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THE MESSAGE NOW

Vol. 1, No. 21 – Monday, 28th November, 2016

(Prov.4:23, 23:7, 2 Cor.10:4-5, Isaiah.55:8)

WATCH IT! WHAT YOU THINK WILL DETERMINE THE ANSWER AND THE TIME OF ANSWERS TO YOUR PRAYERS

If our words are the audible, sound-productions emanating from and projected by our voice-box and the dialectic movement of our tongue and our lips, then our thoughts are the fruits and sound of our minds expressing our truest and most innate viewpoints and personality.

Unsurprisingly, these fruits/sound of our minds are inaudible to other men but are not only audible to God, much more are they louder in the ears of the Almighty than our words. Shocking (and indeed very shocking) is the fact that satan too can access and/or programme human thoughts.

This is the case because thoughts are spiritual and he, satan is a spirit. As such, the conditions of our thoughts will determine whether victory at any given time will be attainable or not (see Gal.5:16-17). Why? There is what is known as accumulation of thoughts.

The accumulation of the thoughts of every man more often than not attains appoint of saturation. At saturation point, that fruit of the mind graduates to one and only one result called reality.

Put simply, every man alive today with ill or positive experiences is a function of the accumulated thoughts of yesteryears. No wonder the Bible explicitly cries out: ‘as a man thinketh in his heart; so is he’.

Of course, centrifugal, centripetal and dark forces do exist. Indeed, the operative interplay among (and by) these forces determine a number of outcomes and near-outcomes in socio-economic, market reactions and human relations. But to what extent did your thoughts occasioned by your permission assist those forces to make a negative reality out of you and your situations?

As British-born American essayist, James Allen reminds: ‘All that you accomplish or fail to accomplish with your life is the direct result of your thoughts’. The point here is in precision. Whatever task which proved eventually impossible or possible is your making as an outcome predetermined by your thought.

Luke 1:37 gives us a perfect picture of the true character of the Most High as One who knows no impossibility. Psalm 82:6 instructively states: ‘I have said, ye are gods; and all of you are children of the Most High.

If then we are the children of God (and being His ‘image’ and ‘likeness’), why then are we different from God our father? The difference is in our way of thinking (see Isaiah 55:8). No wonder, He that is called Eternal Reality lamented in verse 7 of the same Psalm 82: ‘but ye shall die like men and fall like one of the princes’.

Hmmm! Will great thinkers die unsung like ordinary men? NO!!! Only small minded ones will. Large minded, positive thinkers reason complex and deep. The end of their positive but sometimes complex thoughts are not easily discernable from the outset. Their descriptive character is by miles in distinction from small, shallow thinkers.

In espousing the character of small minded thinkers, American author and poet, Oliver Wendell Holmes sharply notes: ‘Little-minded people’s thoughts move in such small circles that five minutes conversation gives you an arc long enough to determine their whole curve’.

 I conclude therefore that no task is unachievable except by the thought of him who thinks it is impossible because of the littleness of his mind, thought and vision. Pablo Picasso captured it aptly in this simple lines: ‘he can who thinks he can, and he can’t who thinks he can’t. This is an inexorable, indisputable law’.

Thoughts are the fountains of imaginations. Imaginations beget creation and creativity. Creativity, daunting or otherwise brought the world to its present glory or ruin.

The point being subtly underscored is twofold. First, whilst man rules and exercises control over creation and his creative works and imaginations rule the man, thoughts (small or great) rule the imaginations which rule the man. Alarming! Isn’t it? Second, what an awesome power inherent and in the control of man’s thoughts.

The thought of man is the true spiritual image of the man. Generally, man communicates with the material/physical realm through the use of words. The innate personality and the intentions of man are expressed by his thoughts essentially in and through the immaterial/spiritual realm. Thus thoughts are the medium of communication and indeed the only  acceptable legal tender for all transactions in the spiritual realm.

Since the spiritual oftentimes dictates the physical as intelligent minds assert and agree, in the primacy contest therefore, the thought transcends the word. I conclude further therefore that:

(1) never underestimate or underrate the power of positive or negative thoughts.

(2) To underestimate, underrate or equate the potency of thoughts with anything is to doubt your own existence.

