₦airaland Forum

phew! I've been trying to attend to this thread for a few days now...

thanks to myjoe for injecting a fresh perspective to further enhance the conversation...myjoe you're just so darn smart chei! see response. Lemme try to respond proper...

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@Ihedinobi, I have not removed the hook from your polo shirt yet oh I dey come too...

ROTFLOL...this thread is straight up AWESOME! the picture that prays for God to give me "quality problems" & barney goes to africa - LOL LOL LOL omg I have laughed well today. Nice job folks.

Goshen360: My honourable Moderator, you forget say this topic don surface before. I guess the link is in....let me do a search, brb.

Double honorable sir apostle minister bishop Goshen, I didn't necessarily doubt the story - we just have to be fair & credible when we post stories, articles etc etc.

truthislight: ok, i see.

Well, do read 1timothy 2:3,4

accurate knowledge of the "truth" a necessity for being saved.

John 17:17
truth = God's word

I don't necessarily 'disagree' with you - you have to define what you mean by 'truth' first

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vedaxcool: Even Jesoul could not avoid bantering

JeSoul: I'm sorry fellas I had to hide your posts. As Muskeeto said this thread is supposed to be a fun, reference library thread - not a debating ground. So please keep the banter light, short & sweet if you must post 'off-topic' here. Thanks and cheers.

and what does this have to do with religion? thread locked. (post on the mod thread if you have any comments/complaints)

Please people, stay on topic or open a seperate thread to discuss something else. And no absolutely no more insults or you will be banned. Thanks.

@OP, Link please?

Hi Nkeon,
have you seen these old topics? you may find them useful to your question(s).

Faith Is Trusting God, Not Belief In Doctrine
https://www.nairaland.com/590298/faith-trusting-god-not-belief

Inesqor on the Salvation of the Non-Christian
https://www.nairaland.com/411099/inesqor-salvation-non-christian#5663966

Biblical Inerrancy
https://www.nairaland.com/413985/biblical-inerrancy

^its not about being a mod. Its about recognizing God has people in every "nation" and blanket criticisms that lump an entire group of people into one category is ...silly .

sledge605: This is a true life story and your contributions are required to help me out of this dilemma. I am married for 10yrs and was in the same religious denomination with my wife before and after we got married but after few years i left the church, though, I stopped attending church for a while after i left the church but my wife continued with the children. Now I have found a living church which i attend with the children but my wife has refused to join us.

I feel as the head of the family it is my responsibility to provide and lead the family spiritually and physically but I was referred to as a persecutor by my wife and her family who belongs to the same religious denomination when i told her that she has no choice but to join her husband and children in service to God. My desire is to have my entire family under one spiritual umbrella, guided by the true God and where i will take the lead as the ordained spiritual leader of the family. Now, I need your advice on what to do.

Sequence of events:
-You both attended the same church
-You got married
-You kept on attending the same church
-You decided to stop going to church altogether for a few years while your wife continued with the children
-Years later you decide to return but go to a different church
-You took the children to your new church (probably contrary to what your wife would've wanted)
-You insist your wife must now leave her church and go to this new one but she doesn't want to

^hmmm. Oga being the "head of a family" does not mean you dictate and lord it over those in your care. It means you lead by example, you sacrifice your 'joy' and 'comfort' for what is best for them - not yourself. Your wife is wrong for labeling you a 'prosecutor' (probably as a result of your pushing but she's still wrong) and you should find a way to gently let her know her error - BUT it will not work if you continue to have this dictatorial attitude of my way or the highway.

For now it may be perfectly fine for you both to attend different churches - it is not a big deal. As long as you're both right in heart before God and don't confuse your children by dragging them both ways.

My advice is to humble yourself. Stop commanding and dictating to your wife. As a show of solidarity attend her church every now and then - this will endear her more towards you and what you want. And you will find that she will automatically look for ways to please you without you demanding it. I wish you well sir.

truthislight: @Jesoul

please, are you a catholic(RCC)?

(One off question)

That would be a negative sir . Infact I spent many a thread 'bashing' them here in the past. Silly me.

Vedaxcool & Logicboy, you both need to calm down on the insults, here and on the other 'dialogue' thread. Ist and last warning fellas. Thanks.

I'm sorry fellas I had to hide your posts. As Muskeeto said this thread is supposed to be a fun, reference library thread - not a debating ground. So please keep the banter light, short & sweet if you must post 'off-topic' here. Thanks and cheers.

second and final warning to all Non-catholics - post again and you will be banned.

Reyginus: Jesoul. Seriously, I hate it when my posts are hidden.

and I hate hiding posts. I wish all posters would behave so I never have to.

