Category: Fire in my Bones

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Fire in my Bones

Title: The Lord put him to death – J.O. Lawal

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

April 07, 2021 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 3, No. 47

“Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the LORD’s sight; so the LORD put him to death.” (Gen 38:6-7NIV)

In our opening text, it is reported that God killed Er, Judah’s firstborn, because he was wicked in His sight. How wicked was this young man? We are not told. But looking at the way the matter is reported in the bible, it is most likely that his wickedness was in connection with his marriage. At least, God did not kill him before he got married. It was after he had gotten married that He killed him. So, it may be that there was something he was doing or not doing to his wife that exposed him to God’s judgment.

Now you don’t have to accept that, for it is not plainly stated in the bible. But when you consider what is further said about his younger brother, you may want to agree with me that God most likely killed Er, not just because he was wicked to those in his world but also because he was acting in wickedness towards his wife. And what is it that is said about his brother? Well, it is said that when he was asked to take in his wife, Tamar, and fulfil his duty as a brother-in-law to her, so that she would have a son to carry on his name, he deliberately frustrated the process. (Cf. Gen 38:8-9)

Think about it. Onan did not refuse to marry his brother’s wife, Tamar, when he was asked to do so. Yet, in his craftiness, he made sure the woman could not get pregnant for him. Why? It was because he knew that the first son that came through that union would not bear his own name but his brother’s name, according to the customs of the land. But why did he marry her in the first place, when he knew he did not want his brother’s name to live on? Greed! (Cf. Deut 25:5-10)

See, if he had said that he did not want her, then, she would have been free to go and start her life afresh, perhaps with another man. But greed made him marry her. Yes, he knew that he had no intention of making her have any child through him. Yet he, like many young men of today, could not just let such a beauty go away. So, he decided to marry her to continually satisfy his lust and sexual appetites, while denying her the joy of becoming a mother. Therefore, the bible says, “What he did was wicked in the LORD’s sight; so he put him to death also.” (Gen 38:10NIV)

Why did God put Onan too to death? It was because he treated his brother’s wife, who later became his wife as well, shamefully. So, Onan was not killed by God because he was a thief, a murderer, an idolater or even an adulterer. Rather, he was killed by Him because he was deliberately cheating his wife in bed. What is that? Killing someone for cheating their spouse in bed? Is that even fair? Yes, it is fair. It is fair because the wages of sin, any kind of sin, is death (Rom 6:23).

Does that, then, mean God may want to kill me for cheating while sharing food among people, for using my house maid as I deem fit or for making marriage promises to someone I have no intention of marrying? Yes! But how is that His business? Well, it is His business because He is the creator and judge of us all. So, everything we are doing to ourselves and to others, good or bad, concerns Him, and He will judge and reward us for it. Exactly how He will judge us for these things is something we do not know. But He is watching us, our thoughts and our every move and will surely respond, in righteousness, to whatever we are up to.

Therefore, we need to be careful in all that we do to ourselves and others and see to it that wickedness is not associated with us. Otherwise, we may not find His judgment interesting at all, even if we live to tell the story. Yes, He is a merciful God. And that is the reason many of us have not yet fully experienced His wrath for all our acts of wickedness against others and even ourselves. But as long as we continue to act wickedly, there will come a time in which this merciful God must also show Himself as a just God and judge us (Rev 2:20-23). And since we can’t tell how severe His judgment will be, the best thing we can do is to stay out of trouble. So, stay out of trouble.

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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com / alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: The ships that never set sail – March 24, 2021

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 3, No. 45

“Later, Jehoshaphat king of Judah made an alliance with Ahaziah king of Israel, who was guilty of wickedness. He agreed with him to construct a fleet of trading ships. After these were built at Ezion Geber, Eliezer son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have made an alliance with Ahaziah, the LORD will destroy what you have made.” The ships were wrecked and were not able to set sail to trade.” (2Chron 20:35-37NIV)

We have very clear accounts in the bible that show us that carrying out investments or projects that will be successful in life is not all about having the resources and people to do so. It is equally about being led or guided by the Spirit of God. Otherwise, apart from the fact that we may end up losing our investments or projects or paying very invaluable prices for them, we may also never enjoy their fruit.

For example, in our opening text, we are told about how Jehoshaphat, who was a godly king, got involved in some project with Ahaziah king of Israel, who was nothing but a wicked man. What was this project about? It was about building some fleet of trading ships that they could both use to enhance their maritime business. And did they succeed in carrying out this project or not? They did.

