Exceeding!

Exceeding! 

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

Ephesians 3:20‭-‬21 KJV

There is nothing like the personal testimony of someone who has experienced God's amazing power. Men can talk about any matter under the sun, and you would usually hear men argue on a range of matters from politics to sports, but you really can't argue with a personal relationship with God. You either have it or you don't; you can't fake it, no matter how much you have read about it. If I find myself arguing a lot and having to defend my relationship with God to men all the time, maybe I need to fully understand what it is that I have. If you have, you don't have to argue with men. Have I truly experienced this power, or all I know of it is someone else's testimony about it?

I am allowed to dream big, and God is permitted to exceed all those dreams. Paul who wrote these words knew this God, and his own life is a testament to what God can do in a man's life. There was nothing in Paul's life that could have given him an idea of what God would do in and through him in the future. It is within my own realm to ask and think; it is within the realm of God to do. And it is what gets done that is noticed, and that is why we talk about the power of God. God's power is revealed in the things that he brings about in a man's life. It is the testimonies that men see that make them know that indeed this is the hand of God. 

Check out the words: 'exceeding abundantly above' all superlatives over and beyond the ordinary. There is nothing ordinary about the touch of God upon a man's life. There is no life that God touches that ever remains the same. And that power cannot be ignored or limited; I am the one who can limit it in my own life. The ability of God is such that human machination can control or influence but like all things that God does, I have the power to exercise my freewill. God is able to do, but is my life able, willing and ready to receive that which God is able to do? 

The church is such a very fundamental pointer to the power of God. It is the body of Christ, the physical representation of the invisible God, the living proof of the power of God. The church has to be the place where men come to meet Christ, and where lives are changed. When God's glory is seen in my life as a part of the body of Christ, men are moved to come to the God my life is showing off. It will therefore be a disgrace if I claim to know Christ yet his power and presence are not evident in and through me. We are the US referred to in today's extract - all who bear true allegiance to Christ, not the false pretence that men can keep up. 

And this display is a preparation for the eternal, as the church itself is also eternal. It does not end down here, and all we do now is a preparation for that which is to come. I cannot live like there is no tomorrow, as even God who raised Jesus from the dead did it to secure eternal life for all who will come to trust in his Son. If it is only for this earthly life that we have hope, we are of all men most miserable. There is something to look forward to, a place to inherit and a new life to enjoy. The secret and the pathway to it lies in Jesus. That life to come is one that will not end, because it is secured by the life of the one who has no end. All who trust in him earn that life. Do you have that life? Do I have that life? His time of favour is here. 

Opportunity!

Opportunity!

As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. Galatians 6:10 KJV

We come from different backgrounds, with a lot of baggage attached to our family life, education, possession and connections. No two people have the same experience, but for all of us, there is a common end that God has planned for us, and it is the salvation of our souls and eternity with him. While we wait for the full manifestation of his plan, there are a few things we will need to sort out down here on earth, including relationships with other people who also have their own baggage. No man is an island, and no man can survive as one. 

Life in the early church in Acts makes this very clear. All the believers were together and had all things in common. No one had too much and no one had too little. Those who had more than enough brought the excess and laid all at the feet of the apostles for distribution to those who had needs. It is not a wonder then that the church at that time grew exponentially, and even when a couple like Ananias and Sapphira tried to game the system for personal gain, they paid for it with their lives. God sets so much store by the things that he requires from those who bear allegiance to him. I cannot live as I please or act as I choose; there are rules of engagement for all who claim that they are owned by God. 

The standard is that I do good to ALL men first of all, not because the men do good to me first but because good is all my life can produce. When a sponge is soaked, and then squeezed, it will only let out that with which it has been soaked. No matter how hard you try, if a sponge is soaked in ordinary water, it cannot produce ice cream. When life comes at you at the speed of a frieght train and you are confused, what comes out of you when you are squeezed? When pressure tries to take a shot at me, what does my life produce? Whatever it is that comes out of me under pressure is a revelation of whatever it is I have spent time storing up. If I will be able to do good, I must have learnt good and then stored it up, so that when a demand is made for it, my life can produce good. 

It is for all men, no matter what they have done to me. It is hard, but then, if it was not hard, then there will not be any point to Christianity. I do not wait to get anything good first of all, but I give out of all that is in me, so that all of God in me can be made known. There is an emphasis on those who belong to the household of faith, because it is from home that a man's character is formed. I can pretend to people outside but not to those with whom my private life is laid bare. Too many times we focus on making the right impression on people outside, neglecting those who really matter. When the home is at peace, its message will be loud and clear to outsiders. 

I must take advantage of every opportunity given to me to make an impact on the lives of all that God brings my way. I am not to be concerned first about their faith but first about their humanity. Jesus died for all men too, and if I will truly follow him, I cannot live less than that standard. The whole world awaits the manifestation of the sons of God, and how else will the world know except it sees the examples of God in the lives of ordinary men like you and I. His time of favour is here. 

Believe and Receive!

Believe and Receive!

Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Mark 11:24 KJV

Jesus speaks directly to his disciples here, and as it has been shown a number of times, these words are not for the multitude or the crowd that follows from a distance. The crowd loves the attention but not the commitment. The crowd loves the benefits, but would not put in the work required of disciples. Just as it was in the days of Jesus, so is it in our own days today too. The call is for all those who will dare stand out from the crowd desires and follow Jesus closely. Am I one of the many in the crowd, content to just exist, or am I seeking a close and personal walk with Jesus? 

That call to follow Jesus comes with responsibilities. God has not called anyone to seek him in vain, and he has promised that all who come to him will not be cast away. However, when you come, note that it is a call to a life of total commitment, service and dedication to God and his assignment. When I have come in to God, my desires align with God's will. When He is all I know and have, all that I seek looks like him. That is why I get all that I desire, because my desires now line up with his perfect will. Is this true about me, or do I still need to sort out my personal pursuits and priorities? 

Then the promise: I get all that I ask for, when my desires line up with God's will and I ask in faith. Faith is that ingredient that cannot be dispensed with when it comes to pleasing God. With faith, I am saying that I am not moved by the things I see but by the things God says. I am not about pleasing men but pleasing God. Even when things around me don't make sense, I get sense from who I know God is, and what he has said to me. In the final analysis, the world does not run by what I think, but by what God says, so it is his view and opinion that count. If I will get anything from God, the secret is in the place of a personal walk with God. Nothing else, no matter how popular, will work. His time of favour is here. 

Restored!

Restored!

Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.

Micah 7:18 NIV

It takes personal experience for anyone to speak the words of today's extract. You must have encountered different lords and masters to come to the conclusions in today's extract. There are gods, and there is a God. What makes this God different from other gods? First, it is about his power. No other god can claim to be able to pardon sin, but the God introduced to us here is able to do so. How does that work? The value of what this God can do is seen in the gift of his son that he freely gave. Sin was the problem of all men, and no god could provide a way of escape from the consequences of sin until Jesus was revealed. In and through Jesus, man now has a way of escape from sin.

Secondly, even if he could forgive sin, he still had to make a way for sinful man to be able to take advantage of the gift on offer. Of what use would it have been if man needed help but had no way to access the help? God is a holy God, who makes it clear that without holiness, no man shall see the Lord. It does not matter what else you are able to achieve in life; if you do not approach the Holy God the way he can be reached, it would have been a wasted life. 

On those two points above lie a very important point: God will always punish sin, no matter in whom it is found. He does not have favourites when it comes to sin, and the closer I get to God, the more careful I have to be. I read from today's extract that there is a remnant of God's inheritance and the picture I see is of a God who dealt with his own people due to sin. He did not spare them because they were his own. He allowed them to go on exile; some were killed;  some never returned to the land of promise. It did not change who God was, but Israel could not forget its experience of God. As I live my life from day to day, it is also a lesson I must learn: sin will destroy a life. 

Thirdly, God's love is such that he does not let go. Even when there is sin, God's love does not change in nature, intensity and universal availability. He is angry at sin, which is his nature, but he is also quick to show mercy, which is also his nature. This is the dilemma: which side is more prominent? Can I dare take God for granted, claiming his mercy while wallowing in sin? Can I fear God's punishment for sin so much that I cannot embrace his mercy? God is the Judge of all men, giving to each his due, but he is also the Merciful One, showing compassion to all, helping man live up to his standards. I must not take any part of this God for granted, but see him as the complete God that he is. It is that completeness that made Micah here speak these words. 

It was not just a testimony to Micah the speaker here, but to all the nations around that had seen God's dealings with Israel. I must not think I am exempt from God's standard simply because I am being used by him. After all, God will honour his name but wow betide the vessel that is only used on earth and has no value in eternity. God deals with me this way so that the whole world will hear my story and learn. I will also hear about other people's stories and also learn from them: God is a God of mercy, but he is also a God of judgement. I cannot pick and choose that which makes me comfortable; the matter of eternity is such that I must settle where I stand and who I serve now before it starts. It will be too late in eternity if I failed to take advantage of all that God is and offers me now. His time of favour is here. 

