One Cross Is Enough: Poems of Faith, Power, Love and Laughter

By Omawumi Michael Efueye and Tosin Lanipekun

One Cross Is Enough, the title poem in this anthology, reflects on the deep-seated anguish of soul felt by the repeated betrayal of a loved one. The anxiety shared by patients in The Waiting Room of a doctors clinic and the jitters one feels before The Operation are equally intense. Treachery and exploitation are counterbalanced by love, sacrifice, and hope in the epic saga of The Bridge. If all these seem a little too ardent for your taste, maybe you could lose yourself in the playful Tired But Not Exhausted, the comic tale of The Atheist and the Bear, and the story of the hapless vicar in Mistimed. From the philosophical Maybe There Is No God, to limericks, sonnets, odes, and comic poems with a punch line, diverse genres of poetry are explored with the central perspective of faith. This is a guaranteed delightful reading even to novices to poetry.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Sep 1, 2017
• ISBN: 9781546280248

Omawumi Michael Efueye

Omawumi (This Child is Beloved) documents the author’s story as an unplanned pregnancy which his parents spent the better part of its tenure trying to terminate. The irony of his name has bequeathed on him a strong sense of purpose and divine destiny. Holding a Bachelor’s degree in Literature-in-English, and a Masters in Mass Communication, Omawumi has worked in print journalism, in radio and television broadcasting, in the Corporate Affairs and Public Relations arms of a multinational bank and has even starred in a pioneering popular Nigerian soap opera! Omawumi is also the author of A Word in Season, Joseph The Power of Persistence, Different by Design - Marriage A Joyful Union of Opposites as well as several other booklets. Find out more at ASLANLIFE.com. He has a strong burden for traditional family values and, together with Carol, his wife of over 30 years, runs marriage preparatory classes and marriage enhancement seminars and retreats. Omawumi and Carol have two children and an adorable grandson, and they live in London, England.

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© 2017 Omawumi Michael Efueye. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 09/30/2017

ISBN: 978-1-5246-8349-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5246-8350-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5462-8024-8 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgement

A Word In Season

The Sacrifice (Of Praise)

Unequal Partners

The Voice Of The Whirlwind

A World Behind

Walk On Water

Nicodemus

Tired But Not Exhausted

Adelana(His Coming Will Make A Way)

I Too Have A Father

Omawumi (This Child Is Beloved)

One Cross Is Enough

The Test

Calling All Sons And Daughters

Show Me Now Your Glory

Centre Stage

The Waiting Room

THE WAIT

THE VERDICT

Witnesses

Peculiar, But Not Strange

The Bridge

The Operation

Friend To The End

Free To Dance

One Thing

Helpless(Ly) In Love

Sack To Lack

He Came Looking For Me

Where Do You Stand?

It’s A Question Of Priorities

The Depths

Different Levels

A Work In Progress

There’s Probably No God?

…And His Mother’s Name Was…

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town

Jesus Christ Saves Black, White Or Brown

The Adventures Of Robin Hood

The Adventures Of Robbing Loot A Nigerian Politician

You Are Still My Valentine

Overwhelmed

What Is This Worth?

The Stamp Of Authority

A Series Of Internet Based Jokes

The Jerusalem Testimonial

Join Me Soon

To Cap It All

Mistimed

The Bombay Mix

The Belfast Fast

The Rumour Mill

The Rumour ‘Male’

Table Your Argument

Bearing Your Burden

The Spirit Is Willing

The Truth About Friendship

The Way To Church

Is There Anybody Up There?

The Call Of Duty/ Job Done

The Atheist And The Bear

Let My People Go!

Classroom Capers!

Voyage Of Discovery

Water Way To Go

A Whale Of A Time

We Are Londoners

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my first and, for now, only grandchild,

Matthias Jayden Efueye.

You flood my heart with joy unspeakable!

I prophesy and believe you are set for greatness in your generations.

You will know, love, worship and serve God with all your heart and

He will use you for His glory.

He will be a Father to you and you will be His son.

Be strong and do exploits, my son.

Acknowledgement

To God be the glory great things He has done. Father, every day I marvel at the depth of your love for me and the grace and mercy you show me.

May my life be continually used for your glory and praise.

Thank you, my precious family, for sharing me with the work God has called me to. Thank you my Shweety, the wife of my youth who has supported, encouraged and been with me for over three decades. I realise it’s more a testament to your patience and faithfulness, than to my abilities or anything I have done. To Dede and Marcel, I say thank you for withstanding the pressures, demands and expectations of being a P K(Pastor’s Kid). May you receive your full rewards and fulfil destiny.

Sincerest appreciation to the Chapel of Life Core Team and church family. The love we share is real and transformative. Our best is yet to come.

For the cover design, the commissioning and pursuing of the illustrator and putting together the final manuscript I say a hearty thank you to Tosin Lanipekun. Through many difficulties, we finally got here and, boy, is it worth it!

For everyone who contributed financially, morally, and in every other way, I say a big, big thank you. May God bless and reward you.

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A Word In Season

When silhouettes of shame

Form against a backdrop of banality

And a rocky range of rigour;

When a tempestuous sea of turbulent emotions

Feeds a gathering storm of ominous clouds,

And I’m caught in the whirlwind of whimsical worry;

And look to my feet sunken

In the same substance of their constitution

The miry clay

And I cast a cursory glance

At the tenuous links of companionship

And the worms of despair

Have gnawed at their