December 20, 2014 · 4:24 pm

You Are More than What People Have Said About You

superchamp_logo_symbol_fb.jpgWords are like rain. You cannot predict with 100% accuracy when they will come and you cannot stop them from invading your space. Moreover, just as the rain changes direction with the wind, words from the same source can tend to change direction without any prior warning. But just as you can build a tent over your head to shelter you from the rain and keep buckets to catch the rain you need, you can protect yourself from harmful words and you have a so in how words affect you.

Light-bulb moment: You cannot always control what words invade your ear-space, but you can always control how those words affect you

The first step in taking control of how words affect you is realizing that while you listen with your ears, you hear with your heart. Hence what you hear depends on two factors: The condition of your heart and how well your heart is guarded.

What is the condition of your heart?

A heart that’s not in good condition has a funny way of twisting words to match what it wants to hear. If your heart is hurt, every loving correction is a criticism that tells you to push your friend away. If your heart is healthy, the same loving correction is an act of kindness that pushes you to be the best that you can be. Same words, different interpretation, different result!

If your heart is filled with false beliefs about you and/or others, then your heart is not in good condition. So if you are going to take control of what you hear, you have to ask yourself the question: What do I believe about myself and what do I believe about others? Then you must follow it up by asking yourself why you believe what you believe about yourself and others.

Friend, what you believe about yourself should always line up with your identity. Since your identity is hidden in Christ, then you should only believe that which God believes about you. Anything other than that is to believe falsely.

Here are a few things that God believes about you: You are worthy, you are worth it, you are a special treasure, you can do all things, you are an overcomer, you are more than a conqueror. Do you believe this about yourself? If you don’t, then you have made up in your mind that you know yourself better than your creator knows you! Think about it. The creation cannot possibly know itself better that the one who created it. If your heart is filled with false lies, choose to submit your heart and soul to the words of your creator and meditate on them. You will find that your feelings will start to follow what you believe.

What is keeping guard over your heart?

A wise man spoke these words: Do not take to heart everything people say, lest your hear your servant cursing you. For may times, also, your own heart has know that even you have cursed others (Ecclesiastes 7:21).

You can replace the word ‘cursed’ with negativity, lies, slander or any other word you choose. Take heed of the wise man’s words. He says that you cannot always run away from negativity, therefore you must protect what your heart hears. Friend, you must build a shield of truth around your heart. The truth acts as a semi-permeable membrane. It allows what aligns with the truth to pass through to your heart and blocks ugliness from passing through. In other words, the truth is like a bucket with a filter that only allows the good rain in. That is why it is so important to know the truth.

Listen, even if you have done wrong, what you have done may be true, but it does not represent the truth about you. Everyone has done wrong…everyone. Do not allow your history to create your future. Know the truth and it will set your free! It will free you from condemnation, living in the past, depression, negativity about yourself and others.

Additionally, words that enter your heart create worlds in your heart. Do not allow the atomic bombs of what other people have said or are saying about you create your world. Those atomic bombs will only destroy your world and steal away your future. Deflect the rain of bombs away with the shield of truth.

Light-bulb moment: If you do not guard your heart with the shield of truth, you open yourself up to a world of hurt

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November 15, 2014 · 12:54 pm

What is God’s Will for My Life?

Yesterday, I came across the words,

‘The LORD will perfect that which concerns me‘ – Psalm 138:8

The words hit me like of blow to the solar plexus. Immediately, the thoughts ‘The LORD will NOT perfect that which does NOT concern me‘ entered my spirit.

Wanting to know more, I asked Him the question: What are those things that do not concern me? Immediately, He reminded me of the words He spoke to Peter towards the end of His time on earth:

 

‘If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow me’  –  John 21:22

In other words, Jesus told Peter that His will for John should not concern Peter. The lesson for us here is this: The only thing that we should concern ourselves with is His will for our lives. We should not concern ourselves with God’s will for another person, talk-less of becoming consumed by it out of envy.

Knowing God’s will for our lives is key if our walk is to be perfected.

What is God’s Will for My life?

This is the question I get asked most often. Friend, another words for God’s will is what He wants us to do on a daily basis. God reveals His will for our lives on a daily basis as we follow Him (walk by faith).

