Saturday, April 27, 2013

DIVINE COMMUNION GUARANTEES DIVINE ATTENTION.

It's very easy to receive a favour from such as you have established a mutual communication medium. Come to think of it; what of divine communion with God? This came to my mind in the hour in His presence today. Praying is not 'asking' but talking to, hearing from and relating with God. It would get you noticed before God as you put it in place following the rules. See, it earned Abraham a place in God's heart, so He said, '...shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do...' Abraham's communion with God was so pleasing to God that God couldn't hide His agenda from Him, the result? Abraham also couldn't but have anything from God which he desired, including a great son in the old, withered age. Christians, talking about success, it's unluckily that we are putting the cart before the horse. God is not looking for 'give me,give me' sons and daughters, but those that are ready for His divine friendship. What you need is not 'success' but hearing ears from God. What we need is not 'breakthrough' but partnership with the Almighty. Establish a divine line of fellowship with God today and daily...good things will chase you and embarrass you. Those that know God's way don't waste away chasing elusive 'success'. 'O the pure delight of a single hour, That before Thy throne I spend, When I kneel in prayer,with thee, my God, I commune as friend with friend, Draw me nearer, nearer blessed Lord, to the cross where Thou hast died....

THE TIME OF WAITING.

It's certain that things either in the physical or spiritual realm is not always of the order of 'On your mark, Set & Go!' '...all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come.' Job 14:14 There're certain waitings we can't skip.All products undergo processing time,but not all waitings are sensible though. 3 TYPES OF WAITING appear in the word of God, as inspired of Him; 1. There's a WAITING on God to know what to do as regards an issue. Hab 2:1 2. There're time God Himself is WAITING for us.(This one is most crucial) Most time it's God Who wants us to act the knowledge we have,until He can act too,but this we mistake it for waiting on God. Never! For example, Lot had to move from Sodom before the angels could destroy those cities, Gen. 19:22 3. There's WAITING according to the season of life. If God has healed a barren woman for example, she will yet have to wait according to the season of life to carry her child. It's therefore your duty and mine to know which waiting we are doing, otherwise we might just waste away in the name of waiting on God. How to cope while we wait, especially on 2&3 discussed above: 1. HOLD UP YOUR CONFESSION Evidently, faith is not in being able to raise the dead alone,faith also is in keeping oneself in shape till the desired result comes, doing what? Doing the profession according to the faith! Hebrews 10:23 Your word is your power! If your expectation is not appearing physically, it doesn't suggest, it's not already formed spiritually. The physical follows & is dictated by the spiritual. At every RIGHT CONFESSION, there's a chain reaction that ensues: the situation hears, the devil stops his assault, the angel (in this case, your angel) goes into action, and God backs the process, but if it's wrong confession, the whole process is opposite. Abraham confessed many years himself as a 'father of many nations', yet the Bible says he didn't see them happen PHYSICALLY, yet it says that he embraced them afar of Hebrews 11:13; his confessions back then are still happening till today, because people are still becoming born again daily. Confession is not according to feelings, but knowing. You have never seen your soul/spirit before but you know you have one. Likewise, your profession ought to base on revelational knowing that words are things in the realm unseen. They exist, and time proves it. 2. SOW LIKEWISE SEED Whatever you wish to see happen in your own life, make it happen for others in the way you can. Daddy Adeboye once said that he needed money to do the roofing of an auditorium in the Redemption camp years ago but the money was not forthcoming. There and then, another Pastor in RCCG came to G.O to ask for financial support to help in their parish church. G.O rather sent him packing telling him that he himself had a greater need than him, but not too long did Holy Spirit refrain him from doing so, that he ought to help the Pastor with the little sum he has about his own project ; solving one out of two concerns at hand. And that he did. Then just in the nick of time, God sent resources enough to build that same auditorium he was looking for financial aids for. I have always said it, that the 'act' to your next phase is within your power now, doing it or not is what dictates how you fare. The time of being in need is to see how you can meet the needs of some other. Let's be wise. It's Biblical. 'Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.' You sow favour to also reap favour! 3. TIME OF WAITING IS TIME OF BEING BUSY...IMPROVING It's the slothful that thinks that the time of waiting is that of sleeping. You're believing God for a life partner, it's not all about prayers, but also improving and proving your life. No one has justification for overly getting worse or not engaged with a profitable actions while he or she is expecting the best to happen. A graduate believing God for a job that's sleeping all day at home is destroying his faith all the way. Take up a commensurate faith walk alongside your professed confession to prove your faith. That's how it works! Confession without action is a relative of stagnation. 4. CHEER UP! Joy has strength that keeps the body going,it's a sign that you believe, and above all, it's by choice. Beloved Bishop David said that when you cry more and more, the enemies laugh more and more. Don't give your victory away! In all these things, we are more than conquerors,Rom 8:37 Cheerfulness means you're ready to take your delivery. Rejoice, again I say rejoice... God bless!