MMW thks

seyibrown: Why was this thread at ' https://www.nairaland.com/1112119/question-christians ' closed? It was stated in a vulgar manner but it is still a genuine question that will educate others once answered. The answer to be question was touched on in a previous thread on NL but it came up in a totally unrelated discussion (If I remmeber correctly). Will the MOD, please kindly consider allowing the OP to modify his question without that vulgar cartoon poster? Thank you in advance!

I'm glad a Christian is requesting this - kudos Seyi. The poster clearly intended to incite, insult & provoke christians and that is not tolerated in this section. We are very liberal and give posters a long leash - but vulgarity has no place here. And it's curious you're the one asking - the poster himself is offering no remorse. Go figure.

Tpia, I left the thread because troublemakers have the penchant to return and claim they said something else and cry false persecution.

@all posters,
The title clearly says "Catholics only". Please respect that and post elsewhere if you're not one.

The word 'black' in the phrase black Friday is a play on words - companies that may have been in the 'red' (losing money or not making a profit all year) can in one day sell enough to send their books to the 'black' (profit).

Wiki http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Friday_(shopping)
Black Friday is the name given to the day following Thanksgiving Day in the United States, traditionally the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. On this day, most major retailers open extremely early and offer promotional sales to kick off the holiday shopping season, similar to Boxing Day sales in many Commonwealth Nations. Black Friday is not an official holiday, but many non-retail employers also observe this day as a holiday along with Thanksgiving, giving their employees the day off, thereby increasing the number of potential shoppers. It has routinely been the busiest shopping day of the year since 2005,[1] although news reports, which at that time were inaccurate,[2] have described it as the busiest shopping day of the year for a much longer period of time.[3]
The day's name originated in Philadelphia, where it originally was used to describe the heavy and disruptive pedestrian and vehicle traffic which would occur on the day after Thanksgiving.[4][5] Use of the term started before 1961 and began to see broader use outside Philadelphia around 1975. Later an alternative explanation began to be offered: that "Black Friday" indicates the point at which retailers begin to turn a profit, or are "in the black".

As for my personal experience...I can't deal with the hassle of the crowds let alone waiting in line for hours (in freezing cold weather here up north)just to save some money. All this may be worth it if you're buying something expensive like an HDTV or computer gadget that may be on sale for hundreds of dollars off- if you're willing to deal with pushing crowds & cold weather & long wait times - not me lol. . I usually go Friday morning (I'm about to go now self lol), there's generally good sales that last till 12noon. Plus 'Cyber monday' (online version of black Friday) also has deals that rival those in-store these days. Retailers are seeing more and more benefit & savings encouraging shoppers to stay home and do their shopping online

Pls continue on this thread -https://www.nairaland.com/1111590/sss-officers-children-killed-mother

Enigma: @ Jesoul

Gotcha, thanks. The old 'message' can now 'self-destruct'.

Done & done . Thks!

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Chrisbenogor: I shall send the email first before him

I dey wait you...lol

Don't mind me jare, still reading the discussions going on here from time to time.

I am still struggling to deal with Ihedinobi's paradoxical write up. failed state? failing in some? rising in others?


Maybe towards the end I would give my summation of what I think Nigeria is and will become. I always say that when you land at the Lagos airport from outside the country then you have to redefine what many things mean. Corruption is not when baba Kontagura puts in his son in a position that should be meant for someone else it is just survival.
Corruption is not when mama iya basira contracts her daily supply of cow leg to her brother in law regardless of the fact that he is Hindu, its just survival for her family.


In summary I don tire for Nigeria wahala.

Lol@the end quotes...I'm interested to see your reply to Ihedinobi's post.

Tgirl4real: As believers, how do we show love to the unlovable?

By this I mean, those not deserving of it. Probably those that hurt you, hate you or persecute you; considering that the scriptures instructs us to love all men.

Tough question.

-I think first we have to recognize that we are human and allow ourselves to have a human reaction and not feel 'guilty' about it - or else what would one do with Psalm 109?

-Secondly, I'd say give it time. You may not right away be able to forgive, get along with or 'love' the person, but with time, grace and the help of the Holy Spirit it will be done.

-Thirdly, try (easier said than done) to leave it in the hands of God. Pray for a short memory and for God to teach you how to let go.

-Fourth, remind yourself and you too must have hurt or harmed someone else at some other time. Think about how you would like them to treat you and then use that as a template to treat others.

-Lastly, remember you're only human and not perfect and will make mistakes. Allow for those mistakes, and make sure to correct them when you become aware.

God in His good grace will lead us all in His good and perfect will. Amen.

