Monday, 15 July 2013
PRIVATE PREPARATION DETERMINES PUBLIC PERFORMANCE PT3
MEMORY VERSE: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's
sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also
with exceeding joy.1 Peter 4:13
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 15, Ps 18, Prov 29,2 Thes 3
BIBLE STUDIES: Matthew 14:22-33
In our bible studies is a very popular story. It was late at night and there were no ships around to take Jesus to His disciples so He decided to walk on water to them. Peter saw Jesus walking on water and asked if he could join Him? Jesus said ‘come’, Peter jumped out of the boat and began to walk on water towards Jesus. After taking few steps, the wind began to blow and he began to panic. Before you know it Peter began to sink, thank God he quickly called on the name of Jesus and was saved. It is important to know that the presence of Jesus could not prevent Peter from sinking . Why? Because of fear. Anywhere fear is present,failure is inevitable. It does not matter whose errand you are running. You could even been acting on the word of God like Peter, once fear comes into the equation failure is not far away. No wonder Hebrew 11:6 says without faith it is impossible to please God. Even in the ministry, if you give room to fear instead of faith , you may fail.I pray you will not fail in Jesus name.
1 Peter 4:13 says but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.
To be glad with exceeding joy , you must be ready to suffer for Christ. In Part two of these series ,i shared the testimony of a brother who the Lord paid his tuition and expenses throughout the duration of the course in the university. I also talked of this brother's labor of love in the private .I do not know why but i believe there is someone the Lord wants to publicly reward and He wants me share a little bit more about this brother to encourage that fellow. I mentioned in part two of these series that this brother is part of virtually all the groups in the church. Do you also know that this brother holds the key to the church i.e. he is the first to get to the church and last to leave? Not only that around eighteen months ago ,this brother challenged the faith of everyone by turning down a job that pays around £1,800 a month for a job of £200 a month all because he didn't want anything to come in between his commitment with his maker ; this brother is married with 3 kids. You are wondering why God provided a scholarship worth over £50 ,000 for this brother? You are wondering why God would go out of His way to pay for the tuition and expenses of this brother before he even started university? This brother suffered greatly for Christ in the private and today he is glad with exceeding joy because he is going to study for free while others have to pay.
PRAYER POINT: Father please open my eyes that i might do what will make me qualify for your exceeding joy.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 15, Ps 18, Prov 29,2 Thes 3
BIBLE STUDIES: Matthew 14:22-33
In our bible studies is a very popular story. It was late at night and there were no ships around to take Jesus to His disciples so He decided to walk on water to them. Peter saw Jesus walking on water and asked if he could join Him? Jesus said ‘come’, Peter jumped out of the boat and began to walk on water towards Jesus. After taking few steps, the wind began to blow and he began to panic. Before you know it Peter began to sink, thank God he quickly called on the name of Jesus and was saved. It is important to know that the presence of Jesus could not prevent Peter from sinking . Why? Because of fear. Anywhere fear is present,failure is inevitable. It does not matter whose errand you are running. You could even been acting on the word of God like Peter, once fear comes into the equation failure is not far away. No wonder Hebrew 11:6 says without faith it is impossible to please God. Even in the ministry, if you give room to fear instead of faith , you may fail.I pray you will not fail in Jesus name.
1 Peter 4:13 says but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.
To be glad with exceeding joy , you must be ready to suffer for Christ. In Part two of these series ,i shared the testimony of a brother who the Lord paid his tuition and expenses throughout the duration of the course in the university. I also talked of this brother's labor of love in the private .I do not know why but i believe there is someone the Lord wants to publicly reward and He wants me share a little bit more about this brother to encourage that fellow. I mentioned in part two of these series that this brother is part of virtually all the groups in the church. Do you also know that this brother holds the key to the church i.e. he is the first to get to the church and last to leave? Not only that around eighteen months ago ,this brother challenged the faith of everyone by turning down a job that pays around £1,800 a month for a job of £200 a month all because he didn't want anything to come in between his commitment with his maker ; this brother is married with 3 kids. You are wondering why God provided a scholarship worth over £50 ,000 for this brother? You are wondering why God would go out of His way to pay for the tuition and expenses of this brother before he even started university? This brother suffered greatly for Christ in the private and today he is glad with exceeding joy because he is going to study for free while others have to pay.
PRAYER POINT: Father please open my eyes that i might do what will make me qualify for your exceeding joy.
