Category: Pastor’s Desk

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 the second week of the month of October 2023. My prayer is that God will clear the way for you to receive and enjoy all that He wants you to have this year that you are yet to have, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now one of the ways to receive without delay what God has already given to you or experience His salvation from satanic afflictions is to take advantage of the presence of the leaders He has appointed over you in your assembly. As we see in Scriptures, among the reasons God gives us leaders in our various churches is that they may watch over us and also supply whatever is lacking in our faith by the power of the Spirit of God. So, they are authorized to say words that will change our lives forever, to pray to God on our behalf and receive answers and to also rebuke the devil and frustrate his works in our lives. (Cf. 2Cor 10:8; 1Thess 3:10; Heb 13:17)

However, we must learn to recognize the positions they are occupying in our lives and make adequate use of them in order for us to fully enjoy their ministries. For example, we are told in the Scriptures of how a widow ran to Prophet Elisha for assistance and got it. As the account goes, after her husband died, a man he owed began to threaten to take her two sons away as slaves. Now we are not told whether the woman first met their family members or friends to help out in the situation or not. If she met with them, then, they probably had no help to offer her. But she did remember that her family had a close relationship with Prophet Elisha. In fact, the prophet knew her husband well enough to be able to recommend him to anyone as a righteous man. So, she ran to him for help. (Cf. 2Kings 4:1)

Now did Elisha attend to this woman or not when she went to him for help? He did. How? Did he give her money? No! He probably did not have enough money to give her to offset her husband’s debt. But he did have sufficient spiritual authority to bless and multiply what she had, so that she would be able to pay her debt and also come out of poverty. And that was exactly what he did. He gave her a word of blessing that changed her situation forever. (Cf. 2Kings 4:2-7)

But do you know that this woman’s husband also could have taken advantage of his relationship with Elisha to receive a word of blessing that would pay his debt before he died? Perhaps if he had done that, he would not have died prematurely as he did. Who knows? In any case, his wife did what he would not do and saved the family from generational poverty.

In like manner, you too, by taking adequate advantage of the spiritual authority of the leaders of your assembly, may save your business, marriage or family from certain problems that have refused to go away. But will you do so? Will pride allow you to do so? Will timidity allow you to do so? Will your devotion to a life of secrecy allow you to do so?

See, there are many of God’s children that are suffering in their bodies, finances or marriages simply because they will not take advantage of the ministries of the leaders of their churches. And these ones may just die suffering, if they continue to refuse to do what is right. Look at what James says to us along these lines: “Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.” (James 5:14-15NIV)

Did you see that? Any child of God that is sick does not have to die on his sick bed, even if it is sin that is responsible for his sickness. All he needs is to let his church leaders pray for him in faith. And he will be healed and also forgiven, if he has sinned. Why? They are authorised to receive healing and forgiveness for him through faith in Christ Jesus. But what if he will not reach out for them for prayers? He may just die in his sickness.

Now I am aware, of course, that it is not every so-called church leader that is a person of faith and that can be trusted to do what is right for the good of the children of God under him. But inasmuch as you know that your own church leaders are people of faith and can be trusted to always work for your good, learn to make adequate use of their spiritual authority for your healing, promotion and salvation from every attack of the enemy. And may the Spirit of God continually fill your heart with adequate wisdom and understanding to do so, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a splendid week.

Copyright © 2023, 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 and Saviour. I am delighted to welcome you to the month of October 2023, the month of independence celebration for Nigeria. And I pray that God will fill your life and home with sweetness and rest every day of the month, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now, even though today marks the 63rd year that this country has gained independence, many do not see anything to celebrate in the fact that we are independent. Why? It is because our independence has not resulted in significant growth and development for us as a nation. And why has it not resulted in these things for us? It is largely because, as leaders and as those being led, we are not devoted to doing things that will result in growth and development.

See, growth and development don’t happen by chance or accident. There are things that make them happen. Yes, ultimately, it is God makes all things grow (1Cor 3:6-7). However, even though God is the one that makes all things grow, there are still things that He expects us to do in order for His life to work in us or whatever we are doing and make it grow.

For example, even though it is God that will make our babies grow in stature, wisdom and knowledge, we must give them adequate food, expose them to all kinds of education and also encourage them to exercise their bodies. Otherwise, the potential for growth in them will not manifest. And that will not be God’s fault.