However, God sent a prophet to tell Jehoshaphat that He was going to destroy this project and made sure he did not profit from it. And that was exactly what happened. The ships never left their shores, for they all got damaged right where they were. How this happened no one can tell. But it did happen, and Jehoshaphat lost everything he had invested in the project.

But why? Was it because God did not want Jehoshaphat to get better in his maritime business and increase in wealth that He allowed his project to fail? No! Rather, it was because he did that project with the wrong person; he did the project with someone that was operating under certain evil influences that were bound to make him fail. And if God had not predicted what was going to happen by the mouth of His prophet, Jehoshaphat and His people may never have known what was responsible for the failure of that project and the loss of their investment.

What is the lesson, then? It is that God is not just concerned about our lives but also about our relationships. So, it is not enough for our lives to be right before Him; it is also important that the lives of those we get into close relationships with are right before Him. Otherwise, they may continually be the reason our ships of progress or advancement will never set sail, not to talk of bring us great rewards.

Is this, then, to say that we, as children of God, must not associate with those who are not children of God at all. No! In fact, the bible tells us that it is impossible for us not to associate with those of this world at all (1Cor 5:9-10). As long as we are in this world, we will always have one thing or the other to do with those of the world, who do not know God. So, we cannot totally excuse them from our lives. By the way, this is not just about those who do not know God but also about those who claim to know God but who are still living in wickedness, openly or secretly.

At any rate, as long as we are in this world, there are things we cannot get done without those who do not know God and even those who claim to know Him but are living contrary to His will. But then, there are things we cannot and must not do with them, if we do not want to fail miserably or be polluted. Some of these things are obvious because we are warned about them in Scriptures. For instance, we already know from Scriptures that anything we will do with an unbeliever or even a so-called Christian that will make us sin against God or become irresponsible in our lives must be totally avoided.

However, there are certain things that may seem totally harmless to do with unbelievers or erring Christians. For example, building a fleet of trading ships with King Ahaziah seemed like a totally harmless thing for Jehoshaphat. But it ended up being a disaster. In like manner, doing certain things that seem harmless with some people may end up putting us in trouble because of their sins or certain evil influences at work in their lives. How, then, do we avoid that? It is by developing a culture of always committing everything, little or great, we want to do into the hands of God. That way, we can trust Him to always guide us into what is best for us and away from those things that will ruin us, even if they have an appearance of being the very best for us.

So, learn to always commit everything you want to do to God, instead of making your decisions solely on the basis of what you see or hear or your understanding of things. This will definitely keep you from facing problems that are never meant for you.

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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com / alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: Even if you have made a mess of your life – March 17, 2021

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 3, No. 44

“In his distress he sought the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. And when he prayed to him, the LORD was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD is God.” (2Chron 33:12-13NIV)

The world we live in is one in which we cannot totally avoid being faced with trouble. I mean that even if we are godly, of the best conduct and know how to relate to others in peace, there is still no guarantee that we won’t be faced with one form of trouble or the other. The only guarantee we have is that, as long as we recognise Jesus as our Lord, we will walk in victory over whatever challenge we may be confronted with in this world. (Cf. John 16:33; 1John 5:4-5)

However, in most cases, the troubles people face in life are brought upon them by themselves. Remember that Solomon says, “God made us plain and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated.” (Ecc 7:29GNT) And that is the case with many people. Through certain bad choices and foolish decisions, they are continually making their lives, which would have been full of rest, joy and meaning, bitter, horrible and meaningless. In short, the decisions and steps some people are daily taking are those that can only keep them in perpetual trouble and pains.

Notwithstanding, even if we have made a mess of our lives through our foolish and bad decisions and steps, we can still experience mercy, forgiveness and restoration, if we will turn to God for help instead of persisting in our foolish ways. And that is one of the things we learnt from the story of one of the kings of Judah named Manasseh.

