How To Become A Man After God's Own Heart- Part 3

I started this series titled "How to become a man after God's own heart" three weeks ago. I began by explaining that God loved David because the later loved God so much. I further stated that God chose David over his brothers because of the kind of heart that David had. The heart(not the physical heart) is the same as the spirit.God is more interested in your heart than your body and soul. That is why God rejected Saul and the brothers of David even though they were more physically and mentally matured than King David. We continued the series by discussing ways we can develop our heart. I listed four points and they are as follows:

1. Meditate in the Word of God
2. Practice the Word of God
3. Pray without ceasing and
4. Walk in the Spirit.

We have already talked about the first two(refer to previous posts). Today, let us look at the third point. Enjoy reading!

      HOW TO PRAY WITHOUT CEASING

1 Thessalonians 5:17- Be unceasing in prayer [praying perseveringly];

Can you help me conduct an experiment?

Can you help me conduct an experiment right now? Use your fingers to block your nose and mouth. Do not allow any air to enter through you. Just do this for an hour as you read and see what will happen to you. I know you would not try to do this because you do not want to die now. If you do what I just instructed you to do, you would suffocate yourself to death. Spiritually most of us are suffocating our heart. We do this by failing to pray always. Ceasing to pray constantly is like not breathing air constantly. Prayer is to the spirit what air is to the body. Any believer who doesn’t pray is spiritually sick. Failing to pray can kill you spiritually. Your spirit will fail to grow and function properly. You would not properly know the will of God for you any time. Prayer makes you spiritually sensitive. You receive heavenly signals so your plane doesn’t crash. I see God delivering you from any crisis of this life as you wait on Him in prayers. He is releasing aid to you. Like Peter, He would send an angel to rescue your soul from any prison. Prayer is what rescues us from the prisons and obstacles of this world. It was the continued prayers of the church that rescued Peter from prison. Paul also understood this so he wrote about prayer in all his Epistles. To the Romans, he told them how he prays for them always and he admonished them to be constant in prayers (Rom 1:9; 12:12). To the Corinth church he told them to pray in tongues and in their understanding also. He quickly added that he prays more than any one of them. He asked the church in Ephesus to pray at all occasions with all kinds of prayers. Our opening text above shows how he advised the church in Thessalonica to pray without ceasing. Now we know the importance of prayer so let us look at how we can develop the habit of praying.

Seven keys for effective prayer

Jude 1:20 But you, beloved, build yourselves up [founded] on your most holy faith [make progress, rise like an edifice higher and higher], praying in the Holy Spirit;

You build or develop yourself spiritually as you pray constantly. Your spirit will rise like an edifice higher and higher as you pray. Your spirit would be so close to the heart of heaven that you cannot miss God concerning any issue. I want to share with you seven keys that have helped me maintain a constant prayer life.

•    Set a time for prayer.

Prayer should be without ceasing. You should pray always. Any time can be a time for prayer! Can’t you eat any time? If you can eat anytime then you can pray anytime. If you can set a time for breakfast, lunch and supper, then why can’t you set a time for prayer? If you really want to grow spiritually then set a time to feed your heart. Have time dedicated only for prayer. It can be at midnight, dawn, mid day or evening. It should be a time purely committed to prayer and nothing else. It should not be a time when you are so tired. Your prayer time should also be observed consistently not spasmodically..David said that “evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice (Psalm 55:17). Remember this series is about becoming a man after God’s own heart like David. A man after God’s own heart would have spiritual breakfast, lunch and supper! That is exactly what David did all his life time. Daniel had a consistent time of prayer. He prayed three times a day on his knees (Dan 6:10). Jesus asked His disciples to pray without ceasing. Jesus the compassionate master would not ask us to do something He believes we cannot do. Apostle Paul always writes how he prays always for his congregations. I believe you too can pray always. Begin by setting times for personal prayer each day.

• Set a place of prayer.