(3) The ignorance or the outright refusal to accept the reality of the effects of either positive or negative thoughts will not halt the manifestation of the products of either positive or negative thoughts.

(4) A man enslaved or given to negative thoughts at any given time is far away from the path of destiny.

The very great concern is that our thoughts from time to time are subject to the influence of light and dark forces. Unknown to the Christian, dark arrows are very often fired into the thoughts of the Christian by dark forces. The raison d’etre being so that the Christian can create that evil thoughts which are then hatched into reality by these dark forces.

I espouse to you today by the grace of God a mystery that: (a) more often than not, dark arrows are responsible for your moments of discouragement. (b) That thoughts and imaginations can be satanically anointed in dark personalities to such an extent that by means of transcendental meditation, such dark personalities can negatively influence events and lives which are near or which are hundreds and thousands of miles away.

In summation, hear what the wisest man, king Solomon said in Proverbs 4:23: ‘Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life’. Dearly beloved, instantly rebuke and reject all negative thoughts. Never allow evil thoughts to settle in your heart.

Think good and think big; be like your heavenly father in thinking. Life is a spiritual condiment of trains of thought with spiritual magnets attached to each end.

Whether they be good thoughts or bad ones, there is always a point of connection by reason of these spiritual magnets. So the chain of trains of thought keeps running until saturation point also known as peak of accumulation. It is at this saturation point that graduation of trains of thoughts to reality becomes inevitable.

MAKE YOUR TRAIN OF THOUGHTS GOOD AT ALL TIMES AND YOU WILL BE MOST FULFILLED IN LIFE AND IN DESTINY.

Hymn: Keep On Believing God Still Answers Prayer

Pray now:

1. O Lord, purify my thoughts and sanctify me anew.

2. O God, give me a new spirit and a new heart.

3. O God, help me to think like you my father always.

4. O God, season my thoughts with grace to think always in the direction of my destiny.

5. O God, cause every arrow of failure and rejection fired into my thoughts and innermost being to die by Holy Ghost fire and be flushed away by the blood of the Lamb.

6. It is written: ‘every plant that my heavenly father hath not planted shall be rooted out’ therefore, every evil plantation in me, be uprooted, in the name of Jesus.

 

Pastor Mike

 

 

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THE MESSAGE NOW

A weekly magazine of Express Image Glory Ministries
Vol. 1, No. 20 – Monday, 21st November, 2016

(Judges.12:1-6, 8:1-3, Acts.15:36-41, Prov. 10:19, 15:1, Ruth.1:16-17, Deut.23:3, 2 Sam.13:5)

The Unassailing Power of Words

If guns, bullets, missiles and the likes are the weapons of war, words no doubt are the triggers that turn-on those weapons into their operative gear. Words can, at any time and at any stage, effectively eventualise glory or ruin. Words have influencing power. There is no fuel of human friction as the oxygen of words.

Patrick Rothfuss, in – The name of the Wind, opined: ‘Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts’.

Permit me from this outset to hold this strong view that we are where we are today because of our own words expressed to ourselves or the words of others expressed towards and against us. The joyful trouble about the surest character of words is that words never die except when they are extinguished by a more superior word. Whether positive expression or words spoken out of ill-will, words have the potency to linger through endless generations. The true-account below is a living attestation to the foregoing statement.

In 1963, a seventeen-year-old young man was returning from his college on a faithful afternoon. As he drew near to a beach, there was the wailing of a woman. The  woman had taken her son out on a walk on the beach. That walk soon became a bitter experience for the woman. As the two had their fun on the beach,: suddenly, torrent of water surged through the sand and within a twinkle of an eye her son was off-shore.

The young college student by the name Bill on arriving at the scene, threw off his jacket and off he jumped into the icy/cold, salty water. After much struggle and painstaking effort, he succeeded. The woman’s son was saved and revived. On her resignation to great relief, the woman had but few words for Bill’s uncommon kind gesture of extreme goodwill. With tears of joy running down her cheeks, the woman said quite loudly ‘for restoring hope and life to my almost lonely soul, you shall be the hope and the President of this country some day’.