Now Manasseh was one of the kings that reigned the longest over the people of God, Judah. He reigned over them for fifty-five years. But he used most of those years to do evil. This man was not only wicked to the people; he was also hostile to God. He would not worship God at all, though his father, Hezekiah, loved and worshipped Him all the days of his life. Instead, he worshipped all the starry hosts, converted God’s temple into that of idols, practised sorcery, divination and witchcraft and even offered his sons in the fire to demons. (Cf. 2Chro 33:1-9)

In short, Manasseh gave himself to doing everything God had warned His people not to do and led the whole nation astray. (Cf. Deut 18:9-13) And though he was warned by Him, he paid no attention whatsoever. Therefore, God gave him over to his enemies, so that they could do with him as they wished. They put a hook in his nose, chained him like a commoner criminal and dragged him far away from his kingdom to Babylon. (Cf. 2Chro 33:10-11)

That, of course, should have been the end of that man. But it was not. Why? It was because, as we are told in our opening bible text, in his time of distress, he humbled himself greatly before the Lord and sought His mercy and favour. In other words, this man cried out to God for mercy and help. And did He answer him or not? Oh, He did answer him. In fact, using bible words, God was so moved by his honest and heartfelt prayers that He favoured him and brought him back to Jerusalem and to his throne, so that he ruled and did exploits again.

But what if Manasseh had not called upon God in his time of distress? What if he had continued to relate to God in insolence? Would he have been saved and restored? No! But because he cried out to God for mercy, He answered him and showed him mercy. Mind you, we are talking about an evil and injurious man here. We are talking about a man that God accused of being more wicked that the former inhabitants of the land of Canaan. Yes, we are talking about a man that was accused of polluting the land with innocent blood from end to end. Yet when he cried out to God for mercy, He answered him, forgave him and also restored him. (Cf. 2Kings 21:11&16)

In like manner, if you too will cry out to God for mercy, He will answer you, regardless of what mess you have brought yourself into. And it does not matter whether you are as bad as Manasseh or worse than him. All you need is to stop justifying your wickedness or trying to save yourself. The one who tries to save himself will certainly perish, for no man can save himself. But the one who cast himself on the Lord will receive mercy, salvation and restoration, however wicked or vicious he may be. So, cast yourself on Him now that there is still breath in you, and you will be glad you did.

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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com / alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: He won’t listen to anybody – March 10, 2021

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 3, No. 43

“Please think this over and decide what to do. This could be disastrous for our master and all his family. He is so mean that he won’t listen to anybody!” (1Sam 25:17GNT)

The above remark was made by one of Nabal’s servants, who was quick enough to sense that disaster was coming for his master’s house and that if something reasonable wasn’t urgently done about it, they would all be doomed. But who was Nabal? Nabal, as the bible tells us, was one of the wealthy men in Israel during the reign of King Saul. And what made his servant make such a sharp and unkind remark about him? It was because his wickedness and bad manner were going to endanger the lives of everyone with him. So, his servant had to use very strong words that would make his wife appreciate the nature of disaster that was hovering over them and act fast for their safety.

But what led to all this? It was the fact that David had sent men to Nabal because he was having a celebration and had humbly requested that he would send something to him and his men to support them. And why would he do that? What relationship did he have with the man that would make him make that kind of request? Well, though he had no direct relationship Nabal, he did have a relationship with some of his men. (Cf. 1Sam 25:4-9&14-16)

As the account goes, while David and his men were wandering from place to place because of King Saul’s persecution, they had met certain servants of Nabal at Camel and had treated them very kindly, forming a wall of protection around them the whole time they were together. That, of course, was very unlike mercenaries, soldiers of fortune, which David and his men had become. They are usually known to be brutal and lawless, looting, raping and forcefully taking things that they are not given. But because David, who was the captain of these men, feared God, he would not allow them to maltreat Nabal’s servants, men who were merely doing their job, or steal from them. Instead, they treated them kindly and protected them.

Now naturally, if someone treated your workers, servants, children, parents, siblings or spouse well, you should hear about it, so that you can thank or appreciate them in whatever way you can. And you may, in fact, get angry with those involved, if you did not get to hear about such acts of kindness done to them on time. Unfortunately, that was not the case with Nabal. His servants did not even bother to say anything to him about the kindness of David and his men to them, even though it was the right and appropriate thing for them to do. Why? It was because he was a wicked and unreasonable man, one that would not listen to anybody but himself.

In any case, when David sent men sent men to him to give them something from what he had prepared for his feast, he would not answer them. Instead, he spoke harshly to them. And what was his excuse? It was that he had never heard about anyone called David. But did he find out from any of his men, if they knew anyone called David or if what those messengers of David had said was true at all? No! He did not even think about the matter. And that was because he was just being Nabal, a fool. (Cf. 1Sam 25:10-11)

Therefore, when David heard about the shameful way this man had conducted himself, he decided that he was going to wipe him and his household out for good and show them that he was not someone to be ignored or taken lightly. And if one of Nabal’s servants had not acted fast by telling his wife about the disaster coming on them, they all would have perished. (Cf. 1Sam 25:12-35)

Now think about it. Even when Nabal’s servants realised that none of them would be safe because of his bad manner, they did not approach him to say anything to him, good or bad. Instead, it was his wife that they approached. Also, when his wife heard of what was going on, she did not go to reason with him. Instead, she went straight to talk to David and persuade him not to act rashly and like a wicked man. And did David listen or not? He listened and repented of the evil he had wanted to do. In fact, he acknowledged the fact that it was God that sent that woman, Abigail, to prevent him from becoming a murderer.

