Don’t Fight For Relevance; You Are Relevant

One thing I know for certain is that it makes a huge difference when believers discover and accept who God made them to be. When one gets to this point, there is a certain confidence that begins to unfold in the person; it is real confidence coming from deep from within, evidence of God’s presence in the believer. It comes from deep within and is very empowering. The more one studies the scriptures, the more confident the person becomes which said confidence may appear intimidating to those who do not understand the way of the Holy Spirit who empowers us and as such mistake it for pride so that they often accuse these Spirit filled/led believer of pride because they refuse to be intimidated despite fears within. 

2 Timothy 1: 7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.”

Unfortunately, in today’s world, believers hardly have this experience because we love the world too much to fully lend ourselves to God thus disallowing the full reveal of who we really are as a result of which we suffer all sorts of insecurities and struggle so hard to outdo one another, destroying ourselves in the process and all because we seek the relevance that God already gave us. Unfortunately, we then end up much less relevant. In trying to be all things we end up being nothing and then get entangled in unhealthy rivalry, envy and jealousy when all one needed was to be connected to God. The confidence that comes from knowing who you are is all one needs to be relevant. The promise of being the head made to us by God cannot be realized in this very unhealthy way which instead leaves one empty and with zero self-esteem, feeling much less than God intended and unwittingly making their bodies uncomfortable for the Holy Spirit so that many have, by so doing, pushed Him out and opened themselves up to an evil spirit like Saul did.

Galatians 5: 19-21 “When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.”

The sad thing is the entire body of Christ suffers at the end of the day. In trying to do what someone else does, a gap is created because you are then unable to give your own role all it requires and you also make it harder for the person in the role you desire to function effectively in their God given role. The eye and the nose for example are two different things fulfilling their purpose. If for example the nose begins to feel like it would only be relevant if it was both eye and nose, not only would it truly begin to feel less relevant, it would struggle to make the eye look less useful, unwittingly moving away from its own place and making it more difficult for the eye to function when it is only equipped to breathe. At the end of the day, the body ends up suffering with badly functioning eyes and nose all because of the insecurities of the nose. You don't fight to be special, you already are, it is God given not withstanding your position your position or office; just take on the responsibility and carry yourself well.

1 Peter 2: 9 “But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.”

Let me add that this fight is more disgusting when it is for someone’s attention. You want to be so relevant in one person's life that you don’t want them to have any other close friends. It is evil and wicked. Different people have roles in any one person’s life at any point in time. No one person can be all things to one person to the exclusion of all others. God made some eyes, others nose and so on, in every life. If you feel like that, then you have a problem which you do well to deal. It is the height of selfishness. The truth is you are only thinking of yourself, how you feel and what you want at that point and when you are tired, you move on not caring the mess you created in their lives. Meanwhile, this very shameful attitude does not take cognizance of how young or old the person you are competing against is; all that is on your mind, is that the person be pushed out. Be careful, because you could end up killing someone. Murdering someone with your mouth is culpable. 

Many people argue that it isn't their fault. They insist that they are used to getting a lot of attention because they were spoilt with attention as children. Please get over it, not everyone in the world is your parent so they are unable to give you the kind of attention your parents gave you. Others excuse themselves by arguing that they did not get enough attention growing up, again I say please get over it you are now grown and we are all showered with excessive attention by our God who loves us so much, He is all over us in love and if you walk with Him, you will always be relevant. He made you with a purpose and no one else could fulfill that purpose like you and this even with regard to your role in the lives of individuals. In sticking to your role, you allow others do their own thing more easily making the world a better place. Whether or not you know it, you are a blessing who is blessed.

Watch Out Believers! Gossipers and Liars Belong In Hell

Revelation 21: 8 “But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars—their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

It is amazing how believers today say anything notwithstanding the consequences to them and others. The sad thing is that most times we are gossiping about people we have no business talking about and when we run out of gist we are compelled to make up additional stories, which are all lies, just so that we can keep our audience and remain the center of attraction. Unfortunately, despite all that the bible says about lying and gossiping, these evil have become normal amongst us and are eating into the fiber of our souls. Not only are they destroying our unity thereby reducing the strength of the church, they also destroy lives – the lives of both gossiper and listener. Every person who gossips consistently, must be a liar because the desire to remain relevant and command attention will drive them to forge or embellish stories when they run out. Very often, such people suffer from deep insecurities which they refuse to deal with but either choose to blame others or use them as their excuses; they don’t realize that they unwittingly make satan their fathers re-charting the course of their lives. No one who honestly professes Christ can continue in these things. They destroy our relationship with God. 

