HUMILITY – THE PATH TO GREATNESS

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

HUMILITY – THE PATH TO GREATNESS

             “Christ was truly God. But he did not try to remain equal with God. Instead he gave up everything and became a slave, when he became like one of us. Christ was humble. He obeyed God and even died on a cross. Then God gave Christ the highest place and honoured his name above all others. So at the name of Jesus everyone will bow down, those in heaven, on earth, and under the earth. And to the glory of God the Father everyone will openly agree, “Jesus Christ is Lord!”.”, (Philippians 2v6-11, Contemporary English Version).

             According to the preceding verse of Scripture, Jesus humbled himself by taking the form of man to live among us. He became like us to identify with our frailty.

             When Christ was on earth, he operated as God in the flesh. This means he had supernatural abilities. No wonder the devil tempted him to turn stones into bread (Matthew 4v3-4). He could have resorted to always turning stones or anything at that into food whenever he was hungry. That means he wouldn’t have to experience the fatigue of working. I wonder other human challenges Jesus could have avoided because of the power in his hands.

             Humility was a necessary path our Master had to take on the journey to greatness. The same is required from us, as his followers. You may be the CEO of a multimillion conglomerate but need to wash chairs in Church. You may be older than the leader of a volunteer group where you serve but need to submit to his leadership. Humility can also mean choosing to let go of your right when you know you are entitled to certain things.

             God exalting our Saviour shows that when we humble ourselves, greatness is just a matter of time, 1 Peter 5v6.

PERFECT FAITHFULNESS

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

PERFECT FAITHFULNESS

             “Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago.”, (Isaiah 25v1, New International Version).

             According to the preceding verse of Scripture, Isaiah decided to honour God. This was because the Lord had impeccably fulfilled His good intentions for the prophet and the nation of Israel.

             I am sure we know people who have proven to be faithful in various areas. It could be on their job, in their marriage or in ministry. However, we know they are not perfect. The faithful worker called in sick at certain times during his 20 years of service. The faithful husband had an anger issue. The worker in ministry can be more focused on achieving the goals of his unit in Church than on his members’ welfare.

In other words, although man can be faithful, he cannot be perfectly faithful.

             Fortunately, our God is perfectly faithful. That means He can be totally trusted to fulfil to the letter, every detail of the good plans He has for His Children. God has the ability to do what He promised He would do exactly the way He said it would be done. When He does so, it becomes clear that only He could have done it.  

             In statistics, there is a concept called “Error”, which means there is a probability that there will be a difference between what we expect and what we get when we get and analyse data. In fact error is part of statistics. With God, there is no margin of error. What you expect from Him is what you actually get as long as He said it.

             You can rest assured no matter the storms around you. This is because He can be totally trusted because He is perfectly faithful.  

THAT WAS THEN, THIS IS NOW

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

THAT WAS THEN, THIS IS NOW

             “Whoever is a believer in Christ is a new creation. The old way of living has disappeared. A new way of living has come into existence.”, (2Corinthians 5v17, God’s Word Translation).

             Someone said “If your religion hasn’t changed you, you need to change your religion.” Christianity is not a religion. It is beyond attending Church on Sundays. It is beyond celebrating Christmas and Easter. It is a way of life. It is a change. We had a certain lifestyle before we met Christ. We lived by our selfish impulses. We did things our own way. We lived according to the world’s ideology that says “If it feels good, do it.”. We couldn’t say no to our fleshly cravings.

             However, things changed the day we made Jesus our Lord and Savior. We became children of God. We inherited the nature of our Heavenly Father. We received the ability Jesus had when He lived in this world. That is why as a Child of God, you don’t need to give in to the desires that have held you bound. You do not only have the choice to live by the flesh or spirit, you also have the power to do so.

             The devil usually heaps condemnation and shame on us with words like “You can never change” and “This is who you really are, there is no use pretending.”. Such lies are only meant to keep us in a cycle of failure. You will only be living in defeat by believing such words. Who you really are is defined by your Father’s words – “God made him who had no sin to be sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”, (2Corinthians 5v21, New International Version).

STARVE THE DESIRE 3

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

STARVE THE DESIRE 3

             “For the lovers of God may suffer adversity and stumble seven times, but they will continue to rise over again and over again. But the unrighteous are brought down by just one calamity and will never be able to rise again.”, (Proverbs 24v16, The Passion Translation).

             It has been emphasized that we can become slaves to ungodly desires. However, that is not the only choice we have. We can be motivated by wholesome cravings. We can break free from the chains of addictive habits. The starting point is having the desire to please God above all else. This involves starving the ungodly cravings and feeding those that make us reflect Christ.