But that was not the case with Nabal. Nobody, not even his wife, could talk to him or reason with him. And if what happened on that occasion had not happened, he probably would never have known how close he was to destruction, all along, because of his stubbornness and pride. But then, it was even too late for him, for God Himself would not tolerate his nonsense anymore and so took his life ten days later (1Sam 25:36-38).

What, then, is the point of all this? It is simple: don’t be another Nabal. Don’t be someone that nobody can talk to or counsel or reason with. Otherwise you may someday perish without remedy. Yes, it is good that we are firm and decisive in dealing with matters of our lives. However, none of us has what it takes to be absolutely correct or flawless all the time. Only God does. And that is why He often uses those around us to set us right and make us see the blind spots of our lives and be kept out of trouble.

This, of course, does not mean that we have to adopt every suggestion or counsel people bring to us. Rather, it means we are to have listening ears and be willing to see things through other people’s eyes. But if we turn ourselves into individuals nobody can approach or counsel, if we bring ourselves up to people that listen to no other person but ourselves, a day may come when, like Nabal, we will get into trouble and perish without remedy. And only God knows how many people, even His children, that have perished because they listened to nobody but themselves. So, watch yourself.

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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com / alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: His presence may not make Satan spare you – March 03, 2021

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 3, No. 42

“That evening, Jesus said to his followers, “Let’s go across the lake.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him in the boat just as he was. There were also other boats with them. A very strong wind came up on the lake. The waves came over the sides and into the boat so that it was already full of water. Jesus was at the back of the boat, sleeping with his head on a cushion. His followers woke him and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we are drowning!”” (Mark 4:35-38NCV)

If we are going to fully enjoy God’s best for us in life and also become all that He wants us to become, we must not be afraid of encountering challenges. Instead, we must be ready to face them and deal with them, bearing in mind that God has said that He would never leave us nor forsake us (Heb 13:5-6).

As we see in the bible, one major reason many of the children of Israel that Moses led out of Egypt did not enter the Promised Land was unbelief (Heb 3:19). But what made unbelief take root in their hearts? It was their unwillingness to walk in the light of God’s presence with them and embrace challenges. God was always with these people, as we are told in Scriptures, manifesting Himself in a pillar of cloud that was over them during the day and in a pillar of fire that was over them during the night (Ex 13:21-22).

Nevertheless, each time they were faced with any trial or challenge, they forgot that God was with them and started grumbling, to their own hurt and destruction. Why? It was because they were utterly ignorant of the concept of God’s presence with men. They thought that once God is with someone or once He is asking someone to do something, the person should not have to face any challenge or trial while obeying Him – God ought to have dealt with whatever challenge that may want to show up before it even shows up at all.

Indeed, God often deals with most of the challenges that are coming our way before they show up at all. And I am sure we may not get to know all our challenges that He solved without our knowledge until we fully come into His eternal kingdom. However, the fact that God is with us or has sent us does not mean that we are never going to encounter trials in this life. We will certainly encounter them, even while doing His will. But as long as we don’t allow the enormousness of those trials to make us so afraid that we forget to take recognise and take advantage of God’s abiding presence with us, we will walk in victory over every one of them.

Look at what we have in our opening text, for example. It was the Lord Jesus Himself that told His disciples that they should embark on that trip on the sea. And they obeyed. Not only that, He was also with them in the boat and on the trip. Yet they were faced with a strong wind that threatened to take their lives. How do you explain the fact that Jesus was in that boat and still some wind was bold enough to want to capsize it?

See, that Jesus is very much present with us does not mean that Satan is going to assume that we are going to take advantage of His presence. We may not just take advantage of His presence and instead try to fight him off with our strength, intelligence, influence and so forth. And that is exactly what he wants. He wants us to ignore or forget the presence of Jesus in our lives and seek to resist him according to our own understanding. That way, he can make a mess of our lives or faith, right in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In any case, though those disciples had Jesus with them in the boat, sleeping, yet a strong wind came against them. And when they saw that their efforts to arrest the situation were getting them nowhere, they remembered that Jesus was with them and woke Him up. And why did they wake Him up? Exactly what did they expect Him to do? We are not told in clear terms. But I suspect that they were not expecting Him to do anything different from what they had been doing. They just wanted Him to be aware that all of them were in danger and that it was not a time for anyone to sleep.

