The Nation Newspaper

Tag: God

  • Theme : In God, I am unstoppable! Part 2

    Theme : In God, I am unstoppable! Part 2

    Text: “……. if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.” Luke 19:40

    Stones also spoke when Simon after exploring all he knew as an experienced fisherman yet caught nothing. The unstoppable King stepped in, He woke all the sleeping and hiding fishes, His word nullified the laws that stipulated that fishes come to the surface only at night time. During the day time, Simon was awestruck by the number of fish he caught that made his net to break to the extent that their boats were filled with fish and their boats started to sink as a result of the exploit ( Luke 5:1-10).

    The Unstoppable God also has power to suspend the law of austerity. During the time of severe austerity, He can set some people apart from economic hurts. Isaac for instance sowed during the time of famine and got a hundredfold returns such that he became an object of envy of a whole nation (Genesis 26:12). It was the same with the widow of Zarephath that there was always flour and olive oil left in her containers until when famine ended (1 Kings 17:8-14). It was so miraculous that each time they wake up, they found food in their kitchen all through the time of famine.

    When God decides to do whatever, there is no man, power, political arrangement, church structure or powers of darkness that can stop Him. Even when men are cast down, He has power to declare a lifting up for the humble that whatsoever the person does prospers (Job 22:29; Psalm 1:3).

    The Unstoppable God who rode on a donkey to Jerusalem can open any closed doors. He had done it before and can always do it again because He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). When the Israelites were going to the Promised land, the Egyptians went after them to destroy them because they knew they had nowhere to escape to but the Unstoppable God opened the Red Sea, created an ‘expressway’ in a difficult terrain and did it in a split second ( Exodus 14:21-22). It was the same when Elijah was almost stranded and the sons of the prophet had gathered to ridicule him because of no passage through the River Jordan after Elijah had been taken up but He parted the river and the sons of the prophet bowed before him ( 2 Kings 2:13-15).

    When Jesus Christ voiced it that stones will rise up and talk, He introduced a new dimension to His ministry that with Him nothing is impossible. From biblical history, it is common knowledge that inanimate things have come out from another inanimate thing before like water coming from stone and fire coming out from stone but for a living voice to come from an inanimate thing will be bewildering – The Unstoppable God can make a stone to assume the personality of a human being.

    During this Lenten period, the Unstoppable God who rode triumphantly to Jerusalem will visit wherever any of your loved ones, their destinies, marriage, education or business has been held captive as He did on His entry to Jerusalem. What you need to do to get maximum benefit of this season is to hearken to the voice of “I have need of you”, surrender to Him absolutely and your evil captors shall let go of you.

    Thereafter, He will make a way for you where it has been established that there is none, He will compel your stones to talk, help shall come for you from unexpected quarters as it happened with Elijah (IKgs 17: 1-7), He will fight for you using unconventional methods as He did for Israel (Joshua 10:10-11), roasted meat shall come to make you filled up, He will quest your thirst by opening the rock, shall create an express road for you even in the waters, take the power of hurt and damage from rivers, fire and lions ( Isaiah 43:2-4), He will free you from captivity, break every road junction injunction against your life, frustrate all satanic judgment, deliver you from inherited problems, give you latitude to eat what you want and not what you see and make you a celebrity like the donkey, in Jesus’ name.

    Prayers: Father, I surrender my life to you, let my life, family and work be an expression and demonstration of your unstoppable powers in Jesus’ name.

     

  • Theme : In God, I am unstoppable! Part 2

    Theme : In God, I am unstoppable! Part 2

    Text: “……. if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.” Luke 19:40

    Stones also spoke when Simon after exploring all he knew as an experienced fisherman yet caught nothing. The unstoppable King stepped in, He woke all the sleeping and hiding fishes, His word nullified the laws that stipulated that fishes come to the surface only at night time. During the day time, Simon was awestruck by the number of fish he caught that made his net to break to the extent that their boats were filled with fish and their boats started to sink as a result of the exploit ( Luke 5:1-10).

    The Unstoppable God also has power to suspend the law of austerity. During the time of severe austerity, He can set some people apart from economic hurts. Isaac for instance sowed during the time of famine and got a hundredfold returns such that he became an object of envy of a whole nation (Genesis 26:12). It was the same with the widow of Zarephath that there was always flour and olive oil left in her containers until when famine ended (1 Kings 17:8-14). It was so miraculous that each time they wake up, they found food in their kitchen all through the time of famine.

