Believers Journey

      While I was studying the word of God, the Holy Spirit spoke to me about the troubles awaiting us as believers. Apostle Paul said " They strengthened the believers and encouraged them to remain true to the faith. “We must pass through many troubles to enter the Kingdom of God,” they taught." Acts 14:22
      A home has been prepared for us to stay through out eternity. A place where there will be no more death, aging, pain, hunger, temptations, sin, darkness, scorching sun, tiredness, weakness, strive, poverty, rejection, etc. It will be a great place for us. We will have new bodies, celestial bodies. It won't be sick, it won't be prone to diseases, it won't be blind or lames, weak or thirsty. Neither will it have blood flowing through its vains. For flesh and blood will not inherit the kingdom of God. But for we to go home, the kingdom of Heaven, like apostle Paul said we must go through many trouble.
      So, for now "...stand ready, with truth as a belt tight round your waist, with righteousness as your breastplate, and as your shoes the readiness to announce the Good News of peace. At all times carry faith as a shield; for with it you will be able to put out all the burning arrows shot by the Evil One. And  salvation as a helmet, and the word of God as the sword which the Spirit gives you." Ephesians 6:14-17 because Jesus even said “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16.33 if He can, we can.
      If He can, we can. We are more than conquerors. So let's take up our cross daily, deny ourself and follow Him daily. Rejoice, there is hope, strength and there is help. There is Jesus. He is the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE. The truth about which direction our life should actually go. Walk in His footsteps and "He will never leave you nor forsake you." "With Him all things are possible."
      Whatever you are going through, be it temptations, struggles, pain. Anything it might be. Be strong. In this world it is quite the opposite to what will happen and enjoy in heaven. Pls be strong! Do not give in to that temptation, do not let that problem bring you down, pls do your best to go through ever situation and conquer every trial and tribulation. Your are stronger than you think. The temple of a God is inside of you. You have a God in you. Do not be discouraged, We will overcome the world.

Standard For Following Him

     This is to everyone who has a consuming hunger for Jesus, who wants to be like Him, who loves Him, to everyone seeking Him. "If any man will come after me, let him DENY HIMSELF, TAKE UP HIS CROSS and FOLLOW ME"

A. Deny Himself
B.Take up his cross
C. Follow me.

       Check other references Luke 9:23-26; 14:25-33; Mark 8:34-38, Luke9:57-62 and Matthew 19:21-26
I must say this, God will not reduce the standard for those who want to follow him. Remember "But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor."
II Timothy 2:20 NKJV

Arise And Shine

Text: Isaiah 60:1-7, 40:1-5

' Arise and shine for your light has come and the glory Of the lord has risen upon you ' Isa 60:1

     It is time for you to begin to engage your abilities, virtues and worth so that God's glory will be revealed and you could have achievements.  Men will begin to respect you when they see the glory of God upon you. If you want glory, you have to say goodbye to sin. Sin makes a man come short of God's glory, turn away from it!
    Your glory will shine in this new day the Lord had made. You are the light God has placed in strategic places to Shine but the question is, are you shining?
     I pray that God will give you the grace to rise up and exhibit the glory of the light that is deposited in you.

If God Be For You

I want you to carefully read this, with the mind set of getting closer to God, His love for you and how He can do any thing for you.

     So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture: They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one. None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.
Romans 8:31-39 MSG

A man who has God definitely has everything. If God be for you. What about you be for God? What about giving Him your life? Think twice. He is the only Man who sees a useful vessel out of a wasted and unproductive life. The only Man who Is capable of producing the finest gold out of a stony life. A choice you have to make is to give him your life.

