Don't Pack Your Bag Yet! - WordPress.com...(Matthew 11:28-30) Your desires and dreams may be the con-tent of the bag you are carrying. It may be your broken relationships or even broken

LoveWorld Publications

Anita OyakhilomeAnita OyakhilomeAnita OyakhilomeAnita OyakhilomeAnita Oyakhilome

Don’t Pack Your BagsYour BagsYour BagsYour BagsYour Bags Yet!

ISBN 978-35623-2-0

First Printing 2001

Copyright © 2001 LoveWorld Publications

All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. Con-tents and/or cover may not be produced in whole or in partin any form without the express written permission of theLoveWorld Press.

All scripture quotations are taken from the King James Versionof the Bible unless otherwise indicated.

BELIEVERS’ LOVEWORLD INC.aka Christ Embassy

UNITED KINGDOM:Christ Embassy Int’l OfficeSuite 219 Estuary HouseBallards Road, DagenhamRm 10 9AB

P.O. Box 21520,London E10 5FGTel: 0181-5172367

NIGERIA:P.O. Box 13563,Ikeja, Lagos.Tel: 01-4934393

e-mail: [email protected]: www.christembassy.org

CONTENTS

FFFFForewordorewordorewordorewordoreword

CHAPTER 1 11Why MeWhy MeWhy MeWhy MeWhy Me?

CHAPTER 2 23Crown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond Crisis

CHAPTER 3 29RelationshipsRelationshipsRelationshipsRelationshipsRelationships

CHAPTER 4 53Where is YWhere is YWhere is YWhere is YWhere is Your Esteemour Esteemour Esteemour Esteemour Esteem?

CHAPTER 5 65Show Me A Hopeless CaseShow Me A Hopeless CaseShow Me A Hopeless CaseShow Me A Hopeless CaseShow Me A Hopeless Case

CHAPTER 6 83A FA FA FA FA Fresh Moveresh Moveresh Moveresh Moveresh Move

F F F F Forewordorewordorewordorewordoreword

SSSSSharing an apartment with friends or rela-tives might sound exciting and adventurous be-cause it affords one the opportunity to get moreacquainted with them. It opens doors for a reward-ing fellowship and a wonderful experience of shar-ing together.

In a few cases, however, things may not turnout like they should. While some people havebeautiful memories and testimonies of such mo-ments in their lives, others have a contrary experi-ence for several reasons. As both parties get todiscover each other, one may get fed up; feel usedand may not be able to tolerate the presence of theother anymore.

In other words, the relationship might be-come sour, leaving memories of sad moments, inspite of all the accomplished dreams, seasons of

joy, laughter and happiness the friendship has ac-crued over the years.

Leaving home with dashed hopes and adesperate heart is definitely not a position in whichone should be found. God always remains “ourever present help.”(Psalm 46:1). Suppose your friendwith whom you have lived for several years, comeshome one day and says, ‘Please, could you pick yourbags and leave’, then the question of what to do nextor where to go might arise. Your landlord, yourboss or your school might do the same, but Godis saying to you today, ‘Don’t pack your bags yet,because I am not through with you.’ The Bible hasproved several times that the God whom youserve, continually delivers you no matter howtough the situation you find yourself.

WhatWhatWhatWhatWhat’s In Y’s In Y’s In Y’s In Y’s In Your Bagour Bagour Bagour Bagour Bag?

The bags you carry could contain the de-sires, visions and dreams you were about to giveup. The word of God says,

“So shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thysoul: when thou hast found it, then there shall bea reward and thy expectations shall not be cut off.”

(Proverbs 24:14)

Don’t throw away your desires. God usesyour strong desires to bring your dreams to pass.Write down your visions as God directed inHabakkuk 2:2. He says, “...write down the vision,and make it plain upon tables, that he may runthat readeth it.”

Some people give up too soon. Even whenit comes to spiritual matters, they lose their confi-dence in the Word too easily. You can give up onphysical things but don’t ever give up on pray-ing, studying and doing the Word of God. Youmust remind God of His promises because not oneword of all His promises has ever failed. He is afaithful Father. The Word of God says,

“For as the rain cometh down, and the snow fromheaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth theearth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that itmay give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of mymouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shallaccomplish that which I please, and it shall pros-per in the things whereto I sent it.”(Isaiah 55:10-11)

The Word of God to you will always workfor you. No matter who demands that you leave;no matter what situation stretches you to give up,God wants you to know that His indwelling Pres-ence remains in you wherever you go upon theface of the earth. He is definitely with you, work-ing on your behalf. In fact, you might have to leaveinvariably, but it would of necessity turn out forthe best, if you allow God to have full control. Aslong as God is in control of your life, you will moveupward and forward only.

“Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us withbenefits, even the God of our salvation.” (Psalm68:19)

Every child of God is living to experiencea daily outpour of God’s blessing. It’s a daily load-ing of benefits. Anyone can tell you to go away,but God would never tell you off. Instead He says,

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavyladen, and I will give you rest.“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for Iam meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find restunto your souls.“For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

(Matthew 11:28-30)

Your desires and dreams may be the con-tent of the bag you are carrying. It may be yourbroken relationships or even broken fellowshipwith God. God can restore broken relationships.Don’t carry your heavy bag alone. Cast your heavyburden upon Him. Tell Him all about it and re-sign from all your worries and fears. Take up Hisrest - enter into His rest. Believe His Word com-pletely for He is able to help you and sustain you,even in all your anxieties. Throw your dreams,challenges; your whole being into His ever-openarms.

Anita OyakhilomeAnita OyakhilomeAnita OyakhilomeAnita OyakhilomeAnita Oyakhilome

Why Me Why Me Why Me Why Me Why Me?

“G“G“G“G“Giving no offence in any thing, that the minis-try be not blamed: But in all things approving our-selves as the ministers of God, in much patience,in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, In stripes,in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, inwatchings, in fastings... As unknown, and yet wellknown; as dying, and behold, we live; as chastened,and not killed; As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing;as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing,and yet possessing all things.”(2 Corinthians 6:3-5,9,10)

Many people assume turbulent times arenot for Christians and that anyone in a tough situ-ation might have offended God; especially when

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DonDonDonDonDon’t P’t P’t P’t P’t Pack ack ack ack ack Your Bags Your Bags Your Bags Your Bags Your Bags YYYYYet!et!et!et!et!

the situation is prolonged. (2 Timothy 3:12). Thisis far from the truth. Your road to accomplishingsuccess will definitely have trials and challenges.

Jesus knew that we would encounter prob-lems in this world, but He confirmed that as weremain in Him, we would live a life full of peaceeven in the face of them all. You must be of goodcheer; rejoicing always because He has overcomethe world and given you the place of victory!

“These things I have spoken unto you, that in meye might have peace. In the world ye shall havetribulations: but be of good cheer; I have overcomethe world.”(John 16:33)

These words of the Master must re-echo inthe heart of every believer if he must have a victo-rious experience in life. In this scripture is theassurance that we are not alone.

I want you to know that distressing situa-tions come from the enemy - the devil, but Godalways has a victory plan for His children. Youmay wonder why God left us in this world of tri-als and temptations. In other words, you may wantto know why He allows trials to come our way inlife. These are referred to as ‘the sufferings of thispresent time’ (Romans 8:18-19). But you need to

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know that God has made His power available tous and lifted us over principalities and powers.Sometimes Satan wants us to feel guilty by assert-ing that our love for God is based on selfishness,because of all the benefits we enjoy as His chil-dren.

We don’t serve God because we don’t facechallenges or trials neither do we serve God onlybecause we want our problems solved, or becauseof what we want from Him. We do not serve Godfor any selfish motive and the devil is sad to knowthis. He is even more miserable for knowing thatwe are partakers of our Heavenly Father’s natureand inheritance. This brings to mind the story of arich man in the Bible called Job. He feared Godand hated to do evil.

Job 1:8-9, “And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou con-sidered my servant Job, that there is none like himin the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one thatfeareth God, and escheweth evil?“Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, DothJob fear God for nought?”

God has confidence in His children. Hebelieved so much in Job’s integrity and love for

TTTTTrials, Why Merials, Why Merials, Why Merials, Why Merials, Why Me?1 31 31 31 31 3


Him that He challenged Satan with his wealth. Nexttime you find yourself in any challenging situa-tion, rejoice because God is using you to boast tothe devil and the cohorts of hell. He knows youare capable of handling any situation without yourpersonality being tarnished or diminished.

“For which cause we faint not; but though ouroutward man perish, yet the inward man is re-newed day by day. For our light affliction, whichis but for a moment, worketh for us a far more ex-ceeding and eternal weight of glory”.(2 Corinthians 4:16-17).

I love this scripture. Our inward man isbeing renewed day by day. It’s not renewed on itsown, you take an action to renew the inward man.Someone might dislike you and curse you withbad words because you offended him. This is nota trial or a challenge. Those words were wastedbecause they can’t affect you. The Bible says,“Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neitheris there any divination against Israel:..” (Number23:23) It’s the words that proceed out of yourmouth that count.

If you are going through a tough time, it’stime to change what you see and how you inter-

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pret your situation. Now change your confessionto “I am yielding a multiplied harvest of what I havesown, it is getting better every day. Glory to God.” Howdo you see yourself? I would like you to observePaul’s situation and his declarations.

“By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, bykindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,By the word of truth, by the power of God, by thearmour of righteousness on the right hand and onthe left, By honour and dishonour, by evil reportand good report: as deceivers and yet true; As un-known, and yet well known; as dying, and behold,we live; as chastened, and not killed; As sorrow-ful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making manyrich; as having nothing, and yet possessing allthings.” (2 Corinthians 6:6 -10)

These words of Apostle Paul are mind-blowing. He describes the transforming power ofthe Word of God on us: as sorrowful yet alwaysrejoicing; as having nothing, and yet possessingall things.

Whatever you ponder on controls you.That’s why you must be mindful of what youbrood upon. Think the thoughts of God. Think theword of God. You can make yourself happy. It



depends on the character of your thoughts. What-ever you think of at this moment can change theexpression on your face.