^lol. Why you dey vex now Chris... there is someone for you to spoil rotten

Enigma: May Almighty God continue to lead us in His own way and in His own time to the truths necessary or important for us --- especially using good and joyful things and events.

Amen amen and amen!

On another note, please advise and confirm the topical/reigning colour whether blue --- or the traditional alternative? I've been interested to know since that reference to the first day of the week (some people's equivalent of Sabbath) when addressing Goshen360 --- which makes me think blue it is.

au contraire my friend - the traditional alternative it is we need a proper venue to discuss proper jare... Quote not so I can modify to remove am .

Ihedinobi: Ok, JeSoul, where did the greed come from? And what do you base your hope on?

Lol. See Jamb question.

Greed, along with other fruits of the sinful nature all come from the same place - a man's heart.

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Ihedinobi: I've heard quite a few people label Nigeria a failed state. These same people also hold that she's hopeless and irredeemable. It would also seem that the net migration figures that favor emigration (see 'Economy of Nigeria' at Wikipedia) testifies that Nigerians generally agree. The fluidity of complaint and negative appraisals of the Nigerian situation also appears to help the case of the "no-hopers".

But is Nigeria really a failed state? Is she completely hopeless? When even can a nation be said to have failed? At what point does a nation become irredeemable?

It would appear that there is no consensus as to the definition of a failed state. For some, such a state is one where the government has lost control over its territory; for others, it is where the basic needs of the population are no longer provided for; for yet others, it is where the state cannot interact with other states as a full member of an international community (that is, a state cannot relate to other states in a given context as a state in its own right). So it would appear that a nation is failed or not depending on who's looking.

But I don't think it's really like that. There is a difference between "a nation has failed at [insert point of crisis here]" and "a nation as a political entity is or has failed". The former is very much a solveable issue if the nation is still vital, the latter is a termination, it speaks of an end. The first is a condition that hardly any nation on earth is completely free of; the second is one that nations are exerting all their energies to stay out of or never fall into.

I believe that there are four classes of nations in this regard:

> the Prospering/Thriving

> the Rising

> the Failing

> the Failed

History evidences that nations, kingdoms and empires run the whole course. They rise, thrive, start failing and finally vanish from the picture. It has all happened before, it's happening today, it will happen again. Nothing so new or novel about that. But people living smack in the thick of it easily lose sight of what their current situation is.

What are the indices by which a state may be measured as to its political vitality? This is not meant to be a technical paper, so I'm not going to present such things. Rather am I going to point out what I believe is the bedrock of every complete political failure: an uninterested or unconcerned citizenry.

Yes, perhaps the government fails to provide basic public services. Yes, anarchy may set in and slowly the political structure disintegrate etc etc. But these things among other indicators exist in some form and to some degree in all states. So it is not really their presence or existence in a state that characterizes the state as failed. It is the absence of a will or some impetus to awaken said will to arrest them that results in the state going to the dogs.

Where the people have ceased to care, they will only put up a half-hearted resistance to disintegrating and exploitative forces. Where they have lost all sensitivity to any need to care, such forces perpetuate themselves. Failed states are made out of hopeless and fatalistic people. A vibrant, energetic, believing people can never be kept in the doldrums: all that energy will simply explode. However, the vast majority of the people might also become listless and resigned to their misfortunes. This does not mean that the state is a goner. As long as there is a spark of vitality somewhere, the state will not die (which is what failure here means). It may change, transform, but it will not fail. This is why even conquered nations (remember one of the definitions of the failed state) can throw off the rule of their oppressors and even go on to dominate them.

Is Nigeria failed then? No, absolutely not. True, in a great many ways Nigeria has been, and still is, a failing state. But in others she has been a riser. There is a good deal in her that an agent of positive change can take hold of to turn her from the rocks. She is very much salvageable. She has a people who, while resigning (because of an ingrained culture of marginalization), still have a healthy resentment for the status quo. She still has, however few, citizens who're determined to find her glory and give it back to her. Until the last of those dies off, Nigeria still has a ray of hope. The real question is: are there really options that such citizens can work to beam hope upon the larger population and energize them to retake their home? I think there are.

I really appreciate this write-up. It is well articulated and presents your stance pretty clearly. I will acknowledge the nobility of such a belief - as long as one person exists believing in the affirmative then there's hope - but ultimately dobut its viability and insist it is more of a sentimental persuation than anything else. And if I were to choose - I would hope (pun intended) that you turn out to be right. Cheers bro

tpia1: could have been a nice and informative thread without the unnecessary vulgarity, and also if it were in science section.

everything you people do doesnt have to be coloured by misery, does it?


why not try to do things occasionally in an objective manner, and without your pointless and fruitless attacks on christianity or whatever.

