Every week I try to compose an exhortation and send to subscribers of Christ Lifeline weekly devotional messages. I remember there was a week I did not feel like writing at all and I didn’t want to send any message. But it occurred to me that I have a reputation of posting messages on a weekly basis. I immediately composed a message and sent it. Guess what? I received numerous testimonies from people who were blessed by that message, but I knew afterwards that I was ranking very low in terms of quality. Why? My motivation for writing that week was just to sustain my reputation. I began to see more clearly why some pastors have said that on the Day of Judgment, many will be shocked.
He that is born of flesh is flesh, and he that is born of the Spirit is spirit. There is a spiritual side to us, which is more important than our physical side. In everything as Christians, we must act from and by the spirit.
Our heavenly account is of more importance than our earthly account and we must consciously pay attention to its operation.
Yes we all have a heavenly account and Jesus warned that we pay more attention to this account than we do to our earthly account. “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.” (Matthew 6:19-20)
That means you can lay up treasures here on earth, and you can do the same thing in heaven from your time on earth!
“Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens.”(Luke 12:33)
When bank accounts were held in bags, Jesus taught that there was another bag account in the heavens.
Paul also referred to this account in the admonition to the church in Philippians: “Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.”(Philippians 4:17)
So, we all have a heavenly account. This account is operated in similar ways to how we operate our bank account. You can make deposits and withdrawals at will. But like Jesus said, the account in heaven has major advantages:
It is not subject to loss of whatever kind: no economic upheaval , inflation nor financial system collapse can affect it.
It gives more than monetary returns and for me this is the greatest. Most people lay too much emphasis on “cash”, but the blessings of God maketh complete/whole. It ensures we don’t have emergencies- that means you will not suddenly have a need or an issue you do not have the capacity to meet. It ensures provision and need come side by side. When there is a need, then the resource is available. When you make deposits in this account, a penny with you achieves so much compared to a million in the world. I tell you it is a typical case of give five loaves and two fishes and have more than enough supply to feed a multitude and still have excess! And whatever you cannot afford in a sense you receive for free! A pastor once explained this phenomenon to me in another light; he said even when he does not have the “asset “he always has “access”. Wow! There are a million and one things all the money in the world cannot give you. But the proceeds from your heavenly account gives you access to them.
Another benefit is that your heavenly account is managed by God. And no one gives better returns than Him. Your deposits keeps speaking and bearing fruits.
I am blessed by the story of Cornelius told in Acts 10. Apparently when the time came to pour out the spirit on the Gentiles, God started with a man who had made constant deposits to his heavenly account. “His prayers and gifts to the poor came up as a memorial offering before God”. At that time he was unsaved, but God still kept a record of all the deposits he ever made and rewarded him with the Gift of Gifts!
So how do you make deposits and withdrawals into this account we all have?
Deposit!
As long as the earth remains, seed time and harvest will not cease! Deposits are made in seed time. It is giving time. Anytime we give, we make a deposit into our heavenly account.
Phil 4: 15-17, our seeds or giving is a direct deposit to our account.These accounts can abound and increase through giving to the poor (Proverbs 19:17) Giving to the poor on earth makes an instant deposit in heaven. Jesus said whatsoever you do to the least of them, you do directly to Him. Making any type of investment into the preaching of the Gospel (Mark 10:29,30) and giving simply as praise to God are also deposits to the heavenly account.
So Luke 12:33 says “sell that ye have, and give alms, provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth.”
1 Timothy 6:17-19 also says “charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; that they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on to eternal life.”
If all you have is a heavy earthly account then your tomorrow is uncertain. Money has failed to save anyone. So focus on your heavenly account through giving, and lay up in store for yourself a good foundation for the time to come.
If giving had no returns I will still give. I cannot imagine a life where I cannot share my resources, my time, my talents and the gift that God has made me, and put in me. Life will be without worth if I cannot give and receive a smile, a hug and a prayer from another person. But thanks be to God because we can make withdrawals from our heavenly account and receiving follows giving.
Withdrawing
Let everyman be a liar, God remains true. The scripture cannot be broken. Our deposits are securely received and multiplied by God. Many have been taught to give, but few Christians expect or know how to receive and withdraw from heaven.
But God who cannot lie affirmed that as we give, it shall be given back to us, good measure pressed down, shaken together and running over shall men give to our bosom. And also affirms that He is able to make all grace abound towards us that we always having all sufficiency in all things may abound unto every good work!