If you can eat everywhere then you can pray everywhere. You can eat anywhere but it is not advisable to do so. You may lose respect or disturb others when you choose to do so. Relating that to prayer, you should pray anywhere but you cannot just make anywhere your prayer closet. Jesus advised us to use our personal rooms as a prayer place. He told us to pray in our closets and shut the door. Daniel used his upstairs room. Jesus used the mountains and gardens. The hundred and twenty disciples used the upper room. Peter used the roof top of his house. I use my personal room and some times, the gardens. Where do you constantly pray? You should be alone in your personal prayer room so you can feel free to express yourself. Your prayer place should be free from distraction. No phone calls, no dog barking and no door bell should ring. Noise should not be permitted. Let your family and those you stay with know this. 

•      Create an atmosphere for prayer.

 Begin your prayers by creating an atmosphere conducive for prayer. The environment should be appealing for prayer. What you see around can distract you. The TV should be off. None should be walking around at your sight if that individual is not participating in the prayer. What you hear is also important. No secular songs at the background. External noise outside the prayer place can also negatively distract you. Avoid a room with wall papers that can distract you. If you feel cold put on something that makes you feel comfortable. Make sure your body is well prepared. Wash it. Take a rest before if you feel so tired. When you are set to pray, you can start praying with praise and adoration songs at the background. You can also have a preaching video played there. You can start praying by reading a Bible passage loud. Know what moves you to pray and stay with that. Be very sensitive to the leading of the Spirit. I normally create an atmosphere of prayer by praying in tongues for a long time. This prepares my spirit and mind. My mind gets settled and rests. My spirit also gets alive and spiritual things become so real to me. 

•     Pour your heart to God.  

After the atmosphere is set, then begin to pour your heart to God. James says it is the heartfelt and fervent prayer that produces results. Pray heartfelt prayers like Hannah, from the agony of your soul. Poor your feelings before Him. Let Him know how miserably you feel. Pray like Christ, push until something happen. His heart was weary and his body was weak at Gethsemane. He made God feel His sweat. His requests were made known to God. He did not try to pretend before God. He made God see His heart. He was sincere. Be sincere and ask for forgiveness if you are not right with him. Worship him shamelessly if you heart is full of gratitude. Present all your petitions to Him. Make intercessions for your love ones. Ask, seek and knock. Pray until all your strength is gone.  And you would see the Holy Spirit take over. At Gethsemane, an angel strengthened Christ after His prayer. Hannah received a prophetic declaration after her prayer. Jacobs’ name was changed to Israel after his prayer. Jabez became an honorable man after praying to God. Lot was delivered from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah after Abraham interceded for him. Some thing would change for good in your life and that of your love ones as you pour your heart to God in prayer. David said O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come (Psalm 65:2). God indeed hears prayers so let us all come to Him boldly with all our needs.

•   Pray in the name of Jesus. 

You can only come boldly before the God that hears prayers if you know you are at peace with Him. How can you poor your heart freely to someone you are not at peace with? Through the blood of Jesus we are at peace with God. By our faith in Christ heaven recognize our prayers. The name of Jesus is our passport into the presence of God. As you enter in the name of Jesus, you recognize that it is neither by your own righteousness nor your works. The name shields us from our weakness and failures. The name makes God see us as perfect as Jesus. With our faith in the name, God can never refuse us. David knew how to use the name of the Lord. It was his faith in that name that caused Goliath to be defeated. The crippled man in Acts received his healing as Peter ministered that name to him. Christ said “and when that time comes, you will ask nothing of Me [you will need to ask Me no questions]. I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, that My Father will grant you whatever you ask in My Name [as presenting all that I Am]. Up to this time you have not asked a [single] thing in My Name [as presenting all that I Am]; but now ask and keep on asking and you will receive, so that your joy (gladness, delight) may be full and complete”(John 16:23,24).