Word.

[quote author=prince_onx]Like I said before, thanks but no thanks! Am not reading all that even if you pay me plus overtime. I have traveled enough and experienced a lot with naija passport and nothing anyone say, good, bad, or ugly will change how I hate naija kpali period.[/quote]Oga you are on the same page you still no get am? the writer was telling about her negative experience with the passport. The title of "beauty" is merely a play on words . Gerrit now?

Enigma: I guess you won't be surprised to hear that for a few weeks now I've been looking for an appropriate opening to ask if you had 'thought again' about that "issue".

My greetings to all and especially the special one.

Hehe...I almost did not see this post (Logicboy & Ihe having a pillow fight )... but yeah...its funny ehn , I have nothing to say in challenge self and in the future I will simply recuse myself from commenting on experiences I have not had - you sef don't be so 'gentle' with your in-law all the time .

^iv4fb, thanks for joining the conversation and don't mind our brothers having a lil fun up there .

iv4fb: You guys are derailing this thread.

Does this mean we can't intelligently discuss our political situation here without religious and personal sentiments? GEJ was voted in because of sentiments and to me I think GEJ is the perfect epitome of punishment Nigerians got for her inability to work with realities.

Dayum lol

@JeSoul, I do believe there's hope, in fact the hope is 'in view', only that such hope is conditional. There's hope if...lots of things must happen for the hope to materialize, it indeed begins with GEJ, more people are now conscious and interested in politics, transparency than ever not that they themselves are transparent.


Come to think of this ...
Growing up, we all wanted to become Engineers, Doctors, Lawyers, I asked some secondary school students what they will want to become when they grow up, I got answers like "i want to hammer", "I want to drive Hummer", "I want to drive this and that" "I want to go to the US", I was just wondering of those were the latest professions, maybe I'm already out of sync with the society. But really this are the set of people that we hope will become future leaders-hope is dead!

Gbam left right center. This is one point Chris was trying to make earlier as well - the signs from the up coming generation are frightening and giving no indication things will get better.

The society, brutal! The society don't care how u make it, just make it! You see teenagers with no roots driving expensive cars and living in luxury-should u say anything, someone will remind you of the word 'jealousy' take a look at religion. We kill each other because our beliefs differs even on this thread. Maybe we should force each other to speak our local dialect other than the english language we all understand. Politics is in line of religion, most ppl didn't vote for buhari because or religion, most people who voted GEJ in also did it out of sentiments. Take a look at government institutions, the local government is a body of people that earn salaries without doing anything, PHCN is a body of people without conscience, the Nigerian Police is a body of disgruntled, heartless and wicked insane people. The church and mosque praises those that destroy the society so long they 'contribute'...the atheist- most of them support homosexuality, indoctrinating our youths in falsehood, they believe in freewill but freedom isn't free, the other religions, they set 'spiritual traps', kill, maim for minor reasons as depicted by Nollywood. Hope sinks in hell with the devil.

I want to take this point and contrast with something Ihedinobi said earlier

Ihedinobi: In other words, I'm refusing to accept a symptom as a root cause. What I have done is go to the root cause - a people so weakened by the need to survive that they can't care about much else. If I can do anything to strengthen these people and make it possible for them to have no need to worry about starving to death, I will succeed in empowering them to confound the possibility of stories like Deep Sight's.

And this Ihedinobi is where I diverge sharply - I don't think it is "suffering" that is driving this decay but rather greed as articulated by 1v4fb. But alas we may simply be rehashing old points now...just wanted to point that out.

And I think I understand where 1v4fb is coming from about hope vs dying hope...rewind back to my first comment, I did say I "must have hope" because I care about my country - but all the signs point in another direction.

ROTFLOL....

part 2. This girl is freaking hilarious...

After nearly being declared persona-non-grata on arrival at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport - for the crime of being in possession of a ‘damaged’ passport - it became mandatory to visit Abuja and have my passport ‘repaired.’ (On Arrival at Murtala Muhammed Airport. http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/chika-ezeanya/on-arrival-at-murtala-mohammed-airport.html)

During the trip to the capital city, I comforted myself with the thought that it will be a quick-fix. As the alleged fault was with broken electronic chips, I imagined that my dealings will be with a passport electrician or rewire. He would take one expert look at my passport, place it under some sort of microscope for a more intense scrutiny, slide it open with some sophisticated gadget and fix it within an hour, all at a minimal cost. Perhaps, we will even haggle over the cost as is the habit with all repairmen.

