Categories
FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2024 General Post Pastor's Desk

Boring believers | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: August 18, 2024 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 13, No. 16

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you to another week of the month of August 2024. My prayer is that God will fill your heart with great excitement for Him and for His kingdom, as we begin the week, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

One of the reasons we are not daily seeing many people turning on their own to the Lord Jesus for salvation is that many of us who refer to ourselves as Christians are not excited about God and about our faith. We are not excited to read or listen to the word of God. We are not excited to pray. We are not excited to sing and dance before the Lord. And we are not excited to give. In short, we are boring believers.

Now no one wants to be around boring people. No one wants to be around those who are not excited about their lives or whatever they are doing. And because many of us are boring to live with, work with or study with, the unbelievers around us would rather want to be in the beer parlour and in the discos than be with us or be in our church meetings. What a shame!

But God is not boring to live with or be with. And we see that illustrated in our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the exact representation of His being. He was not boring to live with or be with at all when He walked the face of the earth. Read the gospels. And you will see that the disciples never had any dull moment with Him. The only time they began to be sorrowful was when it became clear that He would be taken away from them. Yet He told them not to be sorrowful at all. Why? According to Him, it was because the Holy Spirit would come and take His place in their lives, living in them, with them and through them. So, there would be no reason for them to be dull or boring in life. (Cf. John 14-16)

Why, then, are many of us dull and boring today, even though we claim to have the Holy Spirit in us? Why are we not excited about God, about His word, about prayer, about giving and about service in God’s kingdom? We are excited about watching worldly movies, listening to worldly songs, being with ungodly friends and attending worldly parties. But when it comes to our relationship with God and with His people, all that can be seen in us is dullness. What exactly is our problem?

Evidently, it is the spirit of lukewarmness that is in the world that has taken hold of us. It was this same spirit that afflicted the church of God in Laodicea of bible times and made them spiritually pitiful, wretched, poor, blind and naked. Interestingly, this wicked spirit will not altogether stop us from attending church meetings, praying, hearing God’s word or giving. But it will make us do these things in such unserious and dull ways that we will gain nothing by doing them. (Cf. Rev 3:14-22)

See, as we are shown in the bible, people don’t get changed and lifted by God just because they come to Him. Rather, they get changed and lifted by Him because they come to Him with hearts that are serious about living with Him and being blessed by Him. What I am saying is that it is only those whose hearts are seriously eager for God and what He has in store for them that will truly enjoy Him and be able to attract others to Him. (Cf. Heb 11:6)

So, if your life is not attracting others to the Lord Jesus Christ, it will either mean that you are not excited about Him at all or that your eagerness and excitement about Him are not enough. And like members of the church of Laodicea, you are in danger of being rejected as a fake believer by the Lord. My prayer is that when we stand before the Lord on that glorious day, you will not be rejected as a fake child of God, in Jesus’ name. But you need to pray now to God that He will awaken everything that is dead in your zeal and excitement for Him and His kingdom, so that you will be on fire for Him for the rest of your time here on earth.

Have a lovely week.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministry.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
Fire in my Bones Youth for Jesus

Manifesting foolishness | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: August 14, 2024 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 7, No. 14

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

“Even as he walks along the road, the fool lacks sense and shows everyone how stupid he is.” (Eccl 10:3NIV)

Have you noticed that children often spend longer time than expected when they are sent on errands by their parents, guardians, teachers or other elderly ones? Why? One main reason is that they get easily distracted on the way. A child sent on an errand, for instance, may stand to look at the movement of a butterfly from one flower to another for some minutes before coming back to himself and to need to hurry back and complete the errand he has been sent to carry out. And by the time he gets back, he may have to receive some beating for messing some things up by not being on time in handling what he has been sent to do.

But then, it is not only children that lose their presence of mind or become absent-minded when on their way to doing something. A lot of times, adults too lose their presence of mind when they are on their way to doing things. They may not get distracted by a butterfly or an earthworm, though some of them can get distracted by a dancing masquerade or by some people fighting. But they can forget totally that they need to be safe in order to get to wherever they are going and get whatever they need to do there done.

