November 10, 2013 · 1:12 pm

HYBRID ECLIPSE

I guess you were also caught up in the eclipse fever.  It was all over the place that on Sunday, 03/11/2013, a hybrid solar eclipse will sweep through most parts of the world, with Africa having the best views. I was really looking forward to witnessing the eclipse.  The anticipation was almost palpable all around, especially with the international news media reminding us practically every hour. The day finally arrived and hours turned into minutes and then…I did not see anything. All the preparation was in vain. The closest view I got was from the news.

In preparation for this rare occurrence, many people committed immense resources, while a few travelled to choice locations for ‘Prime time’ viewing. And to think that the best scene would last for just a measly four minutes…

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And what is four minutes when compared with eternity. If we could quantify all the efforts expended in the preparations for the eclipse, it may actually turn out that it’s more than we spend in preparing to reign with our Father – preparing for the place where only the spotless and the blameless can reign.

In the third chapter of Peter’s second letter, he gave some very sound counsel that demands more than just a close look:  

11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.

14 So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.

17 Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

If we lay it to heart that our time on earth is just like the passing four minutes of the eclipse, we will be motivated to spend less time chasing THINGS and channel our energy towards this most important preparation. If it were not possible to live holy and godly lives, Peter would not have encouraged the people to work towards it. The same also goes with being found spotless and blameless.

The King of Kings is looking forward to welcoming us to that glorious reign. Let’s make every effort and be on our guard so as not to miss out. Great grace is available.

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September 22, 2013 · 3:16 pm

UNARMED SOLDIERS

Cast your mind back a few years, when all we had were cameras that worked with the 36mm films. I had one of those cameras in my final secondary school year and I was really feeling cool with myself because there were not many cameras in my school back then.

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 Every professional camera man had to attend functions with a number of those films because the camera was as good as kerosene to a diesel engine without them. Attending a function without enough replenishment films presents even the best of photographers as an unarmed soldier. Can you even begin to imagine what it feels like being an unarmed soldier at the battlefront? It’s almost unthinkable, but that’s exactly the situation that the Israelites faced in 1Samuel 13:22

So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan had a sword or spear in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.

I am convinced that this is not a good situation to be in, because it leaves the army utterly helpless and prone to devastating losses.

This reflects the condition of many believers today. God has freely given us His Word as the Sword of the Spirit; a very potent weapon. Many of us are literate enough to read and understand the Scriptures, but we are content to just sit and listen to ‘The king and his son’ every Sunday at church or during the mid-week service. Like the song says: “…Oh what things we often forfeit…” because we choose not to study our Bibles for ourselves.

We expose ourselves to the influence false teachings and their peddlers, who are more than happy to turn us into slaves. Our only defence is the personal knowledge of the truth and revelation in the knowledge of God. This comes from the place of diligent study of the Word. There is no known short cut yet. We were warned in Matthew 24:24:

For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

 Beware! The false teachings that will almost deceive the very elect will sound like the real truth. If you don’t know the real truth, you will fall for it. Study and arm yourself with the real truth. God’s grace is sufficient.

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September 8, 2013 · 3:16 pm

BABEL

And the whole earth was of one language and of one accent and mode of expression. Gen 11:1 (AMP)

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What do you think would have happened if God had not multiplied and mixed up the language of the people who were building the tower at Babel? Would that tower have actually reached heaven? Well, the Lord said that nothing could be restrained from the people as long as they could imagine it. The UNSTOPPABLE force of unity.

Can you even begin to imagine what the world would be like today if the Church spoke the same language; If in spite of our denominations, we could still come together to achieve one purpose – the establishment and advancement of God’s Kingdom. I believe that was the kind of Church that Jesus had in mind as he prayed in John 17: 20 – 21

My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Apostle Paul was surprised when this epidemic of disunity broke out in the Corinthian church. Some were promoting the gospel according to Apollos, while others were promoting the gospel according to Paul. If only we can look through his eyes and say what he said:  “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.  So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.”

