Generational Blessings

Deuteronomy 7:9 KJV:
Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;

This same God, who has been working in the affairs of men from the days of Abraham, says that he is the same God, who is faithful to his words, keeping every covenant and promise he makes, ensuring that as long as he lives, his words shall come to pass. God always does his part because it is in his nature to be faithful. There's nothing else to add to his nature because it is all-encompassing and stable, predictable and constant. The reason why we do not enjoy the fullness of his grace and goodness will be a result of our own reaction to his nature.
Watch the words above: he keeps his covenant....... with those who fear him and keep his commandments. That's the sore point. Can we really say we fear the Lord? Do our lives point out to God? Am I laying the foundation of a generational blessing for my family? There's a joy in this verse too: what I do now is a seed that my generation will eat from. Many of us are enjoying the grace and favour that our parents enjoyed. Wouldn't it be nice if we do the same for our own children and generations too?
Nothing is inconsequential or unimportant. Everything is a seed sown into eternity. Watch what you sow, as the fruits of your life will outlive you. His time of favour is here.

Wisdom from above...

James 3:17-18 KJV:
But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.

There are a lot of lessons in the verses quoted above, but there's one central theme that bears emphasis. Wisdom is important for life's decisions, but there's a need to examine the sources of wisdom, and the best of all available options. Not to forget- every decision we make in life has eternal  consequences. Because God has set his purpose in eternity, our lives are to be lived in the full consciousness of where we will spend eternity.
That said, there's a wisdom that comes from above and another that comes from below. The one from above has a major character that distinguishes it from the one below and that is the first attribute mentioned above: it is first of all HOLY. If there's something missing from our walk today, it is holiness. We have a set standard from Monday to Saturday night and a different one on Sundays. We lift up 'holy' hands on Sundays and we strike down others and oppress them during the week. We have compartmentalised our lives so that there are different phases and faces of our lives that we show to other people. We look good on the outside but we are inwardly filthy and pretentious. Believe me, you can only deceive people, and that for a while. God cannot be deceived or mocked. He knows our hearts' state at any time and we would only do well to live our lives in the full consciousness of where God is taking us to.
There are other lessons but we need to pause for a bit here and let it all sink in. My life makes no sense if it is not lived in line with God's commandments. It makes no sense when God's nature is not being produced in me. My life will not make impact without holiness. That should be my main pursuit and focus. Every other benefit accrues as a result of the inner state. If without holiness, no man shall see God, then of what use is any other pursuit? Of what benefit is my trying to outgive God when I have not met his first and major requirement?
Pursue holiness. It is the only standard God approves and rewards. Everything else is an added advantage. His time of favour is here.

Freely Given

Genesis 22:12 KJV:
And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.

It is very easy to overlook the lessons of the passage quoted here, either out of familiarity with the storyline or the knowledge of how it all ended. But let me take this from the beginning and relate it to our lives. Picture a man who had walked with God for so many years, yet had no child of his own. He had heard God speak about a child so he wasn't just imagining the promise. That was all God gave him: a wife and the promise. And for 25 years, he waited and waited......... it was as if God needed reminding. How many of us can wait that long for a promise to be fulfilled? How many of us are content with a Word from God, no matter how long it takes for fulfilment? Can we hold on and hold out without deviating or trying to help God achieve his own promise? Can God trust me with higher responsibilities as I remain faithful in the face of little trials of faith?
Abraham's promise from God came after 25 years and then, the same God who promised and fulfilled it was asking for the same blessing again. I believe this is the fulcrum on which our faith and walk as Christains revolve: until I learn that all I hold belongs to and comes from God and can be demanded for anytime by the owner, my Christian journey will lack substance. There's nothing I have and hold now that would have been possible outside of God. There's nothing worth holding on to if that thing has not been given to you. You can't hold on to it for long. If God owns and holds everything, then there's nothing I can claim as my own. Abraham understood that and was ready to offer Isaac back to the One who gave him in the first place; afterall, if God could give him one, God could as well take him and give him many others in return. Hannah's experience buttresses this fact: until I learn that God owns it all, I don't get to keep anything. Everything I hold now is a privilege and a responsibility which must be accounted for.
God knows when our giving is sincere and he will bless abundantly. No one gives so much to God to make God a debtor. God has given the greatest gift that can be given. There's nothing else he won't give together with his Son. No demand on earth, no matter how complex or uniform, can exhaust the resources of heaven. Rejoice, for his time of favour is here.

