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Showing posts from 2019

Be Sober

        Apostle Paul warned Believers about a particular DAY that will come: A DAY that will catch many in the world unawares. As sons of God, he warned us to be vigilant and be sober, so as not to miss this DAY, because it will come like a thief in the night (2Thessalonians 5:1-11). Looking at the happenings in our present world, it looks like this warning is not only misplaced but incredible. So many plan, pray and carry on as if that spoken of DAY has been shelved or events have overtaken its coming!         Variously across the land, as the year draws to a close and a new decade begins, if the Lord tarries, many will have life-changing encounters with God, many others will only have an enjoyable experience without a corresponding change to their lifestyles. Beloved, ‘the’ Day is coming, whether we like it or not, ready or not! A DAY like no other, when the Lord will call away His saints from this world: “For the Lord Himself will descend from Heaven with a shout, with the arch

Living a Fasted Life In Times Like This

“Be ready for service and have your lamps lit. You must be like people waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet so that when he comes and knocks, they can open the door for him at once” (Luke 12:35-36).       To walk in the path of the Lord Jesus Christ, calls for our complete attention and obedience to Him and Him alone. It is a call to follow Him completely – to be ready at all times. A following that demands our complete attention and concentration or we lose sight of Him through unpreparedness. You do not follow someone successfully if you are the one dictating the route. The whole idea of following someone presupposes the fact that we do not know the way, but we know whom we are following: “Jesus told him, ‘I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me’” (John 14:6). When the rich young ruler thought he was well on his way to perfection since he had kept the commandments of the Lord from his youth, the Lord replied: “I

Where Is Your Mind Fixed?

“You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast [that is, committed and focused on You – on both inclination and character], because he trusts and takes refuge in You [with hope and confident expectation]” (Isaiah 26:3, AMP).        The desire of the Lord is that our minds will focus solely on Him. However, we live in a world that tells us different. A world that tells us it is okay to believe in God (something greater than yourself), but to be successful one must be solely occupied by the desire to succeed in our chosen field. As amazing as this idea may be, the end result is far from where God would want us to be, because success in our chosen field does not necessarily translate to living a peaceful, full and satisfied life. The Lord tells us: “…I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows]” (John 10:10b, AMP). Meaning, having a satisfied and enjoyable life is attainable, BUT only in Christ Jesu

Strictly For Those In The Ministry Of ‘Justice’!

“[That is] because the mind of the flesh [with its carnal thoughts and purposes] is hostile to God, for it does not submit itself to God’s Law; indeed it cannot. So then those who are living the life of the flesh [catering to the appetites and impulses of their carnal nature] cannot please or satisfy God, or be acceptable to Him” (Romans 8:7-8, AMP).        Who exactly is a Christian in the times we live in? Is it someone that goes to Church, bears a Christian name, born into a Christian family or speaks ‘christianese’? One may argue, a Christian is one that follows the teachings of Christ; carries the mind of Christ: “Let this same attitude and purpose and [humble] mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus: [Let Him be your example in humility:]” (Philippians 2:5, AMP). Therein lies the clincher! Having the attitude and character of Jesus Christ! Discussing with a colleague that claims to be a Christian, some time ago, brought this discussion to mind – who truly is a Christian! 

Don’t Take Your Eyes Off Him

       Looking at the prevailing moral conditions in our present world, I sometimes wonder how Apostle Paul, Joseph, Daniel, Noah and Job would have lived if they found themselves here. Would they have kept the faith by standing their ground in the knowledge of God? Would they have lost sight of Him that called them?        These are times that are getting more and more difficult to stand for the truth without any coloration. If one is not discerning or a true follower of Christ, one would be easily swayed by the erroneous teachings coming out of some pulpits today. These teachings tell you how to live a good life on earth presently without balancing it with messages to prepare you for the eternity to come! There is an eternity of either of two destinations that will follow: Heaven or Hell. It is here on earth, while living, one will make the decision of which of the destinations to go to after death. There are no in-betweens! Unfortunately, most messages these days don’t sound the

Look Again

“There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes, yet is not washed from its filth” (Proverbs 30:12).        A young sister in a Youth Fellowship discovered that a particular brother had not been attending Bible Studies for awhile, decided to visit the absentee brother in his home. Without informing her unit head or Pastor(s), she went ahead to visit the absentee brother alone. At her visit, the brother was glad. One thing led to the other, and the absentee brother overpowered her and raped her! There was so much outrage! Everyone wanted to crucify the brother (rightly too)! Everyone praised the sister for caring and castigated the brother for being an animal. The verdict was he had no excuse for doing what he had done! The sister was absolved of all blame and encouraged not to relent in her love and care for the brethren. Many of us reading the above may feel something is not quite right with the above story and the way it was resolved! Sadly, that is the reality of our presen

Don’t Despair, Help Is On The Way!

