Tajhmahal on Сharacter

WHY SEEK YE THE LIVING AMONGST THE DEAD?

2012-10-21T05:29:00.000-07:00

Mary Magdalene,the one whom Jesus had cast out demons from went to the sepulcher were Jesus was laid,with Joanna and Mary who was mother to James and Zebedee,to put spice of the body of Jesus ,getting to the sepulcher,they found that the stone had been rolled away and the body of Jesus was no longer there.
They were perplexed and worried not remembering what Jesus told them that on the third day he would rise,as they stood there,two men in shinning garments the bible says,stood there and asked “why seek ye the living amongst the dead;He is not here,he is risen” The grave could not hold him,death could not stop him,he defeated the grave and death and he is risen and alive.
This is not a fairy tale but a real story,it is not a parable,Jesus was dead,but now he is risen from the grave,this is the whole message of salvation;He was born,he was crucified,he died and he rose again for our redemption,without his ressurection then we would not have salvation and cannot have eternal life.
Well the angel asked the women “why are you looking for the living amongst the dead,he is not here any more,he is risen”.There is a hunger in the soul of man,a desire that needs to be satisfied,like the economist says “the wants of man are insatiable” it means it cannot be satisfied.There is a deep in man,that seeks for something that will bring satisfaction.
That deep pulls man into the world of searching,we are all searching for satisfaction that can bring us to the place of rest.When will this search stop,how long will feeling continue.
According to Abraham Maslow's theory,the needs of man can be satisfied from the outside in,starting from the Physiological needs - The basic needs,food and shelter,once this needs are satisfied,man goes on to satisfy the next level of needs; Safty needs – Physical safty,protective covering,from unemployment etc.,once that is taken care of,he moves on to take care of Social needs - sense of belonging and love,when that is taken care of he goes on to Esteem needs - self esteem,recognition and status and after that is taken care of he goes on finally to; Self actualization - how people think about themselves ;so Maslow did a good job with trying to analyze the needs of man according to importance.
Maslow's Hierarchy of needs starts from outside,taking care of the physical to the inside taking care of the spiritual,and sometimes most people never get to the place of self actualization because of death,because according to Maslow,he will have to go from stage to stage,taking care of each need after the other.
But I would like to show you a way where you can actually get satisfaction,without going through all theses stages showed by Maslow,Maslow teaches you how to go from bottom up but I would show you how to start from top to bottom;There are somethings you must know;

GOD PUT THAT VACUUM IN MAN AND ONLY HE CAN FILL IT UP

That emptiness that you feel,that desire that tells you that there is something lacking in you that you need to get,was put in by God,and that emptiness is supposed to lead you to him and him alone,but in the search man ends up trying to figure it out,instead of going to God.Man starts to looking for the living amongst the dead.What do I mean,looking for the living amongst the dead? Its like looking for the right things in the wrong places and the wrong people.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to be loved,we all need love and care from others,but because of the empties and man wanting to fix it,we are deceived to think that sex is love,but you realise even after you give yourself to a man,before marriage,you only get a temporal satisfaction and its just physical,will only last for a few minutes,then you are back to square one,the search continues.

Young people break all kinds of rules and values just to have that sense of belonging,with teenagers it is called peer pressure,just to belong to that click of friends you give yourself to all kinds of evil vices,so that you would be accepted by your peer group,its okay to want to be accepted,but you are looking for the living amongst the dead.

The one that gives himself to alcohol and drugs,to help with dealing with fear and boost your confidence,the pressure of been at the top,why do super stars with all the wealth and money,still take drugs,sportsmen use drugs to be able to stay at the top,what about those that have been killed because of an overdose,we cannot mention all the vises we get into just to be recognized by others,to make us look cool,but you are looking for the living amongst the dead.

THE WOMAN AT THE WELL – JOHN 4.

Like the woman Jesus met at the well,the Samaritan woman in the book of John 4;The bible records that Jesus was by the well,wearied of his journey,and here comes this woman to draw water,and Jesus said to her “give me to drink” she replied him,”how is it that thou a Jew asked of me a drink”,at this time Jews and Samarians were not in agreement,so they had nothing in common.

But jesus said unto her “if thou knows the gift of God and who it is that saith to thee,give me to drink,thou wouldest have asked of him,and he would have given thee Living water” this was Jesus asking for water,but jesus knew this woman and her need,and his request was actually an offer to this woman,that would change her life forever,that is exactly the case with you reading this message now,Give me to drink? Jesus is asking you to let him into your life,so you can drink from him the water that will well up into eternal life.

Jesus speaking further,said unto her ”whomsoever drinketh of this water from the well,will thirst again” that is You and I trying to fix that hunger “but whosoever shall drink from the water that I give him shall never thirst again,but that water shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”

In other words,that water will never run dry,it will be a well of water that will spring up into everlasting life,it will quench your thirst for ever,imagine you have a well in you; You will never need to drink water ever,because your thirst will constantly be taken care of.So she said “please give me to drink”,she wants that water so she would never come to draw from this well ever again,so Jesus asked her to go call her husband,she replied I have no husband and Jesus said “thou hast well said,because you are with now is not your husband and you have had five husbands”.

Gods purpose was to bring her back to the place of real worship,which was not on the mountain as they were taught but it was now to be inside of man,his spirit,that was why Jesus said “they that must worship God must worship him in spirit and in truth” spirit here speaks of the human spirit,that is the regenerated human spirit,and the truth here speaks of christ,the word of God; God was bringing her to the place of worship,that is the place of true satisfaction,she was satisfied,she drank from the water that Jesus gave and her thirst went away forever,she also got her city to come hear christ.

JESUS THE ONLY SOURCE OF OUR SATISFACTION

Jesus in John 6: 35 said,“I am the bread of life.Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” Jesus is the bread of life,and if any man be hungry and eats of that bread he will never be hungry again,is that not wonderful,that our hunger can be dealt with once and for all.How can we partake of this satisfaction,he further said “if any man believes in me,he will never be thirsty again” the woman at the well believed and her thirst went away,the search went away,that search for love and acceptance that made her to have been married to five other men and is now with the sixth,that search was done away with because she found “love satisfaction” in christ Jesus,because she believed in him.

There is only one way by which we can find all of those things we search for and end our search forever,that is through the lord jesus christ,once you find him your search in life will be done away with, you will never thirst again or be hungry again.He said “I am the way,the truth and the life,no man comes to the father except by me” this is a strong statement,he didn’t say he is one of the ways,or some of the ways he said,I am the way,this is why Christianity is not a religion;religion is one of the many ways that man created to get to God,but the bible says that there is only one way,by which we can be saved,one way and that is through Jesus,if we can confess with our mouths and believe in our hearts that he is lord,all our thirst and hunger will disappear. Romans 10:10

You don’t have to go to the grave side to look for the living amongst the dead,you don’t have to give your bodies to men anymore for sex,you don’t have to drink yourself to stupor or take drugs to be able to face life anymore you don’t have to be like the woman at the well and keep breaking up relationships out of fear,but if you can just believe and give your all to him,by casting all your cares on him,he will give you water that will cause you never to thirst again and you will be the source of eternal life to others because that water will be a well,that will spring unto life everlasting..

GROWING IN GOD–PART 1

2012-09-24T23:12:00.000-07:00

I have met a lot of people who find it very difficult to study their bibles and get knowledge,they get so thrilled when they see others teach the word of God with so much clarity,but I would like share with you how you can build and develop a study life and grow in your knowledge of Jesus Christ.

MY EXPERIENCE
I remember a few years ago,I had been saved for just a short while and my knowledge of Christ was still small,but I was on fire for him,I met this young man who caused a revolution in my study life,I paid him a visit and discovered he had quite a number of bibles and he shared with me,how much he invests in the purchase of bibles,he has different translations,I was so challenged,he didn't look like someone who had that much and studied much,but that experience with him revolutionized my life.
I made up my mind to get a Dakes bible,which I did with the allowance my parents sent to me for feeding in school,then it cost much,I didn't know how I was going to live but I trusted God to take care of me and he did,two weeks later my father sent me extra money miraculously,but my life changed forever,.
I would like to share very simple ways how you can build a life of study of the word.

DESIRE IT
Your desire is like a fuel for your passion,when I got saved I realize my passion for God was fired up,I wanted to know him more and more,and that desire was put in me by the presence of the holy spirit,the desire for other things reduced and the desire for the word of God increased.This is a sign of a man that has truly received Jesus,his passion is for the word,you are drawn to the word of God,you just want to know him.
The bible says "as new born babes desire the sincere milk of the word of God,so you can grow thereby",without the desire for the word,you will not search it and this will reduce your growth in God,the word is the food you need to grow spiritually.1 Peter 2:2

ASSOCIATION
Your association is so important,especially when you just got saved its important you stay around folks who are on fire for God,these kinds of associations will help develop and grow your desire.When I got save I was blessed to fellowship around brothers and sisters who were on fire for God and they helped me grow.
The bible says “.Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.” Proverbs 27:17.
Stay around folks that stir your passion for God,those who will stir your passion for the word and prayer.You cannot grow spiritually beyond those you spend time with.

FELLOWSHIP WITH THE BRETHREN
I hear people say that you don't have to belong to a church and be a part of an activity group,that you can have church at home,I never recommend church on the web for a matured or a baby Christian,I believe that your physical presence in a bible believing church is important,your growth is dependent on the kind of church you attend.So its important you belong to a church were you are taught and you participate and not just are a bench warmer.
I remember when I and my elder brother got saved,we searched for a church and it took us sometime but we found one and became a part of it,and we grew quicker,we became friends with some folks that helped us to grow and I cannot forget that year,it was revolutionary,so attend a bible believing church.
“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching” Hebrews 10:25

GET A FULL BIBLE
The first book you want to get after the salvation experience is a bible,you cannot grow and know god without a bible,the bible contains the word of God that will cause you to grow.I would recommend that you get a king James bible,the original king James bible and for the purpose of study I also suggest that other translations like the new international version,the amplified version,the living bible version or translation and the new king James version are just okay for starters.

START READING IT
We sometimes hurry into trying to understand,the bible never said try to understand the word of God,it said that the holy spirit who is the spirit of truth will teach you,so its his job to teach.so I recommend that you start reading the bible,read the new testament,the gospels and the letters of Paul,just read and as you do that understanding will start to come,don't fight it,just let it flow,
John 14:26.

Also as you read,mark out those verses that strike you as important and take note of them or bookmark them if it's a computer bible,and go back to think on them again and again.

STUDY THE WORD
In studying, to aid you as a young Christian,get a devotional and there are loads of devotional out there,you can study with the aid of devotionals because they teach topic by topic and religiously use them in your quiet time to study.make a habit of studying the word daily and keep to your time and place,this would help you better.

PICK OUT A TIME TO STUDY DAILY
Most successful men today,became successful from a routine,you must make a routine of studying the word of God,take out a minimum of 30 minutes to meditate on the word of God,pick a place and time,where you can concentrate,in that you need a quiet place,with no distractions,phones off,TV off and anything that would distract you.
I remember that one of the times that changed my life was one holiday I had years ago,I had just my bible that had no reference and concordance and my oxford dictionary and a writing note ,I would spend hours studying the word,I was alone at home and no noise except good gospel music,that aided my study.
Most of the things I learned in that period,today stands as a foundation for my Christian life,I was from the orthodox background and most of what I know,the holy spirit taught me,but I had to create the place and the time.

GET A DICTIONARY AND A WRITING NOTE
Its so important that you get a dictionary,I mean a normal dictionary,because as you study you will find words that you don't understand,and your dictionary will help you find the literal meaning of each word,that would help you understand the text,you are reading.
Also get a writing note or diary,so you can make notes of important points for reference purposes and also like I had earlier said,book mark important verses,and make references on your bible so that it will be easy for you to remember other verses that relates.

ASK QUESTIONS
As you study you might find verses that you can't understand,mark it out and write a question in your note,talk to your pastor or your bible study leader or a friend who you can reason it out with,this is why you should have a click of friends who are on fire for God to always discourse issues as they border you.
Questions are vital for knowledge;At the age of twelve Jesus was found asking questions and listening, giving answers but he asked questions,a man who wants to learn asks questions.Luke 2:46-47

PRAY BEFORE YOU START TO STUDY
You cannot understand the word of God without prayer,prayer and worship puts you in the atmosphere for study of the word.so its important you spend sometime to just pray and and worship and allow his holy spirit to just flow in the atmosphere,this will put your mind in the right frame for the study of the word.
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” 2Timothy 2:15.
It is our responsibility to create the place and time and it is Gods responsibility to teach you by his spirit,so do your part,he will be there in time.

BROTHERLY KINDNESS - 2

2012-09-01T00:00:00.000-07:00

“Be kindly affectioned,one to another..” Romans 12:10

THE SECRETE TO DEALING WITH LACK IS BROTHERLY LOVE – ACTS 4:34

The apostles were together in one accord when the spirit was revealed and they continued to be together afterwards,they were always together praying and declaring the word of God and there was so much love and bond between them and much grace was released on them,now christian brothers spend more time fighting than praying,they say “A family who prays together stays together” and that’s true because prayer binds.

