Month: November 2019

‘Lord , my heart is not haughty, Nor my eyes lofty. Neither do I concern myself with great matters, Nor with things too profound for me. Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, Like a weaned child with his mother; Like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord From this time forth and forever.’  Psalms 131:1-3 

Hello,

How did your week go, did you start talking to the Father or deepen your conversations? Let me know.

My four-year-old daughter still likes being carried in mummy’s arms. She comes to me when she cries or when she’s sleepy, to cuddle up. She lays her face on my shoulder, with her face turned into my neck. I enfold her in my arms, hoping that she is getting the silent message that she is cherished. A weaned child is not after milk, but after the place of comfort and security found with the mother, who nursed her.

Our Father, the Master of the universe, is seating on the throne of glory and majesty, would you like to climb into his laps? You do, so, what’s stopping you? The prodigal returned to his Father as a servant, but what did his dad do? Why do you think Papa will act differently, especially now that we are Christ Jesus?

I have an event to attend soon, and I realized that it is one of the reasons for the anxiety I have been experiencing. I may have had haughty and lofty thoughts of myself and my abilities to achieve specific goals. I may also have been concerning myself with matters too profound for me. In other words, taking a path, God didn’t send me on. So today, I have decided to creep back into Papa’s laps and be still. To put all my hope in Him and believe that like always, He’s got this.

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! Psalms 46:10 

My Heavenly Father asks that I be still, that I enter into my rest because of Christ’s work of redemption. So, I am free to live by grace daily. Free to lay my daily problems at His feet and deal with wisdom. With understanding, giving Him praise as I execute His judgments on the obstacles I face no matter how big they may be. It is when we are at rest and have given up on our will that we can know Him as God. We will always be exalted as gods to ourselves until we die to self and exalt Him over our lives.

May we walk in rest as we submit our lives to the Father and remain still in His arms, in Jesus’ name.

Till next time, be transformed!!!

But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 

Hello,

I hope you have been well?

Years ago, someone tried to explain waiting on the Lord to me, but I was reluctant to hear. He/she told me that Christians have to wait on God as servants wait on their masters. I was hesitant because I disliked the analogy, but now I see that the person was right.

To walk with God is to walk humbly behind. The Good Shepherd knows the way to pasture. He will take a route that will keep the sheep safe from wild beasts and danger. He knows the way to shade if the flock is not able to return to the sheepfold on time. It takes humility to submit to the Master because these days, we all know the right way to the most profit, productivity, or gain.

‘But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”‘ James 4:6

When we wait on God before we act, speak, think, or judge, we are submitting to His Lordship. We are essentially telling Him that we trust Him to take control of our lives. When we wait on Him to act on our behalf, we also learn His ways. As we sit or stand still for the Master to take over, we rest from our works. Since we are no longer carrying the burden of our lives, we can mount up in freedom. The walk of life will not weary us since He is in control.

So, in a sense, waiting on God is working out our faith. Being intentional about waiting on God would help us achieve so much. We will talk and act less rashly and even learn to judge people and situations in righteousness. In this state, you continuously walk in grace.

With God, all things are possible. The place of waiting is the place of possibilities. Nothing is in your control, no decision. You lay them all at papa’s feet and let Him decide. It takes a relationship; it takes a willingness to listen and hear, patience. Do we have time for that? Do we have time to wait on our Father in this fast-moving world?

It is time to make time. The Father judges all our actions, right or wrong.  It’s left to us to decide to wait on the Fountain of Life or continue to use broken cisterns in our way. He is always there, ready to listen, prepared to advise. If you have not started already, start to converse with Papa, He will respond.

Till next time, be transformed!!!

“Blessed is every one who fears the LORD, Who walks in His ways. When you eat the labor of your hands, You shall be happy, and it shall be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine In the very heart of your house, Your children like olive plants All around your table.”  Psalms 128:1-3

Hello,

I hope you had a productive weekend?

For the past week, we have been discussing the topic, Knowing the Ways of God, in church. Why is it important? My spiritual father explained it using Moses and the Israelites journey through the wilderness. Moses had a relationship with God and communicated his will to the people, while the people had the law. The same thing applies today; we wait for Moses to bring the word from God (which he has received in the place of relationship), while we make do with living the received word out.

I woke up this morning knowing what I had on my schedule for today, but I was restless in my spirit. I wanted to spend more time with God, but I wanted to get some writing done because I was going out. He dictates what I publish in the blog, and I hadn’t taken time to ask, so I kept asking Him about it the whole time. Note that I kept asking Him for what to write, but I was not quiet in my spirit to hear. At a point during the day, I thought about not writing at all. However, I asked in faith, and I believe He answered.

“Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.” James 2:21-24

Abraham walked right, which means he knew God’s ways and walked with Him. It didn’t stop at knowing God, and what He said, he believed it and worked it out. Abraham packed his bags and sojourned with his family to an unknown land. He allowed his nephew to choose what seemed to be the best of the land, believing that with God, he (Abraham) had all that he needed. In faith, Abraham offered up his son as a sacrifice to the same God, believing that He who had promised him the boy, was able to provide another. He walked in search of the promise all his life, knowing that God’s plan, though not seen by him, was sure.

Abraham was called God’s friend because he knew God and understood His ways. In my frazzled state, I could have easily given up and decided to wait another day. Till another day, when I could sit quietly before Him and hear but is it not the same God that is with us in the storm, the flood and the fire? God that is with me at all times, no matter what. So, as I read the text on Abraham, I understood that to know and walk in God’s ways is to walk right by faith. It is to be at rest in our spirit’s before Him, allowing Him to be God, and living out what we believe. 

‘In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.’ Jeremiah 23:6 

Our salvation, safety, peace, and righteousness before God are in Jesus Christ. As we walk by faith in the redemption, He secured for, and as led by His Spirit, we will know and walk in God’s ways. As God’s Spirit guides us, He will teach us to love, understand, and serve God according to our callings and gifts. So, in Christ Jesus, we can hear God for ourselves, know Him, and live out our lives for Him.

“There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.” Proverbs 14:12

God asked the prophet, Jeremiah, to tell the people that they had abandoned the fountain of living waters for broken cisterns. The acceptable time, the time of grace is here. Go before the fountain of life to drink from Him and live life abundantly. The verses in Psalm 128 states that it shall be well with us, with our spouses/families, and our children. I believe that as we continually seek His ways over ours, the blessedness of our lives will speak.

May this week bring you closer to God and to know His ways.

Till next time, be transformed!!!

“Those who trust in the LORD Are like Mount Zion, Which cannot be moved, but abides forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, So the LORD surrounds His people From this time forth and forever.” –  Psalms 125:1-2 

Hello,

Believe it or not, God is still sending me pictures of mountains. Today, I got another one from Bing. So, I went to God and asked about it. I got my answer as I worked on the concept of my novel.

In the verses above, the psalmist likens God and those who trust Him to the mountains. In my last post, I wrote about going to the Lord’s house to ask, seek, and knock as He is ready and willing to answer. Today, I am looking at the mountain of the Lord’s house as you and I. The psalmist says, when we trust, we are like Mount Zion (God’s dwelling place), which cannot be moved or shaken, but stands, no matter what. God also has something to say about it below:

“For as the sash clings to the waist of a man, so I have caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cling to Me,’ says the Lord , ‘that they may become My people, for renown, for praise, and for glory; but they would not hear.” – Jeremiah 13:11

God’s plan for those who cling to Him is renown (to be known by all); praise (to be honored by all); glory (to be exalted above all). That’s His plan, which coincides with the mountain view of Psalm 125. Note that Mount Zion abides forever, through generations and times and with God.If this is God’s plan, can we now see clearly through our rough and dark seasons, that God is doing great work in us?

“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” – Hebrews 12:1-2 

Jesus went through His rough period knowing the result, and right now, He is living it. I gave a piece of advice to a member of my family, who was going through difficulty in planning an event. I told her to have a mental picture of lying on her bed resting when all was done because I knew that like all things, the process would end. Jesus knew the end from the beginning. He understood that regardless of the pain, there was glory waiting. This process applies to us as well, no matter the hardships we go through in righteousness, there is an end, and God is asking us to trust Him through them. He wants us clinging to Him, no matter the pain or shame; He has plans, big ones for each of us.

“Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:11

God allows us to go through hardships to mold and train us to bear fruit, the fruit of righteousness. In the dark seasons of our lives, may we continually picture the end God has stored up for us. Picture the renown, the praise, and the glory in Jesus Christ and praise God always. It is for our glory.

‘For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.’ II Corinthians 4:17-18

Till next time, be transformed!!