For instance, often we see our drivers and motorcyclists drive recklessly on our roads because they are in a hurry to get somewhere. But if they should be involved in an accident through their recklessness or carelessness, will they still be able to get to wherever they are going on time? What about what they want to do? Will they still be able to do it? Then if they should end up dead or in a hospital, what will that do to their dreams in life or to their families and other loved ones?

Also, we often see our young men and young men pressing their phones while going from one place to another or blocking their ears with earphones because they are listening to some music? And we have had some hit and killed or injured by ongoing vehicles because of this. Is it, then, wrong to use phones or to listen to music? No! But doing so while on the road or while driving prevents you from functioning with the required level of concentration you need to be safe. And regardless of how important what you are doing with that phone at that time may be, it cannot be as important as the safety of your life or of others. So, it can wait.

But will you allow it to wait? Will you allow the pressing of your phone to wait, while you are walking or driving along a road, in order for you and others to be safe? Will you slow down a little bit with your vehicle and observe traffic rules in order for you and others to arrive at your destination safely? And will you ignore that funny scene in order to be on time in handling that job or business or study?

Well, as we see in our opening bible text, we can tell if someone is a fool or not by merely looking at the way he walks or drives or what he does while walking or driving along the road. And a foolish person will only be concerned about arriving at his destination when walking or driving along the road. He will not consider the danger his behaviour and actions on the road can pose to him, his loved ones and his society as a whole.

Thus, you don’t need to be well acquainted with someone before you know whether they are foolish or not. By merely looking at their conduct while they are going from one place to another, you will be able to tell. In like manner, you don’t need to wait for someone to tell you that you are foolish before you know that you are. Just by considering how you have been acting and behaving on the road since you came of age, you should be able to tell.

At any rate, if you can you see that you have been manifesting foolishness in this sense, just repent right away and start doing what is right.

Cheers!

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2024 Pastor's Desk

Be yielded to God’s leading | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: August 11, 2024 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 13, No. 15

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. I am delighted to welcome you to another week of this month. I pray that the Spirit of God will cause your heart to be daily yielded to God’s leading, so that you may be guided into His best for your life. Amen.

As we see in the bible, God loves us so much that He does not want us to miss it in life. No, He doesn’t want us to waste our lives pursing shadows and unprofitable things. But we will pursue shadows and unprofitable things, if we do not have His guidance, for the bible says, “Lord, I know that people’s lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their steps.” (Jer 10:23NIV)

Did you see that? Our lives are not our own and it is not in our place to direct our own steps. Who, then, is in the right place to direct our steps in life? God our creator! And is He interested in doing this? Yes, He is. In fact, the bible tells us that not only is God interested in directing us in the right path, He is also committed to doing so.

However, we must yield ourselves to be led by Him into what is best for us and not be stubborn or wise in our own eyes. Otherwise, we will lead ourselves into the valley of the shadow of death. And where that is the case, death and barrenness are the only things we can hope for, if we waste time before reaching out to God for His mercy. (Cf. Ps 32:8-9)

Look at Lot, for instance. When he was with Abraham, both of them never went anywhere God was not leading them. But from the very day he left Abraham, he began to lead himself. He began to make his choices based on what he saw and according to his wisdom. And the choices he made ultimately led to the loss of his wealth and wife and also the corruption of his family. (Cf. Gen 13&19)

So, don’t ever again attempt to lead yourself. Instead, let God lead you. And you will let him lead you, if you believe that He knows what He is doing and can never lead you to destruction but to the place of prosperity He has in mind for you. Yes, there may be times that God may lead you to the Red Sea. I mean that there may be situations in which God’s leading may put you right between the Red Sea and the army of Pharaoh. But as long as you continue to follow Him, knowing that He knows what He is doing, neither the Red Sea nor the army of Pharaoh will be able to stop you from getting to where you are meant to be in life.

But how will God lead me, seeing that I cannot see Him? Well, basically, God leads His children by His written word. Yes, He also sometimes leads them through visions, dreams, prophecies or angels. But He will never lead them to do anything contrary to His written word. That, of course, is why you must daily give yourself to His word and also to prayer. Once you are doing this, you can be sure that you will never be clueless about what direction to go in life. That is because God will make sure you are daily guided in the way to go.