 The focus should be on this God who makes things grow. If only we can stop advertising our denominations when we evangelize and actually spread the gospel according to Jesus Christ. This is our commission as soldiers of the cross. Where did we start going off our original course?

God please let your spirit break out and break our walls down. Let Jesus be our focus and let our one goal be the advancement of God’s Kingdom. Let your glory fall.

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August 18, 2013 · 1:33 pm

The Fish With The Coin

 I was in a meeting recently, where someone was encouraging us to go out and win souls. On the surface, this was a good encouragement and in keeping with the Great Commission that Jesus left with the church. He said something that triggered multiple reactions in my thoughts. He likened the souls won to the ‘Kingdom’ to the fish with the coin, which Jesus and His disciples encountered in their days. In other words, our prosperity depends on how much souls we can win because the more souls you win, the more the quantity of coins you amass.

Let me share some of the questions that rang though my mind:

“When the early missionaries left the comfort of their countries for the then undeveloped Africa, was there a promise of prosperity in return for their service and sacrifice?”

“What was Paul’s motivation for the missionary journeys he embarked upon?”

“As the early disciples waited in that upper room to be empowered for the preaching of the gospel, did they have prosperity somewhere at the back of their minds?”

“Do our present day missionaries that are placing their lives and the lives of their families in harm’s way have prosperity as their incentive?”

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This question of motives cuts across every area of Christian service, not just soul winning. It may be worthwhile to pause and actually reflect on your own motives for Christian service. While you are on that, think about these verses of the Bible:

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2: 10 (NIV)

Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. Revelations 4: 11 (KJV)

 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter.  If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” Daniel 3: 16 – 18 (NIV)

 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Romans 8:32 (NASB)

 My Thoughts:

God created us for His pleasure. Our Christian service is also a part of us that should give Him pleasure. If I experience God’s blessings or not in the course of the service, I will still serve Him. God’s blessings are completely free and there is no way I can pay for all that He has done for me and all that He will do for me. Relating this to the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican, the Pharisee came on the platform of all that he had done for God, while the Publican came ‘Just as I am without one plea’. We know the rest of the story. In Matthew 7: 7 – 8, God did not say you should go and ‘labour in the vineyard’ before coming to Ask, Seek and Knock. If I need anything, I can simply go to God as my Father and just Ask. Just my thoughts. My own thoughts.

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July 14, 2013 · 2:47 pm

Neighbourhood Jesus

In a Sunday school class some time ago, a little boy made a remarkable statement. The teaching on that day was on the person of Jesus Christ. After the teacher carefully described Jesus by His character and attributes, the little boy stood up and said that he had seen Jesus in his neighbourhood. The immediate response in the class was a mixture of scorn and surprise. The boy went ahead to describe a man that lived in their neighbourhood that matched the picture painted by the teacher. How profound that boy’s statement was.

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I believe that is the kind of life that we are called to as Christians; known as Christians by the life we live, not just because we announce that we are Christians. The early apostles were first called Christians because they were observed to be behaving like Christ, they did not choose the name and then went about announcing it to the people. That was the message that Paul tried to pass across in Galatians 5:1 (AMP)

 “Therefore be imitators of God [copy Him and follow His example], as well-beloved children [imitate their father].”

If we are copying God and following His example, it will show. It’s often very difficult to differentiate between an original item and an imitation if they are placed side by side at the market. Have you ever wondered why Judas had to specially point out Jesus with a kiss to those that came to arrest Him? Obviously, the disciples were not 12 identical twins. Can we all get back to that place, where we will be known by our fruits? Can we be known as Christians, not because of what we have filled in a form or because we said so, but rather because it is evident in the way we live? God’s grace is sufficient.

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July 7, 2013 · 8:30 pm

Teach Back

I attended a training course recently and one of the class activities was a teach-back session. This involved each participant playing the role of the course facilitator followed by a feedback session on the performance. During the feedback session, each participant was asked how they felt during the role play. One recurrent feeling, shared by most of the participants was nervousness. Different people experienced different degrees of nervousness, but most shook it off as the sessions wore on. Even the naturally bold and outgoing people were not left out in this mini stage fright.