Choice

Choice, the opportunity to choose or select something. From the very day God created human being, he willed to us the power of choice. "But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden— except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.” Gen. 2:16-17 NLT
Every decision we have ever made, we made it out of our own free will. Just like being born again, it is a thing of free will. I would actually force people to be born again if I was God because I know the price God paid for each soul. Imagine paying for a used product which is already bad and after paying, the dealer refused to release the goods. The truth is, nobody will sacrifice his/her child for someone else not even a family member. I'm sure many of us will vent, call the police or charge the person to court until you get your goods back. God paid a price for every one, by sending His only son to die for our sins, He was innocent. He did not sin, it was us. but He bled out, crown of torns placed on His head, long nails driven through His wrist and legs. Jesus had the choice to say, "why will I die for people who don't even know nor want to know me, they don't even care that a whole God like me wants to die for them so that they can be saved." But  he said "Father forgive them for they do not know what they do."
A friend of mine said that from the day we were born, we started living eternity, but our destinations are different. “Today I am giving you a choice between good and evil, between life and death. I am now giving you the choice between life and death, between God's blessing and God's curse, and I call heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Choose life." Deu. 30:15,19. God has given us a choice to choose His son or eternal torment. Some people think having all the riches and pleasures of this world is all that is to life and their existence but when a man dies the only thing that comes to his mind is "am I going to Heaven or hell" Anyone who goes to hell has one time in their life worked towards it and chose wrongly. When there is life there is still time. It is not too late to give Him yourself and confess Him as your Lord and Saviour. And I'm telling you the truth, to be born again is not boring neither will It make you a loner, people will tell you how boring you have become but the truth is you now see the light so you know the darkness the world is dwelling in. When you seek God, every other thing will follow even without praying for them because "if God is for you, who and what can be against you?" Because you now have a greater authority that whatever you ask in the name of Jesus shall be added unto you. You Will become and offspring of Abraham and all the promises and covenant God made with Abraham will be fulfilled in you and through you. Make your choice now die once, be born twice and live for ever in God's home or be born once and die once then live in eternal torment with the devil. Just imagine when something hot burns your skin, you know how painful it is. In this case it's a million times hotter and you will not burn but you will feel the intense pain, torment and torture throughout eternity. You will thirst for water and you will not get a drop. But Jesus has paid the price but you have to "...born again..." Jesus or the world, heave. or hell? Choose wisely.

Faith

According to Wikipedia, faith is defined as confidence or trust in a being, object, living organism, deity, view, or in the doctrines or teachings of a religion, as well as confidence based on some degree of warrant. Faith can also refer to a belief that is not based on proof. Faith in terms of religion is the total acceptance of the divine authority of the Manifestations of God. In the religion's view, faith and knowledge are both required for spiritual growth; Faith involves more than outward obedience to this authority, but also must be based on a deep personal understanding of religious teachings .

According to the Scriptures, the definition of faith is “… confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see" (Hebrews 11:1). Perhaps, no other component of the Christian life is more important than faith. We cannot purchase it, sell it or give it to our friends. The Bible has much more to say about faith and how important it is. In fact, it is so important that, without faith, we have no place with God, and it is impossible to please Him. The Scriptures affirms it in Hebrews 11:6, "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek him". Without demonstrating faith and trust in God, we have no place with Him.

We believe in God’s existence by faith. Most people have a vague, disjointed notion of who God is but lack the veneration necessary for His exalted position in their lives. These people lack faith needed to have an eternal relationship with the God who loves them. Our faith can falter at times, but because it is the gift of God, given to His children to remain strong in faith and overcome trials. He provides times of trials in order to sharpen strengthen and prove that our faith is strong. This is why James, the Apostle tells us to consider it “pure joy” when we fall into trials, because the testing of our faith produces perseverance and matures us, providing the evidence that our faith is real.

To every Christian who desires to fellowship and build a relationship with God, and those who want something from Him must have faith. Faith is not something we conjure up, nor is it something we are born with, nor is faith a result of diligence in study or pursuit of the spiritual. Ephesians 2:8-9 says “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast." Faith is simply given to us by God, through the Holy Spirit. “To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:8–9). With His grace and mercy, according to His holy plan and purpose, and because of that, He gets all the glory and through a conscious decision and a “leap of faith”, let’s put our hopes and trust in God instead of in worldly things. But those who sincerely take that leap develop a sense of peace, security and joy that confirms the correctness of the decision. The person who is afraid to get in the water will never learn to swim. Similarly, the person who is afraid to believe without knowing all the answers will never find faith. Everyone has questions and doubts about their faith from time to time. It is in working through those questions and doubts that our faith can become stronger and more mature and continue to grow throughout life. As mere humans, there are many things about God that we will never understand. It is through faith that we can trust that God is the One who has all the answers and knows what is best. As it says in the Book of Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”  