So, give yourself every day to the word of God and also prayer. And you will surely be led by God into all that is best for your life.

Have a very splendid week.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministry.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
Fire in my Bones Youth for Jesus

Just one act of foolishness | By: J.O. Lawal| Date: August 07, 2024 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 7, No. 13

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

“As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.” (Eccl 10:1NIV)

What is Solomon talking about in our opening bible text? He is talking about the need for us to be consistent in living wise and honourable lives. And why do we need to do that? It is because just one act of foolishness or dishonour can ruin a reputation that has taken us a whole lifetime to build.

For instance, David had a reputation for being a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22). But on the night that he decided to sleep with Uriah’s wife, he messed up everything for himself. He ruined his reputation as a god-fearing man and opened the door of his family for a devouring sword of judgment to devour it (2Sam 11-19). So, the bible summarises his life and reign in this way: “For David had done what was right in the eyes of the LORD and had not failed to keep any of the LORD’s commands all the days of his life — except in the case of Uriah the Hittite.” (1Kings 15:5NIV)

What about Moses? God testified that he was faithful as a servant in all His house (Num 12:7). In other words, in everything God required of this man, he pleased Him well. But just one act of folly from him, just one act of disobedience from him, and he lost the opportunity to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land. (Cf. Num 20)

Now was what Moses’ life dream? Was it not to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land? That was what he lived and fought for. That was what he endured years of suffering and loneliness for. Yet when he disobeyed God’s instruction at the waters of Meribah, the very thing he had laboured and longed for was taken away from him. How sad!

In like manner, there have been great husbands who lost their homes and respect because of just one act of foolishness, just as there have been wonderful wives who lost their homes and honour because of just one moment of immorality. Then there have been faithful employees who ruined their honour and their chances to become great leaders in life by listening to some foolish colleagues just once. And what about those young men and women who ruined their chances of getting quality education or who contracted life-threatening diseases because of just one moment of sexual immorality? The list goes on and on.

Well, the point of it all is that those of us who are living by the wisdom of the word of God must be consistent in doing so. We must not, for any reason, ignore the wisdom of God because we want to gratify the cravings of our flesh or please ourselves just for one moment. Otherwise, the consequences of that one moment of foolishness may ruin our entire lives, homes or reputations permanently and without remedy.

Now that is Solomon’s message to us in our opening bible text. My prayer is that you will not do any wrong thing, however little it may seem, that will outweigh or make a mess of all the honour and prosperity that you have gained by the wisdom of God at work in your life, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2024 Pastor's Desk

Peace for prosperity | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: August 04, 2024 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 13, No. 14

Pastor J.O. Lawal
Pastor J.O. Lawal

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to another month of this year, the month of August 2024. My prayer is that God will grant you peace in every way, at all times and over everything that is yours in the month. Amen.

Why is it important for us to have peace within us and all around us? One main reason is that peace promotes prosperity and enjoyment of life. When people are at peace in their hearts, they can settle down to think and dream of great things. And when people have peace all around them, they can focus their energy on realizing their dreams.

But when we are troubled and are not at peace within, even if there are opportunities to do great things around us, fear will not let us utilize those opportunities. For example, Paul says this about his brief stay in Troas: “Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me, I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said good-by to them and went on to Macedonia.” (2Cor 2:12-13NIV)

Did you see that? Even though there was a great opportunity for this apostle to preach the gospel in that place, he could not take advantage of it. Why? He had no peace of mind. Something was troubling him. What was it? It was the fact that he did not find Titus, his companion, there. And we too would most likely act the same way under similar circumstances. We would allow a wonderful opportunity to do something big or enjoyable for ourselves to pass, if a loved one was sick or was in trouble.

Also, if there is chaos all around us, even if we have great dreams and abilities, we may not be able to convert those dreams and abilities into anything meaningful. And many have died with their great dreams because the places they lived in were not peaceful enough to accommodate progress. Then even if we are able to realise our dreams in an atmosphere of chaos and trouble, we may not be able to enjoy the labour of our hands the way we should enjoy it in the place.

