Tag: wisdom

Categories
FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Change the way you think

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 18

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you to the last day of this month and also to the first week of the ninth month of the year, the month of September 2025. My prayer is that God will see to it that all the good things He has in store for you in the remaining months of the year become yours indeed, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we begin this new week, I want to counsel you with the word of Apostle Paul that say: “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Rom 12:2NIV)

Why does he tell us not to conform any longer to the pattern of this world? The reason is that we are now children of God. Before we became children of God, we all used to live according to the ways of the people of this world. We talked as they talk. We reasoned as they reason. We dressed as they dress. And we ran after the things they run after.But now that we are God’s children, we are expected to live differently. Yes, we are expected to live like children of God and not like children of the devil.

We will, however, not live differently from those of this world, if we still continue to think the way they think. We may be attending church meetings, praying in the name of Jesus and even carrying bibles around. But as long as we are thinking like those of this world, we will not live lives that are different from theirs in the way we talk, dress and treat others.

See, people live the way they live because of the way they think. So, if you want them to change the way they live, you will have to change the way they think. All this is why Paul does not just tell us not to conform any longer to the pattern of this world but also tells us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. What will bring about the transformation of our lives? It is the renewing of our minds. Now how do we renew our minds? How do we cleanse our minds so that they begin to think differently from the way those of the world think? It is by giving ourselves to the word of God.

As we give ourselves to His word, we will begin to think differently – we will begin to think in the light of His will for us. And the more we think in the light of His will for us, the more we are transformed to be the people He wants us to be.Paul, for instance, who brought this counsel of the Spirit to us used to be an injurious and wicked person. Yet he later became one of the greatest Christians that ever lived. In fact, he was so sure of the transformation his life had experienced that he could tell other Christians to imitate him (1Cor 11:1).

How did that happen? It happened through his devotion to the word of God. It was the word of God that changed his thinking. And as his thinking was being changed by the word of God, his life was also being transformed. Then, at some point, everyone around him could see that he had become a truly changed person – he had become like Christ.Now since Paul personally experienced these things, he is telling us too to take advantage of the word of God to change our thinking. That is how our lives will be changed to be what God wants them to be. So, give yourself to the word of God in order for it to change how you think. And before you know it, your life will be changed to be exactly what God wants it to be.

Have a lovely week.

Categories
From Pastor's Desk 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: Give it to God

abcministryng.com
abcministryng.com

Series: From Pastor’s DeskNumber: Vol. 14, No. 17

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. I am glad to welcome you to the last week of the month of August 2025. My prayer is that God will take care of every burden that Satan is seeking to use to destroy you or to fill your life with pains. Amen.

Why did I offer that prayer for you? It is because there is no burden you are carrying that God cannot handle for you. To say the fact, God does not want you to bear any burden of your life all by yourself. What He wants is to bear every burden for you. And look at what David says about that in one of his psalms: “Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.” (Psalm 68:19NIV)

Did you see that? How often does God bear our burdens? Is it only for a while? No! Is it just for some weeks or months? No! Instead, He bears them for us everyday. And why does He bear them for us every single day? It is because He loves and cares about us. (Cf. 1Peter 5:7)

Sadly, many of us don’t know that God is daily bearing our burdens for us. We just think that the good things that are happening to us in life are happening to us by chance and that the bad things that are not happening to us are not happening to us because of our righteousness, godliness or carefulness. But all the good things that are happening to us are happening to us because God is bearing our burdens for us.

Likewise, all the bad things that are not happening to us are not happening to us because God is working for our protection. However, God wants us to recognise the fact that the reason we have not been destroyed by the burdens that life is daily throwing at us is that He is daily bearing these burdens for us.

