SHAKE THE DUST OFF YOUR FEET – Matthew 10:11-15

Biblical evangelism is a tough act because you deeply believe you have got the truth and nothing but the whole truth. In a world with diverse and often contradictory religious claims, the follower of Jesus has a huge challenge because Jesus claims that He is the way, the truth, and the life: no-one comes to the Father except by Him (John 14:6). From the practice of Jesus and His apostles, these claims do not necessarily have to be argued or debated. They can just be stated as prescribed. And if a city or someone was unwilling to accept them – you have a choice – leave or leave them alone.

 

Whilst I am certain the Lord does not intend that we admit failure at every first hurdle, He decisively encourages us not to see “our” failure in such a case but a future outworking of God’s sovereign purposes as a result of our failure. This lesson is instructive, perhaps, also in many areas of life where we might give our best and still fail: we can fail but God can never fail. We should trust God to work things out according to His sovereign purposes. Then peace comes. Have you tried your best and failed? Be courageous, admit it, shake the dust off your feet and move on. Move on to something new.

 

Remember, “All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). May God turn your sorrow into joy, your mourning into dancing, and your weeping into laughter. May God grant you a testimony where you are currently going through a test. Amen.

THE HORRIBLE MURDERS IN FRANCE!

Yesterday, Wednesday 7th January, 2015 in Paris the New Year came to an abrupt and brutal end for 12 innocent people who were simply carrying out their lawful quotidian jobs as journalists, cartoonists and policemen at the offices of Charlie Hebdo. The terrorist killings were carried out by a terrible gang of Islamists, proclaiming the Islamic tenet, "God is great!" and that their gruesome act was to revenge the satirical depictions of their Prophet by the controversial news magazine, Charlie Hebdo.

The whole world is shocked and outraged by these murders, they fit into the bizarre and terrifying patterns of beheadings, crucifixions, and mass murders of Al-Qaeda and its affiliates, especially, the so-called Islamic State, Boko Haram, Al-shabbab and other violent jihadist organisations. We mourn the loss of innocent lives by hoodlums, hijacking Islam to crush democratic values, enslave people and entrench a religious political system bathed in the worst forms of barbarity and rapacity, in the name of Allah.

We stand shoulder to shoulder with the overwhelming majority of Muslims and people of other faiths, people of no faith - well-meaning, decent, civilised human beings for whom Islamism is a scourge that must be defeated, an ideology that must be driven into the ground, and a warped form of religion that must be destroyed. Let's get out there with counter arguments, with acts of love and mercy, with daring bravery in the sight of brutal threats - proclaiming our collective humanity, our cherished democratic values and our belief and determination that Islamism is dead wrong, dead futile, and will never achieve any of its goals through mindless violence. Support Charlie Hebdo, support France: we need one another in these sad and tragic times!

WHEN YOU ARE DISCOURAGED

WHEN YOU ARE DISCOURAGED – PART 2

“Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by the Way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way.” (Numbers 21:4)

The journey from Mount Hor would have been an easy journey, if the people were given help by the people of Edom. However, as we read in the story, the Edomites refused Israel to pass through their territory. Therefore, they needed to go round the land of Edom which made the journey longer.

Before this event, they had already had tough times concerning lack of drinking water, and basic provision such as food and meat. They had fought the Amalekites, and had heard the disturbing news about giants waiting to swallow them up in the Promised Land. The last thing they wanted was a long, rough journey round the land of Edom!

Notice this: discouragement doesn’t always come at once – it usually develops from negative experiences which continue to pile up until we feel overwhelmed and helpless.

David knew God very intimately and had experienced great favours from God. Yet, in many Psalms, he continued to plead for God’s help in so many overwhelming situations! In a particular Psalm, David cried out: “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.” (Psalm 42:5)

Elijah felt so discouraged in the face of bitter and unrelenting opposition that he asked God to take his life! “And he prayed that he might die, and said, "It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!" (1Kings 19:4)

Is there a remedy for discouragement? Yes, there is!

When you are discouraged remember God’s previous acts of mercy in your life. David prayed: “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits…” (Psalm 103:2)

When you are discouraged, keep repeating an applicable verse from the Bible to encourage yourself in the Lord. There is always a promise of God for every problem that we will face in life. “Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep. And David's two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive. Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.” (1Samuel 30:4-6)

When you are discouraged, try your best to attend all Church meetings because the Lord will find a suitable occasion to speak to your situation and change things for you! “They shall come with weeping, and with supplications I will lead them. I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters, in a straight way in which they shall not stumble; for I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim is My firstborn.” (Jeremiah 31:9)

When you are discouraged, do not bottle up your feelings. Speak to your Pastors. God has given them a charge to be concerned for your welfare, to pray for you, to advise you and to support you through the situation: “So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the LORD your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper." (2Chronicles 20:20)

David said: “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.” (Psalm 42:5). May God restore to you the joy of salvation and strengthen you with His unfailing love. Amen.

WOLE SOYINKA & OTHER POEMS

Wole Soyinka and Other Poems is the much-awaited collection of poems from Dr Kemi Atanda Ilori. 

 

 

Ilori studied at the University of Ife in Nigeria (now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife) and then in the United Kingdom at Leeds, Sheffield and Bradford, where he gained degrees in Drama, Literature and Housing.  

 

He lectured from 1983 to 1990 at the University of Ife, where most of his early poems were published in Sokoti, Ijala and ISALA. The University published his Voices of The Hurricane in its monograph series in 1983. The Association of Nigerian Authors published his Amnesty in 1988. 

 

Ilori's poetry combines the lyricism of oral performance with the elegance of postmodern diction. He focuses relentlessly on the postcolonial challenges facing Nigeria - the raw politics, the rough justice and the rueful military and civilian administrations. In-between the harsh imagery of corruption and injustice, Ilori finds quality space for hope and redemption, love and laughter, often in a tender self-critical manner. This collection shows Ilori as an adept craftsman whose words sculpt Nigeria's postcolonial humdrum blues into something both vivid and engrossing. Several of the poems are either tributes to Wole Soyinka for his fearless activism, or intuitive commentaries on Soyinka's themes. 

 

Ilori moved to the United Kingdom in 1990 and found a new career in Housing in 1993. He rose through the ranks and became the Director of Housing Services with Manningham Housing Association in Bradford in 2002, a post he held until 2011. He has been the Pastor of Living Hope Church since its inception, first in Nigeria and, latterly, in the UK. 