    When God decides to do whatever, there is no man, power, political arrangement, church structure or powers of darkness that can stop Him. Even when men are cast down, He has power to declare a lifting up for the humble that whatsoever the person does prospers (Job 22:29; Psalm 1:3).

    The Unstoppable God who rode on a donkey to Jerusalem can open any closed doors. He had done it before and can always do it again because He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). When the Israelites were going to the Promised land, the Egyptians went after them to destroy them because they knew they had nowhere to escape to but the Unstoppable God opened the Red Sea, created an ‘expressway’ in a difficult terrain and did it in a split second ( Exodus 14:21-22). It was the same when Elijah was almost stranded and the sons of the prophet had gathered to ridicule him because of no passage through the River Jordan after Elijah had been taken up but He parted the river and the sons of the prophet bowed before him ( 2 Kings 2:13-15).

    When Jesus Christ voiced it that stones will rise up and talk, He introduced a new dimension to His ministry that with Him nothing is impossible. From biblical history, it is common knowledge that inanimate things have come out from another inanimate thing before like water coming from stone and fire coming out from stone but for a living voice to come from an inanimate thing will be bewildering – The Unstoppable God can make a stone to assume the personality of a human being.

    During this Lenten period, the Unstoppable God who rode triumphantly to Jerusalem will visit wherever any of your loved ones, their destinies, marriage, education or business has been held captive as He did on His entry to Jerusalem. What you need to do to get maximum benefit of this season is to hearken to the voice of “I have need of you”, surrender to Him absolutely and your evil captors shall let go of you.

    Thereafter, He will make a way for you where it has been established that there is none, He will compel your stones to talk, help shall come for you from unexpected quarters as it happened with Elijah (IKgs 17: 1-7), He will fight for you using unconventional methods as He did for Israel (Joshua 10:10-11), roasted meat shall come to make you filled up, He will quest your thirst by opening the rock, shall create an express road for you even in the waters, take the power of hurt and damage from rivers, fire and lions ( Isaiah 43:2-4), He will free you from captivity, break every road junction injunction against your life, frustrate all satanic judgment, deliver you from inherited problems, give you latitude to eat what you want and not what you see and make you a celebrity like the donkey, in Jesus’ name.

    Prayers: Father, I surrender my life to you, let my life, family and work be an expression and demonstration of your unstoppable powers in Jesus’ name.

     

  • The best time to know God

    The best time to know God

    DEAR friends, it gives me great joy to be in touch with you again today. This is the fourth week since this column began and it gladdens my heart that parents and girls and even the men are calling and sending text messages as soon as they read, making inquiries on how to be a part of the Club and also discussing their challenges, looking for a way out. This motivates me to reach out to my readers more and proffer solutions to issues concerning the youth. Today, I’ll be discussing one of the fundamentals of fulfilling our destiny and living a good life.

    It grieves my heart to see a youth who as a little girl dazzled everyone and was always on top of her class with straight A’s till she gained an admission into a prestigious University abroad to study Aeronautics but was brought back home like a “mad person” due to an abuse of hard drugs. I hear you say “peer pressure.” True, but did she have to bow? This is an only girl whose parents almost had to bend over backwards to send her to the best schools since kindergarten to ensure she had the very best standard of education to nurture her exceptional intelligence. Their great dreams for this glorious child have suddenly crashed into smithereens.

    We all have an understanding that in life both good and evil exist. And we are also aware that goodness comes from God and evil is championed by the devil because above all things God wishes us to prosper and enjoy life in spite of tribulations. We must not also forget that the devil will always fight a shinning destiny that will give you joy, people of relevance, significance, those who want to be voices for their generation and human gold mines generally. And he knows once he attacks them and succeeds in incapacitating them in their youth, they never become what they were destined to be. Cultists, armed robbers, drug addicts, prostitutes etc are youths. How many of them eventually fulfill their divine destinies? A lot of children are being diverted from their destiny; polluted and manipulated. Most of them don’t even know what they are doing; they are lost and just find themselves doing what the devil and his agents want them to do. Peer pressure? Do they have to bow?