The first step to making withdrawals is to have the confidence and consciousness that you have an account you have a right to at anytime. This is key; confident faith and a consciousness. This should lead to an unwavering expectation. Expect always a return on your investment. When you go out, expect to be blessed because men giving to your bosom is a form of withdrawal.
Expect things to work for you. When men fail all over, you win because your account has to be multiplied for you. In Malachi,God said test me and see if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour you down a blessing there will not be room enough to receive it. It’ is confident faith, consciousness and an unwavering expectation at all times that we use to withdraw from heaven.
And finally make verbal demands on your account. Exploit the power of your tongue. A man shall eat good by the fruits of his lips and by the increase he shall be satisfied. When you need anything call it. Say you have it. I have should replace I need. Your faith produces the consciousness which creates an expectation. And out of the abundance of that expectation your mouth speaks forth. That’ is how you make a withdrawal. Be conscious of that. God expects you to expect to receive. He expects you to draw on your heavenly account.
You have an account in the heavens. Use it well. As ye abound in everything, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace of giving also. (2 Corinthians 8:7).
We are blessed.
Emmanuel A Aladenusi
| One reason many believers do not act in faith is because the current figures on their planning sheets or the circumstances around them seem unfavourable. But we will need to learn to ignore the figures (most times) when we act in faith.
When Jesus Christ wanted to feed 5000 men, the figures were unfavourable; they had just 5 loaves and 2 fish. Imagine 5 loaves divided among 5000 men, besides women and children – there would not be enough crumbs for some of the people to lick. Jesus understood the numbers but ignored them and acted in faith. The bible recorded that they had 12 bags of leftover after feeding the 5000 men. When Joshua and his team went to spy the land of Canaan, some of them came back with the report that the figures and circumstances were against them. The people in Canaan were many, and the Israelites were like grasshoppers compared to the Canaanites. But Caleb and Joshua who were acting on God’s instruction were not moved by the figures and statures.
Likewise, whenever you are acting on God’s word written in scripture or spoken to you, you may need to ignore the figures and move into action with the mindset that success is guaranteed.
The spiritual man or woman should know when to ignore the figures. The figures may help you know where you currently stand, but they should not deter you from reaching your God-given goals. Learn to make plans based on the directives of the Holy Spirit. Many times when God gives me an instruction regarding a move to make, I find myself saying – how can these things come to pass, because the figures are clearly not on my side in the physical realm. I remember years ago when He led us to donate classroom blocks to the Christian Learning Centre in Dukkawa, Nigeria. We had less than 5 partners in our ministry then, and our combined income wouldn’t have achieved much. But in less than 2 years from when we decided to act in faith, our partner numbers rose to over 100 and we were able to donate a block of 3 state-of-the-art classrooms to the Christian Learning Centre.
When God sends you to do a task, it may look impossible at first, but if you commit your mind and actions to it, it begins to look possible, and before you know it, it is accomplished. Action is usually the highway that helps you move from the impossible junction to the attainable lane.
What God wants to achieve through us is far greater than where we currently are or what we have today and that is why the figures and circumstances usually look mind blowing or unfavourable. Divine ideas require divine supplies for their fulfilment and God’s vision requires God’s provision for its realization. Therefore, the mind blowing figures should not scare us away from God’s goal for our lives; rather we should see them as reminders that we are God’s children who depend on divine supplies to achieve God-given ideas.
So I encourage you to put the figures in the right perspective and act in faith today!
Tope Aladenusi |
“Whosever hears these sayings of mine and doeth them the same is blessed in his deeds”. Now I want you to note carefully what the bible is teaching in the following scriptures.
The New American Standard version of the Bible (NASB) renders Mathew 7:24 this way; “therefore everyone who hears these words of mine AND ACTS ON THEM, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock and the rain fell, and the floods came and the winds blew and slammed against that house; AND YET IT DID NOT FALL, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of mine AND DOES NOT ACT ON THEM, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand…”
John 13:17 “If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them”.
James 1:22 “but prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves”.
Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word. But we have to go beyond this level to the level of doers. Who are those who achieve great things? Those who act on the word of God! Who is able to believe without wavering, who stands firm and unshakable when the rains, the winds and the floods of life blows? Those who act on the word! Faith is PERFECTED (lacking nothing) when we act. Nothing questions faith like inaction. A lack of corresponding action is the greatest bane to faith and you don’t know what you can achieve, what giant is in you, until you act. There is a giant in you, that can overcome all, that giant is let loose when you go into action based on your faith. Don’t wait to have so-called big faith. The bible tells us clearly that if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, “move” and it will respond to you. In truth, great faith is the result of many corresponding little actions. David acted his faith, first while caring for his animals and it grew. Later he met Goliath and applied the same principles of faith. It is not faith you lack; its action.
So the question at this point might as well be what have you done with your faith?
By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac.
By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come
By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of pharaoh’s daughter.
By faith this same Moses forsook Egypt.
By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about for seven days.
I love these scriptures. See the actions our heroes of faith took on the basis of their faith. They acted by faith. Seven days they matched round a city. Seven days they acted because they believed and got results. In anything and everything by faith take action.
I feel the frustration of believers when they believe God for something and it’s like nothing is happening. But let every man be a liar, God remains true. Has He promised and He will not perform? Heaven and earth will pass away but not one jot of his word will go unfulfilled. The confidence we have is that if we ask anything in His name we know that He hears us, and if He does, then we know we have our petitions.
We have them. All things are yours. Actions establish them. There are so many things you can do that will never happen because you didn’t get started. Take a step of faith. Just a small step. If you have faith for a business, do as little as making enquiries. Doing that alone releases so much power. You see things fall into place; because you acted. If you want to grow that same business, pray over it in your understanding and in other tongues, then try new things as the Spirit guides you and see the resultant effect. If you want to be a great evangelist for God, start by speaking to the one person next to you and soon you will speak to thousands. What do you have faith for? What great dreams, visions or prophesy do you have? Take a step. Act. Power is released when we act.
Don’t just believe in your mind, speak it out, act it. Take action NOW. In anything and everything God is laying on your heart, by faith take action, and nothing can stop you.
This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.
– Emmanuel Aladenusi
When I was a new believer in Christ and was trying to understand the faith concept, I believed that faith was trusting God for something without the smallest iota of doubt in the process. So when I had even the smallest of doubts, I believed that negated my faith. I also believed that once you had faith you did not need to do anything, all you had to do was keep praying and keep waiting; God through scriptures taught me otherwise.
I remember all the struggles I had trying to determine if I had faith or not. Many have these same issues and because they know that they must believe God without wavering, they are quick to assume they are disqualified whenever they falter in their faith.
How then do we establish faith? How do we prove this is faith? How do we know faith? By corresponding actions! James 2:26 – “for as the body without the spirit is dead so faith without works is dead also”. It’s not enough to say I have faith; you must consciously take action on the basis of that faith. Once you do that, faith is made perfect. James 2: 22 “… by works faith was made perfect”.
Act your faith. Put your faith to work. Abraham believed God and he sacrificed Isaac; Joseph believed God and gave instructions concerning his bones; Noah believed God and he built an ark. Their actions affirmed their faith and it was accounted to them as righteousness. Don’t spend time debating with the devil, just act your faith.
When you don’t act your faith you won’t get results. We are partakers with God. That means together with God we make things happen. So it’s not just enough to believe, we must take actions that corresponds to our faith. If you have faith for healing, don’t remain on the bed, get up and walk. If you believe God for a house, then begin to shop for one and start putting money aside towards the payment. By taking action you perfect faith. That’s why James said, I will show you my faith by my works.
And if it appears you doubt, override it by actions that are in tandem with the faith you desire. I like the story of Jesus and Peter. Luke 5:4-6 “and he said to Simeon, launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch. But Simeon answered and said to him, Master we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net”. It’s like saying I don’t really believe this will work, but because you have said it I will act. And his actions brought him results. We don’t work by feelings, so ignore whatever doubt you feel and act your faith. For every “but” of doubt let there be a corresponding “nevertheless” in actions.
Friends act your faith today. Don’t be passive in faith. Be active in it. If you believe God for something, establish it by corresponding actions. “Whosoever hears these sayings of mine and doeth them the same is blessed in his deeds”.
Emmanuel Aladenusi
Since he got born again, he had been keeping the faith. Trials came but could not pull him down. As Paul put it, he was troubled on every side, yet not distressed; he was perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing about in his body the dying of the Lord Jesus.
Through those years, he swam dangerous waters, fought the fiercest spiritual battle. And now? It seems he is getting tired of the struggles to keep the Christian faith. He even desires a break – may be to taste the other side of life.