Therefore, there are burdens of our lives that He may not touch unless we learn to deliberately give them to Him to handle for us. And are we going to give all our burdens to Him to handle for us? Or are we going to keep on struggling to carry them ourselves until they crush us?For years, Jacob carried all by himself the burden of his sins against his brother, Esau. And this burden almost crushed him. But the very day he gave that burden to God in prayer was the day he was delivered from it. God handled the burden for him in such a way that he himself could not tell exactly why Esau, who had come out to attack him and his family, suddenly began to show him love and to speak kindly to him. (Cf. Gen 32-33)

Well, that is showing us that unless we learn to give our burdens to God in prayer, we may not know the kind of relief and peace of mind He is able to give to us. Yes, it may look like no one but you can carry that burden for you. But the truth is that even you cannot carry any burden that God does not bear for you. So, don’t allow any burden, whether it is that of sin, fear, lack or sickness, destroy you.

Instead, give it to God. That is because He loves you and is committed to carrying all your burdens for you everyday. And may you experience tremendous times of refreshing in your life, as you do so, in Jesus’ name. Amen.Have a lovely week.

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)

Categories
FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: Train yourself to be godly

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 16

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great delight that I welcome you to another week of the month of August 2025. My prayer is that God will daily strengthen you in the week and throughout the remaining years of your life to live a life that is well-pleasing to Him. Amen.

As we begin this new week, I want to encourage you with the words of Paul that say:“Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” (1Tim 4:7-8NIV)

What is the first thing this apostle says to us here? It is that we should not waste our time with stories that do not promote godliness and that do not agree with the truth God is saying to us. And there are many such stories from one culture to another. They appear to be saying the truth about life because they have been told again and again for generations. But they are not the truth at all, for they are contrary to what God is saying to us through His holy Scriptures. And if we do not want our lives and souls to be ruined by them, we must stay away from them.The second thing Paul tells us in that text is to train ourselves to be godly.

Why? The first reason is that godliness is not automatic. Yes, we are God’s children and have in us what it takes to be godly, for God has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness (2Pet 1:3).

But if we do not give ourselves to doing things that will promote godly living, godliness will not manifest in our lives.

Unfortunately, many of God’s people don’t know this. They think once someone becomes born again, he will automatically be seen by those around him as godly. But that is not true at all. If that person will not give himself to the word of God, to prayer and to the fellowship of God’s people, godliness will not be seen in his life.

Also, if he will not begin to consciously take steps to do what is right and to stay away from what is wrong, he will not gain a reputation as a godly person. So, if you want people to see you as a godly person, you have to consciously begin to train yourself to do those things that will promote godliness in your life.

Another reason Paul tells us to train ourselves to be godly is that the benefits of doing so are enormous. And these benefits are not just earthly; they are also eternal. Think about this: there are problems that you cannot have in this world, if you are living a godly life.

For instance, if you are not a drunkard, there are some forms of disgrace you cannot experience in life. But if you are one, you are bound to be disgracing yourself from time to time.

So, if you do not want certain problems in your life, all you need is to train yourself to be godly. Also, if you want God’s praise here on earth and also when you get to heaven, daily train yourself to be godly. And may the Spirit of God strengthen you to act accordingly, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a lovely week.

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)

Categories
Fire in my Bones Youth for Jesus

Title: The test of patience

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

Series: Youth for Jesus

Number: Vol. 8, No.14

“On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”” (Acts 1:4-5NIV)

Who gave the command in our opening text? It was our Lord Jesus Christ. And to whom did He give the command? It was to His disciples.What, then, was the command? It was for them to wait in Jerusalem until they were baptised with the Holy Spirit.But exactly when would they be baptised with the Holy Spirit? The Lord did not tell them. He only said to them, “In a few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.” So, they would need to have faith in Him to obey this instruction.

Also, they would need to be patient in order to see what He had spoken of come to realisation. Now did they wait or not? They waited. And did the Holy Spirit come on them or not, as Jesus had promised? He came on them. But how long did they wait for the Holy Spirit to come on them?