YOU TOO CAN CAUSE WAVES.

The young are making it. Getting there before the expected time. Not cutting corners. Having achievements that are products of Hard work and diligence. Taking sole responsibilities of their lives. Looking at the future with a tint of hope. Seeing tomorrow by what they are doing today. Believing and having faith in what they do. Keeping focussed and not getting distracted. Walking and running with their gifts and visions. Never relenting in their efforts but striving day by day harder. Causing the necessary waves to move all over the world. Keep working on your gifts and talents. Never compare or judge yourself with others. We are all running on different lanes in the track field of life. Make up your mind on what you want from life. Remember that life won`t give you what you want except you demand for it. And don`t sit down and wait for help from anywhere. Face all challenges with all commitment and determination. If you can`t die for it, it`s not worth living for. Your views and gifts must be able to drive you. Then you are ready to make waves. Diligent, Responsible, Determined, Truthful and Sincere people cause heads to turn in marvel if they keep at it.

Saturday, April 20, 2013

CONNECT TO HELP.

The enemy has an upper hand on the person that prides himself in isolation. Consider your ways, wherever you are lagging is as a result of limited knowledge in such area, so what do you do? You connect to minds better than you. (You will always see the rich&business men surrounding themselves with brighter people than themselves, why?) We are made to connect. Man is not made for self-dependence or sufficiency. A Yoruba adage says that snakes get killed easily because they choose not to walk in convoy. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THESE FOLLOWING TO PROGRESS IN LIFE 1. HELP AT THE LEVEL OF CHURCH Any true Christian that does not belong to any Christian Assembly which he/she is nurtured is lacking in a vital thing knowingly or unknowingly. Church is a spiritual family, where man's spirit is established. It's too risky not to be spiritual in this present life, nor stay connected to the Source, why? Because, '...the whole world lies in wickedness...' 1 John 5:19 2. MENTOR When someone says Jesus is only his or her mentor, I often laugh in me. You know what it means, it's like asking, 'Who is your father?' And you say, 'God!' Of course, it's only a possessed or a paranoid person that will claim that the devil is his own father, but you see, Jesus is our all-time Mentor, but a man that needs getting anywhere in life must have a physical, nearby mentor situated on his path in life to equip him as necessary, in as much you have a biological father (you can quote me anywhere) Why would God not give birth to us by Himself, and made us to come through one physical father? Food for thought. Without a mentor or a coach, you are setting up a system of errors and limitation for yourself. If Paul the Apostle before he became the most excelling of the Apostles needed to be laid hands on, and be identified with by the 12 Apostles to be launched forth...who are you and me? I believe I need a mentor. There are helps in mentor(s), be guided of God to relate with one or more; may God give you understanding. 3. 'LIVE BOOKS' I can never go together for long with someone that has no respect for books that can impact or change his thoughts. It's said that about 45% of graduates hardly read a complete book to finish it after college, even books that can build them up...no wonder youngsters fill up everywhere with bizarre behavioural problems with seemingly no future orientation. Dear friend, there's no new 'becoming' anywhere, what you read forms what you believe, and then what you become. It takes more than first class to have a great destiny. 'Street-smartness' and great life principles are unfortunately extra-curricular as pertaining to school syllabus; therefore, we are on our own! Whatever secret you will need to become any worthwhile thing is someone's open knowledge, if you don't connect, you may never collect it. Life books include the Bible, spirit-inspired books,biographies,etc #HOLY SPIRIT This is the biggest Helper we can have ever. Jesus is on earth today but by His Spirit; we should all learn the way to walk in the Spirit. The help is always there. All of us Christians should get to the stage where we will know Him more than our pastors, if we keep growing. The wisdom is that, no man ever makes it alone, you are not supposed to hope so. CONNECT!

OUTSIDE THE REAL BEING.

Text....Genesis 4 vs 16-24. The above text was about Cain who killed his brother because his brother`s offering was respected by God. With Cain moving away from God`s presence, man began to look for different ways of becoming significant outside God. I discovered in the above text that Cain and the generation that followed him sought to accomplish great things and they recorded many ACCOMPLISHMENTS yet they remained separated or far from God. The first thing that Cain did after leaving God`s presence was to build a city naming it after his own son...Enoch. I discovered that Cain was actually trying to make a name for himself and he was trying to place a worth on himself despite God`s rejection. Lamech was the grandson of Enoch. I also discovered that Lamech broke God`s rule in Gen 2 vs 24 by starting a polygamous life. He went and took for himself two wives which were Adah and Zillah. Lamech was known to be wicked and he always had the desire to kill and to kill shows an example of an individual living outside God`s presence. Despite his wickedness, God still went ahead to bless him with children that were successful. Gen 4 vs 20 talks about Jubal...son of Adah who was successful in raising cattle and dwelling in tents meaning that he was the first known instrumentalist. Another known person in that generation living out of God`s presence was Tubal who was the first metal-smith. Despite their great achievements, nothing else was written about them meaning that life without a relationship with God is meaningless despite all achievements. Your worth is not in your achievements but in your relationship with God. I want you to know that God`s presence is everywhere but it is not active everywhere. It is only where you can activate it through your relationship with Him that He manifests Himself. No wonder Moses said that he will not leave with the Israelites if God`s presence will not go with them because he knew that without God`s presence, man will be a restless wanderer. Are you still successful despite living outside God? Try and have a re-think because there is always an end to temporary things but what is permanent is permanent which is God and He is the REAL BEING.