They stayed together,prayed together and preached together,that their brotherly love for each other became stronger,we can not walk in unity if we don’t love one another,we make little impact now because we don’t walk in brotherly love,the bible says that they walked so much in love that no one absolutely no one in their midst lacked anything.

How was that possible? the bible records that “those that were possessors of land or houses,went and sold them and brought the money to the apostles feet” Peter didn’t have to raise some kind of fund,these guys were so moved by the love of God,this is how you know they have Gods love,they gave what they had,you can not say you love when you can not give,love expresses itself through giving,”God so loved that he gave” John 3:16,you cant separate giving from love,its part of love.

They brought the proceeds to the apostles feet and distribution was made to everyone,according as he had need,everyone's need was met,everyone because they walked in Philadelphia-brotherly love.

There are folks in church today who are so rich,but they care not about their brother,who has need,how can we say we love God when we see a brother in need and we have the resource to fix the need,but we say “oh brother,its going to be fine just keep praying” you certainly don’t have any love,the bible calls that attitude a sin.

LOVE IN ACTION – 1JOHN 3:17-18
This scripture is very direct and clear and it addresses what we see today in the church,were we close our bowels of mercy toward a brother in genuine need of help,so many people attend a church were there are quite a lot of financially okay folks but they still suffer,were is the love of God.

The writer of John quotes “whosoever hath this worlds goods and seeth his brother have need and shuteth his bowels of compassion,from him,how dwelleth the love of God in him?”
He concluded with a question,because he couldn't understand how you can be blessed with the riches of this world and see your brother or sister in need and not do something to help,such a person doesn't really have the love of God in him.

Its normal now,we select who we help,even in the church,but the word says we are brothers and sisters,how can we say we have the love Of God and still be comfortable,when someone else,a brother is in need and we just ignore it,you better check yourself,that’s is not the love of God.

Let us not love in word or in tongue but in deed and in truth,in other words let our love grow from the verbal “I love you” to actually acting it,doing it.you see a brother who is in need,don’t close your bowels of mercy and feel pity,actually do something about it,he is your brother,that’s how we love in action,when we actually act it,God so loved the word,that he gave” so it was not just verbal,action followed it.

IF YOU HATE YOUR BROTHER,YOU ARE A MURDERER – 1JOHN 3:15
“Whosoever hates his brother in christ is a murderer”- The word murderer in real life is “someone who kills a fellow man,with a motive”.

The scripture say “thou shalt not kill” the actual word there is thou shalt not murder.When you kill someone by a mistake or in self defense,it isnt murder even by natural law,but when you kill someone with an intent,a motive,maybe they did something bad to you or they even killed someone you love and you did it back as vengeance,you have committed murder because of the motive.

So the bible says he that hates his brother is a murderer,its interesting that when I checked the greek,I was amazed;

The greek for murder is anthropoktonos,which means a manslayer,murderer.
When you hate,you hate with a motive,you just don’t wakeup one morning and hate someone,if that’s your case then you got to have a demonic problem there,but when you hate a brother in christ,the bible says that its as committing murder,been charged with that crime called manslaughter,which is same as man slayer.

When you walk in hate,toward a brother in christ,you have committed manslaughter,you have actually killed someone in cold blood,there is no difference between you and someone who takes a gun and walks into a school of kids and shoots everybody to death,you are a murderer.

The bible goes further to say that such a person can not claim to have eternal life abiding in him,the word eternal life is Zoe life,the God kind of life we receive when we accept christ as lord and saviour,that means in actual fact what the scripture is saying is “you are not born-again” that’s the simplest way I can put it.
If you walk in hatred towards your christian brother,you don't have the life of God in you,you are a murderer.

LOVE LAYS DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS BROTHER/SISTER IN CHRIST – 1JOHN 3:16
Now this is getting even serious,its easy to talk about the love of God and I know what you are thinking now,yea he was God! and so it was easy for him to do that.If it was so easy why did Jesus cry out to the father in the garden of gethsemane,that he should take this cup away from him,if it was possible because it wasn’t easy but his love for you and I,the desire to free us from death was much more than the pain of the cross,he truly loved us and went all the way,it wasn’t easy,but it was worth it.

That’s what the scripture is saying to us as brothers that we ought to,its not a thing of struggle because we have the ability to,since God shared his love(agape) love in our hearts by the holy spirit,then we can and we ought to lay down our lives also for the brethren.

This doesn’t necessarily mean die for your brother,but the truth is,if the situation demands it,do it,actually lay down your own life for your brother.But when you read the next verse,the writer talked about helping to meet your brothers need,because the truth is,if you cannot help to solve a brothers material need,you sure can not actually die for them,so we start from the small things,how many times have you gone out of your ways to help another,sacrificed time and money to help some brother in need,that is laying down your life.

Brotherly love is so vital for faith,we serve one God and father,one faith that binds us together,one love which is agape that is the foundation of our faith,if we truly share all of these,then we ought to walk in brotherly love,you are my brother and you are my sister in christ.

watch out for the blog on charity..

BROTHERLY KINDNESS - 1

2012-08-30T23:08:00.000-07:00

“Be kindly affectioned,one to another..” Romans 12:10

WHAT IS BROTHERLY LOVE
The word Brotherly kindness in the greek is Philadelphia meaning “love shared between a biological brother and sister,but in the christian faith it is the love shared between one christian brother or sister to another christian brother or sister.”

As christians we are all members of one family,we have one father and one God and one faith and one spirit,so in christ we are blood brothers and sisters,the blood of Jesus is our connection and his love is our bond.If you are in Christ,then you are my brother or sister,no matter the physical location,tribe,country,family,we are a family in christ Jesus,the blood of christ is our bond of connection.

Here we are not talking about agape love,which is the love of God which is the foundation of the christian faith,but we must realise that we are actually spiritual brothers and sisters,we are not trying to be,you are actually my brother and sister,to tell you how serious this is,in the scriptures;

when Jesus was teaching,he was told that his mother and brothers want to see him,"But He answered and said to the one who told Him, 'Who is My mother and who are My brothers?' And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, 'Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.' "Matthew 12:46-50.

Jesus said whosoever does the will of my father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother,its that serious,we are not just colleagues in the lord but brothers and sisters in christ,for real.
To prove to you that it’s the same meaning,when Jesus spoke about his brothers he used the word Brethren and it shares the same greek word and translation when he referred to his disciples as well.The word brethren is the same thing as the word biological brothers in meaning and the greek is Adelphos which is brother or sister of the same parents or different father or mother.

WHAT SHOULD MY ATTITUDE BE TO MY BROTHER
The bible teaches us how we are to behave to our brother,what sort of attitude I should put up when dealing with my brother,the bible teaches us the following;

BE KINDLY AFFECTIONED,ONE TO ANOTHER WITH BROTHERLY LOVE – Romans 12:10;1Thessalonians 4:9

To be kindly affectioned means to show affection with kindness to one another,we should be kind and affectionate to one another,with brotherly love,that is Philadelphia,which is love shared between blood brothers,don’t ignore your brother in time of need but show affection and Philadelphia when they are in trouble.

The word kind means to be considerate,generous and friendly.kindness is a fruit of the spirit in Galatians 5:22,the king James uses the word goodness,which means same thing as kindness.
The word affectionate means readily feeling or showing fondness and tenderness.

I wouldn’t want to see my younger brother hurt,I would give all to make sure he is okay,I love him that much and that is the same love I give to my family.The same love and affection that we show to our blood brothers and sisters that is the same kindness and affection that is demanded of us toward our christian brother.

The greek word for kindly affectioned is Philostorgos which means the mutual love of parents and children and wife's and husbands,God wants us to show that kind of affection to our brother and sister,that closeness that generosity and fondness.

How can we do this,the bible further says “in honor,preferring one another” ; the words in honor and preferring one another are very important words,so lets look at them.

For us to fully comprehend the words in honor we need to understand the greek word used is time,which in translation means,the following;
A valuing by which the price is fixed; the value of the price paid for a person or thing bought or sold.

That means that we place value according to the price fixed on the person,that takes us back to redemption,the bible say that we were redeemed by the blood of the lamb,the price paid for our lifes and salvation was the blood of christ,what can be more valuable than that,what can be more expensive than the blood.1Peter 1:18-20.

So I should value my brother according to the price paid to redeem him or her,the blood of christ was the price,that means he is priceless to God,I should treat him as such.

The word preferring in greek is proegeomai which means to go before and show the way;to go before as a leader.So in honor preferring one another would mean,be the first to show kindness and affection,brotherly love,don’t wait for it to come before you show it,show it according to the value on your brother.

I would think the bible is saying be proactive in helping others,don’t wait for them to ask you first,In honor preferring one another,be the leader in brotherly love,be the first to show it.

Sometimes we want to be at the receiving end,we want to receive first before we reciprocate,no the bible says be the leader,lead the way in showing affection and kindness,knowing that your brother is as valuable to God as you are.

LOVE ONE ANOTHER WITH A PURE HEART FERVENTLY – 1PETER 1:22.
Firstly lets see what 1John says about loving one another,so important and profound this subject is,our faith walk is to please God and without faith its totally impossible to please God.
Our love for God is measured by our love for our brother whom we can see;
The bible says “if a man says he loves God and hates his brother,he is a liar” I am very curious and I checked the word liar in the greek,it is Pseustes - meaning a liar; one who breaks faith,a false and faithless man.

This is so serious,if you claim to love God and yet hate your brother,you are a liar,you are one who breaks faith,you are false and a faithless man,this is serious,cause without faith its impossible to please God,so you cant love God and hate your brother,there is no justification to hate your brother,when we live by the law of love and forgiveness,so when you walk outside of love with your brother,you are a false and faithless man,you have broken faith and God will not be pleased with you.

Your proof of Gods love or love for God is on the basis of love for your brother,you can’t fool God,so when you cry out “Lord I love you” and hate your brother,God is saying hey,you don’t love me stop lying,you are walking outside of faith and I am not happy with you,you are false and faithless.

God is a smart person,you have not seen me and you say you love me so much,but the brother,I sent my son to die for that has received me,the guy you live with,worship in the same church with,you hate him? common,God can not be deceived,you cannot outlove God,he has done much more than you can ever do,you can’t impress him,he already loved you even when you were totally bad and away from him,so start loving your brother,if you think you want to ever please God.

The commandment is “if you love God,you love your brother also”1John 4:21.
There is not an argument,it is something that just flows,I don’t have to struggle to love my brother,I just love him,I may not like his attitude but I just love him,if we love God,yes loving God is a choice,we must love our brother also,if we really love God,then loving our brother is not a choice,it is not an issue for contemplation,it’s a command,its an order and its meant to be obeyed,love ye one another.

This is the commandment we have received,that he who loves God shall love his brother also,no question about it,if you don’t like it you can quit,it’s a command,that implies,if you cannot love your brother,then you better quit at loving God,because your love certainly counts for nothing,this is deep,I must say.

I would then like to admonish conclusively,like Paul said in Hebrews 13:1 “let brotherly love continue”,let it abide,let it remain,lets stop hating one another and think we got excuses or reasons but we are making God sad,we are brothers and sisters in Christ.

REVERENTIAL FAITH

2012-08-29T16:06:00.000-07:00

“..But godliness is profitable,unto all things” 1Timothy 4:8

The teaching of faith is so profound,the more you study the more information you find out,faith is the foundation of the christian life,its not just a teaching of principles but a lifestyle that the blood of Jesus gave us entrance into.
Christianity is totally a life of faith,the whole message of Christianity is a life of faith and the life of faith is the God kind of life.
I have learnt so much as I make these posts and we will be looking at another very essential quality or character that we should add to our faith,the quality of godliness.

WHAT IS GODLINESS ?
Godliness according to the Webster's dictionary is defined as having great reverence for God;Pious.

The greek for the word godliness in the greek is eusebeia which means reverence,respect and piety towards God,godliness.

Godliness is a life of reverence and respect for God,it’s a lifestyle not just something you live today and forget about it tomorrow,not just respect for the church building,some people only have respect for God when they are in the church building,but a lifestyle that we live,whether we are in the church building or outside.

Christianity actually begins when we are outside the church,because now everyone knows how to act churchy,but godliness is reverence for god.we will learn how we can add godliness to faith.

THE MYSTERY OF GODLINESS – 1timothy 3:16
“And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

Paul in the previous verses pleaded with the church that they should be careful how they conduct themselves in the house of God,which is the church.The house of God is not a building but the church and the scriptures make it clearly that we are the church ,the ekklesia meaning the assembly of Gods people,the chosen ones,the called out ones.

The church is not the building but the people,Christ didn’t die for a building,he died for a people,he died for you and I,he chose us before the foundation of the world to be his own.Ephesians 5:25

Be careful how you behave yourselves in the house of God,the church of the living God,which is the pillar and ground of truth,the church is embodiment of christ,we are the pillar and ground of truth ,that is what we are,in other words we hold the truth of Gods word through which any one can be saved.

