My name: nyaknnoAbasi osso, carries a story, and my life is a testimony.
The name means, “I leave you in God’s Holy Hands.”
It was not just a name given to me; looking back at my life,
it seems to have been a prophecy written into my destiny by my Godfearing parents.
My mother gave birth to eight boys, but tragedy took seven of them. I was the only survivor.
Why was I spared? Why did God preserve my life when the lives of my brothers were cut short?
These are questions that have followed me through the years.
I may not have all the answers, but one conviction has grown stronger with time: my life is a gift from God, and my survival must have a purpose.
Growing up, I discovered that life was not always a smooth road.
There were challenges, disappointments, uncertainties and moments when the future seemed difficult to understand.
Yet, somehow, I kept moving forward.
I ventured into the world of books, librarianship, journalism, biography, research and national documentation.
In 1987, I began researching, compiling and editing WHO’S WHO IN NIGERIA, a project that would become a major part of my life’s work through the Biographical Legacy and Research Foundation (BLERF)(blerf.org).
For almost four decades, I have continued to pursue this calling:
documenting the lives, achievements and contributions of Nigerians for present and future generations(blerf.org)
Sometimes, I look back and wonder: How did I keep going?
Where did the inspiration come from?
What sustained me through the difficult seasons?
How did I find the courage to continue when the journey demanded more than human strength?
My answer is the Holy Spirit. I believe the Holy Spirit has been my teacher when I needed understanding,
my guide when I needed direction, my inspiration when I needed fresh ideas, and my comforter when life became difficult.
In my understanding, the Holy Spirit has not merely been part of my spiritual life; He has been central to how I understand my survival, my work and my destiny.
This conviction is one of the major themes of my latest publication, AGAINST ALL ODDS: MY TESTIMONY.
But my testimony does not end with a book.
It has also found expression in my personal worship and meditation Altar, which is called:
“GOD IS HERE: UPPER ROOM WORSHIP CENTRE.”
To me, this name expresses a profound truth:
God’s presence is not merely a subject to discuss; it is a reality to seek, honour and experience.
The Altar represents my desire to worship, pray,meditate, learn, draw closer to God and acknowledge the One whom I believe has sustained me through the years.
When I consider the boy who survived the loss of seven highly intelligent and handsome brothers, the young man who discovered his calling early, by the Grace of God, the archivist and documentalist who devoted decades to preserving Nigeria’s biographical heritage, and the worshipper who built four churches for The Almighty God , and also established a personal Altar to honour God’s presence, I see one continuous story.
A story of survival. A story of service. A story of faith. A story of grace.
I do not claim that I achieved everything by my own wisdom or strength.
Rather, I recognise the importance of discipline, hard work, perseverance, human relationships and opportunities.
But above all these, I acknowledge the hand of God as I understand it, and the mentoring, inspiration, teaching and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
My life has taught me that survival should lead to purpose,
purpose should inspire service, and service should leave a legacy.
I survived not merely to exist, but to contribute. I worked not merely to achieve personal success,
but to preserve knowledge and make it available to others.
And I worship not because I have understood every mystery of life,
but because I have found in God the foundation of my hope and gratitude.
Today, if someone asks me what my name means, I will tell them more than the meaning of its words.
I will tell them the story of a life that has sought to live up to that name.
My name is NyaknnoAbasi Osso. And this is my testimony:
“I leave you in God’s Holy Hands”,
that was my humble Mother’s special appeal to God,
I believe those Holy Hands have carried me through the odds,
sustained my calling and given meaning to my journey.
And as long as I have breath, I will continue to document lives,
preserve legacies, inspire generations and bear witness to the faith that has sustained me.
TO GOD BE THE GLORY!!!
from:
“GOD IS HERE: UPPER ROOM WORSHIP CENTRE”