Now, the question is why are some Chris-tians suffering? The answer can be easily seen inthe scriptures. God said, “my people perish for lack ofknowledge” (Hosea 4:6). Christians suffer in ex-treme ignorance because they lack the knowledgeand application of God’s word. Some are too shyto testify of God’s divine intervention. Inspite ofanswers to their prayers: healing miracles; a lumpdisappearing, breast cancer being healed, promo-tion at their work place; they find it difficult totestify openly. They would rather keep it to them-selves.

Some people suffer because they’ve notlearnt to declare God’s Word. They rather confesstheir situation or condition. Some suffer becausethey are silent. Some are too lazy to pray. Theycan see a boil on their forehead and instead of say-ing, ‘In Jesus’ Name I command this boil to leave thisbody right now’, they say, ‘I have a boil on my headand it’s hurting me’.

The devil is in charge of the world’s sys-tem. This should reveal to you the origin of sick-ness and disease. But you are not of this world;you’re from the glorious kingdom - the heavenly

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Jerusalem. Just speak to whatever ailment is inyour body; command it to die and pass out ofyour body. The words you speak are not yourwords; they’re the words of your Father. This isthe same word that created the universe and ev-erything in the world responds to it.

Victors TVictors TVictors TVictors TVictors Translates Translates Translates Translates Translates Trial Asrial Asrial Asrial Asrial AsChallengesChallengesChallengesChallengesChallenges

So many things happen to us in life. Butthe way we interprete them determines our re-sponse to them. The full knowledge of our iden-tity is very important. When the Bible says thatyou are more than a conqueror, it infers that youcannot be defeated. No force can throw you offbalance. Only victors translate problems into chal-lenges. The right attitude is very vital for dynamicChristian living: this cannot be over-emphasizedparticularly in trying times.

Some folks act amoebic in the face of trialin their lives. They change their confessions andlifestyles to create ‘adaptive features’ for the timebeing. They change from ‘My God shall supply allmy needs according to His riches in glory…’ to ‘As theLord provides…’ or worse still, ‘We are managing…’



They forget the ways of the Lord and all His good-ness and opt for a lukewarm lifestyle - they areneither in the world nor in the Church. Nonethe-less, things never get better for them, because theirlife is not consistent with the Word.

Your consistency in the profession of yourfaith is one of the most essential of all Christianattitudes towards dynamic living. Remainunshakeable in speaking God’s word, no matterwhat you see or how disastrous the situation mayseem.

God’s Word is any statement or message that isconsistent with the plans, purpose and provisions of God.You must be wise to walk with a consciousness ofyour identity. You must find out what God saysabout you and the (temporary) circumstance youare facing. Then begin to speak the mind of Godto yourself concerning the seemingly ‘dead’ case.Keep speaking and doing God’s word and everyanomaly in your life will be put in check; in con-formity to God’s word.

“Then he answered and spake unto me, sayingThis is the word of the LORD unto Ze-rub-babel,saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by myspirit, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Zechariah 4:6)

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“But the comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whomthe Father will send in my name, he shall teachyou all things, and bring all things to your remem-brance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”(John14:26)

Your life is not a loose web of events andcircumstances. God has very specific plans foryou, so you must pay attention to Him. Alwayslook inward for the answer. When you rely com-pletely on the enabling power of the Holy Ghost,He will calmly and gently guide you. He will pro-vide you with excellent ideas and give you simplebut specific instructions with calm confidence. Dothem. They will yield excellent results and youwill see that every challenge you face is a spring-board to greater heights.

“Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of agood courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dis-mayed: for the Lord thy God is with theewhithersoever thou goest.” (Joshua 1:9)

You must put this scripture to remem-brance; your God is with you anytime and any-where you go. Countless times in the Bible, wesee God encouraging His people to be strong and



courageous. This is the essence: the knowledge ofGod’s word produces boldness, which leaves thedevil trembling. When God commanded Joshuato be bold and courageous, Joshua in essence be-came all that it takes to be all that God said. Byaccepting God’s Word, he became the bold andthe strong and he surmounted every obstacle onhis way to possessing the Promised Land. TheSpirit of God’s strength resides in all believerscausing them to do great exploits in all life situa-tions.

TTTTTrials: Why Not Yrials: Why Not Yrials: Why Not Yrials: Why Not Yrials: Why Not Yououououou?

Be disciplined; be strong. Don’t run frompillar to post at the face of a trial. A tree has to beprunned for it to produce bountifully. Don’t beafraid of trials or challenges. Don’t ask ‘Why me?’Why not you? Your heavenly Father did not leaveyou without a defense. God expects you to oper-ate by the principles of His kingdom and over-come. The anointing upon us destroys the yoke(Isaiah 10:27). Therefore no believer should chan-nel his hope on his ability alone, for it is not bymight nor by power but by the Spirit of our livingGod.

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“Every branch in me that beareth not fruit hetaketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit,he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.”(John 15:2)

“Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good sol-dier of Jesus Christ. No man that warrethentangleth himself with the affairs of this life; thathe may please him who hath chosen him to be asoldier.” (2 Timothy 2:3-4)

You need to be disciplined. You need toendure hardness. Don’t chicken out when theselight afflictions come on the scene, bearing in mindthat they are only for a moment. Keep your gazeon the word, and on the Lord who has countedyou faithful and enlisted you into His great victo-rious army.

“Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy pres-ence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there arepleasures for evermore.” (Psalm 16:11)

Joy is the fruit of the recreated human spirit.God’s joy in you is not dependent on circum-stances. So you must live with a joyful heart al-ways. Never allow any challenge weigh you


down. Remember that whatever challenges youface, are for a moment.

“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but abroken spirit drieth the bones.”(Proverbs 17:22)

“All the days of the afflicted are evil: but he that isof a merry heart hath a continual feast.” (Prov-erbs 15:15)

A joyful heart brings good health. A joyfulheart is the spirit of a victor. He is not weigheddown by light afflictions because he believes thatGod is able to take him through victoriously. Giveno room for sorrow. God’s power is easily acti-vated on your behalf when you lead a cheerfullifestyle. You carry around you an atmosphere ofmiracles, as you live a joyful life.

Your strength is expressed by your laugh-ter over issues that could have brought you downor in hours that could have been the darkest inyour life. This is the way to live the victoriouslifestyle. Never forget that the joy of the Lord isyour strength (Nehemiah 8:10).

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Crown Crown Crown Crown Crown

Beyond Crisis Beyond Crisis Beyond Crisis Beyond Crisis Beyond Crisis

“TTTTThere is a vital force in man-the spirit of intel-ligence- and the inspiration of the Almighty givethhim understanding.” (Job 32:8 ~ The AmplifiedTranslations)

Many people started things they did notfinish: great projects, buildings uncompleted, edu-cation without graduation, jobs that did not con-tinue, plans that were never executed and so on.Some started well but ended badly. In otherwords, instead of making progress, their condi-tion deteriorated. This is common with peoplewhose lives are out of control. Peradventure, bornagain, Spirit-filled Christians are found in this cat-

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egory, it simply means they have not truly cometo realise their place and possessions in Christ.They suffer from an ‘Identity Crisis!’ The devil takesadvantage of such people who don’t know theiridentity in Christ; who don’t know who they are,what their rights are and what they can do inChrist. God never writes a man off, he only pre-pares men for the different stages of life. As thePsalmist revealed,

”For thou, O God hast proved us: thou hast triedus, as silver is tried. Thou broughtest us into thenet; thou laidst afflictions upon our loins. Thouhast caused men to ride over our heads; we wentthrough fire and through water; but thoubroughtest us out into a wealthy place.” (Psalm66:10-12)

The Psalmist here refers to how God usesthe trying times in our lives to purify us as silver.He highlights on the refining stages: These refiningstages are points when you put an end to to complain-ing, announcing your problems and doing nothing aboutit, the point when you stop feeling sorry for yourself,blaming people for your mistakes, when you stop feelingyou cannot be trusted or seen as unreliable. This refin-ing stage is a process, when you deliberately de-

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cide to make changes. Just as you sit for an exami-nation and after being certified ‘passed’, you ex-pect a promotion, in the same way every appear-ance of a trial depicts an imminent promotion inyour life. If you’re passing through any trying timeat the moment, rejoice for your promotion is justahead.

Sometimes, we are tempted to follow an-other direction. As long as we are in this world,we will be tempted; there will always be a chal-lenge for every believer in this world but Christhas given us power over all things.

We can cite a beautiful example from thebook of Daniel. Some reporters, who found outthat three Jews refused to bow down to the imagehad come to report to the king. These Jews werereputable men set over the affairs of Babylon andtherefore would be expected by the king to obeyhis order. Rather they acted on the contrary. So,the king commanded the mightiest men that werein his army to bind Meshach, Shadrach andAbednego and cast them into the burning fieryfurnace. These men were then bound and cast intothe midst of the burning fiery furnace.

I want you to note that due to the intensityof the heat of the furnace, the men who threw theseJews into the furnace were slain by the flame. Yet

Crown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond Crisis2 52 52 52 52 5


Nebuchadnezzar the king did not repent. All of asudden, he saw something marvelous in the midstof the furnace and he became astounded. Hecouldn’t contain himself any longer so, he rose upin haste and asked his counselors,

“…Did not we cast three men bound into the midstof the fire? They answered and said unto the king,True O king.“He answered and said lo, I see four men loosewalking in the midst of the fire and they have nohurt and the form of the fourth is like the Son ofGod.” (Daniel 3:24-25)

Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to themouth of the burning fiery furnace and calledShadrach, Meshach and Abednego out of the fur-nace. The King called them the servants of the MostHigh God. He believed completely in their Godwhen he saw the fourth man in the fire. Let’s seehis declaration of faith, as he poured his heart loudto God,

“…Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach andAbednego, who hath sent his angel (of His pres-ence), and delivered his servants that trusted inhim, and have changed the king’s word and yielded

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their bodies, that they might not serve nor wor-ship any god, except their own God.“ Therefore, I make a decree, That every people,nation, and language, which speak any thing amissagainst the God of Shadrach, Meshach andAbednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their housesshall be made a dunghill: because there is no otherGod that can deliver after this sort.“Then, the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach andAbednego, in the province of Babylon.” (Daniel3:28-30 paraphrased)

This is a wonderful testimony. The Pres-ence of Jesus is with you, whatever you might begoing through . The Holy Ghost, who is the car-rier of the divine Person of Christ, is in you. Youare not alone.

