Season's Change

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Hebrews 13:8

It's all happening so fast: The haze and chill are going and it's getting hot and dry again. The birds wake up early to sing their songs of joy and hope as the cold-blooded lizards are quickly dethroned by the warm-blooded rats. The mosquitoes return from their annual leave to give me perhaps the worst episode of malaria of my adult life.

These are all signs of one thing - Season's change. Yes, the Harmattan is on its way out as the Hot Season takes its place. The sun is already hot and blazing here in Kano and I'm so grateful that I don't have to endure it for much longer. You see, these events coincide with the end of my service year and I'm so grateful for the experience and that God has brought me this far. So, here I stand at yet another milestone in life. You know the thing about milestones - on the one side they tell how far you've come while on the other side they warn that there's still some distance to go.

You know the saying, "Change is the only constant thing in life." How true. It's sad to see some of my friends one last time and realize that I may never see them again. It's just the nature of our lives - you can be sure that a few years from now you will be in significantly different circumstances from where you are now. It may have to do with your career, your studies, your relationships, whatever, but it will be different. How do we deal with change? I wonder.

First, God doesn't change and because of that He's a steady anchor. He says it quite clearly in Malachi 3:6, "I am the Lord and I do not change." Our periods of change will definitely bring about feelings of insecurity and uncertainty but it's good to be able to hold onto something, or Someone, as steady and sure as God. He doesn't change and He is very able to help us through these periods.

Secondly, we must embrace change as a necessary part of our lives. Without change we couldn't grow and mature. Our experience would be severely limited making us less effective wherever we find ourselves. So with each new experience learn what you can and enjoy it for what it's worth.

Finally, as with each new season the year brings, there are joys and sorrows that come with every new phase of our lives, but then we can be sure that nothing lasts and the next season is on its way.

With love, Doosuur.

Through The Rubbish Dump

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

2Corinthians 4:7

I observed a young Almajiri (apprentice Muslim youth) as he rummaged through the rubbish dump looking for anything of value. He would pick up this item or that, look at it for a moment or two, and toss it back. "Not Worthy", his seal of disapproval. "How in the world does he expect to find anything useful in this filth?" I wondered. But he plodded right on with hope in his eyes and anticipation in his attitude. He was determined to salvage something out of this royal mess.

In this world where immorality is on the increase and wickedness is rampant, is it not a wonder that God still finds anything or anyone worth saving? He must have a hard time looking at the earth. The Bible says, "The Lord is watching everywhere, keeping his eye on both the evil and the good" (Prov 15:3). What an onerous and unpleasant task, having to take in both the bad and the good. Imagine eating good food that has gone bad. Even the thought is noxious. But He does it in the hope that He will find something good, something worthy of being saved.

But the joyous part of it all is that it really is not about us. He does all the saving. We know that it is by grace that we are saved, through faith. It has nothing to do with ourselves, the way we are. It's not about how we look, how nice we are, or how pleasant is our speech. It's His loving gift all the way, such that none of us can boast about it (Eph 2:8,9). It's no wonder then, that He still finds people to save everyday. He's looking diligently and His task is not yet finished.

As I looked on, the young boy found an old tin can. He looked at it for a moment, turned it over and, with a smile, tossed it into his old rucksack along with the other stuff he had already collected. I observed that as he looked at that can, he was indeed seeing it not as it was but as it could be. Oh, what a wonder! Indeed God sees at once both what I am and what I could be. Is it not that much easier to see why He would choose to save me? Now what I am is not worth much at all. But what I could be! … Well, that's a whole different story.

With love, Doosuur.

Say "Cheese"

A cheerful look brings joy to the heart.

Proverbs 15:30

I was waiting in line at the barbershop today for a haircut when I noticed a young man looking in my direction, with a transistor radio to his ear, and smiling quite sheepishly. I looked away for a while and when I looked again, he was still there. He seemed to be looking at me and his smile seemed pretty silly by now. I did the natural thing and turned away and then, very cautiously, looked again out of the corner of my eye. There he was, staring. This time I looked him full in the face, deliberate and unblinking. He seemed even more amused and even chuckled this time. "What in the world is he looking at?" I wondered as I looked around myself. Was it my clothes? My bald head? Maybe the fact that I was eating aya (I'm out of practice)?

But then I noticed the transistor radio to his ear. He was amused by what he was hearing, not by what he was seeing. As a matter of fact, he may have been looking quite alright, but he wasn't seeing at all. My presence there was of no consequence to him. His smiling countenance was determined not by what he could see but by the unseen - the voice in his ear.

I think that's the way we must be as Christians. Our countenance must be determined by the unseen - the voice in our hearts. 1 Thessalonians 5:16 says "Be joyful always." That's admittedly a tall order and seems absolutely impossible until we begin to learn that our circumstances must not determine our joy. Certainly we cannot always be happy. Life's just not that way. A friend once taught me that happiness is just that - happenness. It's dependent on the good things that happen to us and goes out the window when bad things happen. But joy is an entirely different proposition. It does not depend on anything that happens outside of us. It's based entirely on what's going on inside.

