The Power of Testimony

Revelations 12:11 says and they overcame by him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

There is power in testifying to the goodness of God. After the healing of the ten lepers in Luke 17:11-19, one of them came back to testify to the goodness of God. Why do we have to testify? By sharing testimonies we are appreciating God. We are simply telling God thank You. Testimonies open doors to more miracles .When we thank God for what He has done, He will do more. Because this man thanked God for his physical healing, Jesus decided to make him whole i.e. healed in all areas of his life. Testimony perfects our miracle and makes it permanent. Any breakthrough or miracle that we have not testified about can be lost at anytime. After the healing of the mad man of Gadara in Matthew 5:1-20, Jesus 

told him to go and testify to his family what the Lord has done for him. Why? So that he would not lose his deliverance.

When we share testimonies, it builds the faith of others. Also every time we testify, satan loses grip over our life. Revelations 12:11 says they overcame him by the word of their testimony. I believe the Lord wants me to share this testimony with someone. Not too long ago, I was very hungry with no money to buy food. I could not use that opportunity to fast because I had eaten something that morning.  While I was sitting, my phone rang and when I checked it was a sister who I witnessed about Christ to. When I picked up the call, she told me she was preparing an African soup and wanted to know if I was interested. I said yes, and then she asked if I had anything to eat the soup with, I said no. She said ok and within thirty minutes my door bell rang, lo and behold she brought the special African soup with what to eat it with. I thanked her and she left. I descended on the food aggressively and before you know it the dish was clean. A month or so later, she asked me if I knew why she called me and gave me the food. I said no and she went to explain that immediately she left work, she had this urge to eat that particular soup so she went to market to buy the ingredient. When she got home and began to prepare the soup something began to tell her to call Sam and give him some. She tried to dismiss the voice but the voice kept on ringing in her. When the voice will not let her be, she decided to call me and asked if I was interested in the food.

I do not know who the Lord is talking to but I pray that the Lord will touch the heart of people (even people you have not told you need help) to offer help to you in Jesus name, Amen.  Before the food came, I had witnessed about Christ to her. I testified to her how the Lord saved my life. What if I had not witnessed to her? What if I was too shy to testify about Jesus to her? hunger would have dealt mercilessly with me that day. Thank God i testified. Testify about Jesus to someone today.

PRAYER POINT: Father, give me a testimony today and I will tell the whole world of your goodness.

KEEP THE ROAD CLEAR

Psalm 66:18 says if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

One of the constant things in life is challenges. The presence of Jesus did not prevent the storm in Matthew 8:22-27 but once the storm rose He calmed it down. The assurance we have is regardless of what happens we will come out victorious. Psalm 34:19 says many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers them from it all. One thing with challenges or storms of life is that they do not give notice. From studying 2 Kings 8:18-37, we will notice that the son of the Shunamite woman was hale and hearty. Suddenly he began to complain of minor headache and before you know it he was dead.  This like many other challenges happen unexpectedly. When Elisha slept in 2 Kings 6:15 everything was alright, he woke up the next morning to see that the whole city had been surrounded by army.

Because the challenges and storms of life do not give notice, we need to keep the road clear between us and God.We need to do away with anything that might hinder our prayers from been answered. We never know when we will need to cry to God in a hurry. Psalms 66:18 says if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. When you look at fire stations, they do not permit cars around their offices because emergency might occur.  One thing they do not want is been called to attend to an emergency and there are cars parked blocking them. The same thing applies to us .We need to do away with sin and live a holy life, we need to forgive all those who have offended us, and we need to be merciful because we do not know when we might urgently need the mercies of God. We need to pay the tithes we owe, fulfill our vows immediately. Psalm 50:14-15 says pay your vows to the Most High, Call upon Me, and you shall glorify Me. A born again sister was traveling in a commercial bus to a city. While sitting at the back reading her bible, something happened and the car began to somersault. It had happened so fast that all she could say was JESUS; she did not even have the chance to ask for forgiveness. She had no chance to forgive anyone. In a mysterious way, she survived the crash with no scratch but others died. If you have not giving your life to Christ please do so immediately. If you have and still living in sin please stop and take away anything that may stand in your way of getting to heaven.

ACTION POINT: Challenges and storms of life do not give notice neither does death, keep your path to heaven clear.

CREDIT WITH GOD

Psalm 20:3 says may He remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt sacrifice.

In Acts 9:36-42 is the famous story of Dorcas. She loved the Lord and loved helping people. She helped the sick, the broken hearted and everyone who needed help around her. When she died , they sent for Peter .When Peter arrived they began to show him the good works Dorcas had done . Peter seeing all these had no other option than to beg God to release her from heaven back to earth and God answered. From reading this story, we see God relaxing His rule for Dorcas. As a matter of fact the bible says in Hebrew 9:27 that it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this judgment. The same God who declared that it is appointed unto men to die once had to suspend this rule because of Dorcas’ credit with Him. When we talk of credit with God, we are not talking of tithe and offering. We are talking of something major the Lord can look at and decide a case in your favour.