    Everything about our existence on earth is spiritual so is good and evil. Right from the time a child arrives into the world he/she must be soaked in the spiritual as much as possible. The state of one’s mind controls one’s life and if it is corrupted by darkness, one cannot live a normal life. If your spirit is connected to God, you will have a strong grip on your destiny and become exactly what God created you to be. As soon as children can talk and understand what you tell them, they must be fully aware of God and made to put Him first in all things. This is not just about going to the place of worship but they must be filled with the spirit of God and in fact exude Godliness. A lot of people go to the place of worship but are full of darkness. It is the wisest thing to ensure your child’s emotions, motions, walk and entire life is scripture-controlled. Life is pivoted on laws, rules and regulations. God’s kingdom operates on spiritual principles and to have the best of Him, these principles must be strictly adhered to. A sure way is by obeying God’s commandments and studying the scriptures consistently. By so doing, one is reading God and rubbing minds with Him. Now tell me, how can darkness overshadow a life that is filled with light? A mind without God is the devil’s play ground. If children can master the lyrics of the latest hip-hop songs word for word and still have fantastic grades, then they should be able to memorize hundreds of verses in the scripture which will keep the devil away and catapult their destiny. Save yourself from future trouble, preserve and guard your child’s destiny jealously.That child is not too young to know God and be filled with His spirit. The best time to know God is NOW!

  • Theme: God will remember you!

    Theme: God will remember you!

    Text: “ Now Naaman……. also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.”(2 Kings 5:1)

    In the wake of the recent appointment cum selection of ‘eminent, prominent and distinguished’ members of the society to the National conference to discuss the country and chart a better course for the nation, there have been hues and cries, even from some of the elected or selected members, about the eligibility of some of them using age, credibility, character, competence, chemistry and past misdeeds as basis of rejection of their candidature.

    It is also not news that position and promotion due to certain qualified individual are many times wrongly transferred. Suffice to say that, as part of the ironies of life, which Solomon said are traceable to the rulers’ evil and cascaded into princes walking on ground while servants are riding on horses (Eccl. 10:5-7), it is not every blessing and privilege which are the rights of people that are given to their rightful owners. While some rightful owners are either forgotten by people placed in privileged positions for recommendation or they are outrightly of the benefits due to them, others are ignored and some are avoided like a plague by powers that be.

    From our text, God asked if it was possible for a compassionate mother to deny her baby one of his inalienable rights of being breastfed. He went further to declare that it is possible for a person to be denied of what rightly belongs to him but added that He will never forget His children as He has graven them upon the palms of His hands and their walls are continually before Him (Is. 49:16).

    Joseph was a man who interpreted the dream of the Chief butler and just as he said, the man gained his freedom from prison and was restored to his position in the King’s palace. Before he was released, Joseph pleaded with him to show kindness to him and mention him to Pharaoh after he had been set free. When the Chief Butler was restored to his position from the prison however, he did not remember him- in fact, he forgot! (Genesis 40:14, 21-23).

    Two years later, God remembered him, He orchestrated a frightening dream that was devoid of clarity and needed only the spiritual expertise of Joseph to unravel. At that stage, the Chief butler remembered Joseph and he was promoted from the prison to the highest position in the land (Genesis 41:8-10,38-40). It was the same experience too when David remembered the household of Jonathan and decided to honor anyone left of that family, the story of the lame Mephibosheth changed. He was promoted from the pathway of a dead dog life to the highway of eating at the King’s table (2Samuel 9).

    That human beings have forgotten you is not the end of life because when God remembers you, man does not have a choice. In fact, when God remembers a person, He catapults the forgotten from a gate-keeper to being a Prime Minister, like Mordecai. He doesn’t stop it there, He ensures that the accuser becomes the accused like Haman. When the book of remembrance is opened to you, God will facilitate a miracle of “more than enough”. When He remembered Hannah, the problem of long years of barrenness was solved immediately and she became the mother of children (1 Samuel 1:19-20,2:21)

    During this season of lent, God who remembered Hannah at Shiloh will remember you, all your privileges and blessings shall be restored to you, yoke of barrenness shall be destroyed, garments of reproach shall be destroyed, your accusers shall turn to the accused and you shall be promoted beyond your imagination in Jesus’ name.

    Prayers: Father, remember me during this season of lent and put an end to my shame, lack, fear, regrets and disgrace in Jesus’ name.

     

  • Theme: Your Race is in His Grace

    Theme: Your Race is in His Grace

    Text: “….. this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, ….I press toward the mark…..” Phil. 3:13,14

    At such a time in our national life when there are many aspirants jostling openly or nocturnally for political offices using every form of antics and tactics, at times conventional and often times diabolical, it is pertinent to declare that except the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain that strive to embark on such a venture (Psalm 127:1). It is grace that gives meaning to aspirations. When grace is at work, official structure, political zoning, work experience, stature, looks and past etc. are suspended.