Going back to John 21:22, God’s will for Peter at that point in time was to take a walk with Him. Nothing more, nothing less. Only as Peter followed God did He continue to reveal more to Peter. The same thing happened with Abraham. God told Him to go to some foreign land – the identity of which He did not reveal to Abraham. In other words, God’s will for Abraham was for him to pack his bags and take a journey to nowhere in particular! Only after taking the journey did God reveal more of what was to come to him.

The will of God for our lives is revealed to us moment by moment.

Now, what if Abraham had not obeyed the will of God because He did not see the purpose in taking the journey? Abraham would have missed out on the blessing of God. He would have missed out on his destiny. By this we see that the way to fulfill the purpose of God for our lives is to walk in His will for our lives.

So what is God’s will for our lives? It is simply to pay attention to His words and obey it diligently. Thus the only pre-requisite to knowing and following the will of God for our lives is having an intimate fellowship with Him. For how can we hear a person we are not walking closely with? And how can we obey someone we have not heard?

Living God’s will for our lives requires trust. Fulfilling God’s purpose for our lives requires consistency in following God’s will. Only as we walk in God’s purpose for our lives does He perfect that which concerns us (His will). Only then is our destiny revealed.

So spend time with God so you may know His will. Once you know His will do not question it but just do it. Then let Him take care of your purpose and destiny.

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November 8, 2014 · 10:16 am

Prayers That Get the Job Done

Intense DevotionThe effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much – James 5:16

Jacob was in trouble! He was about to face his brother Esau twenty years after he had cheated him out of his birthright by pretending to be him to their father.  Jacob was sure that Esau remembered the episode. How could he forget such a thing! Jacob must have reasoned within himself: Not only did I steal his birthright, but I ran away as quickly as possible from the scene of the crime with my tail between my legs without uttering as much as a word of apology!

Jacob was in serious trouble. If the offense was bad enough, Esau was now coming to meet him. Oh yes, it was about to be on like Donkey Kong and Jacob knew that he had no chance. Esau was coming at him with 400 strong men while Jacob’s corner mainly consisted of women and children. Moreover, Esau had the advantage of passion on his side. Jacob knew he deserved the justice that was about to be meted out on him. What was he to do? It seemed his plea for mercy from Esau had fallen on deaf ears! What he did was make the first quality decision he had made in a long time. He went to Papa God in effective and fervent prayer as a righteous man. When he did, God answered him.

What Made Jacob Righteous?

I know what you are thinking. How can I say that Jacob was righteous? If righteousness is measured by what we do, then Jacob was on the opposite of righteous. Jacob was the kind of man with whom you did not want to be affiliated. He was a trickster and a cheater.

If righteousness is measured by what we do, then we are all in trouble, for the best that we can do in the arena of righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). All of us have fallen short of the passing mark (Romans 3:23). The good news is that righteousness is not determined by who we are but is determined by whose we are. It is not determined by performance but is determined by relationship. We know this for we are told that those who have a relationship with God are righteous. Here is how the bible puts it: For He (God the Father) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to become sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (Jesus) – 2 Corinthians 5:17

So what made Jacob righteous? He was righteous because he had a relationship with God through the promise God had made to his fathers. Similarly, we are righteous because of the relationship we have with the Father through the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus.

What Made Jacob’s Prayer Effective?

Know the Will of God: Jacob started his prayer by reminding God of His own words concerning him. He said to God: You told me to return to my country and family and I will deal well with you (Gen 32:9). I will treat you well and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude (Gen 32:12). See, Jacob knew the will of God for his life and so he prayed the will of God. The bible says that we ask and do not receive because we ask amiss (James 4:2). It is impossible to ask amiss when we ask according to the will of God! Jesus said that He will do whatever we ask in His name (John 14:13). To ask in the name of Jesus is to ask according to His will. If this is not too clear, consider the messengers in olden days who declared that they come in the name of the king. What they are saying is that they have come according to the will of the king and to declare his will. If we want our prayers to be effective, we have to know the will of God for that which we pray and then pray it.