Have you felt this way before? Do you know what would happen if you’re left to fulfill your desire? Do you know the havoc devil would inflict on your life within that one minute of lapse? The devil would try to make sure you never rise again.
A taste of the other side of life should never be our desire. If one should delve into it, God forbid, who knows how long it would take to rise again. And even if you rise, the scar might be stigmatizing and this may haunt you throughout your lifetime.
Notwithstanding your circumstances in life, don’t give in to sin and the burden of the devil. Walk with Jesus. His yoke is easy and his burden is light.
– Okenna Igbokwe
The Authorized Man
One of the verses of scriptures that thrilled me most while growing up as a young Christian is John 1: 12-13 ‘However, to all who received him, to those believing in his name, he gave authority to become God’s children, who were born, not merely in a physical sense, or from a fleshly impulse, or from man’s desire, but of God’ (ISV). I could not just get over this scripture. Since then, it never stopped ringing in my subconscious that I was given such right freely. As I kept pondering over this scripture then, it dawned upon me that if I am authorized to be God’s child, it therefore means that I have been given the mandate to act on His behalf; as some would say, like father like son.
Using the relationship that we have with our biological parents as an example, you do not need to be told that you can act on behalf of your father; you easily find yourself doing it. It therefore means that I can act in His capacity. Simply put, I am an heir to my father. I can speak, command, demand, reject, resist, control, etc like my father does. It doesn’t matter if I am still a kid growing up or already a full grown man. The fact remains that once a child, ever a child, I have been born already. While growing up as a child, I might not know so much about what I have got but it does not change the fact of what I have. Though it may take me time to realize the potentials, abilities and privileges because of my level of maturity, it does not change the fact that I am my father’s child.
Jesus said, as my father works so I work. My father and I are one. Whatsoever I see my father do, I do. Amazingly, Jesus never equated Himself with God before the Jews, but they interpreted his statement of referring to God as His father to mean equality with God. We are sons of God, heirs to the throne and have supernatural abilities embedded in our lives.
In the days of Jesus, people around him could not get over simple statements that changed various tides such as: ‘Peace, be still’; ‘Be thou made whole’; ‘Thy faith has healed you’; ‘Your sins are forgiven’; ‘Ephrata …, be opened’; ‘Lazarus come out’; etc.
Traits of a man under authority:
He doesn’t get jittery when suddenly called upon to rescue a situation. Knowing so well that He who lives in him is greater than he who lives in the world, he speaks to stormy seas with an ease of command tone.
He acts with confidence. He is undisturbed about seemingly unachievable task, but always resolute about the inherent abilities that he has received of God. He is convinced that he is a solution going somewhere to happen. However how long it may take to prevail over people’s doubt and faithlessness, he remains firm and fully convinced that the tide must change.
He sees every challenge and difficulty as a means to prove God’s sovereignty over all things. Rather than attest to the reality on ground, you should affirm the supernatural abilities of God’s power to transform every given situation.
Another wonderful trait of an authorized man is that, he must always complete every assignment at every given time and make sure there is no stone left unturned. Jesus in John 11: 44 instructed that the linen cloth be unwrapped from Lazarus body. His words were instructive and informing; ‘… loose him and let him go’. It shows that he was not willing to give room for chances so he capped it with freeing him completely after being raised from the dead. When the leprous man was healed in Matthew 8:3-4, he told him to go and show himself to the priest and offer gifts commanded. This will serve as testimony and path way to societal freedom and acceptance.
But friends, remember that these things do not just happen except you have given yourself over to a continuous prayer lifestyle. By so doing, you are guaranteed a medium of obtaining depth of understanding during study of scriptures and more confidence is built in your abilities in God.
– adeyiga awomuti
Psalms and Strings, the unavoidable duo
Much as I have heard wonderful things that manifested after praise and thanksgiving session, I have also witnessed some with my very eyes. Sometimes the experiences are unbelievable. Though in most cases, people are found subsequently attributing the great feat to their personal efforts, thereby consciously or unconsciously making attempt to down play the main reason for the miraculous performance.
Once you have scaled the hurdle of affirming the veracity and authenticity of God’s ability to turn around any situation (as discussed in the two previous articles of this series), you have withstood the challenge of distraction and discouragement. Now is the time to turn from people and their doubts and focus on God who holds the key to unlock miracles. Your attention should strictly be to see the manifestation that transcends the norm.