This was probably how Gideon felt when the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said “The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour”. He tried fabricating creative excuses why he was not the right person to deliver Israel. Jeremiah felt the same way too, when he was told he was going to be a prophet over Israel. Even the great Moses that later spoke with the Lord face to face started this way too.

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God has a way of working His mighty acts in spite of our human weaknesses? He turns the weak things of this world into great wonders. All the weak people that actually took the leap of faith into God’s arms never remained that way. Gideon said “YES” and God used him to deliver Israel from the Midianites in a miraculous way. Jeremiah said “YES” and we still talk about him today. What about Moses? He said “YES” too and you know the rest of his story.

The God that we serve today is still the same God and He has not lost the power to put His words backed by His power into your mouth. It actually does not depend on you and it’s not about you. It’s all about the Almighty God, the Sovereign God, the Creator of the universe. His power can make all your weaknesses become non-existent.  If it was about Moses, his stuttering lips would have wrecked the whole mission.

If you ever find yourself in that situation, where cold feet want to get the best of you, just put your arms in His arms, open your mouth and watch Him fill it. It’s all about Him and He will never fail to show up. Always remember that it’s about Him.

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June 30, 2013 · 9:22 pm

Break Dance

When I was about 4 years old, break dance was the big thing. I remember it was also called “electric shock”. If you could not do the break dance, you had not arrived. Somewhere at the back of my innocent mind, I had this unshakeable belief in my ability to execute flawless break dance. With the benefit of hindsight, I think my belief and confidence were actually unfounded.

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Back then, I attended a party organised in honour of one of my cousins, who was going off to secondary school. As the break dance specialist, I had the whole dance floor to myself to make a ‘special’ presentation and I believed I did a good job. I could not therefore understand why some people were laughing at me in derision afterwards. The funny thing about dancing is that you never know how great or how awful your moves are, unless you are dancing in front of a mirror. They could see me and it was obvious to them that I was making a hash of the whole thing. If only I had a mirror on that dance floor…

That dance floor back in the days could be likened to our Christian walk. We will always have people around us who arrogate the power to judge us to themselves. They may be right or wrong in their judgement. If you want to listen to all those judges and satisfy all of them, you may find out after exerting a lot of energy and making a lot of sacrifices that you are behind your starting point. Regression instead of progress.

The mirror can never misjudge because what you see is what you get. For Christians, the Word of God has been given to us as our infallible mirror. It can never be wrong. If we can weigh all our actions on the scale of the Word, our lives will become the kind of example that Paul referred to in   1 Timothy 4: 12:

“…but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.”

Obviously, the Word of God can only be applied by those who know what is written therein. So, that is our own part of the deal. Let the Word of God dwell in you richly.

Proverbs 11:14 says, “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.”

This safety is only guaranteed if you do your own part by ensuring that the counsel you receive is tried on the scale of God’s word. Again, let the Word of God dwell in you richly.

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June 23, 2013 · 5:15 pm

One Thing Remains!

One of the funny experiences I will never forget is praying for a power generator that belonged to our school fellowship. The generator just had a way of failing at the wrong time. We spent a fortune trying to put it in a good shape and it always passed the test run. However, whenever it was hooked up to the public address system; it would always grind to a halt. The generator could be described as a metaphor for disappointment. It wasn’t the generator’s fault though, I guess we were kind of expecting too much from a spent force.

You may be able to relate this to that ‘old faithful’ family car that spent half of its last days at the mechanic workshop. The car served your family so well and so long that it could almost be described as a family member. However, in its last days it became erratic and unpredictable and also became famous, for giving up on the way home.