Sunday, 14 July 2013
PRIVATE PREPARATION DETERMINES PUBLIC PERFORMANCE PT2
MEMORY VERSE: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. Matthew 6:4
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 14, Ps 17, Prov 28,2 Thes 2
BIBLE STUDIES: Matthew 14:22-33
In Matthew 14:22-33 is a story we all know. It was late at night, there were no ship around and the disciples of Jesus were in a ship far away in the middle of the sea. Since there were no means of transportation, Jesus decided to walk on the sea towards them. Peter saw Jesus walking on water and requested to join Him. Jesus told him no problem and immediately Peter got on water and began to walks towards Jesus. After Peter had taken few steps he noticed the wind and began to panic. Before you know it Peter began to sink, he called on Jesus and was saved.
One very important lesson from this passage is that immediately you allow fear in your heart, you begin to sink and if you don’t take time the challenges might drown you so please do not entertain fear in your heart. Jesus and Peter walked on the same water, how come only Peter sank? Aside from the fact that Peter entertained fear, while Jesus was on the mountain praying, Peter was busy chatting away with his fellow disciples. Because Peter had not made any private preparation (spiritually), a little wind made him lost his composure and he began to sink.
Matthew 6:4 says that thine alms may be in secret: and thy father which seeth in secret Himself shall reward thee openly. What this literally means is everything we do in the secret will be rewarded in the open. If you are pretending that you are Christian in the open and you are committing secret sins like adultery and fornication e.t.c ,the reward is coming except you repent. If on the other hand you are serving God sincerely, laboring for the propagation of the gospel day and night, people might not see it or take notice of it but the Lord who sees your effort in the secret will reward it in the open. Just of recent a brother was sharing a big testimony with me. The brother won a scholarship and the university said they were going to pay his tuition and other expenses throughout the period of his study in the university i.e. for three years he wasn’t going to pay a dime! When he calculated the whole expenses, it was over fifty thousand pounds and the Lord paid it before he even started university. I know the Lord really loves this brother and this is a public show of affection by the Most High but do you know that this brother belongs to virtually all the groups in the church? Oh yes, he is part of the evangelism group, prayer warrior, drama, sanctuary cleaner, usher, church greeters e.t.c. Most people do not even know how much this brother labors for God in the secret but the Lord who saw his activities in the secret has rewarded him in the open.
QUESTION: What are you doing for God in the secret that He can reward you in the open for?
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 14, Ps 17, Prov 28,2 Thes 2
BIBLE STUDIES: Matthew 14:22-33
In Matthew 14:22-33 is a story we all know. It was late at night, there were no ship around and the disciples of Jesus were in a ship far away in the middle of the sea. Since there were no means of transportation, Jesus decided to walk on the sea towards them. Peter saw Jesus walking on water and requested to join Him. Jesus told him no problem and immediately Peter got on water and began to walks towards Jesus. After Peter had taken few steps he noticed the wind and began to panic. Before you know it Peter began to sink, he called on Jesus and was saved.
One very important lesson from this passage is that immediately you allow fear in your heart, you begin to sink and if you don’t take time the challenges might drown you so please do not entertain fear in your heart. Jesus and Peter walked on the same water, how come only Peter sank? Aside from the fact that Peter entertained fear, while Jesus was on the mountain praying, Peter was busy chatting away with his fellow disciples. Because Peter had not made any private preparation (spiritually), a little wind made him lost his composure and he began to sink.
Matthew 6:4 says that thine alms may be in secret: and thy father which seeth in secret Himself shall reward thee openly. What this literally means is everything we do in the secret will be rewarded in the open. If you are pretending that you are Christian in the open and you are committing secret sins like adultery and fornication e.t.c ,the reward is coming except you repent. If on the other hand you are serving God sincerely, laboring for the propagation of the gospel day and night, people might not see it or take notice of it but the Lord who sees your effort in the secret will reward it in the open. Just of recent a brother was sharing a big testimony with me. The brother won a scholarship and the university said they were going to pay his tuition and other expenses throughout the period of his study in the university i.e. for three years he wasn’t going to pay a dime! When he calculated the whole expenses, it was over fifty thousand pounds and the Lord paid it before he even started university. I know the Lord really loves this brother and this is a public show of affection by the Most High but do you know that this brother belongs to virtually all the groups in the church? Oh yes, he is part of the evangelism group, prayer warrior, drama, sanctuary cleaner, usher, church greeters e.t.c. Most people do not even know how much this brother labors for God in the secret but the Lord who saw his activities in the secret has rewarded him in the open.
QUESTION: What are you doing for God in the secret that He can reward you in the open for?
