Responding to God's Love

John 3:16

by Dr Charles Stanley

God has to be true to Himself.  People are foolish to entertain the hope that He will ignore justice and sacrifice holiness in order to allow unbelievers into heaven.  Living a mostly moral life will not satisfy a righteous Judge.

As much as the Lord loves us and desires to save us from our sins, He can not deny His holiness by accepting sin in His presence.  The Father is pristine perfection - a holy Being who, by His very nature, must condemn all sin.  Therefore, it is the height of egotism to think that God will bend both His law and His nature to welcome one whom still bears the stain of wrongdoing.

There is not one person who's good enough to enter heaven on his or her own merit.  Everyone of us needs Jesus.  The stain of sin is washed clean only by the sacrifice of God's holy and blameless Son.  Those who believe in Christ are forgiven their wrongs and cloaked in His righteousness ( 2 Cor:5:21).

Let me make it very clear that trusting Jesus is far more than giving  intellectual assent to His existence- that's something even the Devil acknowledges.  A true believer enters into a relationship with the One who loves his soul enough to save him from eternal punishment.

Those who remain tightly wrapped in their mantle of sin cannot hope to sneak into heaven.  God's holy nature demands perfection, and since we can't provide this for ourselves, the Lord has given it to all who believe in Him.  He has exchanged our filty rags for a cloak of righteousness (Zech. 3:4).

Loving One Another.

By Kemi O.
Beloved,  A very Happy Valentines Day to you and your loved ones.  As we celebrate this day, Let's  remember the greatest lover of all, Our Father and God who first loved us that He sent His only begotten Son to die for us in other to live eternally with Him and to live a glorious life here on earth while awaiting His return.

Spread His love unto others around you today. Pray for someone, hug someone, show kindness to someone, bless someone, help someone and the good Lord, the God of LOVE will reward you greatly.

I leave you with this today 

 ⁷ Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. ⁸ But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

⁹ God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. ¹⁰ This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

¹¹ Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. ¹² No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.  1 John 4:7-12 New Living Translation.



May the warmth of God's love surround you now and always.

Shalom!

Safeguarding Your Home.

"They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and my elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them.  Isaiah 65:22-23 KJV



It is sad to see what is happening in a lot of christian homes today and it has moved me so deeply that I decree this today in your lives my dear friends and fellow daughters of Zion. For His words says in  Job 22:28a "You will also decree a thing, and it will be established for you".

This year, you shall be a wise woman that builds her home Proverbs 14:1. You will not build or make your home for another to inhabit in Jesus name.  All your years, months, weeks of  laboring (toiling) for a successful home and marriage shall not be in vain.   Where you have planted, no other woman or women shall eat.  Too many marriages have been destroyed by acts of adultery, lies, financial issues etc  and so it is time for us to take our homes back from the grip of the enemy. 

As the Lord has stated in His word, you will enjoy the works of your hands for several years to come and Your spouses and children shall continually be blessed of the Lord for the rest of your years.

Sisters, hold on to the one who makes all things new and the one who created the institution of marriage and declared it "Good" and it shall be well with you and your home.  As I have decree this in your lives, so shall it be established in Jesus name.  Amen

Whether you have a peaceful home/marriage or you are currently facing challenges in yours , do claim this now and the Lord will fulfil His words in your lives in Jesus name.

God bless you and continue to serve Him with all diligence.   

Becoming One

"Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall become united and cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. (Amplified version)  Gen 2:24
By Joyce Meyer


The minute two people marry, they are legally joined together.  Experientally, though, they do not immediately "become one" when they say, "I do"; they simply begin the process of becoming one (Genesis 2:24).  As the process works itself out, each partner should hold marriage in honor and esteem the relationship as worthy and precious.  They should treat each other as being very valuable.

Note in Genesis 2:24 a three-step progression that demonstrates how to become one: (1) Leave. Sometimes a wife clings excessively to her mother and mother's opinions about what  she ought to do, or a husband runs to his father for advice. when the couple should be trusting and leaning on each other.  If two people are married but have not left home (both physically and mentally), they need to do so.  (2) Cleave.  In practical terms, the word cleave means to stick to each other like glue.  (3) Become one. Becoming one means the complete union of body, soul and spirit-and again, this takes time.

If both people in a marriage relationship are born again, then the spiritual union is in place.  The most difficult part of the "becoming one" process is usually the uniting of two souls- the joining of two minds, wills, and sets of emotions.  Most marital problems in the arena of the soul result from strife over lack of communication, sexual misunderstanding, money, goals, and the disciplining of children.  All of these things need to be worked out in the soulish realm of the marriage union, and in order to become one in that area, a husband and a wife need to give their issues to God and say, " Father, change my mind or my will if I'm wrong. " God is the One who will bring them into agreement with His will and purpose.  If each partner is willing to be brought into agreement with the other, they no longer try to force each other to be someone they are not, but realize they need each other to be exactly who God created them to be.  They no longer pick on each other's weaknesses.  Instead, they partake of their strengths, they enjoy one another, and they enjoy the process of becoming one.