So, having great abilities and great dreams where there is no peace is as good as having nothing at all. In fact, it may not be wise at all to think or dream of doing great things where there is no peace. For instance, here is what God once said to a man named Baruch, who happened to be Jeremiah’s secretary: “Should you then seek great things for yourself? Seek them not. For I will bring disaster on all people, declares the LORD, but wherever you go I will let you escape with your life.” (Jer 45:5NIV)

Did you see that? God told Baruch not to think of doing anything great for himself in the land of Judah at that time. He was not to think of building a house, starting a business or getting a wife for himself. Why? Disaster was coming on the land. And the disaster coming would destroy the whole country and drive everyone away. However, God promised to keep him safe wherever he went.

You can see, then, peace is very important for progress and enjoyment of life. And that is why we must continually pray, as we are instructed in Scriptures, for the peace of God to reign in our lives and all around us. So, I pray for you again, as we begin this new month, that God will cause His peace that surpasses all human understanding to reign in your life, all around you and over everything that is yours, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a great August 2024.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministry.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
Fire in my Bones Youth for Jesus

Miserable comforters| By: J.O. Lawal| Date: July 31, 2024 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 7, No. 12

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

“I have heard many things like these; miserable comforters are you all!” (Job 16:2NIV)

Those were Job’s words to his friends who had come to comfort him during the days of his pains and sorrow. But why would he speak like that to them? Well, as the account goes, because of certain conversations that God had with Satan about him, he ended up losing all his children and possessions and even his health. And when three of his friends heard about these happenings, they met by agreement and came to comfort him. (Cf. Job 1&2)

But was Job really comforted by their presence? Evidently, he was not comforted at all by their coming or presence. Otherwise, he would not have used such strong words that we have in our opening bible text in describing them. He referred to all of them as miserable comforters? Why? It was because their words did not bring him comfort at all but condemnation and grief.

You need to read the whole book of Job in order to appreciate the force of what Job said about these friends of his. These men did not offer him comfort at all through their words. Instead, they just falsely accused him and also condemned him. For instance, here is what one of them, Eliphaz, said to him:

“Is not your wickedness great? Are not your sins endless? You demanded security from your brothers for no reason; you stripped men of their clothing, leaving them naked. You gave no water to the weary and you withheld food from the hungry, though you were a powerful man, owning land — an honored man, living on it. And you sent widows away empty-handed and broke the strength of the fatherless. That is why snares are all around you, why sudden peril terrifies you, why it is so dark you cannot see, and why a flood of water covers you.” (Job 22:5-11NIV)

Where did this man get all these things? Even God said that Job was a blameless and upright man, one who feared God and shunned evil (Job 1:8). Yet this man referred to him as a wicked person, an oppressor. Where did he learn that about Job? It is clear that he was either deliberately lying against him or reacting to some unfounded rumours that he had heard about him.

In any case, if Job’s own friends could say such things about him, what, then, would his enemies be saying about him? That would be beyond imagination. And you can now see why Job, as we see in our opening text, referred to all these friends of his as miserable comforters. On the one hand, they had nothing good to offer him or contribute to his faith and strength at the time. On the other hand, they were terribly hurting him with their words. So, it would have been better, if they had not shown up before him at all.

Interestingly, when God was set to restore Job, He first rebuked these friends of his severely. He told them that He was angry with them and would require them to offer some burnt offerings because of their errors and to also meet Job to pray for them. Otherwise, trouble would come upon them for the terrible job they had done as Job’s comforters. (Cf. Job 42:7-10)

Now what is the point of all this? It is that God is watching the way we treat those who are in trouble or in pains. Yes, they may have been the source of their own problems. But as long as we are a part of their lives or are privileged to be around them, we are not to add to their sorrow or pains. And we are also not to fold our arms and watch them suffer or get destroyed by their trouble. Instead, we are to offer them comfort, by words of mouth and by our actions, according to the measure of grace God has given to us.

The word of God says, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” (2Cor 1:3-4NIV) Did you see that? One of the reasons God is comforting us in every area of our lives isn’t that we may add to the pains and torments of those around us that are suffering by sitting in judgment over them. Rather, it is that we may comfort them with the same comfort we ourselves have received from Him.