John 8: 43- 45 "Why can’t you understand what I am saying? It’s because you can’t even hear me! For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. So when I tell the truth, you just naturally don’t believe me!"

These people who gossip and unwittingly ruin the lives of their listeners are idle. In their free time, which is almost all the time, they choose to wreck the lives of those who listen to them. The truth is gossip never ruins the life of the person being talked about, except if the person also meddles, God has a way of favoring the person that is being talked about. He ensures that they ultimately enjoy benefits from the gossip. However interesting, engaging or sweet gossip may seem, it is a destroyer to both the gossipers and listeners. They incur God’s wrath, suffer loss of time and the listener makes his/her mind a garbage can for the gossiper’s trash. No life can be improved like that. Indeed, these things make it difficult for us to tap into the benefits due to the heirs of salvation. You will only suffer loss.

Proverbs 19: 5 "A false witness will not go unpunished, nor will a liar escape."

Proverbs 17: 4 "Wrongdoers eagerly listen to gossip; liars pay close attention to slander.”

These things do not reflect God’s nature. We can’t let our flesh take us back to a life we turned our backs on and where empowered to resist when we received salvation. They are poison which must be flushed if found in our system. They belittle the gossipers who don’t realize that they make other people, including their audience, see them less than God made them. They have even given you a name but you don’t and it’s not a good one. Whilst you are deceived into thinking you are relevant because people come to you for information on everyone else, the bible says you are “forming out your own shame.” It may be fun to you but remember that you will also account for the lives of innocent people who have made bad decisions that may ruin their lives, from listening to the lies you told them about others. Be certain that though they are accountable for their lives, you will be called to question concerning too. Heaven holds you accountable also. Though there will always be gossipers in this world, it does not have to be you, partaker of the godly heritage

My Goodness! Your Joy Is Not Tied To Your Circumstance

You should have seen me earlier on today on the road in my little Kia car. I could hardly recognize myself. There I was dancing away with a lot of excitement to Preye's song "Bowing Down" from her Promise Keeper CD. My friend Bola who writes the salt chronicles has talked about this song severally; I now know why. I was in traffic for about 3 hours in all but guess what! I did not mind. I was not only dancing but also thinking on God's goodness as I heard the lyrics and joy filled my very being. At some point, I noticed that the man in the car beside mine was starring at me and smiling; I imagine what was on his mind would be that either life is so sweet for me or something exciting just happened but none of these is my reality. The truth is, as believers, we operate at a deeper level of reality which is that God is in control and working all things out for our good.

Romans 5: 3 "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance."

One of the things I love the most about being a believer is the privilege of being able to think on a God whom one knows and is revealed only to those who are his; all of this is because of salvation. In my opinion, it is a privilege to be able to think on Him especially when He is revealed to you, because He hides Himself, one can't help but feel joy and peace despite that one's circumstance in the physical remains unchanged. Reality is that more often than not, everyone is involved in one struggle or the other; to pretend like life is only full of roses is self-deceit. Only those who can struggle against this struggle called life drawing strength from God will survive. It is best when one is a believer.

Romans 12: 12 "Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying."

I really don't know how the gospel preached more often today which says "when one comes to Christ, life is only beautiful" originated but the gospel that drew me to Christ was one that made me realize my life without Christ was empty and hopeless and salvation is my only way to live a true and fulfilled life. Also, that salvation grants access to hope which does not fail. Of course several benefits come with our salvation which include all the beautiful things we desire in life but God has His process which we must go through to enjoy them. The process which is the means, is as important as the end when one is in Christ. Indeed the means impact greatly on the end result. It determines whether or not a benefit is from God. Salvation does not upturn life but instead enables us live life at a higher level than life. So that while living life with all the struggles, our circumstance and/life is not allowed to determine who we are or how we end up.

Ephesians 2: 6 "For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus."

Romans 8: 37 "No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us."

So, though we are involved in the struggles of life, we struggle differently because our struggle is from a position of victory which is why we can rejoice whilst still struggling. Deep down in our hearts, we know that it will be over because Jesus already went ahead and paid the price paving the way for our enjoyment. So we don't give up, we can't not even afford to because I can imagine how disappointed God is when we give up with all the saints cheering us on. No wonder God requires us to be strong. Indeed, no matter how weak one was, if you must come through at the other end (the victory end) you would have to become strong. It is inside everyone to be strong because God, The Lion Of The Tribe Of Judah made us in His image and anyone who does not draw on that nature will fail. Even the challenges that face true believer who desire to remain true to God in our day, requires one to be strong.

