Category: FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2024

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Have a very splendid week.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Have a great August 2024.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Have a splendid week.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Have a great week.

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

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours without measure from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am pleased to welcome you to another week of the month of July 2024. My prayer is that God will remember every good thing He has purposed to do in your life this year and begin to do it without delay, so that His glory may manifest in your life afresh before the year runs out, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

One of the things we are shown in Scriptures is that God does not forget or overlook people’s good works. In like manner, He does not forget or overlook people’s evil works. Yes, if a wicked person seeks God’s mercy and forgiveness and also turns away from his wicked works, God will forget his past wicked works and not punish him for them. And that is because He is a God of mercy. (Cf. Ezek 18:21-23)

But as long as the wicked continue to live in wickedness, their wicked works will not be forgotten by God at all. And when the time is ripe, even if it is a thousand years later, He will surely punish them according to their wickedness. For instance, when Saul was king over Israel, God sent this word to him concerning the Amalekites: “I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy everything that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.'”” (1Sam 15:2-3NIV)

Did you see that? Even though several years had gone by, God did not forget the wickedness of the Amalekites towards the children of Israel when they just came out of Egypt (Exodus 17). Instead, He remembered everything vividly and decided to punish them for it during the reign of King Saul. And that is because He is a God of justice. So, if you are doing evil at the moment and God does not seem to notice it, the reason is that the time for your punishment is not yet ripe. When the time for your punishment is ripe, God will not forget to deal with you appropriately and adequately.

In like manner, if you are doing good and it seems that God is not paying attention at all, don’t relent. That is because God is never going to forget or overlook your good works. The bible says, “God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.” (Heb 6:10NIV) Did you see that? God is not an unjust God. He is not a God that will remember to repay the wicked for their wicked works but not remember to repay the righteous for their good works.

Some of us have had bosses at work that always remembered to abuse and punish us for our failures but never remembered to praise or reward us for the successes we brought to them. And that would have discouraged us in many ways. But God is not like that. He is not a God that remembers people’s bad works alone, so as to punish them accordingly. Rather, He is a God that also remembers people’s good works, so as to reward them accordingly.

However, God’s time of rewarding people is not what any of us can choose for Him. None of us is even wise enough to be able to choose for Him the time to reward us for the good things we are doing. He is the only one wise enough to reward us at the right time, when we will be able to full enjoy whatever reward He gives to us. And that is why we are told not to get tired of doing good, for God will remember to reward us for it at the proper time if we do not give up (Gal 6:9).

So, even if it does not look like anything good will come out of all that you are doing for the Lord, for His people and for others around you, don’t be discouraged. That is because God is taking note of everything. And when the time is ripe, He will surely remember to reward you. But if you have allowed discouragement to set in because you cannot see any immediate reward from God for what you are doing, know that He will not remember to reward you for good works that you have not done for Him. So, don’t give up on doing good. Instead, continually do more and more. And I pray that nothing will corrupt your good works and make you lose the rewards meant for them, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a great week.

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

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours abundantly from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am happy to welcome you to the second week of the month of July 2024. I pray that your heart will be daily strengthened to remain true to the Lord, even if everyone around you is failing Him. Amen.

As our Lord Jesus points out to us, one the things that will show that we are truly His disciples is our readiness to hate the people that are close to us. Look at the way Luke puts this in his gospel:

“Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters — yes, even his own life — he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”” (Luke 14:25-27NIV)

Did you see that? Anyone that will be a true disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ must hate his own father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters and even his own life. But is that not contrary to the message of love that Jesus Christ is preaching? No!

See, when the Lord says these things, He does not mean that we are not to love our people at all. Remember that He Himself tells us to love and pray for our enemies. And if He wants us to love and pray for our enemies and even those who persecute us, will He not want us to love our families and friends more? He will. (Cf. Matt 5:43-48)

So, when He said that we must hate our own people in order to be His disciples, He does not mean that we are not to relate to them in love. Rather, He means that we must love and take Him more seriously than them. In other words, He must always come first in our lives. And if He comes first in our lives, then, if our family members or friends are doing something contrary to His will, we will not join them. Instead, we will take our stand against them.