Trials as Necessary Ingredients for Growth

John 16:33 KJV:
These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Doesn't this verse sound blunt and discomforting atimes? We look into our lives and we see a lot of trials and tribulations on our journey to eternity. I am sure we wish atimes that the journey was easier and more comfortable.  This is the point where this verse becomes more difficult to accept.
We thought that it was supposed to get easier the closer we got to God. It was supposed to be more pleasurable as we grew in our relationship with God. Unfortunately, with God, the closer the walk, the more diverse the challenges. He does not promise us a trial-free walk; what he has promised us is his ever-abiding presence. God does not promise us a non-accountable life; he seeks to use our lives as a classic example of what he can do with a life that is totally yielded to him.
If we look for peace around us, we would be disappointed, as the world does not give that kind of peace. If you are looking for comfort and convenience, check again what and whom you believed. The call of Christ is peculiar- there's nothing you seek in Christ that the world does not have a cheap alternative. Unfortunately, many settle for the alternative, forgetting that the actual is much better. The peace of God does not remove trials; it gives you grace to bear the trials. The comfort God gives isn't the pity that man offers; it is comfort in trials that strengthen us so that we can in turn be able to comfort others. Everything God does or gives is done with an eye on eternity.
As I journey through life therefore, something must be settled in my heart: God's presence is the ultimate. There's no experience, trial or pain that His presence cannot solve. There's no battle so fierce that can overpower you or any struggle so big that can render you powerless as long as you have in you the One whose words alone can calm every raging sea.
Get God today, see what he can do. The world's system keeps turning, God's grace and presence keep sustaining. His time of favour is here

Success.....

Deuteronomy 32:15 KJV:
But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.

There are many issues we face in life daily that require strength and patience to overcome. Somehow, as we endure under the weight of the trials we face, we become stronger and better as individuals, able to help others overcome their own challenges too.
But there is an area of life that comes with many hazards and it is in the area of success or prosperity. Many of us have handled the loss of a loved one well, many have lost jobs and contracts and still stayed true to the faith, knowing that somehow, God was able to raise them up again. But if there's a pit that has destroyed the testimony of many people, it is in their handling of 'success'.
Somehow, we bear up under adversity, telling ourselves that it is only for a while. We wait for years for God to give us a breakthrough in an area of life and we can be very patient as we wait. We can trust God for the provision of certain things and we have to wait for the passage of time before these things come. We pray for success and prosperity atimes, and we wonder why God does not seem to answer. I believe that God himself knows the dangers success without him can bring. We seek God for prosperity and then kick God out when prosperity comes. We fast and pray for prosperity and breakthrough and then we consume the fruits of God's prosperity as if we were the ones who brought them about by our own power. We live by faith before wealth comes and when there's breakthrough, we want to work out the rest by our own wisdom and power, forgetting that there's nothing we can do or be outside of God.
Jeshurun in our passage above started well. He was picked out of the howling wastes of the desert, without God and without hope. He was helped by God every step of the way. Provisions for his needs were met out of places he had no investments in. In fact, there were provisions from places that had no business supplying such things in the first place. How do you explain water from a rock, or manna for 40 continuous years? The bible testified that God alone led him; no foreign god was with him. That was before success came.
Suddenly, Jeshurun looked at himself and loved what he saw. He suddenly realizes that he had arrived. He had forgotten thd journey,the experiences and the destination God had in mind;  he could only see the present. That is a danger we must avoid. Whatever God gives us and does for us is only a small bit of his big plan. His destination is heaven, every other thing he does is a step towards our eventual arrival. We must never forget that.
Anything God would give us that will deny us heaven will surely not be given to us. We must watch our hearts and lives closely, so that God's 'blessings' do not become stumbling blocks to our safe arrival in heaven.
Never forget God; without him, success is not possible and outside of him, prosperity is always temporary. With Him, heaven is the ultimate. His blessings and success are the benefits. His time of favour is here.