This is one major difference between our Almighty Father and mere mortals. He is the same yesterday and He will remain the same till the end of time. He does not get weary with time and He never gets to that point where He just can’t take it anymore. His efficiency does not reduce with age. I heard a song by Jesus Culture recently and the chorus just reinforced this knowledge of God.  The title of the song is One Thing Remains and the chorus is:

Your love never fails
It never gives up
It never runs out on me

Obviously, it refers to the qualities of the kind of love our father has towards us. There is nothing we can do to make God give up on us and we can never overdraw our love and mercy account with Him. His love is endless and endures forever. His mercies are new every morning. His love knows no bounds. Can you really fathom that? Wow!

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Sometimes we get tricked to believe that we have amassed so much wrong that God cannot forgive us. When that thought comes to rest on your mind, remember the father of the ‘prodigal son’. God is always waiting for you to come home. It is not in Him to forget His own. Remember his promise in Isaiah 49: 15 – 16

“Can a woman forget her nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.  “Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are continually before Me. (NASB)

This is however not a licence to just take a trip to the other side. It is an open door for us to draw close to our Almighty, ever-loving Father and just grow in his presence. Beholding His glory and becoming more and more like Him. Oh how I love Jesus…

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May 26, 2013 · 9:17 pm

F A I T H

Let’s just imagine that the setting is one of the consulting rooms of a renowned specialist hospital, and the main actor is one of the best doctors around. After checking the vital signs and listening to the symptoms that are presented, he arrives at the conclusion that the patient is suffering from Angina pectoris  and he goes on to explain that this is chest pain due to ischemia of the heart muscle,  generally due to obstruction or spasm of the coronary arteries.

9 out of 10 times, we may not understand all the high sounding words that doctors use, but we believe them and take their prescriptions seriously. We just believe that doctors are always right and we don’t challenge their conclusions. Now that is what I call FAITH.  We just take their words for it. I got this idea of faith recently at a Bible teaching meeting I attended.

The truth is that the doctor is human and is also fallible. However, we have a Father, who made the doctor and He is also Almighty. He has never failed in fulfilling His promises and He can never fail. It is not just possible for Him to fail. Yet we don’t find it very easy to take Him by His word. …Oh what things we often forfeit…

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Putting all these together, I can come up with another definition of faith, which is: Believing God’s word just the way He said it, without thinking about how possible it would be for Him to fulfil it. Abraham possibly had this definition in mind when he was going to sacrifice Isaac. He remembered that God promised him saying:

“…Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” Heb 11: 18 (NLT)

So, Abraham was not bothered about losing his only son. God made a promise to him and he was sure that God would keep His word. It did not have to make sense to him, but there was no way he was going to doubt God.

Is this kind of faith still available?

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May 5, 2013 · 9:18 pm

The Tweets of WB

‘Warren is in the house’: That was his first tweet. In about 45 minutes after that tweet, he had over 45,000 followers of Twitter and in 3 hours, the followers had exceeded 140,000. I’m talking about the Oracle of Omaha, also known as the Sage of Omaha or the Wizard of Omaha. I know you know who I’m talking about. His name is Warren Buffet.

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The record breaking followership is obviously not an accident. He must be doing something right that makes him so attractive to so many people. He did not just burst onto the scene; he has been consistently at the top for a long time. He is 82 years now and he doesn’t seem to be slowing down. His annual letter to shareholders in his company would have been a bestseller or a chart topper if it were for sale. He is indeed an extremely popular man.

The truth is that all of us may not be able to achieve Buffet-dimension of popularity or generate an average of 1000 twitter followers per minute. However, in our little corners, we can make significant impacts that will make people praise God that they came in contact with us. Ephesians 2:10 says

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Touching lives is definitely part of the ‘good works’ that God created us for. The good works don’t have to cost a fortune. It could even be as small as giving a smile to that office cleaner, gardener or the car wash attendant. It could also be picking up the bills for that stranded stranger that may never be able to say ‘thank you’ to you. Like they say, “Little drops of water make a mighty ocean”. Little good deeds make a mighty good deed.

If you look around you, opportunities to do good abound. Step in and make that small difference today. God is counting on you and the people are desperately waiting for you.

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