Thirty years after this pronouncement, that young college student Bill Clinton indeed became the President of that country called America. I hear you say, what an amazing story! Hmmm! it is more than amazing because of the resonating message. The resonating message being the power of the undying word. Is it not staggering to note that a word spoken in 1963 remained alive through the many years until it finally took its effect in January 1993? Is it not even more staggering that the word spoken as far back as 1833 might still be alive in 2016?

If Bill Clinton’s story is a positive one and such that is admirable, having been influenced by gracious words, I invite you to wait and read about the dark side of ill words. The records of history inform us that about 6 million Jews died by the hands of Adolf Hitler.

In fact, the entire world was heading towards a monumental cataclysm were it not for God and God’s gracious strength expressed through Britain’s Winston Churchill’s resilience as well as America’s Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s outstanding support. It probably will astound you to know that Hitler’s massacre of the Jews (among other reasons) was sparked off by the words of Henry Ford Sr expressed in his book, The Eternal Jew, published in the early 1920s.

Henry Ford’s writing had such powerful and enthralling influence on Hitler that he literally idolized not only Ford himself, but also his book. The power of words expressed through writings, sound or even pictures can sometimes be so enslaving that they can end up occupying the master-controling seat in our minds.

The capturing grip of words on the mind of man has been better expressed by Diane Setterfield, in – The Thirteenth Tale. Therein, D. Setterfield argued sharply that, ‘There is something about words. In expert hands, manipulated deftly, they take you prisoner. Wind themselves around your limbs like spider silk, and when you are so enthralled you cannot move, they pierce your skin, enter your blood, numb your thoughts. Inside you they work their magic’.

Without any later hindsight to apologies, the words of Henry Ford deeply numbed Hitler’s thoughts to such extent that he became sensitive to no good thing. Paralysed by Ford’s writing, appeal to pity was non-existing in Hitler’s lexicon. The few words left in his lexicon were: appeal to force, retaliation and massacre.

I ask, my dear Christian brother, sister and friend, what books do you read? What sort of music do you have a penchant for? What movies and TV programmes appeal to you the most. Hear me sirs and madams, those books, music, movies and programmes will eventually shape your line of thinking and/or your response/reaction to all things. Why?

Words are living entities sometimes quietly submerged in our subconscious beings or thoughts. When they are reawakened by events, they then spring back to life and become the catalyst of the greatest good or the most horrific debacle better unimagined.

No wonder Richard Kadrey quipped aloud, in – Kill the Dead: ‘It doesn’t matter if you and everyone else in the room are thinking it. You don’t say the words. Words are weapons. They blast big bloody holes in the world. And words are bricks. Say something out loud and it starts turning solid. Say it loud enough and it becomes a wall you can’t get through’.

Indeed, to Kadrey’s quip, Jodi Picoult added in – Salem Falls, ‘Words are like eggs dropped from great heights; you can no more call them back than ignore the mess they leave when they fall’.
The influencing power of words cannot be over-emphasised. Words are so powerfully indispensable that even our father, the Great God of heaven and earth made no success in creation without a spoken word.

What then is the task ahead of you that the power of words cannot achieve? What words are being spoken over your life and destiny? Do you take the time to find this out from God in prayer?
Words can transform lives and destinies. Through words, salvation is gained (see Rom.10:9-10). Ruth, in one of today’s texts changed her destiny (and indeed) divine ordination through spoken word.

Every Bible scholar does understand that a Moabite has no part or inheritance in the commonwealth of Israel and of God even to the tenth generation and forever (see Deut.23:3). However, Ruth’s word of faith reordered that divine order. The damaging effect of toxic words on a most defended city of friendship can be so devastating that just the process of amending can wait till infinity. On the contrary, soothing words are the specially glittering golds among the gravels. The greatest bitter rivalry of countless years can be easily erased by a moment of right words in action.

Thus Suzy Kassem admonishes in Rise Up and Salute the Sun: ‘We cannot control the way people interpret our ideas or thoughts, but we can control the words and tones we choose to convey them. Peace is built on understanding, and wars are built on misunderstandings. Never underestimate the power of a single word, and never recklessly throw around words. One wrong word, or misinterpreted word, can change the meaning of an entire sentence and start a war. And one right word, or one kind word, can grant you the heavens and open doors’.

