God with Us!

God with Us!

Joshua 1:9 AMPC

[9] Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Just picture the man Moses, and how Israel must have viewed him as he led them from Egypt to the land of promise. The people of Israel had seen how God used him in parting the Red Sea for them to walk over on dry ground, while the army of Pharaoh all perished in the sea. They had seen Moses do mighty works in the wilderness, from amazing supply of manna and water for the whole of their sojourn in the desert, to the glory of God being made manifest at different times. There was this incident on Mount Sinai where the glory of God was so obvious that the people of Israel were trembling with fear. In all of these encounters, we read, like a footnote, of the man called Joshua. First time this young man was mentioned was when Israel had to fight Amalek, and Joshua had to choose men to fight. Joshua did as commanded, and God gave victory. Do not despise the days of small beginnings. 

A few years later, the same Joshua was at the foot of Mount Sinai, at the tent of meeting, and as one of the emissaries sent to spy out the land of Canaan. In all of these encounters, we see the young man being trusted to represent Moses well. I am not sure this man was in any way interested in replacing Moses, and I can imagine how he felt when the mantle of leadership was being placed on him. He had seen Israel rebel, and even though he had not joined in the rebellion, he had also wandered with the whole of Israel for 40 years. He had seen what disobedience did to Aaron and his sons, as well as to Miriam the sister of Moses. He had witnessed the punishment of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. How could anyone lead such a stubborn and rebellious people like these? This is where God always steps in. The One who commissions always knows what is ahead, and He is the One who supplies what is quite appropriate for the vision that He has birthed.

This is what the verse above is all about. God knew that the shoes that Moses was about to take off was big, but then, it is not about the capacity or ability of the one who would fill the shoes, but the capacity and ability of the One who gave the shoes in the first place. God knew what was ahead, and before the pressure would build, and discouragement would come, He came to reassure Joshua. No man can do God's work without the help of the One who commissions the work. No man can survive on His own. I need the presence and power of God to achieve whatever is His will. He knows the scope of the assignment, and He knows the lives that need that which He has given me. When God commands, all that I need for life is supplied. His name is at stake, and be sure that God can back up His name. He will not leave me alone to fend for myself, whilst I am at work for Him. I must not let the world dictate relevance. With God on my side, and as I obey His leading, I am where He wants me to be. That is impact. Am I where He wants me to be? Are you? God's time of favour is here. 

Choices!

Choices!

Romans 12:21 AMPC

[21] Do not let yourself be overcome by evil, but overcome (master) evil with good.

Paul was writing this eternal to God's beloved people in Rome, who were called to be saints and designated for a consecrated life. This foundation is important, as we consider the message in the verse above. Interestingly, the start of the chapter from where this verse is taken further buttresses the audience, as the first two verses of this chapter admonishes the audience to present their bodes as living sacrifices that are holy and acceptable to God. Paul further counsels the audience not to be conformed to the pattern of the world they were living in, but be transformed by the renewing of their minds, in order to prove for themselves what God's good, pleasing and perfect will for their Iives were. This is the foundation upon which the verse above is laid. Paul was not speaking to people who were totally ignorant of God's desire for holiness and righteousness, but to people who had tasted of the gift and benefits of salvation. 

Do I belong to this group? Am I relying on head knowledge, or what I have heard over the years, but with no personal experience to speak about? Do I know God, and does He know me as His own? Have I accessed the grace that is available to all men, so that my actions and decisions reflect a life of total dedication to God? It is a submitted life that can reflect the glory and virtues of its owner. This is a reality that cannot be faked for a long time, because it is a demand that will cost me a normal, boring life. Reflect on the verse above, where Paul is counselling his audience not to let themselves be overcome by evil. This means that it is possible for a mortal man to be insured against evil, but it is about inner constitution, not outer muscle mass. I do not have the capacity to fight and defeat evil, because the human nature is prone to sin, and cannot choose to do good without some help. Anything sin is evil. 