Well, bible scholars would have us believe that they waited for about ten days. Jesus died during the Passover feast. And He showed Himself to these disciples in a period of forty days after His resurrection. Then the Holy Spirit came on them on the day of Pentecost, which was just fifty days away from the Passover feast. (Cf. Acts 1:3 & 2:1-4)

In any case, the point is that for those early disciples to receive the promise of the Holy Spirit, they had to be patient in waiting for Him. No one today has to wait like that to be baptised with the Holy Spirit, for He has already been made available by God to baptise all those who believe in Christ Jesus. But those early saints had to wait for Him to first be poured out on all humanity before they could receive Him.

And if they had not been patient in waiting for Him, if they had left Jerusalem a day or two days before He came, only God knows what would have become of them and of the church of Jesus Christ on earth.Thankfully they waited. And I am sure the Lord chose them because He could trust them to wait for as long as they had to until the Holy Spirit be poured out on them.

Can He also trust you and me to wait for Him in any situation? Can He trust us to patiently wait for Him to perfect what He is doing concerning our lives, in spite of the challenges or opposition we may face while waiting?King Saul could not be trusted by God to patiently wait for Hm. So, even before He failed God, He had chosen someone else to replace him (1Sam 13:13-14).

What happened? Well, once when the Israelites were at war with the Philistines, he too was commanded to wait until Samuel could come and offer some sacrifice to God before he would lead his men to war. And he did wait for seven days, the time set by Samuel.

However, when Samuel was not showing up that seventh day, he got impatient at some point and decided to offer the sacrifice himself. Why? It was mainly because his soldiers were deserting him. But should he not have called all of them to order, as their king? He should have done that. But he did not.Then even if all his men left him, was God not with him? Was God not sufficient to win the battle or war with him alone? How many men did Gideon need to defeat the Midianites of his time? Only three hundred men! Yet he defeated them because he had the consciousness that God was with him. (Cf. Judg 6-8)

But Saul did not have that consciousness. So, he allowed the misbehaviour of his men to make him lose his patience and do something God had not given him the right to do. Unfortunately for him, Samuel showed up just when he finished making the sacrifice. That means the man of God still came the very day that he had said he would come. So, he only needed to wait a little longer that day. And if he had, God would have established his kingdom.

Sadly, he failed that test of patience and lost what he was trying to keep. And we too may end up losing what we are desperately trying to keep, save or obtain, if we will not learn to be patient with God. Yes, we may be faced with all kinds of challenges that will give us the impression that God will be too late to save us or to perfect what concerns us. But as long as we function with the consciousness that He cares about us and will never leave us or disappoint us, we must keep on waiting for Him patiently.

Yes, as the apostles of old did while waiting for the Holy Spirit, it will be good for us to keep on strengthening ourselves in prayer and in the word of God, while we are waiting for God to fulfil His purpose for our lives. Yet we must be determined to patiently wait for Him, even if we have to do so till our time is up here. That is the only way we will not fail our test of patience and be fully rewarded by Him.

Cheers!

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)

Categories
FROM PASTOR’S DESK 2025 Pastor's Desk

Title: It must not be for a while

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 15

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am pleased to welcome you to another week of the month of August 2025. And my prayer is that God will daily fill your heart with humility, so that you can continue to experience His elevation in every area of your life. Amen.

After King Saul had disobeyed God by not totally destroying the Amalekites, Samuel said this to him: “Although you were once small in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? The LORD anointed you king over Israel.” (1Sam 15:17NIV)

When did the Lord anoint Saul to be king over Israel? It was when he was humble. It was when he did not see himself as someone better than others. But after his throne had been established, he allowed pride in his heart and began to do as he pleased.

Now how did God respond to that? He took away the kingdom He had given to him from him. Then He replaced him with a young boy, David. And though he fought hard to keep the kingdom for himself and his descendants, he could not keep it. That is because we can only keep what God has given to us. We cannot keep whatever He has taken away from us.

