"The Flowers, The Sunset, The Trees"

                                                              BY JIM REEVES

Each time I touch a rose petal
And breathe the sweet fragrance it brings
I know there's a God up in heaven
No human could create these things.

The dogwood, the oak and the willow
So gracefully wave in the breeze
The dogwood, I'll always remember
My Lord, died upon one of these.

The sunset in its golden splendor
Such colors no artist can do
I know when I look on its beauty
Each page in the Bible is true.

No picture or painting can capture
The beauty of any of these
The handwork of God is revealed in
The flowers, the sunset, the trees...

WE THANK THEE BY JIM REEVES

We thank Thee each morning for a new born day

Where we may work the fields of new mown hay

We thank Thee for the sunshine and the air that we breathe

Oh Lord, we thank Thee

We thank Thee for the rivers that run all day

We thank Thee for the little birds that sing away

We thank Thee for the trees and the deep blue sea

Oh Lord, we thank Thee

CHORUS

Oh yes we thank Thee Lord for every flower that blooms,

Birds that sing, fish that swim and the light of the moon

We thank Thee everyday as we kneel and pray

That we were born with eyes to see these things

We thank Thee for the fields where the clovers grow

We thank Thee for the pastures where the cattle may roam

We thank Thee for thy love so pure and free

Oh Lord, we thank Thee.

THANK YOU LORD BY EASTER BROTHERS

1.

While the world looks upon me as I struggle along

They say I have nothing but they are so wrong

In my heart I’m rejoicing, how I wish they could see

Thank you Lord, for Your blessings on me

CHORUS

There’s a roof up above me

I’ve a good place to sleep

There’s food on my table

And shoes on my feet

You gave me Your love Lord

And a fine family

Thank You Lord, for Your blessings on me

2.

I know I’m not wealthy and these cloths, they’re not new

And I don’t have much money but Lord I have You

And that’s all that matters though the world may not see

Thank You Lord, for Your blessings on me.

IT IS NO SECRET BY JIM REEVES

1.      The chimes of time ring out the news, another day is through

Someone slipped and fell, was that someone you?

You may have longed for added strength your courage to renew

Do not be disheartened, I have news for you

CHORUS

It is no secret, what God can do

What He’s done for others, He’ll do for you

With arms wide open, He’ll pardon you

It is no secret, what God can do

2.      There is no night for in His light, you’ll never walk alone

You’ll always feel at home, wherever you may roam

There is no power can conquer you while God is on your side

Take Him at His promise, don’t run away and hide

2014 vs. 2015 Resolution - Stand Firm!!! 

¹³As for us, we can’t help but thank God for you, dear brothers and sisters loved by the Lord. We are always thankful that God chose you to be among the first to experience salvation—a salvation that came through the Spirit who makes you holy and through your belief in the truth. ¹⁴ He called you to salvation when we told you the Good News; now you can share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁵ With all these things in mind, dear brothers and sisters, stand firm and keep a strong grip on the teaching we passed on to you both in person and by letter. ¹⁶ Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope, ¹⁷ comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say - 2 Thessalonians 2:13-17 NLT

As believers, we are highly privileged to be in fellowship with God and his Son. He who has called us is faithful to keep us from all sin. The question to ask is how ready are we to share in this responsibility? The above scripture tells us of God’s love for us through his action of salvation towards us.

It equally admonishes us to stand firm. Blessed are you who have kept the faith all through the year 2014. It’s 4 more days to the end of 2014 and a new birth in 2015. What will your new year’s resolution be? Today the Lord is calling unto us to hold on firm to His word, handed over through the inspiration of God’s spirit to the Apostles. Our duty is to hold on fast, no matter the condition that may befall us. 

 God’s promises are yeah and Amen and whatever He has said concerning our lives individually will surely come to pass (1 Thessalonians 5:24). For His word says in Joshua 1:9 (BBE), “… Take heart and be strong; have no fear and do not be troubled; for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go”.   May you be strengthened to stand firm in the coming 2015. 

MY PRAYER

Truth inherent in thee
That is what I seek
What is thine to be in me
Lord just make me meek

My iniquities make me weak
Sin an antiquity so new
If only I could shut my beak
I am sure to be among the few

Oh the desires of my flesh
If only it could satisfy my fill
When I could my life make fresh
Yahweh, it is your will

Born and reborn, every first day of the week
God, I am sick and it is chronic
As the blood of life in me do leak
Lord, help me unravel the trick

You saved my life at a cost
But Lord I am still poor
God, in this world, I am lost
This life is war

Jesus Christ, what is my fate?
In your bosom, I want to lie
I want the narrow gate
In your blood, I want to die.

