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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021 Pastor's Desk

Return to Him with thanksgiving | Pst. J.O. Lawal

from pastor's desk

Date: June 06, 2021 | Number: Vol. 10, No. 5

Beloved: welcome to the second week of the month of June 2021. May God’s grace and mercy overflow without measure over your life and through your life in the week and throughout the remaining part of the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now, while it is good to pray in this manner and expect God to answer, we also need to understand that if we have not been showing adequate gratitude for all that He has been doing for us, we really should not be expecting Him to do more for us. Of course, I am not saying that God will definitely not do more for us, if we do not show Him that we are grateful for what He has already done for us. He is God and not man. So, He does not always wait for us to thank or appreciate Him for what He has done for us or is doing for us before He does more for us.

Nevertheless, He always expects us to show that we appreciate what He is doing in our lives or has done for us. For example, Luke, in his gospel, tells us of how certain ten lepers came to the Lord Jesus for healing. And when they came, He did not drive them away. Instead, He had compassion on them and asked them to go and show themselves to the priests. So, they went, as He had instructed them. And as they were going, they suddenly realised that they had been cleansed – their leprosy had disappeared. (Cf. Luke 17:11-14)

What, then, was the most appropriate thing for these men to do? With my own little knowledge of things, I believe it was for them to go back to Jesus and first thank Him wholeheartedly for what He had done for them. Their condition at that time, of course, may not give them access to money or other resources that they could bring to appreciate Him. But at least, they could go back to Him and appreciate Him for their healing before they would think of what next to do with the new beginning He had given their lives.

Now did they do this? Did they all go back to find Jesus and appreciate Him for what He had done for them? No! Only one of them, a Samaritan, came back to Him to worship and thank Him for his healing. And the Lord, of course, was displeased with this and said, “”Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”” (Luke 17:17-19NIV)

That means the Lord actually expected all these ten men to come back and thank Him for their healing. At least, He was not asking them to bring Him money or anything else. And He did not collect anything from them before healing them, for healing is always a free gift of God. This, of course, is not to say that it would have been wrong of them to bring money or any material thing to appreciate Him, something He would most likely not collect from them. It would not be wrong of them to do that at all.

By the way, according to the Law of Moses, there were things anyone that got cleansed of a terrible disease like leprosy was to take to a priest, who would make atonement for him. That was why the Lord asked those men to go and show themselves to the priests. And as the Law also says, certain parts of whatever such a person brought would go to the priest ministering to God on his behalf. If it was alright, then, for a priest that did nothing for them to get well to receive offerings from them, what about the one that actually healed them? Was He not more deserving to receive thanksgiving offerings from them along with their worship? He was. (Cf. Leviticus 14:1-31)

But He was not expecting anything else from them other than their words of praise and thanksgiving. Unfortunately, only one of them came to give Him this. And it was only that one that came back to appreciate Him that received additional words of blessing from His mouth — your faith has made you well. What these additional words of blessing would mean in that man’s life only God knows. But he certainly received more than the other men because he came back to give thanks.

What, then, is this story teaching us? It is that there are certain things that we may never receive from God, if we will not learn to appreciate Him for what He is doing for us. And He is doing all kinds of things that our wisdom, money, position, fame or education cannot get for us. So, let us stop being ungrateful to God and instead start thoughtfully and wholeheartedly appreciating Him for everything He is doing for us, even with our resources. I pray that our hearts will be awakened and strengthened to always do what is right in this matter, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Do have a very pleasant week.

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Latori tabili Paitor

Pada tọọ wa pẹlu idupẹ | Paito J.O. Lawal


Ọjọ: Okudu 06, 2021 | Nọmba: Vol. 10, No. 5

Olufẹ: kaabọ sinu ọsẹ keji ninu oṣu Okudu 2021. Ki oore-ọfẹ ati aanu Ọlọrun maa ṣan lori aye rẹ ati nipasẹ aye rẹ laini odiwọn ninu ọsẹ naa ati ni gbogbo eyi ti o ku ninu ọdun yi, ni orukọ Jesu. Amin.

Wayi o, bi o tilẹ jẹ pe o dara jọjọ lati ma gbadura ni iru ọna yi ati lati ma reti pe ki Ọlọrun dahun, a tun nilo lati jẹ ki o ye wa pe ti a ko ba ma fi imoore ti o peye han lori gbogbo awọn nkan ti O ti n ṣe fun wa, ko yẹ ki a maa reti ki O tun ṣe jubẹẹ lọ fun wa. Mi o wa sọ pe o di dandan ki Ọlọrun ma ṣe ju bi O ṣe n ṣe fun wa latẹyin wa lọ, ti a ko ba fi imoore han si fun awọn nkan ti O ti ṣe fun wa. Ọlọrun ni Oun jẹ; ko ki i ṣe eniyan. Nitorina, ko ki i fi gbogbo igba duro de wa lati dupẹ lọwọ rẹ tabi fi imoore han si fun awọn nkan ti O ti ṣe fun wa tabi ti O n ṣe fun wa ki O to o ṣe jubẹẹ lọ si fun wa.