May I ask, are you silent when evil words are spoken over you, your children, ministry, marriage or even career? Draw a lesson from the true-account below. A young Nigerian politician at the time (Dr Chuba Okadigbo) openly belittled Dr Nnamdi Azikwe.

In anger, Dr Azikwe said, ‘ it is common knowledge that in our culture, the young must respect the old. Since you have forbidden this good path of our culture, you shall certainly be great, but just before you ascend the throne of greatness, you shall be cut off. You shall equally die unwept and unsong’. Information gathered tells us that a pastor persuaded Dr Okadigbo to go back and apologise to Dr Azikwe but he refused. He rather denounced Dr Azikwe as an ‘old ranting fool’.

Years and countless moments rolled on and those ill words lingered on too. At the peak of his political career as the Senate President in year 2000 when he should have received the number 1 human President on earth (at the time, Bill Clinton) in Nigeria, he was disgracefully and uncelebratedly impeached. Three years later in the seemingly possible attainment of his Vice Presidentship, he bowed to death and remains both nationally and regionally unsong till now.

Dearly beloved, avoid evil words. Pray and cancel evil words. Do not hurt older persons (1 Peter.5:5). Do not offend anointed servants of God; it can be dastardly costly. Much more important and seriously too, fear God and keep His commandments.

Permit me again to end this article on a rather stronger note. Hear me dearly beloved, your next after now, I mean your tomorrow after today, shall be determined by your own words and your response to the words of others expressed towards or against you today and tomorrow.

Hymn: Thy Word Have I Hid In My Heart

Pray now:

O God my father, deliver me from every imprisonment brought upon me because of my own words against myself.
O God, deliver me from every evil word spoken against my life, family and destiny by men and satan.
O God, recover for me by force every good thing snatched from my hands.
O God, what is my true name before you.
O God, let your word graciously influence my life and destiny from this day.
I shall not die before my time or unsung.
Every evil decree martialed against me be reversed now.
O God, by the blood of Jesus, rescue me from any snare of words.
Prophesy good and glorious things over your life and destiny now.
In a flash, the Lord just showed me a broom; decree against evil brooms sweeping off your prayers and blessings.
Holy Ghost broom, sweep away the effect of evil words from my life and destiny.

Pastor Mike

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THE MESSAGE NOW

Vol. 1, No. 19 – Monday, 14th November, 2016

(Heb.1:14, Acts.12:7-10, 27:23-24, Gen.24:7)

Taking full advantage of heaven’s resources dear Christian?

Distinct from allegories, true-life-accounts have a way of impacting us the more. In effect and in essence, their information are by far more emotionally-attaching. As such, they last much longer in our memories. I hope the account below and its adjoining lessons bring you some good.

A man lay sick in his bedchamber for many days. His most caring wife having attended to his needs that morning was then so busy in another part of their apartment. With so much to do with chores, she ran the chores as fast but equally as dutifully too.

The intention for her swiftness in completing the morning’s home assignment was obvious. It was  in order to resume the more important duty of attending to her sick husband. In the midst of the hygene and emotional concerns, something happened.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. A close associate of the family from an adjacent apartment was standing at the door. He looked petrified as though he had just been electrified by some sort of unexplainable bewilderment.
After some effort following the containment of his emotions, he questioned the woman softly. ‘Where is your husband’? The wife of the sick man who was now standing in full glare outside the door, not wanting to be insolent replied quietly but reluctantly. ‘You are well aware of his long-time illness. You are also aware that his illness has kept him out of every public activity for so long. So, he cannot be  anywhere else but in his room’.

At her comment, the man stood speechless resuming his bewilderment all over again. Then softly, he dropped the bomb-shell. ‘I saw your husband step out of the house with two men in white apparel; one on each side of your husband. Subsequently, the three took about two steps forward and then vanished into the sky’.

On hearing this, the woman immediately dashed back into the house to check her husband. To her surprise and somewhat relief from anguish, her husband was there. On further check however, it soon became apparent to her that his soul and spirit had passed-on. Her husband had just departed to begin his eternal rest in glory.

Sirs and madams, will you truly be ready when the Master shall come or send His angels to pick you? Please pray these prayer points now.

O God, in your mercy and by your grace, help me to be ready when you send for me.
O God my father, make me rapturable at all times.
O God my father, help me to know my guardian angels and identify their voices.