       We now live in days of great distress and anguish across the land. We hear of and see killings, maiming, suicides, kidnappings and many more deadly crimes being committed daily. The economy is nothing to write home about. Many do not see hope! Sadly, many sons of the Kingdom, in order to make ends meet, dabble into business schemes they shouldn’t. Many are in the process of losing their homes, means of livelihood, relationships and many more. Beloved, you may have done everything you can but it’s as if everything is slipping away from you. There are so many messages about why people should work hard in order to make it. You have worked, you are still working hard. But the results on ground tell a different story. Beloved if you are in this situation, don’t despair because help is on the way. What is happening to you, the pressures of life, is not strange. It is a gimmick of hell to pressurize as many to turn from the path of righteousness to the path of wickedness.        Pa

Push, Because Giving Up Is Not An Option

       I had a hilarious conversation with a sister some time ago about Prophets and prophecies. While discussing issues about our Nation, she announced out of the blue that she would be avoiding prophetic meetings henceforth. As this was not the subject of our discussion, I was intrigued and asked why. She retorted, 'the Lord never sends them to give a direct word to me'. ‘What do you mean?’ I replied. ‘Well’ she replied, ‘the preaching is a direct word to everyone seated, but that word of knowledge that is said to others has never been said to me’! The most vexing part for her is sometimes she invites people to the meetings. They get direct ‘thus says the Lord’, but for her, nothing! Her conclusion from this is that God has simply forgotten her or her case is irredeemable! Oh wow! This threw me and I dived back into the Scriptures to ‘see’ what the Lord was saying concerning this issue.          Let’s consider two very distinct characters in the Bible that had two very co

Keep On Keeping On!

      ‘Sometimes I wonder if God still knows I exist. I have done everything as right as I can possibly can as a child of God, yet these delays dog my steps. From my teenage years up to this moment, it’s always one form of delay or the other. I can’t remember when last I caught a break. People tell me ‘keep on keeping on’! I do, but for how long? Ma, I have finally come to the conclusion that God has forgotten me”. These were the painful words a young friend said to me the other day. Several times when faced with life challenges as a child of God, there is always the tendency to think something may be wrong with our walk with the Lord or just as my young friend said, ‘God has forgotten me’!         Let’s take a look at a couple in the Scriptures that had a similar fate. Zechariah, a priest of God and his wife whom the Bible said concerning them: “Both were righteous in God’s sight, living without blame according to all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. But they had no

Who Are You Truly?

        A minister once said the world is governed and held together by principles and not by miracles. This is true. However, not by the principles crafted by men but by the principles of God: “The heavens were made by the word of the Lord, and all the stars, by the breath of His mouth…For He spoke, and it came into being; He commanded and it came into existence” (Psalm 33:6, 9),   “…upholding and maintaining and guiding and propelling the universe by His mighty word of power…” (Hebrews 1:3b, AMP) and “He is the Lord our God; His judgments (principles) govern the whole earth” (Psalm 105:7). This means we owe our existence to God. If we believe this to be true,  it follows that to live a fulfilling life we must be governed by His principles! Sadly, we now live in a world that believes it can craft its own principles to live by. No wonder there is so much chaos across the globe. When the created being chooses to go against its nature (what it was created to be), there are bound to

Be Encouraged 3

         What do you do when those feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, guilt, dejection and paralyzing fear come upon you like a tidal wave? Each day you wake up and see you have to go through the motions of life again, it kills your enthusiasm to get out of bed. You cry out but no one hears and it’s as if no one sees and no one cares. You pretend and go through the motions of living, but inside you are screaming to get out of the trap of hopelessness and worthlessness. To make matters worse, you have a family (member), colleague or a boss that constantly tells you, you are worthless and cannot amount to anything good especially the way the trajectory of your life is going. It looks like there is no one that understands you or is willing to help. Sadly, you see nothing good in yourself and you can’t seem to see anything good in the present or the future. No matter the accolades you receive or acquire, all you can think of is how to end it all! Beloved, the fact that you feel tha

Foolish Or…?