So, if we want our country to grow and become great among other nations of the world, we all must identify those things that will promote her growth and devote ourselves to doing them. And this must reflect in the choice of leaders that we make during our elections. We cannot continue to choose self-centred, greedy and incompetent people as leaders and still expect them to do things that will result in the greatness of our country. It may take a thousand miracles for that to happen.

Similarly, if we want to grow spiritually, as God’s children, we must give ourselves to doing those things that will result in our growth. Truly, God wants us to grow up in our walk with Him. He does not want us to remain babies, having been born again. Otherwise, we will not be able to live up to His expectations in this world. And that is why He commands us in His word to grow in the grace and knowledge of His Son Jesus Christ (2Pet 3:18).

But God will not force spiritual growth on us. There are things we must do for it to happen. And we are told what these things are in the bible. We are told to give ourselves to the word of God, to prayer and to the fellowship of God’s people. And unless we give ourselves to these things, even God Himself will not be able to make us grow in our faith and in our usefulness to Him.

At any rate, the point I am making is simply that if we want any form of growth to happen in our lives, we must identify what we need to begin to do in order for it to happen. Now, of course, it may take a while for some kinds of growth happening in our lives to be obvious, even if we are doing what will make them happen. But as long as growth is happening in our lives, it will surely become obvious at some point that we are truly growing.

So, even if it is not clear to you or anyone around you that you are growing spiritual and in other areas of your life, don’t give up on doing those things that will make you grow. Instead, continue to do them. And at the right time, your growth and progress will become evident to all. My prayer is that God will open our eyes to see everything we need to in order to experience true growth and development in our lives, homes and country and also strengthen us to devote ourselves to doing it. Amen.

Happy independence.

Copyright © 2023, 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 forevermore from God our Father and through our Lord Jesus Christ. I am glad to welcome you to the last week of the month of September 2023. My prayer is that God will teach your heart how to make the most of all His provisions for you to live a meaningful and excellent life, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

One of the reasons many who are Christians don’t experience the power and goodness of God as promised in Scriptures is that they don’t commit themselves to learning from Him how to do so. As we see in Scriptures, the beautiful things God has in store for all those who put their trust in Him are beyond what we can count or imagine (Ps 40:5; 1Cor 2:9). And He is devoted to making us receive and enjoy them all.

However, we have to learn from Him how to receive and enjoy what He has provided for us. Otherwise, we may end up not receiving or enjoying them. For example, towards the end of the ministry of Prophet Elijah here on earth, God told him to go and anoint Elisha, son of Shaphat, to succeed him as the chief prophet in Israel. And he went and publicly anointed him, though not with oil but with his own garment, in his farm, as God had instructed him. (Cf. 1Kings 19:15-19)

Now Elisha, having been publicly anointed like that, could have gone around the country telling everyone to start calling him ‘Prophet Elisha’ and ‘God’s chosen one to replace Elijah’. What would have been the result of that? A sort of ministerial accident! Why? It is because even though Elijah had publicly anointed him as prophet in his place on the day he found him, the authority and power to function in that capacity did not come on him that day. Besides, though God had chosen him as a prophet, all that he still knew at the time was how to farm and not how to stand as God’s mouthpiece.

For Elisha, therefore, to be able to stand as God’s mouthpiece, he needed to learn. Otherwise, he may end up being rejected by God and replaced with another person, as it happened in the case of King Saul. And somehow, Elisha himself knew this. So, he left his job as a farmer, followed Elijah and became his attendant in order to learn from him how to become the prophet God had chosen him to be. (Cf. 1Kings 19:20-21)

Did that decision, then, pay off for Elisha or not? It did. That is because, as we are further shown in the Scriptures, on the day that Elijah was being taken to heaven by God, he made it clear to him that even though he had fulfilled his part of publicly choosing him as the prophet that would take his place, it was not in his hand to give him the authority and power meant for that office. That was God’s job to do. And if God would not do it, that would most likely mean that He had chosen someone else for that office. (Cf. 2Kings 2:1-15)

Thankfully, on that day, Elisha proved that he had learnt enough from Elijah to be able to see what he needed to see in order to receive the authority and power he needed to function as God’s lead prophet in Israel. So, he went on to serve God faithfully from start to finish. He did not corrupt or abuse his office as a prophet. Instead, he used to make life better for his people.

