According To Your Faith, He Leads.....

" And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt:

But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt."  Exodus 13:17-18 KJV

The revelation I received from these two verses is that God deals with us according  to our faith.  It states in the above scripture that God did not guide the Israelites along the main road that runs through Philistine territory which happens to be the shortest route to the Promised land.   He knew the heart and character of His people and was absolutely sure that if they took this route, the Israelites will encounter trouble with the Philistines and it will cause them to be fearful and turn back to the land of their sufferings, Egypt.    And so what did God do?  He instead led them through the longest route i.e through the wilderness  through the Red Sea.   I believe in addition to their constant lamenting and disobedience to God during their journey to the promised land, what should taken a much shorter time to reach the promised land after they left Eqypt, it took them much longer.  Scripture states in Joshua 5:6 that the Israelites had wandered in the wilderness for 40 years until all the men who were old enough to fight in battle when they left Egypt had died.   

Beloved, a lot of times, we hinder our own progress due to our unbelief and lack of trust in the Sovereign God.  We unknowingly downgrade or trivialize the great power of our God through actions such as doubt, fear, worry, anxiety, complaints etc. and as a result, God deals with us according to our level of faith and belief in Him.   He loves us so much that in order for us not to give up or look back to our past (Eqypt),  He gives us another way out, which is not His ideal choice for us.   It is good to know that the Lord does not give up on us and there is an alternate way, this scripture text has revealed to me that God always has an alternate way in the event, the first plan or best plan does not work.    God wants us to have the best of things, after all His word states in James 1:17 that "Every good and perfect gift comes from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.   But in order to have this good and perfect gift, we must put our total trust in Him and walk in obedience.  Our faith in God has to be unwavering where we know that no matter what comes our way, we can not be moved because God is in complete control, He is right there with us and we can rest in Him.    We need to not just confess with our mouth that our God is able and can move mountains for our sake, but we must believe it with all our heart that He can.

Beloved, do not fear, have faith in the Lord today, allow Him to lead you through the best path today so that you can enjoy everything that He has prepared for you. 

SHALOM!  

Equipped For Service

    
21 "may he equip you with all you need
    for doing his will.
May he produce in you,
    through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to him.
    All glory to him forever and ever! Amen."   Hebrews 13:21



Every believer has been called into God's service whether we know it or not.  Once you have given your life to the Lord Jesus Christ ( born again), you are automatically adopted into the family of God, hence the work of the building of the kingdom of God here on earth begins in your life.   Our main text today tells us that He will equip us (believers) with all that we need  for doing His will.  God cannot call us to do something without providing the materials or resources we will need to do the job.   The Lord also reveals to us in Phil 2:13 that He is working in each of us to give us the desire and power to do what pleases Him.  Beloved, what pleases God is our service to Him, our commitment to the propagation of His kingdom.   Winning souls (evangelism) pleases Him,  helping those in need through giving of our resources and time pleases Him,  praying (interceding) for the sick, needy pleases the Lord, encouraging one another in the Lord, teaching the word of God to others and much more all are service unto the Lord that pleases our God.     God knows that some or all of these things, we cannot do without His help because we as human beings have limitations and that is why the word of God states in 2 Peter 1:3 " By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. " and also Apostle Paul states in Phil 4:19 that the God who takes care of him shall supply all the needs of the brethren according to His riches in glory through Christ Jesus.  Paul was confident that  God will provide all that the brethren needed to do the work of God as He had always done for him .   In the world we live in, let us be sincere,  everything we do including the work of God requires financial resources  and without money, it is really difficult to get things done.  But the Lord has assured us that He will make a way where there appears to be no way Isaiah 43:16.    As long as it is God who sent you, He will also provide the means to get the assignment done. 


Another important resource the Lord has given His people to equip them for service are the gifts of the Spirit as we see in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11.  These gifts along with the talents or skills He has blessed us with contribute tremendously to the success of God's work here on earth.   Even within the body of Christ, there are certain groups of believers who have been given special responsibility by the Lord to equip the children of God  for service  (building up the church).  These people are the apostles, the prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.  and are held to a higher standard than the rest of the body as a result of the nature of their responsibilities.  "And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: "Ephesians 4:11-12.

Beloved, the Lord will always provide all that we need to do the work He has assigned to each of us.  As He did it for Moses , when He provided Aaron to be Moses' mouth piece to lead the children of God out of Israel, and was with him every step of the way and many others throughout history,  so He will do for us.   The Lord God who is more than able will surely equip us for every good work and at the end of our service to Him here on earth, He alone shall take the glory and He shall say unto us "Well done good and faithful servant"  See Matthew 25:21

Shalom

With God, All Things are Possible

"And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God."  Luke 1:36-37

Sometime in 2003, I witnessed God's miraculous power in the life of a sister in Christ. This beautiful sister worked as a Registered Nurse on the East coast, and at the time, she had just turned 40 years old. She wasn't a member of my local assembly, but she was referred to my Pastor for prayers; her story was that she had been married for approximately ten years and had been unable to conceive and, like most women who are over 35, the fear of not being able to have children grips you. That fear can cause many sleepless nights, robbing you of your peace. She and her husband had done everything within their human strength to have a baby, but nothing was working, and they had gone from church to church for prayers and spent a lot of money on treatments ..No change!