 

In addition to poetry, Ilori has published essays on Nigerian drama and theatre. He is currently developing research towards a book on the theatre of Wole Soyinka. 

 

Wole Soyinka and Other Poems is published by Universal Books UK and out at retail outlets and online from Friday 4^th July, 2014 in celebration of Wole Soyinka’s 80^th birthday on 13^th July, 2014. For this and future titles from Universal Books UK, visit www.universalbooksuk.org. If you wish to publish with Universal Books UK, please visit www.universalbooksuk.co.uk.

 

Here is an excerpt from the collection:

FOR WOLE SOYINKA

(Our own WS) 

In vain, so far, the quill’s quintessence

Your mount of scrolls on the stools of state

Your wanton tools whet on their marked pumice

At once the sentinel of their conscience 

Men armoured in carapace of Night

Yet dance upon caryatids, foil dusk in funeral parlours

Sculpt your earth into maidens of rust, spread their skirts

In charnel rooms as refugees from light 

In vain you invade their clandestine catacombs

Their eyes have long disappeared into the holes in the road

Their sceptic ears loaned to mourners abroad

Return in aid-boats loaded with septic honeycombs... 

(To read more, visit www.universalbooksuk.org.)

 

GOD CAN HURT US... (FOR OUR OWN GOOD)

GOD CAN HURT US… (FOR OUR OWN GOOD)

Aiden Wilson Tozer (April 21, 1897 - May 12, 1963), a revered Christian pastor and theologian once stated that: “It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply.” This kind of insight into the mysterious workings of God’s love and providence is significantly missing in today’s popular Christianity.

Many of the celebrated pastors and Church leaders today, particularly, those with mega-Churches and mega-followers are mostly ardent preachers of instantaneous healing and prosperity. Their honey-laden voice, fine sartorial elegance, and convincing aura of material success lead crowds of vulnerable, desperate and gullible people into believing that God will deliver “on demand” according to their expectation. By skilled manipulative use of verses from the Bible, they raise the expectations of their hearers, give phoney prophecies and make astounding promises on behalf of God.

When your understanding of God is shallow and your relationship with Him is merely skin-deep, it affects both your reasoning and your faith. Your reasoning will be shallow, and your faith will be merely skin-deep. Such people get easily carried away by popular frauds for whom the gospel is purely to make money from both the poor and the rich alike.

Tozer’s insight is apt and biblical. The devil may be the arch-enemy of believers, but God is also in the business of permitting, and sometimes even directly causing pain.

As God says: “I create the light and make the darkness. I send good times and bad times. I, the LORD, am the one who does these things.” (Isaiah 45:7 – New Living Translation). In another place, God says: “Look now; I myself am he! There is no other god but me! I am the one who kills and gives life; I am the one who wounds and heals; no one can be rescued from my powerful hand!” (Deuteronomy 32:39 - New Living Translation)

The tendency to constantly blame the devil for every affliction is a sign of a very shallow understanding of the mysterious workings of the providence of God. God wants all of us to have a growing personal relationship with Him through the Lord Jesus Christ. He wants us to be confident of His care and love at all times, even when there is pain and disappointment. Life is tough and can be very rough, even for those who trust in God. Our understanding of God’s love must be robust enough to cover both good times and bad times; to cover the pain of crucifixion and the joy of resurrection!

We all want to see evidence that God is answering our prayers and we want to be re-assured that God is interested in our material comfort and well-being. God certainly is! It is very challenging and very puzzling when God is not behaving to form. But, listen, “Any faith that must be supported by the evidence of the senses is not real faith.” At the end of the day, “True faith rests upon the character of God and asks no further proof than the moral perfections of the One who cannot lie.” Guess who said this: Aiden Wilson Tozer. More importantly, this is also the teaching of the Bible that some people are probably hiding from you, and fleecing you!

God sometimes hurts us for our own good…

WHEN GOD IS LATE

Ecclesiastes 3:1: "To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven..."

We are affected by the passage of time. Time is critical in everything we do. This is perhaps far more obvious when we are praying to God and He seems to be unaware of the pressure that we face as He takes His time in dealing with our prayer.

Surely, Abraham and several other examples in the Bible will come in handy here. Abraham waited for 25 years before Sarah gave birth to the promised seed. Isaac waited 20 years before he and Rebecca had their twins. Joseph waited 13 years before he became the Prime Minister of Egypt. David waited several years before he became king over the whole of Israel. The most dramatic example would no doubt be Lazarus who eventually died whilst waiting for the Lord to heal him.

Faith suffers when it is tied merely to human time. Divine time is everything. God does not and will not work to human time: if there is a coincidence of our time and God's time when we receive answer to prayer, it is not that God has abandoned the divine timing that attends all His actions; it is simply that our time has "caught up" with His time!

Therein lies the irony: we are finite; God is infinite. Our faith is subjectively experienced in bounded time; our reality is subject to the "artificial" clock we have created to make meaning of our life; our rationality hangs completely on the logic of the preciseness of a 24-hour-a-day calendar. In this time frame, God will often be late, as divine time is often offline with human time.

We have to pray and hope always, petitioning God to grant us the grace to endure until His word is manifested in our life, in real time! Job had a real panic when God was running late on him: "Oh, that You would hide me in the grave, That You would conceal me until Your wrath is past, That You would appoint me a set time, and remember me!" (Job 14:13)

Anyone who truly waits upon God for an answer to their prayer would have been in a similar predicament. God doesn't turn up on demand! His miracles are not on tap that you can switch on and off at will. The most that prayer can do at any time is help us gain insight into the mysterious workings of divine timing. Prayer can never force God off His own agenda or set time. Rather, prayer helps us to remember that God is in charge and He will answer us according to His faithfulness in His own time!

Surely, this idea of our understanding of divine timing is what is being expressed by the Psalmist as follows: "You will arise and have mercy on Zion; For the time to favor her, Yes, the set time, has come." (Psalm 102:13 ) God has a set time, the time of His favour which happens to be the same time that the patient in faith is always eagerly waiting for!

Again, the Psalmist: "But as for me, my prayer is to You, O LORD, in the acceptable time; O God, in the multitude of Your mercy, Hear me in the truth of Your salvation." (Psalm 69:13) Clearly, we must pray always without fainting, or becoming weary. However, the key here is knowing that the answer is coming on the wings of something labelled "the acceptable time". The acceptable time is divine time, it has nothing to do with the urgency of our prayer or the desperation of our situation in our own eyes.