Saturday, 13 July 2013
PRIVATE PREPARATION DETERMINES PUBLIC PERFORMANCE PT1
MEMORY VERSE: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. Matthew 6:4
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 13, Ps 15-16, Prov 27,2 Thes 1
BIBLE STUDIES: Matthew 14:22-33
In our bible studies is a story we all know. After Jesus had fed five thousand men not counting women and children, He constrained His disciples to get into a ship, to go before Him, while He sent the multitudes away. When everyone had left, He went to a mountain to pray. Later in the evening, he came down from the mountain and began to walk on water towards his disciples.
Water spiritually signifies challenges or trials. Isaiah 43:2 says when you pass through waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. The water and river referred to in this passage are challenges and trials. I believe the Lord is telling someone that the challenge you are going through will not sweep over you because He is with you, Amen. When you study this story you will notice that before Jesus Christ actually walked on water that night, He had first spent quality time in prayer. He had first prepared Himself spiritually. He had first suspended the laws of gravity in his prayer closet before going out in the open to walk on water. The athletes and sportsmen we see during Olympic don’t just turn up without preparing in the private. They practice for years and years for activity that lasts for only an hour or less. Many of us want to take over the world, to do that you need to first take over the spiritual world in your prayer closet.
I remember a particular incident when my boss wanted to sack one of the very hardworking staffs in my team because he made a mistake. I was called into the office and told that Mr. ‘A’ needs to go. In all honesty I could not defend this man because he was a guilty of a gross misconduct. While she was advising me on how to go about the dismissal, a colleague of mine came in to check something with her. As she was speaking to this colleague, I quickly used that opportunity to mumbled some words and pray in tongues for around a minute or two. After attending to this colleague, she looked at me and said it seems you don’t want us to sack this man and I said yes. She said ‘ok then, let’s give him a warning’. The Lord’s name be praised that this man escaped the sack that afternoon. I know that’s a very good testimony and I pray that such testimony’s and many more will happen through you In Jesus name but do you know that before going to work that morning , I had spent at least an hour speaking in tongues ? Before starting that day by the special grace of God, I had spent nothing less than ninety minutes with the Most High. For the world to see the glory of God in your life in the public, you need to spend quality time with Him in the private.
KEYWORD: If you don’t prepare in the private the enemy will disgrace you in the public.
Friday, 12 July 2013
ANOINTING VS SKILLS
MEMORY VERSE: And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden
shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy
neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing. Isaiah
10:27.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 11-12, Ps 13-14, Prov 26, 1 Thes 5
BIBLE STUDY: Luke 5:1-7
In our bible studies, we read the story of Peter who fished all night and caught nothing. He was a skilled fisherman. Not only that, he was very experienced and to add this he was a hardworking man. Despite all these he still failed.
There are one or two points I will like to highlight from this story. Point 1 - skills and experience can fail you. You can be an expert in your field, it does not guarantee anything. Plans can fail you. I don’t believe that Peter left home that day without a plan or strategy . He must have planned his day, where he was going to start and all that. I also believed that he had contingency plans too i.e. what to do if plan A fails. Support networks do fail. That night Peter had a companion with him and their combined experience could not produce result. Hard work guarantees nothing. A fellow who decides to put in extra effort by working when others are sleeping is not a lazy man. That was Peter's intention , at the end he had nothing to show for all the effort. Everything can fail ; Jesus cannot fail. Immediately Jesus came into the scene, the man who had failed repeatedly made only an effort and results began to flow in.
Point 2 – To become what God has created you to be, you need the anointing of the Holy Spirit. What is anointing? Anointing is what makes an ordinary man do the supernatural or extra ordinary. You cannot fulfill God’s destiny for your life through skills alone. You cannot win souls for Jesus through skills or experience. I remembered the times when I will search on the internet for questions people ask during evangelism. I will get all the answers, prepare myself and go and witness. I found out that you can answer all the questions people ask you and they still would not give their life to Christ. I know how many religious arguments I have won based on knowledge, there are even times when the other party will agree with me and at the end still say 'I don’t want to give my life to Christ.' I remembered the case of a particular fervent sister who backslidded for one reason or the other. She had an answer to all the bible verse I gave to her. At a point I gave up because I was exhausted. Then a day came we were just discussing over the phone over a matter and she began to cry. I asked her if she wanted to give her life to Christ and she said yes! All this while I had been using skills and experience but that day I allowed the Holy Spirit to do His work and within two minutes she returned to Christ. Point 3 – anointing produces more results than skills. Jesus who was anointed with the Holy Ghost (Acts 10:38), gave a simple instruction and Peter caught so much fish that two boats began to sink.