‘NOW FAITH is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses]. By faith we understand that the worlds [during the successive ages] were framed(fashioned, put in order, and equipped for their intended purpose) by the word of God, so that what we see was not made out of things which are visible.’ Hebrews 11:1,3

Hello,

Like a lot of people, I too asked the question, why am I here? Is there a specific task I was called to fulfill, and if there is, what is it? I always felt that if my life didn’t have some grand adventure, I wasn’t meeting the mark. Shouldn’t life have more? As I grew older and discontented, searching for a meaningful life, I settled for the answers I found along the way. However, I was not satisfied because I believed there was something more.

The verses above are about faith, but for me, they are guidelines to our why. As I studied them today, God opened my eyes to something. He formed us in righteousness; we were birthed in righteousness to live and birth life.

God formed us by His word in hope, having made plans for each of us by faith in the belief that the sacrifice He made for us would not be in vain. He looks at us by faith, in the hope that His plans for us will not fail. Therefore, we ought to live by faith. God has fashioned realities for each one of us, and He put all in order and equipped us for every good work. We must see, believe, and begin to live by the plans He made for each one of us.

So, there is a plan for each person’s life, and until you begin to see and walk in it daily, you are not walking in righteousness; neither are you pleasing God. Our walk with God is purely by faith, believing that He is and that He will reward us for diligently seeking Him. The next question would be, how do we know God’s plans for our lives? Ask, seek, and knock.

‘These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. ‘Hebrews 11:13 

Why is it essential that we see? God had images in His mind before He spoke the word, we also need to have pictures, painted in our hearts by God of all He has in store for us. Until we see, what is our assurance that He will come through? What can we hold onto as the truth about our lives that we are confessing? Are we to be continually tossed about by whatever we hear?

‘By faith Sarah, herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age because she judged Him faithful who had promised. ‘Hebrews 11:11 

God said that Sarah would have a son. It was physically impossible, but regardless of the limitations against it, she did bear her son. She received strength, irrespective of her weakness, to take in seed and to carry it because she judged Him faithful who had promised.

Our Father did not create us in vain. Though born in futility, He sent His only son as a sacrifice to redeem us and put us back on the path to achieving the destinies He planned for each of us. He did it in the hope that we would believe that He has only good in store for us. That is the reason His mercy and grace are boundless towards us because He has faith that we will come to know and understand His great love for us and trust Him completely.

So, what is stopping you from finding your reason for being?

Till next time, be transformed!!!

“For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” – ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭8:10-12‬ ‭

Hello,

It’s the end of the week again, the first week in November. Praise God!!

I love pictures, so I update my phone screens (lock+home) every day with images from Bing and Unsplash. Today, the Bing picture on the screen shows a house of God/church set on a rock. The rock looks like it’s set in the town because it seems to be overlooking other homes on the plain. The building is the Chapel St-Michel d’Aiguilhe, Le Puy-en-Velay in France. The picture struck a chord in me as it reminded me of the scripture below.

‘Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.’ – Isaiah 2:2-3

In Christ Jesus, God has made a new covenant with you and I. A covenant to draw us closer, to bring us near. He promises that He will teach us Himself. The more we know Him, the more we will turn to Him as God and truly be established as His people. He will teach us to know and walk with Him, and there will be no need for you to teach others. In mercy, by the blood of Jesus, this is so. 

‘For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.’ – II Corinthians 6:2

With all these promises set by God, what is stopping us from approaching the throne of grace? We are assured of mercy and grace, an audience with our Father, and time with Him to better understand our paths. Jesus said, ask, seek, knock. God will answer, you will find Him, and His door is always open to you.

Why do we need to know the Father? It is only by knowing Him that our lives begin to make any sense. We are all parts of the body of Christ, and He has given us all that we need, but how can we fully function as who we are if we are not aware of what is ours in Christ? How can we function as priests and kings, ruling over what He has created us for if we do not know, understand or walk with Him? 

I attached the picture on my screen to this post for your consideration. The holiest of holies used to be unattainable except to the High Priest, the mountain of the Lord’s house, too steep to climb, but not anymore. Jesus Christ died and made the way possible so you can seek the Father and find Him. Note verse 2 of Isaiah 2 states that in the latter days, the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established on the mountains, exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow to it. Established and exalted above all others, isn’t it time we start our walk there?

Papa is waiting for us to ask Him about anything and everything, and he will answer. He will make a way where there is no way and give us light in the darkness. Go before Him, begin to ask, seek, knock, and don’t let up. He is with you. He will answer.

Till next time, be transformed!!

