My Second Birthday

All the days ordained for me where written in your book before one of them came to be

Psalm 139:16

Today is my "second" birthday. Or maybe I should call it my deathday. You see, today, 14 years ago, I was saved from what could very easily have been a fatal accident. Every year, when November 15 comes around I have opportunity to reflect upon life and what it has come to mean for me.

One thing I have learned is that life must be lived "on purpose". No drifting through, one day after the other. There is a reason why each of us is here and we must, on a daily basis, find it out and live it.

As I celebrate life, let me share with you some of my favorite scriptures and what they mean to me.

He who walks righteously and speaks what is right, who rejects gain from extortion and keeps his hand from accepting bribes, who stops his ears against plots of murder and shuts his eyes against contemplating evil - this is the man who will dwell on the heights, whose refuge will be the mountain fortress. His bread will be supplied and water will not fail him.

Isaiah 33:15,16

This scripture first caught my attention while I was reading through the Bible as a teenager. It's promise of security and provision for the man who "walks right" is something to look forward to, a verse to live by.

Your GOD is present among you, a strong Warrior there to save you. Happy to have you back, he'll calm you with his love and delight you with his songs.

Zephaniah 3:17

No verse quite captures God's sense of delight in me as His child as this one does. I can just imagine him singing with joy over me. Quite a comfort.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28

There again is that magic word, "purpose". I believe that I have been called "according to God's purpose" which means I'm a part of His plan. Now, because of that, do you know what God is willing to do for me? He will work out all things for my good. All things! All things! There are no superlatives to describe how I feel when the truth of this promise grabs ahold of me.

Join me to celebrate God's gift of life today.

With love, Doosuur

What is in a Name?

I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

Revelations 2:17

My name is Doosuur.

"Why did you give me a girl's name?" I remember asking Mom as a wide-eyed school-aged kid back in Kaduna.

"It's not a girl's name," she answered. "It's unisex."

Dad said the same thing when I asked him later. It was obvious they had rehearsed their lines specifically for this moment. A unisex name. Yeah, right!

But then it has never bothered me that much. Not many people share my name (even if all the others are girls), so I find it unique, even nice. No one seems to judge me when I introduce myself.

No one, that is, until I meet the next Tiv person. I remember telling an old friend of Dad's recently, "my name is Doosuur."

He cocked an eyebrow to the left and looked at me queerly as if I were to blame for my effeminate moniker. "Why do you have a girl's name?" he asked.

What'ya asking me for? I thought. Ask them, this one looking at dad. But I sympathize with the man when I realize I might as well have just said "my name is Susan."

But beyond all the hullabaloo surrounding the name, it has come to be one of the things I like most about myself. Here's what it means:

It is good to depend on the Lord

No better testimony I tell you. I am proud of the way my people name their children. Every Tiv name has a story and some history behind it. The prevailing circumstances at the time of a person's birth usually have a lot to do with what he will be called. We probably borrow heavily from the Jewish way of naming their wards. Throughout scripture it is obvious that there is great significance attached to a name. A sampling:

… she shall be called 'woman' for she was taken out of man (Genesis 2:23)

Adam named his wife Eve [living] because she would become the mother of all the living (Genesis 3:20)

"Your name will be Abraham [father of many], for I have made you a father of many nations (Genesis 17:5)

Then there is Sarah [princess], Isaac [he laughs], Esau [hairy], Jacob [he deceives], Judah [praise], Israel [he struggles with God], Moses [draw out].

The list is endless.

Let us not now forget Jabez [Oh the pain!] who didn't want his name to follow him and prayed famously, "Oh, that you would bless me and extend my lands! Please be with me in all that I do, and keep me from all trouble and pain!"

Each time God gave His friends a new name, it meant for them, and for Him a new level of relationship. When Solomon was born, God considered him so special, He sent the prophet to give him an affectionate pet name, Jedidiah [beloved of the Lord]. Perhaps even more precious to us are the pet names given to us by those close to our heart: "Munchkin", "Honey", "Poffin", "Pumpkin".

Whatever is your name, here's a thought for you. God has a name for you. A name for just the two of you. And you are the only two who will ever know it. Just the two of you. It's your very own pet name.

With love, Doosuur.

The Nice, The Important, The Necessary

If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would be of no value whatsoever.

1 Corinthians 13:2,3

A man just died. On my watch. A young man, all of 25 years, and with his life before him. He was suffering from a rapidly-deteriorating liver disease when he came to the hospital and I did everything I could think of to help him. It is a busy day but I've tried to remain on top of my game and I thought I was doing well enough. But then he died, and only at the moment of his demise did I realize something - I had failed to measure his blood sugar. I had thought of it but had relegated it as less important in the light of his emergency but now, in retrospect, it seems all important. The most distressing thought of all is that I don't know and will never know his blood sugar. That little piece of information would have cost little and could well have saved his life.

Could have … but not now. Not ever. The uncertainty is eating at me...

We all have regrets, hopefully yours are not a matter of life and death. Truth is you can probably think of one earth-shattering mistake, some wrong decision that went a long way to determine your, or someone else's, life. And there's nothing that gnaws at your spirit so much as the feeling that comes with not knowing what could have been. It's a torture of humanity that we can scarce escape since we are faced with decisions every day of our lives, choices that determine the course we will take and the consequences we will face.

Regrets are a part of life, but whatever you regret, you will be fine, so long as you do not regret the things that matter. Things like family, love and God. Perhaps, like me, you are keeping yourself busy with the nice and important things to the neglect of the necessary things. Did you get that?

One man of God said recently, some things are nice; they can be done. Some things are important; they should be done. Some things are necessary; they must be done. My dad says the good is often the enemy of the best. Can you see how perhaps the nice things are keeping you from doing the important things and the important things could stop you from doing the necessary things? Go ahead and regret not indulging in the nice things. Chew your fingers a little for not doing the important. But never, ever, regret missing out on the necessary things. And I think you know which things I am talking about … faith, hope, love.

With love, Doosuur.