PRAYER POINT: Father, anoint me with the Holy Ghost
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 11-12, Ps 13-14, Prov 26, 1 Thes 5
BIBLE STUDY: Luke 5:1-7
In our bible studies, we read the story of Peter who fished all night and caught nothing. He was a skilled fisherman. Not only that, he was very experienced and to add this he was a hardworking man. Despite all these he still failed.
There are one or two points I will like to highlight from this story. Point 1 - skills and experience can fail you. You can be an expert in your field, it does not guarantee anything. Plans can fail you. I don’t believe that Peter left home that day without a plan or strategy . He must have planned his day, where he was going to start and all that. I also believed that he had contingency plans too i.e. what to do if plan A fails. Support networks do fail. That night Peter had a companion with him and their combined experience could not produce result. Hard work guarantees nothing. A fellow who decides to put in extra effort by working when others are sleeping is not a lazy man. That was Peter's intention , at the end he had nothing to show for all the effort. Everything can fail ; Jesus cannot fail. Immediately Jesus came into the scene, the man who had failed repeatedly made only an effort and results began to flow in.
Point 2 – To become what God has created you to be, you need the anointing of the Holy Spirit. What is anointing? Anointing is what makes an ordinary man do the supernatural or extra ordinary. You cannot fulfill God’s destiny for your life through skills alone. You cannot win souls for Jesus through skills or experience. I remembered the times when I will search on the internet for questions people ask during evangelism. I will get all the answers, prepare myself and go and witness. I found out that you can answer all the questions people ask you and they still would not give their life to Christ. I know how many religious arguments I have won based on knowledge, there are even times when the other party will agree with me and at the end still say 'I don’t want to give my life to Christ.' I remembered the case of a particular fervent sister who backslidded for one reason or the other. She had an answer to all the bible verse I gave to her. At a point I gave up because I was exhausted. Then a day came we were just discussing over the phone over a matter and she began to cry. I asked her if she wanted to give her life to Christ and she said yes! All this while I had been using skills and experience but that day I allowed the Holy Spirit to do His work and within two minutes she returned to Christ. Point 3 – anointing produces more results than skills. Jesus who was anointed with the Holy Ghost (Acts 10:38), gave a simple instruction and Peter caught so much fish that two boats began to sink.
PRAYER POINT: Father, anoint me with the Holy Ghost
Thursday, 11 July 2013
NEVER MARRY A MAN WHO DOES NOT BELIEVE IN HOLINESS
MEMORY VERSE: Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people. Proverbs 14:34
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 10, Ps 11-12, Prov 25, 1 Thes 4
It is not in the plan of God for you to marry an unbeliever. God is not an author of confusion and one thing He will never do is go against His holy words. 2 Corinthians 6:14 says be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? If you are already married to an unbeliever, you need to seriously pray for the salvation of his or her soul because after salvation , the second factor that decides whether you will have eternal life or not is who you marry. You may not believe me but I will share this story with you. A very committed pastor who loved the Lord had an argument with his wife one early morning , things went out of hand and she slapped him . This man got very angry and left the house. As he was traveling he had an accident and died. When he got to heaven, he was sent to hell. This man began to plead with Jesus and ask why? The Lord told him he died without forgiving his wife who slapped him. This man broke down and began to cry for mercy. Because this man had labored greatly for the kingdom of God and had served God passionately, he was giving an opportunity to return and make things right with his wife.
One of the purposes of marriage is to share. You can only share what you have. A brother who is not filled with the spirit of love cannot share love. He can pretend by buying you lovely gifts and all but in a matter of time the real him will come out. A sister who does not value her time cannot value your time. If all a brother has is stories of those that tried and failed in life, such brother cannot share faith with you. If all a sister has is anger and bitterness, God help you. So before you fall in love, have it at the back of your mind that it is what this brother has that we are going to share and vice versa.
If a brother does not have the fear of the Lord inside him, don’t expect him not to disappoint you. Proverbs 16:6 says by the fear of the Lord men depart from iniquity. If a brother does not fear God – his creator, who will he fear then? If he does not regard God – his maker, who will he regard ? Marrying a brother who does not fear the Lord is like sitting on a time bomb. It is the equivalent of a disaster waiting to happen. Don’t marry a guy who does not believe in holiness. Proverbs 14:34 says righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people. A brother who can compromise his faith in God or abandon his commitment in God in order to fit the circumstances of the moment, can compromise on anything even your love. Don’t expect a brother who is not faithful to God to be faithful to you !The main reason why you need to be wary of brothers who do not believe in holiness is that they can do anything to get rich. They can do and undo.