Sibẹsibẹ, gbogbo igba ni O ma n reti pe ki a fi imoore wa han lori awọn nkan ti O n ṣe ninu aye wa tabi ti O ti ṣe fun wa. Fun apẹẹrẹ, Luuku, ninu iwe ihinrere rẹ, sọ fun wa bi awọn adẹtẹ mẹwa kan ṣe tọ Jesu Oluwa wa fun iwosan. Nigbati wọn si de, ko le wọn danu. Dipo eyi, O ṣaanu fun wọn, O si sọ fun wọn pe ki wọn lọ fi ara wọn han awọn alufa. Nitorina, wọn lọ, bi O ti ṣe paṣẹ fun wọn. Nigba ti wọn si n lọ, lojiji ni wọn ri pe a ti wẹ wọn mọ — ẹtẹ wọn ti poora. (Wo: Luuku 17:11-14)

Ki wa ni nkan ti o tọ fun awọn ọkunrin wọnyi lati ṣẹ? Pẹlu imọ kekere ti mo ni nipa bi o ṣe yẹ ki a ma ṣe nkan, mo gbagbọ pe nṣe ni o yẹ ki wọn pada tọ Jesu lọ lati kọkọ fi tọkantọkan dupẹ lọwọ rẹ fun nkan ti O ṣe fun wọn. Lotitọ, pẹlu bi nkan ṣẹ ri wọn ni akoko yẹn, wọn le ma ni oore-ọfẹ lati ni owo lọwọ tabi awọn nkan miran ti wọn le mu tọ Jesu wa lati dupẹ lọwọ rẹ. Amọ, o tilẹ wa kere ju, wọn le pada sọdọ rẹ lati dupẹ lọwọ rẹ fun iwosan wọn, ki wọn to wa bẹrẹ si ni woye nkan ti wọn fẹ ṣe pẹlu ibẹrẹ tuntun ti O ti fun aye wọn.

Njẹ wọn wa ṣe eleyi bi? Ṣe gbogbo wọn naa lo pada lọ wa Jesu ri lati fi imoore wọn han si fun nkan ti O ṣe fun wọn? O ti o! Ẹnikan ṣoṣo lara wọn, ara Samaria kan, nikan naa lo pada tọ ọ wa lati juba rẹ ati lati dupẹ lọwọ rẹ fun iwosan ti o rigba. Eyi ko si dun mọ Oluwa ninu rara tobẹ ti O fi sọ pe, “Awọn mẹwaa ki a sọ di mimọ? Awọn mẹsan yooku ha da? A ko ri ẹnikan ti o pada wa fi ogo fun Ọlọrun, bikoṣe alejo yii. O si wi fun un pe, Dide ki o si maa lọ; igbagbọ rẹ mu ọ lara da.” (Luuku 17:17-19)

Eyi tunmọ si pe Oluwa gan n reti ki awọn ọkunrin mẹwẹẹwa yi pada wa lati dupẹ lọwọ rẹ fun iwosan wọn. Ko kuku sọ pe ki wọn mu owo tabi ohun miran wa fun Oun. Bẹẹ si ni ko gba nkankan lọwọ wọn ki O to wo wọn san, nitoripe iwosan jẹ ẹbun ọfẹ Ọlọrun ni gbogbo igba. Eyi naa ko si tun wa jasi pe nkan ti ko dara ni pe ki wọn mu owo tabi ohun ini wọn miran wa lati fi imoore wọn han si i, bi o tilẹ jẹ pe o fẹrẹ daniloju pe ko ni i gba lọwọ wọn. Ko si nkan ti o buru nibẹ rara.

Ka tilẹ wa wo lati ẹgbẹ miran, gẹgẹ bi ofin Mose, awọn nkan kan wa ti ẹnikẹni ti o ba gba iwẹnumọ kuro ninu arun bi ti ẹtẹ gbọdọ ko wa si ọdọ alufa ti you ṣe iwẹnumọ ẹṣẹ fun. Idi si ni yi ti Oluwa fi sọ fun awọn ọkunrin wọnyi lati lọ fi ara wọn han awọn alufa. Bi ofin na si tun ṣe tẹsiwaju lati sọ, awọn nkankan wa lara awọn nkan ti irufẹ ẹni na ba ko wa ti yoo jẹ ti alufa ti o n ṣipẹ si Ọlọrun lori ọrọ rẹ. Ti o ba wa tọ fun alufa ti ko ṣe nkankan lori bi wọn ṣe gba ilera lati gba ọrẹ lọwọ wọn, ki wa ni ki a sọ nipa ti ẹni ti o wo wọn san? Ṣe ko lẹtọ lona ti o ga ju ti alufakalufa lọ lati gba ọrẹ ọpẹ pẹlu ijọsin lọwọ wọn? O lẹtọ. (Wo: Lẹfitiku 14:1-31)

Ṣugbọn ko tilẹ wa reti nkan miran lati ọdọ wọn ju ọrọ iyin ati ọpẹ lọ. Amọ, o wa ṣeni laanu pe ẹnikan ṣoṣo ninu wọn ni o pada wa lati fun ni eyi. Ẹnikan ti o pada wa lati fi imoore han yi nikan naa si ni o ri ọrọ Ibukun miran si gba lati ẹnu rẹ — igbagbọ rẹ mu ọ lara da. Nkan ti ọrọ ibukun miran yoo wa jasi ninu aye ọkunrin yi Ọlọrun nikan ni O le sọ. Ṣugbọn o ṣa ri nkan gba si lati ọwọ rẹ ju awọn yoku lọ nitoripe o pada wa lati dupẹ.