Sin is the natural state of the fallen human nature, so doing evil will be the norm, rather than the exception. This is where a man needs the help of the One who has defeated evil. The verse above makes it clear that it is possible to choose not to let evil overcome you. This is only available to those who have fulfilled the first part of the chapter from where this last verse above is taken. Who have I truly submitted to? Who sits in charge of my heart's contents and focus? Who is pulling its strings, and determining its pursuits and priorities? An encounter with God is what gives a man the power to choose good over evil. There is no value in education, enlightenment or earnings that will give a man victory over the fallen human nature. Only Jesus can, and His help is always available to all who seek Him. Do not take this verse in isolation of the conditions to be met in order to qualify for help to defeat evil. Have I truly submitted? God's time of favour is here. 

This God!

This God!

2 Peter 3:9 AMPC

[9] The Lord does not delay and is not tardy or slow about what He promises, according to some people's conception of slowness, but He is long-suffering (extraordinarily patient) toward you, not desiring that any should perish, but that all should turn to repentance.

Reflect on the audience for this letter of Simon Peter: he referred to those 'who have received like precious faith' with the apostles through the righteousness of God and Savior Jesus Christ. Precious faith: this is something that has value, is not picked up cheap from the street, and is not something that this world can give you. Of course, if the world cannot give it to you, it cannot take it away unless you let it go. This is the audience that Peter was speaking to. Why is this important? It is the impact of the message in the verse above. As the verses before the one above make clear, just as they are now, there were scoffers and mockers in those days who were walking after their own fleshy desires, saying that Jesus was not coming back, as He had promised. How could mortal man make the immortal God out to be a liar, who could not keep a promise? 

Who would blame them, when it appeared that several generations of prophets had said the same thing, but Jesus still had not returned. One needs the help of the God who promised, to keep hope alive and to remain focused on what is important. Men have come and gone, and it appears that the earth is immovable and unshakeable. Nothing seems to change, and it does appear that evil is not immediately punished. This has given men the courage to keep doing evil. This can make the faith of even the strongest man to shake sometimes, but we have and hold on to the sure word of God that His promises can never fail. The Word of God makes reference to two immutable things by which it is quite impossible for God to lie, which are His Name and His Word. It may appear that promises He made are taking time before they are fulfilled, but He stakes His name when He speaks, and He wants to be trusted. 

Men view delay as being slow. We are the ones who use times and seasons to measure impact and relevance. God is not moved by the things that easily distract men. Men also measure time in years, and we grow old and die, but between life and death is one very important decision that we all need to make, and that is what to do with Jesus. God gives us the power of freewill, so we can make up our mind to submit our lives to Him of our own accord. God does not force Himself on anyone, and He will not go against the exercise of our freewill. He will be patient with us, so we can come to Him. However, I must note that I have not been given forever on this side of eternity to make up my mind. God is not interested in the death of a sinner, but no sinner will enter into the kingdom of heaven. If God is patient, it is because He seeks the heart of man to turn to Him. I must not ignore this gift. Eternity will be glad that I made the right choice. God's time of favour is here. 

Praise!

Praise!

Isaiah 25:1 AMPC

[1] O Lord, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, for You have done wonderful things, even purposes planned of old [and fulfilled] in faithfulness and truth.

Isaiah is known for some amazing prophetic pronouncements, as well as the inspiring revelations he was given at different times in his earthly ministry. We easily remember the account of his vision of the glory of God as He came down in the temple, and how he was cleansed from his sin and commissioned for the assignment God wanted him to achieve. He was also given the prophecy about the coming Messiah, as well as messages of hope for Israel and Judah, and woe to the enemies of God's people. It is not often a very common or frequent theme to see Isaiah use words like these, but it is important to consider the words of the verse above, and how they relate to us today. Consider how long ago these words were spoken, and you still find God as the same today. He has been God long before Isaiah said so here, and long after this present earth ceases to exist, God will still remain God. 