Unfortunately, the same thing could not be said of Gehazi, the man who later became the attendant of Elisha. Though he was with this prophet all the time and went everywhere with him, he did not learn from him anything tangible enough to be able to take his place as the lead prophet of God in Israel. Instead, he corrupted his way with greed and became leprous. So, instead of becoming what God had chosen him for, he ended up as a story teller in the palace of the king of Israel. What a shame! (Cf. 2Kings 5 & 8:1-6)

Well, in the light of all this, Lord Jesus says to us, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matt 11:28-30NIV) Did you see that? In order to enjoy rest from the Lord Jesus and become all that God wants to become in this life, coming to Him is not sufficient. We also need to humble ourselves to learn from Him, as Elisha humbly learnt from Elijah. Otherwise, our coming to Him may end up not accomplishing anything significant in our lives.

So, be sure you are not deceiving yourself but are truly learning from our Lord Jesus all that you need to enjoy the fullness of God’s blessings given to you and to become the person He wants you to be in this life. And may you daily be strengthened by the Spirit of God to take this matter seriously, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a great week.

Copyright © 2023, 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. Welcome to another week of the month of September 2023. I pray that God will find you highly useful in the week in leading many to experience the goodness of His Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.

As we are shown in the bible, one of the reasons our Lord Jesus had many people coming to receive from Him was that those that benefited from His ministry kept on telling their friends and families and bringing them to Him. For example, Mark gives us this report about a time when He came home:

“Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”” Mark 2:3-5NIV)

Did you see that? The only reason that paralytic man had a chance of being healed by the Lord Jesus was that his people brought him to His house. But they did not just bring him to the Lord’s house, they also did all they could to get him to see Jesus. And the Lord referred to what they did as an act of faith. So, it was not the faith of the paralytic man that the Lord considered in healing him but the faith of those people that brought him.

Also, John tells us in his gospel of how Andrew, having met Jesus, immediately went to look for his brother, Simon, and brought him to the Lord. And when he came to Him, He gave him a new name. He called him ‘Peter’. So, the reason we now speak of the great Apostle Peter was that his brother brought him to the Lord Jesus to experience His salvation and goodness. (Cf: John 1:40-41)

Furthermore, John tells us of how Philip brought his friend Nathaniel to the Lord Jesus. And even though Nathaniel was initially sceptical about meeting the Lord, his friend convinced him to come and meet him first before jumping into any conclusions. When he came, however, and the Lord gave him some revelations about himself, he surrendered himself to His lordship from that day on and became one of his apostles. (Cf. John 1:43-51)

Now though the Lord is no longer physically present in this world, He is always present by His Spirit in every meeting of those who believe in Him. And He is always there to teach, heal, deliver and transform the lives of those who are there. If you, then, have been experiencing His goodness and transformation in your life in this assembly, you too should be bringing your friends, family members and neighbours to Him to experience these same things and not be selfish. (Cf. Matt 18:20)

See, you cannot tell how much the Lord is able to do for those that you bring to Him. You cannot tell how your bringing them to Him will change their lives, homes and future. Could Andrew tell that his brother, Peter, would be used by the Lord in the mighty way he was used, when he first brought him to Him? No! But by bringing him to Him, he opened the door for him to become a mighty instrument of praise in His hands.

In like manner, by bringing your friends, families and neighbours to the Lord, you may just be opening the door for them to become mighty instruments of praise in His hands. So, as you go this week, begin to consider those that you are going to bring to the Lord among the people around you. And I pray that God will make room for you to lead them to Him and also fill you with adequate wisdom and courage to do so, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a splendid week.

Copyright © 2023, 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. Welcome to another week of the month of September 2023. I pray that God will rid your heart of every wrong thing that is making your relationships sour and also hindering your experience of His goodness. Amen.

Now one of the things that often make it difficult for us to have sweet fellowship with the people in our lives is selfishness. What is selfishness? Selfishness is going for what we want without showing any concern for how it will affect others. In other words, you just want what you want and are not interested in who gets hurt or destroyed in the process.

Selfishness, then, is the foundation of all the evils being done in the world. It is the reason people steal, fornicate, rape, murder, do money rituals and so forth. They are just concerned about what they want for themselves. They don’t care about what they do to have it and how what they do to have it is going to affect others. They are selfish.

Selfishness, as I already pointed out, is also the reason people cannot get along in their marriages, neighbourhoods, workplaces and even Christian assemblies. All they think of is what they want and how to get it. They will not think of how what they want and the way they go about getting it will affect those with them or around them. So, they are going to meet with resistance, which sometimes may be violent or costly.

A number of years ago, I came home from work only to be greeted in my street with a very terrible and unbearable odour. “What happened here?” I asked my co-tenants. “Why is everywhere filled with this kind of evil odour?” And they told me that it was those in the house beside us that emptied their septic tank straight into our street.