Ki gan wa ni itan yi n kọ wa? Ohun naa ni pe awọn nkan kan wa ti a le ma rigba lọwọ Ọlọrun, ti a ko ba kọ lati ma fi imoore han si fun awọn nkan ti O n ṣe fun wa. O ṣi n ṣe oniruuru nkan fun wa ti ọgbọn wa, owo wa, ipo wa, iyi wa tabi ẹkọ wa ko le ri fun wa. Nitorina, ẹ jẹ ki a ye jẹ abaramoorejẹ, ki a si bẹrẹ si ni fi tọkantọkan, ori pipe ati pẹlupẹlu awọn nkan ini wa fi imoore wa han si fun awọn nkan ti O n ṣe fun wa. Mo si gbadura pe ki a sọ ọkan wa ji, ki a si tun fun wọn ni okun lati ma fi gbogbo igba ṣe ohun ti o tọ lori ọrọ yi, ni orukọ Jesu. Amin.

Ki o ni ọsẹ alarinrin.

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Fire in my Bones

Why they may not want to help you? – June 02, 2021

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

Series: Youth for Jesus|Number: Vol. 4, No. 3

“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.” (Luke 15:13-16NIV)

One of the excuses people who are living in poverty often give is that no one is willing to help them or give them anything. And it is true that many today who are in a position to support or lift those around them usually don’t want to do so. Why? A lot of times, it is because they are ignorant of the mind of God about greed, selfishness and generosity. But it is not every time that people do not want to support others because they are greedy, selfish or ignorant of the gains of generosity. There are times that they do not want to do so because they just cannot trust those they want to help with the help they want to give them.

For example, almost twenty years ago, a beloved elderly woman that I met in church tried to help me start a business by freely providing me with books to sell. She did that because she felt that the business, if managed well, would soon enough put me in a position where I would have access to more resources to function well in life. And I was so sure that I would do well with it since it was something I really loved to do.

But loving to do something is not synonymous to knowing how to do it and prosper with it. Many have gone into certain businesses or professions because of their love for them. Yet they failed and got frustrated out of them because they did not have what it takes excel in them.   

Well then, though I loved that business, I did not pay enough attention to what those who were helping me to handle the books were doing. I also did not settle down to create a system that would ensure that the business was progressive and protected. Therefore, before I knew it, the books were all gone and there was no money to pay the person that helped me with them.

Now, for a while, I tried to avoid the woman that helped me set up the business, giving her all kinds of excuses for not showing up to pay back her money as scheduled. And later, when I could see that what I was doing was getting me nowhere, I went to meet her and told her the whole truth. Did she get angry with me? No! Rather, she appreciated the fact that I opened up about the whole matter. She also encouraged me greatly not to give up and cancelled by debt. But did she give me more books to start all over again? No! Even if she had offered to give me, I would most likely have rejected the offer, out of fear that I might disappoint her again.

Consider, then, how this woman would likely treat any other person that came to her after my case for financial support or help? Would she readily agree to support them? I don’t think so. And would she not think twice before she would commit her hard-earned resources into the hands of someone that may prove to be unprofitable? Certainly, she would.

What is the point I am making, then? It is that you should not just be praying and looking for help or support to rise in life; you should also be preparing yourself not to waste whatever help God eventually sends to you. You may think your problem is that there is no one to help you or lift you. But that may really not be your problem. Your problem may be that you don’t yet have what it takes to handle that sum of money or job that God will want to make available to you. And if He should go ahead and give it to you, you may end being another prodigal son.

If we take the story of the prodigal son literally, what was his problem? Was it that he left his father’s house to go and stay on his own? No! On the contrary, it was that he lacked the wisdom and financial intelligence needed to manage the wealth he was given. So, he ended up wasting everything and shutting many doors of favour against himself. As the account goes, when he got into trouble, nobody but his father wanted to help him? Why? It was because they knew him to be irresponsible with money.

In like manner, there are many like the prodigal son today who are living in abject poverty, even though they are being well-paid at work or had in the past been blessed with well-paying jobs or great financial support from some friends or family members. Some even won huge sums of money in lotteries and so forth or inherited great wealth from their parents. Yet they are now swimming oceans of poverty that they created themselves. So, nobody is interested in helping them or associating with them. And unless they seek God’s face for favour and submit themselves to be taught how to be responsible with one’s resources, skills or education, however little these things may be, they may end up dying in that condition.

So, if you sense that people don’t want to help you or support you, even though you are praying for God’s favour, it may be that they just don’t trust you. You, then, will have to show that you can be trusted with more resources, a better job or a higher position by making the most of what you have and where you are now. Show everybody how much you can accomplish with the little resources you have or with the low state you are in. And God, who is watching you and who alone has the power to lift up, will consider you and move people and situations to lift you up in due season, if you don’t give up and would also keep yourself humble (Luke 16:10-12; 1Pet 5:6).

Copyright © 2021, 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)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021 Pastor's Desk

Judgment in the house of God | J.O. Lawal

Date: May 30, 2021 | Number: Vol. 10, No. 4

Beloved: grace and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. Welcome to another week of this year. I pray that your heart will continually be strengthened by the Spirit of God to remain true to the Lord and firmly established in His righteousness, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As the Lord has clearly made known to me, one major thing that is hindering the spread and reign of the word of God in our land is the inconsistency of the lives of many so-called children of God with His righteousness. In other words, more people are not coming to the Lord Jesus for salvation because they cannot see the fruit of salvation in the lives of many of us who claim to have been saved by Him. How can we tell people to come to the Lord for liberty from Satan and their sins, when we ourselves are still obviously living as their slaves? Who is going to take us seriously?