 

When she was introduced to my pastor, he assured her that God was in control, but he wanted her to do a couple of things... He said to her " Everything I tell you to do, please do it in obedience," and she agreed. What did he instruct her to do?

 -To fast and pray on specific prayer points for a specified period and limit her conversations with people related to her getting pregnant. ( in other words, she should spend more time in the presence of God and less time talking on the phone, lamenting about her situation, etc.).  He also told her that when God finally does it, she should tell no one that she is pregnant ( of course, except for those she comes in contact with since she will not be able to hide the pregnancy after a while) until after she gives birth.  About 9-10 months later, we got the news that this sister had just given birth to not just one baby boy but two, a set of twins. How wonderful our God is!

 

What a miracle and a display of God's power in the lives of those who trust Him. Our God is more than able, for He specializes in the impossible.

Friends my encouraging words for you today is to believe in the Lord, your God, for your breakthrough, there is nothing on this earth and in heaven above, impossible with the Almighty God. He is the giver of life and all good things, including the fruit of the womb, which is His reward Psalm 127:3. This sister was hoping for one child, but at 40, the Lord blessed her with twins (double blessing). Look at Elizabeth, she was probably much older than this sister, and many around her had already concluded she was barren. Still, God had the final say over her situation, and in her old age, she gave birth to a great man of God, John the Baptist, who became the forerunner of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 So please do not accept any negative label from people, but continue to fix your eyes on Jesus Christ, the author, and finisher of your faith.

 This season, I decree that anything dead in your life become resurrected, any womb that the enemy has shut, and any woman labeled barren by others, I declare by the power in the name of Jesus Christ and by the blood of the lamb, that the womb receive life now and every woman still trusting the Lord for your miracle, claim yourself as a fruitful vessel to carry your child this season in Jesus name. 

 

Your Testimony is around the corner!!

Your Testimony is around the corner!!

Anniversary Greetings

We bless the Lord for how far He has brought us in the work of the kingdom since 2011.  By His grace, DOZme/Daughters of Zion, A Ministry of Excellence shall continue to thrive and do greater works for the Kingdom of God as He leads and directs us in these last days.

Our sincere thanks and love to all who have supported this ministry and the vision God has given us in one way or the other.  We are truly grateful and bless the Lord for each of you. Our prayer is that we shall all continue to excel in the work/assignment we have each being called to do and at the end of our race.. Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ shall declare unto each of us "Well done good and faithful servant" God bless you and yours always.

Mother's Day greetings

                                             

                                                  

A happy & blessed Mother's day to all virtuous women, wise women and daughters of Zion. May you grow in grace and strength as you continue in the ministry of motherhood.  Have a wonderful and glorious day and hope you have a beautiful time with the Lord, family & loved ones. 

SHALOM!

If GOD be for us,..........

What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? 

Romans 8:31

We are God's beloved people, He does not joke with us at all. We are too valuable to Him and so If God is for us, who dares stand against us. The enemy will try his usual tactics i.e oppression, hitting believers on every side with life's issues such as family problems, marital problems, finance and the list goes on, but when you know the God you serve is always on your side, you will have no need to fear the perils of this world. Why? because His word reminds us in verses 35-39 of Romans 8 that absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of God.    At the end of the day, the enemy loses the battle and can not rob us of our joy because the Lord God has the final say over our lives. So beloved sister and friend, be encouraged today, appreciate how much you are worth to God, do not let anything or anyone stand in your way. Remember that God is always on your side and you are His temple. I will leave you with this scripture verse among many to remind you how much God values you and fights for you.

"Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple." 1 Corinthians 3:16-17

Be Encouraged today my friend, the Lord is on your side.

Thoughtful Living

Psalm 25:8-15

I pray this message blesses your life today.

Are you living thoughtfully and intentionally—or are you living automatically? It’s so easy to get up each morning, do our work, enjoy some relaxation or entertainment, and fall into bed each night without giving any thought to God’s involvement in our everyday life. But to be ignorant of how He has blessed, guided, protected, and warned us is a foolish way to live. Just consider the benefits of keeping our spiritual eyes and ears open throughout the day.

We who are aware of God’s presence during daily activities enjoy the peace of knowing He’s always in control and working to achieve His good purposes. Day-to-day experiences with Him teach us to know and love Him more.

When we learn to see God’s footprints throughout each week, we will become aware of the scope of His involvement in His children’s lives. Maybe He strengthened us for a task or opened a door of opportunity. Perhaps He guided our decisions or helped us respond in a godly way to a difficult person or a challenging situation.

If our ears are open to the Lord’s warnings and instructions, we won’t repeat the same mistakes again and again. But if we remain deaf to His voice, we run the risk of continuing in unhealthy thought patterns, negative emotions, and foolish responses.

Each night before you go to sleep, take some time to reflect on the day’s activities. The heavenly Father is constantly with you, guarding and guiding your way. He wants you to see Him in everything and understand life from His perspective as you rely on His wisdom and power to face any challenge.

By Dr. Charles Stanley, In Touch Ministries - Daily Devotions