I find it easiest to be joyful by assuring myself, quite truthfully, that regardless of my circumstance all things will work for my good, according to God's promise (Romans 8). And I have the benefit of experience to fall back on. And then there's the peace that comes with just knowing God and being assured that He's intimately concerned with what happens to me.

But I believe we must go the extra step beyond just being joyful to showing joy. Take a look at yourself. Does your face bring a smile or a frown to the next person? How does the way you look reflect the way you feel on the inside? Remember, joy is infectious, so don't just have joy. Show it.

Put a smile on your face and watch your joy spread to others around you. In the Proverbs the teacher seems to suggest that our countenance will directly affect the way we feel and how joyful we are. So why don't we go ahead and try to put a smile on everything and give ourselves a better day.

With love, Doosuur.

When Easy Gets Hard

...Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern.

Matthew 6:32,33

Please forgive all the technical jargon. A prostatectomy is a surgical procedure to remove the prostate, a ball of flesh surrounding the outlet of the urinary bladder that tends to enlarge in elderly men, causing urinary obstruction.

A catheter is a rubber tube used to drain fluid from the bladder.

It's three-quarters of an hour beyond midnight and I just got out of the operating theatre. It began simply enough at about 8 p.m. as we took the elderly man in for his operation. Everything seemed to be going according to the script. He cooperated, the anesthesia worked, the incisions were perfect and, best of all, blood loss was minimal. My chief, the surgeon even toyed with the idea of not packing the wound with adrenaline-soaked gauze (which is used to minimize bleeding). "Better do it for what it's worth," I encouraged him. The surgery went very well, much better than most of our previous prostatectomies. Even the perennially uncooperative catheter worked this time.

We finished in record time, and as he stitched the skin and I packed up the instruments for the decontamination soak, we congratulated ourselves on the success. But then, he noticed that the catheter was draining bloodied fluid. No surprise there, but it gradually got redder and redder. We tried every maneuver in the book - and a few outside - to stop the bleeding without having to re-enter, but to no avail. So we had to open up again - remove all the stitches, enter the bladder and find the source of bleeding. We managed to isolate the bleeders and closed up again. By now exasperation was growing and we cautiously cast furtive glances at the catheter. Right on cue, as he was stitching the skin, the fluid turned red again.

Then I did the sensible thing. I prayed. One of those arrow prayers that went, "God, please just put your finger where this bleeding is and stop it so we can get out of here."

"I'm going to open up again" said the chief.

"No, just wait a minute" I said, as I tried to exercise my faith. And true enough, the fluid cleared. Whew! "Thank you Lord."

Hardly had I expressed my gratitude than the blood came flowing again.

So in we went for the third time. By now everything was coming undone. Instruments slipped to the floor, ligatures came loose, sutures got entangled and even a needle-stick injury. Frustration increased as surgical consumables got exhausted and hunger kicked in, but the bleeding wouldn't stop. We eventually managed to control it and the chief asked my advice, "Can I close up?"

I looked at him with pursed lips. He wasn't going to get a "yes" from me. So we waited. And sure enough, it started again. Blood oozing from just about everywhere. I don't know how we eventually got ourselves out of there but it wasn't without more than a little desperation.

What had started out as a relatively simple procedure had turned into, by his own admission, my chief's most difficult prostatectomy yet. But we finished. I guess that's the bottom line. We finished and thank God for that. It just goes to show that nothing in life is a given. The things we take for granted can take a turn for the worse at a moment's notice and our lives all become complicated by the simple things. But through it all, God remains faithful and He gives us the grace to thrash them out. And for that I'm grateful.

With love, Doosuur.

Measuring by the "mudu"

Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.

Ecclesiastes 11:1

I was on the Takai-to-Kano commute a few days back in a ten-seater bus with 11 people, and as we went along, the conductor kept shouting, "Kano, Kano, Kano, Kano…" for whomever might want to join us. A group of three waved the bus down, and as they entered the conductor warned them "manaji ne" indicating that they would "manage" by sitting on the little projection at the back of the front seat that I believe the manufacturers intended for hand luggage. This sort of thing is not uncommon, particularly here in Kano state and, indeed, throughout the country. It reminded me of a trip I took a while back in Borno state where I was seated in a rickety old station wagon with seventeen, yes one-seven, other people. We were crammed in there like a can of sardines and no-one seemed to mind.

I sometimes wonder if Jesus would have used our crammed transportation as fodder for one of his parables if he had lived in our situation. Perhaps it would have helped in Luke 6 where he said, "Give, and it will be given to you." But the picture he uses reminds me of a Yoruba woman, a half-wrapper around the waist and headdress askew, measuring out rice in the market: "A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap." What a way to describe the return on your investment in the kingdom.