    It is impossible to run a successful race without His Grace; anything out of His grace will make life and living a burden. In 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul said, “But by the grace of God, I am what I am: and His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all: yet not l, but the grace of God which was with me.”

    From the passage picked as text, Apostle Paul revealed that the height he attained in the ministry was not by his efforts, electioneering campaigns, degree or exposure but he was made by the sufficiency of the grace of God. It was the grace of God that added ‘extra’ to his ‘ordinary’ and made him extraordinary. It was grace that elevated him and grafted him on a mountain where he could see what mere mortals could not see.

    The grace of God is a lifter; while it is good to make efforts, it is imperative to note that His grace is the needed catalyst that speeds up life reaction. Paul told the Romans in 11:5,6 that, “And if by grace, then it is no more grace: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace: otherwise, work is no more work”.

    It was grace that spared Moses from death when he was given birth to, afforded him the rare privilege of being brought up by his mother within the confines and pleasures of the enemy, spared him when he was sentenced to death ( Exodus 2:1-15) and at his re-appearance before the King was like a god (Exodus 7:1a). It was Grace that set apart Esther, a lady that was unskilled in the art of modeling, and placed her above more qualified contestants and made her the Queen of Babylon (Esther 2:17). Joseph too experienced that grace from when he was born as a special son to his parents to when he was a special housekeeper in Potiphar’s house to a special prisoner in prison until he rode to become the Prime Minister in Egypt without any degree or election.

    Grace is the podium that raises a person’s head above those of his peers. David attested to this in Psalm 94:17-19 that, “Unless the Lord had been my help, my soul had almost dwelt in silence. When I said, my foot slippeth; thy mercy, O Lord, held me up. In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul”. No wonder, he was lifted from an ordinary shepherd boy to be the King of Israel.

    Grace is the direct opposite of disgrace – it abolishes and terminates sufferings as attested to in 1 Peter 5:10 that, “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”

    Brethren, there is nothing you can do in the absence of His grace; it is His grace that will determine your race and not your efforts because your race is a subset of His grace. Even if you are a nuisance to the society and unwanted in the polity, you are a star in grace. Smith Wigglesworth was a nuisance as a plumber but grace found him out at age 48, he was called home many years past but his star is still shinning not because of educational pedigree but grace of God.

    It doesn’t matter the obstacles you are facing now at home, work or family, the grace of God has the capacity to lift you above every mountain, pick you up from where you are, give value to your life and revive your lost hope. Paul told the Romans in 9:15-16,” I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So, it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy”.

    There is greatness inside you. Your greatness is in your race and your race is hidden in His grace. Peter was a fisheman but grace lifted him (Luke 5:1-11). Jesus was the son of a Carpenter but the grace upon His life lifted Him up. Jephtah was forsaken by his people because of the circumstances of his birth but grace found him out (Judges 11).

    To enable you obtain grace that will navigate your life to greatness and testimonies during this season, you must accept Him as your Lord and Saviour (Colossians 1:27b; John 10:14), develop increased knowledge about Him (2 Peter 1:2-3; Joshua 1:8), humble yourself. 1 Peter 5:5b) and be a kingdom investor. (2 Corinthians 9:8).

    Prayer: Father, I release my life race unto you, let your grace avail for me, in Jesus’ name.

     

  • God will help us!

    Do you now wonder why God is so busy? He has to keep tag of the things we forbid, reject, bind, loose, claim, accept, and decree, even our non-military decrees. God Will Help Us!

    Most countries I know are guided by one philosophy or the other. You know what that is, don’t you? It is that field of study which opens unto you other fields of study without providing any definite answer to those fields of study, get my drift? What I love about it is that it is the only subject where you are permitted to ask more questions than you can give answers to, especially in examination scripts. It asks questions like, how do you know that you know what you know? Beautiful. The only other people who ask questions like that are my children, especially when they were very young. I frequently would go like, ‘I know one of you poured this water on the floor’. And they frequently would go like, ‘How do you know? You were not even there.’ And they would turn to each other: ‘How come she knows everything we do?’ I tell you, we were real philosophers back then.