Meshach, Shadrach and Abednego werepromoted by the king after being proved by God.We can see how a whole nation of idolaters can beturned to God by our faith exercised in God intrying times.

God did not create us to manipulate us. Hecreated us for a purpose. We have a Companion,who is the Comforter - The Holy Spirit. The prom-ise that Christ made to us has been fulfilled. Jesusis seated on the right hand of the Father but the

Crown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond CrisisCrown Beyond Crisis2 72 72 72 72 7

Holy Spirit is here on earth with us. The FourthMan is with you. He is also in you. Get rid of thatlong face, You can be happy today!

“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying thetruth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of thebrethren, see that ye love one another with a pureheart fervently: Being born again, not of corrupt-ible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God,which liveth and abideth for ever (1 Peter 1:22-23).

You are born of an incorruptible seed. Godwants to prove that a new race, one that is inde-structible, has emerged; a race that cannot be tar-nished.

You are full of God’s life. It’s the life thatcannot be conquered; the kind which even thegrave cannot hold. It’s the kind of life that con-trols situations and circumstances; one that domi-nates sin, sicknesses and diseases. This life is inyou. The same Spirit that raised up Jesus Christfrom the dead dwells in you; there’s no spiritualforce strong enough to destroy you, because thelife that’s within you is the incorruptible life ofGod!

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Relationships Relationships Relationships Relationships Relationships

EEEEEvery new creation in Christ is a peculiarperson. If you are born again, you are not ordinary.Ordinary people regard themselves as common;the masses. They have no voice, no face and noidentity. They are hidden in the crowd, carrying afrown with worry wrinkles and no confidence inthemselves, or anyone. They speak empty words;they are at war with every one. They like no one,including themselves. They have an identitycrisis.

Ordinary people are ashamed of thegospel, they have no hope but have accepteddefeat. One sad characteristic of ordinary people,which makes them stagnant in life is their refusalto accept the authority of the Word of God. The

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Word is indestructible; it cannot deny itself, it’squick and powerful. It’s obviously devastating tohang around with ordinary people because theyhave no regard for the things of God. The Bibledescribes them as the simple. Proverbs 22:3 says,“the prudent man foreseeth the evil and hideth himselfbut the simple pass on and are punished”. ‘Punished’here, comes from the word ‘suffer’. In other words,the simple pass on and suffer. They suffer becauseof negligence. King Saul suffered torment, he wal-lowed in fear, timidity, unrest. Though he wasGod’s choice, he suffered because of hiscomplacent attitude to the things of God (1 Samuel13-15).

The simple man suffers for many reasons.The very first mistake he makes is regarding God’sprecious possession (themselves) as ordinary andacting so. This attitude of belittling God is anoffence on its own. Stooping so low and trying tomake the word of God of non-effect is offensive.Defiling your body which is the temple of theliving God is profane in itself.

Living without regard for the things of Godis opening the doors to suffering. Hence the simpleman is tossed around by every wind of doctrine.He has no base, no specific local assembly heidentifies with; he’s just a Church inspector. The

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Bible says that the simple believes every word;irrespective of where it’s coming from. He believesevery lie, fable, myth and tale; because he’s notgrounded in the truth.

Living In the Danger ZoneLiving In the Danger ZoneLiving In the Danger ZoneLiving In the Danger ZoneLiving In the Danger Zone

The danger zone is a darkness point ofdistraction, an unpleasant system whichbelievers could drift into when they lose theirsense of purpose. It’s entering an area that’s not inline with God’s life which takes away their trueidentity. There are definitely consequences forliving your life unregulated by the Word of God.When Christians blindly live their lives unregu-lated by God’s Word, they stand open to theadversary.

Don’t deceive yourself in believing you cansteal, lie, be dishonest, hate or live on drugs, for-nication, murder and claim to be in a right rela-tionship with God. Even if you pretend to be aSaint, the Bible openly declares that friendshipwith the world is enmity with God.

We must make our salvation certain andopen, not hidden, compromising or mingled withsin. Not keeping ungodly friends that draw you

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away from the presence of God.It’s important also not to deny your inner

man the right environment to grow. Do you singsongs of unbelief? Do you look at pictures thatdeprive you of your dignity? Do you useunwholesome language or swear at people andyet go to Church at your convenience? This is cer-tainly a danger zone for any Christian to tread.

A lukewarm Christian is endangering hislife. The Bible reveals to us the mind of God onthis matter in Revelation 3:15,

“ I know thy works, that thou art neither cold norhot; I would thou wert cold or hot. So then be-cause thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot,I will spew thee out of my mouth”.

We carry the name of the Father, we are theexpression of God’s glory, carrying the radianceof God’s divinity in humanity. Therefore ourHeavenly Father expects the word to have domin-ion over us, to rule our decisions, to guide ourtongue, to control our daily affairs. The only wayto live in God’s realm is to stay in His word, re-gardless of the affairs of this world. Don’t let crazefor money, promotion, health, children, fame, orother needs, deprive you of your true identity.

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The most wonderful announcement is yourFather possesses all these things. If you are in needof them, He says, ask and it shall be given untoyou that your joy might be full (John 16:24).

Seek first the kingdom of God and Hisrighteousness; and all these things shall be addedunto you. In other words, aim after doing thingsthe God way and in His righteousness. Don’t permitthe world system to control you. Let the Wordregulate your ways, thought and language. Youare the child of God, live as one!

Expensive hobbies are depriving becausethey are wrongly placed, usually at the expenseof the right habits. Set your priorities right. Youcan assess your spiritual accomplishments, assessyour growth. How much time and value do yougive to God?

Jesus always went into the wilderness topray without distraction. This is to demonstratethe extent of the importance of separating oneself,entirely to God, without any distraction. I observeda certain brother who always arrived late to church,and his excuse was always that he was tired. Oneday I called him to find out if he was alright, or ifhe was doing late night jobs. I was shocked whenhe admitted it was his hobby that kept him up atnight, as late as 4.00 am. He said he loved watching

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late night movies. That hobby was destroying hisrelationship with God, and he didn’t know it. Itwas consuming his precious time. That wasexpensive indeed!

The danger zone is a wretched, miserable,poor, blind state. The book of Revelation describesthis condition. “Because thou sayest, I am rich, andincrease with goods and have need of nothing; andknowest not that thou art wretched, miserable and blind“.It’s terrible to be in this condition, a poor spiritualstate without realizing it.

WWWWWonderful Christiansonderful Christiansonderful Christiansonderful Christiansonderful Christians

A Christian should not take the Word outof context, arguing blindly and trying to convinceothers around him to accept a selfish opinion. TheBible strictly warns against this attitude, Paulstarted by saying to the Galatians, “ I marvel thatyou are so soon removed from him that called youinto the grace of Christ unto another gospel. Aswe said before, so say I now again, If anyone manpreach another gospel unto you, let him beaccursed”.(Galatians 1:6-8)

If this matter was not taken lightly by Paul,

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we as believers must come to terms with what thegospel implies, and what we believe. The gospelis the power of God unto salvation to every onewho believes it, to the Jews first and then to theGentiles. The Word of God is the life carryingfaculty of God, so the gospel put in words, is thepower of God to make His life manifest in a man.Not by man paying for it, not by merits, but byGod’s grace.

Galatians 2:16 says, “knowing that a man is notjustified by the works of the law, but by the faithof our Lord Jesus Christ ...”

The gospel simply means Good news; thatthe life which we now live in the flesh, we live bythe faith of the Son of God, who loved us and gaveHimself for us. It’s wonderful that we can live ourlives by the faith of God, no longer controlled bythe flesh, lust, or enslaved by the senses. We arenow controlled by the Word. As much as wepermit God’s Word to regulate us, we must notoverlook the fact that we are the light of the world,we are pacesetters and everyone who looks at usobviously observes God.

But we can misrepresent our HeavenlyFather by refusing to grow unto maturity. For



example, praying at the wrong time or not payingattention; busy constructing a letter to yourlecturer, intending to win him to Christ, while alecture is going on. He would probably end upbeing careful of you!

Christians are the most productive work-ers a man can employ. The Bible declares whateverthey lay their hands to do shall prosper (Psalm1:3). I’m referring to believers who make the Worda priority. The Bible declares that “whosoever lookethinto the perfect law of liberty and continueth therein, hebeing not a forgetful hearer shall be blessed in his deeds”(James 1:25). The Bible admonishes us to mind ourbusiness. The attention you place on issues relatedto you should be with the wisdom of God’s Word.

A wise man is one that applies the wisdomhe has. ”Who is a wise man and endued with knowl-edge among you? Let him show out of a good conversa-tion his works with meekness of wisdom.” (James 3:13).You must have good works to present becausethese works will be tried by fire. The coming ofJesus should not put fear or guilt in the heart of abeliever but confident assurance of a gloriousunion with him. You must take your salvationmore seriously, not a Church ‘sleeping beauty’,whose eyes and ears take a break, as soon as theword comes.

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Pathetically some Christians who are veryinvolved in church, pay more attention to movingaround, just observing, just working even at oddtimes, they pay more attention to work at theexpense of the Word, it’s time to set priorities right.

Many people face extreme difficulty in hav-ing a successful, life-long relationship with theirspouse, friends and family. Life is more fulfillingwhen you are in the midst of loving and caringpeople. You are at your best at work and home,when surrounded by people with a ‘warm spirit’;people without evil intentions, suspicions, or mis-interpretations. The most enriching life is high-lighted in Galatians 5:22-23

“But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace,longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,“Meekness temperance: against such there is nolaw.”

The nature of every believer is love, sincethat is the nature of God. Anything short of love iscontrary to God’s way of life. This nature is notcarnal, hence the Bible says in Romans 5:5,

“And hope maketh not ashamed; because the loveof God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy



Ghost.”