Our prayer should be fervent and urgent, passionate and demanding. That's us, that's the response we have subjectively engaged as a result of our anguish and pain. However, it does not in any sense put a forceful pressure on God to act offline or offside to His divine purposes and timing. God, mysteriously and carefully, through His precious Holy Spirit, orchestrates and calibrates our prayer to provoke His own response. However, only those who understand that He does not act out of panic or pressure will know that His response is timed to meet divine purposes solely.

As the Prophet Isaiah found out: "Thus says the LORD: "In an acceptable time I have heard You, And in the day of salvation I have helped You..." (Isaiah 49:8) Until the acceptable time, we have to keep praying, stacking up our prayers before the mercy seat of God. When the stack reaches the set time, the acceptable time, something mysterious begins - God moves!

As you read this article, may the LORD bring about your own "acceptable time" and grant you an amazing answer to prayer!

LET US BUILD

“And he built fortified cities in Judah, for the land had rest; he had no war in those years, because the LORD had given him rest.” (2Chronicles 14:6)

Some people wait for opportunities to come their way, some look for them. However, best of all, some people actually create opportunities for themselves. In part, the story of King Asa teaches us how we can create opportunities for ourselves through our relationship with God.

In 2Chronicles 14:2, we read that “Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God.” In verse 3, we read that “he removed the altars of the foreign gods and the high places, and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the wooden images.”

In verse 4, we read that “He commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and to observe the law and the commandment.” In verse 5, we read that “He also removed the high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah, and the kingdom was quiet under him.”

King Asa’s actions are a recipe for success at any time. He did four things: (1) he committed himself to a life of obedience to God by faith, and (2) he backed it up by relevant actions - pulling down strongholds which are an offence to God in his life; (3) he devoted himself to serving God, seeking His face in prayer and worship; and (4) he went the extra mile to please God by even removing the high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah.

As a result, God created opportunities for him to build and to prosper. When you do what God is pleased with, He will create opportunities for you to build and prosper.

In verse 7, King Asa said to Judah, "Let us build these cities and make walls around them, and towers, gates, and bars, while the land is yet before us, because we have sought the LORD our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side." So they built and prospered." (2Chronicles 14:7)

There is no shortcut to godly success. If anyone wants to prosper in the way God approves, the recipe is there in the Word of God. Everyone you can think of in the Bible that built and prospered through their relationship with God followed the same path.

God is a faithful God. When you follow the path that He approves, you are sure to end up in victory and prosperity. The problem is that people want short cuts. People can’t stick to God for long – they find the reason and the season to wander away. People can’t wait the time – for them God is slow, God is late and God is never on time. People can’t stay where they are planted – they uproot themselves and shove off. People can’t accept that God knows best and His plans are best for them.

Worse of all, people are not willing to play their part! Faith requires correspondent actions, such as submission, humility, faithfulness, obedience, patience, generosity, persistence and serving the Lord in your local Church. This is too much for some people. Unfortunately, no Christian can build and prosper without these correspondent actions of faith.

When you are ready to walk with God, you are ready to build and prosper! May the Lord bless you as you journey with Him. Amen.

OFFER ALL YOUR LOAVES TO GOD

“But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have? Go and see." And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish." (Mark 6:38)

The story of how the Lord fed thousands of people on five loaves of bread and two pieces of fish is well-known. Let us look at five important loaves that we all have which we can offer to God through Christ Jesus in demonstration of our love, our obedience, and our faith.

Our first loaf is our life. Although Jesus Christ is Lord and Saviour forever, He does not force Himself on anyone. He gives everyone an open invitation. When we accept that invitation, we can no longer do whatever we like with our life. We have to surrender to God so that our life can be controlled by Him.

There is no way we can succeed in our relationship with God until Jesus is truly fully in control of our life. No matter how many other loaves we offer up to God, it is actually pointless if we did not offer Him first our life. God wants us to be people who live exclusively for Him and for Him alone. Have you offered God the loaf of your life?

Our second loaf is our love. One major sign that we have offered God our life is that we will love Him with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our strength. When we truly love God, there will be such a great passion in our heart to obey Him and to serve Him. We will be very generous and faithful towards Him, towards His house and towards His people. When you look at the way you spend your money and the way you spend your time, can you say you have offered God the loaf of your love?

Our third loaf is our trust. Although people come to Church it does not mean that they actually fully trust in God. To trust God is to depend completely on Him, to believe in His word, to have unshakeable confidence in His goodness, His greatness and His grace. For most people trust is not a simple thing when it comes to trusting in God. It is the greatest challenge that they actually face in life. However, when we trust God, we can genuinely experience the peace of God that passes all understanding when life is tough. When we trust God, it will show practically in everything that we do. Have you offered God the loaf of your trust?

Our fourth loaf is our worship. To worship is to spend time exclusively in prayer, in praise and adoration of God. In order to worship, we have to break off from our own daily routines, and spend the time exclusively in the presence of God, giving Him our wholehearted worship. If we do not make time for God, we discover that we spend our time on many other types of activities which have no direct or even indirect focus on God as our Maker, our Redeemer and our Sustainer. God does want our worship, our whole worship, it is during worship that we give the best time to God, the best attention to His word, and we make Him the sole focus of our life! Have you offered God the loaf of your worship?

Our fifth loaf is our work. Our work is our vocation in life, our employment, our paid or unpaid job. Our work is whatever we do using the skills and wisdom that God has given us. Our work is everything that we do with particular attention and detail – something that requires our time and our effort. The Bible teaches us that whatever we do we should do it as if for the Lord. Have you offered God the loaf of your work?

May the Lord bless you according to the loaves that you offer generously to Him. Amen.

YOU ARE SURE TO BREAK THROUGH

“Then it happened, as he drew back his hand, that his brother came out unexpectedly; and she said, "How did you break through? This breach be upon you!" Therefore his name was called Perez.” (Genesis 38:29)

Perez is named as the ancestor of David and of the Lord Jesus Christ (Ruth 4:12-18). He is one of Judah’s twin sons by Tamar (Genesis 38:24-30). Tamar’s story is one of tragedy. She was a foreigner who married an Israelite. She married twice into the same family but the men who were brothers were not godly people. They died and left Tamar a widow.