Humble Yourself: Jacob continues with the words, I am not worthy of the least of the mercies and truth which you have shown me (Gen 32:10). In other words, Jacob submitted that his success had absolutely nothing to do with his own strength, efforts, position or character. He humbled himself before God. The bible tells us that God will not despise (turn away) a broken and a humbled heart (Psalm 51:17). Perhaps the clearest illustration of humility getting the attention of God is found in the book of Daniel. The angel of the Lord said to Daniel: From the first day that you set your heart to understand (the will of God) and to humble yourself before your God, you words were heard (by God); and I have come because of your words – Daniel 10:12.

Ask Honestly: Jacob continues: Deliver me, I pray from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him lest he come and attack me and the mother with the children (Gen 32:11). Jacob was very direct with his prayer. He did not beat about the bush but he was very honest with God. He said, I am afraid, help me. He did not try to impress God with clever words. He simply surrendered to the gravity of the situation and prayed a truthful prayer. I have come to realize I must surrender to the truth. If I have been a fool, I surrender to that truth and go to God and say, Lord I have been a fool, help me. Surrendering to the truth requires that we pray what is truly in our heart. If what is in our heart does not reflect the truth, God will show us that as well. It is crazy not to tell God the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

What Made Jacob’s Prayer Fervent?

The Angel of the Lord visited Jacob because he prayed an effective prayer. Once visited by the Angel of the Lord, he continued in fervent prayer, asking for the blessing of the Lord over his quandary with Esau. He was so determined and relentless in his pursuit that he wrestled with the Angel of the Lord even after his hip came out of joint. He wrestled until day break. Elijah is another man who would not relent in prayer. He prayed seven different times until a cloud of rain appeared in the sky.

We must be as Elijah and Jacob. We must wrestle until day break (until there is light at the end of the tunnel). The presence of the Lord signifies that something significant is about to happen. That is not the time to give up but it is the time to press into God and wrestle with him until we receive the blessing.

When we doggedly pray the will of God in all humility and surrender is when we will see results in our lives.

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October 18, 2014 · 4:29 pm

If God is Good, Then Why Did He Banish Satan (Evil) to the Earth?

A few weeks ago, I met a lady who saw my cross and snickered. Soon enough, she asked if I was a believer or if my cross was just a fashion statement. When I told her I loved Jesus, she said to me “Well, I don’t believe in God”. When I asked why not, she said “I can’t believe in a Being that would allow Satan on earth. Tell me this, if God is good, then why allow Satan access to us in the first place”.

Good question I said. It seems that you know something of God. Yes, she said. I was raised church but I have now moved beyond all that. I don’t believe in God anymore. I asked if she would give me a shot at an answer. She said I would be wasting my time. I told her I would anyway.

Below is the gist of what I discussed with her (It is included in the book: No Victory Without Faith)

Though the Bible does not explicitly say, it is not far-fetched to believe that Satan’s unhappiness with God reached a crescendo when God decided to create man in His image and made him the ruler of the earth. Satan, who was never satisfied with leading a third of the angels of heaven, but was hungry for more power and was tempted to overthrow God, looked at the earth with longing eyes as God made it.

He must have said to himself, “Finally, I am going to get a place to call my own and rule over. I am now going to be like God. It is about time God came to His senses. He knows I have been eyeing His throne and He has surely seen it. So He has decided to create the earth and give it to me. Finally, I will have my own place!”

Satan so wanted the earth that he had earlier tried to kill the child that was born to rule all the hosts of the earth beforehand (Revelations 12:4).

Now that the earth was being formed by the Word of God, he was sure that his time had come! When Satan heard that man was being made in the image of God – the image of love, faith, and authority – enough was enough. He must have said to his belligerent self,

“Is it not enough that I have to serve God, now I have to serve man? Why should I have to serve a being that was created after me? He does not care about me at all. Why not just place me and my angels on the earth to rule? Why not give me what He knows I want?”

Satan was outraged! So he (who is called the accuser of the brethren) approached the throne of grace and brought an accusation against God. He gave God a piece of his and accused Him of being unjust and uncaring. Of course, God knew the character of Satan and knew the content of his dead heart. In turn, Satan in his blind ambition thought he was making a good case to God. In truth, all he did was reveal the extent to which pride and greed had consumed him. He revealed that he had no ounce of love but was filled with evil. (Note: Evil sacrifices all things to achieve its self-seeking end). God could and would not allow such a creature to have dominion. For God to have allowed that would have made God unloving. Furthermore, the end of such a rule would be pandemonium for the creatures subjected to Satan’s rule.