Power of Words.....

Proverbs 18:21 KJV:
Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

This verse and thought bears repeating again because of its importance in our lives and our walk with God. God, who is our father and creator, laid a foundation for this thought by creating the entire universe with words. He simply spoke the entire world into existence and still keeps sustaining it through the power of his word. All we see and hear today are offsprings of the foundations already laid by God. To make matters even better, God made man in his own image, and sealed it by imparting his breath into man. God's creative power, amazing words and higher life were all imparted into man with that breath. Man now has the power to dominate, create, and subdue. What sin did was to corrupt the power and ability God had given; sin could never take away from us what it never gave in the first place, it could only seek to corrupt that which God had given.
We therefore have an opportunity to walk once again in the full realisation of our power, grace and ability in God. God's original plan is still there, and only as I tap into the free stream that comes from God can I fully live out my potential. My words are important because of who I am. It doesn't matter initially who I know; all of us were given the power of words. Most just don't know how to use it right, and they spend the oppourtunity cursing others. But for as many as have God's life in them, there's a deep understanding of the power of words and why we need to watch what we say and how it is said. God doesn't waste words, neither does he talk anyhow; everything he says is purpose-driven and eternity- based. If only we could learn from him, how less complicated our lives would be and the great impact our words would have.
The power of our words are clearly spelt out today. It is a choice to be made between two clear alternatives. There is no middle ground, you just must commit to one direction. May God grant us the grace to watch our words before they end up as destiny-destroyers. Speak life, spread life and get life. His time of favour is here

Your Heart.....

John 14:1 KJV:
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

This admonition by God so many years ago still holds so much power and grace even till today. As we take a look at the things that surround us, and the daily experiences of our lives, we wonder whether we can make it or if our lives will really make impact. We struggle to wake up in the morning and we run around daily, seeking to make ends meet. As we run around, there is a nagging thought in our minds that make us wonder if all these efforts will be worth it at the end of the day.
The same passage in focus gives us insights as to the reason why we must hold on and hold out. If we only had hope for this life, the Bible says we are of all men most miserable. This tells me that there's a reason behind the season and a benefit from the experiences. We can't go through all God brings our way in vain; there's something God is working out as we walk with him.
Relax, we are in safe hands. He has promised us a good end and a home after all these experiences. His promises have never been known to fail and they won't start now. All we need to do, as highlighted above, is to believe in God. His actions, words and conduct show that he can be trusted to keep to keep his promises. His time of favour is here.

Making a Choice!

Matthew 6:24 KJV:
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Life itself is a mixed flavour of choices, oppourtunities and consequences. We are daily faced with choices and decisions to be made, with the attendant effects and results of these choicez being evident around us today. We consider some things as small and insignificant, forgetting that nothing is inconsequential on this side of eternity. Everything counts, as an account must be made of every step, decision and action undertaken by us.
Today's verses highlights a fundamental truth: the only power we have is the power to make a choice. Once a choice is made, the end-game of that choice begins to run our lives. That is why John 3:18 KJV says:  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. The man who has made a choice not to believe, even though he's alive, is condemned already, because that is the end-result of his own choice. As soon as he believes, the end-game has changed; eternal life becomes the reality, even while he's still alive in his physical body.
These words above state the truth as an incontrovertible fact: no man, no matter how skilled or proficient, can serve two masters. You can't love them, serve them or devote attention to them equally. One will enjoy more time and attention in some areas while the other may benefit in some other areas. God brooks no opposition and he's not in competition with anyone. He will not share glory with created things, neither will he allow divided devotion. We must make an active choice on whom to follow: the creator or created things. You can't find a middle ground because there's no middle ground; indifference itself is a choice because you are not deciding actively for God.  Think about it,count the cost and make a decision. I pray it is the right one, so that all ends well. His time of favour is here.

God is for me!

Joshua 23:10 KJV:
One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the Lord your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you.