But why did they do that? Did they think of the health implications of doing so to themselves and the neighbourhood as a whole? No! Did they consider the fact the odour that would come from doing so would drive everybody in the neighbourhood away from their houses? No! They just saw that their septic tank was full and needed to be emptied. So, they emptied it into the street. And that, of course, made some neighbours call on some government health workers to visit them and give them appropriate punishment.

What is my point? It is that selfishness will make life difficult for you and those around you. This is why the word of God says to us, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Phil 2:3-4NIV) Did you see that? If we want peace in our homes, neighbourhoods, workplaces and churches, each of us must not just be concerned about want we want for ourselves but also about what others want for themselves.

See, when we are not just concerned about ourselves but also about others, we will demonstrate caution and understanding in our dealings with them. So, we will not take steps that will destroy them in our attempt to satisfy ourselves or become bitter against them, if they have to say ‘No’ to certain requests we are making of them. But if we are taking steps that are ruining other people’s lives or joy because we want to please ourselves or if we are making enemies of others because they will not say ‘Yes’ to certain requests (and not rights) of ours, we are walking in selfishness. And regardless of how high we rise in life, sorrow and pains will never be far from our lives.

So, watch your life for every form of selfishness and make sure you deal with it with the word of God and by the power of the Spirit of God. And may God strengthen you to do so. Amen.

Have a great week.

Copyright © 2023, 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. I am glad to welcome you to the last week of the month of August 2023. I pray that God will always see to it that nothing needed for your prosperity and peace of mind is hidden from you, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As reported by Luke in his gospel, our Lord Jesus once wept over the city of Jerusalem, saying, “…”If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace — but now it is hidden from your eyes.” (Luke 19:42NIV) What was hidden from the inhabitants of Jerusalem, as indicated by the Lord here? What they needed for their peace!

In like manner, there are many today that what is needed for their peace of mind and prosperity is hidden from them. And as long as it is hidden from them, they will know no peace of mind or prosperity. Instead, they will only keep wasting their time, energy and resources, seeking peace and rest where they do not exist. So, among the prayers you ought to be offering regularly in life is that God will open your eyes to see those things that are meant for your peace and prosperity, according to every day’s need.

What made the widow of Zarephath and her son survive the three years of famine that the land of Israel experienced during the reign of King Ahab? It was the fact that God opened her eyes to see what she needed to do for their survival. How God did this we are not told. But we do know from the bible that God specifically told Elijah that he had commanded this widow to take care of him during the famine. And because the woman acted based on what God had told her, she and her son survived the famine. (Cf. 1Kings 17)

Also, what made Jabesh come out of poverty and a life of sorrow and pain? It was the fact that his eyes were opened someday to see that if he would pray to God about his situation, things would actually be turned around for him. And when he took a step of faith and prayed to God about his matter, God answered him and made him more honourable than all his brothers. (Cf. 1Chro 4:9-10)

Then what made the woman with the issue of blood receive her healing, after twelve years of looking for deliverance in vain? It was the fact that her eyes were one day opened to see that if she could just locate our Lord Jesus and touch the hem of His garment, she would be well. And when she found Jesus and touched the hem of His garment, she was instantly healed of her malady. (Cf. Mark 5:25-34)

Now notice that in all the examples that I just gave, nobody told these people what they needed to do to experience their salvation, prosperity or healing. It was God Himself that revealed to their hearts what they must do. And that may be what you too need. I mean that what you also need to experience the promotion, healing or peace of mind that God has prepared for you may not be something that any preacher or prophet knows or can tell you. Rather, it may be something God Himself has to reveal to you personally.

Therefore, pray that God will see to it that everything you need to experience the fullness of His goodness in your life will no longer be hidden from you but clearly made known to you. Then pray that as God is showing you what to do to move forward in life or to experience healing or salvation in your life, you will also have enough wisdom, strength and boldness to act accordingly. And so shall it be, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a splendid week.

Copyright © 2023, 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 be yours immeasurably from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. I welcome you to another week of the month of August 2023. And my prayer is that your heart will always be strengthened to never replace the word of God with anything else in your life, so that may experience all of God’s good purposes for your life. Amen.

