Joshua 1:8
Quoting a tract I read: “He could have lived a missionary, he decided to be a millionaire. Early in life, you would have thought a John was in making, but he ended up being a Judas. We thought he would be another Paul, but he became another Pilate.”
Adding to the above choice that led to a life of tragedy – A church was committed into his hands, but he opted to be an international evangelist. She was called to take care of the children church, she chose to join the choir. Invited to teach on Spiritual Growth, he turned the message to Financial Growth.
Where is he now? He owns a beautiful house abroad. He rides an expensive car. His business is booming. He is very popular that he even dines with the President.
What about the ministry given to him by God? He is now busy arguing on the mysteries of the kingdom of God rather than winning souls into the kingdom. Having numerous business appointments, she rarely has time for her own kids. Evangelism in his local church is now a thing of the past because of his numerous seminars abroad.
The moment one is born again, a ministry is committed into his hands. Be it, public ministry as evangelism or private as performing an activity in the church, God demands faithfulness. If you remain in the faith and be faithful in that which was committed into your hand till the end, kudos – you have earned good success. If you fall out of the faith or deviate from that which God called you, you are a failure. Peradventure the world declares you successful because of the physical achievement they see, lo – you have achieved nothing more than bad success, and there is no reward for that. No, not one!
“…Keep this man: if by any means he be missing, then shall your life be for his life…”
Let us be watchful and prayerful to avoid saying on that day:
“And as your servant was busy here and there, he was gone.” I Kings 20:39-40.
– Okenna Igbokwe
Have you noticed something common among people who would probably be referred to as poor, losers, bankrupt or failures? There is always someone or something they think is responsible for their predicament. If it is not because their boss is wicked, then it must be because their spouse is uncaring, their followers are uncooperative or the government is unproductive. They always find it legitimate to put the blame on others and this has always hindered them from advancing with the right pace.
John Maxwell once wrote, “it is easier to move from failure to success than from excuses to success”. Remember Adam in the Garden of Eden. When he ate the forbidden fruit and God questioned him, he gave a nice excuse – “the woman you gave me as a companion, she gave me fruit from the tree, and, yes, I ate it”. As far as he was concerned, God was the initiator and his woman was the perpetrator of his problems. But that did not vindicate him in God’s sight. His excuses only worsened the existing problem.
Things may not be 100% right in your environment. Therefore, if you are looking for someone or something to put the blame on, the good news is that you will definitely find one. But the bad news is that you will shut your mind from solutions and possibilities, and it will be more difficult to move towards success. But you can decide to get rid of excuses, look inward and overcome the obstacles on your way.
– tope aladenus
“I messed myself up in the interview. It was really a bad day for me.”
“Despite all my prayers, I still flunked the test. Never seen such a bad day!”
“My wife suddenly fell sick early in the morning. By the time I reached office after taking the kids to school, the meeting had already started. I had to answer a query after. Then, I got a call that Junior broke his arm in school. Only God knows what a bad day.”
The quote continues.
If you were to describe what you call your bad day, wouldn’t it be something like the above? A description of a disappointment to a day’s expectation!
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” Matthew 6:33.
Though a professing Christian, you have so much learned to seek first “all these things.” And when “all these things” fail to make headway a particular day, it is termed a bad day.
Why is your bad day not usually a day you were too busy to pray; a day you failed to tell someone about Jesus; a day you lied? What happens to a day when you talked so carnally as if you have never been a Christian?
“Whether therefore you eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”
I Corinthians 10:31.
If ever you should term a day “bad”, I think it should be a day you were unconscious of the above verse. God is willing to help you achieve this.
– okenna obi-igbokwe
Reasons trail most actions in the world, except for few ones in which case the person in question is suspected for insanity, though I feel that an insane person believes there are reasons for his actions despite his mental derailment. When we take a closer look at what our friends, relations, acquaintances etc do and their actions seems to interest us we often decide to act likewise. To emulate someone’s character or lifestyle is not bad but we rarely determine in our heart to weigh and assess properly the pros and cons of their actions. It is not uncommon to see someone act like a friend just did. For example, somebody just decided to reduce the time spent praying due to tight schedules or present challenges, and after being observed by a friend sometime later, such an attitude becomes the status quo for that friend also.
There is a similar instruction in bible that encourages us to give room for external influence but it is with a caution note; Gal 4:18 “But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you”. I understand that bible definition of ‘a good thing’ is quite different from that of so many of us. Notwithstanding, let God be true and all men be liars (Romans 3: 4). Neither relenting on our efforts can be called ‘good’; nor can acting contrary to our initial conviction in God’s scriptural truth be called ‘good’. For instance, telling of lies instead of the truth is slanderously called ‘holy lie’, while stealing as of today is referred to pilfering.
No matter how we beautify and justify our decaying spiritual retrogression, it is still wrong in the sight of God. Faithfulness in God is not supposed to be for a while but till we are done with our assignment here on earth.
Awake from that SLUMBER and SLOTHFULNESS, stand upright and PRAY. Remember 2Co 10:12 “For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise”.
– adeyiga awomuti