The truth that can set free is with us,the very truth of Gods word.The church is the base to find out about God.without the church the truth of the gospel can not be taken out to the world.
There is no controversy,great is the mystery of Godliness,a mystery that has been made open through the church;God was manifest in the flesh,justified in the spirit,seen of angels,preached unto the gentiles,believed in the world,received up into glory and revealed in us by the precious holy spirit.

We are the embodiment of that revelation today,God now revealed in us,Christ in us the hope of glory.but we must be careful how we conduct ourselves here in the earth and the world.lets explain godliness in two lights;

THE GOD LIFE
When we became born again,we received new life,the Zoë life,the very life of God in us.We received that life,the minute we accepted Jesus as lord and savior,the bible says that the life in Christ which is eternal life is the life we received.

So you have the God kind of life,if you are born of God then you have the life of God and you received the spirit of God,and if that spirit that raised up christ from the dead lives in you,the spirit will also vitalize your mortal bodies.

If we truly have the very life of God through christ then godliness should not be a problem,because the bible says ye are gods and sons of the most high,living to please God and living a life of reverential fear before him shouldn’t be a problem,because we have the quality of life that God has.Godliness should be like taking a cup of tea,easy.

We need to walk in this consciousness that we have the life of God in us,the same quality of life,we are one with christ,the very same spirit that lived in christ and brought him out of the grave lives in us that is power in us,Praise God,godliness is nothing we are gods,we should live what we truly are,imagine God finding it difficult to live like himself,he is God,he lives and acts like God,he cannot be like anyone else.

We ought to be careful how we carry ourselves in the church because truly we are the pillar and ground of truth.

THE LIFE OF HOLINESS
Holiness is living a life of consecration unto God,it means been set apart unto God,and holiness is a character of the godly life.

Righteousness we become when we accept christ and holiness is the life of purity and totally committed to God and him alone.The bible says without Holiness no man,shall see God,if you want to see the move of God in your life,live a consecrated life,a life free from anything that contaminates your relationship with God.

The Levites lived a life of consecration because God seperated them unto himself,that’s our case today,we are the temple of the holy spirit so the word says,keep the temple holy,if any man destroys the temple of God,him will God destroy.We are Gods temple,the spirit of God lives in us,we must live the life of consecration that we have been called unto.

God has not called us into uncleanness but unto a life of holiness,we are called to a life of consecration,not a life of impurity,and ungodliness but a life of holiness,God demands of us to be holy as he is holy.

The new man is created in righteousness and true holiness,we should not struggle if we have put on the new man in christ according to Colossians 3:10,we shouldn’t struggle to live a life of holiness,holiness is the life style or character of the new man,if you are still struggling then you need to put off the old man,the sin conscious life and put on the new man.

We should cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit,anything that pollutes our flesh,that is our body and the spirit,as we do that we our holiness gets better and better in the fear of God,reverence for God is the push toward living a holy life.The bible says the fear of God causes us to eschew evil,lets keep ourselves free from all filthiness of the flesh.

Abstaining from sin,not just sins that pollutes our flesh,but when we miss the mark,go out of the will of God and living in sin is one way we can do that,but abstaining from sin will produce in our lives holiness and eternal life,that means sin can cause us to miss the eternal life that we have in christ Jesus.Romans 6:22

GODLINESS PROFITS MORE
God’s divine power has given us what pertains to life and godliness-the word life there is not the natural life but the Zoë life,so we have all we need in the Zoë life,Gods kind of life,to live a godly life.Zoe life contains the ability and empowerment we need to live the godly life.

His divine power,the very power of God has given unto us that which pertains,unto life and godliness,we have the power in the very life of God,what we have received is divine,stop struggling start living,you have the ability to live the Zoë life,to express the God kind of life,the ability to live above sin and to leave the very life of God,the godly life.

Godliness profits more,the bible recognizes bodily exercise profits little,but godliness profits unto all things.It profits for the life that now is; here again the life is Zoë,its amazing after salvation the life we now live is Zoë not ours anymore,no wonder paul said that “the life I now live,its no longer I but christ that liveth in me”,the God kind of life,the bible no longer recognizes the natural life after salvation.

Thou man of God follow after righteousness,godliness and faith,love,patience,meekness.We should seek to live a godly life,the very life of God is within us and that is what we express when we walk in godliness,put on the new man created in righteousness and true holiness,you have the God given ability to live the life.

CONSTANT IN FAITH 2

2012-08-29T04:11:00.001-07:00

“Patience is power.
Patience is not an absence of action;
rather it is "timing"
it waits on the right time to act,
for the right principles
and in the right way.”
― Fulton J. Sheen

TRIAL OF YOUR FAITH : JAMES 1:3-4

Another way that patience can be developed is through the trial of our faith,you can not tell if you have patience until you have been tested and tried.Our faith is precious even more precious than gold.when gold is passed through fire it only comes out better and nothing less than that,so the trial of our faith is essential if we will get better and grow in the faith that we received through christ Jesus.

Trial is very important,James teaches us to “count it all joy,when you fall into divers temptations” we must realise temptation is not from God,the word here is Peirasmos in greek,which means an experiment,attempt,trial,proving.
So God can not prove you with evil,but for good,he may allow it but doesn’t mean its from him.

James said Rejoice when you fall into divers tests,or trials,because the trying of your faith worketh (accomplishes,produces,works out.) patience.Trials is very important in bringing out and developing patience in you.

The word trial is a tentative experimental action in order to ascertain results-that means that the result is already known but to confirm the result then you put up a test.

Nobody gives you a test in school on something you were never taught on,we receive tests on what you have been taught.So when God brings a trial he knows you should and will pass because you have been prepared for it.

Some says God knows you will fail,no he doesn’t,he knew you would pass,because he taught you all you should know before giving you the test,that’s why when satan came he boasted about Job,God wasn’t worried about Job he knew Job would hold on.1corinthians 10:13 explains it better,”there is no test,that has befallen you that is not common to man,but through the test God will make a way,so that you can stand up under it” this tells us that God wants us and he has created it in such a way that no matter what you will pass.

Trials works out the patience in us,it goes further to say, “But,let patience have her perfect work,so that you will be perfect and entire wanting nothing”It said But,because some times people give up in the waiting period and miss it.

When you are faced with a trial of your faith,know the result of patience,which is that you will come out perfect and entire wanting nothing,and let that keep you patient,waiting,like Job said “I will wait until my change comes”,because it will come but you must be resolved in your mind to wait.

There is a time for waiting and that’s the time that patience works in you and makes you,because trial is a process and in the process of been in the fire,you go through pain and hurts but you still hold on to the word of God,patience is working in you,in the pain as you worship and praise God patience is working in you,making you to become perfect and entire wanting nothing.

The word Perfect and entire are king James version words but lets look a bit into those words;
Perfect is Teleios in the greek which means ‘brought to its end,finished’ and ‘full grown,adult,of full age,matured’ and the word Entire – in the greek is Holokleros which means ‘complete in all its parts,in no part wanting or unsound,complete,entire,whole’.
In other words patience is working in you so that you will be full grown,be matured and whole.Complete in all parts,wanting nothing,to be full grown.Someone said you are growing but not developing but when patience has its perfect work in you,you will not only grow,you will develop in all sides and be entire lacking nothing,perfect.

The best way to stay updated and upgraded is to let patience have her perfect work in you,because you will come out wanting nothing,you will not be lagging behind,left behind and feel out dated or obsolete,but you will be complete and lacking nothing.In your health,in your finances,in your career,in your relationships let patience have her work in you,and you will be perfect and wanting nothing.

HOPE IN PATIENCE – ROMANS 5:3-5
We hope for what we desire to have that we don’t already have,our expectations,our desires.
Faith is the substance of the things we hope for, Hebrews 11:1; So faith is the substance ‘the word substance is hypostasis in the greek-which means, ‘a setting or placing under,substructure,foundation’.In other words faith gives our hope structure.Hope in itself has no substance,you can hope till you die,hoping without faith is nothing,but faith gives hope weight.

Faith is the substance of the things we hope for,so if we will see result on what we hope for we must add faith to it.
Now in the process of waiting we must know that patience is vital for faith to work,Paul begins with saying that we are justified(declared free and righteous) by faith and not works which produces peace with God through christ and because of christ we have access to grace through faith and also through faith we hope for Gods glory,its all through faith and through faith we also glory in tribulations.

Justified by faith,access grace in christ by faith,hope by faith and glory in tribulations by faith,knowing that tribulations worketh patience,but it does stop there and patience experience and experience hope,and hope maketh not ashamed(that is hope that is powered by faith) because the love of God has been shed abroad in our hearts by the holy spirit.

Hope maketh not ashamed,because when we hope in faith we will certainly get the result of our hope,patiently wait in hope,and let patience work in you,so Gods intent is that through the trial of your faith you will produce patience and experience and hope that maketh not ashamed.Experience here is dokime in greek meaning tried character,when you are patient in trials you come out with a character that has been proven,which is called experience.

God is not just concerned about giving us our dreams and desires he uses your desires to bring you to a place of pursuit so he can make you a developed person,so that you can be perfect and mature wanting nothing,so while you are in that trial and waiting,God is busy working in you,working in you patience and character or experience,so that you can have hope that maketh not ashamed,that produces result.

Waiting in faith not wavering like father Abraham,who believed Gods promises and waited until he saw the result,he didn’t waver but he held on to his believe in God and he was credited unto him for righteousness,because he believed and waited patiently for the promise to come to pass,he hoped against hope the Bible says,but hope in faith brought the result.

If we hope for what we do not see we eagerly wait for it with patience..Romans 8:25,so patience is essential in the process of waiting for what we hope for but know that when we hope in faith we will not be put to shame.

The hope that brings results can only be produced through patience and comfort of the scriptures,in other words to keep hope alive,we need to keep the word of God before us and hold on to it patiently.
There are things written for our learning before time,so that we can also like the people of the past who held on to the word of God and got results we also can patiently hold on to the word,so we will see the desires of our hearts come to reality. Romans 15:4-5.

Our calling is proven through patience,as ministers of God we will go through persecution and trials but paul admonishes us to hold on patiently.Sometimes we will be tempted so we can react,but paul says patiently wait for what you hope for,don’t respond to people,you don’t have to prove anything,wait on God and he will prove himself strong in your behalf. 2Corinthians 6:4-10;2Corinthians 12:12

THROUGH PATIENCE INHERIT THE PROMISES – HEBREW 6:12
The promises of God over your life can only be inherited through patience,so does Hebrews 6:12 says.God promised Abraham a child,if he had not been patient he would not have received the promise.
The waiting only begins after you have done the word of God.Having done all to

stand,stand.You believe God that he will do it,you have sown all the seed of faith but the waiting actually starts after you have taken the step of faith,after you have done the will of God.The promise is sure and certain but you must patiently wait till you receive,the promise is for those who after doing the will of God still wait patiently.Hebrews 10:36.

There is a race set before us,but to receive the prize we must run with patience,not giving up in the process but running till we get the crown,without patience you can not receive the prize,just having faith and not with patience,you might fall.The cloud of witnesses are watching,the heroes of faith mentioned in Hebrews 11,have passed on the baton and watching to make sure we run to finish and get the prize,but we cannot give up if we must get the prize.Hebrews 12:1

For us to be able to run with patience and win we must put aside every sin and weight that so easily beset us.we must put aside anything thing in our life that will make us miss the mark,no matter what it is we know it,that will get us off track and out of Gods plan and purpose and everything that burdens us and makes us not to move faster.

Patience can be more effective when we put aside the weight and the sin,only the man that runs with patience can get the prize.

Add to your faith,virtue and to virtue knowledge and to knowledge temperance and to temperance patience and to patience…?

watch out for the continuation.

CONSTANT IN FAITH 1

2012-08-29T03:32:00.000-07:00

“Patience is power.
Patience is not an absence of action;
rather it is "timing"
it waits on the right time to act,
for the right principles
and in the right way.”
― Fulton J. Sheen

Faith is the base of our christian walk,it holds together our relationship with God,if there is anything the devil will like to destroy is your faith.That’s why the Bible teaches us to hold on to our faith that is more precious than gold.
Jude tells us to “contend for the faith”.

The fight for the faith is the fight for life,without faith it is impossible to please God,and knowing that the just shall live by his faith,this shows us that the faith is most important,if we must have a successful life that would please God.

We have come to see,its important to grow the measure of faith we have received in salvation,so the Bible teaches us to “make every effort add to our faith virtue and to virtue knowledge and to knowledge temperance and to temperance patience..” we will be looking the word patience today and how it affects our faith walk.

It is your responsibility to make effort to add these virtues to your faith,waiting for God to add them is a wait of a life time,we must make every effort to add them to our lives,as we study and apply the word of God.

WHAT IS PATIENCE
The word patience according to the free online dictionary is defined as :
Bearing or enduring pain,difficulty,provocation or annoyance with calmness. and Capable of calmly awaiting an outcome or result:not hasty or impulsive.

The greek word translated patience in 2Peter 1:6 is Hypomone - which means steadfastness,constancy and endurance.In the new testament it is the characteristic of a man who is not swerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and sufferings.