See, it is not that people do not want to be saved from their sins, bad habits, destructive influences, sicknesses, generational curses, poverty and so forth; it is just that they want people whose lives will prove to them that they can actually be saved from these things. And God has saved us, recreated us, filled us with His Holy Spirit and planted us where we are to be such proofs to them. Unfortunately, many of us are even ignorant of His intentions and purposes for us. So, we frustrate them by living lives that are totally contrary to what we are made to live.

This, of course, is not foreign to the church. Even in the days of the apostles of old, similar things were happening among God’s people. There were also so-called believers at that time who would not stop stealing, fornicating, swindling people, keeping malice, living in greed, cheating their workers or practising sorcery. There were even murderers, hypocrites and drunkards in the church in those days. Therefore, none of the evil practices we see in the church and among God’s people today is new or peculiar to our time. (Cf. Rom 2:21-22; 1Cor 5; James 4:1-2&5:1-6)

However, the apostles of the Lord of old have also made it very clear to us through their writings that every so-called child of God who is involved in these things is not only blaspheming the name of the Lord Jesus and despising His grace but also destroying the work of salvation that He is doing in the world. Therefore, such an individual can certainly expect a revelation of God’s wrath against him (Rom 2:1-11; Heb 10:26-31). And this not something that will be delayed to the day of judgment. Rather, it is something that he will begin to witness right from this world.

All this is why Peter says to us, “For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God…” (1Peter 4:17NIV) Did you see that? This apostle is not speaking here about the judgment that is coming on the day of the Lord. Instead, he is speaking of an on-going judgment of God that is taking place right here in the world. And he is saying those in the church also will not escape this judgment. In fact, it will start with them and among them.

Therefore, if you are deliberately doing things that are contrary to the righteousness of God, know that you are a candidate for God’s judgment. And how exactly He will judge is not something anybody can say. But from what the Lord Jesus says to the church in Thyatira and what Paul says to the Corinthian brethren, we know that God may judge His people with sicknesses, weaknesses, labour loss or even death (1Cor 11:28-30; Rev 2:20-23). And if you have not experienced any of these things, even though it is obvious that you are living in sin, you need to understand that God is just giving you time to repent. But if you fail to repent within the amount of time He has given you, then you leave Him with no choice but to judge you in His righteousness. And how that will end for you is not what I can say. So, repent now and also tell your partners in sin to repent. Otherwise you may end up being crushed under the wrath of God.

Do have a great week.

Copyright © 2021, 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)

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Fire in my Bones Relationship (Singles)

When primitive men are better | J.O. Lawal

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

Date: May 26, 2021 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 4, No. 2

“Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play the harp and flute. Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.” (Gen 4:19-22NIV)

We often refer to the first set of men and women that walked the face of this earth as primitive, and rightly so. They were crude, simple and unenlightened in many ways, according to the standards of today’s world. But these people were not stupid, dull or unintelligent. On the contrary, they were highly intelligent and sound.

For instance, as we are told in the bible, though Adam, the first man, walked around naked while he was still in the Garden of Eden, he was super intelligent enough to name all the animals in the world, as well as the birds of the air (Gen 2:19-20). So, you cannot measure the level of intelligence of someone or their ability to do big things in life merely on the basis of what they put on or where they live.

Another thing about the so-called primitive people was that they drove their minds to work in order to discover their various abilities and use them to make life better and easier for themselves. For example, in our opening bible text, we are shown how certain descendants of Cain, the first son of Adam, pioneered animal husbandry, music and blacksmithing. These were supposed to be primitive men. Yet they used their head. They recognised their skills and abilities and developed them. So, they laid the foundation for whatever good things we are seeing or enjoying today in those fields of life.

But remember that there was no well-established system of government at that time apart from the home. So, there was nobody to rely on to create jobs, build roads, provide housing estates, provide security or any of the things that we now rely on the various governments of our countries to provide for us. Everybody had to fend for themselves. Everybody had to examine themselves to see what skills or abilities they had and that they could develop and put to use to make life worth living for them.

Unfortunately, the same thing cannot be said today of many of us who belong to this so-called modern world. That is because we hardly use our head. We hardly consider what abilities, skills or resources we have at our disposal that we could put to use to make life worth living for us and others around us. That is why we often rely too much on the government, certain support organisations and just anybody we find around to set the direction our lives will go for us and how much of life we will enjoy. And as long as we are functioning like this, we will never stop being small people, individuals who are hardly adding any value to the world they live in. That, of course, will make even the so-called primitive people better than us. That is because many of them added much value to the world they lived in.

Now I am sure you don’t want end up in life as a small person. You don’t want to end up as someone who, instead of adding value to the world he is in, is always relying on others to do for him what he can and should do for himself. So, wake your brain up and begin to put it to work. Yes, like the primitive people of old, drive your brain to begin to consider all the possibilities that you can actually explore in life with your gifts, education, skills and whatever measure of resources you have. Then, as you see these possibilities, put yourself to work, to work hard and smart. And who knows? You may just end up being the pioneer of something new the world has been waiting for. Even if you do not pioneer anything, as long as you are exercising your mind to put whatever abilities or education you have to wise and significant use, it is unlikely that you will end up in life as a small or useless person.

Copyright © 2021, 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)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021 Pastor's Desk

You will always have His protection By: J.O. Lawal

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


Date: May 23, 2021 | Number: Vol. 10, No. 3

Beloved: grace and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Welcome to the last week of the month of May 2021. My prayer is that you will continue to be shielded by God from every form of evil, regardless of where it is coming from, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now I offered that prayer for you because it is in keeping with the word of God to us. And what does His word say? First, His word says, “If you make the Most High your dwelling — even the LORD, who is my refuge — then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” (Ps 91:9-12NIV) Did you see that? As long as we are living in God through Christ Jesus, no harm will befall us and no disaster will come near our dwelling places. Why? It is because He will see to it that we have His Holy angels all around us to protect us in all our ways.