       “Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now going to be made complete by the flesh” (Galatians 3:3)? It’s amazing how so many children of God desire to walk by their own appetites and choices; but in order to appear good and religious to their circle of friends, family and Church, they twist the Word of God to suit their appetites and choices. Of course, when things don’t go as planned they blame everyone but themselves. In reality, when we refuse to anchor our beliefs on God’s Word or trust Him to direct us, we are in grave danger emotionally, spiritually and physically: “Anyone who ignores instruction despises himself, but whoever listens to correction acquires good sense” (Proverbs 15:32) and “We must therefore pay even more attention to what we have heard, so that we will not drift away” (Hebrews 2:1).          I read an article the other day where the writer argued that people ought not to go seeking God’s will in things that concerns them, rath

The St. Valentine's Day Celebration - The Fallacy

Whilst traveling some time ago with a friend, she asked me a question that was very pertinent to our foundation as children of God. She wondered why the celebration of St. Valentine's Day should be so wrong if some good can be gotten from it. She agreed that the foundation of the celebration is idolatrous but the Church was ‘smart’ to have hijacked it to promote the love of God. Her argument was we must not sit in judgment over the brethren or unbelievers; we must try to love the unbelievers, be like them so as to win them to Christ. After all, she continued, Christ visited and ate with sinners and Apostle Paul said he became all things to all men in order to win them to Christ! This is the position of so many in the Body of Christ. That is why we see so many programs organized around the period in order to ‘hijack’ the mood for God!         As logical as the foregoing arguments may sound, it is not a true reflection of God’s Word:      Firstly, the Bible is clear concerning

You Give You Live, You Don’t Give You Die!

       Sometimes I wonder how the widow of Zarephath felt when Prophet Elijah called out to her, without any introductions, and said: “Please bring me a little water in a cup and let me drink. As she went to get it, he called to her and said, ‘Please bring me a piece of bread in your hand’” (1Kings 17:10c-11). Sometimes I wonder at the audacity of the Prophet. However that is not the point of this discuss, rather what must have been going through the mind of the widow. The Bible says she was by the City Gates gathering wood, which we later learnt she was going to use to make a meal for herself and her son. They would eat the meal then die, not because that was her desire, but that was the only option opened to her! But the Prophet interrupted the plan and said, go prepare the food as you have said, but make mine first, afterwards you make some for yourself and your son! The incredible thing about the narrative was she obeyed without question, and the word of the Prophet came to pass

Young People Alert…Whom Are You Copying?

        In this day and age of social media, many young children of God have patterned their lives according to what they see worldly celebrities do. Not minding if it was right or wrong. As a result many lights have gone dim and are in danger of being put out: “In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). Your light is meant to illuminate and drive out the darkness of the world around you; now people are confused as to the manner of ‘light’ you claim to carry: “Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness” (Luke 11:35, NLT). Just like the prodigal son who forgot the son of who he was, so many have lost their way and forgotten whose children they are. Can a lion beg a chicken for food? That is what we do when we try to be like the people of the world instead of emulating our Father in Heaven, the Creator of the heavens and earth and everything therein.     

Time To Seek The Anointing (Power) Of God!

       The Acts of the Apostles is called so because of the unprecedented display of power by the Apostles of Christ. Most of them were unschooled, untrained ordinary individuals that were filled with the overwhelming anointing of the Holy Spirit. None of their great feats were based on intellect, financial prowess, status or personal finesse; it was all about the power of the Holy Spirit: “Now when they saw the boldness and unfettered eloquence of Peter and John and perceived that they were unlearned and untrained in the schools [common men with no educational advantages] they marveled; and they recognized that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13, AMP). The world is searching for answers, souls are crying out and the world is at her wits end, and as God's children, He has made us His vessels through which He reaches the world with solutions. But it's unfortunate that today, most sons of God are attempting to achieve such impact by the wisdom of the world, believing in thei

Where Are You Sitting?

       Every activity of man encompasses these four positions: walking, standing, sitting or lying to sleep or rest. Just as we do these activities physically, we also carry them out spiritually. The context in which these activities occur spiritually affects the outcome of what we do in the physical. No wonder the Bible tells us: “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful…” (Psalm 1:1). Concerning lying down to sleep or rest, Samson laid his head to rest on the wrong lap and he was overpowered, which eventually led to his death. However, for our discussion today, we will be looking at sitting. As the year begins with all manner of resolutions and races, Heaven admonishes us to be mindful of where we sit. Where we sit determines the manner of instructions we will receive, which ultimately affects how we live.   As we walk in this New Year and await His return, the Bible tells us: “He tha