By these definitions we can see why we need to add patience to our faith,because the virtue of patience in our faith gives us the ability to hold on to what we believe even in the midst of pain and trial till we see the result,it gives us the ability to hold on while waiting for the outcome of our prayers and desires.

HOW IS PATIENCE DEVELOPED
You don’t receive patience by the laying on of hands,you make effort in developing patience.Knowing the following;

Patience is one of the fruit of the Holy spirit: Galatians 5:22 – In the book of Galatians 5:22,the bible says “but the fruit of the Spirit” here it is talking about the regenerated spirit,the born again spirit – when you accept Jesus as your lord and saviour,the holy spirit does the work of recreation in you by the word of God that you received,then you become born again,a new man.

That’s why the bible says “any man in christ is a new creature,the old things are passed away and everything becomes new”,you are reborn,recreated.

To be recreated means to be reborn,to be born of God,scriptures says we have been born of God,not of the flesh but of the spirit,so the minute you accept Christ as your personal saviour your spirit is recreated,reborn,then you become another man entirely different from what you were.

Jesus told Nicodemus that he must be born again,he asked how can a man be born again,does he have to go back into his mothers womb?,that’s practically impossible.Jesus begins to explain to him what it means to be born again;
“ Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ the wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Nicodemus could not understand the idea because it doesn’t make sense physically,so Jesus explains to him that this is a spiritual event not physical.”that which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit”,but you must be born of the water and the spirit,water speaks of the word of God and the Spirit there is the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 5:26. Two major agents for salvation,without the hearing of the word,salvation is not possible and the holy spirit uses that word to finish the process of recreation.

But Nicodemus in his curiosity asked Jesus how then can I be born again,Jesus in speaking to him finally said “whosoever believes in the son of man,shall not perish but receive eternal life” John 3:15; that’s the key,whosoever believes; so you become born again when you believe and accept Jesus.

So the fruit of the born again spirit is patience,in other words I have patience as a potential already in my new life,it shouldn’t be a struggle,all I need to do is exercise it and put it to work.

Some born again christians who still struggle in the area of patience are those who are still living in the old self,and not in the new self,that’s why Paul in Colossians say “put on the new man that is renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created him”Colossians 3:10; In other words your recreated spirit only gets better and not old like your natural self,as you get to know christ,as you walk in the word of God.

Also Ephesians 4:24 explains further by saying “put on the new self created to be like God in true righteousness and Holiness” the new man is created to be like God,his resemblance in every way,so if God is a God of patience,you also have the ability to walk in patience.So patience is already in you,stop praying and fasting for it,just start walking in it and exercising it.

TO BE CONTINUED..

TEMPERANCE–self control 2

2012-08-27T14:00:00.000-07:00

“He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.”
― Lao Tzu

The greatest enemy to us is not the devil but self,the greatest battle we need to fight is not that against the devil because he is already a defeated foe but it’s the battle against self,for if you can defeat yourself and put yourself under control every other thing about your life would be settled.

THE PRODUCT OF A SELF CONTROLLED LIFE AND A LIFE OF LACK OF SELF CONTROL.

Moses was a man who was called by God to lead the children out of egypt,but he allowed the lack of control of anger to make him miss out from entering the promise land – God asked Moses to speak to the rock but the children of Israel vexed Moses and because he couldn’t control himself at that time,he struck the rock,and brought the anger of God on himself. Numbers 20:1-13.

Moses didn’t enter the promise land because he lost his temper and disobeyed God in the wilderness of Zin.

If we loose control we can loose something we may never get back during our life time.

Anger in itself is not sin,but when in our anger we loose control we can do things that we will regret and sin against God.Moses' lack of control kept him from the promise land.The bible says “be angry and sin not,do not let the sun go down on your wrath” Ephesians 4:26.

The bible uses two words in Ephesians 4:26 "be angry and sin not,don't let the sun go down on your wrath”.

Anger is a strong feeling of displeasure and the word translated anger here is “orgizo” meaning to provoke to anger,to arouse to anger,to bring a feeling of displeasure,that alone is not sin,but wrath on the other hand means vengeance or punishment as the consequence of anger,so wrath goes a step further to take actions on your anger that’s when it becomes sin,the word translated wrath here is “parorgismos” meaning indignation,exasperation,when anger grows to wrath its sin.

Proverbs 16:32 declares “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty;and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city” this tells you that self control is much better than been a warrior,a warrior that cannot control himself is certainly going to fall,samson is a clear example of a warrior who could not control his lust and he lost his glory.

David a king that could not control his lust for sex – 2Samuel 11-12.

This is a very profound story,when kings were supposed to go to war King David stayed back and sent his men to go for battle,David was at the wrong place at the wrong time,he was supposed to be at the battle field and not at home,we must understand timing,we should be at the right place at the right time doing the right thing.

This was a sign of laxity,woe unto him that is at ease in zion,the bible teaches us to be sober and watchful,be at alert for our adversary the Devil moves around like a roaring lion seeking whom to devour,the period of laxity is the period of vulnerabilty,and now satan knew when to strike,David was alone and just woke up from sleep in the cool of the evening,the time,the place and the settings.

The common english bible said “David woke up from sleep on his couch,and he was pacing back and forth on the roof of the palace,from the roof he saw a woman bathing and she was beautiful and good to look upon” David was pacing back and forth,the king was alone and bored,also very vulnerable and he lost control the minute he saw the woman bathing from the roof of the palace.

This tells you that then,their bathrooms had no roof,for david to have seen her that much and of course the kings palace was huge,he sent for her and he had sex with her.The king lost control of himself and also used the control as king to get her to sleep with him,even when he knew she was married,who is she to say no to the king?

David had committed sin against God and against Urial the husband of the woman David slept with Bathsheba.David in his bid to cover the sin from the man Urial asked Joab to put Urial in the hottest part of the battle,where Urial was killed,this was a king out of control,one sin leading to another sin,now God who sees everything was angry,David thought his sin was covered,yes from man but not from God,how sometimes we commit a sin and try to cover it from man,but we cannot cover it from God,he will expose it in time.

Because of lack of self control David incurred the wrath of God.But was forgiven after he cried in repentance for mercy,but the son that was born from the Adultery was killed by God and also Rebellion was birth as a result of the sin,God had to judge the sin,there was no record of David indulging in that sin again.

Joseph a man called the dreamer,who was hated by his brothers because of the dreams that God gave him,he was sold and traded to a rich man in egypt called portiphar,pharoahs chief officer and a commander of the royal guard,a man of influence in egypt,we will see how Potiphar's wife had eyes on Joseph and asked Joseph to have sex with her – Genesis 39.

Joseph had grown to become a successful man,even in egypt as a slave to Portiphar and knowing that God was with Joseph,he made him, head over his household,Joseph was his direct personal assistant,and God blessed portiphar because of Joseph.The bible records that Joseph was well built a very handsome man and good to look upon also.

Potiphar's wife had taken notice of Joseph and got attracted to him,she wanted him to have sex with her, “sleep with me Joseph,she said” but Joseph been a man who feared God and had respect for his master refused,to sleep with her,saying “how can I commit this great sin before God” it would have been a good opportunity for Joseph to have fun,at least there was no record of him having sex before now.

She continually stressed Joseph with the request to sleep with her and am sure she made him promises,but Joseph continually refused,then she nursed a plan against him,on a particular day,she sent all the other servants away,such that Joseph was left alone in the house with her,she tried to force herself on Joseph but Joseph struggled his way out of her hold,but she had his garment with her,he ran off almost naked.

On the return of portiphar,she accused Joseph of trying to rape her,this was what led to Joseph been imprisoned,imagine if Joseph had slept with Potiphar's wife,he probably would have missed out of Gods purpose for his life.He put himself under control and he kept his eyes on where he was going,I wonder what you would do,if you were in Josephs shoes?

Achans lust for material things cost him the wiping out of his lineage – Joshua 7:1-12,19-26

Achan took what belongs to God for himself,what was reserved for God,out of his lust for material things,this brought the anger of God on the children of Israel,that they were defeated in their battles.Joshua inquired of God why and God told him there was sin in the camp,Achan was searched out and discovered that he took a sacred thing,what belong to God,though he asked for mercy but the sin had to be dealt with and the camp cleansed.

How sometimes we toil with sacred things,that belongs to God,we attract Gods judgement on ourselves,because Achan could not control his lust, he and all that he had and all that was with him was stoned to death as judgement for his sin.God will always Judge the sin,the fact that you are forgiven does not mean that the sin will not be judged.

Even Jesus was tempted by the devil,Jesus just ended his fast and the bible says he was hungry,satan showed up and tempted him but Jesus defeated the devil with the word of God still,though he was hungry,he didn’t allow his hunger to make him fall for the devil,he stood his ground,he had control over his stomach “Man shall not live by bread alone but by the words from the mouth of God” Matthew 4:1-11.

To be successful in our walk with God we must like Paul put ourselves under,discipline ourselves constantly,so that we will not be a cast away,after we have preached the word to others we miss the prize,God forbid.Self control is important for success in life and in our walk with God.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified 1Corinthians 9:24-27.

TEMPERANCE–self control 1

2012-08-27T00:19:00.001-07:00

“He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.”
― Lao Tzu

The greatest enemy to us is not the devil but self,the greatest battle we need to fight is not that against the devil because he is already a defeated foe but it’s the battle against self,for if you can defeat yourself and put yourself under control every other thing about your life would be settled.

WHAT IS TEMPERANCE
Temperance according to the Webster's dictionary means self restraint in conduct,expression,indulgence of the appetites,moderation;In other words temperance simply means self control.
According to our text in 2Peter 1:6 “Add to knowledge temperance” the word temperance is translated from the greek word egkrateia meaning self control (the virtue of one who masters his desires and passions,especially his sensual appetites).
The word of God is complete and gives us a guide on the christian life,we are talking about how you can be fruitful in your faith walk,that we need to add certain other virtue to our faith to bring about a victorious and fruitful christian life.
We talked about virtue – which is the resolve to stand for what is right; we also talked about knowledge – which is knowing all about your christian faith,how can you defend properly what you don’t understand,now we will discuss briefly temperance which is also self control.
Temperance is last in the list of the fruit of the spirit not because its least in importance but because it binds all the rest together.Temperance is a word which covers the whole field of emotions and passions,control of spirit,body and mind.It has to do with enemies within the lust and passions which war against the soul.A whole army storming on the outside,is less than a single enemy within the walls which gives over the key to attacking forces.
Temperance is vital for success in life,whether in the faith walk,in business,in marriage,in career,without temperance or self control we will certainly not be able to achieve our goals,because we constantly have to fight with self in our journey of life and the faith.
Man has learned to control nature around it,now we can even put the weather under control,we can make rain fall,we can now tame animals such that even dangerous animals like lions and tigers and bears are under the control of man,we can now control the spread of fire,we have fire fighters but man has not been able to control himself.
A fire out of control destroys everything in its path,but a person out of control is even more worse – our world is destroyed,relationships are destroyed,everything noble right and true is destroyed.We must master the art of self control,bringing ourselves under.

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT A MAN WITHOUT SELF CONTROL

A man without self control is like a city broken into and is without walls – this simply means that a man without self control is without defense,without a covering.If he is broken into and without walls it means he is open to attacks and is exposed to the enemy.Proverbs 25:28.The king James uses the word rule,control,restraint over himself.
The man that exercises self control is the man that will certainly win the prize – Know that the christian walk is a race for an eternal prize and anyone that will excel must have self control,without it success is not guaranteed.To be a success in the race just like the athlete you must apply self control in all things,you must apply restraint.1Corinthians 9:24-27.
Self control is vital for achieving your goals in life – Athletes exercises self control in all things,to be great at the race or any other sport you must bring your body under subjection.You must give yourself to consistent practice,you must have eating some meals,you must avoid some persons and so on,all this is part of putting your body under control,if you must succeed.A man with self control has goals and does everything to run towards those goals and disciplines his body so as to achieve them.
Self control is a product of grace – The grace of God that has appeared bringing salvation to all people,training us to live self controlled lives.The christian life is not that of struggle,living a life of self control becomes easy when we walk in the grace that we have received through Christ Jesus,the day we became born again.The grace of God makes it easy for us to live a life of restraint. Titus 2:11-14.
The Spirit that we have received from God is the spirit of power,love and self control – 2Timothy 1:7. We have the ability to live a life of restraint and have a successful christian life.

FAITH + VIRTUE + KNOWLEDGE

2012-08-26T14:08:00.000-07:00

“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.”
― Stephen Hawking

We taught that faith is acting on what you believe and virtue to mean standing for what you believe,especially for what is right and just.
But the Bible also says “add to virtue knowledge”; lets just rest and define knowledge according to 2Peter 1:5.