Then observe that we are told in this text that we can actually comfort those in any kind of trouble. In other words, even if the people we are dealing with are the source of their own problems, God is still able to use us to comfort them, heal them and set them in the right direction. But He cannot do these things through us, if are insensitivity and judgmental towards them and our words to them are full of criticism, lies or hate.

Therefore, let us rid ourselves of all forms of insensitivity, slander, hate and bitter and unclean criticisms, so that we can be true and not miserable comforters to the hurting people around us. Otherwise, as Job’s friends incurred the anger of God through the bad way they treated him in that low moment of his life, we too may invite His anger and punishment on ourselves for being bad towards those that need our comfort.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2024 Pastor's Desk

He will not forget you | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: July 28, 2024 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 13, No. 13

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ. Welcome to the transition week between the months of July and August 2024. My prayer for you is that God will wake up in the week everyone He has appointed to support you to begin to do for you all that He sent them to do. Amen.

As we see in the bible, the only one that is incapable of forgetting us or forgetting to fulfil His good purpose for our lives is God. Man, for various reasons, may forget us or forget their promises to us. But God will never forget us or forget to carry out His duty of perfecting all that concerns our lives. And look at what He says to us through Isaiah about this:

“”Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” (Isa 49:15NIV)

Did you see that? Even though a mother may sometimes get carried away by all the things she has to do and forget to do certain things for her baby on time, God will never forget to do what is right for us at the right time. And because He will never forget us, we must never give up on life because things are not yet as smooth for us as we will want them to be. Instead, we must continually pray to Him that He will perfect all that concerns and also strengthen our hearts to walk with Him with patience, so that we will not mess up His work in our lives.

Also, we must learn to pray that God will clear the way for all the people that He has appointed to do for us things that will result in the fulfilment of His good purpose for our lives to do His will in our lives. This is because it is not everything that God wants to do for us that He will do personally. There are things that He will do for us through people. And if such people should get distracted or carried away by the things of this life, they may not remember to do what God has sent them to do for us on time or at all.

For instance, it was God that appointed that official of Pharaoh that Joseph met in the prison to help him come out of the prison and to also work for his elevation in Egypt. The man at the time, of course, did not know that it was God that had brought the two of them together or how God intended to use him to help Joseph. But he was surely determined to help him, if things turned out favourably for him. This is showing us that for some people to help us as God will want them to, things must be going on smoothly for them. Otherwise, they may be too distracted or discouraged to think about us at all. (Cf. Gen 40)

Well, things did turn out favourably for that man, as Joseph had already predicted. He got out of prison and was restored to his former high position in Egypt. Nevertheless, for reasons unspoken of in the account, he totally forgot Joseph. In fact, he forgot him for two full years.

Now did Joseph lose his mind because of that? No! Did he give up on God and on life because of that, thinking all hope of his freedom was lost? No! Instead, he continued to do what was right in the prison and to be patient with God. So, at the right time, God, who never forgets His own people, brought about circumstances that cleared the way for that man to remember him and to do the needful in bringing him out of prison. That, of course, was how all the dreams of greatness God had given to him as a boy began to be fulfilled. (Cf. Gen 41)

In like manner, God will not forget you. So, you can trust Him to fulfill all the dreams of greatness He has shown you and all His beautiful plans for your life. You, like Joseph, just need to be patient with Him and to continue to do what is right in His sight. And among those right things you must be doing is praying to Him that He will clear the way for all the people He wants to use for you to do you all the good they are meant to do you without delay. May the Spirit of God, then, strengthen you to keep these things in mind and daily act accordingly, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a splendid week.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministry.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
Fire in my Bones Youth for Jesus

Use it to prove yourself | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: July 24, 2024 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 7, No. 11

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

“Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned.” (Gen 39:1-5NIV)

One of the things we must keep in mind is that we are not in charge of life – God is. And because we are not in charge of life, we cannot make certain things in life go the way we want them to go. But if we will learn to see God in whatever situation we may find ourselves and also learn to make the most of that situation, God will surely use the situation to bring about the fulfilment of His good purpose for our lives.

Now that is one of the things we learn from the bible story of Joseph. He was sold to Egypt as a young man. He was sold by his own brothers because they were jealous of him. But did he allow that to destroy him? No! Did he see that as the death of all the dreams of greatness God had shown him? No!

