The Right Attitude 2

Leviticus 19:18 KJV

Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.

Let us just break these words down: Thou shall Not avenge. There's no other way to make this clearer or its impact more pronounced than to establish the identity of the one making the statement. For every instruction God gives, there are blessings for obedience and punishment for disobedience. God never wastes words so you can rest assured that every word spoken by him has the backing of his name and he will make sure that they all come to pass.

What's the warning: Do Not Avenge. If we search our hearts sincerely, have we not been a bit Happy that people who did something bad to us met with a bad incident Sometimes later? We didn't pray that they should go through such, but we didn't pray that they shouldn't either. We need to keep God's searchlight over our hearts constantly so he can keep cleansing us of evil thoughts. God judges our intentions and motives and he cannot be deceived by the external.

You may say you do not avenge evil done towards you by others but what about hearing grudges? There's a silent poison that wants to pollute the church today and it is this silent malice or the superiority complex. Someone does something to us, and rather than call the person to understand the motives or intentions behind those actions, we presume we know why and we react accordingly. We play God, interpreting other people's intentions and motives, forgetting that this is God's prerogative. God goes a step further to underline the importance of Not bearing grudges in Matthew 5:23-24 KJV:
Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;    Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

When next you think that God appreciates your fat tithes, you will do well to remember that God accepted Abel first, before accepting his offering. He rejected Cain first, before rejecting his offering. Your life and eternity are much more important than what you own or hold now. Get your priorities right; his time of favour is here.

The Right Subject

Romans 14:11 KJV

For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.

God leaves no one in any doubt as to what lies ahead. There's no doubt that it will all end sooner or later. This world, as we know it, will come to an end, and all its attractions, pleasures and wealth will all pass away. We came into the world with nothing and as surely as God lives, we will leave with nothing.

How, then, are we expected to live? What should be our priorities and pursuits? What should be the focus of our race and goals? I believe this extract speaks as the answer. God is 'swearing' on the truth of his Word and his nature and he's saying: ' As surely as I live.....'. If you know the God you have and you understand his power and might, you may just want to pay attention to what he says after that. He says: 'Every knew shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.' It does not give options, neither is it open to negotiation. When this present life ends, we will all stand before God for judgement. I will like to stand before him, justified that by his grace and strength, I lived right. I would not want to live according to my pleasures now, and find out at the end that I was wrong. I wouldn't want to finish my race and at the end, discover that I had run in vain.

I pray that the seeds I'm sowing now are the seeds that will admit me into glory. I pray that when this life is over, and I stand before God, I can fall down to my knees in willing reverent worship, confessing that Jesus is the Lord of my life. May I not be coerced into bowing the knee to the Lordship of Jesus at the end of my stay on earth. May my life now be worthy of heaven at the end. His time of favour is here.

The Right Stand

Psalms 46:10 KJV

Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

I have heard a lot of comments and quotes on this issue. People say 'Heaven helps those who help themselves' and 'It  is good to wait on the Lord but be sure that you are hustling while you are waiting'. While I do not have an issue with these words, I just pray that we do not misapply them in our lives and miss the purpose of God for us.

How do I remain still before God When it appears as if all my friends and colleagues, and even juniors have all gone ahead of me? What do I do when I can see that what they do is fetching them money and recognition, while it appears as if I'm standing still, not moving an inch towards the fulfilment of my own goals? What do I do, where do I go, how do I pursue my dreams while ensuring that I do not move outside God's will for my life?

One fundamental lesson I have learnt is that I cannot afford to be idle while waiting. Most times, we don't play to our strengths; we are busy trying to be like other people and copying what they do. We Forget that no two people's dreams and visions are the same; you have got to forge your own paths towards the fulfilment of your own purpose, under God's definite leading.  As you plays to your strengths, getting involved in things that you have interests in, you will find your niche. It does not have to be popular, it Just has to be your own.

One thing you must not Forget is an absolute and total dependence on God. That is the focus of this extract. As I pursue excellence in the areas of my strength, I must keep God as the focal point of enablement, not education, physical strength, connections or wealth. No amount of hard labour can get you what grace has not given you. If a man wants to run with you, it will become a race because no natural man wants someone else to be better than he/she is, but if you run with God, grace is available and you will be enabled to go above and beyond your limitations. Afterall, it is my race, not our race. I am not in your own lane, so I am not in competition with you. I just have to finish that race that God has set personally for me.  Indeed, you have to be still before God in your heart. Settle it in there, that no matter what I face, I am going to fix my gaze on God totally. No matter what the world tells me, I will keep my eyes on God as I run, so that he can prove that he is God in my life and all his plans can come to pass in my life. His time of favour is here.