Saturday, April 13, 2013

SUCCESS: FIGHTING TO THE END

“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith” 2 Tim 4:7 A notable author, Brian Tracy, authored a book titled ‘Success Is A Journey”, even without reading the content of that book, I agreed with that thought. There are many which see success as a station, a place or an office; those sets only see and perceive it as a position, but success transcends being ‘positional’. Some other could see it as clutching some laurels or medals, how reliable is that one while we abide in the world where record breaking is of big interest. True success is not a physical phenomenon. In retrospective, SECTION ONE of this writing says SUCCESS is about locating where we belong in the creation of God, falling in there and doing it with a landmark distinction. SECTION TWO deals with SUCCESS as living to serve, seeing service as an end to the purpose for which we are born, to touch and change lives and re-write history of lives and of the world. SUCCESS in the THIRD PART sees it from the standpoint of maintaining a life of godliness and that of exemplary integrity with explanation that, it’s the godly principles which supports our lives as being instrumental to true success. Sinners don’t enjoy the best of God and God is not God of sinners. Finally, in this part I’d say, SUCCESS is holding unto those things afore-said till the last lap on the earth. Earth is not the final; earthly accolades and achievements are not end-points. "But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and CONTINUETH therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed" James 1:2 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Mark 8:36 In simplicity of language, success is a journey, and it takes the whole life to get there. Here we prepare for it, how it shall be. So you can’t tell me that someone succeeds in this life and has no records in the book of life, and yet reckon the same as being successful. How come? Here we are only preparing to succeed, we are not there yet! That’s what it means to ultimately succeed. Make sure you don’t only succeed on earth in the definition of man. All those three fore mostly discussed are of definition of men, but doing them to the very end, will determine the definition of God. He that truly succeeds is the one that makes it to Heaven. All achievements will vanish of that man that loses his soul to the consuming inferno of hell. This is why I indirectly said earlier that defining success leaving God outside is akin to raw insanity. All that we are in for on the earth is just a preparation towards the beginning of the beginning that has no end. If you are stumbling here on earth, make sure you are standing back at every falling. 1. As you are setting goals make sure they are not infringing on the DIVINE PURPOSE but rather aligned to it, that way ‘success’ will come to you because God will be pleased with you! 2. Allied to that, goals setting, aspiration and ambitions, devoid of OFFERING, SERVING and BLESSING others is as feeding the ‘self’ which will later be doomed in hell. Service is the essence of divine purpose. 3. Relatedly, laws of success revolve around GODLY LIVING. The best way to be a success is to live in the light of the God’s thoughts as contained in the Word. 4. SUCCESS AT LAST is of CONTINUITY in those afore-said to the very last. If at all you wish to give up, make sure you get to Heaven first as I once quipped. That is the peak of all successes. Never ever give up! (Folks in their number hardly know what it appears like to truly succeed; however, I believe that you and I rather do know better and better now by the day. Thanks for lending your readership to these notes. Go and act what you know. God bless you!)

GOD IS UP TO SOMETHING.

As many that will amount to greatness in life (I don't know about those which will not), they will have to believe that life does not hate them and God is not opposing them, because of the seeming contrary things, just as David encouraged himself in the Lord. They will have to move from watching things happen on their own to making things happen. THOSE THAT DO NOTHING REQUIRED OF THEM BECOMES NOTHING AS IT'S NECESSARY. While a farmer watches things to happen, weeds and pests will soon teach him some lesson. Having challenges means that you are a living soul, so does everyone, but being a child of God means that you have an upper hand. You are a child of destiny. I know so because God said so. And I'm justified because I'm a living testimony. No sooner you wouldn't give up on God, than you would know that He has been working behind the scene all the while.

BETWEEN TWO OPINIONS.