WHAT IS KNOWLEDGE
Firstly lets define knowledge according to Dictionary.com “Knowledge is acquaintance with facts, truths, or principles, as from study or investigation; general erudition”
Simply put knowledge is the acquisition of facts,the gathering of information,and knowledge in us is power in its potent form.
A person full of knowledge is potentially a powerful individual,and can be distinguished from his peers,sometimes the difference between two people is in what they know.
Knowledge must be acquired first before its put to use,if you don’t have knowledge how can you apply it? so its important that we acquire knowledge and it can be acquired through study and research.
In the processing of data,the first step is to gather information,then the information gathered is processed to data,then its useful.But first, information must be gathered.
The word knowledge in 2Peter 1:5 is the greek gnosis meaning general intelligence,understanding,knowledge of the christian religion,deep and perfect knowledge of this religion.It is gotten from the root word ginosko meaning to learn to know,come to know,perceive,feel,to have knowledge of.
I have met christians who claim to be christians without the basic knowledge of salvation.Knowledge is vital for success in the christian work and here I am talking about general knowledge about the christian faith,not revelation knowledge.When you become saved at first,you need the knowledge about your faith,to be able to stay in the faith.
In the book of Hebrews paul in his writing shows us some very basic foundational information that every child of God should have in their walk with God.The very elementary principles of the christian faith,things every new christian should know,I would state them below as paul listed them,Hebrews 6:1-2;

Foundation of repentance from dead works
Faith towards God
Doctrine of baptism
Doctrine of laying on of hands
Resurrection of the dead
Eternal Judgment

These are the elementary knowledge every believer should know,they are basic and it’s the foundational knowledge of every child of God.Some of us have been saved for many years without any solid foundational information on all that is stated in Hebrews 6:1-2.
The understanding of repentance from dead works,understanding our faith and some of the doctrinal issues that is the dividing issue between different denomination today.No information is useless,you cannot be a mature christian without the knowledge of the issues above,issues about the rapture and the ressurection of the dead,and eternal judgement.
The reason is that so that we can grow unto maturity and no longer be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine,by the trickery of men,in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,this is why we have the five fold to teach us,so that we will become solid in our knowledge of God.Ephesins 4:14.
There are all kinds of doctrines out there that teaches us something entirely different from the truth,if we lack knowledge how can we speak the truth in boldness.Ephesians 4:15
In the last days many will be deceived from the truth,even the elect the bible says will be deceived from the truth.The bible speaks of false teachers who will show up in the last days teaching deceptions and drawing many away from the truth,we see that even in our days many are deceived and drawn away from the faith.
The knowledge of the faith is very vital if you will stay and stand strong,the greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance but the illusion of knowledge;assuming you know when in reality you don’t know.There are so much knowledge I grew to accept without checking it for example we are taught in school that there were three wise men that visited christ but in actual fact the bible never mentioned three wise men but the bible said “wise men from the east” Matthew 2:1.
So many issues that are controversial today even about the rapture and the judgement,and so on.Its important we study to show ourselves approved of God,everyday we meet people who lack the knowledge if we take time to study and gain knowledge we will be able to help those who are actually ignorant.
So add to virtue knowledge,develop an inquisitive mindset,learn to ask questions ,the more you study the more you know.
Assumed knowledge of a thing leads to foolishness and there is no excuse for that,grab every opportunity to learn and better your knowledge of God.
Many false teachers are out there but the greatest tool you have as a defense is your personal knowledge of God,that you have checked and discovered.
Faith needs knowledge so we don’t work in foolishness.

ZEAL WITHOUT KNOWLEDGE
Paul spoke to the Roman church that they had Zeal without knowledge,Romans 10:1-3; and proverbs 19:2 says “its not good to have zeal without knowledge,nor to be hasty and miss the way.” Zeal is good but should be according to knowledge,so many people have taken certain steps and made terrible mistakes because of lack of knowledge.

Knowledge is very important in the walk of faith,don’t be hasty and miss the way,we make decisions based on zeal without knowledge,add knowledge,stop assuming you know when you don’t,give time to study and research,find out all you need to know about God and the faith.You are Gods workman but you must show yourself approved of God,to remove shame.
If we must experience the very full blessing of Faith we must add knowledge to our faith work,study and study and study.

VIRTUOUS FAITH

2012-08-25T00:00:00.000-07:00

“Add to your faith virtue” 2Peter 1:5

The Christian walk is a walk of faith,when you receive Jesus as your personal saviour you receive the measure of faith according to Romans 12:3.We all receive the same measure of faith at salvation,that’s why the bible didn’t say a measure of faith but the measure of faith apportioned to us by christ himself.
But that measure of faith is just a potential and God expects us to grow in faith,from glory to glory,your growth is important.
The bible shows us what we need to do to grow,in 1Peter 2:2 says “as new born babes desire the sincere milk of the word so that you may grow thereby” and in Romans 10:17,the bible further says faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God” so for us to grow our faith we must give ourselves to hearing of the word.
You cannot grow spiritually except you eat spiritual food,so if you must grow in faith walk with God you give yourself to the hearing of the word.note the bible didn’t say reading,it says hearing.Hearing by the word is what brings about your growth in faith.That's why we need to position ourselves in a church were the word is taught for real,cause this is the only way we can actually grow in God.
So when you become saved you should desire the milk,(milk is for newborn babes in christ),the sincere milk of the word,and this desire will pull you to be a part of a christian gathering.I remenber years ago when I and my brother got saved we went from place to place looking for a church since were we where the word wasn’t taught,we kept looking till we found one and that desire made out growth faster.
But just getting faith is not enough God intend that we actually leave successful lives and for that to happen there are some other important character that we must add to our faith to make it more productive.
1Peter 1:3-4 – tells us that God has given us all we need for life and Godliness and he has bestowe on us his precious promises,but for us to actually walk in those promises and see the effect in our lives we need to walk in and by faith,but having the faith isnt enough we need to add to our faith virtue,so lets find out what virtue is.

What is virtue? 1Peter 1:5;
Virtue is defined by the dictionary as “moral excellence and righteousness or an example or kind of moral excellence” the quality and practice of moral excellence is what we call virtue.
Also when translted from the text in the greek it also means moral excellence.
Morality is a character that is hard to find in our society today or the lives of individual. Morality is defined as the quality of being in accord with the standards of right or good conduct.Morality speaks of how we live our lives according to the standards of good and bad,we know the difference of what is right and wrong.
Christianity is a way of life, a lifestyle,that’s why in Romans 1:17 the bible says “the just shall live by his faith”,so we live the christian life by faith.
The bible says further that without faith it is impossible to please God,so you can be all good and God will not be pleased with you because your morality is not based on the foundation of the God given faith,that we receive through Jesus Christ.
The word of God stands for what is good and right,and never what is bad.The bible in 1st John 1:5; teaches us that God is light and in him is no darkness at all.
Morality teaches us to live the right life,you don’t have to be a chritian to live a life of morals,before I became a born again christian I was brought up in a home with the right sense of morals,and I was taught to tell the truth all the time,taught that stealing was wrong,and to always stand for the truth.
Though being morally alright does not guarantee you eternity and a right stand with God, but its essential for a successful life.The law is essential and it teaches us morality,in the old testament they had the ten commandment,that was a guide on how they lived their lives and all of the laws we have in this world today are built out of the ten commandments.
The God given faith empowers us to live the right life without struggle,that’s why we need the God kind of faith to be successful in our walk with God and in this life.
Add to your faith virtue,God wants us to live right at all times,he wants us to be an example to the world,such that when they look at us we are a clear description of what God desires.
We no longer walk by the law but by grace and grace is powered by love,where we are not forced to do anything but because of our love for God we do what is right toward God and toward man,to live a successful life we need to work at always doing what is right,no matter the circumstance.
Tell the truthg no matter the cost,stand for what is right at all times even when it doesn’t favor us,that’s what we are talking about.
Today the moral standards in the world has dropped,things that we did not allow are now accepted all in the name of civilization,any pattern of life that is against the purpose of Gods word is totally not accepted.You can not lower our standards because of civilisation.
Morality teaches us to stand for what is right at all times,so God says add to your faith virtue,stand for what is right,don’t compromise your moral standards all in the name of “God will understand”.
The bible says when you add virtue to your faith and all the others mentioned you will not be barren and unfruitful in the knowledge of our lord Jesus Christ.
How can we prove our calling when we lower on our standards,standards at work place,standards for writing examination,right now people cheat to pass exams,pay money to get lecturers to give us grades we don’t deserve,we can not overemphasize corruption in our various countries and the lowered standards in politics.
So many have sold their birthright for just a morsel of bread.The disciples were called christians first in antioch because they were christ like,they stood for christ and lived the life.
We need to raise the moral standards,those of us that are christians have been called to show the world how to live the right life and by how lifes others will conme to the knowlkedge of christ,we need to show the world the great gain in living the right life and standing for what is right.People do wrong because they believe that been good or standing for the right brings us under oppression and slow results,but the truth is when we don’t compromise we cause God to quickly come to our rescue.
The bible calls us the light of the world and the salt of the earth,without us how will the world know the right life,we are Gods representatives here on earth,his ambassadors.

Paul in philipians 4:8 tells us further that “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things”

If there be any virtue,if there be any praise,think on this things,so the question is our decision and actions should be based on the standards of virtue is there any virtue? if you read verse 9,it says and the God of peace will be with you,so the quickest way to get the God of peace to come to you is to stand for what ius right at all times.

THE POWER OF PERSISTENCE

2012-08-16T16:35:00.001-07:00

“The most important factor is persistence – the determination never to allow your energy or enthusiasm to be dampened by the discouragement that must inevitably come” James Whitcomb Riley

A group of frogs were travelling throughout the world and two of them fell into a deep pit. All the other frogs gathered around the pit. When they saw how deep the pit was, they told the two frogs that they were as good as dead. The two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump up out of the pit with all of their might. The other frogs kept telling them to stop jumping out and consider themselves as dead. Finally one of the frogs took heed to what the other frogs were saying and gave up. He fell down and died. The other frog continued to jump as high as he could. Once again the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die. He jumped even higher and finally made it out. When he got out, the other frogs asked him, ‘didn’t you hear what we were telling you?’ He replied to them that he was deaf and could not hear them. They were all amazed and they continued with their journey.
There are many secretes to success in life but I believe that persistence is main,because no matter how much you know or have you will go through some tough time but not every one holds on to the end,from the story above one of the frogs gave up and died but the other kept deaf ears to the discouragements of others and he survived because he kept on going. In order to succeed we need to pay a deaf ear to the negative and discouraging statements from others and pursue after our dreams until we get it.
Those who stay till the end will eat the fruit of the land,if you fall and give up you will certainly not eat the good of the land.Give the pursuit of your dreams all of your best,don’t give up before you try,keep trying till you hit at your target,don’t take no for an answer. Tough times don’t last but tough people do,people who give up easily will never fulfill their dreams.

THE PERSISTENT FRIEND – LUKE 11:1-13 Jesus while teaching on prayer,in the book of Luke 11:1-13,he used the story of two friends to illustrate it.
“Suppose one of you has a friend and he goes to him at midnight and says ‘friend lend me three loaves of bread,because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me and I have nothing to set before him”
Then the one the inside answered “don’t bother me,the door is now already shut’ and my children are in bed with me,I cant get up and give you anything”
I am sure,some of us will be angry that someone came to your house at that time to ask for anything,the guy wasn’t complaining that he doesn’t have bread but that the door was shut and they were sleeping,so he couldn’t open the door to attend to him.
But Jesus said “I tell you,though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend (take note of that), yet because of the mans persistence,he will get up and give him as much as he needs”
Persistence will get you the answers to your needs,someone once said, “life does not give us what we deserve but what we demand”.Some of the wealthiest people today are not necessarily the smartest but because they never gave up on their dreams,they are the success they are today.
He didn’t attend to the man because he is his friend,but the guy refused to stop knocking at the door,till he was attended to. Jesus in conclusion said in regards to prayer,”Ask and it will be given to you,seek and you will find,knock and the door will be opened to you,for everyone who asks receives,he who seeks finds and to he who knocks the door will be opened”
sometimes we ask and we don’t receive not because God didnt hear us ,or he was sleeping but because we gave up too soon,other versions say keep asking,keep seeking,keep knocking,don’t stop,for anyone who keeps asking will receive and the one who keeps seeking will find and the one who keeps knocking the door will be opened unto him,so the bottom line is continue at what you are pursuing and you will certainly have it.

THE PERSISTENT WIDOW – LUKE 18:1-5 Another story showing how persistence produces result; A widow who needed justice over a case went before a judge who neither feared God or man,for sometime he refused to give the widow justice,but the bibble says she kept bothering him till she wore him out with her plea,that he gave her justice not because she was a lady that was helpless no,but because she bothered him continuously.Trouble is no respecter of sex.
Don’t allow your energy and strength to be dampened by the discouraging words from others,keep your eyes on the mark and press on till you get there.You can make it,you will survive,you have the energy on the inside of you,people will tell you give up,just like Jobs wife asked Job in his troubled times to cause God and die,but he refused and made up his made I will wait until my change comes,don’t give up now your change is coming,you have come too far to turn back,you are closer than you can ever imagine to the fulfillment of your dreams.
In been persisten you have to stretch yourself beyond limits,practice more to be better,cut on the fatty foods to loose weight,keep doing it till you get your goal.Sometimes people will discourage you and tell you,that you can’t,that you are a failure,because of one mistake,they write you off totally,they tell you that you will never succeed,you will never be a good singer,you will never be good at anything,the minute you listen to those things you actually begin to fail,pay deaf ears to those words and keep saying to yourself yes I can make it,yes I can be the billionaire and be the best against all odds,yes you can

They told Bishop T.d. Jakes that he would never be a singer because of his cracked voice,that he could never be an author because his writeup sounded too poetice,but against all odds,he refused to accept their conclusion of him he instead believed Gods word of him and today he is a bestselling author and a musician,he became a success at all they said he wouldn’t do.
Refuse to believe other peoples conclusion about you,you are who God says you are,change your perception about yourself,work hard at your dreams and you will get it. Its not over until you win,don’t give up,fight,fight,fight,fight,till you win.