A king who had good credit with God was Hezekiah. The bible records in 2 Kings 18:2-6 that he did what was right in the sight of God. Verses 5 and 6 of 2 kings 18 says He trusted in the Lord God Israel, he held fast to the Lord and did not depart from following God but kept God’s commandment which the Lord had given through Moses. On his death bed in 2 Kings 20:1-6, God was so happy with his service that he added another fifteen years to his life. This brings us to the question, can God look at our walk with Him and decide to add fifteen years to our life. Have we served God to the extent that he will relax some of his rule? It is a rule that whoever sees God will die but because of Moses’ credit with God, God arranged a way for Moses to see Him without seeing death. As big as the bible is, there is only a record of God leaving heaven to dine with a family and that was the family of Abraham in Genesis 18.This happened because of Abraham’s record with God. He had touched God with his faith. It is not an easy task to convince God to come and dine with us, but it is something that can happen if we are prepared to work hard.

ACTION POINT: Take your service to God to another level today, so that you can have good credit with Him.

Except the Lord builds the house

Psalm 127: 1 Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman wakethbut in vain

The most important part of a house is the foundation. Architects will tell you that foundation is core to any building structure.  One of the reasons why the word of God is so powerful is because it has its foundation in heaven.   Psalms 119:89 says forever o Lord, your word is settled in heaven. Any project or building or endeavour that does not have God has its foundation will fall when challenges arise. One constant thing in life is challenges and the righteous are not spared of them. Actually the righteous will face many challenges; thank God we have an assurance that we will be delivered from it all, Psalm 34:19. We have seen organizations with huge knowledge base, lots of resources at their disposal, lot of experiences without God as their foundation collapse during recession while small businesses with nothing really except God as their foundation blossom.

It is not sufficient enough to have Christ or the word of God as our foundation; we need God to be the Builder.  Psalm 127:1 says except the Lord build the house, the whole effort is in vain.  There are many strong foundations out there with uncompleted or abandoned structures sitting on them. Psalm 60:12 says through God we will do valiantly for it is He who shall tread down our enemies. It is very possible for a man to work very hard and still have nothing to show for it. Paul can plant from today till tomorrow; Apollos can water all day, if the Lord does not give an increase the whole effort will be in vain. That is why Jesus says in John 15:5 ‘without Me , you can do nothing’. Without God all efforts will be in vain. Why? Because the destroyer (the devil) is walking about looking for what to destroy. He hates to see anyone progress. When the Lord is the builder, there is nothing the devil can do. He can try but you can be rest assured that all his efforts will come to nothing over that project. When the Lord is the builder of a church,  People that see themselves as strong pillars in the church might  leave but instead of the church to collapse it will grow. Those that have promised to help you might decide to withdraw their support but as far as the Lord is involved in the building process of your life instead of falling you will rise higher. Concentrate today on the builder which is Christ not the market or the resources available.

ACTION POINT: As the God who is the greatest builder to build your life.

Watch your tongue

Proverbs 21:23 says whosoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps his soul from troubles.

The most powerful member of our body is the tongue. With the tongue we can start war, with the same tongue we can put an end to war. With our tongue, we can conquer the devil. Revelations 12:11 says they conquered him (the dragon) by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony. With our words and the blood of Jesus, we can render any evil dream powerless. What we confess in the midst of adversity determines the outcome. When something terrible happens, it is not the time to start crying or complaining. It is the time to confess the results we want. When facing challenges, we can prophesy our way into victory. Whilst everything was going wrong for Job, he said I shall come forth as gold, Job 23:10. Job had the reasons to say his life was destroyed, or he will never make it again or ask why me? He could say a lot but instead of confessing the negative, he said I will come forth as gold and he did come out gold at the end. When the son of the great Shunamite died in 2 Kings 18-37, she began to confess it is well .When the husband asked her, she said it is well. When Elisha saw her coming, he sent his servant to check if all is well and she told the servant all is well. Instead of confessing that her life is destroyed like most women would do, some will even take it to another level by asking ‘where will I start from?'Instead of crying she began to confess all is well and at the end all was well. When Jesus was informed of the death of Lazarus, He said our friend Lazarus is sleeping; but I go that I may awake him out of sleep, John 11:11.

Why is the tongue so powerful? Firstly, the power of life and death resides in it, Proverbs 18:21. Secondly, our words decide our possession .Proverbs 13:2 says a man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth: Thirdly, by our careless use of words we are trapped .Proverbs 6:2 says you are snared by the words of your mouth. Fourthly, God acts on our words not our heart desire. Number 14:28 says as you have spoken in my ear, says the Lord, so shall I do unto you. Don’t ever confess what you do not want because what you confess is what will happen .Joel 3:10 says let the weak say I am strong. It does not matter what you are going through today, it is what God hears you say that will happen. It does not matter
what the doctors say or the news all I know is it shall be with me. I know my tomorrow will be alright. I know I will make it the top .What about you?

ACTION POINT: Be your own prophet and begin to prophesy the results you want in that endeavor.