Judah, her father in law, whilst coping with the bereavement of his own wife – the mother of her two sons who had died - decided to have sexual relationship with a prostitute. This was not expected of him but he was going through a very lonely time and he chose a short cut that he was not supposed to choose. The “prostitute” that he slept with turned out to be Tamar, her own daughter-in-law!

How will this tragic story end? This was a very serious family mess. Most families have a mess that they keep away from people – either because the mess is not big enough like Tamar’s mess, or they have learnt to give their mess to God to deal with for them.

There is no perfect family. In fact, all families have their own mess in one way or another – challenges that they are facing; struggles that they are coping with; poor finances, family conflicts, domestic difficulties, personal problems, issues where they are expecting God to show up for them in order to be able to raise up their hands in praise.

How will your story end? Well, consider Judah and what God did for him when he turned the mess of his family over to God. For every mess, there is a message of victory; a message of protection; a message of provision; a message of deliverance; a message of God’s faithfulness is always waiting for us when we turn our mess over to Him.

Judah is the great ancestor of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was the great grandfather of King David. God still has plans for those who are in mess if they determine to stay with God and not quit; if they choose through time to believe in God for an outcome that proves His name, messy people will soon find that they are the type of people that God blesses amazingly!

You are sure to break through like Perez did in such a fashion that when God has done it even you yourself will ask, “How did I break through?” This is how everyone breaks through:

Stay with God
No matter the circumstances you face, stay with God. All other alternatives end in disappointment. Stay where you are planted, every tree that is planted in the right soil eventually flourishes, even the Chinese bamboo tree. Do you know it takes many years for it to even germinate and many years for it to flourish? However, once its growing season begins, no-one can stop it! And it grows into a surprisingly big, very big bamboo tree! Your growing season may be late or delayed, but surely it is coming!

Stay in the Word of God
Whose report will you believe? The world is full of gloomy news. Are you going to be depressed by the situation in the world at large, the situation in your family, the situation at work? Happiness never comes by worrying about it. Actually, joy is killed when you constantly worry about your life or the life of those that you love. Can you try and switch off and bury all your hopes in God’s promises for the rest of your life? Believe God’s report: He says He has plans for you – good plans, to give you a future and a hope!

Stay in Church!
Look at what God is doing in your Church and join in and be part of God’s family through what you do for God and His local family which is your Church. No Church is perfect – every Church has its strengths and weaknesses but still Jesus says the Church is His body and He died for the Church. While there are no perfect leaders, God gives pastors the responsibility of leading His work in the Church. Stay close to your Pastors, let them be able to count on you and when they pray for you, indeed, you are sure to break through!

May God bless you with a definite breakthrough this year!

SPEED UP YOUR BLESSINGS

"And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the LORD your God…” (Deuteronomy 28:2)

No matter the country or the culture, God’s word does not know any barriers. God’s word is not limited by age or gender and it is meant for everyone. If anyone is willing to listen to God and consider and respond in the right way, the word of God will produce a beneficial outcome, no matter the culture or country that they are located in, and no matter their age or gender.

The blessings of God are not what you work for. They are not wages that you receive because you have laboured all day long for them. Wages are paid according to the contract that is set. But the blessings of God shall come upon you and overtake you, only because you obey the voice of the LORD your God.

If blessings are slow to flow, it is not that God is slow to bless. No, the speed of your blessings is tied to the level of your obedience. Obedience has the following important ingredients:

Compliance
To comply is to accept the criteria that God has set out for those who claim that Jesus is their Lord and Saviour. There are certain standards that God expects us to comply with. They are not negotiable. We are simply to accept them and live by them. Perhaps, the simplest example of such standards is the Ten Commandments.

Don’t think that God has swept those commandments aside. He wrote them out Himself and they remain for ever the ten statements that God personally wrote.

Agreement
This word means “concord” or the absence of strife and dispute and argument, particularly, in relation to the right path to take in life. God has set for us a particular direction – our journey is to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Our path is to follow the example of Jesus in seeking out the preferences of God daily and following them.

The Bible teaches us that two people cannot walk together except they agree (Amos 3:3). In life, we find it difficult to say “Yes” to everything that those who are in authority over us consider to be right, which is to be expected. After all, human beings can get it wrong! However, when it comes to our relationship with God, we must constantly say “Yes” to all that He says.

Submission
This word means “surrender”. You give up your rights; you come under the control of the person to whom you have surrendered. It is a very hard thing to lose your independence, and to accept that your life will only be in pattern with the word of God. However, it is impossible to grow in our relationship with God until we have totally surrendered our will to Him.

In life generally, you cannot succeed much if you are unwilling to learn how to submit. In fact most of the relationships that we have are underpinned by our understanding of submission. Success in life often comes at a price: submission!

Respect
The Bible teaches that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10). That fear is not the same thing as the fear that we have when we face murderers or burglars or rapists, or such other wicked people. The “fear” here is much more about respecting God, reverencing Him, honouring Him, worshipping Him and serving Him because He is God. He is our Maker. He is our Heavenly Father. He is our Parent!

Duty
Obedience also means duty. We have an obligation to listen to God and act responsibly in accordance to His instructions. It is our duty, our task, our function, our responsibility to listen to God and to respond positively. When we do so, we are clearly showing that He has the ultimate right to decide for us and that we have resolved to conform to His just and gracious requirements. The Bible teaches us that God’s requirements are not burdensome! (1John 5:3) Jesus says, “My yoke is easy and My burden is light!” (Matthew 11:30)

Let blessings overtake you, obey the Lord!

GRACE IN THE WILDERNESS

“Thus says the LORD: "The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness -Israel, when I went to give him rest." (Jeremiah 31:2)

The wilderness is a symbol of times when things go wrong, when things seem not to be working out, when things are difficult and challenging.

However, as we can see in the experience of the people of Israel, the wilderness is a territory we all have to cross in order to reach our “promised land”. In this sense, the wilderness is not our final stop it is a place of temporary stay, a transitional situation, a crossing through. The key word is “crossing”, we are crossing through.

Unfortunately sometimes, our attitude can make the crossing longer, make our stay not temporary but seemingly permanent, and the transition is no longer transition, it is a process of settling in the wilderness.

It is painful to settle in the wilderness when you are only meant to pass through. This is what happened to the children of Israel when a “crossing through” that should not last longer than forty days turned into forty years! As a result, they moved from wilderness into wilderness, not knowing any other life for many years. At least they lived in seven wildernesses.