Through Jesus Christ I pray
Amen

NB: Not to be used as a model prayer

ON MY KNEES O LORD

Romans 11:36

For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen.

I rise to praise you but I fall on my knees

My spirit is willing but my flesh is so weak

Stricken by the pressures of my afflictions

My heart is but as heavy as a wood

And despite the need to praise you, I end up not knowing what to say

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me

In my weakness, thou make me see my incompleteness

A sense of need arise in me that I may find and know you more

That I may receive nothing but your undeserving grace

As I constantly experience nothing but your abounding Love

For thou art God Almighty, everything comes from you and exists by your

power and is intended for your glory. All glory to you forever! Amen.

THY WILL, MY PRAISE

Thy will be done says all believers

Yet I wonder how many times we have held a face

when asking “is this will really thy will”?

I am guilty Lord and I ask that “thou will forgive me”

*

For I know thou will and thou wills also that we seek thy will in all

That which pleases you, for you inhabit the praise of your people

My praise ascends as an answer to thy will

Thank you for thy will in my life, for thy will is beautiful indeed in my life

*

As thou has willed the sun to mark the day and the moon to mark the night

So I humbly ask that if thou will:

Light the fire in me and manifest your presence

Fill me with your power

*

Remake me with your righteousness

And surprise me with your majesty

In Jesus name – AMEN

THANKING YOU FOR THY WILL IN MY LIFE

My love story 

Unseal my lips, O Lord, that my mouth may praise you – Psalms 51:15

Look at me a wanderer in this world

Having no sense of Purpose, I went wherever the wind took me

I ate everything, the earth gave me

A man of no choice, I became a slave to this treacherous world

In my ignorance, miserable state and incapable of taking care of myself, a story of love was born for me

A love story that overrides all others.

*

A man of noble birth fell in love with me a wandering pauper girl of no social standing

Wealthy as he is, and for the sake of this love, he traded his riches with my poverty

Gave up his joy to take my sorrow

Replaced my saddened heart with his cheerful smile

A smile that lightens the burdens of others and penetrates the marrows of hardened souls

He created in me a clean heart and renewed a right spirit within me (Psalm 51:10).

*

And at last, as I look back, I see what your love has achieved in my life

Your promise of love was true and you have been faithful to me in everything;

I wondered how far I would have wandered without your love

Like an Olive tree, thriving in your presence, I acknowledge my needs lie in you

My joy and happiness is complete in you

My spiritual, physical, financial, educational and social prosperity has seen its foundation in you, my love.

*

And as long as thou give me breathe and for the sake of our love story

Unseal my lips, oh Lord (JESUS), that my mouth may praise you [(Always) Psalm 51:15]

For I depend on you!!!  AMEN.

Numbers 35:34 

"You must not defile the land where you live, for I live there myself. I am the LORD, who lives among the people of Israel."

 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NLT) admonishes "19 Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body."

We have read and understood these verses and we try as much as possible to live lives worthy of the calling of the Lord. It is however not surprising that many of us Christians have abandoned any social, political or economic lives of the nations in which God has placed us in. 

The running of the day to day activities of the country is left to Pagans, for fear that these people will corrupt us. What kind of Christians are we? Are we that Timid and Coward? In 2 Timothy 1:7, we are told that the Spirit in us is not that of fear!!!

Our Lord Jesus was an example, He revolutionized His world with Love. The early Christians and Apostles did the same. Its our time to step into the lime light and take the destiny of our nations in our hands. We are the Light and Salt of the world. If we allow the worldly to manage our affairs in a careless manner and define us by the standards of the world, we are as much saying, God we don't care if people defile your land.

God's ways must be the standard of the world in issues of trading principles, relationship matters, family upbringings, political structuring and peace and security of our nations. You and I have a responsibility to see that God's way become the ONLY STANDARD and we can't do that when we sit on the fence. Get into the game brethren!!!

Our Holiness is also ensuring that our lands / nations, in which God dwells, because He watches over us, is not DEFILED. Our Holiness must transcend from our bodies to our LANDS in which we live, for God dwells there , and that too among His people. 

Genesis 48: 1-20

²⁰ .... "The people of Israel will use your names when giving a blessing... May God make you as prosperous as Ephraim and Manasseh"...