There is a constant need to check the quality, integrity and nature of your support system. There's no one alive who does not need a form of support or help of a kind; we cannot succeed alone without help. Where we now go for help and support makes all the difference between being an overcomer or being overcome by challenges.
Today's extract makes an assertion, and gives conditions under which that assertion can be true. One of us, with the right support system and the right backing, will chase a thousand. There's a multiplier effect of God's help- you alone with God can achieve more than a million without God's help. Ask the young boy whose small lunch of five loaves and two fishes helped feed over five thousand men, besides women and children. He had twelve baskets of food left, a result that has no basis scientifically, mathematically or physically.
If God fights for you, you don't have to do much- just keep depending absolutely on God for help. It sounds easy to say but the challenges we face and the timeline and deadlines we attach to these challenges keep pushing us to 'help' God, but we forget that we really cannot help God. He's our help; we cannot help ourselves. He's the refuge and strength, we need him, not the other way around.
As we go out today, let us remember this: God fights for those who depend only on Him, and he ensures that they overcome, no matter what the challenges may be. Pity the man without God and without help, left alone to carry the burdens and issues of life alone. God has promised to be there for us, and because his promises never fail, our lives can never go to waste. His time of favour is here.

God is for me!

Romans 8:31-32 NIV:
What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

How I pray that the deep truths revealed in the verses above will be our personal experiences. We keep asking God for things and because we don't receive them as soon as possible, we begin to doubt his power and ability to provide. We seek alternative channels and sources, mostly outside of God, seeking those same things. We tend to avoid God when it seems as if he's not listening to us and we go after dead, deaf and dumb options, which offer no true help.
This is the poser in the verses above: if God could freely and willingly give up his Only Son to die as punishment for sins he knew nothing about, or to bear the cross for crimes he didn't commit, so that we could have life in its fullness, what then,can't God give? If God could turn away from his Son while bearing the sins of the world so that Jesus' new life could give us a new life also, free from sin and its evil end, what can't God give us? The greatest gift has already been given; every other thing is an added benefit of that greatest gift. With Jesus comes the full options; nothing good is withheld from those who already possess the greatest gift.
No wonder then, that the verses above start with that strong assertion: if God be for us, who can be against us? If God is on your side, the quality and quantity of the opposition against you does not matter;  God is in you and for you and his presence, power, prosperity, privileges, protection, provisions and peace are all for you.
As you journey through life, remember, the opposition doesn't count. What you need to work on is the power backing you up. Make sure that the real power himself is for you; he will work out all the other details that bother you. Get his life and really enjoy your life. If he willingly gave his life, there is nothing elsse he will not willingly give you. His time of favour is here.

Ask.....

Matthew 18:19-20 NIV:
“Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

There is an authority and a responsibility God has bestowed upon us who are His children- the grace of asking. It is both a privilege and a responsibility because an understanding of its power unlocks oppourtunities and change that had been thought impossible. The words above were spoken, not by a prophet under inspiration, but by the Lord Jesus himself, and his words are backed up with his never-changing, ever-constant power, presence and purpose.
God has given us a power that no other person can guarantee- that we can change our lives, circumstances and fortunes by asking. All we need to do is to agree with someone on anything, and that thing is settled. Looks like a tall order? The bible is replete with accounts of people who moved mountains, received healings, got life restored and shut death up simply by asking. There's something about the Word of God that is effective and effectual; there's something about what God says and never forgets, no matter how long it takes for that thing to come to pass. What is required of me is to find out what it is that God wants and ask in line with his purpose. It is a settled fact that God will always honour his Word and bring his Word to fulfilment, but he's looking for children who know their stand and can declare his Word and get results.
Many times, what we do is complain and murmur about our situations, or we simply talk about it to people who have their own issues and simply could not care less what happens to you. God alone is the One who truly cares and he alone is the one who will accomplish that which his children demand of him.
Let us ask him; he always hears and listens, and his power is inconquerable and unquestionable. We deny ourselves the best God has on offer when we do not ask him for anything. Ask, until your joy is full and your breakthrough is complete. His time of favour is here.

Going back....