Obviously, the two men in white apparel were the man’s guardian angels who had been with him throughout his Christian journey. Their assignment/ministry with him can never come to an end until his arrival in glory. The same rule applies to every Christian.

However, beyond whatever is the lesson you have gained from this true account so far, the Lord certainly has some more. Dearly beloved, are you aware that there are Christians who are not taking advantage of heaven’s resources? Their reasons  are sadly so wide-ranging. They stem from lack of knowledge to indolence, from fear to spiritual nonchalance, the weight of the guilt of sin which makes them feel unworthy before God, etc.

Permit me to strongly point out this fact that the spiritual weapons available to a Christian are numerous and so potent that any Christian not engaging them is not only short-changing himself/herself, but equally, such Christian is making God a liar or worse still making God resemble the powerless god of the philistines (see 1 Sam.5:2-7). Spiritual weapons such as prophecy, confessing the word of God, applying the blood of Jesus, speaking in tongues over situations, use of angels (the focus of this article), shield of faith, etc, are but a few among myriads.

More concerning is the fact that the children of the dark kingdom put their own version of these spiritual weapons to effective use. You say, ‘what does the Pastor mean by this? Whilst the Christian fails to send his guardian angels on errand or steer them up in readiness for battle, the cohort of darkness are busy engaging demons and evil spirits to perpetrate all forms of evil .

They engage them to steal people’s virtues through dreams. The glory of many are caged and destinies are consequently retarded. Happy courtships are suddenly destroyed by demonic media and arrows are fired to stop already guaranteed breakthroughs. Accidents are caused by occultic men through the invocation of spiritual and demonic forces and powers. Near-success syndrome are routine through the activities of wicked forces and evil spiritual invocations.

Are you in any doubts? Are you aware that demon, unclean spirits and fallen angels exist? Are you aware that these evil personalities are responsible for sexual experiences in people’s dreams? Are you aware also that evil men by means of astral powers seek and obtain the assistance of evil forces in order to have sexual intercourse with female persons in the dreams, especially such female persons who have turned down their advances in real life? Are you aware that you can ask your ministering spirit otherwise called guardian angel to stand at the gate of your life and repel every oncoming danger?

O dear Christian, hear what the Lord said and is yet saying again. In Hebrews 1:14, the Scripture says: ‘are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation’? Are you genuinely a heir of salvation? If your answer is in the affirmative, then this benefit of the better covenant of Jesus Christ our Lord is for you.

By the grace of God, I have had and continues to have by His great mercy, numerous experiences with angels including one-on-one encounters. In 2011, whilst in dire need of 700 Pounds, I prayed in faith asking my guardian angels to go and meet my needs in the name of the Lord Jesus.

Shortly afterwards, the result was more than expected. I have shared this testimony with a number of people. Sometime in July 2016, my spiritual daughter in London took this testimony on board. She prayed asking the Lord ‘if indeed Pastor Mike’s testimony is true, then let my guardian angel get my financial problem regarding my travel to Nigeria solved between 1 and 2 PM today’. To her utter-amazement, at about 1:30 of the same day, that problem became a history. Your personal testimony will be the next in the name of the Lord Jesus, Amen.

Dearly beloved,  2016 is far and fast spent out already. But do you know that this month can yet be the beginning of months for you? Year 2016 is not far and faster than your ministering spirits. You can ask them to pursue and recover all blessings lost or not yet gained.

I plead with you by the mercies of God, believe this message: angels talk to men. Angels run errands for men. Angels fight battles for men. Angels are still in the business of connecting men with their life-partners. You can ask your angel to get that employment letter/appointment for you. Are you going to send your angel to go and convince everyone in that meeting-room where your blessing/promotion/contract is being decided? Read all the Scriptures in this edition of the magazine: The Message Now, and do not doubt otherwise God becomes a liar as to His promise on angelic assistance.

Be informed again dearly beloved, that angels do run errands for the children of God. Angels do have conversation with men. Dear Christian, biblical experiences of old times are still the same. Oftentimes, we don’t enjoy what they of old times enjoyed because we are too far from God in faith and in spirit.

Beware: you must pray always in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ only not in the name of any angel. If you are willing and believing; then it is time to pray. Please pray now.