Freedom indeed

John 8:36 says if the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

The first thing to learn from this verse is there is no freedom anywhere else except in Jesus . One of the names of Jesus is the Truth ,John 14:6 . John 8:32 says And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free .There is no freedom in joining the occult because it is selling ones life to the devil. At times there is no freedom in divorce because in a bid to become free through divorce, one rather ends us up in a bigger bondage. Malachi 2:16 says For the LORD, the God of Israel, says that he hates putting away: For one covers violence with his garment, says the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit that you deal not treacherously. There are many teenagers who see moving out of their parent’s house as means of getting freedom. Most of them later find out twenty, thirty years later that the decision to leave home at a early age restricted them and set them in bondage one way or the other. Freedom only comes from Jesus. Romans 8:2 say because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

Another thing to learn is there are two types of freedom. According to John 8:36,  there is one called ordinary freedom and there is freedom indeed.  In Luke 5:1-7, Peter received freedom from fruitless efforts. In Luke 13:10-17, the woman with the bent back received freedom from her sickness of eighteen years. In Luke 17:11-19, out of the ten lepers Jesus healed, nine of them received freedom but the one that came back to praise God received freedom indeed. The bible says he was made whole. One way to receive freedom indeed is to be thankful for the freedom we have received in Christ.

Do you know that it is possible for Jesus to set a man free and the man still remains in bondage? Proverbs 23:7 says as a man thinks, in his heart so is he. Gideon was born a warrior –mighty man of valor but his self limiting belief put him in bondage. Imagine the one whom the angel of God addressed as a mighty man of valor calling himself a weakling (Judges 6:11-15) , so also Moses and Saul. They were all born to achieve mighty things but their self limiting believes worked against them.

ACTION POINT: Jesus has set you free; do not put yourself in bondage with your thoughts.

Working out your salvation in fear and trembling

Philippians 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

How does one get saved? Is it by saying the prayer of sinners? Is it by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ as stated in Acts 16:31? Could it be by calling on the name of the Lord as stated in Romans 10:13? The first step to salvation is repentance. Without repentance there is no salvation. The bible says in Matthew 4:17, from that time Jesus began to preach and to say “repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” After Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost, the people asked him, what shall we do to be saved? He told them repent and let everyone of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ – Acts2:38. After the healing of the lame man at the beautiful gate, people converged to the see the lame man and Peter used the opportunity to witness about Jesus. In his sermon, he said in Acts 3:18, “repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. Brethren without repentance there is no salvation. 2 Peter 3:9 says The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Philippians 2:12 says work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Does is it mean after I am saved I still have work to do in keeping my salvation? Yes. There are many who believes that once we are saved heaven is guaranteed. It is the biggest lie from the devil. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:22 that whoever endures to the will be saved. It is true that we saved by grace according to Ephesians 2:5 but Matthew 24:13 says it is only those who endure to the end that will be saved. Why do we have to work out our salvation with fear and trembling? The reason why we need to work out our salvation with fear and trembling is because salvation can be lost. The grace that brings salvation could be abused. Romans 6:1 say what shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Romans 6:15 says what then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? Certainly not! The grace that brings salvation can also be frustrated. Paul says in Galatians 2:21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain. Abusing the grace of God or frustrating the grace can lead to withdrawal of grace which eventually means fall from grace of God. According to Galatians 5:4, it is possible to fall from the grace of God. It is also possible to miss the grace of God, Hebrew 12:15.

Many have argued that once we receive salvation we are sealed with the Holy Spirit according to Ephesians 1:13. It is very true but remember that Ephesians 4:30 says and do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. If we grieve the Holy Spirit, He will leave.

ACTION POINT. Do everything possible not to grieve the Holy Spirit. Study Ephesians 4:25-32 and it tells us what to do to avoid grieving the Holy Spirit.

What is in your record ?

Psalm 56:8 - You number my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book.

Several years ago I had an experience that changed my life forever. I saw myself in something that looked like a room but there were no walls. I was there waiting to go before God for Judgment. While I was there I had the opportunity to go through my records. I saw all I had done and I was very disappointed. I saw when people evangelized to me and I made fun of them. I saw many other terrible things I did like fornication and clubbing and all that. I also saw when I gave my life to Christ and how I was still not fully committed. Although I had stopped fornicating ,stopped having girlfriends , started going to church more often but my standing with God was still funny. I never witnessed because I was too shy, never participated in church activities because of one flimsy excuse or the other. I was very disappointed in myself. I saw one or two good deeds I did like help an elderly lady carry her bag and others but it was almost zero compared to the wrongs I had done. I knew myself that if I attended judgment that day the decision will not be in my favor so I began to cry and begged God for a second chance. Thank God He answered.

Sir /Ma there is a record in heaven for everything we do on earth. Matthew 12:36, Jesus said “But I say to you that every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the Day of Judgment.  A day is coming when we will stand before God to answer. A day is coming when our records will be read back to us. Might I ask you this question today, have you ever considered what is in your record? There are many who say there is no heaven or hell, it is a big lie! There is a heaven and a hell. Many who postpone the day of their salvation will see the number of times they have postponed the day of their salvation on that day. Many who do not evangelize will see on that day. After I saw my record, that day I decided the contents must change. I decided I have to put my records in other. You can do the same too friend.