It has now become a norm among people of this world moving from one end to another in search of different things which makes them unstable. I have come to discover that many are being tossed around in the process of searching for the real thing because they are not actually chasing the real thing but shadows. In the bid to solving problems, many complicate their problems. In this little piece, I will identify the cause of this inability and the solution. 1st Kings 17-39 was about Elijah and the prophets of baal. There had not been rain in the land and the people of Israel and Ahab felt that Elijah was the man troubling them. They taught that he was the cause of their problem but they never knew that they were unstable. I know that someone wants to understand the word UNSTABLE. Elijah told them that they had been on and off. He said that...How long halt ye between two opinions meaning that why are you sitting on the fence? Israel will worship God today and tomorrow, they will follow graven image as we don`t know where they belonged to thereby making them unstable. I love the latter part of the verse...If God be God, follow Him and if baal, follow him. Why do you have to stand in between? If Israel wants God, let them follow and if otherwise, let it be. Many of us are in this situation as we are between two opinions. We can`t really differentiate whether you are for God or for the world. I want to tell you all this that it is very dangerous to stand between two opinions because you will always be in one problem or the other. It is like an indicator that is meant to show either black or white and it is now giving colour outside those two. It implies that the indicator is faulty. If you are between two opinions whereby you are either cold or hot, it means that you have a problem. In the church today, many are between two opinions as they are very unstable. They come to church to worship and pray and after church service, they look out for other alternatives. The reason why people end up getting nothing is that they love chasing shadows and not the real thing. The reason reason for this thing is that is due to the fact that the shadow will look like the real thing. So once they have a problem, they opt out for solution any where. I tell you to let all this stop for anybody involved in this attitude will always want to kindle the wrath of God. It has been established in the world that... the Lord is God and even experience has shown that anyone that feels or say that there is no God is a fool. Elijah was able to prove to them that that the Lord is God and I am sure that he did not do that in a month as he had tested and accessed the power of God. Now, what must I do to follow God? All to do is very simple and straight forward. It is something that most of us know but we don`t practice to show that the Lord is God. You must first make up your mind to follow His commandments. Elijah told Israel that they had forsaken the commandments of God. Another thing that is essential is that to show that God is God is to build an altar of prayer unto Him. Elijah built an altar according to the word of God implying that he used the word of God to show that the Lord is God. You and I can show that...God is God if we can study and stand on the word of God because it is a weapon that is essential.

GOD CARES ABOUT YOU(3).

And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters and oppressors...For I know their sorrows and sufferings and trials. And I have come down to deliver them out of the hand and power of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a land good and large, a land flowing with milk and honey. Now, behold, the cry of the Israelites has come to me and I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring forth My people, the Israelites out of Egypt............God is a great God as He is even greater than the greatest. He is omniscient i.e the all-knowing God. He knows everything. Nothing takes Him unawares. He knows your pain. He knows your sufferings, sorrows and trials. Sometimes, He allows us to go through some tough times in life so that His name may be glorified after passing through those rough roads. It is this same God that allowed Lazarus to die when He knew fully well that he was sick and after dying, He did not show up to deliver him from death until four days after his burial. By this time, dead Lazarus was already stinking. Our trying times are not meant to last forever although the devil may tell us that we may die in them. Our trying times have divine expiry dates. By the time our trying moments have reached their divine expiry dates, God will definitely show up in His majesty to deliver and rescue us. In the case of Lazarus, He showed up on the fourth day after his demise and gave life to his stinking body and His name was glorified. In the case of the Israelites, He showed up after four hundred years and commissioned Moses to deliver them from the cruel hands of Pharaoh with His might hand. In view of this fact, I see the Almighty God showing up for you this season to deliver and rescue you from your present trying moment and subsequently take you to where He has destined you to be. It`s your week of deliverance/rescue from all long-standing trials. God bless you!

GOD CARES ABOUT YOU(2).

However, after a long time. the king of Egypt died and the Israelites were sighing and groaning because of bondage. They kept crying and their cry because of bondage/slavery ascended to God. And God heard their sighing and groaning and earnestly remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. God saw the Isrealites and took knowledge of them and concerned Himself about them.....No matter the unpleasant/difficult circumstance that you may be going through that might have made you cry, sigh or groan...be rest assured that God sees everything. He knows everything and He is deeply concerned about you because you are precious to Him. The whole world put together cannot measure up to the worth of your soul and that is why He sent His one and only Son from glory to die and redeem you back to Him when you were not in touch with Him. You are engraved in the palm of His hands and you are the apple of His eye. His love for You is everlasting and it reaches to the skies. So relax with these assuring words of comfort...All is well!

THE BLESSEDNESS OF THE ANOINTING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He has anointed Me to preach the good news to the poor, He has sent Me to announce release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth as delivered those who are oppressed and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.....If you are truly a christian/bonafide child of God, you should be sensitive to times and seasons. In the agenda of Heaven, we are in the dispensation/season/time of the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit can do nothing of His own on the earth today without the co-operation of human beings. It is the Holy Spirit that anoints a man to do good works in an age characterized by sheer wickedness, perversion, immorality and all kinds of evils. Preaching the good news to the poor, announcing release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, sending forth as delivered those who are oppressed by the cruel hands of the enemy and proclaiming the acceptable year of the Lord to people are authentic hallmarks of the ANOINTING which is solely given by the Holy Spirit. In view of this discovery, may you be anointed beyond measure by the Holy Spirit to do good works in our generation and age for the benefit of mankind/humanity and to the glory of your Father in Heaven. It`s your week to be anointed unto good works!