At this juncture, you can’t afford to ignore the fact that the surest way is to concentrate on making your supplications and request known to him with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6).‘By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of ourlips giving thanks to his name’ (Hebrews 13: 15). Praise is an act that is long tested and proven to yield amazing results.
In John 11:41, Jesus exhibited the power inherent in thanksgiving. ‘So they took away the stone. And Jesus, looking up to heaven, said, Father, I give praise to you for hearing me’ (BBE). Offering thanks and praise to God could be as simple as He said it. After Jesus gave thanks over 2 fish and 5 loaves, the multiples fed in thousands were overwhelming.
Fundamentally, praise offered to God must stem from a faith-filled heart. ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him’ (Hebrews 6: 11). Faith is the triggering force that praise acts upon. Without it you may be acting like a man who intends to build a castle without a foundation which it can stand on.
After executing the seven days order, the Israelites capped the pulling down of Jericho walls with the shout of praise. With faith in God, Paul and Silas preoccupied themselves in prison with prayers and praises to God. At the event of this, scriptures recorded that there was an earthquake and the prison gates flung opened and their chains broke. Through praise, the depths are broken, gates are opened, revelations are obtained, visions are understood, and testimonies abound. Within the tribes of the Israelites, the Levites were skilled in playing various musical instruments and offering praise to God. In some battles fought or while conveying the ark of covenant, they sang praises ahead of the ark or sometimes ahead of the army. Perhaps, this was God’s way of showing that it is an integral part of exceptional results.
It does not matter in what form, how, or where you carry it out, what is most important is that you should make a habit to give thanks to God even in the face of great challenges. Such an act has done great and marvelous things and history can always repeat itself in newer dimensions. You may sound very foolish and stupid before people when you do it, but remember that God used the foolish things of this world to confound the wise.
Reality may suggest you spend time thinking, crying, wailing, lamenting, complaining, or doubting. Faith on the other hand, insists that all things are possible to him that believes. For the expectation of the righteous shall not be cut short. Faith sings, praises, and appreciates God when reality is busy weeping. Faith patiently waits to see miraculous manifestation of thanksgiving, while reality on the other hand, quickly suggests that we should dismiss the possibility of change.
– adeyiga awomuti
| Finishing Strong with Knowledge
I remember someone once told me that a bird can only fly with what it has swallowed. It is impossible for a bird to fly with what it is hoping to pick up along the way. It is what a man has that he gives; likewise, man only acts upon what is within his scope. Once it is beyond his scope of understanding, it most likely has eluded him. The more informed you are about a given situation the better your actions will be. Why do you think when companies are recruiting they require certain years of experience? The reason is simple- the more experienced the person is, the better and faster the job will be done. In addition, it will take off the cost of training the individual for a start. Also, while on the job it is the same experience that will keep you on the track of effectiveness and prompt delivery.
What then is experience or how is it acquired? Simply put, it is the accumulation of knowledge or skill that results from direct participation in events or activities. Without knowledge, opportunities will be squandered and abuse definitely inevitable. It was the level of Jesus’ knowledge about His rights, abilities, and mission that stood him out. It was same knowledge that afforded him outstanding performances when confronted with issues. He knew He had the authority and power from God to raise the dead.
For example, Jesus gathered enough experience over time through knowledge to handle cases such as: 1) John 9:4; He knew He had to work hard at the assignment handed over to Him by the Father while it is day because the night was coming when no man will be able to work. So while going about, He had the mind of mission. He was duty bound in all that He did to the extent that He prepared ahead. As Christians, we are duty bound to solve the world’s problems. We should be an embodiment of solutions anywhere we find ourselves. Remember, we have been given the ministry of reconciliation; reconciling the world back to God. Interestingly, there is no way we would go about reconciling the world back to God without introducing them to the entire package that is in redemption; Life, Righteousness, Healing, Fruitfulness, etc. 2) He made preparations ahead of his time because He was well informed of the task before Him. In recognition of His link to the Father, Jesus himself regularly spent time in the wilderness, mountains, etc, to pray and enjoy communion with God alone. These periods of one-on-one fellowship seemed to help Him prepare for the activities ahead. Matthew 4: 1- 11 3) Lastly, he proudly displayed His level of knowledge by informing His tempter of the details in the written Word, when he was tempted in the wilderness.
