Your 2011 Decisions: Invite Jesus to the Table!

I heard an amazing story today that reconfirmed to me again the reality of Christ and His power and ability to do what He has said He will do. The lady I spoke to said to me that in a lot of ways she was getting confused about the reality of Christ what with all of the terrible stories we hear concerning Christians; the testimonies that leave you confused as to the accuracy of our faith. Then she took ill and God in His goodness shows up in the midst of this real bad situation and assures her of the reality of His existence. As she shared her experience with me, I was again reassured of the reality of His existence and my faith in Him was renewed and strengthened.

It made me wonder as to why we celebrate the birth of Christ just before the end of the year. I don’t think it is a coincidence. It is traditional at this time to think through what happened the entire year and then make new decisions that will guide us through the next year. For me it does not matter whether or not Christ was born on this day but the truth is, as the year comes to an end, we enter into a period of deep thoughts and sober reflection. It is a good time to be reminded of Christ. It kind of gives some form of hope for the future inspite of whatever happened in the past year and guides us as we make these new decisions. The truth is that some of these decisions will die immediately we enter into the New Year, some will never see the light of day and some will become a part of our lives forever.

As we make these decisions, I really want to encourage us to invite Jesus to be a part of this decision making. We must realize that Jesus is real and He wants to help us succeed. His plan is not just to put ideas in us but also to empower us and walk with us to ensure that we succeed. I can’t promise you that you will always like the decisions you end up with if you invite Him to be a part of your decision making process but I can assure you that you will make decisions that will take you forward in life. As they say “the best things in life often come in wrong packages” just like some of these decisions are seemingly “wrong packaging”.

The process of inviting Him to be a part of the decision making process is making one’s mind open to His ideas and putting all the thoughts and decisions against the word of God thereby ensuring that they are not contrary to the word. That is the first way to ensuring that we succeed because the Bible says in

Isaiah 14: 24 NLT “The Lord of Heaven’s Armies has sworn this oath: it will all happen as I have planned. It will all be as I have decided.”

After having, made the decisions, we need to believe that they will be established even as we walk toward having them established with the Holy Spirit as our helper. We need to have faith in God and in His power and ability to bring to pass that which He has said He will do. I don’t know about you but that is where my own challenge begins. One of the things we need to resolve to do is to do whatever it takes to have faith that transforms the word of God into reality in our lives. I trust God to be helper even to achieve that.

Happy New Year in advance!

It's Christmas! Be Joyful! Regardless.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! MERRY CHRISTMAS! MERRY CHRISTMAS! MERRY CHRISTMAS

I hope you are excited in this season. I don’t mean a peripheral excitement but one that goes deep down. I hope the cause of your excitement is the presence of that river that flows from deep down in your soul. Joy that is born of the fact that Jesus was born; you encountered Him and have revelation knowledge of who He is. This is joy. The bible says it is indescribable. This is not about mere happiness neither is it about mere excitement

1 Peter 1: 8B NKJ - “…..yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory”

According to the dictionary, joy amongst several other things means “to delight in something”. Thank God our delighting is not just in things but is principally in a being that never fails, never changes and lives forever. The one we delight in is the son of God and He is Himself, God. The one in whom all power resides and has come that we may always be joyous.

I don’t know what experiences you may be going through right now; experiences that may be challenging you and trying to steal your joy. I want to encourage you to hold on because there is a morning coming shortly and it shall come with an abundance of Joy with which you will draw out of the wells of salvation.

Isaiah 12: 3 NKJ – “therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation”

So many things happen that confirm over and over again that the devil is after our joy. More often than not, the first thing that shows that a man is under the attack of the devil is that He loses His joy. Whilst Jesus came that we may have joy and fullness thereof the devil comes to steal, kill and destroy. One thing he tries hard to steal is our joy.

John 10: 10 NKJ – “the thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly”

We must do all we can to hold unto our joy. Whatever it takes to ensure that there is joy flowing from inside us we need to do it. Again God has ensured that we do not have to pay a price for this joy. It comes in the anointing. The anointing is able to replace our mourning with oil of joy. The anointing is the oil of joy. It literarily translates us from sorrow to joy even before we see a physical change. Please look every painful experience you may be going through in the face and count them all joy even now.

The Wonder & Power of Our Christ-Identity

I have thought about this Jesus a number of times and I am still thinking about Him today especially at this time when the whole world celebrates His birth yet I still do not understand or know all there is to know about Him. Every time I think about Him deeply, I discover something new about the son of God.

It is amazing how a man born in a manger can become the greatest man of all times. In every age, He is the most popular of all men. Whether out of hate, love or controversy, Jesus is still the most talked about personality in every age and the word concerning Him does not change. It is always the same. In every age, it is a present truth no matter how dark that age may be.

2 Peter 1: 12 NASV “therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present”

For me, one of the most significant things about this Jesus is the fact that He is God and yet man. This is truth that a lot of people find impossible to comprehend and is the cause of a lot of argument today. Well, He died and rose again three days after His death. People testified that they saw Him after His resurrection. Also, God confirmed from the heavens during His lifetime that Jesus is His only begotten son and He said it loud enough for all that where gathered to hear. Today anyone who so desires still hears the voice of God telling him/her that Jesus is His only begotten son who died for our sins and rose from the dead.

The reality of the fact that Jesus is both man and God is fully expressed in the fact that as soon as we get saved, we become gods though we are still men. That seemingly simple act of sincerely inviting Jesus into your life as personal Lord and Saviour apparently creates a lot of activity in heaven. A total remaking that transforms the person from being mere man to god/man. As soon as a man takes this all very important step, heaven goes to work to give life to the spirit of the man by sending the Holy Ghost (quickening Spirit) into the man so that the man is then sealed/ marked with the Holy Spirit making Him God’s exclusive property. In that process, the man’s soul and body are also empowered to follow the leading of the Spirit of God. So the same Spirit that dwells in both God and Christ now dwells in you and me. No wonder Jesus says greater works shall we do if we believe.

Ephesians 1: 13 NASV “In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation – having also believed you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise.”

Jesus in becoming who He is today has shown me that not even my place of birth can determine what I become in life. When you understand this, going through all that trouble to give birth to your children in the western world just so that they can carry foreign passports becomes irrelevant. There is only one passport necessary to put one’s mark on the sands of time and that is the Holy Ghost who is the passport that every citizen of the kingdom carries.

We are gods indeed and I have elected not to die as mere mortal what about you?

Are YOU Committed? Even When It Hurts?

I guess as they say, we are truly in ‘instant’ times. There is instant coffee, instant food, instant marriage in Las Vegas; indeed you can almost get anything you want instantly. The truth however, is that with God we must learn patience. He very often follows processes and if the process takes a while, he may not change it for you and me.  The thing is it really is His prerogative whether or not to do it instantly. Indeed, the bible says that those that those that trust in Him shall not be hasty. The reason we trust God to do what He says He will do is because He is committed to ensuring that His word comes to pass.  

Jeremiah 1: 12b AMP – “…for I am alert and active, watching over my word to perform it’

Commitment is in God’s nature and so, it is intrinsic in our nature. The seed of commitment is sown in us as the spirit of God comes to indwell us. The amazing thing is the ‘seeming scarcity’ of that same said commitment in our lives today particularly because we ought to be like our God. Even more amazing is the fact that we make a joke of commitment and think it is fashionable not to be committed to anything.