Recently, I was readying a book of a respected man of God and came upon a part of it in which he was trying to use his experiences in business to establish that his interpretation of certain things said in Scriptures about tithing and the giving of firstfruits was correct. And while nothing is wrong with using our life’s experiences to illustrate bible truths, we must avoid making the mistake of interpreting the word of God with our experiences. The one that must interpret what Scriptures say to us is the Holy Spirit. And He will not interpret Scriptures using our experiences or feelings. Rather, He will interpret Scriptures using Scriptures.

Now, as we see in Scriptures, God once commanded Moses and Aaron to speak to the rock that was before the Israelites so that water would come out of it for the people to drink. But instead for them to speak to that rock, Moses smote it with the rod in his hands twice. And did water come out of it or not? Water came out of it for the people to drink. But is that to say that the experience the people had then was produced by a correct handling of the word of God? No! (Cf. Num 20:1-12)

Moses and Aaron handled the word of God incorrectly on that occasion. Yet their people experienced God’s supply of water. But to show everyone that Moses and Aaron missed it, God told them that they would not make it into the Promised Land. And it was so. So, it is possible for you to handle the word of God incorrectly and still experience what those who are handling His word correctly are experiencing. But then, unless you are shown mercy, you will have to face the repercussions of handling His word incorrectly, as Moses and Aaron did.

In like manner, we may be handling the word of God correctly and still have experiences that are contrary to what His word says. Is that to say that our experiences can invalidate the word of God? No! What, then, is the problem? There is no problem at all with us or with the word of God in such situations. All we need is just to be patient and remain steadfast in handling the truth of God that we know correctly. And at the right time, our experiences in life will be made to agree with what God has said.

As we see in the bible, when Moses first took the word of the Lord to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, to set the Israelites free, things got worse for the people. But did their immediate experience at that time stop God’s word from eventually setting them free? No! His word still set them free. But Moses had to persist in confronting Pharaoh and his officials with everything God was saying to him until the Israelites were set free.

So, we too must keep on holding fast to what God has said about our lives and confronting our situations with it, even if our experiences are contrary to what He says. That is because our experiences cannot invalidate the word of God or render it impotent. But His word, if we do not give up on it, will surely change our experiences to conform with His good purpose for our lives. How long, then, shall we need to hold fast the word of God in order to experience it? We have to hold on to it till we experience what it says. And my prayer is that you will always have in you sufficient strength and courage to keep acting on what God says about every situation of your life, so that you may experience every good thing He wants you to experience in life, regardless of how long it may take. Amen.

Have a pleasant week.

Copyright © 2023, 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 forevermore from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great joy that I welcome you to another week of the month of August 2023. My prayer is that God will continually equip you with sufficient faith and patience to receive and enjoy all the good things He has prepared for you to prosper in life, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

One of the things we learn from Scripture is that faith in God alone is not enough to receive and enjoy His promises or provisions; we also need patience. For example, we are told this in the bible: “We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, saying, “I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.” And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.” (Heb 6:12-15NIV)

What is the first instruction we are given here? It is that we must not be lazy in our walk of faith. In other words, we must take our relationship with God very seriously, doing whatever needs to be done to build it up. Then we are told to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what God promised them. So, faith and patience, not faith only, must work together in order for us to fully experience the goodness of God in our lives.

Now Abraham’s case is used to illustrate this for us. Abraham, as we see in Scriptures, was truly a man of faith. However, in order for him to receive God’s promise of a son through his wife Sarah, he had to add patience to his faith. But Abraham was not always patient with God. He had to learn it in a hard way. When God first told him that he was going to give him a son and multiply his descendants through that son, he believed Him. And God knew that he truly believed Him. So, He counted his faith to him as righteousness. (Cf. Gen 15:1-6)

However, few years later, his wife, Sarah, grew impatient and advised him to try her maidservant, Hagar, to see whether God’s promise may be fulfilled through her. And he listened to her, without talking to God at all about it in prayer. Yet Hagar became pregnant for him indeed, making it look like they were in the will of God. But soon enough, they both realised that they had missed it. Why? Hagar began to cause trouble for them, doing things that would destroy their marriage of many years. And if he had not been willing to let his wife deal with the young lady, in spite of her pregnant condition, their home would have collapsed. (Cf. Gen 16)

But what led them into all that trouble? Was it unbelief in God? No! Rather, it was their impatience with Him. They had faith in God and were actually trusting Him for their own child. But instead of being patient with Him, they tried to help Him fulfil His promise to them. And that almost ruined them.

