing, intentional
You are love

My life is in your hands
Your hands drip with provision
Your mouth overflows with blessings
I say a resounding ‘yes’ to this life of abundance.

Google Images

You are everything I need
You are the answer to all my questions
You fill in every void gracefully
I say a resounding ‘yes’ to this life of peace
As you still the storms raging within my heart…
© Olamide Oti

 

Interview with Sparkle Writers Hub

She’s a lady of few but powerful words! Olamide Oti speaks from a place of wisdom and this interveiw is a must read. This is #WriterSpotlight. Enjoy! Hello Olamide. Can you please describe yourself in a few words? Passionate When did you discover that you had a passion for writing and why did you decide […]

via #WriterSpotlight – “With a few words carefully strung together, a broken spirit is uplifted.” Olamide Oti — thesparklewritershub