“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” – Hebrews 4:14-16

The prodigal had thought it through; it was better to live free. Free from his father’s restrictions and rules, free to be who and what he wanted to be. Free to be with whom and to do whatever he chose, all he needed was the cash. I don’t know how long it took him, the boost he must have gotten from his friends or just by watching social media and wanting to belong. One day, he asked, he finally asked his father for his inheritance.

Thinking about it, by that request, he was letting go of his family; after all, he had taken his inheritance, his birthright. Esau did the same thing, although indirectly, and we all know how that ended.

Nothing physical satisfies, nothing.

What makes us distance ourselves from God, what makes us think that we can survive without Him? The money will finish, the friends will disappear, at a point, you will not want to eat the food, no matter how appealing. The Bible says in Luke 15:20 that the son decided to return to his father because he realized that he could do better. It dawned on him that he had given up life for death.

It doesn’t seem like that to us at first. We are living typical day to day lives, but it may not seem to be enough. We look at others, what they own, and have achieved and wish. So we strive, we hustle, we even try a ‘little’ dishonesty, to make it. And then what? We try to make all sorts of excuses to ourselves, to push down the conscience pull, and even kill it.

All this time, regardless of you, Jesus died for you. He gave up his life, and He is before the father, speaking on your behalf. The enemy is good at making you eat and swallow your guilt. He doesn’t want to let you up to smell the sunshine, to breathe in the fresh air. He doesn’t want you looking up because once you do, you will see. You will see Papa waiting with arms open wide. You will see the love on His face and the smile from ear to ear, making it unnecessary to say the words you know He is saying in your heart, “Come home.”

Regardless of who we are and what we have done, Papa is waiting on the throne. Note that we are not able to fully discern what He has prepared for us, it so much and spiritually discerned. It is time to stop toiling as if you are not flesh that is here today and gone tomorrow. Come and lay all at His feet and be enveloped in His embrace, He wants you. He has made us priests and kings in Christ, and those titles will not take effect in our lives until we return and walk with Him. Living is better with Papa, taste, and see.

Till next time, be transformed!!

“But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. – Mark‬ ‭10:14‬ 

I was going through social media and saw a Halloween story writing prompt, which read, “Bring Out Your Inner Child.” I have been thinking about it for a while because bringing out my inner child is in agreement with the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, and it does make for a happier life.

So, I have been watching my four-year-old daughter. She knows she is loved and tries to get away with all sorts of things, confident in the security of that love. By God’s grace, her parents provide for her needs, she doesn’t have to worry about how they were paid for. When she cries, she is sure that somebody will come to find out why she is crying and comfort her. She goes from one day to another, generally happy and worry-free.

I read another article this week, and the writer was addressing the issue of Christians being boring. He said that some reasons for this are the restrictions of religion and societal limitations on ‘Christians.’ Honestly, we can all feel boxed in by one thing or the other. So, we need to be child-like to enable us to live fuller and happier lives. Bear with me as I ask the following ‘what if’ questions:

• What if I wake up every day, believing that all is well because my Father can do exceeding and abundantly more than I can ask or think?
• What if anytime I face life’s challenges, I turn it to Daddy because He that is within me is greater than anything I may be facing?
• What if when I am unsure of what the future holds, instead of hustling and going about it in my own wisdom, I find rest in my Father who has only good plans for me, to give me a future and a hope?
• What if I rest in the knowledge that Daddy knows everything I need before I ask? All I need to do is obey my Father, and He will add everything I need when I need it.

It’s easy for us to rely on ourselves because that’s what’s expected of us as adults, right? Wrong. The truth is that God expects us to keep calling Him up, not just for what we need, but to know Him as Father. To walk with Him and to totally depend on Him. My daughter uses the word ‘mummy,’ ten billion times a day, and sometimes, I feel like opening the window and flying away to a remote island, far far away. God never feels that way. He is an ever-present help in times of need.

What of the health implications of being child-like? They are immense. Imagine not having to worry and laying all your cares on the Father that cares for you. Imagine just chilling with no concern in the world that is grace. The mercies and grace of God are new every day. Daily, He opens a blank book with your name on it and just plots in only good because you love Him, and you have been called according to His purpose. Listen, that’s a ballin’ life right there!

This weekend, please think about this. Imagine living life as a child, by faith in the Father that never fails. Knowing that He sent His son to die for you and that Jesus is sitting next to Him, making intercession for you. A Father that sent His Spirit to guide you through life and to overcome over it. Think about what a great Father we have, rejoice in Him and give Him the praise, He deserves it.

Till next time, be transformed!!!