•    Believe you receive.                                                                                                               

Believe God hears your prayers. Never think God is mad at you. He loves you so much. Believe His grace is available to you. Boldly leave His presence, believing you already have what you asked Him. Never doubt the power of God. After praying about an issue consider it solved. Read Mark 11:24. Even though the answer may not manifest immediately believe you have received after prayer and begin thanking God for the answer. Believing always come before receiving. Abraham believed he was the father of many nations before he ever delivered a baby. David believed he would kill Goliath and cut off his head before he even fought the giant. The woman with the issue of blood believed her touch would make her whole before she pressed on in the crowd to touch Christ’s garment. Believe you are well after praying for healing. Consider it done after praying.

•    Walk in love.

 After believing, you only receive if you walk in forgiveness. Heaven will not respond to your prayers if you do not walk in love. Forgive others so your father in heaven would also forgive you (Mark 11:25). Couples who do treat their partners fairly never receive answers to their prayers. Show kindness to the needy. Make peace with everyone. Never hold a grudge against anyone. Love would cause no prayer of yours to fail. Love would not only cause your prayer to be answered but also rewarded.

How To Practice The Word Of God

   PRACTICE THE WORD OF GOD

Josh 1:7 …, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.

James 1:22 But be doers of the Word [obey the message], and not merely listeners to it, betraying yourselves [into deception by reasoning contrary to the Truth].

It is not enough for you to be a hearer. We need to be doers as well. After meditating on the Word you need to take action. Practice makes perfect. The Word of God is never perfected in your life if you fail to take action. Acting on the Word is the next step to develop your heart. The Supposing you wish to build more body muscles. You may decide to purchase a book on body building. Learning the book alone would not build your muscles. You need to do what you learn in the book. You need to take the exercises and tutorials seriously. You would be required to practice aerobic, endurance and flexible exercises. the coach would also advice you to be consistent in your exercises. The principle above also applies to spiritual muscle building. After reading the Word, do it. Act on the Word. The Bible contains revelations, promises and commandments. You accept the revelations and walk in them. You receive the promises by fulfilling their conditions. As for the commands, you obey. The Bible says by His stripes you were healed. Believe this revelation and begin to thank God for healing. Do not allow the devil to impose diseases on you. Resist him firmly. The Bible says we should cast all our cares on God for He cares for us. This means after praying to God about your worries never complain to anyone. I am not saying don’t seek godly counsel. What I am saying is that never talk doubt and unbelief. Don’t talk like your troubles will swallow you. Do not be like the ten scouts who said they looked like grass hopers before their enemies in the promise land. Because they said that they died never possessing the promise land. Be like Joshua and Caleb. Declare that you can face any mountain because, God, the source of your strength is with you. Another area most of us fail is walking in love. Bible says the Holy Spirit gives us love in our hearts. We already have the energy of love in us. Bible also commands us to love all men. Instead of doing the word, we complain we cannot love some people. Instead of allowing God to love through us, we walk in unforgiveness, bitterness and hold grudges against people. We make God a liar when we have the Word in us but fail to walk in the light of it. Practice the word by first asking yourself what the Bible says about  your situation. Put the Bible first in your life. Before you take decisions allow the Word to guide you. The Word can make you a winner in all issues of life. Dear Ladies, do not marry that gentleman because of what you feel about him. Critically analyse him in the light of God’s word. Even in business, you can always profit if the Word is the king in you.

Four Steps To Developing The Human Spirit(Part one)