“Wilderness situations” happen to us from four sources:

The general ebb and tide of life – wars, famines, pestilences, economic booms and blues, etc.

The choices that we make, even a good choice can produce challenges, how much more a bad choice! Abraham obeyed God and came to Palestine, only to face Pharaoh and Abimelech. He chose Lot to enjoy the blessing of God with him, only to find out that Lot wants everything, not a share!

The impact of other people’s lives upon our own life: some people cross our path in life and we are blessed, some bring such burdens and chaos that we are left drained and discouraged. Some children make our life easy as parents, some make our joy disappear overnight and make us wonder whether it is right to have children at all!

The choices that God makes for us – life is not easier simply because God is in charge! Rebekah was handpicked for Isaac through the agency of the Holy Spirit (Genesis 24:44), and Saul was chosen for Israel (1Samuel 9:15-17). When the apostles were told to get into a boat and cross over to the other side by the Lord they did not reckon they would face a storm! (Mark 6:45-47)

What should we know when we are in the wilderness? We should know that God offers us grace in the wilderness. Without the grace of God we will never be able to survive the wilderness. “Grace” means kindness, favour, mercy and leniency. God doesn’t stand aloof from us when we are passing through difficult times. In fact, if we can turn towards God at such times we will discover that He has already made a provision of His bottomless grace to meet our wilderness needs.

The grace that God offers also includes various practical blessings. For instance, God offers us deliverance from the enemy, miraculous provision, helpers along the way, healing when required, companionship and guidance. Without such blessings, we will be hopeless when we find ourselves in a wilderness!

Are you in a wilderness? Be encouraged, God is there with you. Receive His grace!

BELIEVING THROUGH

“So Jesus answered and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' it will be done.” (Matthew 21:21)

Many of us are aware of the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ that we must pray without getting weary, praying until we receive the answer to our prayer (Luke 18:1). However, prayer is like a coin with two faces – one face is about praying through, the other face is about believing through.

For some believers, praying without getting weary (which means praying until something happens) can be very challenging, very difficult especially because sometimes it means praying over a particular issue for a long time before the result comes through; sometimes your praying comes to a natural end when something contrary to your prayer happens. For instance, say, you are praying for someone that is ill, instead of getting better it can happen that they even get worse during the process and die. Practically your praying has come to an end in such a situation. You have got to come to terms with the fact that God has chosen an option that you did not pray for.

You can see that prayer is not for those who do not have a concrete relationship with God. If you do not have an established relationship with God, a relationship that is based on the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary, you are likely to find prayer very tiring, boring, ineffective and time wasting. However, if you know that through Jesus Christ, God is now really your heavenly Father you will not only enjoy praying to God, you will also be confident that your prayer matters to Him.

As we grow in our relationship with God, we become very certain that we must pray through and also believe through. So what is this “believing through”?

Believing through means you have no doubt at all that God will use your prayer according to His own purpose. What you want when you pray is not just your purpose but God’s purpose. God’s purpose is God’s will, and although it may not immediately bring us satisfaction, God’s will is always the best in every situation. Behind every sincere prayer is the saying of Jesus: “Not according to My will, Father, but according to Yours!” (Luke 22:42)

Believing through means you have no doubt at all that God will use your prayer according to His own plan. A plan is a diagram of what will happen. For instance, a house plan is a diagram of what type of house will be built. God’s plan, for instance, was to take Joseph through betrayal, slavery and imprisonment before he could become the governor of Egypt. The diagram was painful but necessary. No matter how Joseph prayed, he had to accept the plan of God for carrying out his prayer concerning this matter. Again you must accept that God’s plan is best for you as you pray.

Believing through means you have no doubt at all that God will use your prayer according to His own ways and means. God has various ways (or methods) and means (resources) dealing with our requests. The “ways and means” is how God carries out His plan. Most times God’s ways and means are integral to the kind of plan that He has for us, as we see in the example of Joseph. If you really want your prayer life to be remarkably effective, you must stop wrestling with how God answers your prayer. Remember, Zacharias asked the angel Gabriel, “How?” and he was rebuked for lack of faith (Luke 1:18-20).

Believing through means you have no doubt at all that God will use your prayer according to His own schedule. Whether we like it or not, God does take His own time for doing things! God rarely moves according to man’s timetable yet in divine wisdom all His plans are carried out in synchronisation with man’s timetable! This is why God told the prophet Habakkuk, “You must wait for me even if it seems I am late getting there. I will not be late, I will arrive on time!” (Habakkuk 2:3b) You won’t enjoy your prayer life much until you have the confidence that the timing of God is excellent and that He genuinely rules in everything that concerns you, when you pray to Him (Psalm 22:28; Daniel 4:25-26).

No wonder, the Lord Jesus said, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." (Mark 9:23) Notice the emphasis is not on if you can pray (many people can pray!). The emphasis is on if you can believe. Why? Because only very few people believe! "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." May God make the impossible possible for you as you believe on Him no matter what you are faced with! Amen.

THE SHADOW ON THE SUNDIAL

“Behold, I will bring the shadow on the sundial, which has gone down with the sun on the sundial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward." So the sun returned ten degrees on the dial by which it had gone down.” (Isaiah 38:8)

Hezekiah was a righteous person in the sight of the LORD. Whilst it is true that our righteousness cannot save us, we are required to walk before God blamelessly. In other words, we cannot just say there is grace to cover us when we sin, we must not abuse the grace of God.

Our relationship with God when we think about the relevance of grace is similar to the relationship between a wealthy father and his son. No matter how rich you are, you really do not want your children to waste your wealth. You want them to spend wisely and work hard as well.

The same thing goes with grace. Our heavenly Father loves us to enjoy His grace but not abuse it. He requires us to be righteous. In fact, the Bible states that “without holiness, no-one can see God.” When you do what God requires, you are covered deeply in His grace and you can expect astonishing favours. This is what happens to Hezekiah.

Hezekiah had fallen ill and his illness was terminal. He prayed fervently to God but the reply that God gave him through the prophet Isaiah was very negative: Hezekiah was told that his time was up, he was going to die. What will you do if you wanted good news but got bad news from God?

We can learn from Hezekiah: “Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the LORD, and said, "Remember now, O LORD, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight." And Hezekiah wept bitterly.” (Isaiah 38:2-3) The bad news only made him draw closer to God. Hezekiah simply persevered in prayer and handed his situation over to God afresh.