Well, much later, God would appear to Abraham again and let him know that he should have been patient. He told him that the son he got through Hagar, Ishmael, was not the fulfilment of His promise to him. So, he would have to wait a little longer for that son that would be the fulfilment of His promise to come. And when he did, Isaac was given to him as the son of God’s promise. (Cf. Gen 18&21)

Now I am sure it must have been a hard thing for Abraham to accept the fact that Ishmael, the son whom he loved and whom he had spent years taking care of was not God’s choice in fulfilling the promise of blessing the whole world through his offspring. But there was nothing he could do about it. He just had to abandon the innocent boy. And that is showing us something of the nature of pains we could bring into our lives and other innocent people’s lives through our impatience with God. It could be something that would not heal for generations to come.

So, if you truly trust God to fulfil all His good word concerning your promotion, prosperity, peace of mind, health, safety and so on, then, learn to also be patient with Him, regardless of contrary circumstances. Don’t try to help Him by stealing, visiting diviners or getting involved in adultery. That will only put you in trouble sooner or later, if it seems to be working. The only way you can help Him is to stay in His will. And I pray that your heart will be strengthened to patiently walk in His will all the time, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a splendid week.

Copyright © 2023, 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 and Saviour. I am delighted to welcome you to the month of August 2023. And I pray that God will open your eyes to see all that He has provided for you to flourish and enjoy your life and all that is yours in the month and throughout the remaining part of the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

After Abraham had sent Hagar and her son, Ishmael, away from his house, the two of them wandered in the desert of Beersheba until their water was gone. Then Ishmael began to faint right before his mother. And when she could no longer bear the sight, she put him under some bushes and moved some distance away from him to sob. (Cf. Gen 21:14-16)

But was that the best Hagar could do to protect her son? No! Of course, it was not a happy moment for them at all. They had just been driven away from Abraham’s household, where they did not lack love and comfort. To make matters worse, they were driven out with nothing but some food and a skin of water. Yes, they were no longer slaves. But they were free people without money, a home or direction. That was why they wandered in the desert till they used up all the water with them. And since they were in a desert, the possibility of getting water to drink was nearly non-existent. So, their situation was truly a hopeless one.

However, Hagar had lived for years with Abraham. So, there was no way she would not have learnt about his God, the Almighty God, who made him rich and also gave him a son in his old age. In fact, the reason her own son, Ishmael, was circumcised was that Abraham was a worshipper of this God. Why, then, did she not call on Him for help and salvation in that moment of hopelessness? Why did she give up and start waiting for death to take away her son?

Now we don’t have answers in the bible to these questions. But what happened to her shows us that it is possible for us to know a lot about God and to even have around us people who have witnessed His power and favour in great ways and still not remember to call on Him in our moment of need. And where this is the case, we may end up being swallowed up by our problems, if we are not shown mercy.

Hagar would have lost her son that day and maybe her own life too, if God had not shown them mercy. Yes, both of them were crying. But they were not crying directly to God for help. They were simply crying because of their pains and hopelessness. But God, who is rich in mercy, came to them, when He heard Ishmael crying, and gave them a word of comfort and hope. He told them that He would make Ishmael into a great nation. (Cf. Gen 21:18)

Then, besides telling Hagar and Ishamel not to give up on life but to look forward to a glorious future, God also opened Hagar’s eyes to see a well of water where they were in that desert (Gen 21:19). Think about it. All the time these people were crying and dying for lack of water there was a well of water with them from which they could get and drink as much water as they wanted. Yet they did not see it. They did not see it because their eyes were not opened to see it. And if God had not shown them mercy and opened their eyes to see it, they would just have perished in that desert, even though what they needed to survive was right there with them.

In like manner, if God does not open our eyes to see certain provisions of His for our enjoyment, progress or peace of mind, we may find ourselves suffering where we are meant to be living like kings. And there are many children of God all over the world that are suffering where they ought to be enjoying themselves. Perhaps you too are one of them. Then you ought to open your mouth and pray to God to open your eyes to see His provisions for you where you are, instead of considering changing your location, as many are now doing.

See, if your eyes cannot see God’s provisions for you to prosper in the desert, what is the guarantee that they will be opened to see His provisions in the so-called land of plenty that you want to run to? There is none. And would it not be a big shame for you to get to a land of plenty and still not be able to prosper? It would be! So, instead of suffering in silence like Hagar or thinking of running away, open your mouth and ask God to open your eyes to see all that He has provided for you and your household to prosper. And He will answer you and prepare a table of delicacies for you in your desert.

Have a lovely week.

Copyright © 2023, 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)