Yet Praise Him!

Praise the LORD! "Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Saviour and my God." Psalm 42:5 & 11. To be downcast is to be depressed or despondent [profound hopelessness, dejection, discouragement or gloom]. (That's quite serious; thank God for minshɛ!) The antidote for a downcast soul is praise. The soul is made up of your mind, your will and your emotions. The authors of this Psalm (the sons of Korah) expressed that they felt so down and depressed but they reminded themselves that there was no real reason to feel that way because they had their God, my God, your God, our Saviour. They made a switch and told their soul to put their hope in God and praise Him. So, the secret to staying out of depression, discouragement and despondency is PRAISE. But, I've realised that praise is not a one-time event. It has to be a lifestyle, a conscious effort. That is the secret to a quiet (peaceful) soul. So, next time life tries it and you begin to feel some way, ask yourself, "Why, my soul, are you downcast?... for I will yet praise Him." Personally, I think it's very cheeky of me to be the one blogging this message. It applies very much to me too! (Just goes to show it is the Holy Spirit really writing this. I didn't plan to say all this...) 

Anyways, #YetPraiseHim!

Blessings!

It Is Working For You!

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). 

Every detail of your life is working out for good.

Even the bits that do not make sense and the bits that seem unfair. God is molding you and shaping you for destiny. The level He is taking you requires a level of tenacity, character and spiritual fortitude. Trust the process.

Hold onto God. Hold onto His Word. Continue to seek the Lord while He may be found (Isaiah 55:6).

Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel:
I am the Lord your God
And there is no other.
My people shall never be put to shame

(Joel 2:27). 

I am too convinced of this. He will never put his children to shame.

As we say in Kharis, it is working for you!

                                                              

Lessons From An Encounter: Zechariah

Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth were righteous people. The Bible says that they observed the Lord’s commands blamelessly (Luke 1:6). But they had a problem. They had no children because Elizabeth was barren. (Luke 1:7). Yet they continued to serve the Lord faithfully.

One day, while Zechariah was burning incense, serving in the temple, he had an encounter. An angel appeared to him and told him that his prayer had been heard. He will have a son called John who would be a joy and who would be great in the Lord’s sight.

Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.” The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.  And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.” (Luke 1:18-20).

This portion of Scripture is loaded. A few lessons that stood out to me…

1.   It pays to be consistent and faithful to God. We shouldn’t allow our circumstances (e.g. barrenness) to stop us from serving God faithfully. [Luke 1:6]

2.   Zechariah had an encounter in the midst of prayer. In those times, incense was burned in the temple twice a day. When the people saw the smoke from the burning incense, they would pray. The smoke drifting heavenward represented their prayers ascending to God. So, prayer creates an atmosphere for encounters. [Luke 1:8-10].

3.    God hates unbelief! Zechariah questioned what the angel said because he looked at his situation. The angel, Gabriel, didn’t come to convince Zechariah. He came to tell him to what was to come. Whatever God has promised you and I won’t take what we have. We don’t have what it takes. All God is looking for is our faith! [Luke 1:18-20].

4.    Zechariah became mute after this encounter. Gabriel told him he would be silent until the fulfillment of the promise. I found this to be significant because I realised that sometimes, God will have to shut us up to stop us from talking ourselves out of the promise and out of destiny. If Zechariah had carried on talking, he would probably have continued to confess his disbelief. God cannot work where there is no faith! [Luke 1:20].

5.   My pastor always says “All you need is the hand of God to change your story.” After Zechariah had this encounter, his story changed. He was no longer childless. His destiny was transformed by this encounter. Seek God and seek encounters with Him. Destiny is at stake.

Every blessing!

#JoyUnspeakable

His Genuine Love for Us

God totally loves us.  

Israel and Judah continually rebelled against the Lord yet God said,
“Come now, let us settle the matter,”
    says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
    they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
    they shall be like wool.
(Isaiah 1:18)

When I read this verse, I really appreciated God's love for us, for you and I. Despite the constant sinning of His people, he beckoned them to come. 
"Come...let us reason together."

What He needs from us is repentance and obedience.
  
Wash and make yourselves clean.
    Take your evil deeds out of my sight;
    stop doing wrong. (Isaiah 1:16)

His heart for you, His genuine love for you, is indescribable. 

No matter how far you've gone, though you may not have it altogether, God says, "Come now, and let us reason together."