             The decision to stay away from what makes us fall will not always lead to instant changes in our lives. You might have heard testimonies of people who were miraculously and instantaneously delivered from unwholesome habits like smoking and pornography. However, that is not the experience of everybody. It may also not be your experience. Whatever experience we have, God is more interested in the process of changing us on the inside rather than the fruits seen on the outside.

             You may fall many times. The habit may not stop immediately. Don’t give up. Resolve to please your Heavenly Father by depending on His Grace. Stick to your decision to stay away from whatever or whoever makes you fall. Have someone you can be accountable to, preferably a matured Christian. You need people who will be godly enough to speak the truth and loving enough not to give up on you.

              Remember that you are loved no matter how many times you fall. Remember that you can be free and stay free from whatever has kept you bound. Remember that “So if the son makes you free, then you are unquestionably.”, (John 8v36, Amplified).

THE MASTER STRATEGIST

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

THE MASTER STRATEGIST

             “So we are convinced that every detail of our lives is continually woven together to fit into God’s perfect plan of bringing good into our lives, for we are his lovers who have been called to fulfil his designed purpose”, (Romans 8v28, The Passion Translation).

             The foundation of God’s plan for the world is his love for humanity. Everything our Heavenly Father does is for our good, Jeremiah 29v11, James 1v17. However, his plans take precedence over our ways, Isaiah 55v8-9. That simply means his intentions will not always make sense to us. However, we can rest assured that our ultimate good is his highest interest.

             God’s plan will always overrule the scheme of the devil. Everything must ultimately align with God’s agenda. In other words, no matter how hard the enemy tries, he can’t thwart God’s plans. He can try to get us side-tracked. He can bring it on. Everything will ultimately work out for our good. Our Master will not usually reveal the intricate details of how we will get to where He has prepared for us. He used this model with Joseph when he showed him he would be great. Joseph never knew he would have to go through being sold as a slave. He never had an idea of how he would be framed for attempted rape or sent to prison. However, he trusted God each step of the way

             Whatever you are going through is no surprise to the One to who tomorrow is history. He will ensure that the good, bad and the ugly works for your good. When you can’t see his hands, trust his heart.

STARVE THE DESIRE 2

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THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

STARVE THE DESIRE 2

             “Be well balanced and always alert, because your enemy, the devil, roams around incessantly, like a roaring lion looking for its prey to devour”, (1 Peter 5v8, The Passion Translation).

             We have examined how sinful desires can make us fall even as Christians. The devil wants to ensure that wrong desires exercise control over us even after salvation. Thankfully, we can resist the lure of such longings. One way to fortify such resistance is by starving ungodly desires. Starving those cravings requires avoiding certain things, people and places.

             According to 1 Peter 5v8, we need to be vigilant. Giving in to temptation usually follows a pattern. You meet some friends in a bar on a Friday night to unwind. What you said would only be a few drinks turns out to drinking to stupor. You go home wasted. You search the internet for information of actors and actresses you admire. You continue until you start going to porn sites and watching unwholesome videos.

             We would only be fooling ourselves if we say we don’t know the string of events that lead to doing the wrong thing. When we stay sensitive, we can recognize when the pattern wants to repeat itself. This enables us to decide to avoid some things. Some temptations can be avoided when we stay away from certain people, places and things.

              When we cut away the atmosphere that creates temptation, we succeed in starving the harmful desires. As the wrong desires are weakened, the right desires grow stronger. As the hunger to please our Heavenly Father takes root in our lives, we can stand strong when temptation comes.

STARVE THE DESIRE

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

STARVE THE DESIRE

             “When you are tempted don’t ever say, “God is tempting me,” for God is incapable of being tempted by evil and he is never the source of temptation. Instead it is each person’s own desires and thoughts that drag them into evil and lure them away into darkness”, (James 1v14, The Passion Translation).

             The preceding Scripture reveals that our desires create the way for temptation. You cannot be tempted by something if there is no longing for it. Someone defined temptation as “a wrong way to fulfil a legitimate need.” When we were sinners, the devil worked certain desires into us. For some, it was the love for alcohol. Others struggled with the desire for pornography. Others couldn’t control their anger. After we become born again, Satan still tries to get us to fall for such desires.

             The desires for the wrong things need to be tamed. One way is to overcome them by a stronger hunger. For example, how do I control the love for pornography? I pray for the desire to glorify God with what I feed my eyes on. I embrace the longing to be a role model to my family, friends, acquaintances and people in general. I yearn not to be another reason the world claims “being a Christian is being a hypocrite”. When the desire to please God is stronger, I won’t give in to temptation.