Bad news will come our way as the Lord wills, no matter how righteous we are. However, when we draw closer to God despite our pain, He is more than able to reach out and pour His grace into our life afresh.

Each day is a fresh day to draw closer to God. Each situation is a fresh opportunity to hand over our situation to Him. In the letter to the Hebrews, the Holy Spirit encourages us to “…come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)

As Hezekiah prayed, the LORD listened to his pleas and granted him additional years. The LORD told him he was healed. The news was too good to be true – Hezekiah therefore requested some form of assurance that what God had told him would come to pass. He asked for a sign to prove God’s word: he asked for a longer day and God moved the day backwards 10 degrees to assure Hezekiah he was healed.

There is nothing that God cannot do to give glory to His name as we pray. No matter the situation we face, if we can bend our knees and turn our face towards God in prayer, God is more than able to perform an amazing turnaround. The key ingredients are:

1.
Being where God wants us to be – make up your mind to remain where God has called you and do not allow anything to move you out of place. A lot of people get moved out of place, and therefore out of favour, because they want their own way, not God’s way!

2.
Doing what God requires – determine that you will walk in obedience to God. Obedience requires courage and consistency. Obedience requires repentance when you fall short of what God requires. Obedience quickens faith and releases God’s favour.

May the LORD perform a turnaround in your life and bring back the shadow on your sundial. Amen.

Out of the Eater

“So he said to them: "Out of the eater came something to eat, and out of the strong came something sweet." Now for three days they could not explain the riddle.” (Judges 14:14)

Adversity will never take permission from us before visiting us. Why? Because no-one except a fool will pray to be visited by adversity. Therefore, adversity will come without invitation.

There is truth in the promise that God will protect us to the uttermost and will not permit evil to befall us. However, we must understand also the other side of the coin: we are living in an evil and unfair world, a world that Satan finds easy to deceive and endanger nearly at will. Why? Because there is sin in the world and the simplest example of sin is that many, many people actually reject God.

Clearly, when someone rejects something that is good, what they will choose will be opposite to what is good, and the opposite of “good” is “evil”. Whilst God protects us day and night, He does sometimes allow us to experience some tough situations which, if we handle through faith, will result in the saying: "Out of the eater came something to eat, and out of the strong came something sweet."

Samson, an anointed man of God in the Old Testament, made this statement to describe his experience. One day a lion jumped out at him and he could have been killed but God came to his rescue and he killed the lion. A few days afterwards, he was passing by the corpse of the lion and was surprised that bees had laid their honey in the carcase of the lion. He was so hungry that he scooped the honey from the dead lion’s carcase and ate it. The honey was very sweet” Hence, his statement: "Out of the eater came something to eat, and out of the strong came something sweet."

The anointing of God is a very important gift that comes with the baptism of the Holy Spirit. All of us need God’s anointing – without His anointing we are pretty powerless! However, with His anointing, faith works like magic. You can’t explain it but you know deep down in you that you have got the best security in the world, no matter the number of “lions” that jump out at you as you go through life.

No matter how tough life is – and life can be very tough at times – and no matter the moment of disappointment and sorrow, those who carry God’s anointing are pretty strong people. They know deep down in them that everything that happens to them negatively will actually turn out positively to the glory of God!

As long as you are not bringing trouble on yourself through disobedience and ignorance, as long as you are walking in the light of God’s unshakeable word, you can wave your fist in the face of Satan and say: “Go to hell! I am not moved by what you throw at me! The Lord Jesus defeated you comprehensively on the cross of Calvary. He is the One that is living in me. And the One that is living in me is far greater and far superior to you, Satan! Even if I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For God is with me!”

When you carry God’s anointing and you are walking straight with God, ensuring that your life lines up with His word, you have nothing to fear. Every negative experience will soon turn out positive for you. Every sorrow will turn into joy, every tear into laughter! And if, as it can well happen, you did move out of line with the word of God, make sure you repent quickly and step back into God’s favour and keep yourself there. You are greater than an overcomer with God on your side!

May the LORD grant you many testimonies of "Out of the eater came something to eat, and out of the strong came something sweet" by turning your adversity into prosperity. Amen.

WEEPING ENDURES FOR A NIGHT

“So David went up by the Ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered and went barefoot. And all the people who were with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went up.” (2Samuel 15:30)

Although people can weep for joy, most times weeping is a sign of serious distress, pain, unhappiness, helplessness, loneliness, failure, defeat, disappointment and hopelessness. It is extremely rare to find someone who loves God and knows about His care and goodness, who has never wept. Even Jesus wept!

When you read the Bible you will find several examples of godly people, righteous people, many people with real faith and assurance of God’s unfailing goodness weeping because of their great sadness on particular occasions.

David was a king and a very precious man of God. He had his failings but God gave a testimony concerning David: “I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.” (Acts 13:22b) If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, God has the same testimony concerning us. However, as you can see, despite his successes and many amazing answers to his prayers, David still had many moments of sorrow and unhappiness.

On the outside, people can look as if they have got everything sewn up and nothing is missing. However, actually, all of us as children of God will experience various situations that will make us weep because they make us sad. It is important for us to know that weeping is part of our relationship with God. In fact, it is unavoidable, no matter how close we are to God!

However, when we do weep let us also remember that God has not forgotten us and, in fact, He is closest to us when we are most unhappy! Such was the situation David faced as he fled from his son, Absalom that the Bible recorded that “David went up by the Ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered and went barefoot. And all the people who were with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went up.”

Obviously, as he was going through this painful experience, he was praying his heart out to God. In the battle that followed, God gave him victory. Why? David tells us in Psalm 6:8 - “The LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.” In another Psalm, David noted that “God’s anger is but for a moment, His favour is for life; weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.” (Psalm 30:5)

In another Psalm, David prophesied, saying: “He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” (Psalm 126:6)

When we are sorrowful and distressed it obviously has a great impact on the tender lovingkindness of God. Because He is Immanuel (which means “God with us”), when God allows us to experience pain and disappointment, He is not far away from us: He is actually there with us! He is Jehovah-Shammah (“The LORD is there!”) If we understand this we will use our pain and sorrow as a very strong reason to seek the face of God.

