Godfidence

But those who wait for the LORD, Will gain new strength and renew their power; They will lift up their wings like eagles; They will run and not become weary, They will walk and not grow tired. ( Isaiah 40:31 )

When we choose God, we discover that He chose us first and our decision is an opportunity to actually realize and live out who we truly are. When we invest our hopes and expectations in God, He makes tremendous power available to us to soar like the Eagle to places other birds [people] dare not tread. He causes ordinary acts to yield extraordinary results. We may for instance do what everyone else does but our result will be astonishing to onlookers. Our lifestyle becomes forward and upward at all times even in the middle of a crisis. *When we rely solely on God as if  we do not have a life without Him because that is actually true, we create a niche for ourselves, where we dominate and reveal the nature of God’s glory*. When the economy around us says there’s a casting down, we say there’s a lifting up. And whatever goes on around us doesn’t affect us. We tend to be living in a different zone; the God zone. Where we have the confidence of God—A friend of mine calls it “Godfidence”—that all things are possible.

#GNews: Uncovering the glory of God.

The Supernatural dealings of God

For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. ( 2 Chronicles 16:9a )

The Lord looks through the whole earth at all times because He is Omniscient and Omnipresent. He is at all places at all times. But even though that is true, the scripture says He  shows Himself strong (favours, graces, helps, attends to, support, deliver, manifest His glory) only to those who are committed to Him. It is like the relationship between God and the Israelites, and God and Moses. The Israelites were not devoted to God at heart, they were only in for the miracles and blessings without real commitments. But Moses was in a real committed relationship with God so that God could do the things Moses desired but not what the Israelites grumbled for. God was God over both Moses and the Israelites but the outcome of their relationships were different because of commitment and loyalty. God is not partial but He is principled and faithful to His words. If we want to experience real fellowship with God, our hearts must be in tune to the ways of God. We must consciously let out our hearts to God.

#GNews: Uncovering the glory of God.

Eternal Rewards

[The Glory Unveiled]

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. ( 2 Corinthians 4:18 )

Rewards and remunerations are very effective in motivating anyone to commit to a course of action. The verse before this verse (verse 17) says our afflictions in the flesh for Christ is yielding eternal rewards for us. And this verse (verse 18) begins thus, “so we fix….” emphasising a course of action–fixing our eyes on unseen realities–because of the motivation of eternal reward stipulated in verse 17. And for that, we can commit to fixing our eyes on the spiritual realities rather than the physical impermanent riches, that will be eventually destroyed. All living things move in the direction of their sight. Nobody walks backwards because humans do not have eyes in their occipita. But more revealing is the fact that, the apostles fixed their eyes on what is unseen. How could a physical eye be focused on an unseen object. “Eyes” refers to the concentration of their ambition, zeal and passion for the promises of God. Where is your passion, where are your eyes fixed?

Prayer_Bead: Father of Lights, in whom there is no shadow of turning, keep my gaze on your unseen riches and rewards. Let the things of this world grow strange to my heart.

GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

Love and Faith

[The Glory Unveiled]

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. ( Galatians 5:6 )

The Bible could actually be summarised into the two words, love and faith. The pages of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation are painted with the love of God and His hand of fellowship to us experiential by faith. God extends love to us, we see and receive it by faith after which we become distributors of that love. So for our faith to be known by others, it must be expressed through love. Hence the apostle Paul says in conclusion, what matters is faith expressed through love. In effect, without faith we cannot adequately express our love to God and without God’s love, we cannot receive faith in the first place because God is Love. Love and faith are like two strands of fiber that must be carefully woven together to form a beautiful fabric. One strand is not enough. Faith comes to us when we hear the Goodnews and the love of God is shared abroad in our hearts. That is what matters, not what we do to our flesh according to the Laws of Moses. Let faith and love be our new normal!

#GNews: Uncovering the glory of God.

His works, my justification

For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. ( Romans 5:19 )

If it is easy for us to accept and believe that the sin of Adam affects us even though we didn’t personally make the choice, shouldn’t it be easier to accept the finished work of the sacrifice of Christ on our behalf? If a sin we did not directly commit was credited to us why can’t a righteousness we do not have be credited to us? It is true that by ourselves we are hopelessly helpless with regards to right standing with God because we do not have in ourselves–sinful flesh–the ability to be righteous. All of us who believe in the work of Christ are made righteous. It is a status that is attained only through the cross of Christ. We are saved by faith in Christ; faith which comes from hearing the Goodnews of the Kingdom. There is no way around this provision for humanity to be redeemed back to the Father. Faith in Christ and His finished works is the only entry requirement that must be met to enjoy the life we once had in God before sin.

#GNews: Uncovering the glory of God.

Pray Ceaselessly

[ The Glory Unveiled]

And he spake a parable unto them to the end that they ought always to pray, and not to faint; ( Luke 18 :1)

Jesus told His disciples a parable to illustrate the need for persistent prayer. The central message of the parable–found in verses 2 to 5 of the same chapter–is that we ought to pray always. Without consistent prayer, there is no relationship between heaven and earth; without prayer, there is no legal obligation from Heaven to operate in the earth realm. The more you’re in communication with anyone, the shorter the distance between you. Communication links two people and two realities or environments. Likewise, in continuous prayer, there is the gradual establishment of a relationship. Jesus was consistently in communication with heaven so much that Heaven was drawn down into His vicinity; He literally carried heaven around. He drag the realities of Heaven into the earth realm as a result of his prayer life. Consistence with God in prayer is the mark of true relationship with God. We ought to pray and not be tired.

Prayer_Bead: Lord Jesus, energize my innerman for a consistent prayer life. Empower me to resist the yearnings of my flesh that hinder my prayers.

Dynamics of Faith

[The Glory Unveiled]

By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, ( Hebrews 11:17 )

Noah and Abraham had this one thing in common, they believed in something that had never been seen nor heard before. They were the pioneers of faith in their time. But Abraham even had something else, worth exploring. He was tested again, to offer up his son even after he had waited many years by faith for the promise of a child. This reveals that faith is a continuum. It is continuous and always. We don’t get to a point where faith is full in itself. We need to continue in faith and the word of truth. If Abraham had passed the first test of patience but failed the second of selflessness, he probably wouldn’t have been mentioned in the verse we read above. But because he persevered in [faith] both, we celebrate him today. Let us continue steadfastly in faith because faith pays its due in due season.

*Prayer_Bead:* Jehovah Jireh, give me hope where there is no hope, courage where there is fear, confidence where there is doubt. Help me to trust unwaveringly in you. In Jesus name.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.