His light is shed abroad in our hearts
But we'll rather choose to stay in the dark
He declared His victory to be ours
But we'll still rather choose to fight
This life that I live is not mine
But why do I hold on to it tight
He's freely made all things ours
But we rely on our own power and might
He's paid the entire price
But we still act like we owe
I am the way, the truth and the life
But we'll rather listen to all the lies
It's time we embrace
and run with the true light

Isn't it weird that the good you do
are written by them with a pencil
But when you commit an error,
they are quick to write that with a
permanent marker

I love wordplay
But I don't loosely play with words
Just like cars that
take people from point A to B
helping them achieve their goals
but also have claimed many lives
Just like guns used for hunting
and recreation
but also have ended many lives
Words are that powerful
If used irresponsibly,
they can cause a lot of havoc

Have you ever given your heart
But it wasn't received on the other side
It left you but it didn't go through
So, it is hanging inbetween like a lost parcel
Neither here nor there, uneasy to retrieve.

Acrostic poem

C

Challenges often hold within them opportunities
Changing the angle of view can make a lot of difference
Clean your eyes and clear your mind
Choose what you see amongst the myriad of images

H

Having a positive mindset
Half solves a lot of problems
Housed within you is an unimaginable amount of power
Harness it, choose not to cower

A

Attitude is everything, they say
Appreciate and be grateful that you can at least see this day
A grateful heart is positioned to receive answers
And blessings usually fall into such laps

L
Limitations are first created in the mind
Look always on the bright side of life

L

Lion (King/Queen) you are in the midst of it all
Life and everything in it works together for your good

E

Encourage yourself each and every day
Elevate God above what you're going through
Excellent He is in all His ways
Express your faith in Him and He will pave a way

N

Never succumb to the voices in your head
Never hesitate to ask for help
No single person knows it all
Night will surely pass for morning to arrive

G

Giving up is the easiest option but
Greatness doesn't lie in that route
Give no room to deceptive thoughts
Garrison your mind with positivity

E

Exude hope and faith from within you
Exercise patience, everything happens in its time
Excellent people are formed during tough times
Evolve, let these things build you up

S

Success is guaranteed at the end
Students of life, we all are
Situations teach us to be Masters
Summing it up...
Seize all the opportunities present in life's challenges

It takes a lot of strength
To speak about your weakness
Success is making steps
out of stumbling stones
A Victor is not the one that
never fails
But the one that never fail to rise
against all odds

There is a tool that
can break people or things into pieces
The same can be used as an instrument
To heal, mend and restore peace
This tool is produced worldwide
in unlimited quantities, every second

This tool is called words.

Sing praises in the midst of the storm
Leave the roaring pressure feeling confused
Like why is he/she unmoved
Be happy like everything is happening within the norm
Within the situation,
sing victory songs.

Sound sleep is sweet
No nightmares, no dreams
Just sleep
No cold, no heat
No getting up to wee
Just sleep
No tossing around
Nothing to worry about
Just sleep
I need one of those!

Why do we keep how we truly feel
under lock and key

Society has trained us that
to express your emotions is to be weak

How sad that we are somehow fooled that
realness means weakness

Maybe some of us already lost how to be true

Does it not burn within you
when you act a certain way
but you know deep inside that
that is not who you truly are.

Live
It
Fully...
Enthusiastically,
Enjoyingly,
Exceptionally,
Excitedly,
Empathetically,
Empoweringly,
Exemplarily

Don't cage me in your expectations
of who you think I should be
I am truly me
Do away with the preconceived notions
of who you think I am
Don't try to check me against your checklist
Come to me with an open mind and heart
And experience me firsthand

Brokenness doesn't imply uselessness
A dead leaf still nourishes the soil
and aids the growth of other plants
A broken pencil can create a masterpiece
An egg has to break for the chick to appear
You are super amazing just as you are!

One person healing the world is far-fetched
But one person can heal another's world
Less healing will be required
If we don't cause pain to one another in the first place
Prevention is sure better than cure!

People often find imperfection in others
Just to make themself feel better
They pay attention to the speck in others' eyes
Ignoring the beam in their's
They shy away from their own deficiencies
But they can enlist that of others
They have failed to put their own life in order!