Since God is holy and without blemish, Satan was no longer fit to live in the presence of God – once the iniquity of pride, greed, and self-seeking was found in him (see Ezekiel 28:14- 17). After this episode, God had to do something with Satan. Being merciful, God decided not to destroy Satan and his co conspirators (a third of the angels of heaven) – the price that his iniquity deserved. Instead, He decided in His goodness to banish Satan and his gang to the earth!

In making this decision, God executed both justice and mercy at the same time. First, He was loving and merciful in that He did not destroy Satan (His own creation). Wow! That God would show even Satan mercy reveals how big God’s heart is towards all creation. Second, He was just in that He punished Satan by banishing him to the earth – away from His presence.

Now, He not only banished him away from His presence, He banished him into the presence of man. Since man had been given rulership and dominion over all things on earth, God in effect made Satan subject to the rule of man.

“I cast you to the ground (earth), I laid you before kings (men), That they might behold (see, discern, take heed of) you” – Ezekiel 28:17b

In other words, God said to Satan, “I see that you do not like Me because I created man. I also see that you do not like man because he is created in My image. Well, you will now be subjected to the rule of the creation that you revile so much for absolutely no reason. I will not mete out the destroy your sin deserves just yet. You do not like My rule you say! Well, I will let man rule over you!”

Instead of counting his lucky stars and thanking God for sparing him from destruction, Satan exploded with anger. Instead of accepting God’s judgment, he started a war in heaven and tried to force his way into power. Thankfully, Michael and his host of angels were able to defeat Satan and his gang (see Revelations 12:7:8). So Satan was booted out of heaven kicking and screaming! He landed on the earth having great anger towards both God and man (see Revelations 12:12).

So why did God banish Satan to the earth? He did it to punish Satan stripping him of his former glory and to subject him to the rule of the creation he hated so much.

She said she had not heard that before. Long story short, we proceeded to talk about this blog and she said she would visit. I hope she is finding answers. I hope I planted a seed on good ground that day.

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September 21, 2014 · 8:39 pm

10 Surefire Ways to Get Yourself Depressed – Part III

Living in Disguise, having a sense of Entitlement, being Prideful and Rebellious, Envious, Selfish, Stubborn, Insolent, taking too much ownership, and Narcissism are character traits that spell D.E.P.R.E.S.S.I.O.N. These traits lead to depression because they destroy relationships and tend to rob us of our need to be loved and accepted.

(9) OWNERSHIP: Taking ownership is usually a positive trait as it usually means we are taking responsibility for our lives. Yet this positive trait can lead to unintended negative consequences when we take ownership for those things that we have no business owning. Taking ownership of something we cannot reverse such as past mistakes is a losing battle since we cannot go back in time to fix them. It only leads to frustration and the propensity not to forgive ourselves.

The craziest things about taking ownership of your past sins is this: You are taking ownership of that which no longer exists. In Christ, your past sins have not simply being covered, they have been remitted. Another word for remitted is dispatched.

See, one of the many wonderful things about having a relationship with Jesus is that he has taken ownership for our sins. Every sin you have every committed or could ever commit has been placed on him. So please, do not take ownership of something that you no longer own. And please don’t mistake the consequences of your sin with having ownership of it.

All of us have to take ownership of the worldly consequence of our sins but the sins is no longer something that the Lord imputes to us. All sin is imputed onto Jesus once we accept Him in our lives

 

(10) NARCISSISM: Are you hypersensitive to less than glowing feedback? Do you tend to blame everyone else for your failures? Are you always looking to take credit for everything good around you. Does it always have to be your way or the highway? Is it all about how you feel and how it affects you? Do you lack empathy for the plight of others? If you answered yes to these questions, then you have some of the character traits of a narcissist.

If you have the traits of a narcissist, then your key words  are ‘let go and let God’.

Submitting ALL of your pain, your past, your hurts to God is the only way the fears, insecurities and trauma that leads you to want to control everything will ever be eradicated. Instead of comparing yourself to other people, a simple comparison of yourself to the holiness of God will lead to surrender. If you do not know what is in your heart that you need to submit to God, just ask the one’s that know you the most. Ask for their brutal honesty and listen with an open mind and heart.