This is the evidence of a spirit-filled manof God. Unfortunately, there are too many carnalbelievers who only love those that love them, butwhat differentiates a believer from the world ishis in-depth nature of love causing him to love allmen.

The simple fact about living happily withpeople is seen in your expressions. Your expres-sion reveals your reaction, either pleasure ordispleasure. Your expression can be hidden orblown open. However, it exposes itself with time.It’s what some people refer to as ‘How I feel’ or ‘myfeelings’.

As a result of these carnal-induced phrases,many cases have been taken for granted becausesome people just expressed their feelings over amatter considered offensive or embarrassing.Sometimes, these cases are blown out of propor-tion and if you’re quick at reacting, you might findyourself on the defensive, always apologizing formisunderstanding comments, because youexposed yourself to listening to just anything.

Some folks have been frustrated in theirplaces of work, because they have a personal self-concluded impression of been overworked, taken

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for granted or considered insignificant. There areeither two things to be done: work harder or buttout; keep away. These could help point you tothe solution (self- check):

How is my attitude in this regard? Am Iover-reacting, nervous or impatient?Do I take to corrections or detest them?Am I too proud to be authorized?Do I follow instructions, or prefer to havethings my way?Am I better than my superiors?Am I disciplined to work effectively andglad to take to corrections?Do I respond to corrections immediately?Do I ponder over a lot of words till it makesme feel sorry for myself?

Note that every suggestion does not haveto come from you. Every name mentioned doesnot have to be your name. If you specialise inbringing up people, you will realize byre-echoing their suggestions and making them feelimportant, you have done yourself a favor inraising your statutes. Jesus grew in wisdom andstature, and in favor with God and man bypreaching the gospel to the poor, laying hands on


the sick and afflicted, setting captives free,making people happy. The Bible declares in thebook of Luke

“And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, andin favour with God and man”(Luke 2:52).

Overlook the hurtful words, and let thembe converted into encouraging words. Overlookthe threat, and see it as a reward of imminentpromotion, because God looks at your heart. Ifyour boss is trying to abuse you, it’s time to speakforth the word of God concerning your boss withboldness. Pray for a change in him and foryourself, pray for a better move. Let God takecontrol. You can never lose your job. If your bossthreatens to sack you because you refuse to havean affair with him, no problem. You did not loseyour job, they lost you. Head on for a better job.You are in control.

Apply the LApply the LApply the LApply the LApply the Love Pove Pove Pove Pove Principlerinciplerinciplerinciplerinciple

You can change your relationships for thebetter if you apply the love principle. It workedfor God, it will work for you. Whether it’s your

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aggressive in-law, your uncooperative brother orsister, love will make you hear their voicedifferently, it will make you view their actions andmotives differently. Take control of therelationship with patience, and see their helplesssouls with a new passion. Your strength comesout as you remain unmoved by their words,because they cannot hurt you. You’re untouchedby their actions, because they have no effect onyou. God stands strong on behalf of His children.

You can have a good relationship with peo-ple. There are a number of guidelines people cangive you for developing good relationships suchas remembering names, keeping a kind smile,giving honest compliments, being prepared tolisten to people, and never arguing but supportingtheir views. These tips are good, but they havetheir limitations. The Bible says,

“There is a spirit in man and the inspiration of thealmighty giveth them understanding“ (Job 32:8).

Wisdom is the principal thing. The manwith an excellent spirit will do everything in linewith the nature of God, not to impress, but becauseit’s his nature to do right. He is the righteousness



of God in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21).Quite a number of people have great

problems in communicating. Maybe in spite of tipsand guidelines taught on communication you stillexperience difficulty in effectively communicatingwith your listeners. To communicate effectively,your words must come from your inner mostbeing; for out of your inward part shall flow riversof living waters Then your words will not beselfish but kind, not self-centred but considerate.Your smile will be encouraging; filled with life.That is the actual purpose of communication.

Another translation for Communication is’Koinonia’, meaning ‘Fellowship’.

“But to do good and to communicate forget not:for with such sacrifices God is wellpleased.”(Hebrews 13:16)

In other words, God is pleaed with thefellowship or communication of believers. Ourcommunication brings edification to the hearer.The real life will communicate to your heart. Aman with a recreated spirit talks from theinnermost part of his being. His words createimpact, portray the virtues of God’s Spirit andbring edification to his listeners. God honors his

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words.If therefore, the secret of a successful rela-

tionship borders around effective communication,it means that you are designed to prosper in thisarea because the words that now come out of yourmouth are spirit and life. They are not mere words,but active, operative, energizing and effective, fullof power to win and for results.You will touchyour hearers.They will desire your words like thepeople that followed our Lord Jesus just to hearHim speak. No man ever spoke like Him, the peo-ple stayed with Him for three days without food,just to hear him speak. How wonderful!

DonDonDonDonDon’t L’t L’t L’t L’t Lay Blames!ay Blames!ay Blames!ay Blames!ay Blames!

Blaming your father or mother or an ac-quaintance for your misfortune is responding to alie from the pit of hell. When you realise that noone can dictate your destiny but you and God, youwill live a new kind of life. When you make Hisword a priority, He would direct your path. Inother words, give Him a free course to direct allyour affairs. Don’t waste your precious time blam-ing someone for any misfortune in your life.Whether someone wronged you or not, God will



restore your wasted years. He would redeem youryears in fruitful measures.

Think the best thoughts about others, seethe best in others, and believe that if you can bekind, and walk in love, others can do the same. Ifyou’ve made mistakes, relax. God has just starteda new thing, to turn these mistakes, for develop-ment.

“Be ye therefore followers of God as dear children:And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us andhath given himself for us as an offering and a sac-rifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.”(Ephesians 5: 1-2)

You can forget the losses and the hurts. Startafresh. Don’t put yourself in a vacuum. Don’t wal-low in ignorance and enjoy it. Everyone wants tobe identified with success, square your shouldersbecause you are a bundle of success.

Some attitudes are rampant today: childrenrunning away from home simply because theyrefuse to be controlled by their parents. Christiansmoving from Church to Church, evidently as aresult of wanting to have their own way. There isno discipline over their appetite. We have to trainourselves and rule our hearts with the word of

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God. Renew your mind with the word daily. Whenpeople believe they have an option they can af-ford to takes things for granted. Careless talks,expensive jokes, inconvenient jesting, mockeryshould never be associated with a believer. As lit-tle as they seem, the Spirit of God detests them.They rob you of your true nature; they destroyyour personality and belittle you. As a matter offact, let it never be in the life of an anointed vesselof God like you!

“Let all bitterness, wrath, and anger,and clamour,and evil speaking, be put away from you, with allmalice: And be ye kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God forChrist’s sake hath forgiven us.” (Ephesians 4:31)

FFFFFrustrated Marriagesrustrated Marriagesrustrated Marriagesrustrated Marriagesrustrated Marriages

Most marital problems are usually plantedduring courtship. Your courtship to a large extentdetermines the kind of marriage you’repreparing for. It’s either a godly marriage or acompromising marriage. Some Christian folksonly please their spouses at God’s expense. Theyleave Church in spite of what their Pastors advise



because they fell offended. Some people even getmarried irrespective of their Pastor’s, parents’ andbrethren’s advice. I will encourage you to reflectover the past, as you encounter the present.

“Correction is grievous unto him that forsakeththe way: and he that hateth reproof shall die.”(Proverbs 15: 10).

It’s what you sow you will reap. It’s anunchanging law. You have to destroy what you‘vesown by going to the root, because the foundationof life is in the root. This means you don’t dealwith a situation from the physical view point inlife.

Being loose and wanting your own wayirrespective of what the Word of God says, is anact of indiscipline which eventually leads to agreat deal of disappointments. The Bible says,

“Mortify therefore your members which are uponthe earth: fornication, uncleaness, inordinate af-fection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness,which is idolatory.”(Colossians 3:5)

Give yourself sound training. Don’tcompromise your righteousness. The Bible boldly

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instructs us to mortify our members. In otherwords, we are to put to death the things of the flesh(Romans 8:13). Prospective partners shouldappreciate courtship as a training ground. Arelationship set with a vision and purpose,approached on God’s principles, with such solidfoundation is programmed to succeed. Seek tohave a home whose builder and maker is God.How much respect do we have for our vows madeon the altar before God? (Isaiah19:21) Are they for-gotten over time or were they just recited at thealtar. Your marriage should not be built on help-less confessions, submitting to fate, for better andfor worse, in poverty and in wealth, in sicknessand in health. There is a faith life profession ofvows that grooms you from the onset to set yourmarriage on the Word. The bridegroom isenjoined to love his bride as Christ loves theChurch, and the bride to respect her husband; tostand in the faith of the gospel of our Lord JesusChrist in health, prosperity and joy.

Follow after what is real. What you see, feeland hear as long as it is inconsisitent with the Wordof God is not real (2 Corinthians 4:18). Look untoJesus and not unto your spouse and He will perfectyour marriage and all that concern you.



DonDonDonDonDon’t T’t T’t T’t T’t Take This Fake This Fake This Fake This Fake This For Grantedor Grantedor Grantedor Grantedor Granted

You might have shared an apartment withsomeone whom you believed used you. Probablyyou did not approve of his way of life or the wayhis kids were brought up, or their non-challantattitude. Whenever you refer to an experience youhad with an acquaintance while he was sharinghis home with you, irrespective of his behavior, Ialways want you to remember the first day he tookyou into his house. It must have been a testimonyfor you to have shelter. Think again about howyou desperately needed his help and how he of-fered you assistance. Remember that your re-sponse was ‘Thank you’. In spite of any circum-stance, remember that you are there to set exam-ples not to depend on them, because God is yoursource. You are there to represent Christ, toexpress His love, and not to complain. You arethere to pray for them, and show that youappreciate them. Jesus honours our appreciation(Colossians 3:15).

Don’t ever take things for granted.Contribute positively to the well being of the peo-ple around you. It’s a legacy you will always beremembered for.

A kind person is not a fool, though the

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world may think so. The world claims others willtake advantage of a kind person or suggests thekindness is an ulterior motive, or that he wouldeventually regret his unnecessary kind nature.Kindness is a spiritual fruit. It’s not done inexchange for a reward, or announced openly. Thisis why it’s a struggle for the flesh to give. But aspirit-controlled man knows that it’s a way of life.He knows giving opens the gateway to receiving.