Amongst other things, the Webster’s dictionary says commitment includes ‘an agreement or pledge to do something in the future’. It also states that ‘it is the state of being obligated’. Commitment speaks of a sense of responsibility. It takes it seriously when one commits to doing something and is unable to do it. It takes it seriously enough to ensure that the people that need to be notified are notified so that they can make adequate arrangements to cover what would have been a lapse. The fact that God takes commitment seriously is revealed in Psalm 15 which talks about the requirement for persons who can enter and remain in the presence of God. One of the requirements is as stated below.

Psalm 15: 4b NLT says “… and keep their promises even when it hurts”

Jesus, the son of God came down to earth and said over and over again that He was committed to doing only the will of God. He did it to the end and was given a name above all other names. Despite the pain and shame he suffered, He was obligated and He never forgot that. If He was irresponsible like we often are, He would have dumped it when it became tough and we would have been in trouble today because all the good intentions in the world would not have saved our souls. It took Him seeing His responsibility through to the end.

As we often say, we are mere men and so are allowed to fail which is correct, but to treat with carelessness our commitments whether to God or man is unacceptable. The lack of commitment is so bad now that it is beginning to ruin the basic family units and the society is slowly being destroyed. What is worse is that some people avoid commitment because they do not want to be obligated to do anything. How very sad. God expects more from us and He has given us a good example in Christ Jesus.

Being Still in God's Love.

I tell you the truth, being a child of God does not always seem like the easiest or sweetest thing but in reality it is. The love of God for us is so strong that it makes life so much easier and so much sweeter. That love fills us with a joy that is indescribable despite whatever we may be going through. It is love that fills one from deep within and makes you walk on high places and guess what! As we yield to Him, He actually lives through us.

Having said so much, I must admit that God also allows us into very difficult situations. In those situations, one just does not see a way out or an end in sight. It feels like God is really far but there is a knowing inside you that He loves you. Though these situations always eventually bring us to a better place, if we allow God bring us through them, they are tough- period! The strangest thing is when in such difficult situations, one hears the voice of God declaring the scripture in Psalm 46: 10NLT – “Be still, and know that I am God!”

I don’t know about you but for me, it is always very tough when God says to be still at times like that especially when everyone is looking and wandering why you don’t appear to be doing anything about the situation and there are several different things you could do to make it better. The truth is God is working out something at such times; something you and I can not work out. The act of stillness in itself, though tough, improves character and ultimately ensures that one comes into the ‘wealthy place or place of great abundance’ that is waiting.

Psalm 66: 10-12NIV – “for you, o God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.

Now the strange thing about God is that if we need to be still and we are not being still, He makes the situation even tougher and that is because of His love for us. He can make it impossible to move even if you wanted to. One is so constrained that it is literally like being in a prison. How can one explain Him leaving Joseph in prison for so long that other people came, met him in there and also left Him there all because He was going to a place of abundance. The interesting thing is that Joseph did not even commit the offence for which he was being held and God knew. At such times, the thing to do is to learn to make the most of where you “are at” because God will not do it sooner than it should be done.

Isaiah 28: 16B KJV – “…a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.”

It is amazing how God sometimes wants us to be totally inactive even in a world that is consistently in motion. The sun, moon, even the earth are all moving but God says ‘be still’. I have noticed that God constrains us to increase us. He soothes the pain while He is at work putting things together and also preparing us to enjoy the fullness of the coming abundance. He also reveals Himself to us at such times, in a new and deeper way. In truth, it is not as bad as it feels.

The Hypocrisy MUST Stop!

I am a true Nigerian. Born in Nigeria to fully Nigerian parents, schooled and lived all of my life in Nigeria. Even when I am holidaying outside of Nigeria, I am in a hurry to return home. I also got saved in Nigerian and I am a part of the church of Christ in Nigeria. I don’t now about your country but one of the biggest problems of the church in Nigeria is hypocrisy.

Hypocrisy, according to my Webster’s dictionary is “a feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not; the false assumption of an appearance of virtue or religion”. Anyone who acts in any manner that can be described with the sentences immediately above is a hypocrite.

When one pretends to be what one isn’t, the person is not real and in my country we say the person is “fake”. Having this “fake” people in the church is a problem to the church as an institution and to the body of Christ. They are so “fake” that even when they come before God in prayer they are not sincere.

When we get born again, God accepts us just as we are. He does not need us to be wonderful for Him to come into us. When He saves our souls and as we yield to Him, He begins to do a work of transformation in our lives. He did not save us because we are good people but because we can’t be good without Him. He wants us to be honest at each point about our state. God already knew Adam’s state when he called out to him in the Garden of Eden

Genesis 3: 8b NLT – “…So they hid from the Lord God amongst the trees. Then the Lord God called to the man, where are you?”

God can see all things so he knew that they had hidden from Him and also knew where they were but He still asked them where they were and hoped that they would tell the truth which they did.

God did not bring us into the church to compare ourselves with ourselves so that we do not become envious of one another. Neither did he save our souls for us to pretend to be what we are not. We do not need to obtain by false pretences what God is able to give us. Whatever one gets by pretending to be something other than what they are was stolen because it was obtained by falsehood (whether it is a position of leadership, money, spouse etc).

Hypocrites have lost sight of God and are indeed very short sighted. They cannot see beyond what they want to achieve; all their ambition is very selfish and they are selfish. They are definitely menpleasers who do not care about the destructive power of their acts of hypocrisy..

Gal 1:10B NLT – “if pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant”

Hypocrites please men so as to achieve their own purpose. No one can be a hypocrite and yet please God. I am convinced that hypocrisy is orchestrated by a host of demons. We must not allow them continue to rule our lives and conversely, the church. It is time to love God sincerely and destroy this bane of the church.

Christian Contentment

One word I consider very important for us as Christians, in the times that we live in today; and which we hardly remember is “contentment”. We just seem to have an insatiable appetite for everything – clothes, money, food; it is an endless list. We keep wanting more and yet we are born again Christians empowered to control ourselves by the Holy Spirit who is in us. The sad thing is the unbelievers are even more content than we are. Now people are forever in debt (buying clothes, shoes, jewellery and other things they cannot readily afford) because they need to look a particular way when they go to church. The bible says in 

1 Timothy 6:6-7 – “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain that we can carry nothing out”

I checked my Webster’s dictionary as I usually do (I wish I could learn to check the Greek and Hebrew dictionaries for some of these words instead of the English dictionary. It sounds so theological and spiritual to say the Greek and Hebrew meaning of words. Who knows, I might be able to do that one day.)  Anyway, I went to my dictionary and found that contentment is derived from the word 'content' and 'content' amongst other things means ‘to be satisfied’. It also means ‘to limit oneself in requirements, desires or action’

The word appears to have become so obsolete that it sounds so totally out of place when used in the midst of Christians. We excuse our greed, envy, discontent and covetousness with ambition, strong drive and every other seemingly nice word but the truth is more often than not the ambition is selfish and the drive is greed and an endless list of ungodly things yet we want to express the nature of God. We quote various scriptures to support all of these “fruits of the flesh” meanwhile we are just a bunch of discontent, greedy , selfish, uncaring people who are always lusting after all that is going on in another person’s life and never grateful for what God is doing in their own lives and so are very “unthankful”. We have become very selfish and uncaring; thinking of ourselves only.

The all-wise and all knowing God says it is profitable to add contentment to our godliness. God says – it is great gain. It helps one to appreciate where God took one from, where He has brought one to and gives the confident assurance that He will also take one to heights of fulfilment in His own time and way. Contentment helps us live a real and true life instead of always dreaming of how your life could have been and is not; living in the future and not enjoying the present then one day you find that your entire life is gone and you did not enjoy any of it just because you refuse to be content and enjoy life as it is whilst trusting God to take you forward.