What, then, did he do? He sought to use his position as a slave to learn and make himself fit for greatness in life. In other words, he looked beyond his low status in life as slave to what he could use that position to learn and accomplish in life. Therefore, as we see in our opening text, it was not very long at all before he distinguished himself to his master as someone more than a slave, as someone that was absolutely reliable and a great manager of people and resources.

Now because Joseph distinguished himself in this manner, his master, Potiphar, put him in charge of everything he owned. Thin about that. The man entrusted him with everything he owned, home and abroad, even though he was only slave, even though he did not know his family background and even though he had received no recommendation letter from anyone about him. Why? The young man used his low position to prove himself as someone more than a slave.

We too need to learn to prove ourselves to be worthy of people’s trust and of great positions in life wherever we are. People, if they are not stupid, racial or selfish, will not just put us in great positions in life because we desire them or because we have dreamt about them. Rather, they will put us in positions of greatness in life because we have proved ourselves worthy of them.

How do we prove ourselves worthy of great positions in life? It is by handling whatever our hands find to do where we are in great and excellent ways. In other words, even if what is entrusted to us where we ae is something little or insignificant, if we will give it the touch of greatness and significance, people will take note of it and of us. And that will inspire them to try us with bigger things.

But if we are handling whatever is committed into our hands loosely and without seriousness, we will just be proving ourselves to be loose and unserious. And no one, in their right senses, will ever see us as fit for any kind of greatness, even though we have been recommended to them by very important people in life.

For instance, how do people become head of cleaners in most of our companies or organisations? It is usually through the way they handle their jobs as ordinary cleaners. Yes, cleaning jobs workplace (and I am not referring to those who have set up cleaning businesses here) are among the most demeaning jobs you can give to anyone in today’s world. But if someone can rise to be the head cleaner in an organisation, that person will be proving that he can be a leader in handling something better, if circumstances of life permit him.

Well, the point of it all is that we must not allow ourselves to become useless in life because we are not yet occupying a great position. Instead, we are to use whatever position we are in life, however low it may seem, to learn and prove ourselves as deserving something better. Then God, who comforts the downcast and raises up beggars from the dust, will cause His favour to rest upon us and use that position as a stepping stone to take us from where we are to where He wants us to be in life.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2024 Pastor's Desk

Guard your steps | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: July 21, 2024 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 13, No. 12

from pastor's desk

Beloved: grace and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Redeemer. I am delighted to welcome you to the fourth week of the month of July 2024. I pray that God will daily teach your heart how to serve Him faithfully, so that all that you are doing in His kingdom and for His kingdom will not go to waste. Amen.

Now I want to draw your attention to a number of things that Solomon tells us in one of his books on how to make the most of our presence in church meetings. Look at it:

“Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.” (Eccl 5:1-2NIV)

What is the first thing Solomon tells us here about how to make the most of any church meeting? It is that we are to guard our steps when going for it. In other words, we must go for every church meeting with a sense of thoughtfulness and carefulness. Yes, we must know why we are attending this meeting and what we intend to gain from doing so. Why is that important? It is so that we do not waste our time, energy and whatever other resources we may expend in attending the meeting.

Unfortunately, many who attend church meetings today just attend to fulfil all righteousness. They have been told that it is a good practice to attend church meetings. And it is indeed a good practice to do so. But what do you intend to gain by attending any church meeting? Is there even anything to gain by doing so? If there are things to gain by doing so, how do you position yourself to gain them? Many don’t keep any of these things in mind when they are going for church meetings. So, they end up gaining nothing and also wasting their time, energy and even money. What a shame!

The second thing Solomon tells us in that bible text about how to make the most of church meetings is the need for us to be more interested in what God has to say to us than in what we have to say to Him or give to Him. Are we not supposed to say anything at all to God in our church meetings? Yes, we are to say things to Him, all kinds of things. And are we not to give to God in our church meetings? Yes, we are to give to Him, anything our hearts desire to give to Him.

However, we must always remember that God is more interested in what He wants to do to our lives than in whatever we want to offer to Him. Therefore, we must put listening to Him and learning from Him above everything else. That way, He will be able to show us how to talk to Him and give to Him in ways that are acceptable in His sight.