#JoyUnspeakable 

When I Move, You Move

Ezekiel had an encounter with God Almighty Himself. As the glory of God was being revealed to him, he saw what looked like four living creatures (described in Ezekiel 1). Something struck me about these creatures.

"Each one went straight ahead. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, without turning as they went. As they moved, they would go in any one of the four directions the creatures faced; the wheels did not change direction as the creatures went. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, and the wheels would rise along with them, because the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels" (Ezekiel 1:12,17, 20).

Wherever the spirit would go, they would go...

This is how I want to be led by the Holy Spirit. These creatures only went where the spirit went and they did so without turning. They set themselves as flint! (Isaiah 50:7). From teachings I've been listening to recently, following the Holy Spirit is absolutely vital for our rising in life and for destiny. The Holy Spirit knows where we ought to go. We don't. The Bible says the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God and although no one knows God's thoughts, the Holy Spirit makes them known to us! (1 Corinthians 2:10) We ought to follow the Holy Spirit.

What I'm about to say may seem abstract but hear me out a second...

...the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

The wheels made me think of movement. The creatures could only move once the spirit moved because the spirit was in the wheels. This made me think and reminded me of my pastor's teachings which both bring home that point that before we do anything, before we make decisions, before we make that next move, we need the Spirit in our 'wheels'. We need the Holy Spirit to back our steps. He needs to be the one behind what we are doing. He totally has to lead and we totally have to depend on Him if we really want to move forward in any direction of life!

#JoyUnspeakable

The Flesh Doesn't Count

It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life (John 6:63). 

I've discovered that nothing we do actually counts, so far as God is concerned, unless it is done in the Spirit. This means that everything we do has to be done whilst totally dependent on the Holy Spirit for it to register in Heaven. 

John 6:63 tells us that "it is the spirit that quickeneth." This means that the Holy Spirit gives life. It goes on to say "the flesh profiteth nothing." This means that anything done in the flesh is dead. It has no life or worth because it is the Spirit that quickeneth; it is the Spirit that gives life!

That's quite a scary thought. To think that there are so many things that I may have been doing that have been a certified waste of time because I was doing it with my own will power, with my own strength - in the flesh. Ei! We value our time and our efforts so much. But is it possible that they have counted for absolutely nothing? 

For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit (Romans 8:3-4). 

So, as Christians, we are to walk according to the Spirit and not the flesh. For anything we do to be of value or to count for something, we need the Holy Spirit. We need the Holy Spirit everyday single day. 

Jesus was the One talking in John 6:63. He said the words that He speaks unto us are Spirit and are life. That implies that we can walk by the Spirit by feeding ourselves with the Word because the Word is Spirit and life!

Lord, we ask for grace to walk according to the Spirit and to bury our heads in the Word, in Jesus' name. Amen.

#JoyUnspeakable

Blood, Sweat & Tears

He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground (Luke 22:41-44 NIV). 

This Scripture brings me so much comfort. God is willing man, God is just so willing to help us, to lighten our load, to show us that we are not alone, to show us that He is Immanuel, God with us! 

Jesus was in such agony for you and I that he prayed more earnestly for God to take such suffering away from Him. But, my God, He said "yet not my will, but yours be done." Jesus loved us so so much (and still does!) that despite that pain, He was still willing to go and endure the Cross for us. He endured to the very end. Wow. 

I read this Scripture at a time I was feeling so down. It lifted me from that place to a place of peace. I figured that whatever I was feeling could not compare to what Jesus felt. I almost felt like I had no right to even feel the way I did. I mean, He was in such agony that he sweated blood. Blood! I now know where the phrase "blood, sweat and tears" came from. This wasn't just a cliché saying for Jesus. It was his very experience, for mere mortals like you and I. 

Imagine. 

I want someone to know that, ah, Jesus loves you so much. I want someone to know that God is so willing to help you. Sometimes, He may not take you out of that situation but if you only ask, He will give you that strength. He will give it to you. I'm saying this because I experienced it this very week. He will. He is willing! 

But we have a responsibility. Notice how Jesus withdrew to go and pray. I find that when I feel down, it's easy to want to tell someone. But Jesus withdrew to talk to the Father and when he felt such anguish, God strengthened Him as He prayed more earnestly ( - big lesson there)! God is willing to give you want it takes to endure. 

Will you let Him? Just ask.


#JoyUnspeakable
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