By Faith there is a lot to gain. Faith in Jesus Christ is a shield that protects us from the things of the world and the temptations of the devil. Ephesians 6:16 says, "In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one." And 1 John 5:4 says, "For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith." God can do all things for us if we exercise faith in the Savior. By faith we can do anything, we can even achieve the unthinkable. The Bible made me understand in Matthew 17:20, "He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”" But are a lot of things hindering us as Christians, DOUBT is a major and common hindrance.

• DOUBT: Doubting is the number one reason to ungranted requests. Doubt not for it is said in James 1:6-8 "But when you ask, you must believe and not DOUBT, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do."

• WHAT YOU HEAR: What we hear or pay attention to is one of the factors that also determine how weak or strong our faith will be. The Bible says in Romans 8:17 "…faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God." If you hear negative report your faith will be at risk. You can’t develop a very strong faith by constantly hearing negative things. If you have noticed, anytime you hear something that’s really bad, you tend to come under fear. As faith is produced by hearing the Word of God, faith can be destroyed by hearing the words of the devil (negative reports). Every bad report originates from the devil and they damage our faith. Your faith can’t thrive in an atmosphere of negative reports.

• WHAT YOU SEE: What you see will ultimately get to your heart and anything that gets into your heart will affect your faith. Faith is a heart thing and anything that affects your heart will affect your faith. Your faith is in your heart not your head. If you are in an environment that exposes you to things that are not in line with the Word of God, you are in a potentially dangerous environment. A good example is “The Israelites”. Look at The Israelites whom God has demonstrated great signs in Egypt for their release. When they got to the Red Sea and saw Pharaoh and his army coming, they lost their faith. Exodus 14:10, "As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians over taking them…" What you see, sends a message to your brain, it processes what has been seen and causes the nerves to react. The Israelites saw Pharaoh and his army and they panicked. While panicking “WHAT IFs” are the questions that come up in our minds leading to worry and out faith because weak.

• YOUR THOUGHTS: What is going on in your mind will eventually affect the state of your heart. You need to monitor your thought so it doesn’t stray into what will hinder your faith. Your thought is affected by what we see or hear. The devil will try to put negative and wrong thoughts in your heart to weaken your faith. Always be at alert to recognize this kind of thoughts. If you permit fear- laden thoughts in your mind your faith could be in jeopardy. Satan will try to assault your mind with wrong crippling thoughts. Whenever such thoughts come to your mind, deal with them with the truth of God’s Word. Psalms 118: 17 says "The word of God is the antidote to wrong thoughts. Apply the word of God to your mind continually." This should be a constant reminder when we are faced with negatives thoughts and the Word of God should be sought to kill such thoughts.

• WHAT YOU SAY: Your thoughts affect what you say and what you say has a way of affecting your faith. If you go around talking about how difficult and impossible things are you will hardly have faith working in your heart. You are putting negative report in your heart. Negative reports whether you hear them or say them will weaken your faith. Think back at the times that you have told many people that you were sick. If you are able to remember clearly you will know that at those times you could hardly exercise faith for healing. The reason is simple. As you talked about the sickness in negative way your faith was weakened. The devil will encourage you to go around telling the difficulty of your situation because he knows that the more you talk about those situations and circumstances, the weaker your faith will become. Your faith is at the mercy of what you say. Any time you say something contrary to the truth and the promises of the Word of God your faith becomes less potent and weakened. When your words show your unbelief, fear, doubt and worry, you can’t expect to have a strong faith. Unbelief stops your faith from coming alive, fear kills your faith, doubt dilutes it and worry distracts your faith.