Remember that the wounds of a friend are faithful but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful (Proverbs 27:6). I don’t know about you but I would rather be wounded now and heal than be trapped in the cage of self-deceit.

Acknowledging (confessing) that there is a problem is the first step to solving it. When you confess your faults instead of trying to defend them (and so deceiving yourself), you leave room for God to do His best work in your life.

Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the Lord, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you – Hosea 10:12

It is time to break up the fallow ground of our hearts so we can enjoy the best God has for us.

 

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September 14, 2014 · 9:28 pm

10 Surefire Ways to Get Yourself Depressed – Part II

Part I of this blog discusses how living in Disguise, having a sense of Entitlement, foolish Pride, Rebellion against the truth, and Envy promote depression in our lives. Another 3 character traits that tend to alienate us and promote depression are as follows.

(6) SELFISHNESS: Selfishness makes it “all about us”. It is trait that comes out us when we operate out of fear and greed. Society has done a great job hiding this trait under a rug of vernacular. Instead of saying we are only thinking of ourselves, we say that we are acting independently. Instead of admitting that we looking out only for our own self-interest, we say that we are looking our for our own security.

Good relationships require give and take. With selfishness, there is no giving…there is only taking. This is why selfishness never results in happiness.

Nothing breaks that cycle of selfishness more than engaging in giving and serving others – especially when the person does not deserve it. Just try it today, go over to someone who does not deserve something and make their day. Watch the smile on their face; watch joy fill their heart as you tell them there is no catch. In truth, when we engage in ‘catch-less’ giving, we receive more than we bargain for. There is something about selflessness that fills us up with joy and happiness. Thus while selfishness sucks the life out of us, selflessness rewards us with the gift of life. So ask yourself how you can make someone’s day today. Then be intentional to make it happen.

If you do not believe me, then believe the wisest man who ever lived. Jesus said: Give and it shall be given unto you. If you want love and happiness in your life, give love and happiness.

(7) STUBBORNNESS: The difference between determination and stubbornness is the state of the heart from which the action comes. While determination is born out of good heart, stubbornness is born out of an evil heart. While determination is positive, stubbornness is negative.  Stubbornness is what makes us dig our heels in – sticking for things we know are not right. Stubbornness is what causes us to never admit our wrongdoing or our wrong ways of thinking.

Setting a wall up against the will of God , moving against his spiritual laws, and not admitting when we are wrong are surefire ways to be depressed. Just ask Judas Iscariot. He stubbornly set himself against Jesus even after it was clear to him that Jesus knew he going to betray him. The result: His ensuing deep anxiety and remorse led him to hang himself. Other stubborn guys we know of are Pharaoh of Egypt, King Saul, and Jonah. They all suffered for it.

Lets not be like all  these guys who suffered deep anxiety.  Let us not hang our joy and happiness on a tree. Let us be determined to do what is right and let us be quick to turn towards what is good. We ought to accept being called a flip-flopper and do what is right than be known as a resolute people who steadfastly drove their lives off into the gorge of remorse and anxiety just because they were trying to save their image.

To win yourself off stubbornness, remind yourself that you do not have to be right all the time.

(8) INSOLENCE: Being loud, rude, and otherwise obnoxious wins us no favors in life. In fact, it tends to alienate us from peaceable people in the society. It causes unnecessary dissension and strife.

Since birds of a feather flock together, it is highly unusual to find insolent people walking around with peaceful people. At some point, insolent people will be rude to one another and take offense. Hence, the end result of insolence is that we miss out on the joy our relationships should bring us. That in itself can cause us a deep sense of anxiety as the people we love to get out of dodge for their own peace of mind.

In other words, it is difficult for people to love you for you if you are rude, crude, loud, and obnoxious. If they do, they would rather love you for you at a distance. Thus, it will be difficult for you to walk in fellowship with others when you are insolent. Once fellowship is removed, watch out. You are prime candidate for negative thoughts and the other tricks of Satan. Don’t I say “I don’t need anybody”. Everybody needs somebody.

Friend, lets us remember that we are to exhort and speak to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs (Ephesians 5:19). Only then will we have positive and meaningful fellowship with one another.