YYYYYour Conversationour Conversationour Conversationour Conversationour Conversation

One day, record a visitor who speaks un-ruly on a tape. After he is gone, listen to your con-versation. Then, notice carefully yourcontributions. Assess yourself with the following:supportive, indifferent, quiet, correcting orinspiring? Always remember that your silencemeans consent in communication.

Some people are so used to criticizing theircountrymen and government, that in theirsubconscious they do the same, but thank God forHis Word that has taught us to be prayerful overthe affairs of our nation. Our confession mustchange towards those that are in office, hence in-fluencing the course of our nation. The more we



speak God’s Word towards our nation, the morewe put His Word into operation in the corridorsof power.

If you’ve developed yourself over time tohave itching ears, discussing the affairs of men andwomen you know, STOP! before it’s too late. Makea deliberate decision to keep away from criticisms.It will definitely destroy you. Let your wordsconcerning people be described as inspiring,motivating and encouraging.

“Let your speech be always with grace, seasonedwith salt, that ye may know how ye ought toanswer every man.’ (Colossians 4:6)

Listen TListen TListen TListen TListen To Yo Yo Yo Yo Your Heartour Heartour Heartour Heartour Heart

This is usually the advice the world can of-fer. Confiding in an unbeliever is a waste of time,the Bible declares that in the counsel of the godlythere is power (Proverbs 11:14). You can only listento your heart if you have the right counsel storedup in it. Intense frustration has led many to makewrong decisions and sometimes confusionsuppresses others to be irrational, irrespective ofthe Word. God is a master planner, He directs your

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path effortlessly, when you make Him yourguardian. In a situation of desperate need don’tcut off the Angel of His Presence. He is the Ancientof days working ahead and on behalf of His chil-dren, especially at a time when the situationappears at its worst. When you trust entirely inyour Heavenly Father, He would do exceedinglyabundantly above all you can ever think or imag-ine.

In a situation of desperate need, the Angelof God’s presence always wants to take full con-trol. This is the right time for God to prove Him-self in the patience of His children. Many react toofast and refuse to respond to the Word. The secretis your response; ‘look into the perfect law of lib-erty and continue therein’. Don’t look at the world,but look at the Word of God.

“Because thou hast made the Lord, which is myrefuge even the most High, thy habitation; Thereshall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plaguecome nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give His an-gels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.(Psalm 91:9-11)


Just Start!Just Start!Just Start!Just Start!Just Start!

Someone is wondering, “When will I everfulfil my dreams, my ambitions of going to theuniversity?” Have you ever come across amessenger in a firm, who became a typist,advanced as a secretary, a legal practitioner andeventually rose to be the managing director of thefirm? How much more a child of God, if Goddwells in you? You have the ability to cause achange. Always remember that if God be for youno one can be against you (Romans 8:31). In otherwords no one can defeat you. Start living yourdreams today. The Word of God says “He givethpower to the faint; and to them that have no mightHe increaseth strength.” (Isaiah 40:29).

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Where is your Where is your Where is your Where is your Where is your

Self-esteem Self-esteem Self-esteem Self-esteem Self-esteem?

HHHHHow you treat yourself is of great impor-tance to God. Your body, soul and spirit are allrelevant functional parts of you, considered to bevery important to your Heavenly Father. The Bi-ble reveals this in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20,

“Know ye not that your body is the temple of theHoly Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God,and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with aprice: therefore glorify God in your body, and inyour spirit, which are God’s.”

You are not your own anymore, you’reGod’s. He bought you with an expensive price,

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and expects you to value His precious possession,which is you. He doesn’t want you to look downon yourself. You are God’s masterpiece. Carryyourself with dignity, as one in whom the Spiritof God dwells (1 Corinthians 3:16).

Some people have very low self-esteem.This could be a constant inner battle for life,resulting in an identity crisis. One major reasonfor this is a lack of confidence in oneself, forobvious reasons, ranging from child abuse, verbalabuse, peer pressure, deprivation of all sorts to alack of good education.

The good news is that as believers, we havethe Greater One on the inside of us. Our confidenceis not in our ability but in God’s. We have Hisability; His power invested in us. A low self-esteem has very detrimental implications. It hasforced a number of people to commit suicide. Sev-eral have gone into drugs, prostitution and vari-ous crimes for the simple fact that life seemed toohard to cope with for them. They could notmanage life on their own. They did not believe inthemselves. They could not place any value ontheir lives.

Losing one’s individuality is one thing, butputting up a facade to impress people is definitelybreathing a lie all year round. No doubt, a lot of

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teenagers need help. They are in a very vulner-able situation. A mistake in their life, without thesupport of their parents, could amount to life-longproblems. Youths living for Christ make a wholeworld of difference.

For a youth to display leadership traits veryearly in life, should take no one by surprise. Youare a leader. The Bible describes how Jesus taughtthe Pharisees and Scribes at the temple. Yourparents may not be your role models; thank GodHe has provided His Word and the Holy Ghost toteach you all things (John 15:16). He has given usmentors and spiritual leaders to counsel us andpray for us as well. God has great plans for you.He wants to train you and develop you forleadership. It only requires a submissive heart; onethat does not struggle to do or have things his ownway.

“The Lord doth build up Jerusalem: he gatherethtogether the outcasts of Israel.“He healeth the broken in heart and bindeth uptheir wounds. “(Psalm 147:2-3)

Let God build you. Let Him organize youraffairs. Permit Him to work in every facet of yourlife. Then, He can have full hold over you without

5555555555 Where Is YWhere Is YWhere Is YWhere Is YWhere Is Your Esteemour Esteemour Esteemour Esteemour Esteem?


the risk of your falling prey to the enemy’s tricks.To be caught in the web of low self-esteem

is the devil’s channel of destroying a Christian. Theconstant haunt to disregard yourself, think nobodyloves or cares for you would not contribute anypositive impact to your life. Even if you are actu-ally faced with your friends disserting you forsomeone probably, better than you. Maybe youtook solace in keeping a stressful relationship withsomeone who made your life miserable, someonewho could not accept your friends or your familycomplained about everything you did, wanted tochange your clothes or make up, even monitoredyour movement, obviously a pressure relation-ship. In similar circumstances some women havekilled their children because they wanted to keepa successful relationship with a selfish friend. Iwonder if they considered the fact that this friendcould walk away at anytime, the same way theirbiological father did. You don’t have topressurize yourself, trying to impress someone tolove you. The love of God is sure, His love foryou is everlasting. Nothing will separate you fromthe love of God. God takes delight in His children,whom He created for His glory. The book of IsaiahChapter 43 verses 7 and 21 contain beautifulwords from God about His children.

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“Even everyone that is called by my name: for Ihave created him for my glory, I have formed him,yea, I have made him. This people have I formedfor myself. They shall shew forth my praise.”

All that our God has created are in perfectcondition and are for his pleasure. We bring Godgreat pleasure when we value what He created.Starting from you, your brothers, sisters, friendsetc.

When someone loves you, he goes out ofhis way to show it. He goes to the shop to select anice gift for you. He thinks of your smile as hepresents the gift to you. He imagines how nice youwould look when you wear it. It’s wonderful tobe loved and happy. The Bible says Happy are thepeople whose God is the Lord.(Psalm 144:15). Theyare admired simply because they are loved. Con-sider yourself blessed, having God’s favourinvoked upon you. David recognized andappreciated God’s love for him, when he said,“The Lord is my Shepherd “ (Psalm 23: 1)

Oh, if you hear the words that pour out ofthe heart of an appreciative child, you will fall inlove with God. I always want my words to reflectthe nature of my Father, what counts most is to bea channel of praise to God. A song writer said,

Where Is YWhere Is YWhere Is YWhere Is YWhere Is Your Esteemour Esteemour Esteemour Esteemour Esteem?5757575757


“Why should I be discouraged why should theshadows come, why should my heart be lonely…”

If you have made God the Lord of your life,let Him be your number one. His eyes move toand fro the earth, to show Himself strong on be-half of those whose heart are set towards Him. Youare God’s number one priority. He says,

“I have called thee by thy name, thou art mine,when thou passeth through the water, I will be withthee… (Isaiah 43:1-2).

Not only is God there for you, but with Himworking on your behalf, nothing shall by anymeans hurt you.

You might have been the breadwinner ofyour family and enjoyed having control until youlost your job, and you have not found any suit-able job ever since. It’s making you frustrated anddepressed to be at home all year round withdependants. You feel worthless, especially withthe thought of your wife alone supporting thefamily financially.

There’s something my husband alwayssays, ‘if you don’t have a job, make one’. The thinkingthat we need capital to start any business iserroneous. Success is more than capital. What you

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really need is an idea, faith, a strong drive, poten-tial and the will to start off. When these are inplace, you are ready for success. God will providethe capital. If you will let Him, the ideas will comeas you pray. When you direct your interest to God,He would organize your plans. God will workwith you in the area of your interest. Let your in-terest measure up with His word. He will give youan idea on how to get the capital. He’ll supplyyour needs according to his riches in glory byChrist Jesus (Philippians 4:19). Our God is a Mas-ter planner, a perfect organiser, don’t forget thistruth, you can depend on Him.

You should not permit circumstances orpeople to determine your worth. It doesn’t matterwhat anyone thinks of you. You cannot pleaseman, no matter how hard you try. You can onlyplease God. He looks at your heart; your inten-tions and covers you with His shield of love. Heprotects you, while others will expose you. He willguide you while others judge you. He will loveyou when others turn their back on you.