No wonder, the LORD spoke to Jeremiah, the prophet: “My people shall come with weeping, and with supplications I will lead them. I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters, in a straight way in which they shall not stumble…” (Jeremiah 31:9

At another time, the LORD told Jeremiah: “Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for your work shall be rewarded…” (Jeremiah 31:16) Which means you have wept enough over this matter, now brighten up, wash yourself, put on your pomade and powder, your perfume and nice clothes, start enjoying your life again. God is still on the throne. He has heard your voice. Your night season concerning this matter is over. This is your morning, and your joy is here! Amen.

WHEN GOD HIDES FROM YOU...

“Why do You stand afar off, O LORD? Why do You hide in times of trouble?” (Psalm 10:1)

It can be extremely lonely if you trust in God and you are passing through a very difficult season in your life and it seems that God is far away!

We have been taught that God can stand afar off:

If we are constantly rebellious
Rebellion happens when we deliberately go against the word of God. It means to revolt, it means to say that God’s word is not true or that His word is not right. Once we have formed a habit of thinking that the Bible is not a modern book and that we must not take everything it says as relevant in today’s world, we will soon be rebellious. And it will not be too long before God stands afar off.

If we are constantly falling short of God’s requirement
There are times when we sin but we know and accept that God’s word is both true and right. In that case, we will not be described as rebellious in the extreme sense of the meaning of the word “rebellion”. But the Bible teaches us that if we know what is right and we refuse to act in the right way then we have sinned. Now we know that we are not perfect, and all of us will fall short at one time or another. However, if we have developed a habit for sinning again like we were doing before we knew Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, then before too long we will find that God is standing afar off.

If we doubt God’s love and care
Doubt is the opposite of belief. Of course, occasionally, on account of our human nature we can have doubts about God’s love and care, depending on how close we are to God and whether we are growing in His grace as we should. However, when we have unbelief rooted in our spirit, then we will not believe in things like miracles and we will not really feel we can pray to God with great expectations. When we habitually doubt God, it won’t be too long before we feel God is far off!

However, when the Psalmist says: “Why do You stand afar off, O LORD? Why do You hide in times of trouble?” (Psalm 10:1), it was the prayer of a person who knew he was walking right with God. You know when you are walking right with God – you are not rebellious, you are not consistently falling short of His requirements, and you have strong faith in His mercy and care.

It is not impossible to know how you are doing in your relationship with the Lord. When a child is getting on well with their parent, they know! When you are doing well at school, you know! The same way, when you are walking along with God and growing in obedience and faith, you will know! Therefore when trouble comes and God seems afar off, it can be a most painful experience!

So, what’s God doing “hiding” Himself from you at your most needy time?

Well, the picture is pretty clear in the Bible when you check the experiences of those who trusted in God and who seemed to have gone through difficult times with God “hiding” from them:

Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years before God fulfilled His promise. During that time God was preparing their Isaac!

Joseph spent about 17 years waiting to become the great man that God promised Him he would be. During that time God was preparing him for greatness.

David, the sweet Psalmist of Israel was anointed king when he was about 15 years old. For the next 15 years, he went through many lonely “wilderness” seasons before he actually became king. During that time, God was putting the kingdom together for him.

Is God hiding from you? Something great is coming your way – a blessing that is greater than you can think or ask for! Amen.

TACKLING THE FLOOD

“When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him.” (Isaiah 59:19b)

A flood happens as a result of too much rain, rivers overflowing and many water levels rising beyond expectation. In this verse, it is a picture of sudden negative happenings, similar to what Job experienced, brought about particularly by Satan. In other examples, for instance, the experiences of Joseph, it is not directly caused by Satan but attributable to his ability to use people to inflict hardship on God’s people.

God is certainly aware that things happen to us like a flood, determined to drown us, overthrow our hopes and expectations, and destroy our best laid plans. But here is the promise: “When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him.”

Here is the answer to the puzzle that life can bring to us. If you are faced with a problem and you know the solution to apply, then the problem is no longer a problem – it is an opportunity for you to move from “lower ground” to “higher ground”, from despair to hope, from hope to reality.

Are you going through a flood scenario? Then ask the Spirit of the LORD to lift a standard against it on your behalf. Until you ask the flood will persist and may well overthrow you. You ask: “What is the standard that I can expect in my situation?”

The word “standard” refers to the banner and the shield that knights in shiny armour often wear when they take the battle to their enemy. God’s standard, therefore, is everything that you need to resist the flood, to survive the flood and to be blessed despite the flood.

In other words, in the place of the word “standard”, God expects you to name the solution you require for solving your flood, surviving it and staying blessed despite it. You do this typically in conversation with God – heart-to-heart conversation with God which is called persistent praying; you PUSH (you Pray Until Something Happens).

Every flood requires a PUSH. If you are a child of God, you will realise that a baby does not get born naturally without contractions, or powerful pushing going through the muscles of the womb to push the baby out. There is pain, sometimes very intense pain but it is just for a season, the powerful pushing eventually results in the baby being born.

The same way when we are in a flood, we need to PUSH until we see the standard of God that we expect. Whilst going through the pain and discomfort of the situation, we need to sustain ourselves by believing in the expected end – victory, provision, protection, restoration, forgiveness – whatever it is that we strongly expect from God.

Don’t let the enemy discourage you. Don’t discourage yourself. As long as you are walking obediently and faithfully, you will soon discover that every PUSH results in something amazing. May the LORD God Almighty make a way for you today where there is no way; may God clear out the blockage. May God’s Holy Spirit lift up a standard for you above all that you can ask or think. Amen.

DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED...

“Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by the Way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way.” (Numbers 21:4)

Notice the latter part of the scripture: “the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way.” They were on the way to their blessing. They were on the way to their victory. They were on the way to their destiny. Yet their soul became very discouraged!

Every time you feel discouraged because of the hardships of life, because of delayed answers to prayer, because your finances are tight or your health is not good, just remember: you are on the way to your blessing, you are on the way to your victory, you are on the way to your destiny.

In fact you are travelling in the right direction as long as you are journeying with God: if you are not living in sin or rebellion; if you are not running away from where He wants you to be; if you are not on your own mission and doing your own thing your own way – you really can say at any time in the face of everything that you face: “I am not alone, God is with me!”

If you face hardships and trials and tribulations when you are going the right direction, it must be that the enemy has seen the blessings ahead of you and he is trying to beat you off the right track! Resist the devil and he will flee from you!

Is it not strange that when you are on the way to something good you are not feeling fine? Listen, even if you are going to die tomorrow because of your illness, even if you are going to go bankrupt because you do not have sufficient funds to pay your bills: relax! Your heavenly Father can dig you out of the deepest hole possible! The grave is not the end of everything, and everyone will die one day if the Lord tarries.

