WE THREE KINGS OF ORIENT ARE … BEARING GIFTS WE TRAVERSE AFAR…

Let me start by wishing you the very best Christmas you ever had. I appreciate that you have been finding time to read my blog which I do not take for granted. There are so many things we love to do in but can’t find the time to do; so it means a lot to me that you find time to read my blog. My prayer is that, this blog will be for you, a light that leads you to that hidden treasure meant for you in the same way that the star led the wise man to Jesus.

The story of the wise men is one I still find intriguing though I have known it since I was a child. These men knew that Jesus would be born and interpreted the star which announced his birth accurately. They had an idea where He would be born but did not know the actual location; thank God for the star that finally led them but this was not before they had tried in their own way to locate Jesus. Unfortunately, this effort in their own strength led to several deaths.

Mathew 2: 6 “After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place.”  

I have found that worldly wisdom and intellectual power without the leading of God and His wisdom would only take one so far. For the wise men to have been called wise in bible days, they must have had great knowledge. To have identified the star and interpreted it correctly, they definitely were wise but all that wisdom could not take them to their God given gift – the messiah. It was just enough to move them out of their comfort zone and this God does often.

When it is time to relocate, He allows things that make you comfortable to move; as you move certain that you have all you need and trusting in that fact, everything falls apart leaving you lost and confused. Then you are compelled to seek help. If you turn to Him, though He will insist on leading you, He will take you to the destination. The problem is with ‘having to follow’; it makes the process appear tough and slow.  Unfortunately, not following may be very costly. 

God, who knows all things, already foresaw that wrong judgment we would make if left on our own and its consequences, so He offers us the benefit of His wisdom. Who would have thought something as innocent as stopping by to see the king or even pay homage would cost so many children their lives and cause such great sorrow to so many families? This one “polite and/or gracious act” cost so many lives. How one seemingly innocent and/or thoughtless act can be so grievously damaging. These are some of the reasons God likes to guide us and order our steps. 

The bible says wisdom is better than weapons of war so that if we walk in His wisdom then we will constantly walk in victory avoiding the unnecessary battles thereby conserving strength for the necessary ones. As we celebrate the birth of the All-wise one, let us ask for wisdom amongst other things. The fact that you did not realize the extent of damage that your innocent or gracious gesture would provoke will not lessen the damage or justify the act. We cannot afford to continue in stupidity when we have a father who is wisdom personified. I wish all a MERRY CHRISTMAS

LESSONS FROM THE BOOK OF RUTH PT 2

 The ability to identify and harness potential making it benefit his organization: As soon as the foreman explained to Boaz who Ruth was and told him that she had worked hard ever since she got in there, he went to talk to her. He identified that there is something good inside of her and it to remain on his own field. Though he had not identified what she could do, the fact that she was loyal and hardworking already caught his attention. I must note that he may also not have wanted people to take advantage of her. Ruth 2: 7b – 8a “she has been hard at work ever since, except for a few minutes rest in the shelter. Boaz went over and said to Ruth, ‘listen, my daughter. Stay right here with us when you gather grain”

Whatsoever our hands find to do we should do with all our might even when nobody is watching: The bible admonishes that if we continue in well doing and don’t faint, we shall reap. Ruth was not working hard to impress anyone; she was only applying herself to doing what her hands had found to do. The men said she worked without resting and she was not aware that she was being observed by anyone but God caused someone to notice her work that the boss would speak to and would give the boss a good report about her. The report eventually brought her into her wealthy place. Character is very important for anyone that wants to go forward in Christ. 

Loyalty is a virtue and when it is for a ‘God cause’, it shall surely produce result no matter how unlikely it may seem: Loyalty is something we don’t see often anymore but highly appreciated by all especially when it concerns them or their things. Even company executives give loyalty priority in their hire process. If you work for someone and you are loyal enough to work like as though you are working for God, though some people may consider your loyalty something to be mocked, God will ensure that it is rewarded. Remember that promotion comes from Him who is also ever loyal to those that are called by His name and has a reward for everyone who is loyal to Him to the end. Ruth 2: 11 “But I also know about everything you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband. I have heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers.”