In Charge!

In Charge!

The Lord hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all. Psalm 103:19 KJV

The entire chapter of this psalm extols the virtues and character of the Lord. He is presented as the one who heals and forgives but also as the Holy God who punishes sin. In the same chapter, his hatred for sin is highlighted but his love for the sinner is also equally highlighted. This is the balance that all who seek God must know and respect. You cannot claim to know God and not know the things he loves and hates. The only way I can avoid his wrath and live constantly in his mercy is to pursue a personal knowledge and experience of him. Can I say I have that already, or do I really need to seek him out right now, while I still have time? 

It is that personal experience that made David write these words. I must see God as the one and only authority, the King of the whole universe. He is not like the kings of the earth who are made so by men's edicts or put in place by men like themselves. This is a God who has been reigning long before mortal man was ever created, and one who will continue to reign long after this earth, as we know it, will cease to exist. Mortal kingdoms rise and fall; the empire of Egypt ruled the world at a time, then came the Persians, Assyria, the French, the Romans, the Babylonians, Chinese, Russians, Spanish and so on. None of them can be said to be in charge of the world's affairs at the moment. 

Kingdoms have risen for a season and then fallen, some of them to rise no more, but there is a kingdom whose reach and authority have not waned even with the passing of time, and that is the kingdom of the Most High God. His kingdom does not take validity from the earth, so the principles of time and change and chance that impact the earth do not apply to it. It does not take its validity from the approval of men so it does not need man to support it for it to thrive. The kingdom is that of the Lord, with its foundation laid away in the heavens, far from the power, influence, control or impact of man. After all, I can only change the outcome or limit the impact of anything that is totally under my control. If it is not mine to control, it is not mine to limit. The kingdom of this God is one like that: He reigns and rules over all that He has created. 

And as He has created all, all of creation is under his authority. Now, this is where it gets funny: I can claim independence or freedom, but the truth is I am never really free from authority. I am either under the control and influence of the Most High or under the control of the devil. There is no middle ground or fence to sit on, and even not deciding who to submit to is itself a decision. You might not agree, but as long as you are on this earth, the kingdom of this God extends to you. It is not subject to your consent, just as the authority of a nation would extend to all who live in it. It will be good for me to embrace this authority and submit to it now, of my own freewill, so I can enjoy both its earthly as well as eternal benefits. This is the one kingdom whose reach extends beyond the grave, and all who are under its control enjoy victory over the grave too. Am I really a subject of God's kingdom? Is he my God, or do I have other allegiances? Eternity hangs on the answers to these questions. His time of favour is here. 

Consistent!

Consistent!

Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. Hebrews 13:8 KJV

As I read these words, I am reminded that it is only a personal experience that can lead a man to say these words. They do not proceed out of only much reading or out of only much learning; you need something else to add to reading, studying, hearing and learning about God that can help you come to the same conclusion as the writer of these words. God cannot remain at the level of my physical senses; it is good that I hear him or see his mighty works, but if my life will lead to profit, my senses cannot be the sole basis of engagement with God. 

The words show that the writer had tested and found God to be true to his word. How did he know this: by simply comparing the stories he had heard about God and matching them to the story of his own life and the people around him. This is the secret: God always leaves for himself witnesses to his power, might and wisdom on the earth. If I search long enough, I will find at least one person who can testify to the greatness of God. Have I sought God out in this manner? Does God know that he is all I need, desire or seek after? 

The power of God's personal dealings in the life of a man can never be overemphasised. I read the verse just before today's extract and it says that: Remember them.... who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation. These were men to spoke to other people about God, but it did not end there. These men made sure that the God they spoke about was evident in their personal lives too. They were not just concerned with making good impressions, but also on leaving eternal footprints in the lives of all who came their way. That is the power of God made manifest in a man's life. 

God cannot touch a life and that life remains the same. It is not possible. It is either the man responds to the touch or he rejects the touch. Both decisions have eternal consequences and no one can blame God for the consequences of his or her decision. The same God who dealt with Abraham of the old covenant is the same God who dealt with the Ethiopian eunuch under the new covenant. The same God who called the house of Levi to the  priesthood of Israel, is the same God who calls us to the priesthood of all believers. 

Dispensation may change, but God never does. Man may ebb and flow just like the sea that is unpredictable, but he will always find out that God has not moved from where he was and he has not lowered the standard simply because man struggles to meet it. What he called sin under Adam is still sin under Paul, and it will remain sin even in this sinful and adulterous generation. That I struggle with sin does not excuse my behaviour; God's grace is made available so I can live above sin. That I do not do so is not God's fault;  that I refuse to take God up on his offer of salvation, redemption and hope is not God's fault. 

No matter the season, dispensation or generation, God is the same. It is this consistency that gives me hope that if I seek him on his terms, I will always find him. And I also note that the word AND is common to all the times and seasons that are mentioned in today's extract. With God, all the days are the same, because he does not change like shifting shadows. He is the God who created yesterday, and then deals with all the baggage of today, whilst still speaking into tomorrow. That is why he can be trusted, and why I can look forward to whatever day it is, as I know that God has got my back. His time of favour is here.

Serve!

Serve!

Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

Psalm 100:2 KJV

The 21st century Christian has so many names and titles for the new relationship that has been established with God. We refer to salvation as a free gift, which comes with full access into the presence of God, as well as justification before God. We love the new life, and are proud to tell others about this new life, but there is an emphasis that is mostly missed by many of us, and it is about the import and impact of the decision we have made to follow Christ. 

It is not a decision to be taken lightly, as we did not qualify for the call into the faith as a matter of right, but by grace. If it is indeed grace, there is no room for self-confidence or pride. It is a call that demands a quality of life that aligns with the call that I have received, and that is the secret to the word used in today's extract, which is SERVE. 

All who claim to know and follow Christ are called to SERVE. And there is a right attitude to this service, and it must be done with gladness. If all 'service' to God was done with gladness, today's extract would not be so worded. It means then that there is evidence that some service is done out of a sense of duty or fatalism, where one thinks that no matter what I do or don't do, what will be will be, and so I just work, not because I enjoy it, but just to occupy space and time and to get due recognition. The service that God recognises and blesses is the one done in full understanding of who has called me to hmself, who I am working for, and what I stand to gain at the end of it all. 

If I do an audit of my life right now, can I say of a truth that I serve God out of a heart of appreciation or out of a sense of duty? A heart of true service knows at what altar he is to appear regularly. He knows the true source of strength, inspiration and information. He does not worship at the altar of human applause, approval or acceptance but at the presence of God. The key word here too is COME. 

I really need to understand why I am where I am at this point in time. Why has God bought me at a price, and then placed and planted me where I am now? I believe it is because he wants me to show him off to others; that people come to the saving knowledge of Jesus through my life and all its offerings. When people see the joy and gladness that accompany my service, they will want to know more about the reason for my joy. When I have come into contact with the presence of God, the impact on my life  cannot be hidden or faked. When I have come into His presence to receive guidance and direction for my life, I go into the world to impact it with what I have received. 

Do I know now who I am, or do I really need to sort this out first? Has God met me, have I met God, and do I know what he expects of me? Do I have the heart of a servant or of a master, and can God trust me with the treasures that come from his presence? Do I sing in his presence, glad and joyous about the blessings I have received and the privilege of knowing God, or am I all about what I do not yet have? The invitations still stand: SERVE, COME and SING. All of them flow out of a heart of relationship with God, not a sense of duty. Do I have such a heart? His time of favour is here. 

Alignment!

Alignment!

But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

Luke 6:35 KJV

When you read about a BUT, you know that what follows is always the opposite of the usual or the normal. There is nothing God demands of those who follow him that is usual or normal. In fact, the call to salvation itself is not normal, because it goes against the sense of independence that the natural man craves and thrives on. Salvation demands that I give control to another, who is Jesus, and that his life becomes my life. What I do now must reflect my new ownership, and what men see must also align with my new ownership. If it is not obvious who I am, maybe I need to go check again who I follow.

My new ownership will generate enemies; no matter how hard I try, not everyone will love me, because my new life will challenge the usual and the normal. My new ownership calls for new direction and pursuits, and the world will kick back because I am challenging the status quo. Yet, God demands from me that I do not meet fire with fire, but that I love my enemies. That is a tall order for someone with an axe to grind or scores to settle. For me, it cannot be, as I now answer to a different master, and play by different rules. 