IT`S YOUR SEASON OF L;AUGHTER.

And Sarah said, God has made me to laugh and all who hear what the Lord has done for me will also laugh with me.....A day of divine laughter has the potential to erase years of multiple sorrows. So, by the reason of what my God will do in your life this season, your mourning shall be turned into inexplicable laughter and that laughter will not be limited to you alone as it will be a contagious one. People around you will also join in laughing with you. It`s your week of laughter in every facet of your life!

IT`S YOUR SEASON FOR THE FULFILMENT OF DIVINE PROMISES IN YOUR LIFE.

And blessed is she who believed and therefore there would be a fulfillment of the things that were spoken to her from the Lord.....It takes FAITH to actualize and realize the delivery and fulfillment of God`s words and promises that were made to us. DOUBTS and UNBELIEF are barriers to the manifestation of God`s words and promises unto us. Remember that as powerful as Jesus was, He could not do much miracles in His home town because of the DOUBTS and UNBELIEF that held sway in the hearts of His people. So, may your FAITH be fired up to a sufficient/adequate level in order to produce the reality and the manifestation cum fulfillment of whatever God has spoken to you in Jesus precious name. It`s your week for the fulfillment of divine promises in your life!

HEALING AND HEALTH IS YOUR HERITAGE IN CHRIST.

And thus He fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah that He himself took our weaknesses and infirmities and bore away all our diseases.....My heart goes out to all who are challenged with one physical ailment or the other in their various bodies. I implore you to accept the finished work of Christ on the Cross of Calvary for your sakes. He took your physical ailment in His body so that you can forever be free. FAITH and ABSOLUTE TRUST in this finished work is required by you to walk in the reality of all that He has done for you. It`s your week of all-round and total healing!

LONG LIFE IS YOUR HERITAGE.

You shall come to your grave in ripe old age and it will be as a shock of grain that goes up in its season...May you live long to see all your heart desires come to pass in the land of the living in Jesus precious name. Abraham died as a fulfilled old man. Isaac also died as a fulfilled old man. Israel likewise died as a fulfilled old man. If you are a born-again christian, the good news that I have for you is that you are connected to Abraham`s longevity through our Lord Jesus Christ. In view of this, may we all escape the traps/pangs of untimely death this year and beyond in Jesus precious name. We have recorded enough untimely deaths and I see an end coming to these in Jesus precious name.

WHATEVER IS WRITTEN CONCERNING YOU...

Whatever is written in the word of God(the Holy Bible) concerning you cannot be compared with the situations and circumstances cum challenges that you are passing through at present. Whatever is written concerning you in the word of God(the Holy Bible) is eternal/permanent/everlasting/enduring and is forever established in the Heavens,on earth and beneath the earth while the current challenges that you are passing through are ephemeral/temporal and short-lived. It is wise to stick with the written word than the happening word. Have a victorious week ahead!

IT`S YOUR SEASON OF GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENTS.

For by You(God), I can run through a troop and by my God, I can leap over a wall...I see you do impossible and overwhelming things that will be surprising to people around you through the help and support of your Almighty and Powerful God this season in Jesus precious name. It`s your season of great accomplishments!

GOD CARES ABOUT YOU.

Although my father and my mother have forsaken me, yet the Lord will take me up...To the fatherless,motherless,rejected ,dejected and the lonely in heart, I see God showing up for you in all areas of your life where you need comfort and beyond your wildest imaginations as you cultivate a constant/consistent relationship with Him today. Remember that He loves/cares about you affectionately. Have a lonely-free week ahead!

Saturday, April 06, 2013

BLESSEDNESS OF WALKING WITH GOD.

So many benefits abound in talking a serious life-long walk with the Almighty. I share just two here. 1. ACCESS TO DIVINE SECRETS Friend knows friend's thought. Everyone walking with God should somehow have some/little knowledge of the future; of his own, and some things around him. You know, God exists in all times ever: past, present and future; so if He knows the future, then His own, walking with Him can share some knowledge with Him. God delights in sharing that. In our world, great chunk of human population are per time dying of the fear of the unknown future: heartache, heart attack and 'heart burns' because of uncertainty the world is doomed with. Blessed be God for the special privileged given of Him to us to know what He's doing. Jesus said that the servants know not what the masters do...but thank God, we are sons and friends of God, so we could know what the times are. 2. SUPERNATURAL LIVING One day, God and Enoch were walking all the way as usual, and the end of the story was that Enoch out-walked life! He simply lept from natural to the supernatural life finally, and we didn't see him no more. What a walk! Now, that should be smaller compared to the now, for we are born of God, carrying Him about, having His Spirit. It's supernatural living when your enemies try to curse you,and it answers on their children(Gen. 12:3). It's supernatural living when you can negotiate with God when you want to leave the earth and go home (2 Tim 4:7), because all things are yours (1 Cor. 3:21). It's supernatural and nature-transcending experience when the demons know you (Acts 19:15) WHAT DOES IT ENTAIL... 1. AGREEMENT (Amos 3:3), this agreement is nothing but obedience to God's bidding anytime He leads. 2. SEEKING AFTER GOD ALWAYS. God is to be sought after. His things are hidden, that's why they are precious. Our seeking of Him is also good to us, because the Word emphasizes that it's the glory of the kings to search out a matter (Proverbs 25:2), and kings we are truly. The Bible is replete with many promises for seeking God. Check it out. Whatever happened in the Bible to someone which brought about revelations of God to him or her, is one of the ways to seek God. And I'm so sure being an idle Christian is not one of those ways. Real 'walkers' don't seek after bread, but after the Source of all. Christians are not ordinary breeds; may we take our places on the spirit side. '...come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must happen hereafter.' Revelation 4:1