             Another way to ensure that our desires don’t get the best of us is to starve them. That means avoiding certain places. It can also involve avoiding some websites. If we have to end or redefine certain relationships to avoid temptation, it’s worth it.                 

             As we seek grace to tame every wrong desire, the things that have held us bound will lose their hold.

THE PROOF OF FORGIVENESS

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

THE PROOF OF FORGIVENESS

             “When someone curses you, bless that person in return. When you are mistreated and harassed by others, accept it as your mission to pray for them”, (Luke 6v28, The Passion Translation).

             I am sure the Scripture above is not new to you. Over the years, we have been encouraged to forgive those who have hurt us. We have been taught to release the weight of resentment by extending forgiveness to them. However, we often find it difficult to love those who caused us pain. We say we have forgiven them yet our unloving attitude doesn’t change. In other words, if we have truly forgiven, our attitude should reflect it.

             Am I saying you should forget what they did to you? No, that would be impossible. Am I suggesting you go back to him after you almost lost your life the last time he beat you? No, forgiving him doesn’t mean casting your pearls before a swine. Forgiveness means seeing them through the eyes of love, God’s love. It means deciding to pray for them even though you feel like doing the opposite. When we have truly taken the path of forgiveness, our words about those who have hurt us don’t spill bitterness. Forgiveness empowers us to show love to our offender.

             As long as our attitude towards them is full of resentment, we cannot claim to be walking in forgiveness. Would you rejoice if something bad happened to them? Do you maximize every opportunity to talk bad about them? Questions like these are the acid test for really adopting a forgiving spirit.              

             Forgiveness is the right path we can only take when we choose to hold the hands of the One who has always loved us.

TASTE AND SEE THE LORD IS GOOD

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

TASTE AND SEE THE LORD IS GOOD

             “Give the Lord a chance to show you how good he is. Great blessings belong to those who depend on him!”, (Psalm 34v8, Easy to Read Version).

             We can become skeptical regarding trusting people. This could be as a result of unpleasant experiences we’ve had in the past. People we believed care for us betrayed our trust. Our response can be building up walls. We can resolve to live life on our own terms-not depending on people. After all our experiences with them only proved that they cannot be trusted. This can extend to our relationship with God. This can happen when those who let us down are father figures.

             The truth is life was never meant to be the journey of a lone ranger. We need each other. More importantly, we need God. Our Scriptural reference affirms that God has great things in store for us. However, we will only walk in the reality of His blessings when we choose to depend on Him. We can only go so far on our own. 

             For some of us, trusting God is a risk. However, it is a risk worth taking. Why? While man is naturally undependable, God’s Word is guaranteed. The Lord assures us in Isaiah 55v10-11 (The Message Translation) “Just as rain and snow descend from the skies and don’t go back until they’ve watered the earth, doing their work of making things grow and blossom, producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry, so will the words that come out of my mouth not come back empty-handed. They’ll do the work I sent them to do, they’ll complete the assignment I gave them”. 

             Give God an opportunity to show you how good He is. Let Him lead the way, your destination will be beautiful.

THE CHOICE TO FORGIVE

THINK THE WORD

…Oh, how I love your instructions! I think about them all day long…

THE CHOICE TO FORGIVE

             “Your ancestors have also been taught ’Love your neighbours and hate the one who hates you.’ However, I say to you, love your enemy, bless the one who curses you, do something wonderful for the one who hates you, and respond to the very ones who persecute you by praying for them.”, (Matthew 5v43-44, The Passion Translation).  

             It is natural for us to be tempted to be happy if people who hurt us have a taste of their own medicine. We can call it justice. We can even rejoice that God has punished them on our behalf. In the part of the world where I reside, you will hear the words “God catch am”, meaning God has dealt with him. However, Jesus told us to respond in a different way according to Matthew 5v43-44. He instructed us to intercede for them.

             Why would Jesus instruct us to pray for those who cause us pain? People act based on what they know per time. If people do wrong, it means they have the wrong information. They need prayers not only to get the right information but to also allow it to change their perspective. Also hurting people hurt people. We usually treat others the way we see ourselves. Hurting people need our prayers to be healed of their pain and receive the love of Christ.

             Praying for our enemies also has healing power for us. You cannot sincerely pray for the wellbeing of someone and remain bitter against them. When we pray for our enemies, we gain the capacity to see them through God’s eyes.

             Responding with love is an opportunity for the world to see Jesus in us.