Well, the point of this bible story is that our humility must not be for a while. Rather, it must be from start to finish. If we demonstrate humility before God for a while, our elevation also will be for a while. In other words, the moment we start manifesting arrogance, the same God who has been lifting us up will begin to bring us down. (Cf. James 4:6; 1Peter 5:5)

This, of course, is the reason some people have not risen beyond the height they have attained in life. When they humbled themselves before God, He showed them mercy and began to elevate them. But when they got to certain heights of greatness, they began to misbehave. They began to act as though it was their wisdom or power that brought them to where they were. So, instead for them to be taken by God to higher grounds, He just left them where they were and began to lift up other people around them. And if they still continue to act in pride, they may end up being thrown down to lower positions in life.

So, humility is not just something we need to be lifted up by God; it is also what we need for Him to keep us from falling from the high places He has placed us. Remain humble, then, before Him. And you will never have any reason to be afraid of being thrown down by Him.

Have a lovely week.

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)

Categories
Fire in my Bones Youth for Jesus

Title: Be quick to judge it

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

Series: Youth for Jesus

Number: Vol. 8, No.13

“When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong.” (Eccl 8:11NIV)

After Amnon had raped his half-sister, Tamar, many or some of those who were privileged to know about the matter must have been waiting for a sentence to be passed by King David and his officials on the young man. But for some reasons not mentioned in the account, no sentence was immediately passed on him. In fact, judging from the account, it did not look like any sentence was ever going to be passed on him, for two years after, when he was assassinated, the sentence was yet to be carried out. (Cf. 2Sam 13)

Now why was no sentenced passed by King David on Amnon for raping his own sister? As I already pointed out, we are not told in clear terms in the account. It may be because he was the crown prince and sentencing him to death or to exile may not look politically okay. We wouldn’t know the reason for sure.However, because the sentence for his crime was not quickly carried out, Absalom, the elder brother of the rape victim, decided to take the law into his own hand.

Two years later, when everybody thought the matter had been forgotten, he arranged for Amnon to be assassinated. Then he fled.Now was Absalom also punished for murdering his own elder brother? No! Did David send anybody after him to arrest him and make him face justice? No! Then when he came back from the self-exile he had imposed on himself, was he punished by the king? No! Why was he not punished? Again, we are not told in clear terms in the account.

But then, because he was not punished, he had the opportunity he needed to stage a coup to get rid of his father from the throne. And he would have succeeded and destroyed his father, David, if God had not stepped into the situation to deal with him and rescue the nation from his hand. But many lives were needlessly lost in the process. They were needlessly lost because the man that was in a position to judge wickedness failed to do so when he had the chance to do so. (Cf. 2Sam 14-20)

Well, I personally believe that it is because of all this that Solomon, who witnessed it all, says to us in our opening bible text that when the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, people’s hearts are filled with schemes to do evil.

What that means, first, is that when we are in a position to judge wickedness and will not judge it immediately or at all, somebody else that is not in a position to judge it may be filled with enough anger to judge it. And because the person is not motivated by justice but by anger or bitterness, they will most likely go beyond what is appropriate and adequate in judging the matter. Then they will have made a bad situation worse and be exposed to judgment themselves.

Second, when we fail to judge a crime in time, the person involved and other evil doers like them may be encouraged to do more evil. Why do many, for instance, keep on violating traffic rules in our country? The reason is that people are hardly judged for doing so.

So, most people drive their vehicles with the mindset that nothing will happen to them, even if they break all the traffic rules of the land. And think about the number of lives that have been needlessly lost as a result of that. It is unspeakable.In any case, Solomon wants us to know that if we want our society to be sane and healthy for us all to live in, we cannot afford to ignore crimes.

Instead, we must be quick to judge it in accordance with the laws of the land or of wherever we are, especially when we already have enough evidence to do so. Otherwise, before we know it, evil will so multiply against us that we will need divine intervention to judge it. And where that is the case, we ourselves cannot boldly say that we will be safe when all has been said and done.

