Category: Pastor’s Desk

Title: The right attitude towards rebuke

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date February 21, 2026
No Comments on Title: The right attitude towards rebuke

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 43

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 last week of this month, the month of February 2026. My prayer is that God will always keep your heart humble to receive His word, even if it is a word of rebuke, so that His purpose for your life may be fully realised. Amen.

One of the things that are difficult for us to receive from God is a word of rebuke. We often don’t find it hard to accept His word of blessing or praise. But when He decides to rebuke us, we may get angry with Him or with the people that He is using to rebuke us. And that will surely hinder the fulfilment of His purpose in our lives or expose us to judgment.

As we see in Scriptures, God does not rebuke us because He just delights in condemning us or our works. Rather, He rebukes us when we are wrong. And that is so that we may repent and not expose ourselves to His judgment. Our attitude towards His rebuke, then, is what will tell whether His word of rebuke will do our lives good or not.

For example, even though King Asa had been a godly king, when God rebuked him for putting his trust in men instead of in Him, he got angry. He was so angry with God that he put the prophet God had sent to him in jail and also oppressed some of the people of his land. Therefore, the word of rebuke sent to him could not do him any good and turn him away from the path of destruction. No wonder he died sick and before his time. (Cf. 2Chro 16)

But then, to one’s surprise, when God sent a word of rebuke through Prophet Elijah to King Ahab, that wicked king, he accepted it humbly. The word so humbled him that he tore his clothes, fasted and went around meekly. So, instead for God to judge him immediately, He postponed the judgment to the time of his son. (Cf. 1Kings 21)

Now you can see that you can be known as a righteous person and yet have a bad attitude towards rebuke. Yet someone that is known for being wicked or useless may have a good attitude towards it. And where this is the case, that so-called bad person will experience the mercy of God for forgiveness and preservation.

But you, with your so-called righteousness, will miss out on His goodness because of your stubbornness and bad attitude towards His word of rebuke.So, anytime you are being rebuked by God for doing what is wrong or inappropriate, accept it with meekness. Don’t argue. Don’t try to justify yourself. Yes, the person God is using to rebuke you may be harsh. Yet accept the word of rebuke coming to you, as long as it is the truth. And even though you think that you have been misrepresented, still be meek enough to first listen to any word of rebuke coming to you before explaining yourself.

That way, you will not present yourself as stubborn and expose yourself to God’s judgment.Remember that you don’t know everything. None of us knows everything. Only God does. And if He will be able to perfect His purpose in our lives, we must have the right attitude towards rebuke. Otherwise, we may end up like King Asa. May that not be our lot in life, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a lovely week.

Copyright © 2026, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 08146472876)

From Pastor's Desk 2026 Pastor's Desk

Title: When God left him to test him

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date February 14, 2026

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 42

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 February 2026.

My prayer is that God will readily fill your heart with sufficient wisdom and humility to always make choices that will please Him and that will not put you and others in your life in trouble. Amen.As we know through the bible, King Hezekiah was one of the few kings of Judah that served God faithfully and wholeheartedly. So, God blessed him greatly and also granted him rest from all his enemies.

Nevertheless, this is what is written in the bible about how God tested him towards the end of his reign:“But when envoys were sent by the rulers of Babylon to ask him about the miraculous sign that had occurred in the land, God left him to test him and to know everything that was in his heart.” (2Chronicles 32:31NIV) Why would God leave Hezekiah to test him and to know all that was in his heart? Did God really need to test him in order to know what was in his heart? No! God already knew what was in his heart. So, the test was not for God to know what was in his heart but for him to know what was in his own heart.Now how did God test him? He tested him by letting him make a certain decision on his own.

As the account goes, after God had healed him and given him fifteen additional years, some envoys came from Babylon to greet him. And without consulting God at all about how to relate to those envoys, he showed them all his greatness and wealth, everything in his palace and in his kingdom. (Cf. 2Kings 20:12-19)

Why did he do that? A desire for the praise of men! A desire to show off! And what led him to want to show off on that occasion? Pride! So, pride was in Hezekiah all along. But it did not show until God let him decide on his own how he would handle the envoys from Babylon. And it was after he had satisfied himself that God send Prophet Isaiah to him to tell him the consequences of his pride. God told him that he would lose everything he had shown the Babylonians, including some of his own descendants, to them after his death.