 

 

 

 

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September 7, 2014 · 3:57 pm

10 Surefire Ways to Get Yourself Depressed – Part I

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), roughly 18% of Americans suffer from anxiety disorders. The contributing factors that may promote depression are many. They include abuse, certain medications, conflict, death or loss, genetics, substance abuse, major events, and other personal problems. Additionally, factors such as our upbringing, our coping strategies, and our general view and outlook on life impact the possibility of us developing anxiety disorders.

Being a proponent of the “Prevention is Better than Cure” principle, I wonder how many cases of depression can be prevented if we learn the right copying strategies, have the right perspective on life, and perhaps avoid the character pitfalls that have the ability to drag is unto the dark pit of depression.

Just as an unhealthy lifestyle promotes many cases of obesity and cancer, there are some things that we should avoid if we want to reduce the likelihood of falling into depression. Here are 5 of 10 things we should avoid that promote D.E.P.R.E.S.S.I.O.N.

(1) DISGUISE: In masquerade parties, we wear masks and pretend to be people we are not. In real life, we tend to wear masks to hide who we truly are. Many times, it is because we are afraid of being a disappointment or are afraid of being rejected by people. Hence, fear is the main reason people where masks. For most of us, mask wearing is only meant for a particular audience – perhaps in our workplace or when around certain caliber of people. The problem comes when we are so deeply fearful that we no longer take off our mask – regardless of company, situation, or circumstance. We are in dangerous territory when no one around us really knows who we are. When this happens, we do not have real relationships but have developed illusions of relationships. We feel deep loneliness because no one know who we truly are though we may be surrounded by people. Many comedians wear masks and so suffer from depression.

A key to stop our mask wearing is to know that we have been accepted. Our acceptance does not come from who we are or what we do but from who God is and what He has done! So let us take off our mask and allow people to see the real us. We must leave the place that tells us we have to behave before we belong; we must go to the place where we first belong well before we behave. That place is at the feet of Jesus!

(2) ENTITLEMENT: When we feel entitled to something, we not only feel disappointed when we do not get it, we feel robbed and angered. We feel as if some grave injustice has been done against us. We feel the world is unfair and against us when we can do nothing about our perceived injustice. So we go around gloomy and sad with the weight of the world on our shoulders. A weight that we have placed there ourselves.

Perspective is what breaks the yoke of entitlement. From a biblical perspective, the only thing we are entitled to or deserve in this life is death! We know this because the bible says all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God; it says that the wages of sin is death! We must let go of whatever we feel entitled. We must learn to be glad for those things that we do have and are in the process of attaining. Only by living with a heart of gratitude will we see the little miracles that God places in our lives on a daily basis.

(3) PRIDE: I feel like cringing everything I hear someone say “My pride is all I have left“. I want to reply, “You pride is likely the reason you have nothing but pride left“. See, the bible says that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Why is pride so bad? It is because pride does not seek help from others. Pride says we can go it alone and ostracize people. Pride never admits any wrong-doing. Pride refuses to pardon but drinks the poison of unforgiveness. Pride convinces us we are the stud-muffin but then fails to pick us up when we fall. Pride cannot stand failure and is hard on us. Pride never wants to change course even if the course is leading us straight to the pit. Pride is the friend the betrays us in the end. Pride causes conflicts in our world and leads us to live the stressed life instead of the blessed life.

When we make it about pride, we make it about is. When we make it about humility, we make it about the greater good.

(4) REBELLION: We will never find the tree rebelling against the sun. No tree has ever decided not to bends itself towards the sun. Similarly, you will never find the fish rebelling against the water. Likewise, we should not rebel against the truth. A truth is something that remains unchanged regardless of time and circumstance. A truth about human beings is that we are relational beings – we were made to be in relationship with one another in love. The moment we lock ourselves away from all people in our hearts is the moment we begin to rebel against our need for companionship.

Just as it is hazardous for us to rebel against the law of gravity, we must not rebel against the spiritual laws governing faith, hope, and love. Rebelling against these spiritual law’s will lead to spiritual starvation and depravity and deep state of anxiety.