DEVELOPING THE HUMAN SPIRIT

On Wednesday, I talked about how king  David loved God with all his heart. David was a man who was more spiritually matured than all his brothers. God chose him as king and blessed him abundantly because of his love for the Almighty God. God chose him because he was more matured in his heart than all his brothers. God loves people who develop their spirit. Today, I would like us to look at four steps that can help us to develop our human spirit. A spiritually matured person knows the will of God always. Since God is a spirit His main mode of communicating to us is our spirits. We need to have our spiritual senses always alert to hear from God. The best mode of communication is physical personal contact. God is personally residing in our spirits. He decided to reside in us so he can speak to us plainly and as often as need be. Dreams, Prophesy, Angels, Heavenly voices and Visions have their place. They all help us to hear from God. Most of these mediums of communication are rare. The reason they are rare is that we have God Himself in us; the Holy Spirit. We can contact God anytime and anywhere. Suppose you are a couple leaving with your partner. What would be your number one means of communicating to your lover? Would it be through emails, text messages, phone calls or writing of letters? How would you communicate important matters to that couple? I believe your guess is as good as mine: Face to face communication. God also deserves a face to face conversation with you. You look  too far to contact God. Just look inside you! We run after prophets, pastors and other great men of God to seek God’s will and direction. How would you feel if each time your partner wants to talk to you about serious issues, he or she uses your work colleague as a medium. Would you be happy about this? You would think something is wrong with the relationship. This attitude can even ruin the marriage. Don’t ruin your relationship with God. Learn to train you spirit to effectively communicate with Him always. Four steps involved in developing your spirit are:

a.       Let the word of God abide in you richly

b.      Practice the word of God

c.      Pray without ceasing

d.      Walk in the spirit

1.       LET THE WORD ABIDE IN YOU RICHLY

Josh 1:8 This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe {and} do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely {and} have good success

Col 3:16 Let the word [spoken by] Christ (the Messiah) have its home [in your hearts and minds] {and} dwell in you in [all its] richness, as you teach and admonish {and} train one another in all insight {and} intelligence {and} wisdom [in spiritual things, and as you sing] psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, making melody to God with [His] grace in your hearts.

The Spiritual Food

 Since the time of Adam, plant and animal have been the main source of food to help the human body grow. The methods of preparing food have improved over the years. But this has not changed the role of foods in human body development. The same applies to other aspects of your personality. Learning and education are the foods that develops our mind. The methods of learning and education have improved over time. These improvements have not changed the principle of learning to improve your mind. When it comes to your heart(I mean your inner man not the physical heart), the food for your spirit is the Word of Christ. This truth will never change. Bible says man shall not live on bread alone but on every Word that comes out of the mouth of God. This means that as bread is to the body so the Word of God is to the Spirit. Feed on the Word so your spirit will grow. You feed on the Word by meditation. 

Meditate on the word

Meditation is hearing, thinking and speaking the word. Hearing involves reading,watching and listening. Read your Bible every day. Watch and listen to Bible preaching all the time. After hearing the Word, recite and memorize it. All these would help you get the Word to dwell in your heart. God has not changed. His ways are still the same. The way to God’s blessings is His word. The sure way your spirit can contact God is through His word. The word teaches us the ways of God. And all the ways of God lead to our success and prosperity. Meditation on the Word is the only way to become prosperous and very wise. To deal wisely in the affairs of this life, the Word must dwell in your heart richly. God instructed Joshua to meditate, observe and do the Word. He said this would make Joshua wise and cause his way to be prosperous. Apostle Paul also instructs us of the new covenant to let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly. He said this would make us have joy in our hearts and capable of teaching others in all wisdom. This is very similar to the command Joshua received from Moses. As Moses instructed Joshua, God is instructing us today through Apostle Paul. The instruction is that we should allow the Word to dwell in our spirits richly. God would not do this for us. We have to do it ourselves.