Enjoy your life

Genesis 1:31
by Joyce Meyer


When God completed His six days of creation, He took time to look over everything and He saw that "it was very good and He approved it completely" (Gen 1:31).  God took time to enjoy the work of His hands, and we should do the same. In our passion to possess more and more, we often fall into the trap of working, working, working -and we never enjoy the fruit of our labor.  Sometimes we would simply take time to relax and enjoy what we have accomplished.

The writer of Ecclesiastes said it is the gift of God for man to find enjoyment in all of his labor (Eccle 2:24).  I have always been a hard worker.  A few years ago, I realized I was working hard but not taking time to enjoy what I was doing.  I made a decision to include enjoyment in my life.  I no longer just "do" conferences; I enjoy them.  When my house is clean and pretty, I take time to look at it and enjoy it.  At the end of a year, I go over my calendar and remember the various things I have done, and I enjoy the sense of accomplishment.  I look at what God has enabled me to do and I say, "It is good."

Many people feel worthless, insecure and unacceptable, but God looked at everything He created, including man, and said, "It is very good." He approved it completely.  God knows everything about each of us, and He loves us unconditionally.  God approves of us; He may not approve of everything we do, but He does approve of us as His beloved children.  I encourage you to make a decision to not only enjoy the labor of your hands, but to approve of and enjoy yourself as well.

Choosing to enjoy and accept myself is one of the best decisions I have ever made.  God does not create junk.  He is good, and everything He does is good.  We cannot believe that God created us and also believe we are worthless.  Begin to accept and enjoy yourself where you are, and God will help you get to where you need to be.

Serving God as a Single Christian Woman

1 Corinthians 7:7-8,25-26:34
1 Peter 1:13-15
 by Kemi O.

In today's society, it has become even more challenging to serve the Lord faithfully as a believer who is single;for there is the overwhelming desire to fall into temptation more often than a married person.  Many of our youths, both men and women have backslided completely reverting back to the old nature due to extreme peer pressure, false teachings e.g New age , immorality, strong desire for worldly possessions etc.  On the other hand, there are those who have managed to resist the tactics of the enemy and have held on to their faith, living a life of obedience and holiness Psalm 119:9. 

Like many of you who knew the Lord before getting married and tried to commit to doing His work, I faced my own shares of temptations and adversities  as a single woman.  In the process, I found myself drifting away from the Lord as a result of getting caught up with worldly things and trying to fit in with the friends I hung out with.   One of those times which happen to be the very last time before the Lord now finally arrested me was while in college, I found myself enjoying the attention I was getting from guys and even the popular  girls (In crowd) on campus.   I enjoyed attending basketball games both home and away, house parties, clubs because that was the thing to do for entertainment while in school and you also tend to become popular with the so called " In-crowd."  On weekends, my friends and I went to the best spots in Atlanta, places where the likes of "Keith Sweat, Jermaine Dupri, Tupac Shakur( deceased), TLC, etc  attended back in the mid-1990s'.  It got to a point, the every weekend partying began to affect my relationship with the Lord as well as my studies.  I was keeping such a hectic wordly schedule while serving as an usher in the church, my conscience no longer bothered me after a while ; the enemy so much convinced me that I was still young and I had the rest of my life to serve God completely, why not have a little fun! afterall, you are not hurting anyone.  Eph 5:1-3 But oh yes, I definitely was! I was hurting myself and didnt realize it until a couple of years later when I was put on academic probation because my GPA fell below 2.0, I entered into an unhealthy relationship which almost ruined my life, and at the same time, my prayer life became almost non-existent. It was at that point I had to go to the Lord and cry out for mercy and I was restored by His grace.  The Lord began to transform my life by first of all weeding out those unhealthy relationships from my life, He gave me a new direction and with a bit of challenges here and there, I began to serve the Lord as best as I could, keeping my eyes fixed on Him and  allowing His Holy Spirit to guide me until I got married to my God-ordained husband and of course He is still guiding me today. 

Being single and serving the Lord definitely has its challenges but it is also very rewarding because as a single christian woman, after being restored, I was able to give my time without reservation and distractions to the work of God, serving in multiple areas in the church, attending conferences and seminars to help me in my christian walk. 1 Corinthians 7:34.  Through such gatherings, volunteering at homeless shelters, soup kitchens and of course my local assembly, I was able to meet wonderful sisters both single, and married committed to the work of God and we formed a friendship, having fellowship together and helping each other out in times of need e.g Babysitting, needing a ride etc.  So even as a single mother for example who wants to serve the Lord faithfully, your kids should not stop you from doing that. The Lord will always make a way as long as you are willing.

Whether you are a single or married woman, the ultimate goal is to do the will of the Father, fulfiling the purpose for which He has created you.  Regardless of your marital status, God desires us to do whatever will enable us serve Him the best.  1 Corinthians 7:35. He has given to us His sweet Holy Spirit to be our guide, teacher, companion, director on this christian journey so it is for us to hold fast and allow Him to lead us. 
1 Thess 4:8b, John 16:7,13 and remember we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Phil 4:13.