UNENDING POWER.

Going back to the days of the old and new testament, we all discovered that we had enough people who stood out and did exploits in God`s name. But nowadays, it is observed that it is hard to see people manifest this even though it is much easier to do so now. In this world which we are now, many are subjected to what comes their ways. They are either maneuvered and mesmerized. Instead of controlling situations, situations tend to control them. We see many suffering and trying to find a way out but all to no avail. Many are in bondage seeking freedom but they can`t be free. We see kings operating as servants and they are satisfied because they don`t know their rights whereas in the Bible days, we see men that controlled situations and manipulated things to their advantage. This is simply because they knew how to access the power of God. Many of us in this generation love to be spoon-fed and we don`t want to learn how to use spoon to eat and this has resulted in their inability to use God`s power. Let us look at majority of people in one problem or the other. They always run out for solution to their problems by going to meet people that they believe can access God`s power. In the process, they run into wrong hands that add to their problems. There is a saying that if a fisherman gives a fish, it can`t be compared to him teaching you how to catch a fish because if he continues to give you, you will always be limited to what he gives you but if you know how to catch it, you can proceed to catch them at any point in time. I want to affirm that God`s power is available and unending but few people make use of it. May be I should tell you about His power. Psalm 29 vs 3-10 was talking about His voice being powerful. In 1st kings 18 vs 46, the hand of God was upon Elijah and God made him to do and undo. The hand of the Lord upon Ezekiel made him to see beyond the physical. He is powerful. With His power, He can construct and with His power, He can also destroy. He can make and break with His power. As powerful as He is, no one can access all the power as we can only access a small part. Let us briefly look at some people that utilized the power of God to their advantage in the Bible. Joshua was a man that was given a mantle of leadership to lead Israel to the promised land after the exit of Moses. He could not achieve this without obtaining and moving in the power of God. He need to conquer a lot of cities before reaching the desired place...hence, he used God`s power to his own advantage. He used it to divide the river Jordan for the Israelites to pass and he also used it to do what could not be done before by making the sun and the moon to stand still while they were fighting. Now tell me how many people you have seen doing such in this dispensation. I must confess that I hardly see any individual perform this feat even though we are in a better covenant. Another man that I must talk about is Elijah...A man that really exploited God`s power and manipulated it to his own advantage. For example, Elijah single-handedly commanded that there should be no rain in the land and there was no rain until he reversed it using the power of God. Elijah also battled the prophets of Baal in a contest whereby he commanded fire to consume the sacrifice that he prepared and the prophets of Baal could do nothing. This was not ordinary but duly what he has received from God. That was why he told Elisah, his servant that what he asked from him was hard when Elijah was demanding a double portion of his anointing. He told him to work for it. All the manipulation he did was simply to glorify God and to make a statement that there is no god besides our God. It is high time we told people via God`s power that we serve a living God. What can be done to receive God`s power in our lives? We must first receive the Holy Spirit. Power came to the disciples when the Holy Spirit came upon them. Prior to that time, they lacked power. Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit and power and He went about doing good. We must learn how to pray fervently. One secret to Elijah`s success was as a result of his prayers. He always settle everything in his closet before declaring his authority. Jesus Christ also was always separating himself to receive power to heal and to perform wondrous works. Now that we have the authority in Christ that in His name, we can command anything because authority has been given to us both in Heaven and on earth. We must believe that God is able to do anything. One thing that I know about people that doubt easily is that doubt can reduce the power of God. Look at Jesus...when He went to his home town, He was not able to perform great works there because of the unbelief of the people. Look at Peter when he was walking on the sea, he began to drown at the moment he began to doubt thereby limiting the power of God. This explains the reason why many who run to men of God for help tend not to receive solution to their problems because as you doubt, you limit the power of God in men of God`s hands to solve the problem. We need to activate the power of praise and thanksgiving because once you start praising God, you invoke the power of God from Heaven and it comes down to change situations and thanksgiving is an act that will encourage God to endue you with power. Another key is instruction...In order to maintain the power of God, you need to follow His laid down rules. In judges 5 vs 17, Samson...a powerful man from birth was born to fight Israel but due to his disobedience, he ended up being destroyed with those he was to fight. The vital key is the word of God which is very powerful. It is the word that invokes the spoken word of God. Daily meditation on the word of God will make you know God and His power thereby knowing what to do to obtain His power. One thing that I know that we need in this generation is revival. We need to start accessing the power of God using this basic key above. We need to change our mentality and mindset so as to obtain the real power...the power that will make you control every situation. Briefly, some of the benefits of God`s power is (1). It transforms the soul (salvation). When Saul(Paul) was to change from a terrorist to an Apostle, it brought about healing. When Jesus was on the face of the earth, He was able to do a lot of miracles by the virtue of His power. (2). It makes you to have wealth. Do you desire to be rich? It is God that gives power to make wealth. (3). It gives boldness-Peter and all the disciples became bold when they received power but prior to that time, they were timid. (4). It makes you to control situations by destroying your enemies and making the devil useless. In summary, God`s power is unending and it will take eternity for us to explore the totality of it. Let us learn to tap into it and if you feel you have the power, don`t stop there because more are still yet to be discovered and in case you don`t know, now you know that God wants us to be independent in using His power.