What a shame!Now what is this teaching us? It is that one of the ways God reveals the hidden evil in people’s hearts to them is by letting them make certain decisions on their own. Therefore, we must learn to pray that God will never leave us to make any decisions, great or small, on our own, without giving us His wisdom. That way, we will never make any decision that will ruin our lives or the lives of those that we love.

Have a lovely week.

From Pastor's Desk 2025 FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: Don’t give up

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date January 31, 2026

Series: From Pastor’s Desk
Number: Vol. 14, No. 40,

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great delight that I welcome you to the first week of the month of February 2026. My prayer is that God will restore your life wherever you need restoration in the month, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now one of the ways to experience restoration from the hands of God is not to give up, regardless of what we are faced with in life. The bible says, “For though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity.” (Prov 24:16NIV) Did you see that? Even though a righteous person experiences failure in series in life, he will rise again. Why is he able to rise again? The reason is that he does not give up on himself or on God.

Sadly, it is not every righteous person or child of God that we can say this about. Some only fell once and never rose again. Why? They gave up. For instance, after the fall of Samson, God gave him another chance to experience restoration. How? He made the hair on his head, which was the symbol of His call and power in his life, to grow again. (Cf. Judges 16:21-22)

But did he make the most of this opportunity for restoration? No! Instead, he used to opportunity for revenge. He prayed to God to restore his strength once more so that he could get revenge on his enemies for his eyes that they had removed. In fact, he told God to let him die with his enemies in the process. And did God answer him or not? He did. He gave him what he asked for. So, that same day, he killed more of his enemies in death than when he was alive. (Cf. Judges 16:23-30)

Now was that how God wanted things to end for Samson? No! Did God make his hair grow again so that he could die with the Philistines? No! Why, then, did He make the hair on his head grow again? He made it grow again so that he may have an opportunity to have his life and ministry restored. So, instead of asking God to let him die with his enemies, he could have asked Him to show him mercy, give him new eyes and restore his ministry to him. And would He have answered him, if he had done that? I believe He would have answered him.

As we see in the bible, there was a time that he prayed to God for water in his dying moment and He answered him. He made water come out of the ground for him to drink. And that water became a spring that other people began to enjoy from the time on. So, if he had asked God for new eyes, He would have answered him or shown him how to live and fulfil His ministry even without eyes. (Cf. Judges 15:18-19)

But Samson did not ask God to restore him in that manner. Instead, he asked for death. And that was because he had given up on living to be all that God wanted him to be. If we too, like him, give up on becoming what God wants us to be in life because of the challenges we are faced with or because of some failures we have experienced, we will be shutting the door of God’s restoration against ourselves. That way, His good purpose for our lives will never be fulfilled.

So, don’t give on life or on God for any reason. Instead, always remind yourself of the Scripture above that tells us that though a righteous person falls seven times, he will rise again. You too will rise again, regardless of what experience of fall or defeat you have had in life. Remember that the reason the woman with the issue of blood did not die in her condition was that she did not give up, even though she had been terribly exploited by the doctors attending to her (Mark 5:25-34). So, you too must not give up. And may you supplied with sufficient strength to never give up in life until all God’s good plans for you are fulfilled. Amen.

Happy February 2026.

From Pastor's Desk 2025 FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: Their peace

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 39

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am pleased to welcome you to the last week of this month, the month January 2026.

My prayer is that the peace of God that surpasses all human understanding will always reign in your life, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now one of the things that will cause the peace of God to rule in your life is to wholeheartedly accept the ministry of the leaders He has appointed over you in the church. On one occasion, when our Lord Jesus was sending His disciples out to preach, He said this to them:“When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.” (Luke 10:5-7NIV)

What will cause the peace of servants of Christ to rest on those they are preaching to and praying for? The response of those people! And how are they to respond to them? They are to wholeheartedly welcome them and their ministry. How, then, do we show that we welcome someone and their ministry wholeheartedly? First, we do so by taking seriously the word of God that they are teaching us. If we will not take the word of God that they are teaching us seriously, then, we cannot say that we have embraced them and their ministry.