Dear Sisters, as a widow, divorcee, a single youth or you believe you are called to serve the Lord as Apostle Paul did, never getting married 1 Corinthians 7:7, I want you to know that it is a priviledge to serve the Lord in these last days without succumbing to the pressures of this perverse generation. Strive to commit all your ways to Him and He will surely direct your path. Psalm 37:5.  Let the Lord always be your guide, keep your eyes fixed on Him, never allowing Satan, the "tempter and destroyer" to gain a foothold in your life and I assure you the Lord will surely reward you because He is indeed a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. Heb 11:6b

Shalom.

Becoming a Fruit-Bearing Christian

Scripture Text:  John 15:1-8
 by Kemi Olubiyi.

There are two types of believers in the body of Christ today, the one that bears fruit and the one that does not. Unless you continually dwell in God's presence and abide in His Son, you will not grow spiritually; it is as simple as that. John 15:1-2 tells us that Jesus is the True Vine, God is the Vine dresser, and we are the branches. A branch with a fruit cannot be detached from the vine or tree it grows on; to grow or bring forth, it has to be attached or connected to that Vine (its source of nutrition), or else it will wither away and die. 

 

 Let us go ahead to define what a Vine is before going further:

 

 A Vine, according to Dictionary.com, is any plant having a long, slender stem that trails or creeps on the ground or climbs by winding itself about a support or holding fast with tendrils or claspers. Unlike most trees or plants that grow steadily independently, a vine requires some help to lean or climb onto to grow well. Sometimes you see them on structures such as buildings, ladders, fences, etc. Examples of such flowering plants are grapes, cucumber, and kiwi fruit. 

 Because of how these plants grow, they must be pruned often, which is the job of the vinedresser or farmer who cultivates and prunes the vines as often as necessary. In this text, I believe the type of Vine Jesus referred to here is the "Grapevine," which was very common during biblical times. We also see how this analogy applies to us, in the sense that Jesus refers to Himself as the True Vine and His Father the Vine dresser, while we are the branches and, of course, the fruit we are to bear are the souls won for the kingdom, our good works, and overall service to the Lord.

Believers are the branches connected to our Lord Jesus Christ and God; the Father is the one who takes care of the Vine to ensure that the link between Christ and us is not faulty or broken for us to mature spiritually and bear fruit. However, we shall be kept from the source if we do our part. God forbid! Jesus puts it simply in verse 2, saying, " Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, He (i.e., God, the Father) will be cut away and every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes so that it can bear more fruit. Beloved, we can not just receive the gift of salvation and live without impacting the world we live in like Jesus did when He was on earth. We need to follow in the footsteps of our most significant role model, our Master, and Savior. Our light has to shine amid the darkness in this world so that men can see our good works and God takes the glory. Matthew 5:16

 Verse 2b tells us that God cleanses and prunes us (the branches), cutting away things that no longer bear the fruit He desires us to show. This cutting away, which is the pruning process is usually quite painful. It could come in the form of challenges or storms in our lives, which, if you are not a mature believer and spiritually discerning, can be misunderstood as something else happening, but it (pruning) is necessary for us to grow into fruit-bearing Christians. For those believers or Christians, who are bearing fruit, He cleanses and often prunes for them to bear richer and excellent fruit. We must understand that our God is progressive, and sometimes He needs to trim us as He takes us to higher heights.

 

 Jesus even further states in verse 5 that if we ( believers) are not abiding in Him, bearing fruit, we can do nothing. i.e., whatever we lay our hands to do, whatever we aspire to achieve in life, it may not prosper; it may only be a temporary achievement, but sooner or later, it will not hold because we are no longer to connect to the Vine, ( The Source). Verse 6 also states that if a person does not dwell in Him, he is thrown out like a {broken-off} branch and withers; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, and they are burned—amplified version. Our goal as believers, once we become born again, is to strive to become useful vessels in the hands of God, vessels that He can use in these last days for His glory to accomplish His work on earth II Tim 2:21. If we are not doing that. He will raise others in our place willing to do His will.  

 

 May the Lord never have cause to give someone else your assignment in Jesus' name.

 

 Our God is such a rewarder of them who genuinely serve or seek Him Hebrews 11:6, For He promises us in verse 7 of our text that when we bear fruit for Him, we should ask whatever we so desire, whatever we wish, and it will be done. This is His promise to every believer who abides in Him and bears fruit, and it also confirms that we are His disciples. Beloved, trust the Lord to keep His promise in your life as long as you do your part.

 

 

 To become a fruit-bearing Christian or believer, I admonish us today to cultivate a regular habit of spending quality time studying & meditating on His word, in praise and worship and prayer. When we do that, we get to know, love, and appreciate Him even more and can receive direction on where He is leading us and our assignment in the body of Christ.

As we do this, His Holy Spirit will give us the grace and ability to bear much fruit in His name, and all the glory shall go to our Father in Heaven.

Shalom..