If truly heaven is beautiful, and we are going to meet with the Lord Jesus, there is no fear in death. In fact, He tasted death for us so that we will never die! We will fall asleep and we will wake up very refreshed and beautiful on the other side. We will find ourselves in the company of many, many children of God – a big wonderful and blessed family! A big time reunion! A party time that never ends!

Moreover who owns the gold and the bronze and the silver? Is it not your heavenly Father? If you are doing the right things in His presence and your finances are wobbly: have no fear, He has already named a day when you will be rewarded for all that you do for Him! He is a marvellously good Father and He is never forgetful of the generosity that you have shown, your commitment is never hidden from Him, your prayers never go unnoticed! He cares about the flowers and the birds! He cares for you! God cares!

Listen when you are discouraged, do the following things:

Count your blessings, name them one by one and it will surprise you what the Lord has done!

Think of people who are in a worse situation in life and pray for them.

Find ways to be a blessing to someone, despite your own situation. Doing good always comes with a warm feeling of satisfaction and hope.

Remind yourself life has not ended for you: you are still alive and do something that brings you fun and laughter!

Soak yourself in the Word of God, soak yourself in the work of God, and let His praise fill your heart and spirit.

Be lifted up, you are on the way to your success! Today’s troubles are the best signs that something good is ahead of you!! Amen.

WHEN YOU ARE DISCOURAGED

“Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by the Way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way.” (Numbers 21:4)

The journey from Mount Hor would have been an easy journey, if the people were given help by the people of Edom. However, as we read in the story, the Edomites refused Israel to pass through their territory. Therefore, they needed to go round the land of Edom which made the journey longer.

Before this event, they had already had tough times concerning lack of drinking water, and basic provisions such as food and meat. They had fought the Amalekites, and had heard the disturbing news about giants waiting to swallow them up in the Promised Land. The last thing they wanted was a long, rough journey round the land of Edom!

Notice this: discouragement doesn’t always come at once – it usually develops from negative experiences which continue to pile up until we feel overwhelmed and helpless. Often, we are discouraged because our expectations have not been met despite our faith in God. Sometimes, it is all due to our ignorance about how God uses all our experiences to bless us. We are so human and our pain can be very real. People may remind us of the passage in Isaiah where God declares that His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. But even such a reminder may only make us feel the pain more, not less!

David knew God very intimately and had experienced great favours from God. Yet, in many Psalms, he continued to plead for God’s help in so many overwhelming situations! In a particular Psalm, David cried out: “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.” (Psalm 42:5)

Elijah felt so discouraged in the face of bitter and unrelenting opposition that he asked God to take his life! “And he prayed that he might die, and said, "It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!" (1Kings 19:4)

Is there a remedy for discouragement? Yes, there is!

When you are discouraged remember God’s previous acts of mercy in your life. David prayed: “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits…” (Psalm 103:2)

When you are discouraged, keep repeating an applicable verse from the Bible to encourage yourself in the Lord. There is always a promise of God for every problem that we will face in life. “Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep. And David's two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive. Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.” (1Samuel 30:4-6)

When you are discouraged, try your best to attend all Church meetings because the Lord will find a suitable occasion to speak to your situation and change things for you! “They shall come with weeping, and with supplications I will lead them. I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters, in a straight way in which they shall not stumble; for I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim is My firstborn.” (Jeremiah 31:9)

When you are discouraged, do not bottle up your feelings. Speak to your Pastors. God has given them a charge to be concerned for your welfare, to pray for you, to advise you and to support you through the situation: “So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the LORD your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper." (2Chronicles 20:20)

David said: “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.” (Psalm 42:5). May God restore to you the joy of salvation and strengthen you with His unfailing love. Amen.

DRAW NEAR TO GOD HERE...

“…Then the priest said, "Let us draw near to God here." (1Samuel 14:36)

When Saul became the first king of Israel, he faced implacable enemies in his neighbours, the Philistines. Throughout his reign he did not find the opportunity to make peace with these sworn-enemies and he actually died in a battle with them on Mount Gilboah.

There are occasions when we face very difficult situations – there are problems that people face which have persisted for a long time, pinning them down and making progress difficult, if not impossible. Sometimes such problems manifest in our health, sometimes it is in our finances, sometimes it is in our marriage, sometimes it is in our family (misbehaving children, difficult parents, hard siblings, chaotic extended family issues, etc). Sometimes we even face problems together as a Church, or in our Church!

This is where we can catch the wisdom of what the priest was saying to Saul and his army generals in 1Samuel 14:36. Saul saw the enormity of the problem before him in the Philistines and thought he had a chance to jump upon them and kill them all. Therefore, he said, "Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and plunder them until the morning light; and let us not leave a man of them." His generals agreed with him, they said, "Do whatever seems good to you." But the priest saw things differently: the challenges that we face in life are a great opportunity for us to draw closer to God.

There are many things around us which whisper loudly, “Let us draw near to God here!” Churches are a big voice reminding us to draw near to God here. The various sad stories that we read about or see on television, they cry out loudly to this nation to draw near to God here. The word “here” in that scripture refers to any situation that we face and we feel we have got the answers sorted out or we feel perplexed by their enormity or complexity – that is where and when to draw close to God!

A nation that is clever in its own eyes, and people that feel so secure in their own cleverness will always end up, in the course of time, great losers! It may take years, it may take generations but the Bible warns us repeatedly that those who ignore the Creator of the universe will no doubt face very adverse consequences in the course of time.

The wise Teacher says: “Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the well.” (Ecclesiastes 12:6) Elsewhere, the Psalmist says: “For indeed, those who are far from You shall perish…” (Psalm 73:27)

Now, we know God loves the world so much that He gave up His only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die for all of us and if we put our faith in Him and walk in His footsteps as God’s redeemed people, we will not perish. The cross of Jesus speaks loudly and eloquently: “Draw near to God here!”

The great hymn says it all: “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer. Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer. Are we weak and heavy-laden,
Cumbered with a load of care? Precious Saviour, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer; In His arms He’ll take and shield thee, thou wilt find a solace there.”

The Bible says, Jesus is our great High Priest, always making intercession for us before the throne of His Father. May I plead with you today: "Let us draw near to God here, at the foot of Jesus.” May the LORD God Almighty answer you wonderfully today. Amen.