But do you know that you have God’s angels all around you to protect you? The bible tells us that those of us who have come to God through Jesus Christ have come to an innumerable company of angels in a joyful assembly. Then it also tells us that all these angels are receiving instructions from God everyday to serve us. Can we see them with our natural eyes? No! But they are all around us, working hard to see to it that we are safe to experience a total fulfilment of the will of God in our lives. (Cf. Heb 1:14&12:22)

You can now see why the consistent position of the Scriptures is that disasters, terrors and oppression will be far from us (Is 54:14-15). And don’t miss the point being made here. It is not that bad thing will not want to happen to us. As long as we are in this world, Satan will always labour to see that bad things happen to us, whether we are God’s children or not. But because we are God’s children, we always have His protection through His mighty angels. And they will always see to it that regardless of what Satan does, the disasters he has plotted to bring upon us never come near us.

Remember what happened when the children of Israel just came out of Egypt. No sooner than they left that Pharoah gathered his army and pursued them. But the bible says, “Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.” (Ex 14:19-20NIV) My! Think about that! The angel of the Lord that was watching the nation of Israel saw to it that the Egyptian army could not come close to them. And He made sure this was the case until the entire army of Egypt that was pursuing them perished in the Red Sea.

In like manner, there are angels appointed to watch over you too. And they will always see to it that regardless of how close or hard the disasters or calamities or plagues or sicknesses sent by the devil come towards you, they will never touch or harm you. So, get rid of all your fears and walk all the time with the consciousness that you have your own personal guards sent by God to keep you. Otherwise, through fear, you may use your own mouth to bring trouble on yourself (Prov 18:21).

Then you also need to be devoted to staying in the will of God and walking only on the basis of His righteousness and not yours. Otherwise, you may just expose yourself to satanic afflictions. Why did Jonah end up in the belly of a fish? It was because he disobeyed clear instructions from God. Why did Lot lose his wealth in one day? It was because he pitched his tents with people who were living contrary to the will of God? And why did God permit Job to experience all the terrible things he experienced at some point in his life? One of the reasons was to show him that he had been walking in self-righteousness all along, thinking that his good works qualified him to earn God’s protection.

So, if we don’t want to expose ourselves to disasters, we need to take all of God’s instructions very seriously and also rely on Him solely for our protection and not on our good works. As long as we are functioning like this, even if certain people’s misbehaviour, disobedience or evil schemes should bring some calamities or disasters our way, God will always ensure that His angels are there to preserve us by shutting the mouths of the lions that are sent to devour us. (Cf. Dan 6; Acts 27)

Do have a lovely week.

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021 Pastor's Desk

A promotion that can’t be condemned

from pastor's desk

Date:May 16, 2021|Number: Vol. 10, No. 2

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I welcome you to another week of the month of May 2021 and pray that, starting from the week, you will, like never before, begin to experience divine elevation that people cannot condemn or despise, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now one of the things that will make it possible for people to see you get elevated and not despise your elevation is the obvious presence of the wisdom of God in your life. For instance, the bible says this about David, “So David went out wherever Saul sent him, and behaved wisely. And Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of Saul’s servants.” (1Sam 18:5NKJV) Did you see that? Even though David was a very young man when he joined the service of King Saul, he was made a commander over the soldiers.

But why was this young man made a commander like that? Was it simply because he killed Goliath? No! Or was it because he was a friend of the king’s son, Jonathan, who happened to be the crown prince at the time? No! Indeed, David, against all odds, killed the Philistine champion, Goliath. And that made him become a very popular person. Also, he was indeed a friend of a very powerful and respected prince, Jonathan. But all these things did not mean that he was qualified to lead other soldiers, who were mostly older men, or motivate them to success.

See, we are talking about leading soldiers here, men who were trained to face death anytime, any day and anywhere. So, David would need to be more than a prince’s friend to lead them. Also, he would need to be more than a warrior to lead them. He would have to earn their respect for them to follow him. And for him to earn their respect, he would have to show that he had what it takes to protect them and lead them in victory, regardless of the circumstances.

And that was exactly what he did. He behaved himself wisely in handling whatever assignment he was given by his master, King Saul. That means all the soldiers who were observing him could see that he was handling all the military affairs committed to him with wisdom and prudence. So, when he was set over them as their commander, they all accepted him as worthy of the position. Nobody thought of him as being overrated or as being given an undue advantage. Instead, they all celebrated him and submitted themselves to his leadership.

Now that is the kind of elevation or promotion you too need in your life. You need a kind of promotion that even those who hate you will agree that you deserve. And for you to have it, you also, like David, need to be conducting yourself wisely wherever you are and regardless of your age or social status. So henceforth, whatever task you are given at work, in school, in your neighbourhood, in your family or in the church, handle it diligently and wisely and not anyhow. Yes, make sure you put a stamp of excellence and wisdom on anything that you do.

And why is that important? It is important because people are always watching you, whether you know it or not. And how you handle whatever is under your care is one of the things that will determine whether they see you as someone that deserves a higher position in life or not. Truly, God does need people’s opinions to promote or elevate you. He can promote you with or without their approval. However, if you are going to enjoy your promotion and increase in usefulness with it, you need those around you to accept you as worthy of being in the position you are. Otherwise, you may end up hating that elevated position, when you are being despised by the very people that are supposed to work with you or cheer you up.