I was once in the rough
Not everyone recognized my value
Just like a diamond in that state
But deep down in me, I knew my worth
And that was my truth that I clinged on to

Some of my own didn't believe in me
It did hurt to watch them leave
I almost joined them not to believe in me
Then I remembered it's my life to live

Just to make it, I took different shots
From different angles
I lost money and I lost sleep
I laid in bed watch my ceiling spin
I was this close to quitting but
I did push myself back on my feet

I would constantly say to myself
Gold has to go through fire to be purified
For me to be free, Jesus had to be crucified
The pressure to give up, I nullified
The zeal to reach my goals, I intensified

Nothing exceptional comes easy
I was knocked down several times
but I didn't stay down
I picked myself back up each time
It did make my skin tough

A calm sea never makes a great sailor
Amongst my buddies, I found traitors
The few I looked up to were also naysayers
Nevertheless, I kept my goals on my radar

I kept on pushing till I saw the light
I kept on finessing till I saw the shine
I was determined to do only what's right
Along my journey, here's what I've learnt

If life breaks your pencil,
Make two out of it
If people place stumbling block your way,
Make steps out of it

If they say sh*t on your name,
Make manure out of it
If they throw stones at you,
Make sculpture out of it

Whatever life throws at you
Take it as material
And carve success out of it

The human heart is undeniably
A very deep place
What you see appearing on the surface
Is not necessarily the same as what is hiding beneath

What you see on the surface of some is beautiful flowers
But beneath those are roaches and spiders
Or the other way around
Who really knows the true intentions of the heart?

I give women double respect
Not because they are weaker
as some would think
But because they are stronger and meek

Without a woman, I wouldn't be here
She housed me for 9 months in her belly
She withstood and embraced all my kicks
(Trust me, I was **** good at it)

Listen to them and you'll be amazed
at the wisdom with which they speak
They sure deserve equal chances to lead
Pay them the wages they deserve

All women are beautiful outside and within
When it comes to caring for the family
Sorry men, we are no match
Often times, we are more about the money

When they give birth
Let's give them a sufficient maternity leave
Because they do it for the world at large
That's another problem solver brought to the world

We've got to treat them like Queens
Honor them, pamper them, believe in them
'cause without them,
we wouldn't all be here
From the bottom of my heart,
I say... I love y'all

For every scar I have on me
I had to tattoo on each a crown
They are testaments of the battles I've won
I wear them beautifully like a dress
They are my pride and not of regrets

Just like stars in the night sky
These scars remind me to glow in the dark times
Challenges are disguised opportunities
If it doesn't **** you
It will give rise to a better you
The requirement is to stay positive

These scars are my motivation
They help me see beyond limitations
Turn winning into recreation
A constant reminder,
I did it before
I can do it again

The scars are uniquely numbered
Each telling a different story
Of how I rose from a place of sorry
To a throne of glory
I tagged my favorite scar
The biggest lie is impossibilities

Dream it, speak it, work for it
And it will be your realities
These scars teach me to reject negativity
And embrace positivity
They showed me how to breathe life on anything
Flip impossibilities to possibilities I am!

Master the art of
Flipping your L's (losses) into lessons
Because more often than not,
They are disguised blessings

If they sort of set you back
It's for you to bounce back
Like a catapult or slingshot (or Big Sean)
But never lose sight of your mission

The flying beautiful butterfly
Once crawled as a caterpillar
Think about the trees,
They never give up during the wintry days
They only shed their leaves
(For humans, drop the extra baggages)
But trees bounce back during spring

Sometimes, you just gotta
Take a deep breadth
And exhale peace
Ensure to keep breathing
And you'll sure get back on your feet
Calm the nerves,
Take a deep sleep
But don't sleep in the deep

You didn't fail
You only found ways that would not work
Credit to the man that invented the lightbulb
Take the blows but get back up
Very soon, the hardwork will pay off
Put in more work
And relent not

Naysayers will always talk
Don't be discouraged to put in work
Your success will soon prove them wrong
There is light at the end of the tunnel
As there is light within your spirit
Flick it on
And you'll be on a winning spree

Windchill on a wintry day is like rubbing salt into a wound
It makes eyes and nose water like a crying kid
Negative temperature puts your jacket to the test
The bones can tell when your jacket fails
Extreme cold could be quite unfriendly
Risk and danger it is to the homeless

For every scar I have on me
I had to tattoo on each a crown
They are testaments of the battles I've won
I wear them beautifully like a dress
They are my pride and not regrets
They constantly remind me that
Whatever thing causing pain now
will surely fade away