I am to do good, not because the other person did good to me, but because each person gives what s/he has. No matter how hard you cultivate an orange tree, it will never give you bananas. No matter how much pressure you apply to a child of God, he should not produce fruit that looks like the works of the flesh. Yes, sometimes, compromise will happen, but it is not normal. If I am truly a child of God, the fruit of my life must align with the seed of God in me. That is the standard, and the fact that we struggle to live up to it does not mean that God will lower the standard for anyone. It is by daily dependence on God that I am able to sustain the life of God in me. 

Where I do have, God expects me to lend, but with a funny caveat: hope for nothing in return. It is total surrender; where I know that nothing I hold is actually mine, but is given to me in trust and that I will use it to bless another person. If I give, I do so with a heart that appreciates what it has been given, and is ready to share the same heart with other people. This is the same God who loved me even when I did not care who he was, and he stretched out his hand to me all the way, until I came. His love will not let go until physical death or rapture defines my eternal reality. His rain falls on all, so also his sun shines on all. He does not discriminate; he seeks the good of all that he has created, and the lives of all who align with him must reflect this. Can this be said of me? Am I a child of God, and does my life truly reflect this ownership status? Does God reckon with me as his own? Eternity is too long a time not to be sure about where I stand with God. His time of favour is here. 

The Power of Hearing!

The Power of Hearing!

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17 KJV

One of the senses that God has given to human beings is that of hearing. The physical, outer ears we see are the receptacles for the inner ear and its components which aid the process of hearing. This sense is so special that it can be trained to pick up sounds that some other people cannot perceive, and that is why we sometimes say that some people hear, while others listen. There is a place for the usage of the physical ears, and there is also a place for the usage of the inner ear. God would have me understand the place, use and limits of each part, and how the question of eternity can be fully answered. 

We spoke about faith yesterday and its value to my walk with both God and men. How does faith then come, and how is it developed? Is there anything I can do of my own accord that will help my faith, or is it all about God alone? Today's extract seems to place a responsibility on me, and that is the duty to hear. If I do not place myself where I can hear God's word, it will be difficult for faith to be birthed in me. If I fill my heart with junk and dirt and pollution, how can I expect that when I want to make a demand, my heart will produce clean air? You can only draw out of an account from which you have put something in, or from an account that you have agreed to pay back whatever it is you take on credit. What am I then spending my time building up in my life account? 

And it is very important that I sort out what and how I hear. Today's extract says faith comes by hearing and the hearing must be by the Word of God. If it is not the word of God, it cannot produce the kind of faith referred to in today's extract. Faith is that ingredient that pleases God, because it tells God that I believe he is, and that he is able to come through for me. I am telling God that I know I am safe with him, and that as long as I keep his word as my sole focus, I will always get the favour of God over all I do. That is what faith gives and does.

It is also hearing that leads to fear, just as it is also hearing that leads to faith. Faith and fear take hold in a man's heart based on the things he listens to and hears. God's Word produces faith, because it reminds me of who God is and what he can do. Man's words produce fear because self - confidence and pride are the things man's words can produce, and these can never lead to the faith that pleases God. I must therefore be careful what and how I hear, because it is what I hear that defines the fruit of my life, which will then decide the eternal end of my life. God's word must be my sole focus, if my life must be focused. I can't listen to the empty threats of men, who cannot guarantee their own tomorrow, but I must keep God as the only one to listen to, so that my life can be all that God formed and planted it to be. His time of favour is here. 

Faith and Reward!

Faith and Reward!

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrews 11:6 KJV

We are in a generation of the audible and the visible. We are moved by the things we hear or see, and the media helps to further those narratives by emphasizing those things that catch our sight and heart. The motivational speaker knows and exploits this; nothing wrong with challenging your thinking and seeking other ways to solve a problem, but when all that holds my heart down is only what my physical senses can perceive, I am indeed limited. Is all I am, have and know only that which I feel, touch, hear, taste, see or smell? 

Beyond that which my physical senses can show me, God wants to show me the higher way of life. There is a level of walking with God that the physical senses cannot explain. All the men and women of the Bible mentioned in Hebrews 11 all had a personal encounter with God. No two people's stories are similar, but the end of all of them was the same: God reckoned with their walk with him because they knew him. They did not allow the physical circumstances of their lives dictate how they would live, but they lived like people who knew that God was in charge and could bring them to the place of fulfilling destiny. 

Faith is a walk, not an abstract concept. Faith is seeing God in all situations of life, no matter how sweet or bitter the daily reality. Faith is the opposite of the excuse of the generation we are in now, which sees everything in the light of what I can get now or what I can put in my mouth now. Faith is holding on to God, no matter how long I am asked to, or even if I do not get what I seek till I die. Abraham was promised seed as many as the sands of the seashore yet based on God's promise, God gave him only 1 son. He did not live to see the full scope of that promise, but today, all who believe in Jesus claim the faith of Abraham. 

No man can please God simply by relying on the convenient and comfortable, which is what the senses give us. We get some comfort when we can see or feel something, but we forget that this God can use the foolish things of this world to shame the wise. Pray me, how do you explain an iron axe head floating on water? How do you explain a man walking on water as Peter did, or how water was turned into wine? If I am waiting for the usual and the familiar, I will miss that which God has for me. There is a reward for men who seek God, and the reward has both earthly and eternal ramifications. 

God does not call a man to seek him in vain. He does not call a man to himself and then leave the man to fend for himself. He takes me on a journey of the discovery of who He is, what he is and can do, then appeals to me to follow him. He has all the answers to all of life's questions, even the one he chooses not to answer, if any. He may give you an answer you do not like or one you do not recognise. He does not stop being God, and my life is better off for it when I allow Him do his work in and through me. I cannot come to God if I do not accept his leadership and authority over me. Taking him as Lord and Saviour is an admission that I believe in him completely, no matter what is ahead. 

And God is not like men, unable to keep a promise. If he promises me a reward for seeking him, his nature is such that it is impossible for him to lie; He will do all that he has promised. I do have my own role to play in all these, but it will be clear that a reward lies at the end of the earthly experience. No matter what has gone before, what is happening now, or what is ahead, I rest in the knowledge that God never forgets his own. If I am truly His, I am safe. If I am not his own, eternity is at stake. Faith is that which guarantees that I will end well. Do I have faith, and is it in the right person? His time of favour is here. 

Hope and Hope!

Hope and Hope!

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. Romans 15:13 KJV

God is known all over the world as different things and at different times. Even for the fathers and mothers of faith of the old testament, God was known to them on a personal level, and no one had the same story as the other. To one, God was the El Shaddai, the Breasted One, who has supply sufficient for all needs, and whose supply can NEVER be exhausted. To yet another, he is the El Gibbor, the Lord of enforcement, the warrior and champion. There are so many other levels of personal encounters with God that the Bible records, and each story is a study in God's unique ability to meet the needs of all men everywhere, no matter how complex the need or deep the pain. This is a God who has given every living, as well as dead human being a unique fingerprint, which cannot be duplicated for any other person. If this God could gift over 7 billion people on earth unique fingerprints, he sure has over 7 billion ways he can solve a particular problem. This is the God Paul knew and prayed to, and the God he seeks to introduce to us here. 

Which God have I met? Which God have you met? The challenge is that problems, trials and success have odd ways of revealing the contents of a man's hearts and the gods he has raised up in his heart. As I grow older, I make friends at the marketplace, the place of work, business, academics and impact. As I grow in these relationships, they impact me one way or another. Some will push me to know more about God while others will seek to pollute the divine which I already know. How I respond to or embrace these influences speak to the kind of future I am looking ahead to. How can a man embrace that which pollutes the divine and still look forward with hope to eternal life with God? How can a man kick against the divine and still demand that the divine work for him? If I am seeking the hope spoken about in today's extract, my life must align with the source of that hope, who is called the God of hope. You cannot demand from God that which you life's pursuits and priorities cannot attract. 

For Paul to pray that the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace, it means that I must have come into faith in God and believe in the God who has all power to seal eternal life for me. The God of hope cannot be real to people who have not come into a personal knowledge and experience of Him. God only gives that which he has, and what he gives are for those who belong to him. Do you belong to God? In fact, the question should be: Does this God know and recognise me as his own? Does he reckon with my heart and can he trust that nothing - success, trials, pain or gain - can distract me from a daily walk with Him? There is joy and peace linked to knowing God. It does not mean that pain will not come or that storms will not rise; it is that the waters, the winds and the pain cannot disrupt the balance of peace and joy that God's presence brings. That is the guarantee that the presence of God in a man's life gives, and which is the precursor to eternal life with God. 

The Holy Spirit is the reality of the presence and the power of God in a man's life. He is the one who assures my heart that all is well, even when the physical does not line up with my expectations. I note also that joy and peace constitute the fruit of the Holy Spirit. I cannot pick and choose that which makes me comfortable, but I must settle for that which God wants to do in my life through the Holy Spirit. When He is present in a life, that life is headed in the right direction. Hope is useless if there is no end product or a reason for its existence. Hope has an eternal destination, and it has to be with God, or else it is not really hope. Who looks forward to that which itself is not guaranteed tomorrow? If it will be hope, it has to outlive me. Do I have this kind of hope? Is the divine a daily reality in my life? Is there anything that keeps me focused on God, or are there some 'viable' distractions keeping my heart occupied? The eternal must be the focus; all other things will fall away with time. His time of favour is here. 

