The post OCTOPUS YA BUDABOSS appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>
It’s official: if you are tempted, blame your desires. I walked into the 5 star restaurant in one of the South Coast hotels, in the company of my sweet wife. The ocean breeze, the lights and the secluded dinner areas made perfect the promise of a romantic evening.
At a conspicuous corner, was a segment for sea food and top on the menu was stir fried Octopus. I’m not one with a taste for food items that do not have names in your mother tongue, but the presentation of this sea creature was irresistibly tempting. BudaBoss ni nani, Ignore the nice chops and flurry of accompanying spices, infact ignore the fact that the master chef was preparing the meal right in front of you and serving it straight to your plate. Ignore all together the wonderful salesmanship of the coastarian chef who made octopus sound like a better deal than manna from heaven… just focus for one moment on the health benefits that came with the dish. Sawa?
Excellent source of omega 3 fatty acids, vitamin B12 and selenium, iron, copper, vitamin B6 amongst others, are just but a few of the nutritional benefits of an octopus. Believe you me, none of them would have convinced me to put those fried tentacles into my mandibles. It is this statement from the chef that was a game changer for me, “kwanza hii ni nzuri sana na wanaume, inasaidia ku…. yaani wajua, sio?” [in coastarian accent]
The man did not need to explain what the “inasaidia ku…” really meant. Looking at my wife in a nice colourful short and a black tight sleeveless top carefully yet sharply contrasting her light skin, her hair tucked to one side to pave way for the smile that always warms my heart, I looked at the chef and without hesitation and with a firm voice of conviction, projected my decision with an outstretched plate… JAZA!
You see, the good and perhaps bad thing with these waiters and chefs in big hotels, is that they take instructions literally and seriously. The fellow obeyed, and akajaza. To be honest, I was not sure what I was eating; the octopus or the target behind the meal. The dish was tasteless to me, but like honey in the carcass of a lion in Samson’s riddle, I told myself, “BudaBoss, if you can withstand the smell then you can enjoy the sweetness. I had to withstand the lack of an appealing taste for benefits that would soon follow.
We retired to bed and early I must say, in our sea facing hotel room hearing the sounds of frustrated sea waves contained by coral reefs… Just when I was preparing to set in motion certain historical events, Sema GHAFLA BIN VU… Suddenly it became hot… like very hot. Yaani hotter redder fire kinda hot. Before you allow your imagination to grossly mislead you, let me throw you a leash to guide your wild thoughts. Wueeeeeeh, sema my skin is on fire! Kidogo kidogo, an itch here and a scratch there. The area and intensity growing with every passing second. I asked my wife to take a peek at my body and just see if an uncanny insect was strawling lackadaisically on my body. It is the popping of her eyeballs from their sockets that made me know… KIMEUMANA!!!
In a matter of seconds, my body was a cabinet of serious body sores and swellings with unending itchiness. The more I scratched the more they itched, if I tried to ignore, the more they still itched. The rougher I scratched the more they itched. I scratched and scratched and scratched till some skin peeled off in some areas. Kumbe, these octopus manenos have an allergic reaction that they cause on some people.. I guess the kind of people who are pure in heart like me, right? Yes? No? Anyways, here I was, in the arms of my wife just like I had imagined but only this time scratching myself silly. In such moments, all of a sudden you begin to see the value of friendship in marriage, the ability to just talk to each other without asking, expecting or demanding for anything. You begin to see what companionship looks like when you cannot perform certain duties…. like scratching corners your arms can’t reach.
Think of this true story whatever you may, but be ye sure to remember:
1. If it doesn’t have a name in your mother tongue, don’t eat it (wisdom from a friend)
2. Scratch my back and I scratch yours is a literal statement in marriage
3. Whatever happens in life, enjoy the company of your wife
4. You are only tempted by your own evil desires… so guard your heart
Yours Truly,
BudaBoss.
#BudabossMerchandise is available now on the Budaboss shop. Visit https://bit.ly/BudabossMerch for to buy today.
#SupportBudaboss at today. Visit https://bit.ly/SupportBudabossMinistries for more information on how you can be a blessing to Budaboss’ ministry and to others.
The post OCTOPUS YA BUDABOSS appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily devotional #9 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>That happened to me a couple of times in my younger years when I was a goalie … and I can tell you, it ain’t pleasant. I still, to this day, remember the sheer panic of not being able to breathe.
And I think what makes it that much worse is the shock factor, the element of surprise – I just wasn’t expecting that.
Look, things happen in life that cause us to panic. They have in the past, and they’ll no doubt happen again in the future. And it’s in the midst of the panic that our faith seems to evaporate into thin air, have you noticed? Right when you need it … poof, it’s gone.