So when I read this message, I wondered what Jacob meant when he was blessing the children of Joseph. Already in verse 5, Jacob had said ⁵"Now I am claiming as my own sons these two boys of yours, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born here in the land of Egypt before I arrived. They will be my sons, just as Reuben and Simeon are" 

What !!! sons!!! meaning Jacob should have 14 sons !!! Confused? Yeah I was, because in Genesis 49, Jacob blessed Joseph as his son (including the other 11). There was no mention of the two boys.  Okay, drop the case I thought as I just couldn't get the link. As I continued my Bible studies, I came across this in Numbers 3 : 6-7, 12, the Lord said to Moses, " ⁶ Call forward the tribe of Levi, and present them .... ⁷ they will serve Aaron and the whole community.... ¹², .... I have chosen the Levites from among the Isrealites .... The Levites belong to me. 

Oh No!!!, meaning Jacob has 13 Sons now. Okay that's good. The whole of Numbers mentioned the two sons of Joseph as  tribes in Israel. Today as I complete my studies, I finally understood the puzzle.  God indeed had a plan for Israel - that is Jacob and his twelve sons.  He has promised to give the land of Canaan to his descendants (Genesis 48:3-4). God intended to keep that promise because He is a God who doesn't change his mind. 

Had Jacob known God will claim Levi and his descendants as His and sent Joseph to die in Egypt (Genesis 50:22-26), Jacob will surely have questioned God. I am sure he would have wondered how God was to make a multitude of nations, if he is already claiming some.

 Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph knew God had a plan for his people. Israel as a nation was made out of twelve tribes, and not more or less. That was God's plan when he appeared to Jacob in his dream - Genesis 28:10-22. In his plans, the final tribe will include Ephraim and Manasseh for the promised land and not Joseph and Levi as tribes in Israel. As an all- knowing God, He made provisions ahead of Jacob for that.

Beloved brethren, we serve a living God who has lived through all times. And He is all powerful and all knowing. He has a course mapped out for each and everyone that He has called and who has accepted His call in return. Things may not be going as you have planned. Or better still, things are happening that baffles you and you feel, how is God going to achieve his promise in my life. Surely some may take years, months, days etc.

We have been called to HOLY LIFE in Christ. Don't ask "HOW am I going to be perfect and HOLY as God"? He is the one who has called us and He is faithful. All we have to do is submit our wills, actions and ways to him and He will surely produce in us fruits from His Spirit - Galatians 5:22-23. These fruits equip us to live a HOLY LIFE.

SUBMIT YOUR PLANS TO GOD AND TRUST IN GOD'S PLAN AS YOUR ACT OF HOLINESS   

HOLINESS FROM BEING GRATEFUL - John 8:32

Be grateful if your job is a little harder than you like. A razor cannot be sharpened on a piece of velvet.

Be grateful for the doors of opportunity – and for friends who oil the hinges.

If you cannot be content with what you have received, be grateful for what you have escaped.

Be grateful for the children even when they are headache – they are still from the Lord.

Be grateful for the truth even when it stings, for it is the TRUTH that makes you free.

David was a man of gratitude and God recognized him to be a man after his OWN HEART.

Holiness is the heart of God as He says " Be Holy for I am Holy" -- 1 Peter 1:16.

God reigns on His Holy Throne ---- Psalm 47:8 and we cannot but be Holy ourselves.

A Holy heart from a Holy God is our request this day LORD, that we might be grateful in all we do. 

How much are we being grateful to the LORD for ? This  November is a month of Holiness, How do we measure up??  

What gift are we  offering to the LORD today?

And you shall know the truth and the truth will set you free - John 8:32

(adapted from - The Voice of Truth International)

What if the eye that watched over you became that hand holding you?

Matthew 18:20

"For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them".

I don't know if you have also given thought to these words of Jesus. I believe like myself, we have held on to the truth that the Lord is present always when we gather, which is the absolute truth that cannot be denied. But beloved, lets turn the other side of the coin and see what is there too.

Our faith in the above passage should cause us to ask the question, whenever we gather as people of God to worship, do we really make room for Jesus?

Have we thought of where Jesus will sit?

What would he say about us?

What would we tell him in return?

How do we dress to meet and dine with him?

Did I hear someone say "are these questions relevant?" What would you do if you knew the person who sat by you last service meeting was Jesus himself?

Psalm 34:15 says " The eyes of the LORD watch over those who do right; his ears are open to their cries for help." (see also 1 Peter 3:12)

 Obviously you haven't given a thought to this? What if the eye that watched over you became that hand holding you?