The Results of Speaking the Word

Most of us have succeeded in getting the Word into our head but we must also get it into our heart. It is only when the Word gets to the heart that it can produce results. The Word gets to our heart when we think about the Word and speak it. Always reason the Word with your heart and confess it. I said reason it with your heart not your mind. The mind can not accept the truth in the Bible. I am not saying the Bible is not logical. But what I want to drive at is that the Word is more Spiritual than analytical. Spiritual things are foolishness to the flesh and the mind. The Bible is spiritual because most of the benefits we receive from it  can not be seen or felt. The anointing in the Word that produces results can not be seen. Let the Word soak deed into you so it can stir the Anointing in you to produce results. The anointed Word produces results when we speak it. When you speak the Word from your heart four things happen. The first is when you speak it to yourself. This brings encouragement and edification to your soul that shatters all your fears. Speaking the Word also causes situations to change. Use the Word as a force to move away the mountains and hindrances in your life. Thirdly, the Word produces heartfelt effectual prayers. The word of God in your heart would propel you to declare a prayer of faith against any storm that comes your way. Finally, the Word can be used to resist any move of the devil. The spoken Word causes demonic forces to retreat and surrender. As you declare the Word angels are deplored from heaven. Heaven respond swiftly with miracles, signs and wonders as its citizens speak. God approves and confirms the Word of His children today as He did for the early Apostles everywhere they went. 

Next week we would look at the other three steps involved in developing the heart. Thanks for reading and enjoy the weekend.

A Person After God's Own Heart

How To Become A Person After God’s Own Heart

 And when He had deposed him, He raised up David to be their king; of him He bore witness and said, I have found David son of Jesse a man after My own heart, who will do all My will {and} carry out My program fully. –Acts 13:22 Amplified Bible

You can be like David

Do you know that you can become like David? A person after God’s own heart. You can also be a John. A disciple that Jesus loves most. This is not something too difficult. God does not intend to make anything too difficult for His children. He longs to see us prosper in doing all His will. Even wicked parents love to see their children do well in life. How much more the God who loves us so much that he sacrificed His son’s life for us. One thing I desire most for all men is for them to experience the love of God. The love of God supersedes all things. Ask God constantly to increase your understanding concerning His love. This will bring you fruitfulness in your walk with Him. David understood the love of God. When you understand the love of God it will cause you to be His best lover. Let’s look at some of the things David did to demonstrate his love for God. David was God’s best lover because He worshiped God the most. He danced the most at worship service. He wrote the longest songs, praises and worship book in the Bible. This explains that he is the person who expressed his love to God most. Our words and actions express what is in our hearts. David also decided to build God a magnificent house. He taught about God so much that he decided to build Him a temple. If you think about God you would care for his Church. Do not only be concern about building a family, a career and a business for yourself. Think also about what you can do to support your church. David never offered a sacrifice to God that did not cost him. How do you give to God? Do you just give anything or you give your best? Do you give willingly or grudgingly? The way you give determines how heaven will respond to you. Remember Cornelius.  Because of David’s love for God, God fought all his battles for him. God also established his kingdom, blessed him with wealth and gave him long life. God gave him a wise heir to succeed him as well. God will fight all your battles for you. He will establish all the work your hands finds to do. You would be blessed with so much wealth and good health. Your labour on this earth will not be in vain. Because God will surround you with wise people to guard and perpetuate your good works. All these would come to you as you decide to love God most. I want to share with you four steps I believe would lead you to become a person after God’s own heart.

The will of God

Doing all God’s will and carrying out His programme fully are the two great pillars that makes a person loved by God. Knowing and doing God’s will are the two secrets to prosperity and good success. The Scripture above described King David as one who did all the will of God and carried out His programme fully. If you love God you will obey all His commandments. Everyone loves individuals who listens to and are obedient to them. We listen to God by paying attention to His voice. God’s will is contained in His voice. The will of God is for you  to know and to obey His word. His word should be imprinted in our hearts. The word should be the compass and captain of our lives. The word is what can train our hearts to do the will of God. God trains our heart by giving us wisdom and power to obey His word. God is always communicating His will through His voice to us. He is everywhere. He speaks always. But we fail to listen mostly. Our mind and feelings has taken much control of us that we fail to hear from God. You can know the will of God concerning every issue through your heart. God is a spirit so He speaks to us mainly through our spirit. God directs us through our spirits or heart. Bible says our heart is the candle of God(Proverbs 20:27). A candle is a light that helps for direction. All of us need to understand we are spirit beings. The heart or spirit is the real you; the inner man or hidden man. The hidden man because you cannot see or feel him with your physical senses. He is inside you and hidden from your senses. Our bodies and mental faculties only help us to express ourselves. The reason God choose David as king was because he had trained his spirit to listen to God. David was a person who longed to do God’s will only. God told Samuel that he choose David because he had a heart that was better than that of his brothers. God looks at the heart but man looks at the outward appearances. David was more spiritually matured than all his brothers. But his brothers were physically and mentally matured than he was. His brothers had not trained their spirits to maturity. They did not understood how to know and relate with God properly. David had trained his heart to know God better than his brothers. His heart appreciated God as a his Shepherd and as the Lord of host, the leader of the armies of Israel. Tomorrow I would discuss the four steps involved in training your heart to know and to do God’s will. 

Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day. Kindly send me your comments to cyadonteng@gmail.com.  

The Persistent Faith

What You Should Know About Persistent Faith

 And when he knocked at the gate of the porch, a maid named Rhoda came to answer. And recognizing Peter's voice, in her joy she failed to open the gate, but ran in and told the people that Peter was standing before the porch gate. They said to her, You are crazy! But she persistently {and} strongly {and} confidently affirmed that it was the truth. They said, It is his angel!
 – Acts 12 :13- 15(Amplified Bible)

I like Rhoda

I like people full of Bible faith. I love to have them as friends. Friends full of faith would not give up on you but would keep on believing in  and encouraging you. They persistently inspire you for greatness. I like Rhoda because of her faith. I also admire the faith of the Syrophoenician woman Christ met in Mark chapter seven. The faith also of Ruth and Esther inspires me greatly. I would encourage women to believe in themselves and do what God has inspired in their hearts. The world wants to suppress women but I strongly believe in the greatness of every women. I believe there would be more lady Head of states than the history books of the world has ever recorded. Also, the Holy Spirit is thrusting forth great Women of Faith  into the harvest who would perform mighty miracles that would win many souls. These women would continue from where the Grahams, Hagins, Osborns, Roberts and the Khulmans ended. The voice of such women would be heard all over the world throughout all generations. If you are a woman reading this, please believe in yourself and prepare yourself to catch this unique fire. Rhoda was told to shut up and stop dreaming. The Disciples, her own brethrens in the faith, opposed her faith.  But she  persistently {and} strongly {and} confidently affirmed that it was the truth. The world has been educated not to believe in women but it’s time for the church to educate her children that men and women are equal before God. He sees us all as spirits; no male no female. 

Four things about the Persistent Faith

The faith of Rhoda teaches us four things about faith. The first is that, Faith have high expectations. God is big so expect only big things from Him. Faith always expect big answers from heaven. Faith is always close by the door of heaven and would be the first to answer the knock of heavens response. While the others were praying for praying sake, Rhoda was expecting the answer. Its only those who pray with specific expectations that receives answers. Christ said if anyone would speak to the mountains to move and not doubt in his heart but believe, then that person would have what he or she said. Expect big things from God this week and believe to receive answers swiftly from Him.

Faith also recognises the voice of the Word. Rhoda recognised the voice of peter at the door. She knew it was Peter though she had not yet opened the door. When she informed others that Peter was at the door, she was considered crazy and told to keep quiet. But she persisted and confidently affirmed that it was the truth. Persistently, strongly and confidently affirm what the Bible says about you.  Watch out what you hear constantly. What you hear can cause you to leap for faith or fall into doubt and unbelief. Be careful what you read and whom you listen to. Don’t believe in the lie or false report. The medical report is not the truth; its only what an instrument has been programmed to say about you. The result slip is someone’s opinion about you. Stand against all odds and believe only in God’s word. Take the word of God as it is. Don’t take sides against God by asking Him how He will do it. Abraham recognised and believed the voice that said he is the father all Nations. He changed his name in that effect. He staggered not in unbelief but praised God with thanks giving. He understood that He that has said is also able to perform.