Today why not re-commit your walk with God .Pray the prayer of repentance again and commit to putting things right with God.

Dear Jesus, I believe that You died for me and rose again on the third day. I confess I am a sinner. I need your love and forgiveness. Come into my heart. Forgive my sins. I receive Your eternal life. Confirm You love by giving me peace, joy and supernatural love for others, Amen.

PRAYER POINT: Father , as from today give me the grace to please You and do Your will.

PRAISING GOD

Psalm 150:6 let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise you the LORD.

There are few things that move God on the throne and one of them is praises. Every time God moves on the throne, something happens and at times the earth shakes. Isaiah 66:1 gives a brief description of God’s size when it says He sits in heaven and uses the earth as His footstool. Due to His size the earth cannot carry His weight so every time He moves the earth shakes. That’s part of the reasons why the Psalmist say in Psalm 68:1 let God arise and His enemies be scattered. If you were about to fight a man and every time he takes a step towards you the earth shakes, will you not run ?Exodus 15:8 says the blast of His nostrils is enough to part a sea. If you suddenly find out that the blast of nostrils of the man you want to fight can part a sea, will you want to stand before him in combat? In Acts 16:16-40, Paul and Silas began to praise God in chains and God moved. The bible records that there was a great earthquake so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. In 1 Samuel 4:5, the children of Israel praised God and shouted and God moved which caused the earth to shake. Every time we praise God, He rises on His throne against our enemies. One secret to victory is praising God.

Psalm 150:6 says let everything that has breath praise the Lord. The fact that we are alive is a reason to praise God. We might be going through one challenge or the other but that should not hinder us from praising God. Only the living have prayer requests, only the living get hungry , only the living has needs and wants . The dead have no stimulus. The elders have a saying when there is life there is hope. We can only reach our goals when we are alive. We can only win battles when we are alive.

ACTION POINT: Thank God for the gift of life, when there is life there is hope.

RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD

Philippians 3:9says And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith

What is the definition of righteousness? According to 1 John 3:7 (NIV), righteousness is doing the right things. The reason why God counted Abraham’s faith in Him as righteousness was because it was the right thing to do. It is the right thing to have faith in the One who the bible says with Him nothing is impossible (Luke 1:37). Righteousness is simple doing the right thing. It is righteousness to obey one’s parents (physically or spiritually) because the bible says in Ephesians 6:2-3: honor your father and mother that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth. It is also righteousness for wives to submit to their husbands just like the church submits to Jesus and the husbands to love their wives to the extent they are willing to die for them just as Christ gave up His life for the church (Ephesians 5:22-25) . Just like it is the right thing to work hard, it is the right thing to attend services on time and pay out tithes. This is why we all need to go to God from time to time to ask for forgiveness and the grace to be righteous because James 4:17 says therefore to him that knows to do good and does it not ,to him it is sin.

Many of us misunderstood Paul in Philippians 3:9 when he talks of the righteousness which is of God by faith. By this we assume that once we are Christians we are righteous and no matter what we do it is not a sin. This is the big lie! What Paul meant was the justification we received through the atonement made by Christ not justification received as a result of following the Law of Moses. If it was so that once we receive Christ as our personal Lord and savior we are righteous and whatever we do is not counted as sin, Paul would not have asked the believers in Rome that shall we continue in sin and ask for grace to abound – Romans 6:1. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new. The old things include love of sin, their sensuality, pride, vanity, levity to mention a few. The new things are a new course of life, both of faith and holiness, a new way of serving God through Christ by spirit. We cannot do what is not right and say our righteousness is of God .Righteous in God means we are made right through our faith in Jesus .Prior to our conversion, all our righteous is as a filthy rag according to Isaiah 64:6 because we are unclean but once we accept Jesus, we are washed with the blood of Jesus and we are made clean from all uncleanness. From that day, our righteousness becomes of God. Remember 1 John 3:7 says He that does what is right is righteous. Anyone who claims to have giving his life to Christ and still indulges in sin is not righteous.1 Peters 1:17 says be ye holy for i am holy.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please help that my obedience to your word is total.

Conquering fear and anxiety

Proverbs 12:25 anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad.

Fear is a terrible thing. First of all it is from the devil.2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Everything from the devil is intended to rob, kill and destroy – John 10:10. Fear leads to indecision, it prevents victory, it hinders progress, it prevents the manifestation of God’s glory, and it hinders us from fulfilling God’s destiny for our lives to mention a few. According to Proverbs 12:25, it leads to depression. In some instances fear has led many to sin against God, Romans 14:23 says whatever is not of faith is sin.

To conquer fear and anxiety, we need to deal with the source of fear before dealing with the fear itself. What we tend to do is deal with the fear and not the source. In Acts 4:23-31 the disciples could not preach the gospel because of fear of persecution .How did they conquer this fear? They conquered the fear by the dealing with the source which was lack of boldness. In Deuteronomy 7:17- 21, the bible advises on how to handle fear.

Stop focusing on the size of the challenge or problem. Concentrating on the size of a problem or challenge only leads to more fear and makes God smaller. The reason why the armies of Israel could not secure victory over the Philistines in 1 Samuels 17:1-50 was because they focused on the stature of Goliath not the ability of God.