I was struck recently by something that Martin Lloyd Jones said: faith is a refusal to panic. And that, as things turn out, is an incredibly scriptural thing to say:
Psalm 46:1-3 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. (NRSV)
There can scarcely be a scarier scenario than an earthquake – the ground shakes, the mountains fall into the sea, the waters roar and foam. Yikes. But the psalmist steadfastly, stubbornly even, refuses to panic. Why? Because … God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Be stubborn. Don’t panic. Trust Him.
That’s God’s Word.
The post Daily devotional #9 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily devotional #8 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>Of course, not everyone’s evil – but sometimes you look at the political, economic and social systems that we live in and you think to yourself, how did we get to this point? How have we, as people made in God’s image, stooped so low – and not just stooped low, but applauded this behaviour? Why can’t people see this?
Answer: because we’re living in a time when Satan doesn’t even bother hiding anymore, and yet the world still can’t see him.
2 Corinthians 4:3-5 The Good News that we tell people may be hidden, but it is hidden only to those who are lost. The ruler of this world has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They cannot see the light of the Good News—the message about the divine greatness of Christ. Christ is the one who is exactly like God. We don’t tell people about ourselves. But we tell people that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we tell them that we are your servants for Jesus.
In other words, it’s not their fault. Satan has blinded people to the loving truth of the Good News in Jesus Christ. So, if you’re a believer, if you’re a disciple of Jesus Christ, then don’t blame those
The post Daily devotional #8 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily devotional #7 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>It starts early on, doesn’t it? Right from when as toddlers we learn that short, powerful word “no”! And when you think about it, a lot of what growing up is all about is learning to struggle with authority until hopefully at some point, we become adults with a healthy balance between submission and assertion, between doing the right thing and doing what we want.
Problem is, we don’t always hit that healthy balance. In fact, most never do. And this is an absolutely universal condition. It’s a struggle that for many, goes on – a struggle that many lose. But it’s a struggle that God wants you to win.
Romans 11:32 All people have refused to obey God. And he has put them all together as people who don’t obey him so that he can show mercy to everyone.
As I said, universal. Everyone has refused to obey God. Why? Well, here, He gives us the “why”. God has consigned all to disobedience so that He may show mercy, so that none of us can boast about how good we’ve become toward Him.
The struggle is real. But the good news is that you’re not alone. It’s one that we all face. It’s a struggle that God has deliberately put at the centre of our lives, that He may show us mercy.
So next time you fail Him, next time you stumble, get up, dust yourself off, go to Him and trust in His mercy.
That’s God’s Word
The post Daily devotional #7 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily devotional #6 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>One of the key strategies of those who oppose Christianity is to “jam” us whenever we speak up about the things of God, to shut us down by creating an environment of deep offense toward what we say.
After all, they argue, isn’t the God you believe in the God of love? And love means acceptance. Love means tolerance. Love means inclusion, diversity and all that stuff you hear them talk about.
But love also means speaking the truth. My mummy loved me, and yet she didn’t accept my bad behaviour, tolerate my bad attitudes and rebellion. Just as well … but still, the world chooses to be offended by the Gospel. The question is, why? Charles Spurgeon explains: “Christ offends men because His Gospel is intolerant of sin”.
It’s the intolerance of Jesus toward sin that makes Him such a stumbling block.
Luke 24:44-49 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” (NRSV)
Did you catch what Jesus said there? Repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations. There’s no forgiveness without repentance. The Gospel is indeed intolerant of sin. That’s what you and I are called to proclaim.
So don’t be surprised when people are offended.
That’s God’s Word.
The post Daily devotional #6 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily devotional #5 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>It’s happened to all of us, and it’s going to happen again. Those difficult people are out there in droves and they want to rob us of the good and godly day that we’re planning on having.
I saw something funny on social media the other day: My problem is that I want to follow Jesus and slap people too.
Yes, it’s funny – but it also hits the mark. It speaks of the dilemma we all face. Sure, we want to follow Jesus. Absolutely, we want to honour Him. But man … those difficult people make it so incredibly tough.
So, what’s the answer? How do we reconcile our desire to follow Jesus and to slap the difficult people in our lives?
Ephesians 4:2,3 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient and accept each other with love. You are joined together with peace through the Spirit. Do all you can to continue as you are, letting peace hold you together.
The answer is to approach each day with a humble and gentle attitude. That may come naturally to you, but it doesn’t to me. So it’s something I pray about often. And God answers that prayer by breathing His Spirit of patience and acceptance into my heart and yours.
And that sense of God’s peace has a calming effect on you. How do you reconcile your desire to follow Jesus and to slap people?
Invite Him into that place, to help you always to be humble and gentle.
That’s God’s Word.