For example, when Moses wanted to judge the children of Israel for making an idol of gold for themselves to worship in place of God and losing control of themselves in their crazy partying, He asked the people, “Who is on the Lord’s side?” And all the Levites came to his side. Then he gave them the Lord’s command, which was that they were to take their swords and go through the camp of Israel, killing everyone that had not become sober, even if the person was their family member, friend or neighbour. And they did. (Cf. Ex 32:25-28)

Now could it have been easy for those Levites to kill their own parents, children, brothers, sisters, friends or neighbours that day? No! That was a heavy cross for them to carry, for they would have to live with the memory of killing their own people for the rest of their earthly lives. But because they loved God more, they killed them. And because they did that, the bible goes on to say this: “Then Moses said, “You have been set apart to the LORD today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day.”” (Ex 32:29NIV)

Can you now see why God chose the tribe of Levi out of all the tribes of Israel to reveal Himself to them so that they may serve Him in His temple? It was all because they hated their own family members, friends and neighbours in order to honour God. And the Lord Jesus is telling us that we too must be prepared to function in the same spirit, if we want to be His disciples indeed.

This, of course, does not mean that we too have be willing to kill our own family members or friends, just because we want to show our love for God or our Lord Jesus. Unfortunately, there are still religions in the world today who think killing others for God is a great way to show their love for Him. But God is not asking anyone to kill anybody for Him today. That is because He has already offered Jesus as a sacrifice for us all.

However, what He is asking us is to be willing to stand against anything that He is against, even if it is our own flesh and blood that is involved. And are we willing to do that? Are we willing to go against our parents, brothers, sisters, friends, wives, husbands and children, if they are walking contrary to the will of God? It is only those who are ever ready to do this that are true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, not those who are saying they are His disciples with words of mouth only. And I pray that we all will be strengthened by the Spirit of God to be ready every day to bear whatever cross we have to carry to be true disciples of the Lord Jesus. Amen.

Have a great week.

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

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the last day of this month and also to the first week of the month of July that we are about to enter. My prayer is that you will experience the glory of God in your life in ways beyond your imagination in the week and all through the new month ahead of us, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now I want to admonish you about the importance of taking your own personal relationship with God very seriously instead of relying on the relationship of others with Him in order to enjoy Him. I am drawing your attention to this because there are many so-called believers in Christ Jesus today who rely solely on the faith of their church leaders in God or on the faith of certain members of their families in God for their progress or protection in life. And that can be very dangerous for them.

For instance, we are told this in the bible about a king of Judah called Joash: “Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the years of Jehoiada the priest.” (2Chron 24:2NIV) Why did this man do what was right in the eyes of the Lord during the years of Jehoiada the priest? It was because this priest was guiding him in the path of righteousness. We are even told in the account of his life that it was this priest that chose the two wives he married for him (2Chro 24:3).

However, after the death of this priest, things changed for Joash. He forsook the Lord and began to do things as he pleased. Look at what is said in the bible about that:

“After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them. They abandoned the temple of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and worshiped Asherah poles and idols. Because of their guilt, God’s anger came upon Judah and Jerusalem. Although the LORD sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen.” (2Chron 24:17-19NIV)

Did you see that? After the death of Jehoiada, Joash was enticed by the leaders of the land into idolatry. And he followed them. Why did he follow them? He followed them because he himself did not have any serious personal relationship with God. So, he did whatever he did for God before that time because of Jehoiada and not because he truly believed in God or loved Him. That means he was simply doing eye-service. He was trying to please Jehoiada because he was the one that did not allow him to be killed when he was but an infant and also because he was the one that raised him and made it possible for him to be king. (Cf. 2Chro 22- 23)

But when the man died, and he no longer had any reason to please him, he abandoned God and followed others into idolatry. So, his reign was cut short and he died an untimely death. And this, as I said before, is showing us that it is important that we have our own personal relationship with God. In other words, don’t serve God, go for church meetings or act like a holy person simply because you are trying to please your parents, friends, husband, wife or employer. Instead, serve God and live a holy life because you have come to know Him as one that is truly worthy of your worship. Otherwise, a time will surely come when it will become clear to everyone that you have been a fraud all along.