Persistence, boldness and firmness are vital ingredients of faith. Without boldness against hindrances to your faith, your expectations would be aborted before their delivery time. David could not have defeated Goliath without courage. It takes courage to face the Goliaths in your life. The giants won’t move if you don’t act boldly. The woman with the issue of blood persisted till she touched Christ’s garment. Religion did not permit her, the crown pulled her behind but her faith caused her to persistently push for her miracle. Don’t give up now. Your miracle is next in line so push again. Pray again. Still persist in righteousness and obedience to the Lord. 

The final ingredient of Faith is joy. Rhoda’s joy was so evident. Your joy is your strength. Your joy would inspire others to also believe more in God. Paul and Silas had joy in the mist of their afflictions. Their prayers and songs of praise brought deliverance to a whole camp of prisoners. Your attitude of joy and praise will bring deliverance to many in the prisons of afflictions. Your praises to God can pull down any wall of Jericho in your life. Put on the garment of praise and let the whole world know that you trust in your Lord.

Your joy and persistent faith in God’s word would bring you marvellous miracles this week in Christ name, Amen.

Six Things The Presence Of God Will Do For You

God is with you

Acts 7:9 And the patriarchs [Jacob's sons], boiling with envy {and} hatred {and} anger, sold Joseph into slavery in Egypt; but God was with him,

Rom 8:31 What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?]

Matt 28:20 Teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you, and behold, I am with you all the days (perpetually, uniformly, and on every occasion), to the [very] close {and} consummation of the age. {Amen (so let it be).}

All scriptures above are from the Amplified Bible

There are three relationships we have with God. He is with us, in us and for us. Is this not encouraging! God is with us so no evil can come near us. He is not with us some times but all the days. According to the Amplified version, He is perpetually, uniformly and on every occasion with us till the close and consummation of the age. So far as the world has not ended, God will continue to be with us. I want you to notice six things that the presence of God will do for you. God was with Joseph and none can dispute that. The presence of God with you will make you a wonder to People! Even your enemies can not deny how richly God has blessed you, Amen. Because God was with Joseph, six things happened to him. These are located in Acts 7:10.

Acts 7:10 And delivered him from all his distressing afflictions and won him goodwill {and} favor and wisdom {and} understanding in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor over Egypt and all his house.- Amplified Bible

1.    He received deliverance from all wickedness
2.    He received goodwill
3.    He had favour before all men
4.    He received great wisdom
5.    He had excellent understanding
6.    He received promotion every where

God is with us so no wickedness can prevail against us. Wickedness is boiling around us all the time. Even those we love and trust plot evil against us. Sometimes we don’t feel safe being alive. But forget about what you feel and believe in what God is promising you. God is promising safety to those who take the decision to abide with Him. You don’t need to fast for a long time or be called to a special ministry before God will protect you. Every good parent provide shelter for their children. The child don’t have to do anything to earn that. God our father says they that HE WHO dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable {and} fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power no foe can withstand] Ps 91:1. If you belief and accept Christ as your saviour, then God becomes a shelter and a dwelling place for you. No foe or evil would be allowed in your life if God is fully in control. If He has the keys to all the rooms in your life no evil will be permitted to stay a moment in the rooms of your marriage, business, health and all that concerns you.

The next thing the presence of God does for you is to bring you goodwill. Joseph received goodwill. Business goodwill is a valuable intangible asset. Assets are possessions and resources. God is not just with you He comes into your life with many blessings. These blessings are your valuable assets. They are your rightful inheritance because you are part of the family of Christ. You qualify to receive every promise of God. The promises of God are your goodwill in life.

The presence of God brings you favour. Favour makes you get what you think you don’t deserve. No one is a  fool. People have logical reasons for doing things. Daniel did not understand why he was promoted but the king of Persia was in his right senses when he decided to elevate him. All information reaching the king at that time indicated that Daniel deserved the promotion. God can make what is a nonsense to you become a logical point for you to be promoted. Your superiors would promote you to become like them. You may not have a first class degree or proper relevant work experience for the job you desire. But I see the favour of God causing you to be employed now. You would compete with people who qualify more than you but because God is with you, I see your winning certificate. Receive it right now in Jesus name! 

