Monthly Archives: May 2017

IS YOUR TIME THE RIGHT TIME? (Part 1)

THE MESSAGE NOW
Vol. 2, No. 22 – Monday, 29th May, 2017

(Hebrews 9:27, Psalm 90:12, Ecclesiastes 3:1-11)
IS YOUR TIME THE RIGHT TIME?
(Part 1)

It was Jean de La Bruyere who once educated humanity by writing: ‘Those who make the worst use of their time are the first to complain of its brevity’.
No right-thinking man would dare to challenge such true statement; isn’t it? As disaster often has a way of choosing its dastard moments; so it did that faithful day, at that most unfortunate scene. What happened? A ghastly accident took place at a certain spot.
It was as grievous as anyone could imagine. But at the very point of dying, help came the way of one of the accident victims. Swiftly, a good Samaritan whisked him away in his own car to the nearest hospital.
In the course of their journey, the accident victim who had just 30 minutes to live kept asking a rather strange question. Instead of asking his helper: how far do we have to go? He rather ceaselessly requested: ‘how much time have we got, how much time have we got’?

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THE HELLISH BREAD

THE MESSAGE NOW

Vol. 2, No. 21 – Monday, 22nd May, 2017

 (Luke 11:37-44, 12:1, Job.8:13, 13:16, 15:34, 27:8, 34:30, Mark.7:6, 12:15-16, Matt.7:5)

THE HELLISH BREAD

There is no dainty so sweet; neither is there any pastry so succulent and pleasurable as the subtle bread baked from the biggest oven in the biggest bakery which stands at the centre of hell. 

This is the subtle and succulent bread called hypocrisy.

What eaters of this subtle bread from hell’s finest bakery don’t know is that their companions at the dinning table where this bread is being consumed are the dead. 

How? Proverbs 9:17-18 tells us: ‘stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant. But he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depth of hell’. The express implication of the foregoing Scripture is twofold. One is the clear expression of the subtle nature of the sin of hypocrisy. Two is the fact that committers of the sin of hypocrisy will eventually dwell in hell and eternally partner with hell-bound citizens in the very end.

The sin of hypocrisy is the trigger of associated sins. How? Hypocrisy is so terrible to such degree that men commit the sin whilst committing other sins. No wonder the Scripture says: ‘speaking lies in hypocrisy, and having their consciences seared with a hot iron’ (1 Tim.4:2).

Hypocrisy is a speedy killer of human conscience. But beyond the mystery of being the trigger of associated crimes and sins, there is yet another mystery about hypocrisy. Do you know that you can be an honest person by personal principle and yet you are a hypocrite? The story below will further expatiate this point.

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WHAT DOES YOUR NAME MEAN TO YOU AND TO GOD? (Part 2)

THE MESSAGE NOW

Vol. 2, No. 20 – Monday, 15th May, 2017 

(Genesis 32:23-28, Jeremiah 20:1-5, Proverbs 22:1)

WHAT DOES YOUR NAME MEAN TO YOU AND TO GOD? (Part 2)

 If in fact, in law and in logic, names represent man’s physical identity (as was argued in the previous edition of this magazine), then their meanings and corresponding factors have the propensity to effect a positive or negative impact on man’s life at least spiritually.

When I say factors, I mean reasons and events which led to the giving or the change of certain names. Factors such as parental ill or affirmative actions after or before our birth, foundational concerns, personal actions incurring divine wroth, or divine approval and what I call spiritual “externalities” such as curses and ill-fated actions or spiritual goodwill of other men and anointed Men of God, are but a few of these life-changing factors.

‘Pashur’ in one of the referred passages in this edition (Jer.20:1-5) was a minister in the house of the Lord. For reasons of his unaffirmative action, his name was changed to Magormisabib. Ordinarily, Pashur means ‘a life compassed about by goodness’. Magormisabib (his new name) on the other hand means ‘a life compassed about by affliction’. There are certain things that count a great deal to God and, which have the capacity to incur the judgement of God on man.

To what extent do you reverence the anointing of God on His servant? Are you aware that a reverence of a servant’s anointing accords his master due regard? I do hope your name has not yet been changed unknown to you as a result of your actions.

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WHAT DOES YOUR NAME MEAN TO YOU AND TO GOD? (Part 1)

 
THE MESSAGE NOW

Vol. 2, No. 19 – Monday, 8th May, 2017 

(Genesis 32:23-28, Jeremiah 20:1-5, Proverbs 22:1)

WHAT DOES YOUR NAME MEAN TO YOU AND TO GOD?(Part 1)

In fact, in law and in logic, a name is a perfect means of identification. Spiritually speaking, names have spiritual weight, import and impact. Their impact is of such great weight that they determine the direction of one’s life and destiny.

Indeed, what one’s true name means is what one is and stands for in the spirit realm. The problem is: most men bear names without ever making both academic and spiritual research about the meaning of their name.

Neither do they ever bother to make spiritual research before God through prayer whether or not the name they bear is their actual name recognisable by heaven. Are you bearing a name belonging to another and such is unknown to you?

The tragedy involved is that since that name is not your original name from the Most High, bearing that name of another means that you will continually spend your life in the destiny of that individual and not in your own destiny.

The more concerning tragedy is that the fact that it is unknown to you that you bear another person’s name and, in consequence, their destiny, does not free you of the dastard danger. In fact, the lack of knowledge rather compounds the situation the more.

Hmmm! what a tragedy indeed! It further means that you are not the person you think you are. It is a most relevant question to inquire from God for instance, if my name means beloved since David is my name: why am I hated all around instead?

Is Cecilia my rightful name from God? Since Cecilia means blind, am I not spiritually blind at the very least? I have a wonderful African, Asian, European, Australian or American name. But why is my life expressing the exact opposite of my name?

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REJECTED BEFORE EVER REIGNING

THE MESSAGE NOW

Vol. 2, No. 18 – Monday, 1st May, 2017

 (Judges 11, Philippians 3:13-14)

REJECTED BEFORE EVER REIGNING

It was about the latter years of the 1990s, an African music band was named ‘Pain and Pleasure’ by its founder. The reason for that nomenclature is by no means difficult to unravel.

He was such a founder who rose to stardom practically from nothing.

But one thing was certain about this founder, although impaired (and indeed), hails from a family of additional two impaired sisters, he is a man of uncommon resolve. 

Shortly after the demise of his parents, the remaining months and years of his childhood was greeted by the  most gruesome rejection ever imagined by any one.

His uncle who should have provided succour acted in the exact opposite. Despite hardship and cruel rejection, this man found his way to the top by extreme determination. Having graduated with a Second-class Upper in History, the pursuit was then to secure a job.

But yet, trouble from childhood days seemed unabating. With all sense of diligence, he searched for his first job. Sadly, employment was in abeyance for six tumultuous years. During this period, he schooled himself in all sorts of skilled labour that was within his reach.

These included music (the guitar and the keyboard) and computer repairs, software management and programme development. Today, this founder of the Pain and Pleasure band is practically the only computer programmer, software developer and repairer of computer parts in the nation-state of Nigeria who is blind.Continue reading →