We also note that Isaiah referred to this God as 'my God'. Why is this important? There is power in personal experience. There is power in personal relationship with this God. Many people know about Him, or have heard many things about Him, but there is no way you can replace a personal knowledge of God. People can speak of what they have heard, but it does not carry the same weight as what they have come to personally experience. This is why personal eyewitness testimony is the most powerful evidence you can present. This is why David's testimony about God being His shepherd carried more weight than all of king Saul's life story. What is the right way to handle this personal information? Isaiah challenges us, using his own life as the perfect example, to exalt and praise the name of the Lord. What personal encounters of God can I speak about? 

Isaiah goes on to speak of many reasons why praising this God is the right thing to do. It has to be made clear that whilst it is good to find reasons to praise God, I do not do it, first because of what I get from Him, but because of who I know Him to be. This is an eternal God who is the same yesterday, today and forever. He does not change like shifting shadows, and there are no Impossibilities with Him. From Isaiah's perspective, this is a God who has done wonderful things. His name is WONDERFUL, so it cannot be any surprise that He does things in line with His nature. As an eternal God, He is not limited by time, space or circumstances. His purposes are planned and put in place long before the implementors even know what they are, and because He is True, His plans and purposes are fulfilled in faithfulness and truth. Do you have reasons to praise this God? Has He done anything to deserve your worship? Reflect; then let your heart and lips break out in total praise of the One before whom all knees must bow, either by freewill now, or by compulsion at judgment. God's time of favour is here. 

Identity!

Identity!

Proverbs 18:24 AMPC

[24] The man of many friends [a friend of all the world] will prove himself a bad friend, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. 

We come to the book of one-liners, where each verse is a message on its own. It is also important to note that most of the words of this book are credited to the man called the wisest man on earth at the time. It is also key to note that the wisdom displayed in the book of Proverbs is yet to be rivalled or matched by any other source today. It can even be further argued that many of the human laws that guide relationships today are derived from the words of this book. Is it not obvious that the wisdom of God is critical to human existence? Where would we be without the hand of God to guide and direct our ideas engagements, and interactions? What has become critical is the fact that human interactions are critical to our mental and emotional wellbeing. In His wisdom, God has made it so that we do not survive on our own. We need to interact with other people. 

We have been placed in the midst of other people so that their lives could rub off on us, and we also can influence other people with what we know and have. The human body is also a study in the importance of interaction and coordination with other parts. No part can play the role of other parts well; the eye cannot hear in behalf of the ear. However, it is important to be careful about how much information is allowed to linger on my heart. Not everything that passes in front of me is allowed to come into my life. Not everything that looks good is actually good for me. As much as God wants me to be a blessing to the world around me, I have not been made the saviour of the world. That is the work of Jesus, and He is quite capable to do this work by Himself. I am not Omnipotent; I will not be able to help every single life I come in contact with all at the same time.

There are some who I can help today, and there are some who I may need to signpost to where they can get help. Value is not in how many friends I have, but in how many lives I am able to impact. A man of many friends may think he is quite nice, but the issue is that compromise will happen, when you cannot please all of them at the same time. Do not pursue many friends at the expense of a life of purpose and direction. The few people who can help you on the journey to eternity with God must be the focus. Eventually, many friends will pull you in directions you do not want to go. There is that one person who will be glad for all of eternity that you passed his or her way. Be that one friend that will lead others to the path of eternal life. At the end of this life, what matters are the lives that came to know God through you, and whose lives were secured because you spoke, acted as a child of God, or simpy showed the kind of love that pointed them in the direction of God. Am I that kind of friend? Am I showing people the way to God? God's time of favour is here. 

Imitate!

Imitate!

Ephesians 5:1 AMPC

[1] THEREFORE BE imitators of God [copy Him and follow His example], as well-beloved children [imitate their father..