Taking an interest in staff welfare is obviously helps to facilitate success in business: it is apparent that staff welfare is important to Boaz. He fed his staff and even ate with them. I would like to believe that the bond they forged as they ate together made them a stronger team. Obviously it was the culture of the company so that they even invited Ruth who had not even been hired though she worked on their own filed. I don’t know if Boaz ate with the staff all the time, but he definitely did sometimes. Ruth 2: 14 “At mealtime Boaz called to her, ‘come over here and help yourself to some food. You can dip your bread in the sour wine.’ So she sat with his harvesters and Boaz gave her some roasted grain to eat.”

It is important that one gets a good feel of what goes on in their business: You have to be ready ‘to get your hands dirty’ if you want to continue to succeed. You can‘t just sleep on your beds when your men are out there working. You need to be a part of all that work from time to time. Ruth 3: 7 “After Boaz had finished eating and drinking and was in good spirits; he lay down at the far end of the pile of grain and went to sleep.”

LESSONS FORM THE BOOK OF RUTH PT 1

I have heard it said often that if you want to succeed, it is helpful to look at the lives of successful people. So I have been looking at the lives of various successful people including that of Ruth and Boaz. Today I want to begin to share some of the lessons I learnt from the life of Boaz and Ruth in the book of Ruth. The bible tells us that Boaz waswealthy, influential and then he somehow walked his way into the height of spiritual success entering into the lineage of Jesus. I think this may be a good time to re-evaluate our lives in the context of some of these lessons so I thought to share with you,

It always starts with a decision: Every permanent positive turnaround in our lives starts with a decision. The right decision made with the God’s guidance. The bible tells us that God causes us to will and then to do. He inspires us through our thoughts and if we align, we would make the appropriate decision so that He then grants the grace to do according to the decision. 

Ruth 2: 2a NLT “One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, ‘let me go out into the harvest fields to pick up the stalks of grain left behind by anyone who is kind enough to let me do it.”

Decision has to be backed with a doing:There must be something you need to do. Don’t remain dormant, expecting that God will do for you what needs to be done. You have your part to play. You need to be certain that what you are about to do is in furtherance of the decisionyou made. As soon as you make the decision, the devil will throw different options at you. Some will be outright wrong and some will seem likely but wrong. You have to let the spirit of God guide you; He will only lead you to the right option which will be in furtherance of your decision.  

Ruth 2: 3NLT “So Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters.”

Good relationship with your staff will positively influence their output:From the way Boaz greeted his staff and their response, they clearly had a good relationship. Indeed, he blessed them and they in turn responded with a blessing for their boss. He was obviously not mean to them living the life of a wealthy man and leaving their salaries unpaid. He must have met his obligations to them. It is not the norm for staff to bless their bosses so they must have known that he cared genuinely about them.

 Ruth 2: “Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters. ‘The Lord be with you!’ he said. ‘The Lord bless you!’ the harvesters replied.”

It is important to pay attention to details: It is amazing that Boaz noticed one lady he had never seen on his farm and did not ignore the fact that there a stranger on his business premises or company. He must have known all his staff and even known all the other people that come to glean on his farm. If he did not know them all, he would not have noticed that there was a stranger in their midst. He not only asked who she was but wanted details. A lot of people would have thought that was unnecessary and he was wasting too much time on the unimportant things but the tiny details obviously go a long way to make a difference.

 Ruth 2: 5 “then Boaz asked his foreman, ‘who is that young woman over there? Who does she belong to?”

OUR FAITH IS UNDER ATTACK PART 3

The divorce rate among believers these days is amazing; and this statistic includes Pastors and General Overseers but as we say, they are human after all. What grieves me the most is the number of very young believers I know who are divorced and guess what! If the truth be told, a number of those still married might as well be divorced because what they have cannot be called marriage. I must say though, that I respect their courage in holding on because the fact that the marriage is turbulent is not always an indication of how it will end; the latter end may be great.

 

I have never been married so there must be a lot I don’t yet know about marriage; but I know that being married does not mean you know all there is to know about marriage. From one marriage to the other, there are differences since no two people are exactly alike. To a large extent, the uniqueness of every marriage is created by the nature of both parties directly involved and the only set of rules/principles that will apply to every marriage will be those written by the creator of marriage, God, who says He Hates divorce.  If we believe that the word of God is true as we know it is, and accept to hinge our lives on it, then we must accept its veracity in the area of marriage and hinge our marriages on this word. 