For instance, Jesus once visited the house of Mary, Martha and Lazarus. And while Mary sat down at His feet to learn from Him how to live to please God, Martha was busy running up and down, trying to get a meal ready for Him. Then when Martha saw that Mary would not join her in what she was doing, she came to protest to the Lord to rebuke her sister and ask her to join her in the work. But to her surprise, the Lord did not do that at all. Instead, this is how He responded to her: “”Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”” (Luke 10:41-42NIV)

Did you see that? We may be busy about many things for God and still not really be making sense to Him. And that will be the case, if we will not first yield ourselves to learn from Him what He really wants from us. Martha, evidently, on that occasion wanted to make Jesus happy by cooking some delicious meal for Him and His disciples. But she should have first sat down to learn from Him what He really wanted. Then she may even realise that He did not need her food at all at that moment and that it was something else that He needed.

In like manner, we too must take learning from the Lord more seriously than any other thing, especially in our church meetings. We must make sure nothing robs of our opportunity to learn from Him. Otherwise, as Solomon tells us in that bible text, we may end up offering Him prayers, songs, money and services that are nothing but sacrifices of fools. And will He reward us for any foolish sacrifice we bring to Him? No! So, when next you are coming for any church meeting, keep these things in mind. And may the Spirit of God always strengthen you to do so. Amen.

Have a great week.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministry.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Categories
Fire in my Bones Youth for Jesus

He is on the lookout | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: July 17, 2024 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 7, No. 10

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

“For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.” (2Chron 16:9NIV)

What is the first thing we see in our opening text? It is that God is always on the lookout for certain individuals? And what sort of individuals is He on the lookout for? it is those whose hearts are fully committed to Him.

Now what we have here, of course, is similar to what our Lord Jesus says about Him. He says God is seeking those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23). Why is He looking for such individuals? As we further see in our opening text, He is looking for them to equip them. And what does He want to equip them for? He wants to equip with whatever they need to serve His purpose here on earth.

So, a man may not have great and shining abilities or opportunities to do big things in life. But if his heart is fully committed to God, He will take him up and equip him with all the abilities, opportunities, time and people he needs to do things that will shock those in his world.

Think of David, for example. What special abilities or advantages did he have that qualified him to be king over Israel? None! He was not the strongest in the land, neither was he the most handsome. He was not even the eldest son of his father. That explains why Samuel had already checked out all his elder brothers before he was eventually sent for. (Cf. 1Sam 16).

Now, of course, David had some abilities and advantages, and there is no man that does not have any at all. He could sing well and also play the harp well, for instance. And these abilities qualified him to be a top musician of the king. But did they qualify him to be king? No!

Nevertheless, because he was a young man after God’s heart, he was found and chosen by Him. Look at the way Samuel announced this to King Saul, when he began to misbehave:

“But now your kingdom will not endure; the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him leader of his people, because you have not kept the LORD’s command.” (1Sam 13:14NIV)

Did you see that? While Saul was busy doing his own thing, the Lord also was busy searching the whole land for someone after His heart that He may appoint to replace him as king over Israel. And in the process, He found David. So, even though he was but a boy, He anointed him with His Holy Spirit and began to equip him with the wisdom, boldness, skills and people that he would need to be the kind of king and leader he was meant to be. Then, years later, David would say this about how God raised and equipped him:

“For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great.” (Ps 18:31-35NIV)

Did you see that? David said that it was God that trained him to be a warrior and that it was His help that made him great. And all these things happened to him because his heart was fully devoted to God.

In like manner, if we will totally set our hearts on God, so that we may learn to please Him every day, He will equally set us apart to be equipped for great things in this life, regardless of what low place we are or how handicapped we may be. But are we going to totally set our hearts and affection on Him and on pleasing Him? Am I going to totally set my heart and affection on Him and on pleasing Him? That, as I pointed out before, is what will determine what things He is able to use me for and what heights He is able to take me to.

My prayer, then, for you and me is that our hearts will be daily drawn by the Holy Spirit to love God and to seek to please Him all the time. Amen.

Copyright © 2024, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)