Hymn: Standing On The Promises Of God

Pray now:

The Lord showed me a half-done egg in a woman. I decree in the name of the Lord Jesus, that egg shall be fully done.

I cancel every miscarriage of child, blessing or destiny in the name of the Lord Jesus. The angel of the Lord arise in sore anger and crush every night-raider and every night-caterer snatching blessings from the people of God in Jesus name.

Read Dan.10:1-21: O God, empower my angels for the battles of my life and destiny.

O my guardian angel, in the name of the Lord Jesus, go and recover my lost years and blessings back onto me.

O God, cause every sea between me and my promise land to dry up or be parted in the name of the Lord Jesus.

O you fiery angels of the living God, visit my father and mother’s household today, and release me and my destiny from every evil inheritance.

Pastor Mike

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THE MESSAGE NOW

Vol. 1, No. 18 – Monday, 7th November, 2016

(Phil.3:12-14, 2 Cor.4:7-10, 2 Tim.4:7-8)

The fierce battle between the crocodiles and the man whose wedding was moments away

The wonders of the world will never cease most probably till the end of time. The story below, no doubt will yet astound you though you might have read or heard about it before now.

In view of his daughter’s readiness for marriage (and indeed her clear expression of same), the king of a particular town made a public announcement inviting all interested young men to gather in his palace. Ridiculous you may say! Just wait and read further.

On arriving at the palace, the king presented his daughter before the numerous young men. Without a shadow of doubt, the young lady’s beauty was not just striking, it was an exceptionally dazzling one. At the end of the somewhat corrographic presentation, the king made the qualifying criterion known to his invited audience.

Pointing to a nearby small but very deep river, the king informed his intended in-laws, ‘anyone of you who can swim through and across this body of water will be that successful man’. This was no problem for any of the young men who were now standing on the steepy-edge of the river. The problem confronting the young men (and indeed) such that left them speechless and emotionally-deflated, hopeless and with their hands helplessly at akimbo was the uncontested fact that this is a river highly infested with hungry crocodiles.

To everyone’s utter-shock, shortly after the king’s criterion was pronounced, there was a big splash in the water. A young man had just jumped in. So foolish of him you may exclaim! Just wait for another surprise. The young man swam as fast and as hard as he could. Expectedly, the crocodiles, having perceived the presence of human blood in the water, pursued him with full vigour. Whilst everyone standing ashore watched the display and the ripple with unimaginable horror, the young man swam with relentless tenacity. But what could he do more with the crocodiles almost clutching at his heels.

But realise dearly beloved that tenacity is the father of a single offspring whose name is eventfulness. Eventually, the young man reached his goal. Was hurray his outburst? Just wait for another surprise.

On arriving at the shore, the latest bridegroom was not up and about to receive his bride. His initial quest was to find the fellow who pushed him into the water in the first instance. To this new bridegroom, that fellow is the hero behind his uncommon success feat. Had he not pushed him into the crocodile-infested river, he could never have made the initial attempt. But having got into the water, the choice was not to give up or look back.

Hmmm! I hope you understand the moral lesson here. I suppose the lessons are obvious:

(1) you and I will eventually at some point acclaim God (who permits problems and trials walk into our path) as our only hero.

(2) The secret of winning even whilst in the midst of the greatest factory-fire of problems is to embrace it without bitterness. Had the young man giving-in to bitter thoughts about the fellow who pushed him into the water: (a) he would have been weightier than a millstone. The result of which is that keeping afloat would have been practically impossible. Never get weighed down by the thoughts of any problem. Control your thoughts; never allow them control you. (b) When confronted by life’s challenges, the first assignment is not to pursue after the cause; for that will often be the second. Rather, the pursuit after immediate solution is a non-negotiable premier job; for in the solution more often than not lies the knowledge about the cause. (c) Self-pity is that enslaving hook which when it is stock into the jaws of a willing victim ridden by problems, total submersion down to the depth of life’s ‘trouble waters’ is the only outcome. (d) In the end, whether it be bitterness, seeking the cause before seeking the solution or self-pity, neither of these three present any hope for the future. In fact, these three are the perfect enemies of bravery and tenacity. Their offspring is failure before first attempt. Anyone armed by their companionship is certainly never going to cross the Rubicon.