 I have to mention that before you can receive the gift of faith, you have to be BORN-AGAIN because how will you have faith in someone when you can't accept His salvation and submit yourself to Him totally. And when you receive this gift (i.e. the gift of salvation), the Word of God is what will make your faith grow stronger. Nothing is impossible for God to do but faith is the catalyst to answered prayers. Sometimes our miracles are right in front of us but because of the conclusion and doubts in our hearts, we are scared to exercise faith. Faith will propel your prayers to the heart of God and make Him answer your prayers quickly and at the most appropriate time. God will never let you down or bring shame to Himself because a man who has faith in God will boast about Him because he believe in Him who is the all in all and one in all, the one who says yes and no man on earth or in heaven or hell can say no, The author and finisher of our faith. But when you don't have faith in Him, how will you help others imbibe the act of Faith?

Seek God diligently, obey His commands, praise and worship Him, learn to tell Him “Thank You”, extend love to your surroundings and maintain a regular communication with God and when things are working out, people will ask you, how did you do it?. I also what you to know that, a child of God is not a normal person because everything beyond human understanding is abnormal so try not to follow the world because you are in a new realm now.

May God be praised.

You Are Not Alone

        Sometimes I wish I could do something to help people out with their situation, I wish I could carry their burden on my shoulders and make them disappear for ever, but it is impossible. The fact is, you cannot exist on earth without trials and tribulations arising at every junction of your life, it is a functional unit of life even the bible said so in John 16:33 NIV “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

        Most times, the reason why we find ourselves in a bad situation without a clue of its solution is because we have totally ignored/abandoned the manufacture's manual (Bible) and why we don't get a permanent solution to our problems is because we don't refer to the manufacture(God) for a solution. We need to understand that, God alone is the permanent solutions to your problem. You can't solve it on your own, even if the whole world comes together to look for the answer to your problem, it can never be a permanent one unless the mighty hand of God is included. Prov. 3:5-6(NIV) "Trust in the Lord with all your heart  and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."  The fact his that, God listens and he replies but how efficient is your spiritual ears?
 
        Sometimes your situation is the key to opening doors that leads to your happiness or to what your heart desires. Your situation can also be a part of God's plan so as for you to believe in him as the author and the finisher of your faith or it is God's strategy to bring you closer to him. The question is,  How will you get help from someone you don't know, someone you don't talk to,  or believe in? How will you get help from someone whom you have cursed with the lips he gave you? How will you get help from someone who died for your sins but you don't acknowledge or show appreciation to him?.....Can I say we humans are heartless? Your problems are never gone they only take a new form which is why you need to keep in touch with the manufacture and his manual always.

       I want you to understand that in this life, we are all in the middle. The moment you think your situation/problem is at its peak, look down and you will thank God for where you are at that moment and when you think you are at the highest level of success look up, there are people who are way above you. The fact is you are not the only one in that situation so don't make a big deal out of it but thank God for where you are cause its better than where you've left and have hope for the brighter place you are heading to, 1 peter 5:10 NIV "And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast." Believe in him,he knew you be for you were born, he knew you before your problems begun. In a song I wrote I said "God will never forsake his own, believe and have faith in his tone" if you have a steady relationship with God, he will never watch you go down the drain. Isaiah 59:1 KJV said "Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear". All you have is hope in God that he will do a new thing. so, worry not about your problems, Matthew 11:28 NIV “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" he is he that was, is and forever will be. He said in Jeremiah 32:27 NIV “I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?" No matter what you are going through believe there is an authority which will change everything for good, believe all of this is part of the process, believe all of this is just protocols to reach your heart desire or have you ever heard a success story without hardship?

        Three things you should never let go; Hope, faith in God, and patience; they are essential nutrients for you to pass life's obstacles. I want you to understand you can never rise without few falls, a child can never learn how to walk without falling several times. Hold on to God, be strong, feed your soul with his word, separate yourself from sin, watch and pray, above all, have faith in God. keep up the good work, improve yourself physically, mentally and spiritually,  You are not alone, God is here with you, speak and he will answer you. Give you life to Christ. God bless you. Amen.




                                                                                                                              SHALOM.