John 21:3 NIV:
“I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

It is difficult to understand the things that went through the minds of the disciples the few days after Jesus had died. They had lived, eaten, drank, lived, slept and walked with him for three and a half years and they had settled into a near-comfortable routine. They had all left their regular jobs to follow Jesus  and their needs had been met in amazing ways. Then the upheaval: Christ was taken away forcibly and killed; the disciples were scattered and had to meet in secret; some claimed they had seen the crucified Christ. I want to believe it was too much for Simon to bear. He had left all to follow Christ; now, it appeared like there was nothing left to aspire to; nothing left to pursue. He just had to go back to familiar surroundings.
Before we criticise Simon, let us examine our own lives. When things get complicated, what do we do? When confusion sets in and all seem lost, where do we go? Don't we atimes seek out the very people and practices that Christ delivered us from, simply because they seem to be a better option than the confusion we face? Don't we atimes seek help from situations, circumstances and things that God had placed under us? Are we not like Simon atimes, seeking help from our past mistakes and ways, trying to change the future by holding on to past errors, actions and thoughts?
We have been saved from the past; we therefore owe it to God to keep the past where it belongs. We were saved to serve going forward, not to be like Lot's wife who was still distracted by the riches of the past, even though they had been  consigned to destruction.
If things don't look clear now, hold on to God. If God called you, he alone can make a way out for you. There are no second options or a way back for anyone who has decided to follow Christ. The danger of going back is so explicitly explained in  Luke 9:62 NIV: Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”  God calls us to a lifetime of service and devotion to him, not a contract of employment, which can be terminated by either party. You are saved for eternity, not for some time. Let us live our lives worthy of heaven so that we can enjoy the fullness of God's blessings. His time of favour is here.

A New Command

John 13:34-35 NIV:
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

I'm wondering why God calls the instructions given here a new commandment. Since the days of the wanderings of Israel in the wilderness, God had been speaking through Moses on love. Deuteronomy 6:4-5 repeats part of the verses quoted above verbatim, which means that really, the wordings of the instructions and commands aren't really so different. What, then, makes the command new?
I believe that the difference between the old and the new testament is the example available for emulation. God's commandment must have been cumbersome and laborious because as many as they were, there was no example to emulate, no presence worth following, no higher inspiration to strive for. Men had no real help, so they had to labour hard to attain God's standards. No wonder man fell so many times. But now, we have an example, an inspiration and a leader to follow and emulate. He has walked the same ground we have walked on, eaten the same food with us, felt the pangs of hunger and thirst, has had to pay tax like normal law-abiding citizen, and faced diverse temptations and trials, and has overcome. His examples and precepts have been noted down and we have been asked to follow his steps. He calls us to walk as he walked, talk as he talked, live as he lived, and love as he loved us. Thaat is the greatest lesson that can be passed down- the lesson of an example worthy of emulation.
Many people hold others to a standard they have not attained themselves, or demand an allegiance from people when they have not declared theirs yet. Christ is the way to follow, whose word matches his walk and who has been proved as a worthy example.
That is what makes our love new. His life has laid down a new standard. Whatever examples we had before have become stale and ineffectual; his life and love is the new levels to aspire to. May his grace grant us the power to live and love just the way Jesus lived and loved. His time of favour is here.

At Your Word.....