Love is the way out

We can’t fight God

Sometimes we fight God unaware. We oppose His move and resist the free flow of His spirit. We sincerely say and do things out of ignorance against Him. Ananias and Sapphira fought God out of ignorance. According to Acts five, the couple had made a covenant at church to sell a property and bring all the proceeds to their pastor for distribution to the poor. The pastor prayed for them and blessed them for such a commitment. But after selling the property, Mr. Ananias noticed that he has to replace his rickety vehicle. So he agreed with his wife to take just a small portion of the proceeds received from the property sales. They lied to Bishop Peter, their pastor about this and that resulted in their death. When we fight God it always result to death; spiritual and physical. Spiritual in the sense that we feel separated from His love and lose the confidence to approach Him for help. And life without God’s love and help means a door is open for the devil to kill and destroy. Fighting God also result in physical death. You may not die instantly like Ananias, Sapphira, Judas and the sons of Aaron. Yours may be dying slowing. Sickness and disease are signs of slow death. The end result of all ailment is death; destruction of your body. But how can we avoid fighting God so we don’t die before our time?

Obedience is the way out. Obedience is to make a decision to live your life always to please God. In pleasing God you may not find rules covering how He expects you to behave in every matter or issue. But ignorance of rules is not a good excuse for breaking them.  God expects us to obey him fully  by fulfilling all His laws. But is this possible? Yes! It is according to the Scriptures. Jesus says love is the summary of every law God ever gave to man. If you stay always with the law of love there is no way you will break the rules of God. If Adam and Eve had walk in love towards God, they wouldn’t sin against him. If Ananias and his wife really loved the church they would not have done what they did. If Paul had walk in love towards all men he would not be opposing Jesus as he was told in his vision. The religious leaders would not have been guilty of Christ’s blood if they had loved his life like their own life. Let us love one another so we don’t fight God. Right now God is using many people to work in the world. If you refuse such people you refuse God. If you curse them you curse God. Avoid fighting God by walking in love. Walking in Love is showing kindness to all.

The purpose of God for you

The purpose of God concerning you

The hand of God upon you makes nothing that opposes you succeed. When God works a miracle for and through you none can deny it. Whoever God calls and anoint would possess strength, courage and boldness to deliver the assignment. In Acts 4, the miracle of Paul and Silas could not be denied by the unbelieving Rulers and Pharisees. The early church through the power of God performed many signs and wonders which were real and undeniable. The church could not be stopped by the religious and government authorities of their times. Another wonder of the early church is that the love and fellowship of the church caused none to have a need. I believe the church of this generation needs to get back to the book of church beginning, the Book of Acts. This book defines and illustrates the purpose of church. The purpose of a thing never changes but the model can change. The model is a representation of something. The government of God is unchangeable but His representations on earth has improved from generation to generation. The representation is the shape, size, figures and dimensions. The size of churches are improving but the message of the kingdom would never change; to preach the gospel to the whole world and announce the coming of the Lord. Influential preachers are dying every now and then but the work of the ministry is still ongoing. The power of God has not changed in our days; He is the same yesterday, today and forever. The purpose of the church is still to be a witness of God’s kingdom on earth. The church is you and me. Hence, the church’s purpose is my purpose also. What God wants for his Church, He wills for you also. God wants His church to have power on earth. Real power that would make us relevant and influential on earth. He wants us to be so powerful so we can accomplish the soul wining task. And the power to make us effective in this task is more alive than ever. The witness power is the miracle working power, demon casting power, healing power and power to perform all the good things God wills for us. Just as the hand of God was unstoppable and undeniable during the early church, I see God using you also to witness to the world. You are a miracle worker and many signs and wonders would follow you. The awesome things God works through you can’t be denied by those who don’t believe in you. Your life would attract many to the saving knowledge of Christ. Amen.

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