My travails began at the entrance gate of the Immigration Office. With a deep-etched frown and a violent wave of the metal detector, my taxi was ordered to turn back at the gate by one of the numerous security men in Immigration uniform. I alighted, and walked towards the officer. Looking the other way, and with a dismissive wave of hand, as if shooing a dog away, he directed me to a bungalow by the perimeter fence. Following, I found myself inside a large, almost bare room, but for a desk, two chairs and a noisy ceiling fan. Two ladies sat chatting away. One rose absent mindedly and reached for my bag. The other proceeded to run a metal detector across the length of my frame and afterwards felt all over my body with her hands.

‘Is it new passport or renewal?’ She asked as she felt here and there for an AK47, strapped bomb, charms and amulets.

‘No, it’s nothing serious,’ I reassured her. ‘Just a case of a damaged passport.’

‘That one na new issuance.’ It was her turn to assure me.

‘No,’ I insisted. ‘My passport will expire in 2016. It’s just the electronic chips that need fixing.’

She laughed as if I was insisting that she was European and not African. ‘Aunty, I am telling you. It is treated as new issuance.’

‘Are you serious?’ I gave out my involuntary exclamation phrase. ‘How long will that take?’

‘It’s up to you.’ She answered with a shrug, looking away. ‘As you are early today, if you want it tomorrow morning, we can arrange. But if you go inside it will take about five days.’ She had finished frisking my torso and stood staring at me.

Images of papers, workshops and classes I needed to deliver, filled my mind. ‘Madam, I have to leave this country day after tomorrow, no matter what.’

‘It’s possible,’ she nodded with a smile and looked away. The other officer had gone outside to take a call. I waited for her to complete her sentence, but she looked on straight ahead, an indication that the continuation of the conversation was up to me.

‘How do I go about it?’ I asked.

‘Its N35,000. We do it for people all the time.’ She answered nonchalantly, going back to her seat and humming to the tune of Dbanj’s Oliver Twist. My heart skipped a beat or two. I could barely feed after giving out all the money, clothing and just about everything I came home with. Where did she expect me to get N35,000 from?

‘N35,000?’ I repeated in a voice that came out sounding as if she had asked for my life in exchange for a new passport. ‘For what?’

“Emergency.” She threw out casually.

A lady entered and the officer stood up to hug her warmly calling her ‘my sister.’ Must be family, I thought, stepping aside to allow for familial exchanges, and to make enough room for the lady’s richly embroidered, flowing Arabian gown. The officer reached for her skirt, and grabbing a heavy bunch of keys, opened a drawer and retrieved four passport documents that she handed to the lady.

Heavy gold bracelets jingled as she thumbed through the passports. Her generous smile showed a gold tooth. Money changed hands, and it was the officer’s turn to smile.

‘I will send my sister tomorrow. She needs the same service.’ The officer’s ‘sister’ said as she turned to go. ‘She will call you before she comes.’

‘No problem.’ The officer rose to see her ‘sister’ off a few meters outside the door.

Back inside the room, she extended the Naira notes to me, ‘It’s good as you are here now, count and see that I did not charge you.’

I refused to take the money from her hand. She would go on to insist ‘Count it, Aunty. I charged this woman 35,000 per one and I did four passports for her. Why should I cheat you? ‘

I snapped out of my shock and told her that I would rather go inside to see what I could do for myself.

‘Oya come,’ Her tone was a bit lower. ‘How much do you have?’

I didn’t have anything, I told her that. I thought I was coming to repair a passport, not procure a new one – I had made absolutely no budget for a new passport.

She asked that I wait, pulled out her phone and put a call through. She interspaced every word with ‘sir,’ as she tried to explain ‘my situation.’

Turning to me after her call, she declared, ‘Aunty, we are all human beings. As you have explained your predicament to me, and you know say am not the one that will do it, I will give it you for N28,000, last.’ Her face was sober, as if she just lost a dear friend to a road accident. To my God who made me and you,’ she swore, touching her tongue with the tip of her forefinger and lifting it to the ceiling, ‘I will not even gain anything myself.’

I thanked her for her kindness and proceeded on the long trek from the gate to the main administrative building.

Inside, I was informed that the Nigeria Immigration Service does not hire passport mechanics, electricians or rewires. ‘You need a new passport, madam,’ came the curt reply. My explanations about how I had never heard of a damaged passport in any part of planet earth, and how I did not budget for a new passport and how the expiry date was 2016, were met with disinterested looks and blank stares. I was directed to an office, which ended up becoming my home for four harrowing days.

After parting with less than half the amount charged at the gate, I was issued a new passport. Now, each time I handle the passport, a prayer pours forth from my lips; I supplicate for the longevity of the electronic chips. Please join me in prayers.

Chai! naija! lol. Gosh I have laughed well today