Each day, the LORD promises to be with us even unto the end of the world (Matthew 28: 20) and has assured to dine with us in his Kingdom. You can't afford to give a blind eye  to these statements or take them lightly. Jesus has already been there in our congregational services and as surely as we continue to meet as followers, He will be present each time. The question is, how will you act next time you are in worship with Jesus by your side? What if the eye that watched over you became that hand holding you

Psalm 33:4 - For the word of the LORD holds true, and we can trust everything he does. 

The Bible behind closed doors!!!

2 Corinthians 4:7-15 (NLT)

⁷ We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. ⁸ We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. ⁹ We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. ¹⁰ Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies. ¹¹ Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies. ¹² So we live in the face of death, but this has resulted in eternal life for you. ¹³ But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, “I believed in God, so I spoke.”  ¹⁴ We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you. ¹⁵ All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory.

So I was inspired by Bobby Dockey’s article on “taking the Bible out of the Church House”, where he talked about applying God’s word in our daily lives, boldly proclaiming God’s word to all as well as confronting the evils of this world with God’s word.  He also expressed how most of the time, the Bible is kept and opened only in church and only on Sundays

The verse 7 of the above passage trucks me and as I read on to the down verses, I discovered something which I can’t but share with others.  I asked myself why we then keep the Bible behind closed doors.  As baptized children of God, there is a light that is shining in our hearts because we have been raised together with the light of the world- Jesus Christ  (John 8:12) unless we were not baptized by immersion as demonstrated in Acts 8:  36-39

 Yes, we may be fragile clays but God’s treasure (Jesus Christ, the Word of God and light of the world) is in us. And this is nothing but the amazing power of God manifested in us. As such whenever we feel like we are pressed, perplexed, hunted down, knocked down and in constant danger of facing death each day, that we try to go out and preach God’s word, make effort to live as prescribed by God’s word or better still attempt to fight worldly desires and evil with God’s word, let us remember in the midst of the discouragement that the world brings us, that: we can’t get crushed, should not be despaired, don’t feel abandoned by God and know we will never be destroyed. You ask why? J Because we serve Jesus himself, the word and treasure of God

 So beloved, if you have the same kind of faith like I do and like all the people of God around the world, then get “out” the Bible behind the closed door of your heart, room, office chamber, church, etc. and freely live God’s word as you proclaim it to all and confront any weakness the world may present with God’s Word (Jesus). The word that you have as your code of ethics- the Bible!!!

For “We were made to be Courageous”!!! – Casting Crows

The Gospel - Mark 16:15-16

15 And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. 16 Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned.

Jesus gave a command to his disciples before he was taken up into heaven. Today, we believers who have benefited from this message and have been immersed in water (Baptism) so that as mentioned in Romans 6:3-4 we have been made new through the burial and resurrection contact we partake with Christ in water baptism (immersion).

In the same manner, we too have an OBLIGATION as Christians (disciples) to give this same message of Good News (Gospel) to others who do not know this TRUTH (Christ - John 14: 6-7). 

The Gospel as it stands and that which we have been tasked to preach is simply :The Death - (Christ, the son of God (also the word of God - John 1:1-5) came to this sinful world and gave up his life for us so we can be justified with God (Romans 3: 21- 22) and accorded son-ship with God the father. The Burial - That Christ was crucified by sinful men (Acts 2:22-24) who saw their own righteousness as against what God salvation brings (Jesus the Messiah) but hallelujah be to God Almighty, his word is eternal. The Resurrection - The word of God (Jesus Christ), didn't rot in the tombs (Acts 2:25-41). He arose on the third day as he promised and lives FOREVER, that anyone who believes in his saving power (Romans 3:25-26), will have ETERNAL LIFE, and although may die (to sin), will resurrect in newness of life spiritually (now and life after) through water baptism (Romans 6:3-14; 8 :1-2). 

This is the message of the cross (the gospel / good news). Today the Lord invites us (as Christians) to preach this word to all (irrespective of color or race). It is a necessary obligation as Paul puts in 1 Corinthians 9:16.  For those of us reading and hearing this either for the first time or not and still haven't given our lives to Christ, the time is but now. Jesus said anyone (he / she) who believes and is baptized will be saved. After Hearing this message (don't harden your heart), Believe, Repent, Confess your sins, and be Baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit for the forgiveness of sin and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (our seal through Baptism) 1 Peter 3:21, Colossians 2:12, Acts 2: 38, 41; Romans 10:9-18,  Acts 8:26-39,  Galatians 3:26-29, Titus 3:4-7

God bless you

HIS PLANS ARE BEST

Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future”

One Sunday morning, during request time, one dedicated Christian man stood up at church to make a request. There was an ongoing investigation at his work place about a missing laptop containing the company’s high profile documents. And since he was the last person to leave the office where the laptop was, he was the prime suspect. His request was for God to help find the laptop.