Thankfully, through Christ Jesus, we all now have access to all the treasures of wisdom, knowledge and understanding (1Cor 1:30; Col 2:2-3). And all we need to see their expression in our lives is to devote ourselves to God’s word and prayer. So, as you go this week, renew your devotion to His word and prayer, and you will be amazed at the way His wisdom will become obvious in your life in all that you do and at the way people will start accepting and celebrating your progress.

Do have a great week.

Copyright © 2021, 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)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021 Pastor's Desk

God and People | J.O. LAWAL

Date: May 09, 2021 | Number: Vol. 10, No. 1

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours forever from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. Welcome to another week of the month of May 2021. I pray that God, by His divine power, will fulfil all your good and righteous desires for the week, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

This week, it becomes exactly nine years that we have been meeting in this town as a church. So, first, we ought to thank God for calling us out of darkness into His wonderful light in order that we may fellowship with Him and His Son, Jesus Christ. We also ought to thank Him for making us representatives of His eternal kingdom in this world of darkness. May His Holy name be exalted forever. Amen.

Now, as we begin another year together in this wonderful fellowship with God and His Son, Jesus Christ, and with one another, there are two things I want you to take very seriously. First, take your relationship with God very seriously. Don’t forget that what qualifies all of us to be members of this assembly is our relationship with God. Yes, it is because we all are God’s children that we are fellowshipping together as one family and enjoying His love and the love of one another.

Therefore, above everything else, your relationship and fellowship with God must be taken very seriously. Until you take it as seriously as you ought to, none of us can be blessed through our fellowship with you the way we ought to be blessed through it. So, put God first in all things. And prove that by making it your goal to rely on Him for everything you need and to do what pleases Him in all things. As you do this, He will see to it that everything about your life is made perfect and that you do not lack anything you need to live a fruitful and meaningful life. (Cf. Matt 6:33)

Then I also want you to take all the people God has planted in your life very seriously, starting with members of your immediate household. Why is this important? It is important because it is the will of God for you. Read through the Scriptures, and you will see that God is always concerned about people and how they are doing (Ps 8:3-8). Even though He is God and can afford to ignore us or do without us, He still cherishes us and always wants to do us good. And that is because He loves us and wants the best for us at all times.

Since we, then, are His children, we are not expected to act differently from Him. In other words, we too must be lovers of people, just as God is. And we must be genuinely concerned about them, especially the ones He has put in our lives, and always consider how we may do them good. Until this is the case with us, we cannot be good ministers of Jesus Christ.

You know ministry is not just about serving God; it is also about serving people. To say the fact, it is because God wants us to serve people that He blessed us with all the gifts of the Spirits we have and all the resources we have access to, as His church (1Cor 12:4-7). So, we cannot claim to be serving Him, when we are not serving people. And we cannot serve people adequately and appropriately, if we are not interested in them and what is going on in their lives. Do you know that we cannot even take care of our husbands, wives, children, parents and siblings well, if we are not truly interested in their lives?

So, apart from your confidence in God, another important thing that will make you a good minister of Jesus Christ is your genuine interest in people. How interested are you in the lives and progress of your family members? How interested are you in the lives and progress of members of this assembly, with whom you fellowship week after week? And how interested are you in the lives and progress of all other people that are close to you in one way or the other? Your degree of interest in these people is what will drive you to seek God’s face for them and to also put to work the abilities, skills and resources God has given you in helping them.

If you, then, can see that your level of interest in people is low, you need to start praying to God seriously about it. That is because it is showing that you are not allowing His love in you to flow freely. It is love, God’s love, that makes us take genuine interest in people’s welfare. And where this is not flowing freely, we will hardly be concerned about others. Pray, therefore, that God will cause His love to flow freely in your life, as it ought to, so that you can be used by Him to bless all those that He intends to bless through you.

Once again, I welcome you to another year of great fellowship with God and with another and pray that we all will increase in fruitfulness and usefulness like never before in it, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a fabulous week.

Copyright © 2021, 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)

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Fire in my Bones

They stayed at a distance | J.O. LAWAL

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

Date: May 05, 2021 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 3, No. 51

“When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.”” (Ex 20:18-19NIV)

After God had safely led the children of Israel out of Egypt, their house of bondage, He told Moses to get them ready for a meeting with Him. And part of the instructions he was given was that the people should not come near the mountain of the meeting or go up it until they heard a long blast of a ram’s horn. Otherwise, death would be the penalty. (Cf. Ex 19:10-13)

However, when God eventually stepped on the mountain of the meeting, Mount Sinai, and the people saw His terror, they no longer desired to relate to Him directly anymore. In fact, they would not even go up the mountain again with Moses. They just stayed at a distance from God and His mountain and missed that fellowship experience that would have changed their lives forever. (Cf. Ex 20:21)

Now someone may ask, “Why did God appear to the people in that manner? Why did He have to show them His terror and make them sick with fear? He could, at least, have appeared to them in a gentle and yet majestic way. Then they would not have been so afraid of Him that they would not want to have anything to do with Him again.” Good questions! Good thoughts! But we are not in a position to choose for God how He is to manifest Himself to us. Rather, He is the one to determine how He will manifest Himself to us. Otherwise, His purpose in manifesting Himself to us will not be accomplished.