Stop concentrating on how to solve the problems yourself, it only leads to worrying. Take it to the Lord in prayer.1 Peter 5:7 says cast your cares upon Him for He cares for you.

Remember the past victories the Lord has secured for you or the testimonies of people who had the same problems and solved it

Remember the way God secured victories for you in the past.

Remember that the God who secured that victory or solve that problem will solve the current one.

Remember that the great and awesome God is with you and nothing happens without God’s consent – Matthew 10:29.

ACTION POINT: Do not allow fear in your life.

The power of appreciation

Psalm 150:6 let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise you the Lord.

There is power in appreciation. One the thing appreciation does is it opens door. Because of what God did for Solomon , he offered a thousand burnt offering to say thank You. All odds were against him to succeed David on the throne . Why ? David – his father and king preferred the younger of brother of Absalom – Adonijah for his good looks (1 Kings 1:5-6) , besides that he was a product of adultery which caused the death of an innocent man ( 2 Kings 11:1-27) and to make matters worse he lacked wisdom - a must have for any king .God was so impressed with Solomon's appreciation that He asked him what shall I give to you? In 1 Kings 11:28 , Jeroboam got an opportunity to serve before the king and he decided show appreciation by working very hard. The king noticed this and made him the officer over all the labour force of the house of Joseph. Another man who knew how to show appreciation was Paul. After all the evil he had done, Jesus called him to ministry . He was so thankful so he decided to show Jesus his appreciation by committing his life to evangelism. The Lord decided that if Paul will appreciate Him like this then He will anoint him so mightily that aprons from his body will be able to cast away demons – Acts 19:12 .Appreciation does not only open doors but it keeps doors that are already opened open indefinitely or permanently .After Solomon 's first offering , the Lord visited him and blessed him .Solomon did not take the Lord's visit for granted so he decided to appreciate God for His visit. During the temple dedication he brought an offering of 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep to say thank you. God accepted the offering by sending fire from heaven to consume the offering . After this God blessed Solomon to the extent that silver was considered worthless during his reign -1 Kings 10:21.Jeroboam continued to work hard and the Lord made him king – 1 kings 12:20 .Paul did not rest on his oars but kept on appreciating God by working hard. The Lord took him to see his reward while he was still alive ,1 Timothy 4:8

Lack of appreciation Is deadly. One thing it does is it shuts door. An opportunity arose for Nabal in 1 Samuel 25:2-44 to show appreciation to the people who helped protect his shepherd and sheep in the desert and he refused .The Lord put an end to his journey on earth. In Luke 17:11-19 is the story of the ten lepers Jesus cured. After they received their healing , only one returned to thank God . While the other nine were only cleansed , he was the only one that was made whole which meant every other sickness in his life- physically,materially ,maritally were taken care of.

It is very important we all learn to appreciate God and appreciate people God has used to help us. How do you appreciate God ? Thank Him .According to Psalm 150:6 one way to appreciate God for the gift of life is by praising Him When we pay our tithes we are simply appreciating God for giving us a job and the good health to do the job. Lets appreciating our bosses and employers by working hard to support the Organization. Lets appreciate people who help us by telling them thank you. When people lend us things lets return it in time ,this is part of showing appreciation. Couples should appreciate each other – the wife should humbled her self and the husband should love her. Children should appreciate their parents by studying and passing with good grades. One important way to appreciate our salvation is by witnessing about Christ to our friends and family.

ACTION POINT : Learn to appreciate God, People and opportunities.

Underneath are His everlasting arms

Deuteronomy 33:27 the eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.
From reading Isaiah 40:12 we get an idea of the size of God’s palm. The bible says He measured the waters with the hollow of His hands in other words all the waters in the world can fit into His palm. A palm that can hold the waters in the Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean and other Oceans, rivers in the world is not small at all. Joined to those palms are His long arms. Deuteronomy 33:27 describes His arms as everlasting or endless in length. His arms are so long that He is able to lift a young boy from slavery to become the second –in –command to the most powerful emperor on earth ( Daniel 6:3) . Also with His arms, He lifted the most foolish man on earth – the man was so foolish he even agrees that he is foolish to become the wisest man that ever lived. This man spoke three thousand proverbs and wrote one thousand and five songs (1 Kings 4:32).With this everlasting arms , He took a boy – the last born in his family and made him the number one citizen in Israel ( 1 Samuel 16:3-13). Abram wasn’t just an idolater; he came from a generation of idolaters. A generation of people that practises what God calls an abomination but He lifted him from idolatry and made him a friend. Because His arms are everlasting your promotion has no limits. With His everlasting hands He will take you as high as His hands can reach. This season God will lift you up from sickness to health, poverty to wealth, from no anointing to heavy anointing in Jesus name, Amen.

