Your Words were Found

Jeremiah 15:16 (NKJV) - Your words were found, and I ate them, And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; For I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts.

It’s a New Year and we’ve got several messages going forth about God’s mind for His people this year.

However one thing that will not change is His Word. 

1. I strongly believe that this year is one which we must choose, to live by God’s word. 
Matthew 4:4 (KJV) But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

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2. We must purpose that this year our faith in Him would grow. 
Romans 10:17 (NKJV) - So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. 

3. Through faith and patience, we inherit His promises.
Hebrews 6:12 - That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises

4. We choose to study and meditate on His word; His word becomes the source of our joy and rejoicing.

Joshua 1:8 (KJV) - This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV) - Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, I ask that you give me a fresh hunger and passion for your Word, grant me grace to be a student of the word this year and to apply the truths I learn daily. In Jesus Name. Amen

Fulfilling Purpose

Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV)

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Purpose: 1. the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists. (Dictionary.com)

Everyone created by God has a purpose to fulfill, some have discovered theirs and are fulfilling it already, while many are not even aware they have a purpose to fulfill and some have deviated or are doing something else they were not designed to do.

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In the parable of the the talents, the Master was pleased with the profitable servants. God has invested a lot in us and expects return.

I believe that everyday, we should seek the Lord to fulfill His purpose on earth, it will help us remain focused on the plan irrespective of the distractions around us.

Jesus was so focused on the assignment, He knew the purpose for which the Father sent Him to earth and was not distracted by the events happening around Him, His disciples actually thought that He had come to restore the kingdom back to Israel, yes but not in the way they thought it would be.

John 20:21 (NKJV) So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

As the Father sent Jesus, so also has Jesus sent us, would we fulfill purpose?

Prayer
Heavenly Father, I thank you for creating me, I thank you for sending me into this world with a purpose, please help me to understand it and fulfill it, thereby bringing you pleasure.
Thank you Lord. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Blessed Assurance

Today I want to share a song that's been brewing in my heart for the past one week.
I trust it will bless you.

It reminds me of what my Saviour our Lord Jesus Christ has done for me, the finished work of 
Christ, O! the wonders of His love. I have a blessed assurance!

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine;
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.

Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels descending, bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I in my Savior am happy and blest;
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love

He is Coming Back Very Soon - Are We Ready?

How do we make ourselves ready?

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Being fruitful
Occupy till I come Luke 19:13 – 27; 
While waiting for His return, we get busy with the investments He has deposited in us and be profitable. Our giftings and capacities, our resources – time and money; and earthly possessions, positions in life are all to be used for His glory. Influencing others for the Kingdom. 

Isa 60:1 (NKJV) Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.

We are to "let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works; 

Isaiah 2:2 (NKJV) Now it shall come to pass in the latter days; That the mountain of the Lord’s house, Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And all nations shall flow to it.

Being full of the Spirit
The ten virgins; Matthew 25:1-13

Oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit; the presence of God, we are to keep the fire burning on the altar of our lives. In this parable we see that all ten were virgins, but only five were wise. We need to continually stay full of the Holy Spirit. He is the one who preserves us and guides us, He is the seal of God upon our lives. 

It is mentioned in the parable that the oil is to be purchased. Which means that a price is to be paid to obtain the oil. To have a continual presence of God in our life, we are to pay a price, by spending time at the feet of Jesus. Only a substantial presence of God in our life can keep the fire burning through the dark nights. Such a person who has the fire burning in him at the time of the Bride Grooms return, will go in with Him. (Culled from http://hermeneutics.stackexchange.com)

Eph 5:18 NKJV
And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit

Touching lives

Matthew 25:34-36 NKJV
34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

Daily we meet people in our communities, social circles, etc, we have to be a blessing to others. God told Abraham I will bless you and make you a blessing. As children of Abraham, I believe this applies to us as well. Reach out and touch someone’s life today.

Preaching the gospel and discipling (Helping others follow Jesus)
This gospel of the kingdom must be preached Matthew 24:14; as Christ’s ambassadors on earth, we must continue that which He began in our lives, reaching out to others. There are unsaved people in the world today, and the Lord does not delight in the soul of a sinner. Preaching the gospel is one of the commands Jesus gave us before left the earth. 

Matthew 28:19 (NKJV)
19 Go therefore[a] and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

2 Tim 4:5 (NKJV)
But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

Be Steadfast
2 Peter 3:14 (NKJV)
14 Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless.

We must also remain prayerful

Prayer
Re-ignite our passion for you and give us a fresh desire to see lost souls saved.

I want some bitter kola

Luke 11:11-13 (NKJV)

11 If a son asks for bread[a] from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”

Last weekend, I had a stomach bug and took some medication, my hubby also got some bitter kola which is medicinal (has antibiotic priorities). My 5 year old son came into the room and said to my hubby “Dad, please can I have some of that?” My hubby and I looked at each other and laughed. He kept on insisting that he wanted some bitter kola.

We had to explain to him that it was bitter and he wouldn’t like the taste.

Garcinia-Bitter-Kola Photo credit: http://supplementpolice.com

Lesson

Sometimes we ask God for things we think are good for us, but in His wisdom He refuses to give us not because He doesn’t love us but He knows what is best for us, depending on our level of maturity. An adult can better handle the taste of bitter kola than a child would.

Prayer

Father please don’t give me what I want, but give me what You know is best for me. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Worship in Spirit and Truth

John 4:23-24 (NKJV)
23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Image courtesy of Daniel Fusco

Worship was first mentioned in the Bible when Abraham was to go sacrifice Isaac, it signified his submission to the will of God, not minding the price he had to pay. It is total surrender to God!

Gen 22:5 (NKJV)
And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.

Worship is a lifestyle of total submission to the will of God in our every day life, it involves our spirit, soul and body.

Rom 12:1 (NLT)
And so, dear brothers and sisters,[a] I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.

Worship in spirit means engaging our heart and passions, in truth means worshiping God with an understanding of who He is. The greater understanding or revelation of who God is would inspire true worship in us. The Holy Spirit is the one who reveals Christ to us, and also inspires true worship. We can't do without Him, just as Jesus said: "..for without me you can do nothing". John 15:5b (NKJV)

The Father is seeking...
My prayer is that we would become those who the Father is seeking - those who worship in spirit and truth

Prayer
Father, grant me the grace to worship you in spirit and truth. Reveal Christ to me and let my whole being worship you truly as you so desire. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Ask the Holy Spirit

Psalm 46:1 (NKJV)

God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.

Last week during the holidays, I wanted to mend some of the curtains in the house with the sewing machine. I fitted the electric motor, threaded the needle and everything appeared ready for me to begin. However, when I started sewing, the stitches were jagged and the thread was breaking intermittently. I tried everything to fix the issue and eventually gave up. 

Two days later I tried again, this time around I called my mum who is an experienced seamstress. In her usual manner she said “Ask the Holy Spirit”, I didn’t even think of that, I began to wonder, hmm it may take sometime for me to get feedback from Him (lol) and I needed to get this job done. Anyhow I prayed and asked the Holy Spirit to help me fix the issue with the sewing machine.

http://www.craftsbee.com

Few minutes later, He reminded me about using youtube – Eureka! I got my tablet and googled “thread keeps breaking on sewing machine” and voila I found out that I didn’t thread the machine properly.

So armed with the knowledge I sat down and re-threaded the machine and it worked. The stitches came out fine and I mended the curtains. I was ecstatic. It was also an opportunity to teach my daughter to always ask the Holy Spirit for help, she was happy that the sewing machine worked and we could mend the curtains!

Thank you Lord!