Luke 5:5 NIV:
Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

There's a place for effort and work, but there is a higher grace that disgraces effort, just to prove a point. There's a place for human contribution, but there's a grace that discountenances human reasoning and intellect, putting them to shame, just to prove that God is awesome.
Here was Simon and brother, spending the night, the natural time for fishing, finding nothing. Now, they were washing their nets, after a fruitless night. Here comes a stranger, asking to borrow their ship, seeking to use it as a pulpit. Simon didn't know how long it would take but he obeyed, saying nothing. The stranger preached, Simon listened.
Then comes the clincher: the stranger asked Simon to let out his net for a catch of fish. Simon must have looked around to see if the man had a net of his own or any fishing qualifications at all. Here he was, an expert fisherman, with nothing to show for his expertise after a whole night's work, being told by a stranger and a fishing novice, to seek for fish during the day: possibly the worst time for fishing. But I think Simon must have heard the stranger speak from his boat earlier, and must have noticed that there was authority in his words. Simon's words leads the way for our devotion this morning: there's a place for expertise, but God can shame expertise just to prove a point. It doesn't matter how long you have been doing a thing, once God steps in, he can bring a fresh insight, perspective and order into that thing.
Just like Simon said: even though I have done the best I can and failed, even though my expertise and knowledge have disappointed me, even though my best has not been good enough, what I need is a Word from you that can change my situation. That should be our focus also: get a Word from God that can change your situation. Get an assurance from the mouth of God that will sustain you through the storms that will come.
The issue is: do we listen for his voice? Are we patient enough to hear him speak? Do we try our best and our all first, then go to God when all options have failed? Or, do we wait on God to speak before we launch out?
The inspiration behind your words and actions will determine the length and depth of your impact. The inspiration of Jesus' words led to a net-breaking and boat- sinking miracle, the conversion of 4 souls at the same time as disciples and the start of a move by God to spread the gospel all around the world. 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 NIV says:
"But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him."
Never doubt the power of God's Word. It has the power to produce amazing results. Get a word from God today to sustain you through the experiences that will come your way. His Word is alive and powerful. His time of favour is here.

The Importance of Riches

Luke 12:15-21 NIV:
Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”    And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest.  He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’     “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain.  And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’     “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’     “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”

What a life! What a waste! What a loss of focus and a lack of priorities. The world has its standards- it measures success on numerical or quantifiable basis: how much money you have in your bank account; how many cars or houses you own; how much you pay for rent or school fees for the children. Life has become a comparative race, where everyone wants to be like the other person, not caring too much about how that other person came to be how he/she is. We measure ourselves mentally and physically, trying to outdo each other in displays of wealth, wisdom and power. We forget that like Einsten once said in paraphrase: the things that count cannot always be counted in terms of numbers, while what can be counted doesn't always count.
The story above is a lesson in the right priorities: a man who planted crops got a rich harvest. He had no power over the seeds or their capacity to bear fruits. He could not determine beforehand  which ones carried the potential of increase. He just planted all and waited. At the appointed time, the seeds bore fruits: fruits he had no control over, fruits he could determine how they came about. Yet, in 2-3 verses, he assumed total dominance over everything he could see. The word I  was used up to 5 times in those few verses. Where was the place of God or the place of the grace of God and his provision and provenance? Was there anything he had control over: the planting, the waiting period, the harvest? Could he determine the start or end of anything?
One big lesson: we don't owe or hold anything, except that which God gives us grace to hold. We are nothing outside the grace and mercy of God, and we will do well to remember that constantly and regularly. All he gives us is in trust and there's nothing we have or hold that we can retain by our own power.
All the glory for all we see or have must be returned to God, the owner of all things and the determiner of the destinies of men.
May we never be so full of our own importance that we forget the important: God is the ultimate; not what we own or hold but who we know.
His time of favour is here.

Growing in Grace

Luke 2:40 NIV:
And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.

We need the grace of God in our lives. This statement looks out of place in this world of struggles, pains and disappointment. From our waking moment to the time we sleep off, thoughts fill our hearts and minds, worries sap our strength. We worry over what we will eat and when we get it, we then worry about the next meal. We worry over the future of the children God gives us as blessings, wondering whether we can adequately take care of them. Today's passage seeks to change our perspective and focus, turning our attention away from what we need to do to what God alone can do in our lives.
As Jesus grew up, the Bible testified that he grew and waxed strong in spirit. It was both physical and spiritual growth. The child did not know too kuch about how it happened; God himself was at work, sowing the seeds of power and greatness in the child. God who creates all things is also at work today, seeking to bless and increase anyone who is willing to allow him work in their lives.
We need the grace of God in every aspect of our lives. We need his power, mercy, grace, favour, love and Spirit.  We cannot work or walk alone; God's presence and Spirit must be essentials in our lives if we are to make the required impact. God is too great to make insignificant vessels, without impact and without effect in the world.
We were born for impact; we were born to make a change. We cannot do it without God; we can't do anything outside of God's Spirit. Let us depend totally on God, allow him work out that which is his ultimate desire and that which only His Spirit can bring to pass. His time of favour is here.