A good measure. First of all, God is fair. He has always been and will always be. You can be sure He will always repay more than you've given. His mudu is larger than yours. God pays.

Pressed down, shaken together. What happens when you shake grains of rice together? They align themselves such that there's no space for space; no allowance for emptiness. Imagine that - a life chock-full of blessings so that there's no space for nothingness. I think that's a pretty good deal.

Running over. God gives enough for you to share with those around. His blessings are best enjoyed in the company of others.

But the underlying principle is this: "With the measure you use, it will be measured to you." And therein lies the principle of investment. What you get in return is always dependent on what you put in. That's why Jesus starts his promise with the simple condition, "Give." I doubt you'll find a better deal anywhere else where the risk is zero, the capital is abundant and the reward is guaranteed. The promise is for thirty-, sixty- and a hundredfold. It's a steal, so why not go ahead and give - your time, your money, your self.

With love, Doosuur.

A Gift for Sallah?

So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you…

Luke 11:9

"Dr. Malu! Dr. Malu!" the kids screamed as they ran towards me this evening for their daily play-around. I dutifully complied by throwing them in the air and spinning them round and round.

Then one of them spoke to me. "Dr. Malu, where's our Sallah money?" Her face was a sight to behold. It was lit up with expectancy, split in two by a wide grin.

"Your Sallah money?" I asked in mock disbelief. "Yes," she replied, "see what Aunty Shola gave us." "Or don't you have any money?" she volunteered. I couldn't help laughing out loud. It really was a joy to behold her hope and expectation for a gift at this time of the year. It really didn't matter so much what I gave them for Sallah as that I gave them something at all. I was glad for their innocence and the blissful gift of ignorance that kids are privy to. For them, 20 Naira is just as good as 200 Naira. Money is money, fullstop. Just give me something.

What stood out for me there was that the little lady asked at all. And secondly that she was ready to excuse me.

I learned sometime ago that one of the worst cancers that eats away at human relationships is unfulfilled expectations. One party wants something that the other party for one reason or the other fails to provide. And so, while one of them feels wronged, the other asks, "what did I do?" One is called insensitive, the other, unreasonable. It goes round and round in a self-perpetuating cycle that leaves both parties worn out and frustrated. Sound familiar? I think it's all too common around us.

Ask any counselor and he'll tell you that perhaps the single most important ingredient for a successful relationship is communication. Let the other person know what you're thinking and feeling from one moment to the next. Tell him and save yourselves the trouble of second-guessing. Ask for what you want. When we do this, there's no doubt in our mind that the next person knows exactly what we expect and has the option of at least discussing it, if not doing it outright.

Another thing I've learned through life, which some of you may not agree with, (please go ahead and say so) is that we must often be ready to excuse our friend/partner. Whether it's a marriage relationship or a peer friendship I believe this principle can often be helpful. Until there is incontrovertible reason to assume that the other person will not fulfill your expectations because of his insensitivity or otherwise, be willing to assume the best in their behalf.

I was really glad that my little friend spoke up and that she was not just willing to excuse my oversight, but even volunteered reasons why I had so wronged her. I didn't take the easy way out, but I was glad all the same. Very sensitive of her.

With love, Doosuur.

A Cold Shower

Mortals make elaborate plans, but GOD has the last word. Put GOD in charge of your work, then what you've planned will take place.

Proverbs 16:1,3

Happy New Year everybody.

I always like having a nice hot bath whenever I get the opportunity, particularly when it's as cold as it is right now in Jos. Where I serve in Kano state there's hardly, make that never, electricity, and because I wake up late and lazy I hardly have time enough to heat water on the stove, so I often have to use cold water. But having a cold shower is quite an ordeal for someone who's not particularly used to it. I could stand in the bathroom for minutes on end, bowl of water in my hand, thinking about everything under the sun aside from having my bath. But what I've discovered is that starting to bath is the hardest part. So I gather as much courage as I can and then dump a full bowl on my head. After that, my best option is to get it over with as soon as I can, no more dallying. So, what's most important is starting.

So here we are, New Year. I'm sure we all think there's something or other we can do better this year than last year. Some of us may even have serious resolutions, things we've determined to do this year. What's it for you? A book you want to read? A new exercise regime? A friendship you want to develop? What's it going to be? Whatever the case, I'm sure it's very honorable. But I'll tell you, the best thing you can do for yourself is to start. Begin now. Don't wait for next month or next week, or even tomorrow. Get it on the road. Buy that journal. Make that call. Draw up that prayer list. Once you've done that, it'll be that much harder to stop and you're less likely to pass through yet another year with a string of unfulfilled plans.

You know the saying, "the first establishes the rest". That's too true. What you do at the beginning of this year will, to a large extent, determine the tone and tempo of the rest of the year. Are you going to sputter through, barely surviving another year or will you cruise through on a high?

I wish you all a great year.

With love, Doosuur.