  

Right Company!

Right Company!

He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed. Proverbs 13:20 KJV

Welcome again to the book of one-line messages, where every sentence is a message on its own. One of the most important discoveries a man can make is to know the purpose for which he was formed and planted by God, and then another one is the discovery of the people that God has placed in his/her path towards the fulfilment of that purpose. Both of these issues are very important, and the question of eternity is answered by critical appraisal of both issues. So, how do we proceed?

First, there is a question of the wise. Who is wise? Now, the world sells knowledge for a price, and man can apply what he knows to understand what is required of him, but true wisdom comes from God. You can be smart and savvy, and know how to navigate your way through complex situations, but if what you have cannot guarantee you eternal life with God, what you have is not true wisdom as defined by God. 

Knowledge is good, and understanding of your environment is also good, but none of these can replace the value of the wisdom that comes from God. God is the source of true wisdom; in fact, Jesus is called the Wisdom and Power of God. It means then that all men who are in Christ are the ones who are truly wise and whose lives can be emulated. They are the ones whose lives are put under the microscope here, and I am enjoined to either be wise by linking my life to Christ or to seek out those who already know Christ and follow their example so I can also be wise. 

That is the power of the right kind of association. God has so ordained it that no man, born of woman since Adam, has all that he needs for life all by himself. There is an endowment in me that is a blessing to another person, and there is something in another that will be a blessing to me too. No man can form an island by himself; we all need the help, friendship or assistance of someone else to get to the place we are going. I must choose my companions carefully; I cannot afford to be careless about the things that are eternal. My friends say a lot about the person I am. The people I am comfortable around reveal the kind of person I could be if given the opportunity and the environment.

At no time am I actually alone. I am either trying to move into new circles or trying to break free from old ones. I cannot rise to the top by myself; God will orchestrate events that will help push me towards the place he has prepared for me. However, if I think I can do it on my own, it is likely that I will resist God's help and resort to self - help. It is likely that if the journey seems to be delayed and I am not getting what I want when I want it, I may seek alternatives to God. When you consider where the world is right now, you know it is a real danger. 

All around me are both the wise and the fool, and where I stand or sit depends on who I know and follow myself. If it is God, he will always guide me in the path of wisdom. If it is the world and all its deceits, the end of it all is folly. And like all things that God speaks on, there are eternal consequences to all these things. God does not do anything for fun, and his grace cannot be taken for granted. He wants me to seek him, and he wants to help me on my journey of purpose and eternity. He will not force himself on me, but he will do all he can to convince me that his way is the best for me. After all that, the choice is up to me, but the consequences are already laid out by God. What is your decision? What is mine? His time of favour is here. 

Thanks!

Thanks!

O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. Psalm 105:1 KJV

This is a season of angst and pain; so many things seem to be going wrong. A pandemic has been tearing through the entire world, bringing death and sorrow to so many lives. There is also sickness, as well as poverty and lack, and there are some people who would rather give in to suicide than press on. In the midst of all these, the call still goes out: give thanks to the Lord. First of all, it means that those who can obey this instruction are people who see beyond their present circumstances into who God really is and what he can do. The instruction will be hard to follow for those who have not yet experienced God in a personal way. It is not for those who still play both sides, with one leg in with God and the other with the world. It is for those who know that if God does not help them, then they are indeed lost. They are not willing to compromise, and they will not bend their will to suit the world's current or popular narrative. Can this be said of me? Am I one who is totally given to God, or can the world still find some bit of comfort in and around me? 

The call to give thanks stands for all of eternity. We do our bit down here, but it is an assignment that continues into eternity. We practice for the real thing down here and continue for all of eternity when we rest from our earthly labour. So, the call to give thanks to the Lord isn't really about making God feel like God, because nothing I do or do not do can change who God is. It is when I know who He is and I worship him in that understanding that the people around me know that my life has had a personal encounter of this Lord. How does the world know I know God if I am always silent? Does my conversation, conduct and companions show that I know this Lord, or do I have to always prove that I am a Christian? Does his life flow out of me at all, or do I have to break a leg to prove that I am God's child? If I truly call on God, the world will know the difference. If I do not, no amount of words will convince the world. 

I just think over the words at the start of the verse again and I see it as an instruction as well as advice. If I have reasons to be grateful, I will not have to be coerced or begged to give thanks. If I know that my life is a constant reminder of the grace and mercy of God, I will not have to be cajoled into giving thanks regularly. And there is the call upon the Lord, which is an active, not a passive verb. I can't call on someone without opening my mouth and using my voice. It can be silent or with quiet words but the one I call on must know that I am the one calling. Does God know and recognise my voice as one who calls on him regularly?

As I call on him, I am making him known to all who hear me. As I speak of his mighty power, I am pointing to the amazing power of this God. My words speak of my personal experience. My words point men's attention to the Lord of my life. Men may not know God by accident; it may involve my daily living and speaking, pointing men to the saving knowledge of Jesus, making him known to all who cross my path. I take advantage of every opportunity to make God known; I have become his ambassador, bringing his message of peace, grace and mercy to all. My life is the platform and altar from which all of God is made known, and he is exalted all over the earth. May my life be such that God can use in this way. His time of favour is here. 

Owned!

Owned!

Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 1 Corinthians 3:16 KJV

Paul writes to the church in Corinth, reminding them of their status in Christ. This is the most important consideration for all of us today - the question of ownership. It is ownership that defines pursuits and priorities. If I know who I am, and who I belong to, it saves me from unnecessary comparison or unhealthy competition with anyone else. I was not made like any other person, and I am not expected to live like anyone else. It will be a lack of understanding or appreciation of who I am that will lead me to seek to copy another man or to pattern my life exactly like anyone else. As I take stock of my life right now, what are my life choices? Does my life look like one that has its ownership status clearly defined or is there any doubt as to where I stand? 

Today's extract is another reminder of the eternal importance of this issue. What does it mean to be the temple of God? It does not refer to me as A temple, but as THE temple, which means that there is only one true version of the temple. A temple is a place of great reverence, where the one who is worshipped in the temple has accepted as the place of worship, and where he is willing to put his name. It is a place where all who seek the one to be worshipped must align with the terms and conditions for worship. 

I cannot come into the temple and seek to impose my own will on the one to be worshipped; the one to be worshipped is the one who lays down the rules and is able to punish all who breach the rules of engagement. Do I understand what I have been called into? Do I know the One who calls me to worship him, and have I taken time to learn what he wants, so I can do what he wants? It also means that if I decide not to align with the rules, I open myself up to grave punishment. If I will then avoid evil, I must just fit into the mold laid out by the One who calls me to worship. After all, I did not know him before, but now that I claim to know him, the least I can do is worship him as he wants. Any other thing is sheer rebellion. 

And for everything that God owns, his mark of ownership is on it. It does not matter how useless the world thinks a person is, as long as that person is owned by God, there is both an earthly and eternal usefulness to that person. After all, the world's opinion does not count on people it does not own or control. The world loves to pretend that it is also an owner, and yes, it may have some people under its bondage but it does not really own them. When the owner of the whole world comes, all things will be brought in subjection under him. For now, I do not worry about the world's view and its drama; I just focus on the God who makes a claim to me. I seek to please him as my Lord, because I know that whatever he owns and holds is safe from all evil. 

The Holy Spirit is the physical and spiritual mark of ownership of God upon my life. His presence in me must lead to an external change in me. The world must know that I now serve a different master and also dance to a different tune now. The Holy Spirit is also that inner witness in my inner man, confirming all that God is and says, and preserving my feet as I walk towards eternity. He is that quiet voice telling me that I am his child and on my way to the promised land. The extract for today is couched in form of a question, which all of man must answer at some point in time in their lives. You can answer it now, of your own freewill, deciding for God and choosing to follow him, or you get the choice made for you by force when your will can no longer be exercised. While I have time, I must sort out the question of my ownership. My eternal reality rests on the answer. His time of favour is here. 

Encounters!

Encounters!

Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad. Proverbs 12:25 KJV

Here again we read from the book of Proverbs, where each sentence is a one-line message, full of lessons both for this present life and the life to come. The focus for today's extract is the human heart. It is the place of battle, where a man has to fight for what he is to become and resist whatever it is that does not align with the plan of God for him. It is the place where decisions of life and death are made, and where a man must place a guard in order to sift out that which has eternal value and what does not. It is therefore of great importance at this time to ask myself: do I even know the place and value of my heart to my eternal destiny? 