More so, if you do not have your own personal relationship with God and are just living off the goodness of God in the lives of others, a time may come when their faith in God will only work for them and will not be able to work for you. Look at what God Himself has to say about this:

“The word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, if a country sins against me by being unfaithful and I stretch out my hand against it to cut off its food supply and send famine upon it and kill its men and their animals, even if these three men — Noah, Daniel and Job — were in it, they could save only themselves by their righteousness, declares the Sovereign LORD.”” (Ezek 14:12-14NIV)

I am sure you can now see the explanation for the untimely death of all the children of Job in one day (Job 1). All along, they had been sustained by the faith of their father in God. But his faith could not protect them from the devil on the day that he came to strike the family; his faith could only protect him. What if they had taken God as seriously as he had taken God? Then the story would most likely have ended differently. So, have your faith in God instead of relying on the faith of others in Him. Then even if the faith of others in Him fail or become weak, your own faith in Him will take you over.

Have a love week.

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

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours without measure from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you to the last week of the month of June 2024. My prayer is that God will see to it that every good thing that is meant to be yours in the month is yours before the month ends, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we go this week, I want to admonish you with some of the words of Paul to the Corinthian brethren about the Macedonian brethren, which say:

“And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will.” (2Cor 8:1-5NIV)

What does the apostle want the Corinthians to know about the Macedonian churches? He wants them to know about a special kind of grace God has given to them. And what kind of grace is that? It is the grace of giving. But could be that it was only the Macedonian churches that were giving to aid the Lord’s work at the time Paul wrote this letter? No! Why, then, was he drawing the attention of other believers to their giving? It was because their kind of giving was unusual and challenging.

As Paul points out, the Macedonian brethren were not devoted to giving to the apostles and other people of God because they were very rich or because they were richer than the other churches of God. On the contrary, at the time he wrote this letter, most of those brethren were dealing with extreme poverty. We would not know what occasioned their poverty at the time. Nevertheless, they gave joyfully and generously to aid Paul and his companions in supporting other people of God.

In fact, as Paul goes on to show us in the text above, these brethren gave beyond their financial conditions at the time. Not only that, they begged this apostle to permit them to give. That means, based on their financial conditions at the time, Paul would not have wanted them to give him or others anything at all. But they begged him not to deny them the opportunity of giving to God in this manner. You can, then, see why Paul was drawing the attention of other churches of God to what these people did. It was unusually inspiring and challenging.

But why did these brethren give in that manner? Why would anybody give generously and joyfully in their moment of lack? The only explanation for that is that the love of God has taken over that person. See, one of the things that will let us know that God has completely possessed someone with His love is that the person will want to give Him anything and everything. That person will not be looking at what he has or does not have in giving; rather, he will be looking at the needs that God wants him to meet.

Look at the widow of Zarephath, for example. As we see in the bible, before Elijah came to stay with her, God had already spoken to her about him and the need for her to take care of him for Him. But what did the woman have at the time? It was just a handful of flour and some oil. What she had was not even enough to prepare a single meal for her and her only son. Yet God told her to take care of His servant that He was sending to her. And did she obey God or not? She did! Why? First, she loved God enough to give Him anything He wanted from her. Second, she trusted God enough to take care of her and her son, even if they gave Him all that they had left with them. And did God fail or disappoint her? No! (Cf. 1Kings 17)

In like manner, the Macedonian brethren gave for God’s work the way they did because they loved and trusted Him. And why were they able to love and trust Him like that? It was because they allowed His grace to work in their lives, fill them with His love and destroy selfishness in them.

Now if we too will allow God’s grace, His divine provisions to work in our lives, to change us, to melt our fears and to destroy all forms of selfishness in us, we will have no problem again loving and trusting Him wholeheartedly. And as we love and trust Him wholeheartedly, like the Macedonian churches, we too will find ourselves giving to Him in ways that will challenge the hearts of others and also open all kinds of doors of miraculous supply to us. Will you, then, let His grace work in you and destroy your selfishness and all the excuses you have been making for not being generous?

Do have a splendid week.

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