THOUGHTFULNESS

2012-08-02T14:24:00.003-07:00

"Remember there is no such thing as small act of kindness.Every act creates a ripple with no logical end." Scott Adams

Kind,caring and considerate behaviors stem from thoughtfulness.It grows out of a conscious awareness and compassion.

Having or showing heed for the well-being or happiness of others and propensity for anticipating their needs or wishes.
It doesn't mean twisting and bending out of alignment to meet the needs of others,but it flows from a heart of compassion.

Today,we leave in a world,where people have closed their bowels of mercy and are no more kind to others,lets look at a few reasons why people have become hard and thoughtless.

Fear is the main course for thoughtlessness and the reluctance we attach to helping others.What are thses fears;

Fear of been taken advantage of by others

This comes as a result of lack of trust for others,some people have had bad experiences from helping people in the past and because they were dealth with badly,they have closed their bowels of mercy and made up their mind not to show kindness but to be unconcerned.

Fear of being hurt by others

We are so afraid that we might be hurt by others,most of our fears come from the results of the experiences we had or the experiences of others.

Fear of no reward

some of us expect our reward from people,especially when you help them,so people dont want to help you,if they know they will not be rewarded or paid back.
But there is enormous rewards for been thoughtful,lets see a few persons that showed thoughtfulness and how they were rewarded;

THE SHUNAMMITES WOMAN (2Kings 4:8-17).

The shunammite woman was a rich and well respected woman in her society.

Elijah was a prophet of God who went to visit shunem .The woman was obviously a kind hearted woman,that she offered that the prophet comes to eat at her place,since he always came around.

She was not only kind but sensitive,to know that elijah was a Holy man of God(2kings 4:9)

She prepared a room just for him,so he could lay his head to rest whenever he came around.

Elijah never asked for help from her,but out of her thoughtfulness she did what she did to make the prophet comfortable.

She didnt help because she wanted something from the man of God,like most of us do;you give money to a man of god because you want prayers,not like its totally wrong if you are lead by Gods Spirit and you have understanding,even when the prophet asked what can i do for you?she told him she was comfortable,"I have a home amongst my people"v13.

This is a woman without child,i know how people run from one church to the other looking for a child,that some are led astray,but because of her thoughtfulness to the prophet of God,she evetually got a son of her own.

Imagine if she wasn,t thoughtful,the prophet may not have noticed her,and she may not have gotten the miracle.

Be kind at all times,let your kindness not be only when you are alright and happy,make it a habitual thing.

You will reap what you sow,when you are kind to people you commit them to be kind to you too.Dont allow bitterness and hurts to stop you from receiving your blessing.

THE SHEEP'S AND THE GOAT'S (Matthew 25:31-46).

Sometimes in our faith walk,we focus on doing big things,but Jesus is even more concerned about the little things that we pay no attention to.

Matthew 7:22-23 "many will say on that day'lord,lord,did i not prophesy in your name,and in your name drive out demons,and perform many miracles? Then i will tell them plainly 'i never knew you,depart from me,you evil doers"

The miracles,the prophesies and the number of demons you cast out,certainly won't count,on that day of judgement,but the very little things,that we give cognition to,are what will count.

"For i was hungry and you gave me something to eat,i was thirsty and you gave me something to drink,i was a stranger and you invited me in,i needed clothes and you clothe me,i was sick and you looked after me,i was in prison and you came to visit me"Matthew 25:35-36

You would have thought like me,that the king would be more concerned about,"how much time you spent in church,or how many activities you particpated in."

These guys did not know when they did all this,they had a habit of thoughtfulness and they did all this to others not knowing it was the lord.

They asked him,"When?",because they don't remenber doing it to Jesus.

The king replied "When you did it for one of the least of these,brothers of mine,you did it for me."

There are people we see everyday,in our churches,where we live,less privilledge,we ignore and refuse to help them,we close our bowels of mercy.

Who would have thought,the king would look from that area,those things we think don't matter,really do matter the most.

Hebrews 13:2,furthers show us that sometimes when we are thoughtful to others,we sometimes helped angels."Some entertained angels without knowing"

GET A WIFE FOR MY SON GENESIS 24:1-26)

We see a beautiful story here how, Rebekah's thoughtfulness earned her a husband.

Abraham was old and going to die,he made his servant vow to go to get a wife for his son Isaac from amongst his people.

When Abraham's servant finally got to the town of Nahor,knowing the seriousness of his mission,he prayed and ask God to lead him.

Seeing many beautiful damsels,he needed to be certain he had the right one,for Isaac.

He prayed "may it be that when i say to a girl,please let down your jar,that i may have a drink,and she says'Drink and i will water your carmels too'Let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac.By this i will know,that you have shown kindness to my master"

Just after he had finished praying,here comes sweet Rebekah;

She did exactly what the servant of Abraham had asked God in prayer.

This event shows to us that Rebekah was always a kind woman,to feed the servant was one thing but to feed carmels was another thing.

She earned a husband when she wasn't looking for one.When you are thoughtful,prospective husbands will look for you and not you looking for them.

Men out there are not just looking for beautiful women,but kind hearted women to marry,are you one?

When you have an opportunity to show kindness,always grab it,because you don't know who you are been kind to,be thoughtful always.

We are not kind because we want a reward,but kind people always get good things and kindness in return in a double fold,you loose some contacts because of your attitude of thoughtlessness,don't allow your fears make you loose out on your blessing.

GO TO THE ANTS

2012-08-01T17:43:00.001-07:00

"Go to the Ants you sluggard;consider its ways and be wise"

Proverbs 6:6

There is always something to learn from all of Gods creature.When you look around life,you will find something to learn.

The bible teaches to be wise as serpents,and harmless as doves.The wisdom of the serpent might be useful sometime in life and the harmlessness of the Dove.

To teach us the dangers of laziness,God asked us to go to the ants.He tells us to learn valuable lesson.I guess you are asking,what is it we can learn from the ants?

ANTS TEACH US TO BE SELF MOTIVATED

"It has no commander,but it stores up provisions in summer,and gathers its food at harvest"Proverbs 6:7-8.

Self motivation is very important for success in life.If you will prosper at anything you start you must be self motivated,its a character that businesses look out for,from employees.

No one carries a whip after the ants to ensure they work,there are no time cards in the anthill.They have no captains,yet self motivated and ensure their work is done.

Life will not always be rosy,sometimes it will be frustrating,but if you are self motivated you will make it through.

You may not always have people to commend you and sing your praise,but you have to find a way to encourage yourself,when the ships are down,keep going when its even harder.

As matured folks,we no longer need someone to stand behind us to ensure that work is done.

When no one is watching,motivate yourself and get the job done,encourage yourself.

ANTS TEACH US TO LOOK TO BE FUTURISTIC

"Stores its provisions in the summer and gathers its food at harvest."Proverbs 6:8.

In the summer and in the harvest,food is plentiful.Yet the ant refuses to take her ease,working harder,storing up against the coming scarcity.

Most of us are not futuristic with our lives,we are very careless how we handle matters.

We must understand that there are different times and seasons,we must know that when you have a season of plenty,you should expect that a season of drought will come,but a wise man is not affected by that season of drought,because during the season of plenty he saved for the drought season.

"The ants are a people not strong,yet they prepare their food in summer"Proverbs 30:25.

Our greatest failings is that we are very short sighted in our approach to life,we think of only today and we fail to plan and save for tomorrow.

Its Gods desire that we are well provided for,but you have a part to make this a reality,plan for the future,don't waste all your resources today,assuming that you will be okay tomorrow,like the prodigal son,who squandered all he had,most of us are like that in our attitude.

Some of us,sit down and do nothing,just assuming that it will be okay,we must prepare for the consequences of our action or inaction.

Poverty and scarcity is sure to hit the man,who fails to save and plan for the day of scarcity.

ANTS TEACH US TO VALUE HARD WORK

Solomon shows us another man, "How long will you lie there,you sluggard?when will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep,a little folding of the arms to rest- And poverty will come on you like a bandit,and scarcity like an armed man."Proverbs 6:9-11

Laziness will certainly lead to poverty.There are no poor ants,because the ants work very hard.

Hard work is vital for success,working smart can't take the place of hard work,you must put all your energy to the execution of your goals to get results,as you work hard,you find ways to work smart,don't just sit down there and assume that its all going to be well.

Poverty is not Gods will for any man,but anyone who's is lazy will likely be poor,will likely lack.Proverbs 10:4.

We need to begin to see work as a blessing,because work gives us the opportunity to maximize our abilities and make wealth out of what God has put in us.Show me a talented man and i will show you a man who is hardworking.

Sleep is a gift from God,but there's time for everything,a time to work and a time to sleep.But a lazy man sleeps at the wrong time,we must be wise.

"A sluggard does not plow in season;so at harvest time he looks and finds nothing."Proverbs 20:4.

THANK YOU

2012-07-31T13:56:00.000-07:00

I would like to say "thank you" to everyone who read and followed my blog,i am thankful to God for you,thank you for finding time to read and to make comments.
Your words of encouragement have been my motivation,your kind words have gone along way to help me write even more.
I would also like to you this opportunity to say to you as the Holy Spirit has led me to,that as you enter this month of August,I dare you to enter with a renewed mind,with an "Attitude of Thanksgiving."
I know when you look at the world right now,we see very little to be thankful for,remenber Jesus said,"in the world is tribulation but be of Good cheer,i have overcome the world"John 16:33
In Christ Jesus our victory is sure.
As we give thanks,we will see the manifestation of victory this month of August;
I dare you to do the following;

GIVE THANKS ALWAYS

Be thankful for what you have and you will end up having more.When you concentrate on what you don't have,you will never have enough.

Don't spend time worrying about what you can't control,be grateful.If he can take care of the sparrows he sure can take care of you.

Also be thankful to those who have helped you,those who have added something to your life,don't be ungrateful,give a call to someone who added to your life either physically or spiritually.

Giving of thanks is the secrete to increase and opened doors.

This month don't make any requests,just spend all the days of this month thanking God and he will give you more than you even want. Thessalonians 5:18

REST IN GODS PROVIDENCE

Don't worry about your needs,just trust that its all provided for.We are already provided for by our heavenly father.

Even before you asked the provision was made.

Know that all things are working together for your good,don't fret or be afraid.

Go out to your business knowing that its all taken care of by God.Romans 8:28

BE SATISFIED WITH LITTLE

Learn to appreciate the little you have.In appreciating the little that you have,you give God the reason to give you more.Because if you can't handle little you have no right to ask for more.

Take time to look at the little things,you know sometimes we run after money that we forget the gift of love and family.Spend sometime with your family this month,a special time with your wife and kids if you have and your parents.

SHOW SOME LOVE

I would like to encourage you to show love to those if have non of it.give shelter to someone homeless,help a hungry child,be a hand to some one this month.Be kindly affectioned to others,buy a gift for someone,give someone a surprise.Do something out of the usual and finally

Don't worry about anything.

"Be anxious about nothing,but in all things by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving,let your requests be made know to God." Philipians 4:6

The product of this is the peace of God will garrison your hearts and minds.

MY PRAYER FOR YOU

I pray for you that as you spend time to develop that attitude of thanksgiving in this month of August,the peace of God that passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds,may his presence fill you up to overflowing,may all your needs be met and may the love of guard fill your hearts like the water covers the sea.

I speak Gods blessings released on you to overflowing and grace.You will swim in success this month.

I declare Grace to your life.

In Jesus Mighty Name,

Amen.