Second, we show that we welcome the servants Christ has sent to us by wholeheartedly saying ‘Amen’ to their prayers. As Jesus shows us in that bible text, the word of prayer of His servants will not automatically work in our lives, just because they are praying for us. Their word of prayer will work for us only as we wholeheartedly believe it and say ‘Amen’ to it. Otherwise, their peace, the peace that accompanies their prayers for us will not settle on our lives.

Therefore, if you can see that the prayers of your church leaders have not been working for you at all or enough, it may just be that your heart is not right with them. Talk to yourself, then, and let your heart be right to always receive their peace, the peace that accompanies their ministry.

Otherwise, you should find another church to start attending.The third way to show that we accept the servants the Lord Jesus has sent to us is by supporting them with our material things. As we see in the bible text above, Jesus describes anyone who feeds and houses His servants as a person of peace.

So, it is not only by saying ‘Amen’ to the prayers of our church leaders that we can cause the peace of God that they are proclaiming to rest on our lives. We can also make it rest on our lives by taking care of them. And where are doing this, even the prayers they offer for us quietly and secretly will locate us and work for our good.Now no one can tell to what extent our attitude towards the servants of Christ sent to us will affect our peace and prosperity in life. Read about the Shunammite woman that took care of Elisha and how doing so helped her family (2Kings 4&8).

That will give you some insight into how the peace of God that His servants are communicating to us through their ministries can change the stories of our lives forever. My prayer is that God will strengthen your heart to begin to take this matter seriously, so that none of the good things He wants you to have in life will elude you, in Jesus’ name. Amen.Have a lovely day.

From Pastor's Desk 2025 FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: The nobles of Tekoa

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date January 17, 2026

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 38

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 week of this month, the month of January 2026.

My prayer is that God will rid your life of everything that is preventing you from being useful to Him, so that you will not lose your place or reward in His kingdom. Amen.As we see in the bible, God stirred up a man called Nehemiah at a certain period to lead the people of Judah in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. And when he spoke to the people about it, they all began to work, everyone doing the work where it was closest to him. Why? The reason was that it was to their advantage – it was for the benefit of all the people of Judah. (Cf. Neh 2&3)

However, there were certain individuals that would not join in the work. Look at what is said about them: “The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa, but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors.” (Neh 3:5NIV)Why would the nobles of Tekoa not join in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem? We are not given any answer to this in the account. It may be pride that was responsible. Or it may be that they too were benefiting from the situation of those walls, profiting from the misery of their own people. We would not know exactly why.

Nevertheless, the walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt and completed in record time, in fifty-two days (Neh 6:15). Those walls were completed in spite of the opposition of the enemies of the people of Judah. Yes, they were completed without the contribution of the nobles of Tekoa. But it will forever be on record that when the people of God were working to rebuild the walls of the city of God, Jerusalem, and end the disgrace they were experiencing, the nobles of Tekoa did not participate.Now what do we learn from this? It is simply that whether one joins other people of God, especially those of his local assembly, in doing the work of God or not, His work will be done.

Truly, you may have all kinds of reasons or excuses for not doing your own part of God’s work. His work will be done, regardless. But it will be on record that you did not show up when others were doing it.Will God, then, reward you for what you have not done for Him? No! So, throw away all the excuses you are making for not taking your place in doing God’s work and start doing His work wholeheartedly. And may you be equipped by Him with everything you need to do His work in such a way as to be rewarded by Him. Amen.Have a lovely week.

From Pastor's Desk 2025 FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: The people you need

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date January 10, 2026

Series: From Pastor’s Desk
Number: Vol. 14, No. 37

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you to another week of the year 2026. My prayer is that God will fulfil His good purpose for your life this year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we begin this new week, I want to encourage you to begin to pray that God will clear the way for all the people you need for His good purpose to be accomplished in your life to come to you without delay. Otherwise, this year may just pass without His purpose coming to pass in your life.