Burden-Bearer

Psalm 68:19 NIV:
Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.

There's a doctrine that has been going around for some time now- come to Jesus, and all your burdens will be taken away. Well, whatever comes after those words are important in helping you know if the person speaking knows what he/she is saying. There's nowhere in the Bible that God promised his children a total burden-free life; what he promised us is his ever-abiding presence, together with a complete package of trials, burdens, battles and daily victories. Our walk with God begins with an understanding of God's expectations for us and a clear undersranding of what God has promised us.
In his own words, not quoted speech, Jesus himself said in Matthew 11:28-30 NIV: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light". Where then do we read about a burden-free life? Where does he promise us a trial-less passage through life? How does the quality of our convictions and the faith we profess get tested and its quality confirmed without trials and burdens?
Do not be deceived: before you enter in, count the cost. Be sure of what you are getting into before you take that all important decision of following Jesus. He will take you to the destination he has already promised us, but we must also trust him through the routes he takes us through to get there. If we trust his power to grant us a place in heaven, how can we then not trust his wisdom in the most difficult of circumstances?
Our faith is strengthened and our trust in Him is sharpened as we face these challenges. We must not avoid them; we must embrace them, so that the fullness of God can be established in us.
His time of favour is here

The Important and the Necessary

Matthew 4:4 NIV:
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’  ”

These first words Jesus spoke to the devil while he was being tempted hold a few lessons that we will do well to heed as we journey through life. Needs will never end, neither will the desire to satisfy hunger or thirst. These are basic needs that God himself knows are important for our growth and development. No wonder that was the first focus of the devil when he came to tempt Jesus. He knew Jesus was hungry, and he knew he needed food, so he came with a simple proposition: if you are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread. Was there ever a doubt that Jesus was the Son of God? Was there anything on record that shows that he could not turn anything into something else? This experience underlines one of Satan's strategies- twist God's answers and decisions into questions,placing doubt in man's heart, making him think that maybe, God does not want this one for me. Satan did that for Adam and Eve, taking God's instructions and command, twisting it by adding another element to it, then making them see what they stood to achieve by eating the fruit. That is his Modus Operandi.
Thank God for Jesus- who saw beyond the temporal satisfaction of hunger and was able to establish a true fact: bread only satisfies for a while, bread only works for a season. Long after it has been eaten and forgotten, the real hunger remains, one that only the true Bread of Heaven, the Word of God can satisfy. God's Word is the real thing that matters; as He is the only One who can quench the deep thirst in man's heart. Nothing else will work; nothing else matters.
May our hearts seek after the real Bread; the one that can truly satisfy. Nothing else will work; nothing else matters. His time of favour is here.

Are you Mature?

Hebrews 5:14 NIV:
But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Can you handle the constant pressures that the world and its standards bring? Can you bear the burdens of the ever-shifting sands of the world and its priorities? Today's passage seeks us to honestly assess ourselves in the light of the real truth and know where we stand.
How much of God's Word do you know? How much of his Word have you hid in your heart? How much of his Word can you call upon in times of stress and trouble, knowing that his Word is true and will help? How prepared are you to face the challenges that the world will bring your way?
Remember, it is not when the troubles come that you will know what to do; your convictions are built on a daily basis through the decisions you make daily and the steps you take on a daily basis. If you compromise standards in the face of the slightest pressure or you just go with the flow on every issue, how does God trust you to handle higher responsibilities? If you do not have standards to maintain or uphold, how does God determine the contents of your heart or the texture of your character? If you rise and fall with every wave of doctrine that you hear, how do you even know, understand and uphold the truth?
God is calling us to move beyond the milk into the meat of his Word. God desires that we grow beyond dependence on any man into total dependence on Him. He alone can sustain and uphold us; we just must attach ourselves to Him and let his Word lead. It is by constant behaviour that we get better at doing something; and it is by constant exposure to God's Word that our lives get better and have meaning.
Seek His Word today; seek his will, purpose and instructions. That is the way to true growth and independence, and the only way to make meaningful impact for him. His time of favour is here.