    This belief system also has its compensations of course, not to mention drawbacks. Whenever steam threatens to blow out of my ears because the mate’s action or inaction has lit a fire of rage inside of me, I treat myself with a simple mental massage: the action never really happened; I just imagined it. Better still: he does not really exist; I have been imagining him all along. The drawback in this law however surfaces when it is time to collect the monthly housekeeping allowance. When the fancy takes him, he may decide that my dainty outstretched palm does not really exist; he is only imagining it.

    This yo-yo system of questioning does not happen often in the sciences, for there, you cannot afford too many questions. Imagine what would happen if scientists monitoring the landing of a space craft, which they have just sent to space, begin to ask themselves such questions as ‘But how do we know that the craft we have sent really exists? What if we have merely imagined it?’ Were that to happen, I assure you there’ll be nothing to land in but hot soup.

    So, as I was saying, a nation’s philosophy defines the actions of its citizens directed at achieving some national goals. In most countries, these goals are purposed and designed for the common good such that even the littlest person, e.g. the president’s little old lady, is given an identity within the confines of that philosophy. Call that philosophy an ideology if you like, and you will come up with different practices in different parts of the world that sound very much like what I am talking about. And so, you may come across the Welfarist hues of the West which means essentially that even the president may benefit from social welfare, no matter how badly he governs. The Socialist hues of the East practically guarantees that a president is obliged to share his palace with the people for the common good, never mind that no good is ever common. In the South, the philosophy often disseminated is called ‘God Will Help Us’. Naturally. It means essentially that we, the people, do not get the opportunity to lift a finger to do anything for ourselves. When someone sermonized not too long ago that we should Ask Nothing of God, we all listened. Honest. But we promptly went back on our knees to do what we know best, Ask Everything of God. Why? Why not! Because He is about the only person we know who can make the oil to flow under our parcel of earth, provide buyers for the crude and then provide those who sell the refined stuff back to us; he makes the pineapple to pop out of the ground like browned toast in its due season; he brings policemen to kill the snakes in my compound, and yes, he even brings game right round to my backyard.

    The other day, I watched in fascination as a large alligator lizard, the edible kind, climbed over my wall and into my compound, and I was alone in the house. The dog barked its senses out. Me, I just did my thing: I shut all the doors and screamed. God will help us.

    This ‘God Will Help Us’ philosophy presents rather more strongly than we know. It is used often and in nearly every conversation across the continent of Africa but nowhere more persistently than in Nigeria. A deeply religious and prayerful people, Nigerians, from the north to the south, punctuate their very breathes with comforting words of religious wisdom. Even our goats know how to pray, I tell you; they bleat off the ‘Amen’ faster than some of our husbands across whose paths the church dares to pass once in the year – at New Year’s Eve.

    Hence, while traversing the land, you are bound to be assaulted by evidence of religiosity. When you call a price that the market woman does not want to hear, she tells you, ‘God forbid it’; when you accuse an artisan of cheating on the materials he has used on your work, he swears without any thought to the repercussions that ‘God is his witness’ if he has done any such thing; and when a Nigerian asks you to rub his palm with a certain sum, he swears that but for the fact that he fears God, he should not do for you what he is about to do even if it is his job to do it. Do you now wonder why God is so busy? He has to keep tag of the things we forbid, reject, bind, loose, claim, accept, and decree, even our non-military decrees. God Will Help Us!

    So, it has become quite natural that God sits in on all our national transactions, individual and collective. It is therefore also natural to expect Him to mediate in certain matters. The other day, someone parked his car right in the middle of the turning to my house. Why? Just to enable him purchase an item from a nearby kiosk. This meant of course that no car could enter the street via that turning. A conversation then ensued among the very indignant occupants of my own car to wit: Nigerians are very selfish and inconsiderate; everyone thinks of himself only in every matter particular; no one has any respect for the law; yet Nigerians perform quite well in other climes. I only half-listened to all these, for I was more hungry than interested after a long day’s work. After proselytizing endlessly on the matter, the dialogue ended with no proffered solutions, so someone heaved a deep sigh, exhaled deeply and said pontifically, God Will Help Us. He said it with such authority I had a mind to ask if he had God’s word on the matter, just to be sure, like, so I could stop worrying about the whole thing.

    At yet another conversation, I listened and this time participated as the nation’s woes were dissected to wit: our president listens to no man but follows only his own counsel; everyone carries on national affairs without any thought for the children unborn; the fact that stealing is reducing the country to shreds without any intervention; and the fact that everyone knows the truth about this country but no one is willing to say it because those in powerful places just do not want to know. Then we sighed and exhaled: God Will Help Us. This time, I did ask if anyone had God’s assurances on the matter. No one answered me.