Men who could not fully understand the place of the heart made terrible mistakes, with some being dammed forever. Judas Iscariot did not pay heed to the silent warning in his heart as he stole from the purse of the disciples. We know how his life ended. Martha was legitimately concerned about what Jesus would eat, but as far as Jesus was concerned, this was not time for food and drinks but for the word of God. 

In both instances, the heart was the battlefield; the place where a decision had to be made about the choices before both. Judas made the decision to go for money and paid with his life; Martha must have realised the importance of the right priorities, because we later see how she received the miracle of Lazarus her brother, and we would assume she was one of the women in the upper room when the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost. It matters what I do with my heart. 

Heaviness in the heart is one of the consequences of the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. Man now has to worry about everything, and unless I have the God of the earth on my side, I must labour for all I want. There is nothing a man can do by himself to heal his heart from depression, because its foundation is actually the sin of man. Man lost his joy when sin came, and with sin comes all of the baggage that must lead to depression. Only when a man turns to God does he experience a lifting of the burdens that may weigh him down. Even when bad things happen, the presence of God, if I allow him, can deal with everything associated with that bad experience. Have I really been to this God for the power that deals with depression? 

Medical science may be of some help, but it really cannot solve a problem that predates it. Medical advancement is unable to cleanse a man from sin or give him power to live above sin, and only the Word of God, who is Jesus himself, has already conquered sin and gives power to all who come to him for the victory over sin. It is that Word of God - Jesus - who is the secret to a life of victory, joy and eternal life. In the Word that is living and active, as Jesus is, as well as the written word backed up by the Life of God himself, lies the power that gives life to the heart and heals it of its hurts and depression. When the Word of God speaks, all the things of the flesh are silent. 

This also relates to human interaction. A heart that has met God is able to share him with a depressed heart. A heart that has experienced victory over sin is able to provide the right words of encouragement to the one still struggling with sin. It is my experience of God that can also lead others to the same experience. Before I dare open my mouth to speak, am I sure I have met the right God, so that my life and lips can produce words that speak of God and can deal with sin and its effect in the life of other men? Even when the depression is as a result of unfortunate circumstances, even death or sickness, the effect of the word inspired by the God of love is enough to deal with the root of that depression. 

I have to totally surrender control to this God and hold nothing back. If I do hold anything back, I am telling God that I can take care of myself by myself. That is the recipe for disaster - that false sense of independence and self sufficiency. It is in surrender that my life truly becomes a place where God is glorified. It is in surrender that I become a tool that God can use to deal with the foundation and effect of sin. I cannot produce the right words if I have not first met the Word of God. It is from the abundance of my personal encounter that my life can be a place of encounter and encouragement to other people. I have to ask myself again: have I met the Word of God? His time of favour is here. 

Warring Right!

Warring Right!

Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

2 Corinthians 10:5 KJV

Paul was not a man given to careless thought or talk or who spoke because he just wanted to hear the sound of his voice. He was a man given divine inspiration to write about some of the principles on which the gospel of Christ is based. He was a man who had walked in the flesh for a long time, and therefore knew the dangers of flesh and its inability to please God. If my life will please God, I must have the same heart. I cannot play both sides, seeking to please God and the world at the same time. Man has tried that over several centuries and failed, yet he continues to try. What decisions do I need to take today in dealing with the selfish, sinful nature I inherited from Adam? God cannot use that old nature; he must deal with it, so that I can the version he can use for exploits. 

It is in that light that today's extract makes sense. The natural man will always fight against the things of God. If I will be on God's side, I have to see things from his perspective. Another natural man is not the enemy, and it is a grave danger to assume that it is. We make enemies out of weak, natural men like ourselves, forgetting that death is the end of all men, and none of us can guarantee that we will see tomorrow, unless God consents. Why would I make a boast over things I have no control over? Even if the devil gives a man power, the devil cannot seal eternal life in heaven for that man, because he also does not have that power. If both man and the devil are this limited, it means that they are not the authority on what works. 

And in this earthly life, God has made it clear that we must fight. Man's fall in the garden of Eden made it clear that nothing would come easy to man, unless that man surrendered total control to God. Even in total surrender, you will still fight, but you are assured of victory because you have the backing of the God called the man of war. And he makes it clear what the rules of engagement for warfare are. If I give total control to God, I receive total victory over all levels of powers. Even in the battle of the mind, where the devil likes to plant the wrong seeds, God gives victory. Even in the battle of words or actions, where men seek to bend the truth to suit their motives by pushing heresies or fantasies contrary to God's word, or violently oppose the truth of God's Word by seeking the lives of all who follow God, like this same Paul did before he met God, God assures me that no matter what happens, He is in charge and is the one who gives victory. 

It means then that I must know God, beyond any shadow of doubt. I must not seek to confront falsehood with incomplete information or half - baked enlightenment. It is not a call to compromise or seeking a middle ground where truth and falsehood can co-exist. God forbid that I water down the truths of God's word because I seek the applause and approval of men. Altars will be raised up in the hearts and lives of men; strange altars will be built up and pushed out as alternatives to the personal knowledge of God; men will seek to actively disobey God and then seek other men to join them in their rebellion. These are the signs of the age we are in, and no amount of prayer and fasting can stop there signs from happening. 

However, the one thing I must do is to know God for myself. It is that personal knowledge that will keep me sane and grounded, even when everything else is going to pieces. When I am on the side of God, he is able to defend me. I can stand and make declarations and heaven will back me up. I can command the obedience of men and spirits, because I am subject to the authority of the Lord of all spirits and men. I must not embark on an assignment for which God has not sent me or seek to make a name for myself which does not glorify God. I must be an obedient child if I will command the obedience of other men. My heart must be God's captive if my life will also take every other thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Is that true of me? His time of favour is here. 

Word-Power!

Word-Power!

If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

John 15:7 KJV

Jesus speaks yet again to his disciples, not to the crowd. He always had a crowd follow him at all times, and he had messages for them at intervals, but when it came to the kingdom life, he only had words for surrendered vessels. These words are not for people who have not yet sorted out their priorities and allegiance; these words are for people who know who they are, who they belong to, and who they are called to serve. Can I say of a truth that I know myself, the one who calls me to hinself as well as the reason for my existence? For God, it is never too late to know him, until it is too late. 

That first and most important condition for a person to have a personal and lasting experience of God is to seek out God and know him well. There is no replacement for a personal encounter of God. For every person in the bible that we read about today, and whose life made an impact, there is a story of a personal walk with God and an encounter with his Word. How would I know God if I do not know his word? How would I know his word if I do not search it out and seek to understand and apply it to my life? Do I read it out of a sense of duty, or because I have found out that it is the source of life, guidance and direction? 

The choice word in today's extract is abide. It is not this temporary arrangement that can be upended at any time, but from available definitions, it is 'to remain stable or fixed in a state' or 'to continue in a place'. There is a sense of long term planning for anyone seeking to abide in a place. You learn the ways and culture of the place you seek to abide in, and you accept the rules and regulations of that new place. That is the sense of abiding that God would have me hold on to. 

As always, I have a choice in this matter. I am not a robot, with no power over the consequences of my actions, but a person with the breath of God in him, so capable of making my own decisions and living with the consequences. The choice of where to abide is mine to make, but God has provided all that I need to make the right choice. If I will have answers to prayers, the secret is in abiding in the Word of God. How would I know how to pray the right way if I do not know God's mind as revealed in his Word? How would I be able to align myself with what God is doing presently and where he is at work if I know nothing about his will, as revealed in his Word? 

If I will ask for anything from this God, I have to first find him. I have to do the things he loves and pursue after the things that give him joy. Even for earthly fathers, we do love children who are able to read our hearts and know and do what we love. If a mortal man can act this way, imagine the joy in the heart of God when he sees me pursue him in the same way. If I can seek for, find and pursue after him with all my heart, God is bound to listen to me and grant me my heart's desires. When I have found God, I won't be pursuing the things that make me happy but the things that make God happy. That is why it will be easy for God to grant me all that I ask him, because my heart is now so tuned to him that all it asks aligns with God's will. That is the secret to a life of answered prayers. That is the secret to access into all that God is and has to offer. May God grant me grace to find him while he is near, so that I can get all that he is and wants for me. My life will be better for it, and eternity will be secured due to the reason that I knew God. His time of favour is here.

Sing!

Sing!

But I will sing of thy power; yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning: for thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble. Psalm 59:16 KJV

David sure had a lot of enemies. Long before he was even anointed as king over Israel, he had been fighting. At a time, it was against lions and bears who would steal or kill the sheep of his father's flock. Later, it would be ignorant Goliath mocking the God of David who he did not know, and we see God giving David victory over these situations. Later, it would be king Saul himself, seeking to kill David, and today's extract is one of the songs of David talking about this experience. A man of destiny will always face danger. It is a part of the development of a man of destiny that he would face situations that will prove the quality of the vision and direction of his life. As I take stock again this morning, can I say of a truth that I am indeed a man of destiny? Have I found, met and experienced this same God that David knew and celebrated daily, or am I still in a search for the right foundation for my life? 