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)

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

Title: Don’t be discouraged



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

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great joy that I welcome you to the month of August 2025. My prayer is that God will equip you with everything you need to walk in victory over all the trials of your life in the month, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

When Joshua was called by God to take over from Moses in taking the children of Israel into the Promised Land, God said these words to him:

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Josh 1:9NIV)

Why did God tell this man not to be afraid or discouraged but to be strong and courageous? First, it was because he was bound to face situations that would want to make him afraid or fill his heart with discouragement. And if he should be afraid or discouraged, he would not be able to fulfil God’s purpose for his life.

The second reason God told him not to be afraid or discouraged was that He was personally going to be with him to watch over him and to make him victorious wherever he went, regardless of how dangerous the place may be. It was up to Joshua, then, to believe and act on these words that God had spoken to him to walk in victory over all the trials he may face in life. And did he believe and act on God’s promise to him? Yes, he did. And that was why he succeeded in leading the children of Israel to possess the Promised Land.

In like manner, we too are bound to face situations in life that will want to terrify or discourage us. We may even be facing such situations at the moment. But regardless of how frightening such situations may be, God is telling us not to be afraid of them and not to allow them to discourage us. Why? The reason is that He will be with us wherever we go to take care of us and to see to it that our lives are not destroyed by the devil. And if we believe and act on this, victory will be ours in every situation of life.

So, regardless of what you are faced with now, don’t be afraid or discouraged. It may look like all hope of your deliverance or victory is lost. Yet don’t be discouraged from doing the will of God. Instead, continue to pray and to speak God’s word to your situations. That way, you will not be put to shame but experience great victory.

Do have a lovely August 2025. 

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)
Categories
Fire in my Bones Youth for Jesus

Title: No reason to boast

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

Series: Youth for Jesus

Number: Vol. 8, No.12

“For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1Corinthians 4:7NIV)

Those are Paul’s words to us. And what is the first thing he points out to us? It is that we are not better than anyone else in the world. We may feel that we are better than some people because of certain natural or acquired advantages that we have over them or because of our accomplishments. We may also think we are better than others because certain people in our lives are saying so.However, the wisdom of God tells us that we are not better than anyone else, regardless of what we or others think.

Why? The reason is that there is nothing we have that we have not received from God. The bible says the following to us:“A person can receive only what is given them from heaven.” (John 3:27NIV)”Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” (James 1:17)

Did you see that? Every good thing we have or have accomplished in life has been given to us by God. And if we look or ask around, we will see that there are people that are better than us in terms of natural or acquired advantages but who are not as accomplished as we are. In like manner, there are people who do not have the kind of advantages we have in life but who are more accomplished than us.

What this is telling us is that having certain good things that others do not have or accomplishing feats that others have not accomplished is not a function of being better than anybody. Rather, it is a function of God’s grace, God’s gift. Therefore, we have no reason to boast about our possessions or accomplishments. Also, we have no reason to look down on anybody. That is because there is nothing we have that we have not received from God.

If we, however, fail to grasp this and continually give glory to God, we will find ourselves thinking that we are better than others and even boasting about it. And what will God call that? He will call it pride. And there is only one judgment from God for pride. It is downfall.Remember that it was pride that brought Satan down from the height of glory God had originally placed him (Ezekiel 28:12-17). It was also pride that destroyed King Herod, the one that beheaded Apostle James (Acts 12:20-23).

So, before you start acting in pride towards others and boasting that you are better than them, remember these things. And may God continually prevent you from orchestrating your own fall. Amen.

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)

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

Title: Misplaced priorities

fire in my bones
fire in my bones

Series: From Pastor’s DeskNumber: Vol. 14, No. 13

Beloved: grace and mercy be multiplied to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. I am delighted to welcome you to the last week of the month of July 2025. I pray that God will daily keep your heart fixed on those things that truly matter in life, so that you will not waste your life on irrelevancies. Amen.

As we see in the bible, it is possible for us to get ourselves occupied with the wrong thing and still think we are doing so for the Lord. That may be because we do not know how to handle things in the order of their importance or urgency. And where that is the case, we may find ourselves losing things that could change our lives forever while running after things that could only give us temporary satisfaction.