Malachi 2: 16 “’For I hate divorce!’ says, the Lord, the God of Israel.”

Obviously, there are many things we do that God does not like but we must accept that divorce is one of them. Though we preach the gospel, we inadvertently, make it seem ineffective by our actions even in the area of marriage. So that it is beginning to look like culture and other religion are more effective in keeping marriages together than the word of God. It should not to be so. God does not insist that we all marry though the bible says marriage is a good thing and I believe it is; it is certainly not a joke neither is it some kind of game. It is a union one enters with the greatest sense of responsibility. I say this carefully for fear of sounding judgmental because I know people who entered with all seriousness and are divorced today; wonderful people who I love very much.  So what do we do; we can’t continue like this.

I honestly think it is time we address the rate of divorce amongst believers and the ease with which it is happening. We cannot keep pretending like this is not a problem and trying to explain the word of God concerning divorce and remarriage within the limitations that have been created in our minds because our obvious reality otherwise we will be moving further and further away from the truth. It is best to put the truth before us that we may walk toward it. We may falter but God will pick us up and help us achieve His written goal for us. As long as we continue to think of the word of God in the context of what is convenient for us, we will not only fall short of God’s standard, but also live short of the promises of God to us.

I am by no means suggesting that in all circumstances you must remain in the marriage. In some circumstances, divorce may be the only option; but we must now begin to look at what needs to change to reduce the number of people who find themselves in such marriages. We truly need to evaluate the way we reach the decision to marry and choice of partner. Could something be wrong with our pre-marriage counseling in the church? Divorce can never be the best thing for anyone otherwise God would have loved it. We have to decide that it shall not be the norm in Christianity.

YOU NEED HIS LEADING TO MAKE THE BEST MOVE

The world appears to be going crazy. Everybody is in a mad rush to get everything and young people just want to grow up in a hurry so they can enjoy everything they think adults enjoy. I know this is not one of the end time signs as listed in the bible but I wonder if something inside of us is letting us know the end of times is very close; not that I know when this will be but I know it will come.

I may not have had a problem with the mad rush but for the needless pain, anxiety and sickness it is causing people. Unfortunately, with all the rush through life and its several bad consequences, a number of people still fail to make their desired mark and even those who do, often find that they want more so they keep going on. I am by no means promoting laziness or a laid back attitude to life. All I am saying is that the lives of believers should not be like that – ‘crazy’. We must be people that are led by God so that we are bold and our hearts garrisoned with peace. 

Proverbs 28: 1 “The wicked run when no one is chasing them, but the godly are as bold as a lion.”

The unbeliever cannot help himself. He does not have clear cut direction so that he has to keep trying everything until one works. He does not know how much time he has so he works hard to ensure that he makes something of the time he has to live, a trait I admire. He does not have the Holy Spirit guiding and leading him in the way that he should go. He has to trusts his intuition to be his guide. But the believer should not be caught in this “rat race” for he has the spirit of God who is willing to show him where all the “treasures are laid up for the righteous.” So why is the righteous also “beating the air” very unlike Paul? I dare to suggest that we have been lured into believing that it is much easier to “make the mark” if you keep moving, even if it’s in no particular direction, rather than seek to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit leading you.

This is a lie of the devil that has troubled a number of people and lured them from God. It has made some others seek people who would hear God for them so they don’t have to bother or “waste time” trying to hear Him. The truth though, is that God is waiting for every one of us to come to Him and eager to give directions concerning our lives. He speaks to everyone and we all ought to hear Him. Sometimes we may make mistakes, thinking we hear God when we really haven’t heard Him; but that should not stop us. We must keep trying until we can accurately discern His voice. Sometimes someone else calls you and you think it’s one of your parents only to find it wasn’t but that doesn’t stop you from answering another call you think is theirs. God will keep trying until you discern His voice accurately.

1 Samuel 3: 8-9 “So the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?” Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy. So he said Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say ‘speak, Lord your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed. And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.” 

One of the benefits of salvation is that we are not unnecessarily burdened or running from place to place and that, without direction. Why would you have that privilege and yet not access it?