    •This article was first published on a different platform in 2005, but since that time, nothing has happened to compromise its relevance.

  • Theme: His knowledge and the edge

    Theme: His knowledge and the edge

    Text: “……… but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.” Daniel 11:32b

    The world is now governed, led and directed by knowledge and not brawn, deception, lies, cultism, thuggery etc as being brazenly displayed in the political life of our dear nation. Today’s world is a world of advanced technology where yesterday’s implements have been rendered useless. Therefore, whosoever is desirous of having full benefit of today’s opportunities must seek knowledge and never stop to seek knowledge. It is difficult if not impossible for anyone to enjoy the full benefits of life without having an understanding of its dynamics. 3 John 2 says that prosperity and health are products of knowledge development.

    From our text, the Bible says that knowledge is the key to strength and doing exploits. Suffice to say that when the knowledge of God increases, it opens the gateway for good health, success, prosperity, breakthrough and testimonies. The advantages of knowing God are that it will give you an edge of strength, meaning that you will be immovable, unshakeable and untouchable. Secondly, you will experience an edge of prosperous life. Where others are failing, you will succeed like Isaac who during the time of famine in Philistine heard God and that year, reaped a hundredfold and was envied by the entire city ( Genesis 26:1-13).

    No wonder Hosea said that “ My people perish for lack of knowledge” ( Hosea 4:6a). What he meant was that ignorance is a major highway to destruction and sudden death while knowledge, which is from two words “know” and “edge” means that it is what you know that sets the pace for the edge you have over your peers and contemporaries. Prophet Isaiah shed more light on that spiritual axiom when he wrote that “my people are led into captivity because they have no knowledge; their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.” ( Isaiah 5:13).

    It is not knowledge of powers of wickedness or the terrible things they are able to do that avails but knowledge of Jesus Christ, His powers, supremacy of His power, greatness of His name (Philp 2:9-10) and the weapons of warfare that are available to us to counter and destroy the schemes and attacks of the wicked (Ephesians 6:10-12).

    The armies of Israel, for example, were once in the bondage of fear by the Philistines for many days as a result of Ignorance of who they were in God until a young man of knowledge called David came to the battlefield. He heard the threat of Goliath but juxtaposed it with what he had experienced as a shepherd boy who partnered with God, and knew that the battle would be of no significance (1 Samuel 17: 32-37). He knew God so much that he dropped the garment of warfare that was given to him by King Saul for five stones. The end result was that God went ahead of him and the shame of many days was halted with a stone ( I Samuel 17:40-50) – His knowledge gave him an edge over his brethren!

    Beloved, the knowledge of God, and not fear, is very principal to success and living a life of victory over the devil and his agents. During this season of Lent, kindly ensure that you devote more time to studying the word of God as stated in Joshua 1:8, increase your knowledge of Him, meditate in the word every time and observe to do what He commands then you shall have good success in Jesus’ name.

    Prayers: Oh Lord, increase my knowledge in you and let me have strength and grace for exploits in Jesus’ name.

  • Theme: Trust God- not man!

    Theme: Trust God- not man!

    As human beings, we have a natural tendency to look up to certain individuals, church elders, mentors, god-fathers and political leaders with seemingly justifiable reasons to lean on them for direction, rely on their words for guidance, trust in their promises and believe their body languages.

    The Almighty God from our passage drew a line between what necessitates blessings and the root cause of curses. He said that anyone who puts trust in man and takes his heart or eyes from God is a potential victim of disappointment, heart break, failure, weeping and death.

    Human beings are not solely dependable or reliable. The Creator of man(Almighty God) attests to it when He said in Jeremiah 17:9-10 that the heart of His creatures are deceitfully wicked and no man can interpret the goings on in the heart of man, apart from Himself.

    Therefore, anyone who desires to be blessed must shift gaze, trust and dependence from man, no matter who the person is – his vocation, pedigree, confidence, what he says or what he promises to do. Human beings are not only transient but they are limited in knowledge and capacity to do all everything but God isn’t (Psalm 24:1, 89:11).

    Anyone who has absolute trust in the Almighty God will be given latitude to perform extraordinary feats. Apostle Peter, for example, walked on water, which was and is still an impossible feat, when he had his gaze on Jesus Christ but the moment he started looking at the boisterous wind, he began to sink ( Matthew 14:28-30).