The post Daily devotional #5 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily devotional #4 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>If you believe in Jesus, if you earnestly set out to follow Him each day, the world’s not going to be pleased with you. And so, many a Christ-follower feels the need to defend themselves and their faith.
That defence often manifests itself in dogmatic political and ideological arguments. Philp Yancey puts it like this:
C.S. Lewis observed that almost all crimes of Christian history have come about when religion is confused with politics. Politics, which always runs by the rules of ungrace, allures us to trade away grace for power, a temptation that the church has often been unable to resist.
And God puts it like this:
Titus 3:7-9 We were made right with God by his grace. God saved us so that we could be his children and look forward to receiving life that never ends. This is a true statement. And I want you to be sure that the people understand these things. Then those who believe in God will be careful to use their lives for doing good. These things are good and will help everyone. Stay away from those who have foolish arguments, who talk about useless family histories, or who make trouble and fight about what the Law of Moses teaches. These things are useless and will not help anyone.
So, according to God, foolish arguments are useless and unhelpful. Did you get that? Instead, use your life for doing good. It’s not about power. It’s not about winning. It’s about grace.
That’s God’s Word.
The post Daily devotional #4 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily devotional #3 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>Have you ever been with a group of people where one person clearly stands out as the smartest one in the room? So you have to ask yourself, how did they become the smartest person in the room?
To be sure, some people are naturally smart. Great. But a good many naturally intelligent people can be really quite arrogant. You know the sort … and it doesn’t take long for us to come to the conclusion that no matter how smart they are, actually they’re fools. Why is that? Well, here it is:
Proverbs 18:1,2 Some people like to do things their own way, and they get upset when people give them advice. Fools don’t want to learn from others. They only want to tell their own ideas.
There it is: Those people who ultimately come across as fools are the ones who don’t listen, who don’t accept advice, who don’t want to learn from others. They’re the ones who want to talk without listening – I mean truly listen – to understand where the other person’s coming from and what they’re really saying.
I know, because I used to be like that. I’d talk without listening. In fact, I’d only stop talking long enough to think of what I was going to say next.
Fortunately, I had a good mentor who taught me that the smartest guy in the room is the one who learns from others. And truly, it was a revelation. The stuff you learn!! Amazing.
The trick is to listen without interrupting. The trick is to realise there are different perspectives, different ways of doing things – some of them, many of them, better than anything we can dream up.
Listen. Learn from others.
That’s God’s Word.
The post Daily devotional #3 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily devotional #2 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>It’s all too easy to believe in Jesus on the one hand, and yet to live a life detached from Him on the other. It’s as though you’re being pulled in two different directions … and eventually, something has to give.
Anyone who believes in Jesus has experienced that. You feel like a hypocrite – and indeed, you look like one too. British evangelist Smith Wigglesworth a person I really revere put it like this:
The reason the world is not seeing Jesus is that Christian people are not filled with Jesus. They are satisfied with attending meetings weekly, reading the Bible occasionally and praying sometimes. It is an awful thing for me to see people who profess to be Christians … lifeless, powerless and in a place where their lives are so parallel to unbelievers’ lives that it is difficult to tell which place they are in, whether in the flesh or in the Spirit.
I wonder how readily you relate to that; whether it resonates with you, even just a little bit. If so, then now is the time to do something about it. Today is the day to reconnect with Jesus, because it’s in Him that the answer lies. He put it like this:
John 15:4,5 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (ESV)
“Abide” is a strong word. When we allow Jesus to influence our thoughts and actions above all else, we’re like that vine that bears much fruit.
That’s God’s Word
The post Daily devotional #2 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>The post Daily Devotional #1 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>You’ve been there, right? You’re going through a patch you’d rather not be going through. You pray fervently for God to be done with it, but this rough patch turns into an extended wilderness tour that really makes no sense.
Such was the plight of the Christians that the Apostle Peter was writing to back in the day. They were being horribly persecuted in every way. Back then, they were believing that Jesus would be coming back like … next Thursday, to rescue them. So this is what the Holy Spirit speaks to them, through Peter:
2 Peter 3:8,9 But don’t forget this one thing, dear friends: To the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord is not being slow in doing what he promised—the way some people understand slowness. But God is being patient with you. He doesn’t want anyone to be lost. He wants everyone to change their ways and stop sinning.
And here we are, a couple of thousand years on, still waiting for Jesus to return – not because God’s slow, but because He wants to give people every opportunity to change their ways, to spend eternity with Him.
Sometimes God slows things down (or at least, that’s how it feels from where we sit) because He has a greater purpose. Sometimes that greater purpose is about us – other times, it’s about someone else. Either way, trust Him. His timing is always perfect.
That’s His Word.
The post Daily Devotional #1 – By Lewis Alistair appeared first on BudaBoss.
]]>