As I sat there, I knew he was not capable of stealing because he is my friend and I know him well but for his name to be cleared, the laptop needs to be found. So I made it a priority to check up on him regularly to find out the progress of the investigations. Anytime I called, he was never depressed about what was happening to him. He was hopeful that God will redeem his name in the right time.

As investigations proceeded, the company asked him to proceed on leave with pay and emails were sent to the company’s clients that he no longer works for the company. It was not long when he announced in church that a colleague called him that the laptop has been found. We were all happy and thanked God because his name has been cleared now and can start work. We were wrong. The company does not want to work with him anymore and unwilling to pay his compensation. For a breadwinner for his nuclear and extended family, how was he going to cope? But he never lost hope and trust that God in the right time will take the troubles away and indeed, his trust for God showed in his demeanor and increased dedication to God’s work. I remember asking him once how he is coping and he told me, “I am very fine and in fact, now that I am not working, I have more time on my hands to do God’s work”.

He is now in court to compel the company to pay him his compensation. However, the last time I spoke to him again, he has a new job and then he told me, “I think this is a better job than the previous one. If all these have not happened, am not sure I will have landed myself this job and for the court issue, I know it is going to be a slow process but God saw me through the initial phase of this problem, He will not disappoint me now”.

God allows us to go through these things to make us better Christians than we were. All we need is to trust that He knows what is good for us and His ways are the best for us. I could not have been inspired more by the gentleman whose story I have put out today. All these happened to him early this year and his new job came in barely a month ago. Am sure he started the year so optimistic that things will go so smooth but this is what he got. The good thing is, relief has partly come to him and hoping and trusting for full relief. I do not know what you are going though at the moment but I pray to God to increase your trust in Him and to believe that His plans are best for you. Hold on to the hope that He knows what is best for you and keep praying and I believe that just as He came in for my friend, it will not be long when He brings you the relief you desperately need.

May the Lord bless us and increase out trust in Him always.   

I chanced on this song Broken by Lecrae ft. Kari Jobe: http://youtu.be/3Cr3tSWGHHc and thought of sharing that with you. You may like the melody but I would like you to pay particular attention to the lyrics of the song. Indeed, it tells how miserable we are even when we think we are whole (not broken). One way or the other everyone is troubled about something. There isn't anything like a perfect day or a week because time and chance happens to us all (Eccl. 9:11). The good news is that we have an impeccable doctor who can fix us when we are broken. When we visit him regularly in prayer he prescribes preventive 'drugs' for us or helps reduce the shock when we break down! Yes!! He is the only one who can keep you in perfect peace if you trust in Him. We are all broken in the mess we have made but God can restore us no matter our current condition!!

Are you stressed, brokenhearted or wounded? Do you find yourself worrying about your current situation because there seem to be no hope? Psalm 138:8 says the Lord will fulfill His purpose for you; His steadfast love endures forever. You only have to surrender all to Him in prayer and He will fulfill you at the right time!

A group of former students visited their former university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints of pressure at work and stress. The professor offered his guests coffee. Returning from the kitchen, the professor brought a large pot of coffee and assortment of cups: plastic, glass, crystal, etc., some expensive some cheap. He told his guests to help themselves to coffee. When all former students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If u noticed, all the expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the cheap and plain ones. While it is only normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. Be assured the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases it is only more expensive. What all of you really wanted was the coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups. And then you began eyeing each other's cups. Now consider this: Life is the coffee. The jobs, money and positions in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life. The type of cup we have does not define nor change the quality of life we live. Sometimes by concentrating only on the cup we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us. God brews the coffee not the cup. Enjoy the coffee. The happiest people do not have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything. Live simply, love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.

Author: Unknown.

“He looked around at them all, and then said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was completely restored.” Luke 6:10 

I do not in any way doubt the power of God to heal today. However, my concern has been with the so called Healing and Miracles Workers today. A close examination of their operations and tactics only reveals some inconsistencies with Jesus’ healing ministry. In the above text, Jesus only said a word upon which the man acted. The healing was COMPLETE. In the healings today, you clearly see how the healer and the ‘healee’ struggle through a PROCESS into wholeness. At some instances, you clearly see traces of the illness –either they cannot well pronounce some ELIGIBLE words or they kind of limp for a while. My question today is, when those people proclaim healing, do the recipients receive COMPLETE healing?? Test all things and uphold to that which is good. (1Thess 5:21)