Why was David able to become king over Israel, despite all that King Saul did to oppose and destroy him? One main reason was that God cleared the way for the right people to come into his life at the right time. For instance, right after he had killed Goliath, Jonathan came into his life. And this man was willing to die in order for him to become king, even though he himself was a prince of King Saul.

Also, as we are shown in 1Chronicles 11 and 12, David had all kinds of warriors sent to him by God to establish him as king over Israel. And these people were so devoted to him that if he suggested anything, they would receive it as a command and act on it, even at the cost of their lives. No wonder the kingdom of Israel was secure under his leadership, when God eventually put him on the throne.

Furthermore, why do we still have the gospel of Jesus Christ going into every part of the world today? The reason is that God has been giving Him faithful men and women as disciples right from the beginning of His ministry. And at the risk of their lives, some of these people have been taking His gospel to the ends of the earth, so that people may be saved by it.

So, for the purpose of God to be realized fully in our lives, certain people that He has appointed to help us must come to us in time and faithfully do His will in our lives. Sadly, many lives, homes, businesses and churches are not experiencing a fulfilment of God’s purpose in them today because of an absence of the right people. If we, then, don’t want to miss the fulfilment of God’s purpose in our lives, we must begin to pray to Him to clear the way for those helpers He has appointed for us to come to us without delay. And I pray that all such people will begin to come into your life to fulfil God’s purpose in it without delay, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a lovely week.

Tags alaythia bible church, christianity, counsel, Faith, From Pastors Desk, wisdom

From Pastor's Desk 2025 FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: Don’t come empty-handed

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date January 3, 2026
No Comments on Title: Don’t come empty-handed

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 36

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours abundantly from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am pleased to welcome you to the first week of the first month of this new year, year 2026. I pray that God will cause you to increase tremendously in usefulness in His hands in the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we begin this new year, I want to remind you of the words of Paul that say: “What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.” (1Cor 14:26NIV)

What do we learn from what this apostle says to us here? First, it is that each of us ought to have something to bless others with anytime we come together for a church meeting. That means we are not to come for any church meeting only to be blessed by others but also to bless them. So, each time you are coming for a church meeting this year, be sure you have something with which you will bless others.

It may be a word of encouragement. It may be a word of prayer or prophecy. Or it may be a gift. Just be sure you don’t show up empty-handed but always with something that will be a blessing to others. And may God enable you to be faithful in doing so. Amen.The second thing we learn from what Paul says to us in that bible text is that whatever any of us does in our church etings must be for the edification of others.

So, none of us must say or do anything that will injure or destroy the faith, lives or homes of others in any of our meetings. On the contrary, everything we do or say must be intentionally said to bless and build others up. And if you are not sure you will not say or do something that will injure another person in a church meeting, you had better stay at home.Now I know you will not like to just stay at home anytime we are meeting as a church this year, if you are truly a child of God.

Instead, if God allows it, you will want to be in every meeting we hold. Therefore, pray that God will enable you to participate in every meeting we will be having in such a way that everything you say and do will be a blessing to all of us. And this will be so for you all through the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.Happy new year.

From Pastor's Desk 2025 FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: You have to be ready

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date December 27, 2025

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 35

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you to the transition week between this year, 2025, and the coming year, 2026. My prayer is that God will equip you with every good thing you need to go into the new year and succeed, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we all know, we get older with every day God adds to our lives. But however old we may become in life, there will always be something new God wants to do for us or give to us. It is our readiness, then, to receive from Him that will determine whether what He wants to do for us or give to us will actually be ours.

For example, God said this to Joshua after he had led the children of Israel into their inheritance and also had become very old: “When Joshua was old and well advanced in years, the LORD said to him, “You are very old, and there are still very large areas of land to be taken over.”” (Josh 13:1NIV)

Why was it an old man that God was saying these things to? Why wasn’t He saying them to some young men in the land? The reason was that God was not through with Joshua at the time, even though he had become very old. And inasmuch as he too was ready to have whatever God wanted him to have, his age would not be a problem to God.