What I am saying is that God has reasons He manifests Himself to people. And it is the reason for which He wants to manifest Himself to them that will determine the means He uses in manifesting Himself to them. If we, then, do not want to miss the purpose of His manifestation, we need to look beyond the means He is using to Him. In other words, we should not get carried away by the awesomeness of the means He using to reveal Himself to us or get frightened by its terror. Instead, we should fix our gaze on Him. That way, we will be able to experience what He wants us to experience through His manifestation of Himself to us.

In the case we are considering, God chose to reveal Himself to the Israelites the way He did so that they would also know Him as a God to be feared. They had known Him as their saviour and deliverer, one that they could call upon anytime and any day for mercy and help and who would answer. But they also needed to know Him as one who must not be taken lightly, as one who could destroy them, as He destroyed their enemies, if they would not obey Him.

Unfortunately, they did not want to know God that way. They did not want to embrace Him as a God of terror and justice. So, they would not meet with Him or have Him talk to them directly anymore. Instead, they asked Moses to be the intermediary and mediator between them and Him. And that was how they lost the opportunity of knowing God personally and intimately and have their lives changed forever by their knowledge of Him.

Now there are many today like these Israelites, who do not want to have any intimate relationship with God. These ones have no problem accepting Him as a God of goodness, favour and mercy. And they have no problem accepting Him as a saviour and deliverer. But they have problems accepting Him as a God of justice and terror. What they want is a God that is good and kind and who will not punish sin or wickedness. They will be comfortable with that kind of God. But that kind of God does not exist. The true God must not just be loving, kind and merciful but also just and righteous. That is because it is not only His love and mercy that will change our lives and make them right but also His justice and discipline. And until we are willing to embrace His love, mercy, justice, discipline and whatever else He stands for, our lives will never be what they are meant to be.

For instance, why was Moses, whom the Israelites chose to represent them, different from them? Why did he end up becoming a man that God Himself commended as faithful in all His house? He too was a man like them. He too saw the same things they saw, heard the same things they heard and was as afraid of God as they were. But he had a burning desire to know God personally and intimately, regardless of the means He might use in making Himself known to him. Also, he was ready to embrace God in all His fullness, to embrace whatever was revealed to him about Him. So, he approached the thick darkness where God was in order to meet with Him and fellowship with Him. And that experience was not like anything he had had before in his life – it changed his life and ministry forever. (Cf. Ex 20-34)

If we too want our knowledge of God to change our lives forever, we must be willing to know Him in His fullness and regardless of the means He is using to make Himself known to us. And we must be willing to accept whatever He reveals to us about Himself, even if it is something shocking and awesome to bear. That is because, as I pointed out before, it is only as we embrace Him in all His fullness that our lives can be perfected. So, stop relating to God at a distance and stop looking for intermediaries between you and Him, especially since you are not coming to Him in the same manner as did the Israelites (Heb 12:18-24). Instead, freely and boldly draw near to Him through Christ Jesus and embrace all that He is showing you about Himself. And you will be amazed at how your life will be transformed from whatever it is now to all that it is meant to be.

Copyright © 2021, 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)

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Latori tabili Paitor

O ṣi le ṣe ju bẹẹ lọ – J.O. Lawal

Ojo: Ebibi 02, 2021 | Nomba: Vol. 9, No. 52

Olufẹ: ki oore-ọfẹ, aanu ati alaafia jẹ tirẹ titi lailai lati ọdọ Ọlọrun Baba wa ati Jesu Kirisiti Oluwa wa. Inu mi dun lati ki ọ kaabọ sinu oṣu tuntun yi, oṣu Ebibi 2021. Adura mi si ni pe ki aṣeyọri pẹlu irọrun jẹ tirẹ ninu gbogbo iṣẹ rẹ ti o tọna ninu oṣu naa, ni orukọ Jesu. Amin.

Ọrọ iyanju mi si ọ, bi a ṣe n bẹrẹ oṣu yi, ni pe ki o tunbọ fi ara rẹ jin siwaju ati siwaju si ni ṣiṣe iṣẹ Oluwa. Ki si ni idi? Akọkọ, idi ni pe ifẹ Ọlọrun fun ọ ni eyi. Pọọlu, ninu lẹta rẹ si awọn ara Korinnti, sọ pe, “Nitori naa ẹyin ara mi olufẹ, ẹ maa duro ṣinṣin, laiyẹṣẹ, ki ẹ si maa tẹsiwaju ninu ṣiṣe iṣẹ Oluwa nigba gbogbo, niwọn bi ẹyin ti mọ pe iṣẹ yin kii ṣe asan ninu Oluwa.” (1Korinnti 15:58) Njẹ o ri bayi? Ki ni gbedeke igba ti o fi yẹ ki a ma fi ara wa jin fun iṣẹ Ọlọrun? Ko si gbedeke igba fun eyi rara. Gbogbo igba ni o ye ki a ma fi ara wa jin fun iṣẹ rẹ. Eyi tunmọ si pe nṣe ni o yẹ ki a gbajumọ nkan ti O fẹ ki a ṣe ninu ijoba rẹ, ki a si ma ti ọwọ ọlẹ tabi imẹlẹ bọ ọ.