It is time to begin to learn contentment otherwise we may soon start having born again believers who are robbers. People who lust after other people’s things so much that they steal them; is that not the basis of adultery? You want a person that belongs to another by reason of marriage. You want the person so much that you steal the person. It is lack of contentment. We must reinstate that word immediately and give it the attention required in our lives. It is time to learn again to limit oneself in desires, requirements and actions. God is looking to you and I to express His nature and the entire creation waits for us to manifest the nature of God. If you are ready, ask God for help please and I can assure you He will send help in the person of the Holy Spirit.

Are You Manifesting the 'Sonship' Of God?

Romans 8: 19 Amp– “For (even the whole) creation (all nature) waits expectantly and longs earnestly for God’s sons to be made known (waits for the revealing, the disclosing of their sonship”.

This scripture never ceases to fascinate me because you and I are the sons that the scripture is talking about and I am wondering – why is creation waiting for us to manifest sonship or could there be something we need to be and are not?

To manifest sonship is to manifest the nature of God. It is to allow the light of God shine through us. It is to be God here on earth. The manifestation of sonship must be really important to God because it is to manifest Jesus thereby destroying the works of the devil. God’s ultimate purpose in sending Jesus is that he may destroy the works of the devil.

I John 3: 8b – “but when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the son of God came to destroy the works of the devil”

Whenever the son of God is revealed, it is the light of God shining in darkness and darkness has to give way so Jesus puts an end to the works of the devil wherever He is manifest. This suggests that manifestation of sonship will definitely enthrone the will of God on earth as it is in heaven.

It is sad to note that despite the number of Christians that there are on earth, evil appears to be getting stronger. The question we need to ask ourselves is this – are we manifesting as sons of God? The bible says the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church but it appears to me that the gates of hell are prevailing. The church is barely breaking into the kingdom of evil. Instead of us pushing back the forces of darkness, they appear to be pushing the church back. Isn’t that sad?

It can’t be okay to say we are born again and not behave like we are sons. It is of utmost importance that we reveal the nature of God. The sons of God must begin to imbibe the culture that is taught in the bible and yield to the Holy Spirit to help us as we get conformed to that image. Like a preacher once said – satan is not worried about the number of people that say they are born again and even attend church regularly, he is worried about those who actually conform to and manifest the nature of God. A man that just says he is born again and yet continues in sin is a liar. According to the scripture above, he belongs to the devil.

The time has come to resist the devil and chose to manifest sonship. The time has come to be tired of living in sin though you have proclaimed publicly that you are born again. It is time to push the enemy and not let him prevail against the church. We have to manifest sonship. That is who we are and who we will ever be. We can not light a lamp and put it under the bushel. It is time for our light to begin to shine. The earth and all that is in it, is waiting for you and I to reveal the God that we carry on the inside of us.

Tough Times? In God We MUST Trust.

People! These are tough times; and it has nothing to do with whether or not one is a believer and follower of Christ. We are in trying times in the world today. Even nature itself is going through issues. There is climate change and all sorts of things going on – earthquakes, mudslides, tsunamis and several other things. It appears to me that all created things must go through challenges. 

As Christians, we often think we should not share in all the difficulties going on around us but the truth is we live in the same world and moreover, we more often than not, do exactly what the unbelievers do yet we think we should be insulated from the things that trouble them. The issues of life do not revolve around only a particular group of people. They afflict us all but the key thing is our response to the issues plus the fact that we have a God that always causes us to triumph.

2 Cor 2: 14 KJV – “Now thanks be unto God, which always always causeth us to triumph in Christ”

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

With the scriptures above at the back of one’s mind, it is easy to see the end of a bad situation through your mind’s eye. The fact that we can see the end gives us some kind of energy and will to go on. The thing I like the most about going through difficulties as a Christian is the fact that God goes through it with us. He is right there comforting and encouraging us to go on. If we only have man to depend on, a lot of people would die while going through these issues because man has the tendency always to fail but God never fails.

Also, apart from using every experience to bring us to a better place, God also uses them to make us better people. In an interesting way, the experiences increase our level of maturity and help us understand the God kind of love. What I like the most is the fact that it helps to increase our level of faith and trust in God so that with every challenge, you know that the God that brought you out of the last challenge will surely deliver you from this present one.

Romans 5: 3 NLT – We can rejoice too when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment.

I don’t now what experience, challenges or issues, you may be going through as you read, I just know that God can and desires to cause it to work for your good if you allow Him. Don’t try to work out the good yourself because the thoughts and ways of God are far from ours so you may make a big mess in trying to work out the good in your own strength just rest in Him. I am not by any means suggesting that this is easy but I know it is truth. I have been there several times and He has never failed me. PLEASE LET HIM

Romans 8: 28 NLT – “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them”

Is Your Race Still 'On Purpose'?

Acts 11: 23b AMP – “And he continuously exhorted (warned, urged, and encouraged) them all to cleave unto and remain faithful to and devoted to the Lord with (resolute and steady) purpose of heart.

As you read this article I would like to encourage you to please ask yourself a few questions. This is a good time to “ponder anew” like the hymn writer wrote. 

When you accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior, did you do so with a purpose, is that purpose still before you or have you lost sight of it in the midst of all that is fighting to catch your attention today. If you had a purpose, then it is easier to pursue it with single-mindedness.

Every time we lose sight of the purpose for which we cleave unto God, we walk disorderly. As long as we are reminded of our original purpose, our walk with God is better ordered. Purpose guides our decision-making so that we are not carried away by just any emotion or incident. God wants us to follow Him with single-mindedness – totally focused on Him.

Hebrew12: 1-2 –“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith”

All the good things God gives us are add-ons. They are meant to make this race a little easier so that we can get to the ultimate goal. They are not to take the place of God or remove our attention from God. If we allow this to happen then they become a part of the weight that we are meant to lay aside.

We cannot also allow our focus to be affected by the stories we hear of terrible things that happen in the church today. Such things as should not be mentioned amongst brethren. All the Bishops, pastors, other believers are to encourage us as we go along and not to become the focus. Not one of them is allowed to be the focus of our lives. Their responsibility is to keep pointing us to God. Whether they stand or fall is not an excuse for us to backslide because the Bible tells us that there is already a cloud of witnesses cheering us on. This cloud of witnesses is believers that have run their race and finished well and are in waiting for the great end of all things.

The times that we are in are tough and it is going to get tougher. It is time for you and me to make definite decisions concerning our walk with God. I understand that at some point in war, if a soldier dies, his colleagues can’t stop. You don’t have time immediately to cry over the person because the enemy may catch up with you. I perceive that we are in such times. We have to keep running the race: the battle for our souls is fierce.

God is Calling. Draw Near To His Love TODAY!

I hear the gentle voice of God calling me to draw closer. I believe it is time to draw nearer to God. I hear this so loud in my heart; and it really sounds very true to me. I feel so strongly about it that I thought to encourage every one of us to draw closer to Him especially at this time. God has His arms stretched out ready to embrace us but do we run into it? He wants us to run into His open arms and to hold even tighter to Him now more than ever before. As you tighten your grip on Him, He also does the same on you.

Psalm 32: 10NLT –“Many sorrows come to the wicked, but unfailing love surrounds those who trust in the Lord”.