Secondly with His everlasting arms He comforts .No matter the challenges life throw at you , it does not matter who is pushing you or seeking your fall , you will always fall In His hands . You can never sink below the everlasting arms. You might be feeling so low or life has treated you unfairly but remembers that you can never fall lower than his hands. There are things that hinder Him from carrying us or make Him to drop us after he has carried us. One of them is laziness .Proverbs 12:24 says the hands of the diligent shall bear rule. Proverbs 10:4 says Lazy hands makes a man poor. Another thing is pride .Proverbs 16:18 says prides precedes a fall or destruction. James 4:6 says God resists the proud and give grace to the humble. A major one is ungratefulness. This is why at times He is hesitant to carry some .He has giving many good health and they refuse to witness. There are many who talk to Him daily but after their promotion they get too busy to the extent they no longer have time for Him. We can not use His blessings as a reason not to have time for Him.
PRAYER POINT: Father , Please take me to the top with your everlasting hands.

Counsel

Proverbs 11:14 where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.

Proverbs 11:14 highlights the importance of counsel. It is a deciding factor in success. A synonym for counsel is information. A wise man once said "if you are not informed, you will soon be deformed". Proverbs 4:7 says wisdom is a principal thing. What is wisdom? Wisdom is the application of information or better still the application of counsel. From every way we look at it the value of counsel is immeasurable. One the reasons why people make mistakes in choosing the right partner in marriages or business or profession is largely due to lack of counsel. Many have started businesses without getting counsel, they say ‘brother A is selling bag so I must sell bag’. Many sisters have fallen into the wrong marriages because of lack of counsel. All because a brother can speak in tongue or wears suit every Sunday does not mean he is a bor

n again. There are a lot of problems that could be averted if only people ask questions or get counsel. The bible even says Ask and it shall be given to you, Matthew 7:7. Without counsel failure is almost inevitable.

Asides from getting counsel, the quality of counsel we receive determines the pace at which we attain success and the quality of our success. Not all successes are good. There are good and bad successes. The source of our counsel is also important. Taking a marriage counselling from someone who has never been married before will lead to a disaster or business counselling from someone who has never done business. That is why most married women who take marriage counsel from their spinster friends’ end up regretting so also married men who to take advice on how to treat their wives from their bachelor friends. There are various ways to get counsel; they are through the Holy Spirit, people, bible, books, seminars, lectures, conferenences and other Christian literatures. It is very important that we check the source of our counsel or who or where we take counsels from. A counsel from a fellow who does not fear God is bound to lead to problems because his counsel will lack the fear of God. That is why need to be very careful of the success books we read. What does a man devoid of the Holy Spirit know about good success? Any success devoid of living a righteous life is not good success according to Joshua 1:8. Seminars that emphasizes on ten ways to do this and that and not been spiritually filled or the Holy Spirit offers little or no benefit.
ACTION POINT: Check the source of your counsel !

Untapped Potential

1 John 4:4 - You are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.

From the moment of salvation we receive the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:9 says anyone who does not have the Holy Spirit is not is not of Christ. According to Ephesians 1:13-14, the Holy Spirit is the seal of salvation for all those who believers. Also from the moment of salvation one receives power. Acts 1:8 says but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. Once the Holy Spirit enters a man, he begins to do what ordinary man could not do. He begins to achieve what ordinary men could not achieve. In 1 Kings 18:46, the Holy Spirit came upon Elijah and he outran the chariot that was pulling the king. In Judges 14:6, the Holy Spirit came mightily upon Samson ,with his bare hands he tore a lion apart as one would tear a piece of paper. In Daniel 6:3, the Holy Spirit was so evident in the life of Daniel that everyone said He had the Spirit of excellence. The Holy Spirit enabled Jesus to achieve so much within a short period. Acts 10:38 says how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power , who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. Every miracle Jesus performed was the work of the Holy Spirit. According to Romans 1:4, the Holy Spirit was responsible for the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Potential to achieve all what Jesus achieved, Daniel achieved, Samson achieved combined with what Elisha achieved is in us, is in every believer. Romans 8:11 says the Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from death dwells in all believers. This is why the author of 1 John 4:4 says greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world. What is in you is enough to cause satan and his host to run at your sight! Whether you believe or not the witches and wizards are scared of you. As a Christian you should not be scared of spiders. Because of what is inside you, if you sit for an exam with Einstein and other world geniuses, if you will study hard enough you will score higher marks than them. The Holy Spirit that ensured that Jesus did not fail in any endeavour is also in you and will ensure you do not fail in that endeavour.

The potential is in all of us. The reason why many of us have not been able to achieve our potential in the Lord is because we grieve the Holy Spirit. How does one grieve the Holy Spirit? Through disobedience to Him. Another reason is our weak spiritual lives. The only way to build our spiritual muscles is through fasting and praying, studying the word of God. Many of us want to be like Jesus but not ready to fast. Jesus started His ministry with forty days dry fasting. Before Moses saw God, he fasted for forty days twice without food. Great power requires a lot of fasting and prayers and study of the word. The potential to exceed the achievements of Jesus on earth is in all of us.

ACTION POINT: Father, help me to rise to my potential in you.

Treading down our enemies

Psalm 60:12 Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.

Without God, one will be a laughing stock or a toy in the hands of the enemy. The psalmist says in Psalms 124:1-3, if not for God who had been on our side the enemies would have swallowed us alive. As a matter of fact unless God intervenes there is nothing anyone can do. There is nothing any herbalist, doctor /surgeon, prophet, president or political godfather can do to help us.