It must get to a point in my life when all that matters is the God I know and no one else. David saw all the evil plans of king Saul and he prayed that God would disgrace all those evil plans. However, it did not end there: David prayed for defeat for his enemies, but he made sure to preserve his walk with God. It can be pretty distracting sometimes, when there are mountains in your path, and there is a temptation to focus on the mountain and not the God who is greater than any mountain. The devil will have me fixate on the problem and not the Presence. The more I fix my gaze on the problem, the bigger it seems to get and the more distant God seems. However, God does not change, and if he seems far away from me, maybe I should be checking where I stand, and if I have moved away from him. 

David had made up his mind to sing of God's power, because he had a personal experience of him. Too many times, we focus on the symbols and the images and miss the essence of His presence. We get caught up in daily living that we forget the source of true life Himself. Does anything inspire you to sing of God's goodness? Do you have any personal experience that is a constant reminder of God's faithfulness and mercy over your life? If there is none you can point to at the moment, it is not too late to start making the right memories now. It is the same God David sang about that is still the God of my time now. He wants to be real in my life, and I must let him have his way so He can be all that he can be in me. 

And it will not be all these quiet, inner and sober singing; it will be one where the world will know where I stand and who I know. David would not sing quietly, but had made up his mind to sing aloud so all men could know his allegiance. Do men know my allegiance? Can they say of a truth where I stand and who I know and worship? I could say one thing while my life says the other, but God cannot be deceived. He knows my heart, and he knows if there is any hypocrisy or insincerity in it. Men will always seek to do evil; I can choose to focus on man's schemes or I can choose to focus on God's grace. The choice of focus is always mine; the end of either focus has already been made clear by God. 

David knew his God, and knew what He could do. He saw God as a refuge and a defence here, just as he saw God as other things at other times. The day of trouble is non-negotiable. I cannot do anything to stop the day from coming, but I can sort out my reaction and response to that day before it comes. David did not say these words by accident, but they were the product of a private life of devotion and prayer, long before the public events happened. We focus on creating the right impressions, seeking to please and impress men, forgetting that in the long run, opinions of men do not really matter. My quiet time with God is the season of preparation for the day of trouble. Daniel did not just decide to refuse the king's meat; it was the result of a life of quiet devotion, even in exile. Location and opportunity did not impact his decision; he was going to stand for God, no matter what the external circumstances were. 

Can this be said of me too or do I need to sort out my private devotion? Am I all about optics and audio, with no private substance that God can hold on to? Have I met this God who David knew so well that this God had to call him a man after his own heart? Does God even know where my allegiance lies or am I all about what I can get from him and not so much about how I can know more about him? No matter the drama that goes on around me, it must never affect my daily walk and experience of God. It is that walk that will sustain me in the day of trouble and uncertainty. It is that daily walk that will keep me focused, so that no matter what comes my way, I can sing daily about God's goodness and grace. God is still very much in the business of doing great things, and as long as I hold on to him alone, I will always have reasons to sing. His time of favour is here. 

Surrendered

Surrendered

Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139: 23 ‭-‬ 24 KJV

David pens down the words of this psalm, with highlights on the limits of man and the limitless and unsearchable power of God. It takes a man with a personal experience of this God to be able to write these words. Until a man has searched for and tried other options, he will never know the value of the very personal knowledge of God. Until a man has been pushed to the extreme and has come to a point of no return, he may never know who God is, what he offers and the eternal consequences of a life that knows God. This is the focus of today's extract. 

Man by nature is comfortable around self-deceit. Man can convince himself that white is black if it fits the narrative he seeks to pursue. The fall of man into sin opened the door to fallacy, falsehood and deception. Man needs the help of the true God to see himself for who he really is. Man cannot come to that realisation all by himself without the help of God. No wonder the psalmist asked God to do the work Only He could do in a man's life, which is to show man who he really is. God is true as well as the Truth, and all he does is based on his nature, which is truth. He owes no man any allegiance, and by his nature, he is committed to all who truly seek him. Where do you stand? 

The prayer of the writer of this psalm is instructive: he is asking God to search and try him; I can't be trusted to see myself as God sees. I am asking him to turn his light on me and expose anything he does not like or cannot use in me, so I can make the necessary amendments. It's by his light that the darkness in me is revealed. It is by his light that all secret and alien alliances are exposed and dealt with. I am not asking to know my own heart; God's verdict on the human heart as corrupt and desperately wicked makes it impossible for me to trust my own view when it comes to my own heart. My thoughts need to be brought unto daily submission and surrender to the trying and cleansing power of God. He is the only one who can do a work in the heart that will not only be of great use down here on earth, but will also impact eternity. 

My best gift is to God is total surrender. As long as I claim ownership of my life, I will not admit that I need help. God is able to see the parts of me that are not clear to me, which I may have hid behind a lot of pretence and hypocrisy. I may know how to keep up appearances, but when God takes a hold of me, all the pretence is stripped away and I see myself for who I really am, and I can take the necessary steps to make corrections. God wants to lead me down the path of peace and joy; he wants to take me all the way into eternal life. He does not do half-measures, where he takes a man on a journey and then abandon him. He is a God of completion, who takes a man by his hand, equips him for all he needs for life and Godliness, and then stays with the man until the end comes. 

I note that it is his hand that leads, not mine. I do not have the wisdom, knowledge or understanding of what is required, but God is more than willing and capable of providing. He is all I need, as well as have all I need. He must deal with the nature of sin in my natural man, so that his life can then find full expression in and through me. He does all of these things, at no price, except my total surrender to, and acceptance of all that God is. Can that be said of me? Can that be said of you? His time of favour is here. 

Love, God's Perspective!

Love, God's Perspective!

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 1 Corinthians 13:1 KJV

The visible and the audible gifts can be quite distracting. We ascribe greater importance to those gifts that are easily noticed; those gifts that appear as if the church cannot do without. We celebrate those who have the gifts, forgetting the role all the other non-visible/audible gifts play in the body of Christ. Today's extract seeks to place the gifts of the Spirit in the right context, and also lay emphasis on the right attention to be ascribed to all that I see and hear. 

First, God places greater importance on people, not gifts. Yes, the gifts will be used to bless lives but if there were no human beings to bless or impact, the gifts will be of no use. I have to sort out this order of importance, if my life will be all that God has set it out to be. The gifts are good, but the template of usage is equally, if not more important. 

Secondly, God gives gifts to people so that one person can supply what is lacking in the other. No one person is given ALL available gifts; God's divine arrangement is such that no single person can boast about his qualifications, endowments and self-sufficiency. Whatever it is I have been given is God's expectation from me to touch and impact another life. If I refuse or neglect to use the gift in this manner, how do I demand that another person supply that which is lacking in me? 

Thirdly, I can be quite charismatic, with people literally eating out of my hands, but without the right heart, I am only wasting my time; God takes no glory from a life that does not point him out everytime. I cannot be a seasonal wonder; good only when it is convenient and then doing my own thing at other times. How is my heart? How is yours? 

I can be very gifted in both the ways of men and of God, yet lack the heart of God in carrying out my assignments. This is the danger: a lot of applause by men but no recognition by God. At the end of it all, man's applause is uncertain and unpredictable, and it is dangerous to set store by it. I may know the tongues of men and of angels, and be able to decipher the mysteries of men, yet i gain nothing if my heart does not rest on the things that bring God praise. 

Love is the connection between activity and impact. Being busy is not the same as making impact. Speaking well does not automatically imply serving in line with God's will. If I will not end up as a mere noisemaker, I must find out what God's will is and pursue it with all my heart. Love remains and is able to focus, even when the heart is heavy. No matter what i have got now, it is not enough if there is no love. I ask God to help my walk with him, so that my work for him can be accepted by him. His time of favour is here. 

Possible!

Possible!

Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believe. Mark 9:23 KJV

We see Jesus being transfigured before his 3 disciples, Peter, James and John. The prophets Moses and Elijah were also revealed with him, and the meaning of this revelation has been the subject of many messages in our own times today. Heaven testified to the Lordship, authority and leadership of Jesus, and the fact that even before all the popular names Israel knew, Jesus is the Lord of all. That is the fact that runs through all of the Scripture - Jesus is Lord of all. It is not subject to my agreement or my cooperation; he is Lord not matter what I say or how I feel. If I admit and submit to it, it makes my life less complicated; if I resist it, it still does not change who Jesus is. Do I know who this Jesus is and has he been made known to me personally? Does he know me as his own? 