Easter - That Season That Reminds Us What Love Is

Happy Easter everyone! Thank God for this season when we commemorate the awesome love of a God whom words cannot describe and His Son - Jesus Christ. This is that season when we celebrate the reason for our salvation and the basis of our precious faith. We can not ever give God and/or Jesus enough in return for all they gave for the abundant life that salvation facilitates. The love that made God allow His only begotten son endure such pain and shame just for man is inexplicable. That Jesus would also accept to go through so much for love cannot be explained but that is why we are who we are today - children of God and citizens along with all God's holy people and members of His family.

1 John 3: 16 "We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters."

Obviously, being mere mortals, we have learnt to celebrate the love of God for us and enjoy the full benefits of that love. It is innate nature of man to enjoy love, we love to feel loved. Many would even argue that there is nothing more wonderful than to feel loved. Sadly, the selfish nature of man only allows for man to think on how much he wants to be loved and feel loved never thinking that everyone and above all, God, desires to be loved. Whilst man is selfish and very much so, that is not the nature of God. Selfishness is one of those things that became a part of man by reason of the fall of man. It is a part of what is referred to as "the Adamic nature." God's nature which we have and should express as believers is love so that in desiring to be loved we are able to love. It is intrinsic in us to give and upon which we receive because it is the rule of God that in giving one receives so that as we give love, we receive love in return. Interestingly, giving others of the rich deposit of love in us is never a chore but a pleasurable and easy act because in loving God in return for Him loving us, one is inclined to love all that He loves and God loves man even the unsaved man. God loves Him so much, He longs for His salvation. In this season, the question to us believers is how much do we love God in return for Him loving us? Do we love Him enough to love who He loves and in the way He loves. Do we love Him enough to yield to Him such that people can feel His love flowing through us?

1 John 3: 18 - 20 "Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything."

John 2: 23 - 25 "Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him. But Jesus didn’t trust them, because he knew all about people. No one needed to tell him about human nature, for he knew what was in each person’s heart."

This love is not fake but real and sincere. This is the love that God is; which the unsaved man is incapable of giving and has difficulties understanding but is intrinsic in the believer. It goes beyond just visible acts; it flows from deep within. Indeed, God knows that man is capable of pretending to love when they indeed hate the person so He says one can give one's body to be burned and yet not love. Man's capacity to pretend is immeasurable. Man is spirit, should and body so that the love that believers have flows from our spirit encompasses our soul and is expressed by our body. It does not emanate from the body or soul. Being wise is to relate with everyone in love whilst ensuring that one allows the Holy Spirit reveal to them the thoughts of the hearts of men just like He did to Jesus hence the bible says Jesus knew what was in the hearts of men. It is indeed expedient that one understands the nature of man, for this is wisdom, yet we must deal in love. To prefer to remain in ignorant bliss is stupidity and not even naivety as some would conveniently prefer to say it is and then argue that God is fighting for them which is indeed correct. However, you will move faster in life, if you act with wisdom like Jesus did because you fight less battles making it tougher for the devil to slow you down. You don't know how many years you have left on earth so why engage in battles that wisdom can help you sidestep? 

Jeremiah 17: 9 “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?"

James 3: 14-16 "But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind."

That man is desperately evil is not strange. It is a desperately evil believer that is a misnomer, although it appears normal in our present day. Selfishness, no matter how subtle, and worldly wisdom have the capacity to make a believer evil and denomic. Unfortunately, the devil has sold us many lies one of which is making these evil things appear so normal these days that even believers advocate for everyone to have a certain level of selfishness claiming that selflessness is stupidity and allows people take advantage of you which said fact I do not dispute. However, One does not need to be selfish to be wise, all one needs to survive is the true wisdom that is from above. That wisdom is not selfish. The Holy Spirit is our ever present guide but we must hear Him and act when we are required to. To modify His instruction will lead to several failures which will slow us down and if we do so often enough, it may lead to His departure because then you claim to be wiser than He is and don't need Him anymore. This is that season when as believers, we may need to take another look at our loving? God is love and He who abides in Him abides in love and God in Him. Is He in you? Remember you can only truly love people to the extent that you love God and if you love God, you will obey Him. Do you?