I believe God would love to make the first move to hug us tighter but He would rather not coerce us into making the decision to love Him. After all in sending His son to die for us, He made the first move toward showing us love. How would you feel if you know that you coerced someone into loving you? It may seem okay in the beginning because you feel you won but eventually you begin to want more from that person. You want the person to love you for who you. God does not manipulate us. He lays it all out in the open and hopes that you and I will make the decision to love Him and to keep loving Him.

So now is the time to draw nearer to Him but how do I do that since He is not a physical being? We just need to try to ensure that we spend more time in His Word sincerely studying with a view to having a deeper understanding of Him. We spend more time fellowshipping with Him than with things or people that talk ‘foolish things’ more often than not. The bible says iron sharpens iron. We worship and try as much as possible to create an atmosphere around us, in our home and/or offices, which allows the Holy Spirit ‘hangout’ with us – that is an atmosphere for miracles. You can create it around you all the time.

Psalm 16: 11AMP – “you will show me the path of life; in your presence is fullness of joy, at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

All of that joy and pleasure belong to you and I. You can not enter into His presence and come out empty. Whatever you take in the spiritual will then translate to abundance in the physical. It is indeed time to draw near to Him. If you do so, rest assured He will draw near to you also. As you go through the week, please meditate on the scripture below and may it be your portion forever in Jesus name.

Psalm 34:5NLT – Those who look to Him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces.

How To Subscribe To 'The Light' - A Step By Step Guide

Dear Readers

Feedback suggests that many of you would like to know when a new blog is posted here. That's great and I truly appreciate it. This step by step guide will guide you on how to get alerts on your Yahoo pages (it should also work for those of you with Google (Gmail) accounts.

1. Make sure your Yahoo or Gmail (Google) page is open.

2. In another window, open this blog. On the top of this blog, you will see the 'Subscribe to this blog' header, click on POSTS.

3. It should automatically take you to your Yahoo or Google page where you will see that a list of the recent posts of this blog now appears. Click to have it saved on your Main page.

4. To get alerts, click on the OPTIONS button. Then click on ALERTS and then ADD AN ALERT.

5. A window will appear. You are going for Option A. Paste this URL in the window.
http://lettherebelightinourlives.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

6. Choose how you want to receive the alerts. 'As they happen' or 'once a day if there are changes'. 'In your mail box' or 'via your Yahoo messenger' or via your Mobile phone.

5. Save your Alerts.

6. A page will appear to show you that you Alert has been saved. Simply select DONE!

6. Voila! The next time a new blog is posted, you will get an alert in via your chosen route!

Once again, God bless you and I look forward to hearing from you in response to all I, by the grace of God, share on this blog.

Beware! The Subtle Trap of Sychophancy!

“God please deliver me from sycophants and sycophancy”. This is a prayer that I believe we all must pray from time to time as God takes us from one level of glory to another especially in this season when the heavens are opened over our lives. Sycophancy is a killer. It destroys even the best of men. You may think you can handle it but you really can’t. It is an appearance of evil so every wise person must run from it.

A sycophant is a self seeking flatterer and as such is a terrible person to have around us. They have very selfish ambition and take advantage of the victim notwithstanding the impact on the victim. The person they flatter is more or less a victim but the truth is you and I have primary responsibility for our lives. We can refuse to be victims of sycophancy. We must determine who is around us often and who we want to listen to. The Bible says we must take heed what we hear and guard our hearts with all diligence.

The story is told, in Acts of Apostles, of a king who was smitten by an angel as a result of which he was consumed by worms and he died. What a terrible death. The angel smote him because he accepted the worship of some sycophants. The sycophants wanted to make him happy because they had heard he was unhappy with them and were dependent on him for food. So they came to him on this day with an agenda. As soon as he completed his speech to them the bible says in Acts 12: 22 NLT-“The people gave him a great ovation, shouting, “It’s the voice of a god, not of a man!”

He was so pleased. He accepted the worship and did not give glory to God. Please note that they did not die for lying and/or worshipping man, because they knew it was the voice of a man that they heard, but he died for accepting the worship. Though he was happy with what they said, he did not ask for it and somewhere in his subconscious, I believe he must have known that he has was not a god but it just felt good to accept the worship.

Satan also tried it with Jesus when he said to him in Mathew 4: 6 after taking him to the highest point of the temple in Jerusalem and said to him to jump off the hill. He said since Jesus is the son of God, God would send angels to protect him. Thank God Jesus knew better than to fall for it. He rejected and countered that word from satan immediately with the word of God.

Please permit me to quote my pastor here “it is enlightened self-preservation” to keep from listening to sycophants. Unfortunately, they are many in the church today. Believe me; every time we listen to them, we are in spiritual warfare – a serious battle for our souls that we must win. Nobody needs that.

Please let us also search our hearts, “to thy self be true” – if perchance, you find that there is a trait of sycophancy in you, ask God to kill it because ultimately it would destroy you.

Don't Jeopardise Your Destiny!

Lately, my pastor has been teaching on Temptation. So, I have been thinking about the subtle ways that satan tempts/lures us to destroy our destinies. Isn’t it amazing that he tempted Jesus (the son of God)? Thank God that Jesus did not rise to the bait; otherwise, I don’t know what would have happened to you and me today. Eve and subsequently, Adam fell for it and that is how man fell.

The bible says in Psalm 23 that God prepares a table before us in the presence for our enemies. The table is full of all the good things that God has promised us. So, it would be correct to suggest that a man’s destiny is not hidden from the devil who is our principal enemy. The strategies and timing to take from the table however may remain hidden from him and that is his dilemma.

The devil then goes to work making every effort to prevent us from getting to the table which translates to cutting short our destinies. The most commonly used technique of the devil is deception. It is so subtle sometimes that we miss it. He makes us think that He can help us achieve our already God given purpose and within a shorter span of time; also with seemingly less pain. The sad thing is that a lot of us do not even read our bibles enough to understand that what the devil is offering us is already ours by reason of our being sons of God and joint-heirs with Jesus.

In Gen 3: 4 & 5NLT - he said through the serpent to Eve “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil”

In Mathew 4: 6NLT - he said to Jesus, after showing him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory, “I will give it all to you, he said, if you will kneel down and worship me “

In I Samuel 17: 9NLT - he said through Goliath to David “choose one man to come down here and fight me! If he kills me then we will be your slaves. But if I kill him, you will be our slaves.”

In all three circumstances, he was playing games. Eve fell for his trick because she did not know that we are gods as stated in the psalms. We are also made in the image of God and have his mind so we are like Him. Jesus did not fall for the trick because He knew that as the son of God he was God’s heir to the entire world and their glory. David did not fear because he knew that the Israelites were destined to destroy and/or rule over the Philistines.

The things the devil whispers, suggests or says to you are only tempting. You can either receive or resist them. If you receive them, you may never attain to your destined heights. The bible says we should resist the devil and he will flee from us. It is with the word of God that we resist the devil. Jesus and David resisted him with the word and won.

Have you been equipped to resist him or will you allow him cut short your destiny? Do you know the mind of God for your life or will you allow yourself fall for satan’s tricks? YOU ARE DESTINED FOR GREATNESS.

Today! Let Us Praise Our Creator-God & Father!

This time I just want to praise my God. He is the Lord our God, He is our maker. The work of whose hands we are. Please praise Him with me.