(3) One is the enemy of wisdom who accepts the crown or the prize on a platter of gold. Why? More often than not, those who attain greatness without paying life’s required dues always end up badly because experience, exposure and maturity were never in their company to that height.

(4) Successful achievement otherwise called eventfulness is never attained without tenacity. The joyful trouble however is, tenacity is never activated except by the presence of life’s success-catalyst called problems. In whatever way you consider it , it is a sure fact that there is no eventfulness without first and foremost a problem.

(5) The decisions you make whilst traveling through life’s troubled waters can: (a) change the direction of your life and destiny completely, (b) make or mar others (and you are answerable to God and man for the lives you make or mar). (c) determine whether you end up fulfilled or frustrated.

Hear a profoundly spiritual thoughtfulness echoed by a righteously immortalised champion. In Paul’s letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor.11:1), the greatest Apostle enjoins us ‘be ye followers of me even as I also am of Christ’. In inviting us to imitate him as he imitates Christ, Paul shares with us in 2 Cor.4:7-10 his encounter with life’s challenges which is worthy of emulation.

In 2 Cor.4:7-10, Paul says: ‘but we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed, we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body’.

What a lesson of life from an experienced, exposed and matured expert. The question any intelligent mind should ask is, what kept this man going in spite of these hastles? My answer is, Paul was never considering the start of the race or the midway through the race. His focus was always firmly fixed on the finish line.

The thought of the distance from home, the new environment, the fact of no near kinsman or kinswoman coupled with the fear of failure because of the enormous work-load weighed me seriously down at the start of my studies in Aberdeen. But God helped me. How? Suddenly, my mind came to the reassuring realisation that a man of destiny and success affixes his mind and puts his arsenals to task considering the end-glory only, not the length of time it takes or the hardships to be encountered before attaining the treasured jewel. With this kind of farsighful mind-set, the job is always done even before it ever starts.

Experiencing delay in any way, my brother my sister? Look away, and rather dream of the day of your testimony and keep such dream alive. Be strong. Be brave and be courageous. Are you going to hold on for God forever? NO. One day of joy from the Lord will erase several years of painful torture inside life’s waiting-room. Don’t give up. God believes in you. Do believe in yourself also. Forget the mistakes of the past and keep moving. Be innovative and see good out of every pleasant and unpleasant situation.

Finally, all men will eventually come to appreciate God. Not only because He is God; but because He allowed you and me go through life’s challenges for the purpose of refining us. Refining, undoubtedly is a process most torturing. It nonetheless exposes the true shine and beauty in man securely hidden by life’s comfort before refining begins.

Do you have a health, emotional or physical challenge of any kind? You feel it so hard passing through this dark, challenging tunnel of life, isn’t it? Have you found yourself in continuing quagmire of financial debts? Are you worried about your children, their spiritual wellbeing, education and the likes? Are you even tired of praying?

Do not complain and do not curse God. Remember that Job in the Bible lost everything but never lost God. Be at peace; see the light faintly beaming through the tunnel. It means you are soon at the start of the last bend. Thereafter, you will see the cheering crowd awaiting you and your unmistaking victory at the finish line.

Paul the Apostle eventually got his ‘crown of righteousness’ (2 Tim.4:7-8). Job had a doublefold restoration in spite of prior hardship, pain and loss (Job.42:10). Joseph was hated, delayed and tormented. Nevertheless, his moment came in full joyous package (Genesis.41:39-40). God who is good to one is good to all. Therefore, your bright day will certainly dawn and shine afar.

BE AT PEACE.

Hymn: We Have An Anchor

Pray now:

1. Read Ps.40: o God, give me grace and peace to calmly and patiently wait for you.

2. O Lord God, forgive me for murmuring and complaining.

3. O God, reveal to me the agenda of the wicked lying ahead of me in the new year.

4. O God, expose to me the escape from the agenda of the wicked.

5. O God my father, encourage my heart with revelations on your agenda for my life.

6. These twin-children shall be born. O God, let my joyful moments speedily appear.

7. O God my father, I have been redeemed by the blood of your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ; therefore, o God my father, by the blood of the everlasting covenant, I break free today from the curse of Adam.

Pastor Mike