What does it mean to imitate? Merriam Webster dictionary defines it as ' to copy, mimic, or follow the behavior, speech, actions, or style of someone or something else, often serving as a model. It involves reproducing or acting like another to learn, play, or mock'. I do not know if you noticed the end of the definition above, but please note that for all the good that imitation may present, there is also the evil that it can lead to. Imitation means that someone considers the behaviour, speech, actions, or style of one person as  something to be copied, whether good or bad. This is where the eternal becomes important. Whatever is being imitated grows beyond just the person who is being imitated, or even the person doing the imitation. Take all of that in, as we consider the life of the man who was inspired to write the words of the verse above.

 First, this was a man who the world would say had a terrible past. Indeed, he also owned up to this truth. He was popular with the Jewish leaders of his time, because he was attacking those who had found faith in Jesus. Thank God he had an amazing encounter with God on his way to Damascus. His life turned around, and he began to defend the things he used to oppose. He is credited with writing more than half of the letters of the new testament. That is impact. It was not always about how you start, but how you arrive. There may have been nothing obvious to imitate about Paul's early life, at least, for those who were followers of Jesus, but we know what the latter part of the life of Paul looked like. He became a mentor to quite ait of people, young and old. As I consider my own life today, are there people who are glad that I am in their lives? 

Consider the many letters he wrote, and I am not sure many of us have come to realise that many of these letters were co-written with others. Some were with Silas, some with Timothy, and, in an instance, with Sosthenes. At a time, Timothy was not even known, and many of the Jews did not like him, but by the mentorship and guidance of Paul, Timothy became a name to be reckoned with. Like a true father, Paul provided examples that other people could emulate. Can the same be said of me? Paul was confident to speak the way he did here, because he had also been helped. He had now become the public image of a private walk with God. As it is not possible for man to see God physically, what other better way is there to know who God is, does, or likes, than to see how His children represent Him? Is there any eternal good to be had from anyone imitating my life? God's time of favour is here. 

Granted!

Granted!

Psalm 37:4 AMPC

[4] Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart.

David is the man credited with the words of the verse above. We do not know the full context behind the words above, but we know a few things about the man David himself. He was referred to by God as a man after His own heart. This must have been quite a high bar, because David did not ask for this major reference, or ask God to favour him in a special way, but God, who is Omniscient and knows what would happen, already referred to this man in this way. The world definitely did not see or consider David as perfect in any way, as we know a few of the things he did: a man who took another man's wife, slept with her, and then conspired with his army chief to murder the husband. Interestingly, the husband was listed as one of David's mighty men; men who would give their lives for the king, yet it was the same king who did not consider the value of this man's life. It was not pretty by man's standards, but as we know now, God does not look on the outside. He considers the heart. 

It was clear that David was a man who took great delight in God. He was not a man who paid only lip-service to devotion to God; he made sure that his private life of devotion also matched his public life of service and dedication to God. He was not a man who showed off in public, but had no personal encounter with God. It is important to note that it is not when problems come that a man's heart is revealed; it is usually in the times of comfort and convenience, when no one is looking. As David stayed in the desert and open places with his father's sheep; as he had quiet moments with no distractions, he was building up capacity and endurance for the days of public exploits. The days of quiet resistance to the lion and the bear were preparing him for the days of public and open confrontation with Goliath and Israel's enemies. How do I prepare the right way for the days of trouble that will definitely come my way, as long as I am clothed in this mortal body? 

The answer is in the verse above, which counsels me to 'delight' myself in the Lord. How do I do this? The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines Delight as 'a high degree of gratification, joy, or extreme pleasure, often accompanied by surprise'. This tells me that it is in the Lord that I can truly have the full expression of joy possible. The world will lay emphasis on possession, position, power or privilege; God lays emphasis on a personal encounter with Him. When you have Him, you have everything that really matters. Physical things do not always last; in fact, they were built to be temporary so that you will never be satisfied with them. The right counsel is to make sure that I have God. With Him, all other things find purpose and value. Without Him, it is easy to be distracted by what the world claims is important. With Him in charge of my heart, my desires and petitions will always line up with His will. I must make sure that He is in full control. Is He? God's time of favour is here.