The crowd had an idea of who he was. Each person in that crowd had his/her own reasons to following after Jesus. Some needed food, others needed healing. Some knew that he could provide all these, but also knew that his touch that gave life was the best gift that they could get from him. Why do I follow after him; is it because it is the popular thing to do these days or because I know he is the One who has the answers to all of my life's questions? Why do I seek him? 

A man came from the crowd to seek Jesus. He had brought his child to the disciples, seeking healing for the child that was possessed by a demon. The disciples could not cast out the demon, and the man was worried. How could the people who followed Jesus be so powerless that they could not do this simple thing? No wonder the man came to Jesus and said: but if you can do anything, have compassion and help us. The response of Jesus is quite instructive and holds lessons for us today:

Jesus seems to be saying to the man as well as to all of us: As powerful as I am, I'm limited by your reception of or response to me. I can do all things, but there is a need for you to believe in my power, ability and capacity in order to receive what you want from me. Faith is that ingredient required to activate my power. Men received miracles in the bible through the faith of their friends, or simply because Jesus was moved sometimes by compassion to help people, but the people who seemed to get the greatest miracles were those to whom Jesus said: your faith has made you whole. Faith is the key to the door of God's mighty intervention in my life. Things thought to be impossible are made possible when I address them by faith. 

As it was in the days when Jesus spoke these words, so is it today. Faith is still required if I will please God. All the men of old who walked with God and we speak about today walked with God to the point where God reckoned with their lives and granted them their hearts' desires. Many of them had nothing to boast about, except the fact that God intervened in their lives and made their story a testimony. It is still very much the same God; he has not changed his format for dealing with men, and all who will come to him, just as they are, all things will be possible to them. If I seek his intervention, the secret is faith. If I seek healing, the key is faith. If I seek even the most impossible of things, as long as I approach God in faith, I am assured of a response that lines up with God's perfect will. I may not always get what I want, but I am sure that God is pleased with my life and will make me a blessing to the world he has placed me in. What could be better than this? His time of favour is here. 

Right Offerings!

Right Offerings!

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. Romans 12:1 KJV

There is a plea that goes out to all who profess allegiance to the King of Kings. For all who claim to know this God, there is a code of conduct that is laid down, and there is really no room for discussion or compromise on the terms and conditions of the code. You either take the code and run with it, or you reject the code outright and do your own thing. There is no middle ground here, because this is a choice between two extremes. You are either with God or against him. You cannot have one leg in with him and one leg out with the world. That is the hypocrisy that the world seeks to pursue and perpetuate, but which really does not hold water when it comes to God.

This is the essence of God's mercy. Mercy creates a bridge between a holy God and sinful man, making it possible for that sinful man to approach the Holy God. It is both a good thing, as well as a 'bad' thing, as it is mercy that creates the path but also lays out the consequences if I reject the path. It is not a wonder then that Paul is pleading with his audience here not to take the mercy of God for granted. Mercy demands a particular course of action; it does not leave you without a clear idea of what it demands of you. It does not leave it to your instincts or your own desires; mercy makes very clear what God's perfect will is, supplies the grace required to help you know and recognise this will, and then supplies the strength required to follow this will. 

Of course, this plea is addressed to those referred to as brethren, people washed in the blood of the lamb, bought with his precious blood and sealed for the day of redemption. It is not for everyone, as hard as this may sound, but it is for all who hav come to the saving knowledge of Jesus. People want the benefits, but do not want to pay the price. With God, you just can't play both sides. The crowd is out there, with its own desires and pursuits, but for brethren, the pleasure of the crowd holds no attraction. Am I a part of the people in the crowd of those referred to as brethren? 

What is the expectation of God for those who are brethren: present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. It is a service I must do by myself, of my own freewill, and not under compulsion. It is a present to God, not to any man, so the view of men do not count here. If I am offering a present to God, why should I be bothered if a man like myself does not like what I do or how I do it? Can any mortal man influence God's judgment of my life? It is called a sacrifice, which is an irony on its own, as a sacrifice is not supposed to be living. It is a sacrifice because it is expected to be dead to its own will and desires, and at the mercy and pleasure of the one to whom it has been offered. That is the picture of submission, where a man knows who he is, who he belongs to and who he serves. When a man has sorted these out, he is free of men's expectations or opinions.

I note the meaning and effect of the sacrifice I am asked to make. It has to be holy and acceptable to God. It does not matter how you convince yourself that your motive and intention are honest; they just have to align with God's nature, which is holiness, for what you offer to be acceptable to God. I can do all the gymnastics and drama, yet God does not reckon with what I do, because he is not first interested in what I do, but who I am. That is why the presentation of my life is the actual service to God, not what men see me use my life for. Men will judge me based on what they see; God judges me based on what he knows about me. Unfortunately, we live for the positive approval of men, forgetting that in the final analysis, men's views are always changing, based on what they want from you or how they want you to perform, but God's view is based on his truth, which does not change in line with the weather. 

Today, it is a plea based on God's mercy. One day, it will be the basis of God's final judgment of the world. Here, Paul is  beseeching men to get their priorities right, because these are the ingredients of a life that God can dwell in and use for his glory. Today, it is a plea; tomorrow, it will be judgment. Today, there is a choice of response;  tomorrow, the choice made will be the basis of either eternal life or eternal damnation. I will not be able to blame God then for the consequences of the decision I make today. Let me not focus on pleasing men, or doing things that only man approves or applauds, but on what God approves. At the end of it all, only God's view counts, his judgment is final, and eternal life is worth whatever sacrifice I am asked to make now. His time of favour is here. 

No Fear!

No Fear!

For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee. Isaiah 41:13 KJV

This is the season of fear. Everywhere you turn, there are events and stories that grip your heart and threaten to destroy its peace. We hear of war, famine, earthquake, hurricane, tornado, fires and related scary stories, and you wonder where and when these are all going. It does not appear that there will be any respite from any of these things, yet, God speaks, asking me to turn away from the physical reality around me and focus on him. He has a word for me for today, and that word in summary, is this: in him, there is no room for fear. Have you heard that word? 

It then means that long before the fear comes, I must have sorted out the word that is appropriate for that fear. I cannot wait until I have reached the middle of the river before I start to paddle, or before I realise that I cannot swim. The time of peace is the time for preparation for the storms that are coming. It is not a matter of IF but WHEN. I cannot argue my way out of tough times, or avoid them by prayer and fasting; they are a fundamental part of the process for my growth and development. Tough times do not always mean that I have sinned; they are reminders that I an human, a work in progress, and on a journey to eternal life. 

This is why today's extract is quite important. God speaks here, telling me ahead of time not to fear. He does not send anyone else to me, but he speaks to my heart directly, saying he is holding my hand. What is the effect of this: holding my hand is a confidence-booster. If God holds my hand, nothing can happen to me without his permission. It has to touch God first before it is allowed to touch me. His hand is such that he can hold all of the world and its fullness and still have plenty of space. He is the everlasting God, the Almighty, which means that everything created or formed by him answers to him. How does a created thing ever become more powerful than its creator?

If God holds me, I am safe. If anyone else holds me, I am only as safe as he who holds me is. If a man cannot first secure himself, how can he secure the life of another? We are talking about a God who spoke in Genesis about the seed of the woman, and centuries later, the word spoken came to pass. This is a God who spoke of the end of all things, and without doubt, recent events show that all the things spoken about are all coming to pass. Can I ask myself: is the God I claim to know, serve and follow the God that is introduced here?

And the God speaks right to the fear, addressing the concerns I may have. He says he will help me, as he knows I cannot help myself. He is the Help of Israel, and Israel is still being helped till today, despite the fact that it does not fully acknowledge God. Israel is helped because of the promise God made, not really because Israel was the best of people. We stand where we are, not because we merit his grace, but because of his help. There is no room for pride or self-sufficiency here, and all I am and have flow from who God is, not who I am. I appreciate God for his grace and help, and I go forward in that assurance that God has my back. His time of favour is here. 

Word for the Season!

Word for the Season!

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.

Isaiah 12:2 KJV

Isaiah speaks about God from a place of personal experience. God has always made it clear how he views and treats sin. The wages of sin have been death since the days of Adam, and they remain so, no matter what the new age doctines want us to think. He dealt with Adam that way, as well as David centuries later, as well as Judas Iscariot in his own earthly days and continues to remind us that his view of sin has not changed. He is not man, given to emotional outbursts, and who can change his mind to suit the situation. He is not like most men who need the validation of other men like themselves to have healthy self-esteem. Nothing I do or refuse to do can change who God is; I am the one who must fit my life into God's will. 

Isaiah spoke of the consequences of sin too. Just before today's extract, he recognised the mercy of God that forgives sin and restores. It is God's perogative to show mercy and restore. There is nothing I could have done to deserve it, neither could I have paid the right price for it. The currency of God's grace is not one any mortal man can earn, manufacture, or work for. It is given solely by grace. I stand where I am today all by God's grace. 

