Tag: #ChooseChrist

[The Glory Unveiled]

Jesus said to him, Get up! Pick up your bed and walk! [ John 5:8 ]

The story is about an invalid who had been bedridden for 38years. He had been in that condition for so long that his predicament became his new normal. Ever been in a situation that felt like a new normal and nothing was possibly going to change about it? In such situations, we lose the ability to identify solutions and opportunities when they are presented. The invalid man in the story of today’s scriptural verse saw Jesus—his solution—as any ordinary man because his situation made him see every man in a skewed lens of perception. No matter the length of time, we must endeavor to see possibility in every crooked place. Whenever Jesus shows up at a place, He does not leave it the same. It wouldn’t matter how dark or deep a situation is when Jesus shows up. He holds the key to all problems and he encompasses all solutions. Jesus is all in all and all together able to sufficiently make enough grace available for every predicament. And as the redeemed of Jesus we have in us that life giving spirit too. We have the potential to affect situations and territories. We can and should affect our environment positively with the power of God.

Prayer_Bead: Compassionate Father and King, thank you for your mercy and grace. Let the light of your redemptive power shine in every darkness around my life.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

For however many promises God has made, they all find their “Yes” in connection with him; that is why it is through him that we say the “Amen” when we give glory to God. ( 2 Corinthians 1:20 )

The number of promises God made to us does not count when we think in terms of their fulfillment. The scripture says that their fulfillment and manifestation is always in connection with the God who made the promise Himself. The promises of God without God are not the promises of God; they are invalid, for they cannot be fulfilled in isolation and independence of God. And because the promises can only find fulfillment in connection with God, we need to give Him the glory due His name. As a matter of fact, there are certain promises of God that seem unrealistic. They seem to bend so outward from the curve of possibility and unreconcilable with reality, whether ever in the past or ever in the future. But then, the scripture shows us that unless we connect God’s promises—regardless of their number and “impossibility”—to “Yes”, we cannot see the reality of the “Amen”. We need to believe that once it is God, He will make good his promises. So that when we connect the promise to “Yes”, we wouldn’t have to bother how many the promises of God may be. The “Amen” only becomes a reality when we give glory to God. So to some extent, the speed of our expectations are tied to our giving glory to God, which is actually a proof of our faith in His promises. Honour fast tracks the promises of God no matter what.

Prayer_Bead: Jehovah Jireh, thank you for your provisions. Teach me through the Spirit of endurance to wait upon your promises for my life.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled] 

“Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:”

( Colossians 3:5 )

The energy of the flesh cannot sponsor the demands of the spirit. Everything the eyes see and the senses perceive is deeper than what they actually seem like. For instance, fornication seem to be only “two people sleeping together who are not married” And that meaning had been the understanding of many of us until Christ Jesus showed us the depth of that word to include the fact that, an unmarried person lusting after someone is also fornication. The scripture above says we should mortify—deaden, kill, cause to disappear—the physical extensions of our souls; the desires of our flesh that can engage the body in acts of the flesh. But in order to mortify the desires of the flesh, we need the energy of the spirit which comes from intimacy with the Holy Spirit. In the energy of the flesh, we would only keep struggling and failing and repeating our errors and shortcomings until we grow weary. We need to be spiritually minded and focused in order to mortify the desires of the flesh. In our strength, we can do nothing about the sins that easily entangle us. This calls for something higher or stronger than what we can afford by the flesh and depend on the Spirit. And once we encounter the word of God that brings deliverance, we need to hold unto it as if our lives depend on it because it does.

Prayer_Bead: Father in heaven, thank you for the energy of the Spirit that quickens my mortal body so that I may mortify the members of my flesh upon the earth.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” ( Job 1:17 )

The verse of scripture is an excerpt from the famous account of Job’s tragedies. His entire household had come under a strong attack; one tragedy after the other. Almost everything in his house, from animals, crops to humans felt the scorch of the evil wind that blew through his house. But something wonderful is recorded in verses 15, 16, 17, and 19 of the chapter that detailed out his misfortunes. This wonder is a few people—four—who had been spared from all the tragedies although they were also at the scene of the events. The first tragedy happened on the fields where Job’s animals were feeding, the animals were all taken by the Sabeans and the servants were all slain but one servant escaped death to tell the story at home. The third tragedy follows the pattern and trend of the first, while the second set of tragedies followed the same pattern and format as the fourth but in all, someone escaped the tragedy no matter how dire it was. There is a law that exempts men from the plague of the masses. In Genesis, a story is told of how God had marked Abel to exempt him from the wickedness of men who may want to kill him—even though he had killed his brother—so that no man will touch him (see Genesis 4:14-15 ). By the grace of God, the mark of God through the blood of Jesus exempts us from evil tragedies and plagues and preserves us unto Himself.

Prayer_Bead: Lord of Lords, thank you for your mark on me that exempts me from tragedies and misfortunes. I am preserved by the blood of Jesus.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

“Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.”
( John 16:23-24 )

Many institutions have their unique dress codes and work ethics or professional conducts that regulate the way they go about work and their lives at such institutions. The dress code distinguishes such workers from other workers and their conduct sets them apart in a way that other people may not be able to identify except people at the top hierarchy of affairs in that organization. In today’s verse of scripture, Jesus was telling His disciples that whatever they would ask the father in His name, would be given to them. This template or procedure for getting the father to release our needs is like the dress code of corporate organizations. It sets our prayer apart for immediate attention and release of our answers. The disciples might have been asking Jesus to help them all these while but not the Father. So Jesus tells them to ask the father that their joy may be full. The fullness of our joy is to some extent tied to the fulfillment of our needs and heart desires. We would agree that if someone has a need that is not met, they would not be as happy or joyous as one who had their needs met. But now we know the approach to get our joy restored and full. We know that whatever we ask the Father in Jesus’ name is ours because His name is a signet of approval. Ask; tell God your real needs. The ones that burden you and rob you of your joy and peace. Tell Him about it all.

Prayer_Bead: Holy Father, thank you for answering all my prayers and giving me all I ask in Jesus’ name. Thank you for enlarging the coast of my joy by meeting my needs.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.