Now how often do we also act like that? We talk to God about our challenges not because we believe He can handle them or expect Him to handle them but because we just want to keep Him informed. In any case, it is better than not talking to Him at all or ignoring Him. The disciples called on Jesus in that moment of distress and He answered them. He got up and rebuked the wind and the waves, asking them to be quiet and still. And guess what? They obeyed Him. (Cf. Mark 4:39-41)

So, if you are too are being harassed or threatened by any wind of difficulties or challenges, you need to first remember that the Lord Jesus is very much present with you there. Then you need to take advantage of His presence with you by confronting those challenges in His name. And they will have no choice but to listen to you. But don’t ever think that Satan will always spare you because Jesus is with you in the boat or because He is the one that has instructed you to do what you are doing. That kind of reasoning will endanger your faith and put you at the enemy’s mercies. So, wake up.

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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com / alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: Oaths or Reputation – February 26, 2020

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 2, No. 41

“Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.’ But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” (Matt 5:33-37NIV)

One of our customers came to our shop one day to buy certain things. While she was being attended to, she started lodging complaints about certain items she had bought from the shop and how they did not serve her purpose. Then I said to her, “Don’t worry – we will do something about what you just said.” And in response to that, she said, “Walahi (I swear to God), I am speaking the truth.” So, I was like, “Come on, I already said we will take care of your complaints. Why did you still have to swear to strengthen your statement? That was totally unnecessary.” And she said something like, “I just want you to believe me.”

Now that reminds me of what our Lord Jesus says about making and breaking oaths. He says you don’t need to swear about anything, just because you want to sound truthful; just let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’ and your ‘No’, ‘No’. In other words, build a reputation for honesty and truthfulness. Don’t carelessly make commitments. Learn not to be in a hurry to give your word about things you have not adequately thought about or considered. Otherwise you will constantly find yourself disappointing people and creating a feeling of distrust in them concerning you. Then you may have to start making vows or seeking others that would put in a word for you before you are taken seriously in any matter by anybody.

But God does not want any of us to be that way. He does not want us to be twisted in conduct or unreliable. He does not want us to rely on the power of oaths or on the reputation of others in order to be taken seriously in life. In fact, He says that relying on the power of oaths to strengthen our words, especially if we are not in a court of law, is of the evil one, for it is manipulative in character. It is like you are forcing or manipulating people to take your words as true, instead of allowing them to judge the trueness of what you have said on the basis of your reputation. And that is horribly wrong.

Therefore, what you should be doing is building your reputation on honesty. Look, if people, as in a court of law, have to first make us swear by God or any other thing before they believe us, it means that something is wrong with our reputation before them. And we need to do all that we can to correct that impression. So, going forward, mean what you say, and say only what you mean. If people won’t believe you, then, they won’t believe you. In fact, most of the people in our lives take our words seriously not because of the way we sound or look; rather, they take them seriously because we have over the time built before them a reputation for honesty. And that is what you should work on in your life. Once you give your word about something, make sure you do your best to make it good, even if doing so hurts you. That way, not only will you be building a reputation for honesty before others, you will also be training yourself not to be careless in making commitments.

Copyright © 2020, 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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com/alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: Everybody does it – February 19, 2020

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 2, No. 40

“Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil…” (Ex 23:2KJV)

“You must not do wrong just because everyone else is doing it…” (Ex 23:2NCV)

Ask some people why they do certain things, and they will say, “Everybody is doing it.” “Why are you cheating on your wife?” “Everybody is doing it!” “Why do you steal from your office?” “Everybody is doing it!” “Why do you always go late to work and manipulate the time register?” “Everybody does it!” “Why do you use adjust the measuring cans and scales you use for your business?” “Everybody does it!” “Why do you drive on the wrong side of the road and still scream at those who are doing the right thing?” “Everybody does it!” “Why do you lie to your parents about the exact amount of your school fees?” “Everybody does it!” “Why do you now dress like this, revealing some portion of your private parts?” “Everybody does it!” “Why do you wear charms around and even keep magic tokens in your shop?” “Everybody does it!”