BE CONTENT 1

2012-07-26T18:23:00.000-07:00

"Be thankful for what you have;You will end up having more.If you concentrate on what you don't have,you will never,never have enough"

Oprah Winfrey

Contentment is a word that has been misunderstood.
when something happens to you,you are told to take it as Gods will and do nothing about your life.
We confuse being content to mean,do nothing about your present circumstance,accept things the way they are,its your cross,so carry it.
Contentment in my opinion means,to be satisfied in your present state,while you press on with your life.That means don't get carried away with your problems,be thankful about the things you have.
A lot of times,and this is the problem most of us have,we spend time worrying about what we don't have that we should,and forget what we have.You look at what others have that you want.This is the reason why people spend so much time trying to get too much and then loose the important things in life.I have been there,when a man, in trying to satisfy his family,eventually looses his family.
To be content doesn't mean,just accept it the way it is and do nothing about it.Very wrong,of course,accept that,this is where i am but make efforts to get better,while you are thankful for where you are.
You don't have a job,you sit at home and say i am content,thinking magic will happen,no.Go out there and drop your application and be positive,expecting its only gonna get better.
Don't walk out just yet on that job,because you don't get good pay,be content,be thankful,(think about the time you didn't have a job) while you take steps to get another.
I have seen folks who walk out on their present jobs,when they don't yet have another,that isn't smart and its not faith either.
Contentment is appreciating where you are on your way to where you dream to be.If you don't appreciate where you are and learn all you got to learn,you will never get to where you dream to be,even if you get there you wont be there for long.
Sometimes God allows us to be in very uncomfortable situations,don't rush out, be patient and learn all you got to learn.He is a God of Process and Principle,he is concerned about building character in you,so you can become a better person.
Jeremiah Burrough author of the rare jewel of christian contentment,defines contentment as the "Sweet inward,quiet gracious frame of spirit which freely submits to and delights in Gods wise and fatherly disposal in every condition,he reflects on trusting God in all circumstances"
Paul in his letter to the Philippians puts it better according to the amplified Bible version; Philippians 4:11-13;

11 Not that I am implying that I was in any personal want, for I have learned how to be content (satisfied to the point where I am not disturbed or disquieted) in whatever state I am.12 I know how to be abased and live humbly in straitened
circumstances, and I know also how to enjoy plenty and live in abundance. I have learned in any and all circumstances the secret of facing every situation, whether well-fed or going hungry, having a sufficiency and enough to spare or going without and being in want.13 I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers
me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency].
Paul here said,i have learned contentment;this tells you that you learn contentment,so its not a gift that you just receive from the Holy spirit,you deliberately learn,you discipline yourself to focus on what makes you content.
The amplified defines the word in a beautiful way "Satisfied to the point where i am not disturbed or disquieted" isn't that beautiful?
We worry so much about the things we don't have that we ought to have,but you can develop contentment and be at a state of satisfaction when others are running up and down hustling and you are at peace.
"When they say there is a casting down,you declare there is a lifting up."
Contentment is not an assumption that you have everything,no!you still have wants unmet but you decide to be glad and not disturbed.
We sometimes find ourselves in very bad situations like brother Paul,who had experience both good and bad times,i have learned to be content,when i have and when i don,t have.
Good and bad situations.I have seen folks who used to have plenty but suddenly a storm comes that takes away all they have,then they commit suicide because they can face it anymore.
Life will not always give you what you deserve,whatever situation you find yourself,be content,be glad,don't take your life because if you can manage the bad situation,it will get better soon.
i always tell people,the problem is not your problem but how you handle the problem,your attitude in that bad situation will determine how soon you get out of it.
I love Paul,he doesn't just leave us without an explanation,sometimes when you rejoice in bad situation people wonder why,Paul had to tell the secrete for this attitude,he said "I have strength for all things through Christ who empowers me"
The reason for my contentment is because my faith and hope is on Christ who strengthens me,he empowers me,he is the reason i still stand in the midst of the storm he is the reason i smile when i am broke,he is the reason i hope for the future "Christ in me the hope for glory."
The amplified further explains "I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency."
Bear with me,if i say hallelujah;say that to yourself right now,"I am ready for anything and equal to anything through him who infuses iiner strength into me;i am self-sufficient in christs sufficiency".
You need to say this when you go to sleep and in your sleep and when you wake up,you need to print this and hang it on the walls of your hour.
"I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Christ who infuses inner strength into me,i am self-sufficient in Christ sufficiency"
People of this world teaches that contentment is been self sufficient in your self,but our sufficiency is not enough until its in Christ sufficiency.
How can i do that? through the expression of your faith."In Him we live and move and have our being."He is the one that constantly infuses,that is a present continuous tense,that means,its a continued thing as far as your sufficiency is in Christ.
When you are weak and feel like giving up,he infuses your inner man with strength and you know he is a source that never runs dry,when you are broke,he gives you strength and you say to yourself,I am rich in Christ,when you feel sick,he infuses you again and you say,"By his stripes i was healed"He is our sufficiency.
Sufficiency means "A quality or state of being sufficient;An adequate amount or quantity" in other words,when you say you are sufficient in Christ sufficiency,it means in Christ we are adequately provided for,in Christ we have complete supply.
That's why Paul said "And my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in Christ Jesus."
The supply is from His riches in Christ Jesus,so if you are in Christ,you are adequately supplied for.
That makes us ready for anything and equal to anything,not because of our sufficiency but Christ sufficiency.
I am ready for anything and equal to anything through him who infuses inner strength into me;i am sufficient in Christ sufficiency.

Watch out for the continuation in my next post.

BE PROACTIVE VS REACTIVE - OWN YOUR LIFE

2012-07-18T14:32:00.003-07:00

some people want it to happen,some people wish it to happen,others make it happen

( Michael Jordan)

Our life is a product of our choices,we are what we are today by the choices we make yesterday.we choose to be happy.we choose to be sad,we chose to be successful.we chose to be failures.we chose courage.we choose fear.we chose decisiveness.we chose ambivalence.were we are today,how our lives are today is a product of our choices.
we need to take charge of our lives and stop giving excuses,one way to get out of the problem is to accept that you are responsible and then face the problem by taking steps to get out of it,rather than blaming others for your misfortunes,sometimes we blame our parents,blame your teachers and even blame the devil,for our misfortunes,but we must take charge.
Just know that every moment,every situation provides a new choice,and in doing so,it gives you the opportunity differently to produce positive results.Its madness to think doing the same thing all the time will produce a different result,sometimes you need to change that attitude,change that method and you may get a better result.
To be .Proactive means acting in advance to deal with an expected difficulty.To be proactive means to think ahead.proactive people recognize that they are response-able,they do't blame parents,grandparents,genetics,condition for their behavior,they take charge of their situation,they face it and create means to deal with it.
I try not to spend too much time feeling sorry about my bad situation,i have learnt to wipe my tears quickly and learn to figure out a solution,i always ask OK,whats the next possible thing we can do to deal with this situation? i am very proactive and focused.
Reactive people on they other hand,are always affected by their physical environment,find external sources to blame and these external sources act as stimuli that they will respond to,when the weather is good they feel good,their mood is dependent on some condition.they smile when things are ok and sad when its a bad situation,they don't have charge over themselves,they are reactive.
Your greatest power lies between the stimulus and the response,you have the freedom to chose your response.one of the most important things is that you choose what you say,your language is a good indicator of how you see yourself.
The bible says ,out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh" our mouth is just a channel to speak out what we really are.
A proactive person uses words like "I Can,I will, and so on,a reactive person uses words like i can't,i have to.With your words you build or destroy your life.Reactive people don't take responsibility for what they say or do.
proactive people focus their time and energy on things they can control,they don't spend time worrying over what they can not control.
Stephen Covey divided all our problems,challenges into two; circle of concern and circle of influence.
Proactive people focus their energy on their circle of influence,that's those things they can control,problems at work,relationship problems children,health etc while Reactive people focus their energy on they circle of concern,they worry about those things they can't control,such as terrorism,the weather,national debt etc.
Successful people are proactive people,you make the right decisions when you are proactive.This is where setting of goals and preparing yourself for the situation before it comes,don't be like the reactive person who waits for the outcome before he does something at that moment.
God is a very proactive person,he has everything planned out,nothing takes God by surprise,nothing that happens in this earth.been proactive is been prepared for any situation,be ready.
Paul in the bible said i have learnt to be prepared for anything at anytime,that should be our attitude to life.To be proactive develop the following character;

Be Responsible : Don't blame others for your misfortunes,take charge of every situation.in every situation don't spend too much time worrying but immediately be positive and avoid procrastination.what you must do today,do today.
Be Prepared: proactive people are always prepared people,they prepare themselves for the worst thing that could likely happen in any situation.planning is vital for success,prepared people sit down and have a plan and follow their plan up till they achieve their goals.
focus on the positive and learn from the negative: Don't spend your energy crying over the negatives,but learn what you must learn and don't allow guilt rule you,learn what you must learn and move on with what you have learned,that would be a tool for success tomorrow.
Be Decisive:Dont drag your feet about decision.be action oriented.
Goal oriented and solution minded:set your goals with deadlines and follow them up till they are achieved.

you achieve more success when you are proactive and successful leaders are usually proactive people.

Be proactive about your health,don't take the pain for granted,go see a doctor about it,do exercises to keep fit,don't wait till you are too fat before you drop on intake of fatty foods,work hard now and invest,put your money to good use,don't wait till you have nothing.

TAKE OFF THE LIMITS

2012-07-15T16:51:00.002-07:00

A boy gathers material for a temple,and when he is thirty,concludes to build a woodshed.

Henry David Thoreau

The words second-place,average,ordinary,inferior,common-place,are they familiar to you?according to Thomas Carlyle "the world is a republic of mediocrities and always was"
Mediocrity is a state of been a mediocre; A mediocre is someone who is lacking exceptional quality or ability,he is average,ordinary,inferior,common-place.
A mediocre is not necessary a person who is not gifted,but a mediocre is someone who is gifted but has refused to maximize his or her potential to the fullest,hence he becomes ordinary.
Every extraordinary man today was once ordinary,extraordinary is a combination of two words,extra+ordinary,when you put some extra on the ordinary you become extraordinary,but mediocre refuse to add that extra,hence they live inferior lives.
We must realize that we are all gifted people,God gave us talents,each and everyone of us,talents come natural,there is something that you are better at than the rest of the world.There is no one without a talent at least,in this world,its our responsibility to discover our talents and begin to maximize it to the fullest.
Nelson Mandela said,its not what you have that matters but what you do with what you have.Men who are successful today made good use of what they had.
Imagine gathering materials to build a temple and instead build a woodshed.There are so many people in this world, that have so much potential,but put limits on themselves and never become the best that God would have them become.
According to Joseph Heller, some are born mediocre,some men achieve mediocrity and some have mediocrity thrust upon them"
You may be one the above mentioned but you can breakout of it and start to live life to its fullest and achieve your dreams.
Average is the greatest enemy of success,settling for the less,refusing to stand up and go for what you believe.

Gideon in the bible,in the book of Judges 6,already had settled for less,because of his condition,the had sinned against God and he was angry with them, so God gave the israelites unto the hands of the philistines,the philistines took hold of the city and took everything the lsralites had,so out of fear gideon was hiding,a man who though a giant,but fear made him loose confidence in himself.
Fear is one of the reasons why we settle for less.Gideon,a giant who didnt recognise his abilities because of the fear of the philistines.That's the story of some of us,we need to awaken the giant in us,the sleeping giants in us.we need to rise up out of mediocrity and say enough is enough.
Mediocres are full of excuses,reasons why they cant do anything about their potential,Gideons excuse when confronted by the angel was "if the lord has not forsaken us" sometimes we sit down and wait for God to come down and turn our situation around,but God is actually waiting for us to make the move.
God is an action God,a God more concerned about his purpose,the angel didn't respond to Gideons complaint.God doesnt respond to excuses,but he responds to faith.
What are your excuses,i am sure you have alot,why you are where you are,why you are poor and broke,why things are the way they are,but you need to lift your eyes above your limitation and hear the word,GO! that was what the angel told Gideon,and God is saying it to you also,Go in this thy might,you dont need extra grace or anointing,the ability that you have is enough to get this job completed.We need to stop hiding and come out of our shells and begin to make the most use of our God given abilities.

Another interesting story was the story of the four leprous men,in 2kings 7;they were shut out from entering the city,because they were considered unclean since they were leprous,and there was a famine in Israel at that time,but they refuse to die ordinary,they had been in the gate all this while. They asked themselves a very important question i want you to ask yourself "why stay we here till we die?" they realised that if they stay out of the city they will die,if they go in the city they will die,well they chose to go to the camp of the enemy,can you imagine that? sometimes in life you must take some level of risks to achieve your dreams,fear will always hold you back.when they got to the camp,they met more than enough,the bible never said they were healed of leprousy,but you need to know that they had mental leprousy and they were healed of that.
The battle is in the mind,your limitation is in your mind,your condition have held you down and you have restricted yourself to a particular life.You say to yourself, "I can never be better than this" i have heard people say that they were born to suffer and struggle.Dont allow your condition determine your decisions,decide today to move,stop giving those excuses,get up from your slumber and start living your dreams.
Your ability to turn your obstacles as stepping stones is what will give you succsess.Be courageous,brace yourself up and make that move.you have been thinking about, but you never took,now is the time to do that,rise up and take charge of your life.The top is a place for you.The road to greatness is not without troubles,check out the story of any great man,they had to overturn obstacles to succeed.
The great Nelson Mandella,was locked up in prison for many years and maltreated but he didnt give up,he kept fightinh till he achieved the dream.
The late Martin Luther king,fought for the dream till he died,today that dream has been achieved.
David in scriptures though he was anointed king but he had to overturn the giants to finally be made king.
Dont be a mediocre,refuse to settle for less,refuse to be ordinary.If there's anytime to start living your dreams its now,its better to try,than not to have tried at all,you may not achieve the dream in your life time but generations after you will remenber you.
The dream is achievable,you have all it takes,dont give up on yourself,like the woman with the issue of blood,press forth and get a hold of the garment even if its with your last breath,she thought if i could but touch the hem of his garment i will be made whole and she struggled through,even when the disciples tried to stop her.
sometimes you dont want to try again,because you failed before,i have failed before too,but i am not giving up as far as i have got breath in me,let that be your decision.The disciples had given up on fishing for that day but at the word of Jesus,they tried again,i DARE YOU TO TRY AGAIN,dont give up,wipe the tears and get to work.
Life is not fare,it will not give you what you deserve,it will only give to you what you demand of it.
Its not over until you win.