In like manner, regardless of how old you are this year or how old you will be in the coming year, God is not through with you, as long as there is still breath in you. There are still all kinds of good and pleasant things that He wants do for you and give to you. But you have to be ready to have what He wants you to have and not use your age as your excuse for losing His blessings.Don’t forget that God knows how old you are.

Also, He knows all your inadequacies. And if He will not use your age or inadequacies as an excuse for not promoting, lifting or healing you, then, you too must not use them as an excuse for staying stagnant or unwell in life.

Instead, like Mary the mother of Jesus, you should embrace whatever He wants you to have, saying, “Let it be unto me according to your word and desire.” And as you do that, you will see Him providing for you every good thing you need to experience the fullness of His good purpose for your life.Happy new year in advance.

Copyright © 2025, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 08146472876)

From Pastor's Desk 2025 FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: You cannot be on the fence

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date December 20, 2025

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 34

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 the month of December 2025. I pray that God will continue to empower you to increase in usefulness in His hands, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we begin this week, I want to remind you of these words of our Lord Jesus Christ that say: “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.” (Matt 12:30NIV)

Now what point is the Lord making by saying these words? It is that we cannot be on the fence in this world or in His kingdom. If we are not on His side, then, we are against Him. And there are people who claim not to have anything against Jesus and Christianity but who don’t want to be Christians. Some of them even attend church meetings sometimes with their friends or family members. But as far as the Lord Jesus is concerned, all of them are against Him. So, they will not find Him to be their friend but their judge and enemy on the day of judgment.

Also, there are people who call themselves Christians but who don’t join others in their churches in doing anything for the Lord. And why don’t they join others in doing anything for the Lord? They may say that they are too busy to do so. They may say that they are shy or afraid of doing so. Or they may say that what is being done does not make sense to them, especially if what is being done is not their idea.

Well, as far as the Lord Jesus is concerned, all such people who are not gathering with Him are scattering what He is doing. They may not see it that way. But that is exactly what they are doing. And a day is coming when they will be punished for destroying the work of God.

Some, in fact, are already being punished for unconsciously destroying God’s work. It is just that they don’t know.Therefore, you cannot be on the fence in God’s kingdom. If you want to be inside, then, stay inside and make yourself useful. Otherwise, just stay outside so that no one will assume that you belong to Jesus when you really don’t belong to Him.Have a lovely week.

From Pastor's Desk 2025 FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: Teach us not to waste our lives

Post author By Pastor J.O. Lawal
Post date December 13, 2025

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 33

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to another week of the month of December 2025.

My prayer is that God will make the week sweet for you and your family in every way, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we come to the last days of this year, I want to encourage you with these words of prayer of Moses: “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Ps 90:12NIV)

What does this mean? Does it mean that God should teach us to know how old we are? No! We don’t need God to teach us how old we are in other to know our ages. Our parents and other family members that were present when we were born can do that.

In fact, they would have done so already, if they had some measure of education.More so, knowing how old we are is not what will make us live lives of wisdom, for there are many old people that are living foolish lives.

Rather, knowing how to make the most of every day given to us by God is what will enable us to do so. And that is exactly what this prayer of Moses is all about. It is a cry to God to teach us how not to waste our lives.From what we see in Scriptures, it is possible for us to waste our lives. And we will waste our lives, if we are wasting our days. That is why we need God to teach us how to use every day to do only those things that are profitable.

Now I would not know how you have used the days given to you by God this year. I would not know whether you have wasted them on unprofitable things or whether you have used them to do those things that will earn you God’s praise. But I want you to know that you don’t have to waste any more day doing unprofitable things. And you will not waste any more day doing unprofitable things, if you will ask God to teach you how to make the most of every day.

So, as you enter the last days of this year, make it your daily prayer that God will teach you how to not to waste your life. That way, you will be enabled to live the rest of your days in wisdom and not in foolishness. And may you be strengthened to do so, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a lovely week.

Tags alaythia bible church, christianity, wisdom