Let all of creation bow before the creator of all things visible and invisible. The one with whom nothing shall be impossible. It is impossible for this God to lie. Even if He wanted to, He cannot. His word stands sure forever. The one that stands with you and you know that you not only have a defence but a strong one. He is a formidable ally. Even the devil trembles at the mention of His name.

Do you have praise for Him in your heart? Let your lips also tell of His greatness. The psalmist says from the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same, the Lord’s name shall be praised. Let blessings, honour, glory and praise be given unto Him forever and ever. Let us exalt Him who sits upon the throne forever.

He is an awesome God but when do you praise Him? In fellowship with other Christians – that is not good enough. In your personal time of worship – that is not good enough. His praise should always be on our lips. He is an awesome and terrible good. He tells the end from the beginning and was there even from the before the beginning. Let all of creation worship Him.

As you read this article, I want you to take a moment to worship Him and then write your own praise in the blog. Your praise might stir someone else’s praise for this our God. He is the great God and greatly to be praised. I bow before Him, the work of whose hands I am. The God who formed me, breathe into me the breath of life and holds my entire being by the word of His power. It is His breath that gives me life; His mercy has brought me this far. Without Him I am nothing.

The God that stepped into my life and everything turned around for good. You took me from nowhere and brought me to where I am today and guess what! I am confident that you are taking me higher. The strength of my life, my glory and the lifter up of my head. This is your praise Oh God. This is your praise from me - the work of your hands.

Please come and praise this God with me. I understand lots of people have been unable to post their comments in the past two weeks. Please bear with us and just try again and again until you are able to do so. Your praise might inspire another person’s praise. It is our turn to forget everything else and praise our God.

PLEASE PRAISE YOUR WAY INTO THE FULLNESS OF YOUR BLESSINGS. PRAISE YOUR WAY INTO FULLNESS OF LIFE. LET ALL THAT HAS BREATH PRAISE THE LORD.

Come And Reason DEEPLY With Me Please!

People, do you hear and see the things happening amongst brethren? Do you know the extent to which sexual sins have settled in our lives? Interestingly, it is with no sense of remorse. Of course sin is an ugly word now. Nothing is sinful depending on how you look at it so talk of repentance is almost becoming extinct. Note; this is all happening in the church oh!

How we have perfected very crafty means through which we extort money and gifts from the brethren. We take advantage of fellow Christians who just want to help us. There is every evil work in our midst today. The sad and very uncaring ways that we deal with the challenges people go through. We tell men lies even in counsel knowing that the lies will destroy their souls and maybe ruin their lives forever. Have you noticed that the word ‘moderation’ has gone to the winds?

As for love amongst us, it is so dead that I’m wondering what Christ actually meant when he spoke of love. It’s all about backbiting and pulling one another down. Paul would probably be speechless if he was in today’s world. We lie so much that we live a lie. We are in competition comparing ourselves with ourselves instead of checking ourselves with the word of God. According to the bible, we are not wise

2cor 10: 12NLT – ‘oh, don’t worry; we won’t dare say that we are wonderful as these other men who tell you how important they are! But they are only comparing themselves with each other, using themselves as the standard of measurement. How ignorant!’

This cannot be the bride that Jesus hopes to come for – one so greedy and in garments so stained? It is time to reason together. There must be something we can do because we definitely have a problem.

Do you know that it is our trust in Him that makes us hold on until he perfects all that concerns us and makes us do all we can to pay all the monies we owe instead of living the life that we can’t afford on other people’s money? Do you know the pain the person may be enduring because of the debt you owe? My heart bleeds for us Christians. Are we followers of Christ or of self? Is our life giving God pleasure or pain? Does our life cause men to give God glory?

I recognize that we are not perfect but we are called to holiness just like God is holy. We are called to lives that give Him pleasure. What is the point attending church daily, singing in the choir or being a minister/worker etc when your life causes Him pain? What is the point locking yourself up in your room praying for days and God makes a way for you to make just a little money and instead of paying your debts that shame may be removed from God’s name, you start living a frivolous life again?

I tell you judgment is starting in the house of God. It is time to make your personal decision. Whatever decision you make will be tested but rejoice Jesus has already conquered the world, sin and death.

So WHO is Your First Love? Your God or Your Church?

Please bear with me as I share my confusion. What is happening? I know church is a divine institution with Christ as its head and we are the body. So, I am definitely a church going Christian but for crying out loud - we are called to a relationship with God and not with the church. Why are we going about establishing friendships with the church of God instead? Friendship with the church is at best, friendship with self and can only breed selfishness.

Like the Israelites when Moses took too long in coming down from meeting God on the mountain, we have set up different gods for ourselves since Christ is taking too long to return. Gold with which God blessed the people became the calf which they worshipped just like the church which God instituted for a blessing has, for various selfish reasons, become our ‘golden calf’.

I worship at MercyPlace Parish of RCCG, Lagos, Nigeria. So, I am planted in a church. More often than not, I look forward to going to church with a lot of enthusiasm. The mercy of God is abundant toward us in the church. I love the church and the congregation though I know some people must be learning to love me. I am not always the best of people you know but I am working at it and I can assure you that I’m getting better everyday. However, what is most important to me is my relationship with God.

Colossians 1: 20-21 NLT- ‘and through Him God reconciled everything to Himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and earth by means of Christ blood on the cross. This includes you who were once far away from God. You were His enemies, separated from Him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now He has reconciled you to Himself through the death of Christ in His physical body. As a result, He has brought you into His presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before Him without a single fault.’

God sent Jesus to die for our sins that we may be reconciled to Him and not to the church. In saving our souls, He not only reconciles us to Himself but also grants us access to His very presence and person. True love for and a desire to fellowship with other Christians is derived from a relationship with Him. The stronger our love for Him, the more we love to fellowship. The wonderful thing is that as we gather unto Him, He is there in our midst. So that when you can’t reach Him on your own, the fire that comes from fellowshipping helps to rekindle your own fire and then your relationship comes alive again.

Our relationship is with the God of the church, Christ the head of the church but is Christ still our focus or has church unknowingly become the God of our lives? Please take a deep breathe and be sincere as you answer these questions. Who is your relationship with - Is it the God of the church or the church of God? When you have a need, to whom do you cry out – the pastor, other Christians, the institution itself or the God that is able to through any medium he chooses, meet your need. As pastors, are we like Aaron helping to build the golden calf instead of pointing the people to God?

It is time to reassess our relationship with God and make required corrections where necessary. There is only one God and we are to love Him with all our being and all that we have and will ever be or have. Please share your thoughts in the blog by clicking comments under this article.

You MUST Spend Time With Your Father. It's Called Praying.

“I don’t know if this ever happened to you because it happens to me from time to time. I woke up this morning, jumped into the bathroom, barely had time to get dressed and rushed out of my house. I had like a thousand and one things to do. Despite all the hurry, I am still way behind my schedule yet I already skipped some very important things like the time I spend with God.

At times like this, I say to myself that the time with God will then be at night just before my normal time for intercession. More often than not, it doesn’t happen. By the time I am done with all the things I have to do, it’s my standard time for intercession.

How do you cope with this in your daily life? Do you just give up? Or do you manage to rush through that time with God religiously? Are you one of those that have your quiet time in the car whilst driving to the office? How do you manage the children so as to find some time for just you and God?

I really don’t have a formula but I know for certain that we must strive to create time for God daily. Time spent alone with God is a must for every believer who wants to build on their personal relationship with God and conversely, their faith. Though God does not kill people for not spending time with Him, our personal relationship with Him slowly dies if we don’t and eventually our faith dies also. How can we have a father so loving and we never set aside time to be with Him?