Nkan ti mo n sọ ni pe Ọlọrun fẹ ki a ma pọ si ni iwulo ni ijọba rẹ, ki a ma si ṣe dinkun rara. Nitorina, bi o ṣe wu ki awọn nkan ti o n ṣe ninu ijọba rẹ le pọ to, o ṣi le ṣe ju bẹẹ lọ. O le bukun fun awọn eniyan pẹlu ọrọ Ọlọrun, adura rẹ, ẹbun rẹ ati bẹẹbẹẹ lọ ju bi o ti ṣe n ṣe ni akoko yi. O kan nilo lati mọ lọkan rẹ pe Ọlọrun n gboju le ọ lati ṣiṣẹ siwaju ati siwaju si fun un, ki o ṣi bẹrẹ si ni rin ni ibamu pẹlu afiyesi yi.

Idi keji ti a fi nilo lati fi ara wa jin lati ṣiṣẹ Ọlọrun siwaju ati siwaju si ni pe gbogbo igba ni Ọlọrun, Baba wa, funrarẹ gan n fi n ṣiṣẹ. Gbogbo igba ni O fi n bukun fun awọn eniyan, yi aye wọn pada, tu wọn silẹ, wo wọn san, gbe wọn soke ati bẹẹbẹẹ lọ. Ko fi igba kankan su u lati ṣe rere fun awọn eniyan ati lati ṣe idajọ ododo ni orilẹ aye. Eyi i gan ni o fun Jesu ni oriya lati ma fi gbogbo igba gbajumọ iṣẹ rẹ nigba ti O wa ni aye yi. Si ranti pe O sọ pe, “Baba mi n ṣiṣẹ titi di isinsinyi, emi si n ṣiṣẹ.” (Johanu 5:17) Niwọn igba ti awa na si jẹ ọmọ Baba, a gbọdọ tẹra mọṣẹ.

Idi kẹta ti a fi ni lati pọ si ninu iṣẹ Ọlọrun, gẹgẹ bi Pọọlu ti ṣe fi ye wa, ni pe iṣẹ wa ki i ṣe lasan. Ki ni itunmọ eyi? Eni, o tunmọ si pe ohun ti a n ṣe jẹ pataki si Ọlọrun. Iwaasu wa, adura wa, fifi-funni wa, ṣiṣiṣẹ lati sọ awọn eniyan di ọmọ ẹyin ati bẹẹbẹẹ lọ ṣe pataki si, nitori pe O n lo awọn nkan yi lati mu ete rẹ ṣẹ ninu aye awọn eniyan. Eji, o tunmọ si pe Ọlọrun yoo pin wa lere fun gbogbo iṣẹ ti a ba fi tọkantọkan ṣe fun un. Awọn eniyan le ma kọbiara tabi yin wa fun laalaa wa ninu ijọba Ọlọrun. Ṣugbọn Ọlọrun ko ni fi igba kankan foju fo ohunkohun ti a ba ṣe fun un, bi o tilẹ jẹ pe a kan fun ọkan lara awọn ọmọ rẹ ni omi ni (Matiu 10:42). Nitorina, a ni awọn idi ti o gbamuṣe lati fi ara wa jin fun iṣẹ rẹ.

Amọ ṣe o wa ṣeeṣe fun wa lati fi ara wa jin siwaju ati siwaju si fun iṣẹ Ọlọrun, lalai ṣaarẹ tabi rẹwẹsi? Bẹẹni, o ṣeeṣe. O ṣeeṣe nitoripe a ko fi wa silẹ lati da iṣẹ rẹ ṣe. Oun gangan yoo wa pẹlu wa ati ninu wa ni gbogbo igba lati ṣe ohunkohun ti O ba fẹ ki a ṣe. Ki a tilẹ sọ otitọ, a ko le ṣe iṣẹ rẹ kankan rara, ti ko ba ti ipasẹ wa ṣe. Ohun ti o ba ṣe ninu wa, pẹlu wa ati nipasẹ wa nikan naa ni o le mu ete rẹ wa si imuṣẹ, ti O si tun le fun wa ni ere le lori. Idi si ni yi ti Pọọlu ṣe sọ pe, “Nitori pe Ọlọrun ni n ṣiṣẹ ninu yin, lati fẹ ati lati ṣiṣẹ fun ifẹ inu rere rẹ.” (Filipi 2:13)

Nitorina, a ko ni idi kankan lati bẹru iṣẹ rẹ ti o wa niwaju wa, bi o ti wu ki iṣẹ na dabi ẹni pọ to tabi dabi eyi ti ko le e ṣeeṣe to. A kan nilo lati ma rin pẹlu afiyesi pe a ko ni da ṣiṣẹ rẹ — Oun funrarẹ wa pẹlu wa lati ṣe e. Bi O ba si ṣe n ṣiṣẹ ninu wa ati nipasẹ wa, a le ma reti ki oniruuru iṣẹlẹ iyanu bẹrẹ si ni ṣẹlẹ ninu aye wa ati ninu aye awọn ti o wa ni awujọ wa. Gẹgẹ bi a ṣe kọ iwe rẹ: “Wọn si jade lọ, wọn si n waasu nibi gbogbo, Oluwa si n ba wọn ṣiṣẹ, o si n fi idi ọrọ naa kalẹ, nipa ami ti n tẹle e. Aami.” (Maaku 16:20) Nibakanna, ti awa na ba gbajumọ iṣẹ rẹ, lori gbedeke oore-ọfẹ rẹ lori wa, yoo ba wa ṣiṣẹ, yoo si tun mu wiwa rẹ pẹlu wa daju nipa oniruuru iṣẹ ami ati iyanu ti yoo jẹ ki awọn eniyan ma gboriyin fun.

Ki o ni oṣu Ebibi 2021 ti o larinrin.

Copyright © 2021, 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)