Monday, April 01, 2013

ORDINARY BECOMING EXTRAORDINARY.

One thing I have come to discover in life is that many always worry about the reason why they are not endowed with a different talent,skill and forms of dexterity that will make people think that they are extraordinary. Some subject themselves to forms of comparison whereby they weigh themselves with others in terms of their ability. They are fond of complaining about their voices not being melodious as that of another person and other skills. But a question to be asked is have you ever considered the ordinary gifts/talents that God has deposited in you. Have you ever put them into practice? People of God,I have a message for you that you should start doing that ordinary things using ordinary materials to get extraordinary results. From the word of God,we will consider five cases of people that did things that were ordinary in their own eyes but extraordinary to the people around them and there was an elevation for them because it had an extraordinary effect on the people. The first person to be considered is David. David wanted to fight a giant philistine who was armed. To every one,David was too young to fight implying that he was just an ordinary man and they did not expect much from him. When they wore all the armours on him, he had to remove them because he had no prove of them. He had with him a sling and five stones because he had used that ordinary stone and sling to kill a lion and a bear before .The ordinary stone had extraordinary effect on Goliath that he fell down with just one shot .I want you to know that it was ordinary or normal for David to throw stone with his ordinary sling until when the ordinary stone hit Goliath and the ordinary became extraordinary because the effect on Goliath was more than what the people around could imagine. What are those things that you have seen ordinary? Begin to do them well because God is interested in turning them into extraordinary things in the eyes of the people. Another personality to be considered is Moses.After he had encounter with God, Moses used the ordinary rod in his ordinary hand to do different things that amazed people. For example, when he turned the rod into snake in the presence of pharaoh,it was extraordinary in the eyes of the people but to Moses it became a norm to use the rod to his advantage .Pharaoh had no choice but to respect Moses because all that Moses did was extraordinary in Pharaoh's eyes. The third person that had the experience is Esther. Esther was in contest that involved young maidens in which all of them desired to become a queen at the end of the contest .Esther came from an ordinary family that was not known. The attire she put on was not spectacular than that of the other girls but the Bible said that Esther obtained favour in the sight of all of them that looked upon her. This was so because Esther looked extraordinary in their eyes even though all she wore were normal or ordinary. In Acts 3, Peter and John were heading towards the temple. As they were going inside the temple,they met a lame man sitting at the temple begging for alms. To Peter and John, it was extraordinary to give him money and the likes but it was normal for them to command the guy to stand up which was an extraordinary thing in the eyes of the people in the temple. Peter said in Acts 3:6, such that I have,I will give unto implying that the ordinary things in my possession will I give out,I will not give out all those things that you feel is ordinary or less important. As Jesus was walking on the sea,it was normal for him to do that but it was extraordinary in the eyes of the people that witnessed the scene. The bible said that the people that saw it were surprised in their heart. For Jesus to be doing something that was ordinary in his own eye and people were marvelled at His dexterity,I think we should not fall below that standard.I remembered when i finished my predegree program,one of my elder sisters gave birth to a baby. Two months after ,she had to resume in her place of work. she was now faced with the problem of who to take care of the baby. When i heard this ,knowing that i was free and doing nothing, I volunteered to take care of the baby. To all the people that were around then,they felt it was awkward for a guy like me to take care of a baby that was barely two months but to me,I felt there was no big deal about it and i said that all I needed was for them to provide adequate food for the baby and with the help of God,there will be no problem.I started and began to enjoy doing it everyday to the extent that people came from my sister's place of work to come and see me and in turn,they blessed me in cash and kind to the extent that i never lacked. From that time, they always call me to come if any of them gives birth to a baby. What I am trying to say in essence is that it was ordinary for me to take care of the baby but to people,it was an extraordinary gesture. Before the ordinary things that you are doing can become extraordinary,there must be a place of hiding(Isaiah 26:20. Before all the above-mentioned people started doing exploits,they had to pass through a place of hiding. For instance,David was in the wilderness for a long time where nobody knew him and there he used the ordinary sling and stone to kill a bear and a lion. Moses was also in the wilderness with sheep before he had an encounter with God. Esther was not known by anyone before she was chosen as a queen. She was under Modecaih's roof and that was her place of hiding. Peter and John had their place of hiding as a disciple of Jesus as they were learning to use the ordinary to get the extraordinary .They were finally endowed with power to do extraordinary things when the Holy Spirit came. For thirty years,Jesus passed through a place of hiding where he grew and learned different things before he came out to do the extraordinary. People of God,let us now therefore go into our own place of hiding so as to do the extraordinary. By going to hiding means knowing your God. The bible states that "THEY THAT DO KNOW THEIR GOD SHALL BE STRONG AND THEY SHALL LIKEWISE DO EXPLOITS". For us to do exploits, we need to know our God by searching through his word which will bring about the revelation of Him. In conclusion,the message is clear, simple and straightforward.It is high time, you began to do the ordinary things within your reach because God specializes in making them extraordinary in the eyes of the people.