Amos 5: 6 KJV – ‘Seek the Lord and you shall live’

Psalm 69: 32B KJV – ‘and your heart shall live that seek the Lord

It’s more than just praying. It is a time to study His word, praise, worship Him and also listen out for what He may want to say. It is indeed the time when we behold His glory which allows us the opportunity to be like Him. Do you know that if you spend time alone with God, in that time God can also correct you so that you may not need a difficult experience to be transformed?

What time in the day should I seek my God - morning, afternoon or night? The entire day belongs to God and I believe that anytime we seek Him we will find Him. However, I suggest we spend time with God in the morning. In a way, we feel better prepared to face the day; empowered afresh. Also, coming from the presence of God, one starts the day with renewed joy which is found in the presence of the father. The psalmist also suggested severally that we seek Him in the morning

We have to be deliberate about setting time aside for God. If we hope to find time for Him after we have done ‘’all we should do for the day’, we will never have time leftover to give him. Guess what! Even if you sacrifice that time for other things, there is still not enough time to do everything you intended to do anyway so please give yourself that treat daily. It is your decision. Will you do it?

Godly Royalty Demands HOLINESS.

When we give our lives to Christ, as children, we need to learn the way of the Godly royals so that as we grow, we conduct ourselves appropriately. Even earthly royals, have to be groomed from childhood so that by the time they are grown, they are very comfortable with the lifestyle and conduct of royals.


When we believe and accept Christ into our lives we are immediately empowered to become true sons of God. We receive the spirit that enables us become sons of God (the Spirit of adoption and of grace – the Holy Ghost). He is the seal of son-ship; evidence of royalty.

John 1: 12NLT ‘But to all who believed Him and accepted Him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn-not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God’.


Our DNA becomes the God DNA so that we are true royals just like being born into earthly royal families. The grooming then begins. For us, the groomer or teacher is the Holy Spirit and the rules are in the Bible. It is only as we do what He tells us to do thereby manifesting the royal nature that we are true royals. Until then, though the seed is in us and blue blood runs in our veins, we act as commoners so we are commoners because as a man thinks in His heart so is he. Who we are is judged by our actions.

Romans 8: 12&14-‘Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do...For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.’


If we submit to the grooming, we will be holy. Godly royals must be holy. Holiness is the nature of God and the nature of the kingdom. It is the nature of the Holy Spirit. We must stop thinking of holiness as one tedious, boring, stiff way of life. It really isn’t. It is being like God. Doing what God would have done in every situation.

1Peter 1: 14 – 15 NLT - So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.’


God wants us to enjoy our lives though within certain predefined limits. Those limits don’t make life tedious except you make them so. Satan has sold us a lie about holiness. Don’t buy it anymore.

John 10: 10 NLT ‘…my purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.’


Reality is that sometimes we do wrong but there is always room to correct oneself as soon as we find that we have done wrong and guess what! You will know immediately because that conduct will make you uncomfortable since the groomer will let you know instantly except of course if you have silenced Him by consistently doing your will.

Me? Royalty? Yes! Absolutely!

Last week, we agreed that we are ‘too much’. God has done and put too much in us; He has gone to too much trouble to ensure that we know who we are. It’s so amazing and I definitely like the way I am feeling with this fresh revelation of how valuable I am. I want you to think about it deeply yourself. Don’t just accept it. Please think on it, meditate on it and you will see the difference that it makes to your mind and conversely, your person. I can’t impose that view on you but I can provoke you to seek understanding that you may find your worth in Christ again.


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


The Bible calls us royalty. We are no longer the ordinary people that we were but do we really know what royalty is about? It has responsibilities and for those who were not born into it, we have a lot of learning to do. I have found over the years from observing people who got married into royalty that anyone who did not alter their own attitude to life, had issues with living in those families. Indeed, a number of royal marriages broke down for those reasons. A number of those that have not broken down have one spouse (or both spouses) usually the one that married into royalty, living a miserable life - just doing their best to endure the so called ‘royal life’. The same way some of us are enduring our lives in Christ. Interestingly, Christ royalty comes with fullness of joy. God brings us from nothingness into His family that we may have joy and that our joy may be full. The Bible describes our previous state below


1 Peter 2: 10 NLT – ‘Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy’


If we do not change our attitude and mindset, we have challenges. What is meant to give us privileges begins to be a burden and we don’t’ enjoy the righteousness, peace and joy that is our portion in the Holy Ghost. There needs to be a change of attitude; an altering of mindset that makes righteous living fun. Otherwise, this whole newness of life becomes a real pain. Do you know that royals have challenges too? The important thing is that their challenges do not make them compromise their position. They resolve the issues in the way that only royals do. You and I need to begin to think like royalty because that is who we are.


Romans 12: 2NLT ‘Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think…’


I know an old song that says ‘I am somebody, I’ve been washed in His blood, I’ve been filled with His power, and I am a child of the glorious king’. I tell you – ‘I am who I am’. Without a doubt, I am somebody and you are privileged to know me. This is not pride, it is revelation knowledge. Of course, I am getting better everyday as I get more acquainted with the values that make me royalty but even now, I am ‘too much’ and you are also ‘too much’ if you are saved. It has nothing to do with what you have or don’t have. It’s a new birth reality.

Please post your comments to this blog if you have any.

In Christ, YOU Are 'Too Much'!

In recent times, I have been reminded of the joy that comes from living, moving and having our being in Christ. His goodness to us that is expressed in all the wonderful things He does for us, through us and in us. After much consideration, I have once again, come to the conclusion that without a doubt God is not only good but consistently good.


One thing we must bear in mind about our God is the fact that His thoughts are far from ours. So we often misunderstand and misinterpret Him. As mere mortals and in the times that we live in currently, we are not given to a lot of patience so we start making judgments before God completes whatever work He is doing. I have found that if we just hold on a little longer, we would be able to say at the end of every experience that God is good. According to the scriptures, no experience is wonderful whilst one is going through it but at the end of the day, we find that it works for our good.

Hebrews 12: 11 NLT – ‘No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening – it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way’

The first expression of God’s goodness to you and I is in the saving of our souls. I don’t understand why God would first send His son to die just for people like us. It really does not make sense to me and as far as I know we are undeserving. If you think otherwise, please share your thoughts in the blog. One thing I know though is that God is wisdom so there must be something about you and I that make us worth dying for. Though I don’t know what it is, it makes me feel very special and valuable. Then the abundance of gifts He gives makes me feel even more special though more often than not, I dislike His preferred means of delivery.
Isn’t it amazing that God has chosen to dwell in you? Please let us think seriously about what happens when we get born again. The bible tells us that the father, son and the Holy Ghost come to indwell us. Please note that they do not indwell everyone. They only indwell those whom they have chosen to indwell and YOU ARE CHOSEN.

Colossians 2: 9 – 10 NLT – ‘For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. So you are also complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.’


This is not something we can pay for. The giver already paid for all those that He wants to give this gift to. Worse still, we don’t even earn it. When I really think about it, I must be very special to be chosen for this awesome gift. There is definitely something about me that makes me very special.

This is truth that no one can change. You and I are ‘too much’ otherwise God will not waste His time with us. We must not let any man tell us otherwise. When we know that we know who we truly are, everything changes. We become very confident and people wonder if we are okay. We are so confident that it may be considered arrogance but it isn’t. It comes as a result of the knowledge of your price and how valuable you are. You are priceless.