In short, the list of the things people do because everybody does it is endless. They just do things, not because they are convinced that those things are right but because everybody is doing it. So, their lives are run like a democracy, a system of government in which the majority wins the day. But the majority are not always right. For instance, why are most African nations still poor today? Is it not largely because the majority have been consistently putting wrong, inefficient and incompetent individuals in leadership positions? And I am not trying to undermine the merits of democracy by saying this. I am just trying to show you that things don’t become right because many people believe that they are right; rather, things are right because God says so.

Think of what happened in the days of Noah. Did the majority carry the day? No! Everybody on the face of the earth, except the family of Noah, was destroyed. Why? They were all wrong. Also, think of the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. If the majority were right, then, it should be the family of Lot that should have been destroyed. But that was not the case at all. Everybody in those two cities was wrong, except the family of Lot. So they were all wiped out by God without remedy. (Cf. Gen 6-7 & 19)

What is my point, then? It is that you should not follow a multitude to do evil. Don’t do things because everybody is doing them. Rather, do things because you are convinced that they are right and acceptable in the sight of God. That is what God expects of us, as we see in our opening bible texts. He does not want us to go in the wrong direction because everybody is doing so. He does not want us to ruin our lives, homes and future because others are ruining theirs.

Now, of course, standing alone in righteousness is often difficult and even dangerous. It may make you a target of all forms of abuses, hostilities and persecutions. But it is better to have God on your side and be right than to have the whole world of men on your side and be wrong. Remember that Paul says, “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Cf. Rom 8:31) So, don’t allow fear or a desire for the praise of men to drive you to join any train of multitudes of men and women who are ignorantly rushing to their own destruction in their errors. Rather, always take your stand with God in doing righteousness, even if you have to stand alone, and He will see to it that you are kept safe from every evil attack and also satisfied with eternal life, peace and joy.

Copyright © 2020, 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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com/alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: The little things of God – February 12, 2020

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 2, No. 39

“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?” (Luke 12:25-26NIV)

The book of 2Kings 20 gives us an account of how King Hezekiah, one of the greatest kings the nation of Judah ever had, became ill to the point of death and of how God sent His messenger, Prophet Isaiah, to tell him to put his house in order, for he would not recover from his illness but die. But instead for Hezekiah to readily accept that death sentence from God, he decided to pray to Him for mercy and healing. And did God answer him or not? He did. He answered him and even decided to add fifteen more years to the ones he already used. (Cf. 2Kings 20:1-11)

Now that is amazing, or what do you think? Fifteen more years to Hezekiah’s life! Just like that! I mean that God just added those years to this man’s life, just as simply as you would add a pinch of salt to your stew. Once again, I say that is amazing; it is just mind-blowing. And I can almost hear someone saying, “Oh, I want that. I wish I could have something like that.”

To say the fact, who does not want longevity. People wish for death on their sick beds or desire to commit suicide mostly because they consider their cases to be hopeless. They simply cannot see what joy, comfort or peace staying here in the world offers them again. So, they want to die and escape from everything that is troubling them and making their lives miserable. But if they knew just one thing to do to make their lives pleasant again, just one thing to do to take away their pains and exceedingly great sorrow, they would most assuredly tear whatever will they have written, take back whatever parting words they have said and say, “Oh, I want to live again and enjoy life too.”

And if you are one of such individuals, wishing for death to come to you now or wanting to kill yourself because of your miseries and misfortunes, I want you to know that you don’t have to die like that. That is because the life of peace, health, comfort and joy you want, which your money, influence, fame, education or power has not been able to give you, is something God is able to freely give to you.

Our Lord Jesus, as we see in our opening text, once while talking to His disciples about the need for them to do away with all forms of worries in their lives, said something very striking to them. He said, “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?” (Luke 12:25-26NIV) Look at that. There is nothing any one of us can do by ourselves to increase the length of our days here on earth by just one hour. Our worrying about this won’t even make it happen. Yet the Lord went on to say that increasing our length of days here on earth is a very little thing for God to do. A very little thing? I mean that is many people’s biggest problem. Do you know how much money, energy and so forth that people all around the world put everyday into staying alive? It is beyond comprehension!

Nevertheless, the Lord Jesus is saying to us that increasing our length of days is a very little thing for God to handle. Just as it was like nothing for him to add fifteen more years to Hezekiah’s years, so it is nothing for Him to add twenty, thirty, fifty or even a hundred more years to your time here on earth. At least, from what we see in the bible, people lived to be nine hundred years plus in the days before the flood of Noah’s time (Gen 5). So, it is almost nothing for God to add to your years. And if it is a little thing for Him to add to your years, then, what will increasing your resources, enlarging your business territory, bringing you a great husband or wife or giving you children of your own be for Him? Almost nothing!