A Life of Excellence

2012-07-14T06:11:00.002-07:00

Every job is a self-portrait of the person who did it. Autograph your work with excellence.

There are so many definitions of excellence but i would like to take the one by the great philosopher Aristotle,he defined Excellence thus:

Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.

Success,growth,abundance,Excellence.These are things we set to achieve in our lives,we just don't want to achieve peak results,we want to be the very best at what we do,in our work places,our assignment,our purpose,we want to be the very best.

The one thing that might irritate you about me,is my advocacy for excellence,anyone who has worked with me,knows that my principle for life is anything worth doing is worth doing well.We must give the utmost attention to any responsibility placed in our hands.

Excellence is possible,but like Aristotle said;we are what we do repeatedly,what are the things you do daily,just confessing i am an excellent man,does not guarantee excellence,excellence is an art won by training,how much training do you give to your talent?how much good habits have you developed in the last few months?

Take your time to check out men who show excellence in their work that we appreciate,you will see a man,who has worked tirelessly to be able to deliver such finesse in their brand.

Stop wishing and dreaming,i would like to show you a few tips to achieving excellence:

Have the End in Mind

"without goals and plans to reach them,you are like a ship that has set sail,with no destination" . . . F. Dodson

Imagine you are in such a ship,the end would be a place called No Where.

Without the setting of goals excellence is not achievable.

In a football,how can you score without an idea of where the goal post is,practically impossible, that's how it is with a man that does not have set goals.

Make your goals progressive,make them step by step and make sure it leads you to your end.
To achieve excellence you must set goals that you are ready to put all effort to realize.Don't set goals that are just too easy to achieve,set goals that you are excited about and work hard to achieve them,goals that inspire you.

Set big,bold and audacious goals.

Learn from the Best

What are you working on right now? check out men who have done it before and was successful at it and learn from them.
To become a man of excellence,you should keep your eyes and follow after men of excellence.

Its only a man that has been where you are trying to get to,that can take you there.
Study the lives of successful people,you cannot be a success by hanging out with failures.A poor man can not teach you how to make money.

Is your target to be the best in medicine,study those best at the field,a musician,study those best at that field and so on.To get up,you must keep your eyes looking up.

Paul in the bible said,follow me as i follow Christ, Paul was best at what he did,because he learnt from the master himself.

You can not be a man of excellence,when you spend your time more with lazy and focus less people,individuals without goals or drive to achieve those goals.

Have you not noticed the friends of the great are usually great people.Over time you become,who and what you study,you become what you keep your gaze on.

Believe that you can do it

Its not who you are that is holds you back,but who you think you are not. Hanoch McCarthy.

without self confidence,success is not achievable.If you don't believe in your self,no one will believe in you.
To be a success in sales you must believe in yourself and your product.
Confidence is a very essential key to being successful in life.

There's no successful man today that,did not have obstacles on his way to success,but your ability to succeed will be determined on how you see those obstacles,as stepping stones or hindrances.

A successful person is one who can lay a foundation with the bricks others throw at him or her. David Brinkley.

Build a success slogan and keep saying it to yourself daily,like the President of the United States of America, Barack Obama,during his election campaign,built a success statement that is now used all over the world
"YES WE CAN",if you don't believe you can,you certainly can't.
Build a NO GIVE UP ATTITUDE,and keep saying to yourself,ITS NOT OVER TILL I WIN.
Dont let the words or negative statements of other people get you down,the bible says "we are snared by the words of our mouth" not by the words of your haters,the words of your haters will have effect,when you begin to accept them and believe in them.
Your confession affects your belief system,start saying it, I AM A SUCCESS,stir yourself up,by your confessions daily,this will help your self confidence.
You can do it,if you believe.....

Have a Concrete Strategy

what do you want to achieve or avoid?the answers to this question are objectives.How will you go about achieving your desired results?the answer to this you can call strategy.

William E. Rothschild.

A plan is simply what you intend to do,but strategy is your blue print for success,your strategy states how you will achieve your plans.
Just having a plan is not enough,you must have a strategy,you don't leave your goals to fate,you must have a strategy carefully thought out.

Setting a goal and not following through with proper planning is like a man,who enters a car and drives knowing his destination but not knowing how to get there.Many people fail in their goals because they have no strategy.
Most people,businesses and organisations fail in their goals because there is no proper strategy on what to do,when faced with obstacles,what is the best action to take,when faced with problem?how can i achieve this goal better?how did those who have gone ahead of me achieve their goals?
Questions are vital for developing a strategy,ask yourself very important questions.Strategizing will help you to achieve your goals with ease.

Put All you Got To It

One of the reasons why we don't achieve our goals or run toward it,is that we wait for others to help us do it.Don't wait for anyone to come help you,check yourself and find out what you have,use what you have to get what you desire.

Put all your available resources to its actualization,the first resouces that must be put into any dream should be yours,nobody wants to help a man who has not started something first.The key to getting others to help you is to start with what you have.

Think big but start small,don't neglect the days of small beginnings.When you set your goals, put your available resources to work.
Bishop T.D Jake's,said he had to close his bank account to be able to publish the book WOMAN THOU ART LOOSED,that was all he had at that time,and today that book sold millions and its a best seller.
What are your dreams and how much are you willing to sacrifice to achieve it?
When i speak of resources,i mean money,energy,time and all you have at your disposal,you must be the first one to invest in your dreams,stop waiting on someone else,start now.

Keep reading

To be a success in life you must give time to reading good books,books that will help you get better.Knowledge is very needful for execution.The difference between the rich and the poor is in what they know.

According to Abraham Lincoln,"the things i want to know are in books,my best friend is the man who'll get me the book i ain't read"

Myles Munroe said" the best place to hide a treasure is in a book" we must discipline ourselves to read books.Every successful person,is a product of the books they read.
The more you read,the more knowledge you gain.Seth Godin,the best selling author on Business week and New York times,buys 400 new books every year and probably reads a lot more than that.
Make goals for yourself,read at least a book once in a month,develop the desire to read,read the biography of successful people.The time you spend on other unfruitful thing,increase your knowledge and increase your potential to be successful.

"when you sell a man a book,you don't sell him just 12 ounces of paper and ink and glue-you sell him a whole new life"

Christopher Moley.

Work Hard and Smart

Some people say work smart and not hard,but i say work hard and smart.when you work hard,it doesn't necessary mean to toil or sweating or dreading what you do.

when you love what you do,it's not stress but fun.If you don't love what you are doing,then you can't be a success at it,then you toil and sweat.but when you love what you do,you don't toil,but you enjoy doing it.

I love to write and read,so for me,when i have to write i am always excited and the best gift you can give to me is a new book.My best gifts to my friends are books,i love reading and i buy books a lot.

Put all of your effort and energy doing what you do,and you will see progress and recognition.

If a man is called to be a streetsweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great streetsweeper who did his job well.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Put your very best at achieving your goals.You put your best to get your best.You reap what you sow.If you sow excellence you will reap excellence.When you put your best at your work,the best will always find you.Stop been lazy,start focusing your energy on the achievement of your goals and give it your best shot.

Get Feedback

Feed back is vital for achieving success at your work.I always ask some of my friends to go through my blogs and tell me their candid opinion,its important so i can better on my work.

Look for at least 3 or 5 persons that can criticize your work,so you can hear other peoples point of view.Before i start to write on any matter,i always find out other views about that matter,i read materials from other great bloggers and make my conclusions.

Every successful company,always ask for feedback from clients and customers,on their customer service,so that they can better their services.Also feedback from the staff on how management can improve their treatment of staff to increase productivity.

As an entrepreneur i am very concerned about my staffs and how they are doing with work,so we used to have feedback days on Fridays and we called it "Happy Friday" that's the time where the staff and directors get to hang out and discuss about how work has been through the week.

Feedback,helps you to hear other peoples views and opinions,this way you can add knowledge to what you already have.

Feedback will not only increase your knowledge but will increase productivity,when the new information is applied.

Character over Reputation

2012-07-12T08:23:00.000-07:00

Personality can open doors, but only character can keep them open

Elmer G. Letterman

This is a very important subject to me, because we live in a world where we are very concerned about how people see us. A world where people would do anything just to keep up man’s idea of him. Businessmen and organizations inflate their financial records to keep up in the eye of the public; individuals go to any extent to make others see them the way they seem.

They say we must maintain being at the top no matter the cost, steal if you have to, lie if you have to, but we must look the best in the eyes of the public. Political parties rig elections just to give the impression that they are the best. Pastors inflate the membership strength of their churches, to be named the largest church in their cities. Unnecessary competition is developed just to be at the top. People live false lives; they live pretentious lives just because they have to look good. People are not real because they are concerned about what others will say. People are dying secretly and living a double standard life because of this.

These two words are misunderstood, sometimes used interchangeably when they don't mean the same thing.

According to John Wooden “Your reputation is who people think you are, your character is who you really are.”

Let’s get it right, Reputation is how people see you, and this is the reason why we go out of our way to do things to please people. We care so much about what others think, much more than been real. We pretend and try to keep up just because of what people will say. We are living our lives but actually living other peoples thinking. If your decisions are 100% motivated by what others think then you are not living a life, soon you will die.

Sometimes i listen to people and you hear from them "what will people say”. The interesting thing about people is that they are very unstable. The bible says Jesus did not give himself to man, why? Because he knew something about man, that's very constant, that "man changes”, that man is unstable.

Living a life to please others is the best route that leads to failure in life and fulfillment. We must start living life understanding that there's only person we must ultimately live to please, which is God. He never changes; he is the same yesterday, today and forever. He loves us unconditionally; his love is not predicated on what you did or didn't do, he loves you before the foundation of the world.

Stop caring about what others think, do things because they are the right thing to do, and it pleases God, this doesn't mean you should treat people wrongly, no, but you don't spend time with people who are too negative and only sees the faulty side of your life, If you must grow, you need to spend time with those who critize you constructively and brings out the best in you, not those who only tell you how bad you are.

Character on the other hand is who you really are, no matter how much you pretend, you are what you are. We are told you can deceive others but you can’t deceive God and yourself, he knows you for who you are. Your character is Gods idea about you, start living your life on how God thinks about you, even if you have a fault in your life, the best way to deal with it is dwelling on the positive rather than the negative. My pastor always says "I am who God says I am" you are not what any man says you are, so stop dwelling and confessing what others have said about you “You are who God says you are”.

1Samuel 16:7b;

"For the Lord sees not as man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart"

Stop trying to impress men, stop trying to impress God, stop trying to be somebody else, be yourself. God is more concerned about who you really are inside. Most of us are more righteous than King David, but God blessed him more, because he was real before the lord. Some of us already are living to please another, stop! That’s not the life God wants you to live.

You will be more productive when you live your life, doing what you are best at, stop living someone’s dreams, what are your dreams? start living your life. I dare you to be yourself, and see how God will bless you. Spend all your time developing your character, how God sees you, you can find out from the word of God his thoughts about you;

Jeremiah 29:11 "my thoughts for you are good and not evil, that you might have a hope and a future" don't let anyone make you think otherwise.

If you have flaws don't lie about them, character is developed in tribulations, and tested in good times. Don’t run out of that situation develop that character, because it will distinguish you later in life.

Here are some good reasons to have good character and not worry about our reputations

God rewards character and not reputation: To care about your reputation means you care more about public opinion and not Gods opinion about you. In Matthew 6:1-6, Jesus clearly showed us about the man who cares about others opinion; he brags about his help to others, he wants people to know what he has done, because he is concerned about the opinion of others, Jesus said they received their reward already. When you do something for man and wait for commendation from them, then you don't need the reward of the father. God rewards character, over reputation. Be more concerned about pleasing God than impressing men. Focus on doing what’s right and what’s right is what God says is right; he will reward you for doing what’s right.
If you present yourself better than you really are, you can’t have intimacy. People who lie about who they really are are socially bankrupt and never have real and lasting relationships. They have a lot to hide; they can't let people know who they really are.
Tell the truth no matter what, there's nothing more healing, than telling the truth and presenting yourself as you really are. People who can’t take you for who you really are are not your true friends. When you are with people and you don't have that sense of freedom of been yourself you are with the wrong group of people.
Character is for eternity and reputation is for a time.

Don't live your life trying to impress others, there is freedom in pleasing God and been who you are. If you are living trying to please others then you are not living and you will not fulfill your purpose in life.