Nobody and nothing can put a price to you and I. God already put a price that nobody else can pay – the blood of Jesus. Nobody else can pay anything greater than that so they can not buy us except we lower our price/self-worth. We must not reduce or be unmindful of our self worth; any of the two provides satan the opportunity to buy us over. He presents options that look good just because we already reduced our self worth. You are ‘too much’ already.

'Dying' Daily To Live More Abundantly

I don’t have a biological father anymore. He went on to glory a few years ago. I thank God though for my heavenly father who fills the role of my biological father very well; giving me good and perfect gifts often. So, I think about Him and His role in my life a whole lot.


I think about the love we share, the pain, the joy, the experiences etc and I just love Him more but sometimes I also wonder – Doesn’t He ask for too much? Sometimes it is so bad that I think – does He want to kill me? I have found that the answer is yes, He does. He wants me 'dead' though living. Just like Jesus (God’s ultimate sacrifice) you & I have been called primarily to be a sacrifice to God – living sacrifice.

Romans 12: 1 NLT says ‘And so dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and Holy Sacrifice – the kind He will find acceptable’.


Sacrifices usually die either physically or to themselves depending on what
personality or cause they have been sacrificed to. God demands that we die.

Mathew 10: 39 NLT says ‘if you cling to your life, you will lose; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it’.


In dying (being sacrificed), we give up our own lives that we may receive the true life – Jesus, the way the truth and the life. The manifestation in the physical of this lose of life can be anything from loss of friends, money, material possessions, position and/or social status. God is in the business of making a demand for the very core of our lives that He may exchange it for better. He is God that does not withhold any good thing from those that give Him their lives so that the pain that follows dying to Him last only for a short while.


Since the flesh is so strong, we have the tendency to take back our lives even after exchanging it: so God says we must take up our cross daily which implies that we must die daily because whenever we carry the cross, we get to Calvary (the place of death) and from there to a position in Christ Jesus. No wonder Paul says ‘I die daily’. We must die daily for God’s purpose to be achieved in and through us.


The experience that comes with being a sacrifice to God makes it very undesirable and man hates pain but loves pleasure. That is why though we all want to get to heaven, we don’t want to die. Instead of yielding to situations that God has allowed to ‘kill us’ so that we may enjoy the abundant life He alone gives, we go round them. We must be reminded that Jesus has taken the sting out of death so the pain is less to you & me. Moreover, He goes through the valley of the shadow of death with us so that we have an assurance that He will bring us out.

1 Corinthians 15: 36 NLT says ‘…when you put a seed into the ground, it doesn’t grow into a plant unless it dies first’’.


Are you a living sacrifice? Are you dead? Do you die daily? Do you feel this pain I feel from time to time? Do you run your life by your intellect, making choices and decisions that are not aligned to the will & word of God? You & I must die that we may become trees of righteousness, plantings of the Lord.

Please ponder on this and share your thoughts with us.

Don't Go Back!

I was reading through an email from a friend where she shared her thoughts. She wondered why we don’t leave all the terrible things we take to the cross there? Why do we go back, pick them and then run with them again?’ Since the bible encourages us to ponder, I do that from time to time and I want to share some of the things that came to my mind. I am hoping you will share some of your own thoughts with me.

The devil stole authority from man in the Garden of Eden. He therefore, has authority on earth and the bible also calls him the prince of the power of the air. He has a problem with the cross because that is where Christ defeated and made an open show of Him.

Colossians 2: 15NLT ‘In this way, He disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the Cross’.


Indeed if Satan had known the power that would be released in Christ dying on the cross, the bible says they would not have killed Jesus. Though Jesus is alive forever, Satan still dislikes the story of the cross because every time we honestly come to the cross, we enter into a position of victory over the entire kingdom of the devil. When we give our lives to Christ, we then sit in Christ in heavenly places. As soon as we enter into that role, we become important in the eyes of the enemy. Before then, we were his slaves under his control and therefore, nonentities; but as soon as we take our positions in Christ, we become royalty and in an opposing kingdom - a kingdom that is consistently de-populating hell. Satan is then reminded that the initial victory he had over man is slowly being eroded and made as nothing.


If the devil came straight to yank us out of the hand of Jesus, he would fail. He doesn’t have the power to achieve that. So, he sells us a lie about sin. He asks the same old question he asked in the Garden of Eden – did God really say you should not do this or that? It comes first as a thought and then if we think the thought long enough, we begin to think it may not be as bad as we think. Our mind then sells us a lie that maybe if you did it in a particular way, God will not mind etc. If we dwell on this thought long enough, it becomes okay and we begin to act it out which is what translates to taking our lives back after giving it to Christ. This is when we take back those terrible things we did that we once left at the cross.

James 1: 14 NLT ‘Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death’


Nobody sees evil and desires it. We desire and do evil because one way or the other, we convince ourselves that it is not so bad. Or we tell ourselves that we have good reasons for the sinful act. It is worse in the times that we live in currently when nothing is really bad anymore. As they say, ‘it depends on how you view it’.
Reality is that the word of God is truth and very clear also. If we put your act and or thoughts against the word of God, it will be clear to you and me when we are either going the wrong way or have done evil. This is our REALITY CHECK which we must do frequently so we don’t become pillars of salt like Lot’s wife.

Submit Your Life At The Cross and Leave It There!

This is maybe because of the program we just had in church. I have thought about the cross a lot lately. The more I think about it, the more I realize that ugly as that cross may have been, it is one of the most beautiful things that ever happened to us as Christians. That is where total deliverance happened for man. Despite the pain Jesus suffered to win the victory for us at the cross, He says we can come to that cross just as we are and He says He will receive us. He goes on to assure us that He suffered all that pain so that we can come to the cross just as we are. What manner of love is this that God would show you and I? Truly this love is amazing and can only be divine because it can only be shown by the God whose name is LOVE. No other personality can love so much and at no cost. As the hymn write says, this type of love demands ‘my soul, my life, my all’.


The amazing thing is that as we come to Him, His blood washes us from all iniquity and we are then empowered to be like Him. All God asks is that we yield ourselves to Him a living sacrifice’ holy and acceptable’. The Bible says this is our reasonable service.

Romans 12: 1 NLT – ‘I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice – the kind He will find acceptable’.


It is such a small price to pay for what we enjoy by coming to Him by reason of what He did on the cross of Calvary. The truth is that the reason He wants us to present ourselves to Him as a sacrifice is so that He can do in our lives that which is required to be done that we may enjoy benefits that can only be enjoyed by those who are truly His. Again it is not just for Himself but also for our good. If we truly understand the depth of the price that He paid just so that we can enjoy these benefits, then we would, like the hymn writer, declare ‘my richest gain I count but loss and pour contempt on all pride’. If only we could pour contempt on all of those things that mean so much to us, then we can truly yield to God so that like the potter that He is, He can bring out the best in us.


It is amazing how at the point of giving our lives to Christ, we desire to exchange the lives that we live for a better one but soon after we have had the experience and begin to enjoy some of the benefits of the cross, we begin to struggle to hold on to the life that we gave up. Isn’t there something wrong with us and all that is going on? Why bother to invite Him into your life thereby giving Him your life in exchange for the one He gives if you truly think yours is fun? You might as well keep your life and ‘the fun you have’ from being in total control. If the things we left behind begin to appeal to us once more and we begin to enjoy them, we are definitely retrogressing. At best, we will become stagnant and like Lot’s wife, a pillar of salt.