All of this is why the Lord tells us not to worry about life or anything else in this life (Matt 6:25; Luke 12:22). That is because there is nothing that we need in life that is beyond what God can easily or readily make available to us. The only problem is with what we are going to do with what He gives us. The fact is that there is nothing God gives to some people that they are not going to waste on meaningless living. Even if He gives them a thousand additional years of comfort and rest, they are still going to waste them on nonsense. So, our Lord’s instruction to us is that we should stop worrying about those things that we need, which God already knows and can easily supply, but to put ourselves into taking our place in His kingdom and learning His righteousness (Matt 6:33; Luke 12:31). That way, not only will all these things that we need be given to us, but we also will have learnt how not to waste His gifts and blessings in our lives.

Copyright © 2020, 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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com/alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: Don’t fall in love with the wrong things or persons – February 05, 2020

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 2, No. 38

“King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter — Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love.” (1Kings 11:1-2NIV)

King Solomon, without doubt, was a man that was loved and favoured by God. In fact, bible accounts show us that when he was born, God actually sent one of His prophets to name him ‘Jedidiah’, which means ‘loved by God’ (2Sam 12:24-25). So, it is clear that his becoming king over the nation of Israel was not accidental at all. God had been looking out for him and nurturing him to be His king even before he was born. And having become king, he was blessed by God with wisdom, very great insight and a breath of understanding that is as measureless as the sand on the seashore. So he became famous, rich and powerful, more than any of the kings of the earth. (Cf. 1Kings 4:29-34)

However, even though Solomon was a lover of God, he had a problem, as we are told in our opening bible text. And what was his problem? Foreign women! Yes, it is true that Solomon had many wives and concubines – a thousand of them, actually. But he was not the first of the kings of the land to have many wives. His father, David, did have many wives and concubines. Saul, who was king before David, also had many wives and concubines. And God did not crucify any of them for that, even though that was never His original intention for mankind. His original intention is that every marriage will be made up of only one man and one woman. (Cf. Mark 10:1-9)

What, then, was the problem with Solomon’s many women? The problem was that they were foreign women. And the Lord had warned His people not to intermarry with such women. Why? It was because He knew that they would turn their hearts away from Him to the worship of idols and demons (Deut 7:3-4). Unfortunately, the bible tells us Solomon could not just handle his passion for these women. So, he held fast to them in love.

Think about that. Solomon held fast in love to what God said he ought to run away from. Why was that? Were there not enough beautiful women in Israel at that time? It couldn’t be. There must have been plenty of beautiful and graceful young ladies in the land at the time. Why, then, did he not content himself with them? We are not told. But from my own sanctified imagination, I could almost hear him saying to himself, “I know there are many pretty women in my land. But there is something irresistible about these foreign women. There is something about them that turns me on. There is a way they dress, walk, make up and carry themselves that beats what any of our ladies could handle. So, I just don’t know how I can stop falling in love with them, even though I know God says this is wrong for me.”

Doesn’t that typify the way many of our young Christian brothers and sisters reason today? They have been taught severally that if they must marry, then, they must marry from the household of faith – they must marry people who are not just Christians by mouth but who are also Christians by their actions (1Cor 7:39; 2Cor 6:14-16). But instead of looking out for wives or husbands among those who meet these requirements, they find themselves continually and passionately drawn to those outside the church. And they blame everything on love. I mean that they find the very people God tells them to run away from, as far as marriage matters are concerned, irresistible and tremendously appealing to them. These are the ones that measure up to their love tastes. These are the ones that delight their hearts with their ‘packaging’, ‘swaggers’, ‘romantics’ and so forth. They are just like Solomon, and like Solomon’s end will their end be too.

As we are further told in the bible, as Solomon grew old, those foreign women, whom he had clung to in love, utterly led him astray. They literally led him away from devotion to God to idol worship. And even though God sought to restore him to Himself, appearing to him twice to warn him of the danger that lay ahead for him, he did not repent. Therefore, He changed his mind about him and decided to tear the kingdom away from him. That, of course, was the beginning of the end of all that was good and pleasant about Solomon’s reign. (Cf. 1Kings 11)

Now why do we have this account in the bible? It is to warn us of the danger of desiring or falling in love with the wrong things (1Cor 10:6). If God has said that something is wrong, then, we must take it as wrong and not think that we can cling to it in love and still continue to experience an unhindered flow of His blessings in our lives. So, you need to separate yourself from that wrong thing that you are clinging to in love and stop acting as though you could not do without it. The only person you cannot do without in all of life is God. And if He has told you that your life is better off without certain things, then, kill whatever desire you may have in you for those things. And if you need to get the help of other godly people to do this, then, do so. Otherwise, your attachment or devotion to those wrong things may just be the end of the reign of peace, love, joy and fruitfulness in your life and home.