KEYWORD: If He does not regard Jesus, He will never regard you.
Tuesday, 9 July 2013
PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT
MEMORY VERSE: But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit. Jude 20.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 6, Ps 10, Prov 24, 1 Thes 3
What does it mean to pray in the Spirit? You see many equate praying with the spirit to praying in the Spirit. To pray with the spirit simply means to pray in tongues, for example Paul says in 1 Corinthians 14:15, ‘what is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also.’ Praying in the Spirit means to pray by means of the Holy Spirit or with the help of the Holy Spirit. It is praying according to the Spirit’s leading or praying for things the Spirit leads us to pray for. Romans 8:26 says we likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groaning which cannot be uttered.
When we pray in the Spirit we are praying according to the will of God. The Holy Spirit searches the mind of God and brings prayer points for us to pray on. When the Holy Spirit leads you to pray for a particular brother or sister, or leads to pray about a particular matter please pray about it. Most of the mishaps that happen in the body of Christ could have been avoided if only people prayed when the Holy Spirit asked them to pray. When you pray in the Spirit you are destroying the plans of the enemy. Not too long ago I shared the story of a man of God who the Holy Spirit led to pray against the loss of huge amount of money. At the point when the Holy Spirit was leading him to pray, he was not involved in any business dealings so the prayer point made little or no sense to him but he prayed. Several weeks later some men introduced him to some business, the men wanted to dupe him of his life savings but the Holy Spirit destroyed the plan and exposed these men because he prayed when the Holy Spirit led him to.
Ephesians 6:13 says wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye maybe able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand. Do you know that when you pray in the Spirit, what you are doing is you are putting on one of the armour of God? Ephesians 6:18 says praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watch thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.
When you pray in the Spirit you get more results from your prayer life. I remembered a sister told me she was going for an interview and the Holy Spirit led me to pray with her. I asked her if she didn’t mind if a common church cleaner prayed with her and she said no problem. We said a very short prayer and she left for the interview. An hour later or so she called saying she got the job. What really amazed her was the interviewer did not really ask her any question aside when she was available to start. Instead of spending hours praying and binding the devil, losing and casting demons, the Holy Spirit led us to pray for favor and we did just that and the Lord took control.
PRAYER POINT: Father, as from now on help me to pray more in the Spirit.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Lev 6, Ps 10, Prov 24, 1 Thes 3
What does it mean to pray in the Spirit? You see many equate praying with the spirit to praying in the Spirit. To pray with the spirit simply means to pray in tongues, for example Paul says in 1 Corinthians 14:15, ‘what is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also.’ Praying in the Spirit means to pray by means of the Holy Spirit or with the help of the Holy Spirit. It is praying according to the Spirit’s leading or praying for things the Spirit leads us to pray for. Romans 8:26 says we likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groaning which cannot be uttered.
When we pray in the Spirit we are praying according to the will of God. The Holy Spirit searches the mind of God and brings prayer points for us to pray on. When the Holy Spirit leads you to pray for a particular brother or sister, or leads to pray about a particular matter please pray about it. Most of the mishaps that happen in the body of Christ could have been avoided if only people prayed when the Holy Spirit asked them to pray. When you pray in the Spirit you are destroying the plans of the enemy. Not too long ago I shared the story of a man of God who the Holy Spirit led to pray against the loss of huge amount of money. At the point when the Holy Spirit was leading him to pray, he was not involved in any business dealings so the prayer point made little or no sense to him but he prayed. Several weeks later some men introduced him to some business, the men wanted to dupe him of his life savings but the Holy Spirit destroyed the plan and exposed these men because he prayed when the Holy Spirit led him to.
Ephesians 6:13 says wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye maybe able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand. Do you know that when you pray in the Spirit, what you are doing is you are putting on one of the armour of God? Ephesians 6:18 says praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watch thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.
When you pray in the Spirit you get more results from your prayer life. I remembered a sister told me she was going for an interview and the Holy Spirit led me to pray with her. I asked her if she didn’t mind if a common church cleaner prayed with her and she said no problem. We said a very short prayer and she left for the interview. An hour later or so she called saying she got the job. What really amazed her was the interviewer did not really ask her any question aside when she was available to start. Instead of spending hours praying and binding the devil, losing and casting demons, the Holy Spirit led us to pray for favor and we did just that and the Lord took control.
PRAYER POINT: Father, as from now on help me to pray more in the Spirit.
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