Even the world says the only constant thing is change. We must keep changing if we must lay hold on the purpose for which God laid hold on us. We have to keep being transformed until we are like Him. God is consistently trying to make us better people.

Romans 12: 2NLT – ‘Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the ways you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect’.


God is a God of purpose. Why don’t we keep allowing Him change us until the purpose for which He saved us unfolds. I think we must credit Him with enough wisdom to know what He is doing. He can never make your life worse than it was when you came to Him. Though things may be uncertain for a season, He definitely is ‘going somewhere’ and will get there if you allow Him.

There Is Power MIGHTY In The Blood!

Blood has always been something I prefer to avoid; even the blood of animals. Thank God for already killed and cleaned animals we eat. I don’t know about you but it taste just like the freshly killed ones to me maybe even better. However, as I learn more from the bible about blood it gets clearer to me the reason blood has been an issue to me.


Leviticus 17: 11 & 14a affirms that the life of every animal is in the blood. As soon as the blood of any living thing and/or being is drained from its body, it ceases to have life. Indeed, there is power in the blood of every living thing. No wonder God instructed that the blood of animals be shed for the remission of sins before Christ came.


Recently, as I tried to imagine what must have inspired the hymn ‘there is power in the blood of Jesus’ I felt like my eyes opened to deeper truths of the reality of the strength and power in the blood of Jesus and what that blood is able to do for us. I want to share some of these thoughts that have changed my prayer life yet again.


In the coming of Christ to the world, God actually came down. No wonder one of the names of Jesus is ‘Emmanuel’ which is translated ‘God with us’. The blood that flowed in Jesus is the blood of God which carries the fullness of the life of God. According to the scriptures, the blood of Jesus Christ was shed once and that is for eternity. Also, since God lives forever, the life in the blood exists forever and has the same effect forever. There was no need for any other blood to be shed.
It had to be that blood of Jesus to deliver us from the clutches of sin and our strong enemy (the devil) especially because man through Adam, had given him legitimate authority and power to operate in man and on earth; so that even the life of so many animals could not totally deliver us from his hold.


Since God will not come into the world nor would He pour out his blood to earth from heaven because He is righteous, just and not a thief, He came as man and poured out once that most powerful blood on earth thereby defeating the devil in his terrain.
The blood of Jesus poured out on the cross was one of the most powerful things that happened at Calvary. Immediately, that blood is appropriated in one’s life, everything begins to change. It grants access to the rest of the benefits that we enjoy as a result of what happened on the cross. It immediately washes one so you can move to the kingdom of light and be called by a new name. It creates a definite separation between us and evil and brings immediate, total deliverance. No demon in hell can stand against this blood. No wonder the bible says in Revelation 12: 11 that ‘they overcame him by the blood of the lamb’


We must learn to appropriate this blood in the place of prayer. When we plead the blood of Jesus in prayer, we are like lawyers making a strong case for something before a judge based on statue or case law. Our basis for some requests is the blood of Jesus so we must plead it in those instances.


Have you been chanting 'blood of Jesus' over and over again like a joke or have you being making jokes with this blood? It is lack of revelation knowledge. You may need to ask God for fresh revelation. Let us take what is serious seriously.

True Worship

For the hour now is …when the true worshippers shall worship the father in spirit and in truth
John 4: 23- 24, Isaiah 1: 10 – 16, Malachi 1: 8

The other day, I was in a church service with hands lifted up in worship, eyes shut and then I realised suddenly that my mind was everywhere but where it was meant to be – presence of God worshipping my creator, the work of whose hands I am. I immediately brought my mind under the control of the spirit.

As I took my seat after the worship, I pondered on our worship. I felt the pain of God when we gather in worship and sing beautiful songs lifting up seemingly ‘holy hands’ in worship even cry ‘in His presence’ yet our hearts are far away from Him and our worship neither in spirit nor in truth. The entire thing is either unreal or at best borne out of a temporary outburst of emotion. O! How those worship songs and the lovely voices of the choir make us feel very ‘spiritual’.

I went to scriptures again to find out if God was so desperate for worship that He would accept anything and found that He isn’t. Some of the scriptures I found are written above. Indeed, going from those scriptures, God feels insulted by unreal or feigned worship and rejects it.

We lift up well manicured hands in worship to Him but our hearts are not only far from Him but also very filthy. How insulting this must be to the God that sees the heart of man and before whom nothing is hidden. God seeks true worshippers – a people who sing in songs of worship the yearning of their hearts and their attitude to life. If He wanted just songs, I beg to suggest that the angels who most likely sing with much better voices than we do would be able to meet that need. Indeed, He said He could even raise stones to do it but instead He yearns for our love, honour and reverence. We should not sing to Him what we do not live in our everyday lives-that would be a lie. Our worship songs and our lives must be in sync. Both describing how much we love, reverence and honour Him. They must show that our total and absolute allegiance is to this God and we have no other.

The truth is you can not worship Him if you don’t know Him. Do you know Him? If yes, are you increasing in your knowledge of Him? The more you know Him, the deeper your worship and the more it pleases God. If you don’t know Him, you can meet Him to today. All you have to do is ask Him to come into your life. Do it now. Your entire life will change for good.

Your worship is only as good as your knowledge of Him. God seeks true worshippers.

Be The TRUE Light Of The World!

Mathew 5: 14 & 16. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid…Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your FATHER which is in heaven.

God calls us the light of the world because we have been impacted by the light Himself i.e. Jesus. John 1: 4& 5 says In Him was life and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
The light in Jesus was the light of the FATHER and the works He did were the works of that light which is the FATHER. No wonder He says He is one with the FATHER. He did not meet the need of the world. He met the need of His FATHER but in doing that He met the need of the world and went on to do in exceeding abundance.


When He comes into our life, He lights us up so that we are the light of the world – a dark world. We then begin to do the works of the FATHER which are the works of light just like Jesus did. According to Jesus, His FATHER is good and so He is always doing good. When men see these good works they give glory to the FATHER (the one that is truly good and reveals His goodness through us).


The question that one is faced with in our day as we look at all our good works – do they cause men to glorify our FATHER or to glorify us? Is our light shining before men? Are these the works of the FATHER that we do?


For our light to shine before men, we must be so impacted by the light of the world Himself that we would shine brightly ourselves. So brightly that man can not hide from our light. They are left with no choice but to be illuminated. It appears to me that we are not shining that brightly. Our light has been dimmed and the world is actually impacting us and we are getting transformed slowly. We are becoming ‘the world’ but a hybrid because we still have a ‘Jesus label’.


There are good people doing a lot of good work all over the world but ours was meant to be different. It was meant to give God glory. We are meant to be instruments through which God accomplishes His goodness on earth but is that what we are? No wonder our good works no longer cause men to glorify God but us. The works are not instigated by the Spirit of God. We each have our own agenda.


Good works not instigated by the light cannot provoke glory for the FATHER. Your good works can not be instigated by the FATHER if you have not been impacted by Him and are still being impacted by Him. This impartation comes from a relationship. Only through that relationship can you know what He wants to do in the world and then receive the grace to do it.


Despite all the good work being done it is called a dark world? If you just did your own good work it would be just another good work. It will not shine as light in darkness. That good work you are involved in – is it as a result of the light that you have become? Are you covering up the lack of shine with the good works? Have you gotten carried away by your good works? Jesus is still the light of the world. It is time to think deeply and take stock.

The bible says if we judge ourselves, we will not be judged. It is never too late to retrace one’s steps. Our God is so good that we can never be better than Him and He wants us to be good.

Pastor B