For instance, the bible tells something that happened when Jesus visited the house of Mary and Martha one day. Look at how it is reported by Luke in his gospel:”As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said.

But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:38-42NIV)

What is this account showing us? It is showing us something about misplaced priorities. And who misplaced her priorities in the account? It was Martha. How? Did she do anything bad by working hard to entertain Jesus and His disciples on that occasion? No! But she should first of all have taken out time to speak with the Lord and to also listen to Him. This would have helped her in knowing the right way and time to entertain Him.Some of us too often make the same mistake when people visit us.

We want to be in a hurry to entertain them without first spending time to converse with them and learn their real reason for visiting us. And we may end up not settling down to have any serious discussion with them till they leave, just because we want to entertain them. That is not how to build a good and meaningful relationship.Well, while Martha was busy trying to entertain Jesus, her sister, Mary, sat down to learn from Him.

That, of course, offended her so much that she could not hide it. Therefore, she came to the Lord to tell Him to rebuke Mary for not knowing her priorities and to send her to assist her in preparing what they would use in entertaining Him and His disciples.But instead for the Lord to do what she wanted, He simply told her that she was actually the one that had misplaced her priorities.

In other words, she too should have sat down like her sister to learn from Him. Then she would have gained better knowledge on how to entertain Him and be praised. And that knowledge would have stayed with her for life. But she missed her opportunity to learn and become a better person that day. What a shame!In any case, the point of this is that we must never allow any good thing we are doing for God to hinder us from giving adequate attention to Him, His word and prayer.

Otherwise, we will not know Him and how to serve Him better. And that may even make us lose the rewards of the so-called good things we think we are doing for Him.So, let us always get our priorities right, as children of God. Our relationship with Him must always come before our service to Him. And may our hearts be duly strengthened never to forget this. Amen.Have a splendid week.

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)

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

Title: Wealthy in a time of famine

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 14, No. 12

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 another week of the month of July 2025.

My prayer is that God will open your eyes in the week and throughout the remaining part of the year to see all His provisions for you to live in sufficiency, in spite of the famine of all kinds of good things that our country is witnessing at the moment. Amen.

The bible says, “But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.” (Ps 33:18-19NIV)

Who are those that God’s eyes are continually on? It is those who fear Him and who have put their hope in His unfailing love. So, if you fear God and have your hope in Him, His eyes will continually be with you wherever you go and irrespective of the circumstances of your life.

Now why will God continually have His eyes on you in this manner? As David shows us in those texts of his psalm, the first reason is to deliver you from death. And is that not a beautiful thing? It is. So, don’t be afraid of death, even hidden death. It will not be your portion. That is because God will continually deliver you from it.The second reason God will continually watch over you is that He may keep you alive during famine.

That means regardless of how bad the economy of the land may be, God will see to it that you and your household are sustained. How will He do that? That is beyond what anyone can tell. But since His word tells us that He will do it, we can be assured that He will do so. All we need is to act on whatever He tells us to do.

For example, there was a very severe famine during Isaac’s time. It was so severe that the man wanted to relocate to Egypt. But God told him not to do so. Why? The reason was that His provisions for him to prosper were not in Egypt at the time. They were in the land he was living in. If he, then, had gone to Egypt, his hopes would have been dashed. (Cf. Gen 26)

Thankfully, Isaac obeyed God and stayed where he was. And because he obeyed Him, He opened his eyes to go into farming. That, of course, was how he became wealthy in a time of famine.

In like manner, God can make us too wealthy in a time of famine or hardship. We just need to put our trust in Him and act on whatever He tells us about His provisions for us. And my prayer is that our ears will not be deaf to whatever He is saying to us about His provisions for our prosperity. That way, we too, like Isaac, can become wealthy in this period of national famine and be a blessing to others around us.

Have a great week.

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)