There are two categories of enemies. The ones we aware of their existence and the ones we are unaware of their existence. Dealing with the enemies we are aware of their existence is not so difficult, simply take them to God in prayers and that settles it. Dealing with the enemies we are unaware of their existence is almost impossible. How can anyone fight an enemy he or she does not know exist? When we talk of enemies we are unaware of their existence in our lives, we are not talking of witches and wizards. Witches and wizards are small, all you need is just the name of Jesus and they will run. We are talking of enemies within. We are talking of enemies present inside us. An example of such enemy is pride. Many suffering from the spirit of pride do not believe they are proud. Some will even get angry when you suggest it to them. How can such people man fight the spirit of pride in their life? Proverbs 16:18 says pride goes before destruction. Many suffering from anger problems do not know they have the problems. By the time they know they are suffering from anger problems it will have been too late, sometimes it is when they start exhibiting the symptoms of hypertension and high blood pressure. Those in the medical professions have advised that intense and unresolved anger is linked to health conditions such as high blood pressure, depression, anxiety and heart disease. So also is the fellow who laziness is destroying his life. Proverbs 10:4 says lazy hands make a man poor. To a lazy fellow he is just resting or chilling, unknown to him he has been idle for hours whereas his colleagues are busy achieving things. The one suffering from loose tongues do not know he or she has that problems. The fellow would have divulged all their life secrets and plans to vision killers without knowing it. Most people with acidic tongue will tell you they only say things as they are or they are been real but unknown to them that careless use of the tongue is dangerous. According to James 3:6, as small as the tongue is, it is able to take a man to hell.

How can we fight an enemy we are unaware of its existence, it is by linking up with God who can see everything and has the power to deliver us from these enemies. Hebrews 4; 13 says before God nothing is hidden. We might be unaware of the existence of the enemies in our life but God is aware of their existence. That was why He was able to warn Cain of the presence of anger he was unaware of its existence in his life in Genesis 4:5-6. Cain did not heed to the advice and his anger brought a curse upon his life.

ACTION POINT: Father, every enemy within secretly destroying my life and my future please bring it to my attention and destroy them today.

crying to God

James 5:16 says Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that you may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

There is nothing that moves a parent like the cry of their children. The same thing applies to God. When we cry to Him, things definitely happen. One of the reasons why the children of Israel stayed so long in Egypt was because they were quiet. Immediately they cried to God, He moved. This shows there is a disadvantage in been quiet because one might suffer unnecessarily. If ten people lined up to seek for help or to see the doctor , the one who cries most is likely to be attended to first. There are many of us who still think suffering is God’s way of testing us. There are many who still believe it is ok to suffer. It is ok to endure temptation actually James 1:12 says blessed is the man who endures temptation but the next verse which is James 1:13 says God does not tempt His children with evil actually God does not tempt anyone. Many still believe that been sick is good. Many still believe they need to be poor to get to heaven. Sickness is not God’s plan for your life, 1 Peter 2:24 says by His stripes we have been healed. Poverty is not a criterion to go to heaven, Salvation and living a life of holiness takes a man to heaven not bank balances.

Why do we have to cry to God in prayers? Crying gets the attention of God and makes Him to remember His promises – Exodus 2:23-24. From studying Exodus 3:7-22, one will come to the conclusion that crying causes God to pay us a visit

, causes God to make up His mind to help us, causes Him to be an enemy to our enemy, causes Him to send us help, causes Him to bring us in favor with our enemies, causes Him to be with our helpers so that they will not fail in their attempt to help us and many more. Crying to God causes Him to arise on our behalf and we know from reading Psalms 68:1 that when God arises, all His enemies are scattered. When we cry to God in prayers, we should not do it like a gentleman or a lady. Our prayers should be hot and aggressive. James 5:16 says the effective fervent prayers of the righteous avails much. Matthew 11:12 says and from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. The prayer that causes one to sweat is not a gentleman’s prayer, talk less of sweat becoming like drops of blood. If Jesus who was the son of God, prayed fervently until His sweat became like drops of blood what is our excuse not to pray that way today. Before we go to God in prayers, let’s make sure our standing with God is good. Psalm 66:18 says if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.

ACTION POINT: Cry to God today over that issue and I can assure you He will send help.

Not ready

2 Timothy 4:5 -But you watch in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fully carry out your ministry.

I have always loved the Boys Scout Motto which says “be prepared”. The cost of been un-prepared or not ready is very high because costly mistake is inevitable. Been unprepared can deny one of everlasting joy. If you do not believe me please ask the five foolish virgins in Matthew 25:1-13. The opportunity they had waited all their life came and because they were unprepared i.e. failed to bring extra oil for their lamps in case the bridegroom delayed they lost the opportunity of a lifetime. I pray that the lack of adequate preparation will not deny us of the opportunity we have been waiting for in Jesus name, Amen.