(5) ENVY: Nothing saps satisfaction faster than envy. We not only become dissatisfied with what we have, we become dissatisfied with God. Envy causes us to question how much God loves us. This is turn causes us to cheapen every blessing God has bestowed on us. Envy causes us to take our eyes off God and place is on other people; it is what causes us to keep up with the “Jones”. It leads to unhealthy competition with people who are not competing against us. In other words, it causes us to put undue pressure on ourselves to perform.

Instead of being envious, we must make a conscious decision to be happy with where we are and what we have. Even if our current situation is not the best, it does not have to stay that way. Remember that Joseph was not always in the pit but made it to the palace. Remember that David was not always running away from Saul but became a king. Instead of being envious, we must embrace our season of character development while awaiting our promotion in life. Moreover, we must make it a point to be happy for others. We must remember that God is no respecter of person’s. If he has done it for our neighbor, He can do it for us as well as we trust and follow Him.

 

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September 3, 2014 · 6:06 pm

I Was Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places

An erroneous view of love will always lead us to look in the wrong places; it will cheat us out of the best life we were created to experience. If we go looking to satisfy our love craving from our spouses, children, parents, jobs, or possessions, then we end up disappointed. If we think that love is about feelings, emotions, and infatuation, then we have drunk the wine of lies that causes us to stagger and stumble. Rather than guess at love, it is best to see what the Scripture says about it. Without a scriptural understanding of love, what we end up believing in and showing is not love but simply components of love. Let me explain.

If someone shows us the horns of an elephant, that does not demonstrate that we have seen an elephant, nor does it demonstrate that an elephant doesn’t exist somewhere. All it tells us is that an elephant previously existed. Similarly, just because we are being shown acts (or parts and parcels) of love does not mean we are being shown love, for those acts may have been done out of fear and self-seeking. For love to be shown, the heart behind the actions must be pure. Analogous to the missing elephant, it is impossible to show and give what we do not have. Therefore, it is impossible to show and give love if God is missing in our lives and if we are operating in fear. So how do we make sure that what we have and are experiencing is love? The first step is to define love accurately. Although love can be described in many ways, here is the complete definition of love

Love = God = Word = Jesus = Holy Spirit

Here are the scriptures that help us come up with the equation:

1) “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1).
2) “And the Word became flesh (Jesus) and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
3) “But Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained, was it not your own? And aft er it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God’” (Acts 5:3–4).
4) “He who does not love does not know God, for God is love” (1 John 4:8).

With regard to real love, this equation reveals that no human being can claim to love without having the presence of God in his or her life, a stumbling block for those that do not believe there is a God. It says that it is impossible to say that we have love in our lives without having Jesus in our lives, a stumbling block for the non-believer. In addition, it says we cannot claim to love God without loving his Word. We cannot say we are walking in love without walking in fellowship with Jesus through the Holy Spirit. Alas, any action we take that does not align itself with the Scripture is an act that is devoid of love. Any decision we make that is not inspired of the Holy Spirit does not fulfill the call to love.

Real love is not just satisfied that we “know about God” but requires that we “know God.”

 

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August 30, 2014 · 2:57 pm

I Had Peace But My Relationship Still Fell To Pieces!

“You know how the pastor said not to do anything without peace? Well, I kept myself pure, got the consent of my parents, went through marriage counseling, and had great peace about the man I was marrying. Yet he turned out to be the wrong one. Emmanuel, I had peace but my marriage fell to pieces.”

It was clear that my friend’s previous experience was challenging the truth that had been preached. Choosing not to open a can of worms, I stuck to the topic of peace! To her comment, I replied:

Peace does not reveal the will of God for your life (the word from God does that); Peace confirms that you are moving in faith as you follow the will of God for your life. Moreover, there is a difference between the peace from God and the peace from man

PEACE OF GOD

Consider the scene in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus’ sweat became as droplets of blood as he resisted sin. The passage of scripture in Luke 22 tells us that Jesus was in anguish. In other words, peace was the last word we can use to describe what Jesus felt in the garden as he asked the Father if there was any other way to bring salvation to men besides going to the cross. If Jesus had simply said “I do not have peace about going to the cross”, he would have missed the will of God. But Jesus already knew the will of God, so he prayed to the father for help. In turn, the Lord sent  an angel to strengthen him and he left the garden in peace.

Thus, just because we do not have peace about something does not mean it is not the will of God for our lives. It may very well mean that we have not surrendered to the will of God for our lives. Once we know the will of God and surrender to it will the peace of God come over us.

 Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus – Philippians 4:6

The pre-requisite to the peace of God is prayer, petition, and a heart of thanksgiving as we move by faith in the will of God.

No faith equals no peace; only anxiety ensues!

PEACE OF MAN

Conversely, the peace of man can be very dangerous because it is based on previous experience, comfort, and can be tainted by our own will. Consider the children of Israel who decided not to go into the Promised Land. They had no peace about it because they saw the giant opposition they had to face. Yet, it was the will of God to go into the land to possess it. The giants they saw in the land dissuaded them so much that they forgot all about the promise of God. In other words, they walked by sight and not by faith.

Though they had peace about their decision to stay put in the wilderness, it was the wrong decision. You know the end of the story. All of them except two that had no peace about staying in the wilderness died in the wilderness. In other words, the peace of God would have taken them to their destiny but the peace of man led them to destruction. So next time you have peace, make sure the source of your peace is from God.

The peace of God follows the will of God, but the peace of man follows the will of man.

Consider the wicked. The peace that comes from God does not go with them (Isaiah 57:21) but they certainly experience the peace that comes from doing their own will (see Proverbs 4:14-16 below).

Don’t set foot on the path of the wicked;
don’t proceed in the way of evil ones.
Avoid it; don’t travel on it.
Turn away from it, and pass it by.
 For they can’t sleep
unless they have done what is evil;
they are robbed of sleep
unless they make someone stumble – Proverbs 4:14 – 16

Some people do not have peace unless they do what is justified in their own eyes but not necessarily justified in the eyes of the Lord. If you have ever felt great peace only after taking justice into your own hands and repaying evil for evil – saying to yourself that the person got what they deserved – then you know what it is to have the peace of man.

Friend, jut because you have peace does not mean you are in the will of God. Only let the peace that comes from God be your umpire.

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August 16, 2014 · 3:55 pm

Do You Believe In GOD?

 

 

Do You Believe in God

Do you believe in God? If you do not, you should! If you do, then you believe in faith! There is no greater story to be told than the story of the faith of Jesus. Jesus is our example of what is possible when a man places his faith completely in God. Such a man who is wholly surrendered to purpose will be able to believe the unbelievable and achieve the impossible. Truly, Jesus was only able to achieve the impossible of conquering death by first believing the unbelievable truth that God was able to raise Him up from the grave. This tells me that the impact of our lives will ultimately boil down to how we answer the question, how much do we believe in God?

While education, charisma, status, and wealth can produce great results, those results pale in comparison with what the right kind of believing can produce. Think about it. The most recognizable and most famous name on the earth is that of a carpenter who was born in the trough of a stable a little over 2000 years ago. How is that even possible? While it makes no sense in the eyes of man, it makes all the sense in the world in the eyes of faith. What about Mother Teresa? How did a nun out of the obscure country of Albania ever achieve so much good in the world? How was she able to help millions of orphans and starving children? How was she able to die a billionaire? How did this woman, of all women become a world icon? It is because she dared to believe in God and decided to move in the purpose to which He called her. Do you believe in God now?

Do you believe in God?

The story of faith is the story of victory and success. This is what Jesus knew – He knew faith was victory. He had read about how Moses delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt by faith, how Gideon defeated the Midianites by faith, and how Esther saved her people by faith. He knew that no matter how daunting the path of faith, the end result of it is always incredible victory. Jesus was so filled with the assurance of victory in the Father that He was willing to walk the road of death (see Hebrews 12:2).

Faith is the great equalizer. Faith does not care about your history, qualifications, or resources. Faith only cares about what we believe and in whom we believe! So do you believe in God?

The story of Gideon clearly shows us the power that is available in faith. Faith turned Gideon from a coward into a commander of the army of God. It turned a man who was so filled with fear that he would only go carry out the will of God at night, into a man who was so filled with courage that he chose to face an army of 135,000 with only 300 men!

Absolutely nothing is impossible by faith! When you truly understand and internalize this is when everything in your life will change. It is then you will no longer have to spend your whole life trying to accomplish things in your own power. Rather, you will spend your time believing right, so that the power of God may be released in your life.

There is No Victory Without Faith! Do you believe in God?

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