    When you put your trust in God, He has promised that you shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water. What this means is that you will bring forth fruits in its season. Suffice to say that delay in admission to institutions of higher learning will be a thing of the past, employment will come without fail, promotion will manifest without delay, disappointments will end, marriage will come at due time and there will not be hiccup concerning pregnancy and childbirth etc.

    Not only that, trust in God will ensure that your leaves does not wither; meaning that God will ensure that everything is well with your family. You will live in peace and be secured in God. Lastly, it does not matter what you decide to do or where you are posted or assigned to, you shall prosper and where others are failing and falling, you shall celebrate and be celebrated ( Psalm 1:3;Job 22:29)

    During this season of Lent and as politics is very much in the air with political jobbers all over the place smiling nicely and speaking wisely, you are encouraged to look up only to Jesus Christ who is the author and finisher of our faith for direction ( Hebrews 12:2). Men will surely fail but God doesn’t fail. When you call on Him, He would open your spiritual eyes, unveil the masquerading personalities around you, reveal your unfriendly friends and great shall your testimonies be in Jesus’ name.

    Prayers: Almighty God, I look up to you at this time, I know you are the only One that can help me, hearken to my cries O Lord and bless me indeed in Jesus’ name.

     

  • Theme: It is not over!

    Theme: It is not over!

    Text: “…..there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again…..”(Job 14:7)

    When we take a cursory look at what is happening around us in the polity at such a time viz turbulence of politics, gross economic instability, unsecured security system across the length and breadth of the nation, unreliable transportation system, pervasive job insecurity, gross unemployment, public sectors taking turn to go on strike and avoidable human losses consequent on ill-equipped health sector, it is logical to harbor the thoughts of fear, dejection and hopelessness. We might actually begin to look at ourselves as failures or consider our nation as a failed state.

    Beloved in Christ, there is no bad case with God. There is no failed life or state before God! He has promised us that if only people called by His name can call on Him with humility and turn from our evil ways, He will hear from heaven, forgive our sins and heal our land (2 Chro. 7:14). Whenever we call on God and forsake our pervasive evil ways, He is able and willing to turn things around for us. He said that with men (family, leaders, security officers etc) some things are impossible, but with Him all things are possible (Matt. 19:26; Mk. 9:23).

    From our passage, God promised that there is no hopeless case with him. In fact, He said even a dead tree that had been cut down has hope of springing back to life. He said that even if the root of a tree has waxed old in the earth and the stock has died but the scent of water will bring it back to life.

    The Almighty God is God of all flesh with whom nothing is impossible (Jer. 32:27). He was the One who created the heaven and earth (John 1:3; Col. 1:16-17). From His glorious antecedents, there is nothing He cannot do. When the Israelites had no food and water to drink in the wilderness, He made ways where there was none – they had quails from heaven and water came from the Rock.

    When the Egyptians continued to harass the Israelites on their way to the Promised land, the Almighty God intervened and fought for them. The Red Sea that opened for them to pass through was the burial ground of their pursuers.

    Beloved, the Almighty God is a man of war (Exodus 15:3). Whenever you call on Him, He would intervene in your case, provide for you, change your story, restore your lost grounds and fight your battles for you (Joel 2:25). He has promised that even when people or institutions saddled with the responsibility of care, provision and security fail, He will never leave nor forsake us (Is. 49:15-16; Hebrews 13:5).

    It does not matter what you may be passing through at this time, God is able! When you call upon Him during this time of lent and pray for your family and our nation, He would hear you, wipe away your tears, make you happy and minister life to your health, marriage, family, business, places of interest and nation in Jesus’ name.

    Prayer: Oh Lord, let the scent of water touch every aspect of my life and restore all my lost grounds in Jesus’ name.

     

  • Rededicate yourselves to God, cleric charges

    The General Overseer of the Miracle Prayer Ministry Ile-Ife, Osun State, Reverend Emily Orubu, has called on men of God across the country to keep praying for the nations and her leaders.

    She made the call as part of activities to round off a week-long programme organised by the church to pray for the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Eneuch Adeboye, who recently marked his 72nd birthday.

    Citing the security challenges and increasing rate of corruption in the country, she said they are signs of desperation on the part of the people because of the failure of the nation’s political leaders, but urged Nigerians to continue to pray for God’s intervention.

    Maintaining that God truly loves Nigeria, she called on Nigerians to rededicate themselves to the service of God to benefit from His blessings.