Been ready implies preparing oneself to receive the blessings of God. By preparation we mean working on oneself, shedding the weights of bad habits or character defects in our life. Hebrews 12:1 says therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. From studying the life of Gehazi you will notice although he desired to take the mantle of Elisha that will fall later, he was not ready. Why? Because he failed to take care of the character defects in his life and he had so many. One of them was love for worldly materials another one was his uncaring and unloving nature. In 2 kings 4:27 a woman whose only son had just died held on to the feet of Elisha to please help her, what did Gehazi do? He started pushing her away, the fact that the woman had just lost her only son did not bother him. God will never use such cold people or people who don’t show sympathy at all .Anyone in ministry must be extra caring and loving. The reason why God has not released the blessings of some is not because they do not desire it; it is because they are not ready yet. There are one or two things they need to deal with first and most of the time they are character defects or little sins. Anyone praying for promotion or expansion and his not ready to put extra effort or work harder is not ready . A man that is stingy, lazy, can’t take decisions or not responsible is not ready for marriage. He can desire it and pray all night but he is not ready. So also is a woman who is not submissive, lazy, and impatient or gets angrily easily. Such woman will spend the rest of the marriage fighting with the in-laws. A fellow still suffering from pride or anger or believes tribalism is not ready to be a leader. Anointing in the hands of a fellow who cannot forgive or gets angry easily is disaster. Anointing in the hands of such a man or woman is like giving a rocket launcher or sub-machine gun to a fourteen year old. Many of us talk of heaven and want to go to heaven but we are not ready, how many can beat their chest that if they stand before the throne of God this minute God will not find any fault in them? 1 Peter 1:13 says Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

PRAYER POINT; Father , help me to lay aside every weights and little s

Profit in all Labour

Proverbs 14:23: In all labor there is profit, but idle chatter leads only to poverty

Asides pride and lukewarmness, one thing God does not condone is laziness. The scriptures says that if anyone will not work; neither shall he eat - 2 Thessalonians 3:10.  In 1 Thessalonians 4:11 , Paul admonished the Thessalonians  to work with their hands. Proverbs 10:4 says the only thing lazy hands bring is poverty. There are many of God’s children who are yet to fulfill God’s plans for their lives because of laziness. God has opened doors for so many but through laziness they have not been able to take advantage of these open doors.  Many have lost their destinies because of procrastination, something they should have done today they postponed it to a further date by the time the date comes they further postponed it and before you know it is too late. A man who took advantage of his open door was Jeroboam in 1 Kings 11:28. He was just an ordinary laborer in the king’s court but he worked so hard that Solomon noticed and promoted him. Jeroboam’s hard work so much impressed God that He made him king over Israel in 1 Kings 14:7. Hard work can turn common a laborer to a king. There were princes in Israel at that time but Jeroboam became the king. Hard work gives you things that belong to the kings. There are many of us who God has opened doors of employment to or for. Through hard work God can make us the CEO of the organization we are working for. There are many business owners who God is ready to bless to the extent that they will lend to nations; all these are functions of hard work.

Proverbs 14:23 says in all labor there is profit. Hard work brings result but the result varies with  field. 1 Timothy 4:8 says for bodily exercise profit a little; but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. If there is anything to labor in, it is in the things of God. If we can work hard for God, we will see great results in every other areas of our life. Matthew 6:33 says seek first the kingdom and His righteousness and other all these will be given to you as well.

ACTION POINT: If  you are not in any group in your church please join one, if you are in one already you can join another or strive to be the best in your current group remember been the best in anything requires putting more efforts than others.

Gold in the mouth of fish

Proverbs 13:2 – A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth, but the soul of the unfaithful feeds on violence.

In Matthew 17:24-27 Jesus was asked to pay temple tax so He told Peter to go the sea, cast in a hook, and take the first the fish that comes up . There are several lessons from this passage. Firstly, through Jesus our needs are met. Ephesians 3:20 says He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. Secondly, With Him nothing is impossible. Luke 1:37 says for with God noting will be impossible. Jeremiah 32:27 says I am the God of all flesh, is there anything too hard for me? Thirdly God is all-knowing. He knows the location of our breakthrough; He knows what you need to do to breakthrough in your endeavor. Hebrews 4:13 says nothing is hidden before God but all things are naked and open to His sight. Deuteronomy 26:6 says before Him, Death is naked and destruction has no coverings. Jesus has the key to every information in the world. Fourthly, God’s word is settled. Once God speaks nothing on earth can change it. Psalms 33:9 says He spoke and it was done, He commanded, and it stood fast. If there is anything He has promised you, I can assure you that He will bring it to pass. He told Peter inside the first fish is money and so it was when Peter caught the first fish.

Lastly, present in every fish are resources to meet our needs. By fish, we mean soul meaning according to Luke 5:10. For every soul we win for Jesus, heaven releases resources to meet our needs. Proverbs 13:2 says a man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth. You want God to take you to the top, you want Him meet your needs, you want hunger to be a strange word to you? Use your mouth effectively for Him. Use it to win souls. Proverbs 11:30 says He that wins soul is wise. Proverbs 3:35 says the wise shall inherit glory or honor. When we combine both scriptures it means He that wins soul will inherit glory.

ACTION POINT: Use everything within your power to win souls for Jesus.