Copyright © 2020, 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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com/alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones

Title: A talent that became a problem – January 29, 2020

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus
Number: Vol. 2, No. 37

“And today, though I am the anointed king, I am weak, and these sons of Zeruiah are too strong for me. May the LORD repay the evildoer according to his evil deeds!” (2Sam 3:39NIV)

David, as we see in the bible, was a mighty man of war and great king. He was a man that was highly respected because of his love for God and love for his people. God Himself testified that he was a man after his heart (Acts 13:22). Then the bible says of his leadership over Israel, “David took care of them with unselfish devotion and led them with skill.” (Ps 78:72GNT) So, evidently, this man was one of the greatest men and leaders of all time.

Nevertheless, there was one man in David’s administration that he really could not handle, as he would love to. And that was the commander of his army, Joab. In fact, on one occasion, as we see in our opening text, he confessed that Joab and his brother, Abishai, were too strong for him to handle, even though he was the Lord’s anointed king. And that was because Joab in particular was a man that liked to do things his own way, even if it meant disobeying, displeasing or threatening the king.

For instance, there was a time he killed Israel’s army general Abner, in his quest to avenge the death of his brother Azahel, whom Abner had killed in a battle. But he did that without David’s knowledge or permission and without any concern for how what he did would affect his master’s integrity. Also, just because he was not pleased with the appointment of his nephew, Amasa, as the army commander in his place, he assassinated that man in cold blood. In addition, he killed David’s rebellious son, Absalom, even though David had commanded him and the other army generals to spare the young man’s life. And to make matters worse, he sided with Adonijah, another son of David, in his conspiracy to make himself king after David, when the king, by the wisdom of God, had already chosen someone else, Solomon, as the one to rule after him. So, you can see that Joab was indeed a thorn in the flesh of his master. (Cf. 2Sam 3:26-27, 18:9-15 & 20:8-10; 1Kings 1)

Why, then, would David not fix this man once and for all? Why did he allow him to carry on with his nonsense throughout the days of his reign over Israel? It was because of what it might cost him and his kingdom. First, Joab was his nephew, his own blood (1Chro 2:13-17). Second, he was one of those few men that faithfully stood by him and protected him with their lives during his years as a fugitive – David could trust him with his very life (1Sam 22:1). Third, he was one of his greatest warriors and the commander of the entire army of his Israel (2Sam 20:23). Fourth, he was one that was always ready to do any dirty work the king might desire to do (2Sam 11).

Therefore, Joab was a talent that was almost indispensable to David. Many things about his life and kingdom had been built around him. Therefore, getting rid of him or punishing him in certain ways may be as bad as bringing down the kingdom itself. And he knew it. He knew that he was not someone that the king or anybody in the kingdom could take lightly or dispense with easily. So, he used this to exploit David and to do as he pleased on many occasions, knowing that the worst punishment he probably would get was a scolding. But he really did not lay to heart the fact that David would not always be king and that the next king may not see him as indispensable as David had seen him. And so, when Solomon became king, he saw to it, as his father had instructed him, that the land was rid of him and other characters like him (1Kings 2).

Now what is there to learn from all this? First, it is that, as a leader, no matter how talented or useful someone may be to you and the cause you represent, don’t build everything you do around them. Instead, make room for other talented people that can be trusted too to work with you. Otherwise, if they are not yielded to the Spirit of God, they may someday grow wings and become a thorn in your flesh. Also, don’t give them reasons or excuses to manipulate, blackmail or subvert your authority. Instead, be clean and upright in all your dealings with them, so that if they misbehave, you will be free to judge them righteously.

And the second lesson is that you too must not become a problem to your leader, however useful or indispensable you may seem to be to him. That is because there is really no one that is indispensable; only God is. So, even if for certain reasons a leader you are manipulating with your ability or usefulness will not get rid of you, someday, some other person or the system you are working in will get rid of you. And God Himself will make sure of that, for He hates a heart that devises wicked schemes (Prov 6:18). Therefore, be wise.

Copyright © 2020, 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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com/alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)