The Pharisees were a typical example ofpressure to our Lord Jesus Christ. They werepersistent at embarrassing Him, they refused toobey Him or learn anything. They had no regardfor miracles, they were determined to terminate

Where Is YWhere Is YWhere Is YWhere Is YWhere Is Your Esteemour Esteemour Esteemour Esteemour Esteem?5 95 95 95 95 9


Him. They instigated lies against our Lord JesusChrist. But it did not change Him from being ourHealer, our Caretaker, our Teacher. He said, “ Imust go about my Father’s business…” (Luke 2:49).The Bible declared how Jesus went about doinggood and healing all that were oppressed of thedevil (Acts 10:38). The law was not master overJesus. Jesus was Master over the law. The law didnot stop Him from displaying the nature of theFather. If Jesus had gone through mockery, be-trayal, lies, ingratitude and He still remained aVictor, that simply means God has designed youa victor (Romans 7:38). Mockery, unemployment,divorce, failure, health problems are not enoughto destroy God’s design. He breathed His life intoyou. He is at work in you. The AmplifiedTranslation makes it clearer:

“For it is God who is all the while effectually atwork in you [energizing and creating in you thepower and desire] both to will and to work for Hisgood pleasure and satisfaction and delight.”(Philippians 2:13).

You’re not alone in this world. These cir-cumstances don’t have the right to change yourself- esteem. Don’t allow anything to interfere with

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your relationship with God. You are God’s willcreated for His pleasure, satisfaction and delight.

You might have heard some people say,“This problem makes me unhappy and I cannot prayanymore.” You have the responsibility to makeyourself happy. It’s a big mistake to allowproblems interfere with your prayers to God. That‘show the devil tries to destroy a Christian. He stealsthe Word to destroy the believer. While he has yourattention over one problem, he is paving way formore serious ones to come. As long as you arenegligent of the Word, the devil can get yourattention but God’s Word has the supernaturalability to build you up. What you’re going to becan only be determined by you. Change the wayyou view challenges, don’t be afraid of things.

“No weapon that is formed against thee shallprosper; and every tongue that shall rise againstthee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is theheritage of the servant of the Lord and their right-eousness is of me, saith the Lord.” ( Isaiah 54:17)

God has destined you for His glory. Youhave a role to play as His child. Discover it. Nomatter your occupation, God requires you to ob-tain fulfillment in the gospel.



Nobody would want to employ someonewho comes for an interview begging foremployment, because he’s frustrated or unhappy.He’s desperately in need of money, has no friends,is lonely and dislikes himself. You would ratherhelp him financially but not employ him to workfor you because you want someone who is charm-ing, confident, honest, trustworthy, attractscustomers, is hardworking and good at the job;not someone seeking sympathy, otherwise, hewould wreck your business. An employer wouldpay a fortune to have a staff who loves smiling.Nobody enjoys a frowning face. It repels. The truthis you create a force field around you when youhave a good self-esteem. You invite people likeyou, “Like begets like.”

Don’t be regulated by moods. This weekyou’re happy, next week is a struggle. You havethe nature of God. You’re the righteousness of Godin Christ. See yourself the way God sees you, notwhat you consider about yourself.

“Thou through thy commandments has made mewiser than my enemies: for they are ever with me. Ihave more understanding that all my teachers forthy testimonies are my meditation. I understandmore than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts.

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I have refrained my feet from every evil way that Imight keep thy word.” (Psalm 119:98-101)

Build yourself in the Word. Stop puttingyourself down with your precious mouth. You’reGod’s precious possession, worthy of the deathof His only begotten Son. He became sin that youmight become the righteousness of God in Him (2Corinthians 5:21). He became poor that you mightbecome rich (1 Corinthains 8:9). When thesebecome meaningful to you, you will never listenor believe in the devil’s lies. Don’t accept wrongthoughts: when the devil tells you ‘You’re a failure’,‘You will surely die’, ‘You can never have a child’, ‘Yourhealth is at stake’, ‘That person does not like you...’,thelist is endless.

God is on your case. Create theenvironment for Him to work with you. Rejoice.The steps of the righteous are ordered of God. It ‘simportant that you love the Lord with a pure heart.If you love God you will definitely love to pleaseHim and do His will. Then, you will treat yourselfwith more respect. You will value the price Hepaid to redeem you. The love of God has beenshed abroad in your heart by the Holy Ghost (Ro-mans 5:5), spread it to those around you. Thosewho live in love never regret it.


It’s time to dream big, you’re identified withChrist. You have an identity, you’re not ‘just ateacher’, ‘just a dentist’, ‘just a Mum or Dad’. Youridentity is established through what you arecommitted to. What are you committed to? Becommitted to the things of God and His Word;things of eternal value.

You are worth more than many sparrows.Value eternal life. It’s certain that you will neverdesire another when you truly have Christ.

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4

Show Me A Show Me A Show Me A Show Me A Show Me A Hopeless Case Hopeless Case Hopeless Case Hopeless Case Hopeless Case

TTTTThe definition of a hopeless case is onethat needs to be addressed at this point. It’sapparent that its definition differs from one personto another. Let me put it this way: do you knowsomeone in a state of despair, rejection or even ina state of condemnation? Probably you have evenbeen told a situation is incurable, irreparable, in-consolable or irrevocable. You are so desperateand confused because nothing within human im-agination can alter the problem. Is that what youcall a hopeless case?

I heard of a child, about five years of age,whose father just died at the time. After thefuneral, she visited his grave. There by the

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graveside, she wept bitterly. Then, suddenly shesaid, ’Daddy, now that you are gone, who will take careof me; who will pay my school fees?’ That was onequestion nobody was ready to answer, but thischild was desperate to know what the future heldfor her. Some businesses have collapsed, ‘wreckedbeyond repair.’ Some folks have been ‘battered for life’because of one misfortune or the other. Is that ahopeless case?

An incident in the Bible would have passedfor a hopeless case, but by the time we’re throughlooking at it, you would agree with me that Godcan turn any situation for your good.

Now journey with me to Pi-hahiroth by theRed Sea, as I revisit the scene of this great, indel-ible incident. Just before then, Pharaoh had pro-nounced the release of the children of Israel in theland of Egypt. However, on a second thought, hechanged his mind concerning his decision, andplanned to destroy them completely.

Pharaoh got six hundred of his choicestchariots with their captains and they pursued ag-gressively after the children of Israel.

When the children of Israel saw the Egyp-tian army on their chariots at close range, they weresore afraid. They cried unto the Lord and accusedMoses of bringing them to the wilderness to kill

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them there. They were indeed shortsighted, be-cause they had not known the kind of God theyhad in their camp.

“And Moses said unto the people, “Fear ye not,stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD,which He will shew you to day: for the Egyptianswhom ye have seen today, ye shall see them againno more for ever.“The LORD will fight for you, and you shall holdyour peace.“And the LORD said unto Moses, wherefore criestthou unto me? Speak unto the Children of Israel,that they go forward:“But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thinehand over the sea, and divide it: and the childrenof Israel shall go on dry ground through the midstof the sea.” (Exodus 14:13-16)

Moses was very desperate when he lookedahead of him and saw the Red Sea, knowing fullywell that Pharaoh’s army was approaching themfrom behind. He cried for help, then God orderedhim to use his rod, for the solution was right therein his hands. When he responded to God’s Wordby stretching forth his hand, the rod split the greatRed Sea into two and the children of Israel walked

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on dry ground across the Red Sea. Praise God.What’s in your hand? God can use what-

ever is in your hand, if you put your trust in him.It’s not your cry, tears and suffering that move God,but how you exercise your authority in His Word.A child of God is not void of power and author-ity. He possesses the power of God unto salva-tion.

In other words, there is nothing like ‘a hope-less situation’ in the vocabulary of God’s children.Every child of God is an overcomer in this life.Every child of God is more than a conqueror; he isa victor! He’s born into royalty. This is the essenceof the gospel: to make available the power to livethe good life.

End of The RoadEnd of The RoadEnd of The RoadEnd of The RoadEnd of The Road?

“Fire on the mountain? Run, run, run!”: thatis the usual solution for a troubled mind. In de-spair, complete helplessness, in trouble, debt,embarrassment, loneliness and shame. Go wherenobody would talk about or laugh at you. Justquit, escape or disappear if you can. This couldsolve the problem, it would be therecommendation for man’s search to overcoming

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devastating circumstances, whether self imposedor a ‘natural’ disaster.

If you’ve come to the end of the road, I havegood news for you. When a believer comes to theend of the road, it only means a new road is justbeginning. Jesus said clearly in John 16:33,

“In the world ye shall have tribulation but be ofgood cheer”.

These words are mind-blowing.”You haveovercome the world”. The Amplified Translationstates it clearly,

“...in the world, you have tribulations and trials,distress and frustrations; but be of good cheer (takecourage; be confident, certain, undaunted), for Ihave overcome the world. I have deprived it of thepower to harm you and have conquered it for you)”

In other words, there is no power on earththat’s capable of destroying the man who is backedby Deity. The power available to us is of two kinds.The first is “Dunamis”, which means the dynamicability in you to cause changes, and “Exousia” thatis, the delegated power or authority given to manby God. Jesus said,”I have given you authority over

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all things.” That is to say, He has given you thepower of attorney to use His Name, to change allforms of circumstances and situations. He said allpower is given unto us in heaven and in earth(Matthew 28:8).

The good news is, He has made this poweravailable to us, not to mope over what we have,but to use it. There will always be an occasion touse the power of God invested in a believer,unfortunately, the period when it should beutilised is usually the period when brethren eitherforget to use it, refuse to use it, or for one reasonor the other do not use it.

Just before the ascension of our Lord JesusChrist, he said in Luke 24:49,

“And behold, I send the promise of my father; buttarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be enduedwith power from on high”.

This is serious information. You cannotafford to accept failure, it’s not your portion, nei-ther is it God’s plan for you. Knowledge is vital.Once you locate the problem areas, the next stepis to change it. Get ready for a change, it only takesyour action.

A ‘hopeless case’ is a state of the mind. When

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you put your trust in God, you can never be dis-appointed. It’s an established fact that neithertribulation, distress, persecution, famine, naked-ness, peril nor sword can separate us from the loveof God (Romans 8:38-39). Whatever you’re goingthrough in life, you’re not alone; the Greater Oneis in you. In other words, you can do all thingsthrough Christ who strengthens you. God will notfold His arms to watch you roam around infrustration. He covers you with His shield offavour. You’re the only one that can fold your armsfrom receiving His love. God is always giving. Youmust be persuaded that,

“…neither death, no life, nor angels, nor principali-ties, nor powers, nor things present, nor things tocome,“Nor heights, nor depth, nor any other creature,shall be able to separate you from the love of God.”(Romans 8:38,39)

Hope Is Not Enough!Hope Is Not Enough!Hope Is Not Enough!Hope Is Not Enough!Hope Is Not Enough!