GO TO THE ENEMY`S CAMP.

We are starting this piece by briefly looking back at the history of Nigeria. In 1976, a coup was executed and General Muritala Mohammed...the then head of State was murdered. It was a killing led by General Dimka. After the killing, they took over the National Radio Station declaring their intention as the new Head of State but on a good day, it was General Obasanjo that ought to be the next Head of State. Obasanjo...knowing his right needed to find a way of taking back the government. He did this by using General Babaginda who was a good friend to the leader of the coup to go as a spy to meet him at the National Radio Station and access his strength. He went and saw Dimka`s armory and men...then they went to the Radio Station with armories that was five times better than that of the coup plotters and they succeeded to take back power. This history illustrates a typical way of going back to the enemy`s camp in order to take back what is yours. This concept is just a foundation to what we want to dwell on in this piece. As we imagine that scenario, let us now understand and capture what God has for us concerning this topic or subject. God wants us to go to the enemy`s camp and take back what they have stolen from us. Going to the opposition camp requires confidence and the backing of God. I want us to know that the enemy may not necessarily be the devil alone. It can be individual(s), group(s) and even yourself when talking about the flesh. In the Bible, David and his men went out to war and before they came back, the enemy has stolen all that belonged to them including their wives and children. We are going to be using David`s case as an example of how to declare our liberty in the enemy`s camp. When David and his men arrived back home having got a victory and seeing what the enemy did, they started crying and shouting that all that they had was all gone but the crying and shouting did not change their situation even though they used all their strength to cry. Are you still in the habit of crying when the enemy has taken something from you? Come off it and stop crying. David had to encourage himself because there was no one to do so for him. It is very important that you encourage yourself no matter how big the magnitude of what you have lost whether in your academics, finances, marital life or in your relationship. Encouraging yourself is the first step towards having confidence to recover the lost things. Let your encouragement be in the Lord. After David had encouraged Himself in the Lord, He went ahead to inquire of the Lord whether to go to the enemy`s camp or not. Friends, before you can go to claim what is yours, you need to inquire from the Lord whether to go or not because it is not by physical strength that you can recover all that you have lost but only by God`s backing and help. It is not by reading hard that will make you have distinctions in all your courses in school. It is only by His help. It is important to state clearly that until you know Him via His word, you won`t be able to inquire from Him. God told David to pursue and overtake. Many of us do inquire from the Lord before we engage in anything but we don`t always wait for God to reply us. Instead, we conclude with actions that is already in our minds. Let us always try and wait for God to stamp our plans before we execute them. As David went on the verge of recovering all that was lost, he met an Egyptian man who had a clue to the place where the lost things/people were but the man lacked food because he was abandoned. David and his men was able to meet the man`s need and they were nice to him instead of killing him because the man was also a part of the enemies. Let us try to do good even though we might be in haste to recover all that was lost because the person you are doing good to may look like the person who has nothing to offer you but in him lies the solution to your problems. David fought the enemy and conquered them to recover all that was lost. He was able to discover to recover all that was lost. He recovered all to the extent that none of the enemies escaped showing that there was a mark of excellence in their mission and a display of perfection which can only be made possible by God. There was a place of discovery for General Obasanjo whereby he recognized that Babaginda was a close friend to Dimka. Using the former as a spy made them (Obasanjo and Babaginda) to discover their strength and consequently know the strategy to overcome them. This discovery led to the recovery of the government/authority/power. One of the greatest enemy of human beings is the flesh(YOU). It can cause stagnancy, destruction, prevention from knowing God, reduction of the action of the Holy Spirit in one`s life etc. It is very important to fight the flesh by building one`s inner man with the word of God to stand against the activities of the flesh. Let us therefore go and recover ALL(not some) because it is time for us to be free and to be restored in ALL THINGS.