A closer look at John chapter 11 earlier discussed in the introductory article, indicates Jesus’ authoritative response in verse 4 to information relayed in verse 3. He stated that the sickness was not unto death but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified. I won’t be surprised to discover that he had the wind of the incident while praying prior to that moment, since he was regularly given to prayers. He had a ready answer for every given situation brought to His notice. He knew right from time that He had the power of life. This same mindset propelled Him to call Lazarus’ death a sleep in verse 11. Though He was still not informed that Lazarus had died, He must have perceived it in the spirit.
Friends, these things do not just happen by chance but by giving oneself over to much prayer. However, the battle of Jesus gaining access to Lazarus was still not over. He encountered obstacles on his way such as: the four day old dead body, the weeping sympathizers, the faithlessness and doubtful insistence of Martha and Mary, the sealed tomb, etc. Nevertheless, Jesus persisted in reiterating the fact that he is the resurrection and the life; though Lazarus was dead, he will live again.
Friends, contrary realities and circumstances will always attempt to prevail over our situations; we need to take a firm stand like Jesus did. Instead of getting discouraged or defeated with the reality and factual statements made by Martha and Mary, Jesus took charge and said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that you would see God’s glory if you believed?”Verse: 40.
Being filled with knowledge puts us at the edge of trailing the blaze. Most times, such knowledge should motivate us to take out time to pray. Praying could be as simple as that of Martha and Mary. They simply prayed Jesus to come because their brother was sick. It could also be as simple as saying that ‘even now, whatsoever thou will ask of God, God will give it thee’. We need to affirm our conviction. No wavering or compromising even in the face of reality. The reality may be like it was said of Lazarus that he should be stinking by now but you need to affirm your control over it like Jesus did.
– adeyiga awomuti
|
At some cross roads in life, prevailing circumstances may not have been fair to some of us; the severity of it in some cases propels us to speak or act contrary to our proclaimed and affirmed belief. For example, you sometimes might have said ‘I am the healed of the Lord …, diseases ain’t got any place here’, or ‘that Job/contract is mine’; but you thereafter discovered aches all over your body or eventually realized that your arch rival was favored in the award of the much expected contract.
In such situations, how do you react? “I usually …” – Did I just hear you mutter some words? Well, don’t be too quick to answer; so many people have similarly experienced one thing or the other, even the patriarchs had their share of contrary circumstances. Let’s take a look at your one time experience in the light of bible precedence.
Here is Martha’s encounter with Jesus in John 11:21-22: “Martha said to Jesus, If you had been here, Lord, my brother would not have died! But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask him for” (GNB).
One would have thought that Martha was as convinced about the situation as her statement suggested; she seemed to be of strong faith that Jesus had all it takes to transform the situation for good. But Martha’s statement later appeared to be a mere lip service without a heart conviction. In verse 24 of same chapter, Martha demonstrated her belief that her brother Lazarus will rise again at resurrection but not at that moment referred to by Jesus. Like some of us do when confronted with the reality of a circumstance, despite the fact that there is an element of possibility (though arduous) flashing somewhere, we attest to the miraculous just for the sake of it without expecting anything spectacular.
Furthermore, Jesus said to Martha, I am the resurrection and Life and those who believe in me though were dead, shall live again. ‘Do you believe this?’ she quickly said ‘I believe’, verses 25 & 26. But her next action in attempting to stop the opening of Lazarus’ tomb showed she may have just spoken without fully grasping the imlications of her proclaimed faith. For example, she tried to stop the opening of Lazarus tomb by stating the fact that he had been dead for four days and should be stinking by now. Such statement should have deterred Jesus from insisting that the tomb be opened, but He maintained his conviction. Have you ever found yourself in a similar case, where reality stares you in the face? Have you ever tagged some things unachievable, because you have facts and figures at your disposal? Perhaps, it may be interesting to take a quick look at those who fought reality to a standstill with their faith. Though the mountains that came their way appeared insurmountable, they rose above the world-defined norms and achieved extraordinary results.
I challenge you to rise above reality and unleash your abilities in the kingdom you belong to; supernatural happenings are the norm here!
In the next few weeks, we will be examining Jesus’ supernatural approach in His encounter with Martha and Mary in John chapter 11. The three key things to be discussed are:
- Finishing Strong with Knowledge.
- Psalms and Strings, the unavoidable duo.
- The Authorized man.
Till then remember that for with men it may be impossible, but with God, NOTHING shall be impossible.
– adeyiga awomuti