“And hope maketh not ashamed; because the loveof God is shed abroad in our hearts by the HolyGhost which is given unto us.“(Romans 5:5)



The hope that always produces result is theone that has its roots in God. No man should hopein himself, for there is no strength in such hope.To hope in God is to trust entirely in Him for one’sprovision. Yet, hope is not enough to change cir-cumstances until it is mixed with faith! ManyChristians have hoped for changes in their jobs,finances, schools, homes and circumstances. Andthey’re still hoping. A winner is one who livesabove making statements like ‘One day, it will work’or ‘Well, I hope everything will come out successfully.’A winner announces that all is well because heknows that his expectation as a righteous man shallbe met (Proverbs 24:14). He has such profound as-surance in God’s ability that he confidently de-clares it. While hope is the ingredient that makesyou apply faith, faith is the response of the hu-man spirit to the Word of God.

Believe what the Word says about you andas a result of your belief, act on it. Do not swallowany belief or surrender to any circumstance that isnot in conformity with God’s plan and purposefor your life. You must be responsive to the Wordof God as though your life depends on it – the truth isit really does depend on it. Desist from makingremarks that are not consistent with the plans,purpose and provisions of God. Remarks like ‘I

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don’t need to look for any job since there are no jobs avail-able’ are not in line with God’s Word. There is cer-tainly a place specifically prepared for you. Askbefore you judge yourself wrongly, then you willlearn to appreciate God as a rewarder of those thatdiligently seek Him. The fact is that some folksdon’t find out until it’s too late. You must find outwhat belongs to you in His Word. This way youbuild up your faith to receive from Him. If youdon’t ask in faith, even though He has all things,you can’t receive.

“But without faith it is impossible to please andbe satisfactory to Him. For whoever would comenear to God must [necessary] believe that God ex-ists and that He is a rewarder of those that dili-gently seek Him [out]” (Hebrews 11:6 ~ The Am-plified Translation)

“Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name; askand ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.”(John 16:24)

James 1:17 also declares that every good giftand every perfect gift is from above, and comethdown from the Father of lights, with whom is novariableness, neither shadow of turning.



Our television programmes are really in-credible. It is nothing but the hand of God.Countless millions have been greatly blessed bythem. One of them, an inspirational one,‘Atmosphere for Miracles’ is quite awesome. We havereceived thousands of letters testifying to theawesome healing power of God transferredthrough the agency of TV sets to homes, causinghealing of the body and setting people free.

There’s one inspiring testomony I wouldlike to share with you. It’s the testimony of an agedwoman and her son. Apparently the son had beenwatching ‘Atmosphere for Miracles’ for quite sometime before then. When he heard the doctor’sreport on his mother’s case, he persuaded hismother to watch the programme too. His motherwas having a complicated pregnancy and thedoctor’s report spelt death in every direction: thedeath of the child was certain while the mothermay live or die. So pathetic.

However, during the course of the TVprogramme, after making sure that his Mother waswatching, the son entered the bathroom to take ashower. He said that a couple of minutes afterentering the bathroom, he heard a loud scream,he dashed out and behold, it was his mother onthe floor and right in front of her was a new born

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baby crying in a pool of blood. Hallelujah!His mother later narrated that during the

course of the programme, the minister, Pastor Christold the viewers to stretch their hands towards thescreen just before he prayed for them. She said,she moved toward the TV set and embraced it in-stead. While the prayer was on, she felt the powerof God move on her body and she started havingcontractions in her abdominal region. And justbefore she knew what was happening, she hadgiven birth. Praise God! This is not just a story, itis God at work on our behalf.

God establishes a blood covenant with any-one that believes in Him and declares Him as hisLord. Such individuals are His sons and daugh-ters by right and by knowledge. I want you to notethat when a family cuts a blood covenant withanother, the family does not only partake of thestrengths and weaknesses, blessings and cursesof the other, but the members of the weaker fam-ily also take up the status of the firstborn of thestronger or richer one in all ramifications. Theyare said to have the right of the first born.

A Christian is one who is in a covenantrelationship with God. God gave birth to Jesusthrough the agency of His Word by the HolyGhost. Jesus Christ is His Firstborn (Colossians

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1:15,18), and by virtue of your covenant with God,you now belong to the class of Jesus Christ. Youhave taken up the rank and fullness of Jesus Christin nature, strength and wealth. You are no more astranger but a (firstborn) member of His family:

“Wherefore remember, that ye being in time pastGentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumci-sion by that which is called the Circumcision inthe flesh made by hands;“That at that time ye were without Christ, beingaliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and stran-gers from the covenants of promise, having no hope,and without God in the world:“But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes werefar off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.“For he is our peace, who hath made both one, andhath broken down the middle wall of partition be-tween us;“Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even thelaw of commandments contained in ordinances; forto make in himself of twain one new man, so mak-ing peace;“ (Ephesians 2:11-15).

He lives and abides in us, not for a season,but forever. The middle wall of religious beliefsand worldly philosophies has been pulled down.

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Now you have access to Him and He to you. Thereis a fellowship; an exchange of substances betweenyou and Him. Remember that with God there isno variableness, neither shadow of turning (James 1:17).How great is our God - from everlasting toeverlasting, He is God and His Word concerningus remains the same. God never changes; the onlythings that change are the substances andsituations to which His Word is applied. In otherwords, God’s Word will bring a change to failure,defeat, sickness, discouragement, poverty,ignorance and the like.

Discover WhatDiscover WhatDiscover WhatDiscover WhatDiscover What’s In Y’s In Y’s In Y’s In Y’s In Your Handsour Handsour Handsour Handsour Hands

You can succeed. You can make it no matterwhich situation you are in. Christ already madeyou a bundle of success when He rose from thedead. Since you believed in Jesus Christ as yourLord and Saviour, you entered into a covenantrelationship with Him. As a covenant partner, youhave the whole world (1 Corinthians 3:21-22) andall that is in it are at your beck and call. You are asuccess on every count.

“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and

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that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?“If any man defile the temple of God, him shallGod destroy; for the temple of God is holy, whichtemple ye are.“Let no man deceive himself. If any man amongyou seemeth to be wise in this world, let him be-come a fool, that he may be wise.“For the wisdom of this world is foolishness withGod. For it is written, he taketh the wise in theirown craftiness.“And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of thewise that they are vain.“Therefore let no man glory in men. For all thingsare yours;“Whether Paul, or Apollos or Cephas, or the world,or life or death, or things present, or things to come,all are yours;“And ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.”(1 Corinthians 3:16-23).

All things are yours and they are in yourhands. Success is in your hands. What you do withit is what matters now. This is your responsibil-ity. What you make out of what is in your hand iswhat you vitally become in life. Let’s have a lookat God’s way of living in this reality.

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“This book of the law shall not depart out of yourmouth, but you shall meditate on it [mutter, re-flect on, speak to yourself] day and night, that youmay observe and do according to all that is writ-ten in it. For then you shall make your way pros-perous, and then you shall deal wisely and havegood success.” (Joshua 1:8 ~ paraphrased)

As you spend time to study God’s Wordyou receive divine information on the plan andpurposes of God for your life. Make a practice ofreflecting on the Word, speaking it to yourself asthough you are reminding or teaching yourself.Have you ever rubbed menthol on any part of yourbody? If it were rigorously done, apart from thesensation that came with the menthol, that part ofthe body would have also experienced a burningsensation. Reflecting on God’s Word could belikened to that experience. In essence, when youmeditate on God’s Word, you’re rubbing it ontoyour human spirit till it sinks into it. At thatmoment when the reality of God’s Word dawnson your spirit, you receive revelation knowledge.These stored pieces of information are what youlive by; they regulate your speech, attitudes,actions and reactions to life’s situations. You speakthem, and act them in real life.



God’s Word contains the ingredient to livesuccessfully in life: counsels, admonitions, re-proofs, and instructions on how to deal wisely inlife. Reflect on it at all times and then you willspeak success, demonstrate success habits andattitudes and have good success in all spheres oflife: at your new job, in handling your finances, inmanaging your home, at handling your responsi-bilities, in your organisation, in your speech andall your endeavors. If you don’t have a job, makeone; start by doing what you enjoy most, which isof benefit to others, then your job would be a greatpleasure to you. Therefore,

“Let the saints be joyful in glory: let them singaloud upon their beds. Let the high praises of Godbe in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in theirhand.” (Psalm 149:5-6)

Take joy in what He has done. Take joy inwhat He can do, and what He’s about to do. Pro-tect yourself with the Sword of the Spirit, which isthe Word of God. It will drive sickness away fromyou. It will provide for your life, and establish youin righteousness.

You must sit back and stop worrying.Worry deprives you of all that God has in store

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for you. It’s a deceptive sin that renders God’sWord of non-effect. It is faith that is exercised inthe ability of the defeated adversary – the devil. Ifyou want a change, dwell on the reproductivepower of God’s Word.

“…Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of his]power that is at work within us, is able to [carryout His purpose and] do superabundantly, far overand above all that we [dare] ask or think [indefi-nitely beyond our highest prayers, desires,thoughts, hopes, or dreams]” (Ephesians 3:20 ~The Amplified Translation).

So you must not allow yourself to worry,forget about what happened in the past and themistakes of the past. Neither should you be anx-ious about your future. Focus on all that you dotoday. Today is the connection to the future youlong for. You’re a bundle of success going some-where to ‘happen’. So don’t just exist dependingon luck to take charge, the Greater one indwellsyou. When you’re in control, you create the rightenviroment for God to work. However lookingdown on yourself and speaking negative wordstie God’s hands. He that is in you is greater thanhe that is in the world (1 John 4:4). Let Him talk


through you and act through you. There will neverbe a dull moment for you, just be the one ‘happen-ing’.