That is the foundation on which today's extract is based. It is my understanding and acceptance of my helplessness that makes God's help quite important. That is why praise that flows out of a heart that knows what it has received is accepted by God. Do I praise God out of a sense of duty, because I am asked to do it or because I clearly understand and recognise what God has done for me? I can seek to convince myself that the reason for my praise is genuine; God cannot be mocked or deceived. He knows my heart and all its hidden motives and intentions. 

This writer did not come to the conclusions in today's extract overnight or by accident. That is the result of personally experiencing God's forgiveness. I must seek God at that level too, so that my song can look like today's extract. When God works on and lives in my heart, there is no room for fear. Sin has no place. The world knows its place, and it offers nothing of value to me, because I have found a God who is more precious than all of the world's treasures. 

He declares to the world: God is my salvation. For me, my mind is made up. I tell the world about my total allegiance to God, whether it likes it or not. Can I also take the same position? Can I dare stand alone on the side of God, no matter how unpopular it seems? God is my strength and song. He is the inspiration behind my perspiration. I work for God, but I enjoy what I do for him because he does not owe. He is a rewarder of all who diligently seek him, and all who depend on him for their daily living are assured of his presence, protection, provision and power. 

No matter what the past looks like, God wants to do a new and fresh thing. He is salvation, and he is able to give salvation. He is able to take all my past baggage and make it into a package of grace. He can take the mess of my past life and turn it into a message of hope and redemption. It has to be God; no man, no matter how connected or powerful, can secure that for me. This is the word for this season of fear and uncertainty. You are safe, only in God. No man can secure himself, not to talk of securing anyone else. He wants to save you; in fact, he moved heaven and earth to secure the salvation of men, and it will be such a waste if I do not take advantage of the free gift of life that has been made available in Christ. What are you waiting for? His time of favour is here 

Wise? Build Right!

Wise? Build Right!

Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: Matthew 7:24 KJV

At some critical points in my life, I would have to decide how to respond to the Word of God that comes to me. There will be several opportunities to hear God, either by personal or corporate fellowship with God. I would have to search the scriptures for myself and see what God has for me. I would have to listen in during fellowship to hear what God has for me. He has promised that he will not leave me without guidance and direction. His Word is the compass for daily living, the light for daily decisions and the guard against a lifestyle of sin. I do not know of any other thing that can preserve a man, or keep him from evil, except the Word of God. That is why my reaction and response to the Word of God is the greatest decision I have to make. The consequences of that decision are eternal. 

As always, it is a personal decision that nobody can take on your behalf. That is why today's extract starts with that offer: 'whosoever heareth'. It is an offer open to all; yet it is an offer that not all will take. That is the truth about life. In Jesus' day, there were some who felt that they knew his family quite well, and he could not be the Messiah, even though they saw the mighty works he did. It is still the same today: we see God's mighty hand, yet we do not believe. We think we have God figured out and there can be no surprises. We ascribe glory to created things, rather than the creator. We apply logic and common sense to the things of the Spirit, and then lose our minds when things don't make sense the way we want. We forget that it is not best for things to make sense, but for them to align with the purpose of God. Have I sought to reduce God to the level of my common sense? Have I sought to bring God down to my level, thinking I can fit him into a particular narrative or fit him into a mold? I must repent and place God in His rightful place. It does not matter who I am now, or what I had done before; it all comes down to this one decision: what would I do with the words of Jesus spoken to me? 

And I note that it is not just enough to seek it out and hear a lot of it; the balance is in doing it. So many people hear; the function of the physical ear is to hear. However, as we know, even though the ear hears, it does not always listen to understand what is spoken. The bible refers to some people as forgetful hearers, which means they indeed heard, but it did not leave any impression and they soon forgot all they heard. What kind of hearer or listener am I? How I hear and listen go to show what kind of builder I am. All of us alive are building towards the future. Our decisions, responses and reactions to things today are the building blocks for the future. As I hear God's Word, how I take, process and react to it are all parts to the house I am building. As we all know, building a house takes time, effort and the right materials and skills. You don't start from the roof; you start from the foundation. If the foundation is right, a fitting structure can be placed on it. If the foundation is not right, it does not matter what kind of structure you want to place on it; it is an accident waiting to happen. 

The wise don't have all the answers; they are wise only because they have made the right decision on the response to God's Word. The wise don't boast in what they know, but on whom they know and have submitted to. They are wise because they have made up their minds that Jesus and his Word will be the focus, even if he leads where they do not understand at first. If I will be wise, I have to walk the same path. If I will be wise, I have to set my heart on the Word of God, even if it wounds me. The Word of God is described as a double-edged sword, which can cut in any direction, even addressing both the speaker and the hearer. It is profitable for doctrine, reproof, instruction and training in righteousness. There is no life that the Word of God cannot change, and if the Word of God cannot change you, then nothing and no one else can. 

I am building for eternity. Oh, I cannot be inactive. Doing nothing has consequences; building right has consequences; building the wrong way has consequences. It does not matter what you do or don't do; every action, inaction or decision has a consequence. If my present actions/inactions were to be presented to me as a house to live in, can I stay in it? Would I be able to? Work towards the end in view; build according to the pattern that God can bless; build in line with the Word of God. My eternity will be glad I did. His time of favour is here. 

On Guard!

On Guard!

Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

Psalm 119:11 KJV

The longest chapter of the Bible, this psalm 119, is not attributed to anyone, but its message is appropriate for our time now. We live in an age where we mistake head knowledge for God's wisdom. We assume that because a man can speak and quote it from memory, he must have the inspiration and backing of God's Word. We forget that there is a worldly kind of wisdom, which works well for those who are under its control, but has no value for those who are subject to God's kind of wisdom. In the same way, there is a kind of wisdom that the Word of God gives, and it is also only available and accessible to those who are subject to its control and influence. You can't fake the process; in the process of time, that which you are subject to will be revealed in your daily and regular life offering. Which one am I subject to: the Word or the world? 

Every day that God gives me, I have a choice of submission to make. I can't sit on the fence as there is none; not making a decision is itself a decision. I have to decide what I will do with the Word of God: discard or obey. The choices are as simple as these. Everytime God's word goes out, it is a seed seeking fertile ground in which it can be planted, germinate and bear fruit. And as you know with a seed, the process from planting to fruiting takes time and effort. Most of the work done between planting and fruiting is not visible and cannot be tracked by human eyes. We put the seed in the ground, and make sure the ground is nurtured and kept free of weeds. The work that leads to fruit then happens, and one day, we come to the seed that was put in the ground, and we are able to take of its fruits. Nobody can point to the hidden process, but the evidence of the work done cannot be ignored. That is how it is with the seed of the Word of God. 

The seed of the Word of God is planted in the hearts of men. Until it touches ground in the heart, it does not have the capacity to bear fruit. That is why men can be excited and elated about the word they hear, yet as they stand up to leave, all is forgotten. It was all about the emotions; it was not allowed to touch the heart. Excitement can never replace the need for the seed of God's Word to touch our hearts; men have been moved only by what they heard, but their lives did not experience any change because there was no touch on their hearts. No wonder the bible also says that though all heard, it came down to those who had prepared their hearts to receive and process the seed of the Word: For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. Hebrews 4:2 KJV. God will keep providing the Word; I have the duty to ensure that when it comes, it finds suitable ground. 

This then means that the work to be done is mine and mine alone. I cannot demand that my pastor do it for me; it is a personal responsibility. I cannot go to heaven on your behalf, and by the mighty grace of God, I will not go to hell on your behalf. It is first and last a personal walk; there is a place for corporate anointing, where we all share in the common grace of fellowship, but as soon as we part, it all comes down to my walk with God. Can God trust my heart to receive his word and to profit by it? This is why the heart is the battlefield; it's the place where the value of the seed is either expelled or enhanced. It is also the processing centre of emotions, but it has to come to a decision: what do I do with what I have just heard? That is the question with both earthly and eternal consequences. The heart is that secret safe from which all things are kept for the day of revelation. No wonder today's extract uses the word 'hid' because the heart is that place, away from public eye, but which its contents are made known by my daily action. 

I can pretend for a while but it will eventually be revealed. The writer here made a decision to hide God's word in his heart, so that that word will be the constant reminder of God's standard. If I do not have anything to provide guidance, I will definitely make mistakes. If I do not have standards, anything becomes acceptable. The reason why this writer would place importance on God's Word was because he did not want to sin against God. It takes a heart that God's word is working in to hate sin the way God does. You cannot give room to the Word of God and still have room for sin at the same time. 

If God's word is my daily guide, it will gaurd my path from sin. If God's word has no room in my heart, there will always be another guide in place, as nature abhors a vacuum. I need to take stock of my life right now, and sort out my allegiance without delay. Eternity hangs on my decision. His time of favour is here.