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A A A A A

F F F F Fresh Moveresh Moveresh Moveresh Moveresh Move

”A”A”A”A”And you hath he quickened, who were dead intrespasses and sins;” (Ephesians 2:1)

We have been quickened together withChrist; we have been made alive. Christ has madeeverything you will ever require for living avail-able. Don’t give up on yourself. No one can writeyou off, if anyone does, he’s in for a surprise be-cause God takes over from where man’s efforts fail.God never writes anyone off, He prepares men forchanges. Just let it dawn on you that you are notyour own anymore, you are God’s;

“What? Know ye not that your body is the temple

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of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye haveof God, and ye are not your own?“For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorifyGod in your body, and in your spirit, which areGod’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:19,20)

You’re now a new man in Christ (2Corinthians 5:17). The moment you put on Christ,you began your walk in the newness of the Spiritbeyond the flesh, which is life at God’s capacity –a life that can never fail. Let nothing hinder yourprogress, especially when all hope seems dashedbecause even then, God proves Himself. Jesus saidto Paul the Apostle about 2000 years and still saysto you today,

“…My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strengthis made perfect in weakness…” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

As you rest your heart on God’s Word, thepower of Christ will rest on you. Instead of pack-ing your bags, relax and establish an intimate re-lationship with God. When your relationship withGod is good, it will certainly make a world of dif-ference in your home, job, and even in the House-hold of God.

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A Visit to the LifeA Visit to the LifeA Visit to the LifeA Visit to the LifeA Visit to the Life-giving F-giving F-giving F-giving F-giving Facultyacultyacultyacultyaculty

The Word of God is the life-giving faculty ofthe Godhead. It’s the only entity that all thingsobey: whether animate or inanimate, ugly circum-stances or ‘irrevocable’ situations, the Word of Godis the Head over all things;

“For by him were all things created, that are inheaven, and that are in earth, visible and invis-ible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or prin-cipalities, or powers: all things were created by him,and for him:“And he is before all things, and by him all thingsconsist.” (Colossians 1:16,17)

The Word of God carries along with it theactive power of God, which has the transformingability to cause changes in anything in accordanceto the plans, purposes and provisions of God.

“So shall My word be that goes forth out of Mymouth: it shall not return to Me void [without pro-ducing any effect, useless], but it shall accomplishthat which I please and purpose, and it shall pros-per in the things for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11~ The Amplified Translation)

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“Through faith we understand that the worlds wereframed by the word of God, so that things whichare seen were not made of things which do appear.(Hebrews11: 3)

“The earth was without form and an empty waste,and darkness was upon the face of the very greatdeep. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering,brooding) over the face of the waters. And God said,Let there be light; and there was light.” (Genesis1:2-3 ~ The Amplified Translation).

It was the spoken Word of God that birthedevery creation on earth today. In the same way,every circumstance came into being with time, asa result of words spoken, whether evil or good.The Bible also says,

“...Of his own will begat He us with the Word oftruth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of hiscreature.” (James 1:18)

We are the firstfruits of His creatures. Weare His seed set to prolong His reign (Isaiah 53:10).God has made us winners and not quitters! Awinner is one that comes out victorious in a battle,

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from a problem, from a mistake. Having facedseveral challenges, the victor refuses to give upuntil he becomes a master over such circumstances.As a believer, you are a “ready-made” winner.Even if you had fallen or failed at one time or theother, acknowledge who you are and come outvictorious. This attitude would conquer doubtsor an indifferent response, once you chin up toproclaim this scripture.

“…in all these things we are more thanconquerors through Him that loved us.” (Romans8:37)

So, don’t give up on your present challenge,don’t resign from your job, because your boss dis-likes you. How are you sure your next boss willlike you? He could be worse than the first. Don’tgive up on your relationship or marriage. Don’tgive up on you! Quit running! For how long willyou run? It’s better to win in your place of work;then, you could opt for another job. Don’t leaveout of frustration, but because you have reigned,you have conquered and you need another placeto manifest His glory. Whenever you start a project– the building of a house, an educational course,a new job or any new endeavour, operate the part-

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nership sequence, be sure to connect with yourheavenly Father, your master organiser. Pay greatattention to put God in His rightful position in vitalissues that concern you. Speak His Word to yourprojects daily. Seek God’s Word before executinga project, let Him guide your proposals and leadyou with His wisdom. Everything you own alsobelongs to Him. Therefore, let Him be in charge.Don’t only consult with Him when you are ‘stuck’and abandon Him when everything is ’rosy’. If youwant to start anything you want to finish, start withGod first. You can only do it right the first timewhen you make His Word of utmost importancein your life. Seek His Word concerning whateveryou’re embarking on and do it exactly the Wordway.

Some people have wondered whetherGod’s Word is applicable to all issues man willever encounter in life, be it great or small. TheWord of God is a panacea: it provides solutionsto all problems and answers every question.

Think again about it - this time think God’sway! Packing your bags and leaving is not goodenough. Don’t run away from Church or from theministry or from home or even from the countryfor any flimsy reason. If God had given up on you,you would have perished. But He didn’t give up

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on you and never will. He is a God that overcomes;one that conquers. And since you have that sameSpirit of God in you, know that you are as He is –an overcomer;

“Ye are of God, little children and have overcomethem: because greater is He that is in you, than hethat is in the world.” (1 John 4:4)

A Look Again through God’sA Look Again through God’sA Look Again through God’sA Look Again through God’sA Look Again through God’s Binoculars Binoculars Binoculars Binoculars Binoculars

“Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord andwhose hope the Lord is.” (Jeremiah 17:7)

When your relationship with your Fatheris established, you will definitely trust Himcompletely, without an element of doubt in yourheart. Moreover, your confidence will be estab-lished as you fellowship with His Word. Let yourfocus be on your relationship with your HeavenlyFather and not on the present problems.Remember victors call them challenges. Totalfocus on your challenges will distract anddistabilise you. So don’t focus on them, rather castall your cares upon Jesus and be resolute to focus



on God and His Word.Whatever challenges are trying to drift you

away from God must be handled decisively. Sim-ply take the problem to God. Permit Him to changethose things you cannot alter. But you have a roleto play. Start by changing your confession from,‘How will I handle it, how will I cope with it, how will Ipay my bills?‘ to ‘My God shall supply all my needs andtake care of me.’ This definitely implies that you arein koinonia (fellowship) with your God. Since nocase is hopeless with God, certainly no case ishopeless with you. But you must change yourattitude to unpleasant situations, since it’s not theproblem that counts but your attitude towards it.Consider every problem a challenge to prove yourlevel of maturity.

DeterminationDeterminationDeterminationDeterminationDetermination

In one of our recent 2-day outreach pro-grammes, a lady came limping to one of our meet-ings. While my husband, Pastor Chris, was minis-tering, this lady walked straight up to give hertestimony. She was a beautiful lady in her earlyseventies. She said when she witnessed all thegreat miracles that had been happening to people

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in the congregation, her faith rose. She had beenin great pains for years; she could hardly lift upthings. She struggled to walk. She was drawingthe sympathy of many people; friends and family.She said she was tired of sympathy and humanhelp. She figured that if God could do all the mira-cles she had witnessed for many people with simi-lar problems that day, He could do the same forher. ‘I was determined that I would not go home withoutmy miracle, there’s no reason why I should not be healedbecause God is a healer’, she said. While she was wor-shipping God during the course of that session,she noticed that the pain had left her body. Shewas totally healed. She boldly declared she wastired of her former state, she wanted her healingwith strong determination. Truly, healing is thechildren’s bread. It’s for every believer to live indivine health.

The human spirit, which is the real you, isdesigned to respond to the Word of God. As youencourage yourself in the Lord by searching thescriptures and speaking the Word of God toyourself, your human spirit gets excited. God’sWord is the escape route for every crisis in life.Also note that God inhabits the praises of Hispeople. As you praise the Lord and rejoice in theLord, you create an atmosphere of miracles in your



life.

“Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Be-hold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and yeshall live:“And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bringup flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, andput breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shallknow that I am the LORD.“So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as Iprophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shak-ing, and the bones came together, bone to his bone.(Ezekiel 37:5-7)

Dry bones are a type of ‘dead, irreparable’situation. The Word of God is the life-givingfaculty of God. As you speak God’s Word to thesituation, the life of God is imparted into it to comealive.

Are you getting discouraged because youhave waited so long? Do you think God does notcare anymore for you? Or are you amongst thosewho have been prayed for concerning your ailmentbut there seems to be no positive change in yourcondition? Or probably the doctor has adoptedseveral therapies and everything is still the same?Child of God, don’t despair; miracles are real! The

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‘Fourth man’ (Daniel 3:25) is still with you. Youmay not be able to see Him with your physicaleyes, but know that Jehovah – the covenantkeeping God, backs you up. Decide today neverto allow any challenge drag you down, don’tconsider suicide or revenge. Instead of focusingon the problem, look up to Jesus; the Author anfFinisher of your faith. Call upon His Name andHe would save you. Don’t give up. Now is thetime to apply all you have learnt and makechanges for the best. Don’t pack your bags yet!


To know more aboutthe ministry and messages of

Pastors Chris & Anita Oyakhilomecontact:

CHRIST EMBASSYaka Believers’ LoveWorld Inc.

LONDON ADDRESS:Christ Embassy Int’l OfficeSuite 219 Estuary HouseBallards RoadDagenham RM10 9AB

P.O. Box 21520London E10 5FGTel/Fax: -208-5172367

NIGERIA ADDRESS:P.O. Box 13563,Ikeja,Lagos, Nigeria.Tel: 01-4934392-3; 7740109; 7740243

email: [email protected]:www.christembassy.org

Reaching out with the gospel,Building up the saints,

With excellence and clarity.

Faith comes to you as you hear the Word of God.We recommend our books, video and audio tapes for yourspiritual development.

The messages are designed to show you how to befruitful and productive and cause faith to rise in your heartto do just that.

Get yours today and see a transformation in yourlife.

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Don't Pack Your Bag Yet! - WordPress.com...(Matthew 11:28-30) Your desires and dreams may be the con-tent of the bag you are carrying. It may be your broken relationships or even broken