I Returned !

I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.(Ecc 9:11 KJV)

I don’t know about you but there are many things I have received that I did not merit. I have won races [not literally] in which I was not the fastest; won battles I thought I should have lost; gotten provision in ways I didn’t expect and received favour when doors seemed shut. In other words, I have been a candidate of God’s favour and mercy over and over again. Like Solomon I returned [observed, considered] these things and concluded that God is faithful.

Maybe you are reading this and you are not convinced God has been good to you; as a matter of fact you think God has some explanation to do concerning some things in your life. Many times we are so consumed with our problems we simply refuse to see the good things God has thrown in our paths. The point is that we do not take time to objectively consider and observe the totality of events in our lives. When we do, we begin to see that we have absolutely many things to be grateful for. When we count our blessing and name one by one, we would be surprised to see what God has done!

In another perspective, how many times have we had the privilege to return… literally? You went out yesterday and returned home safe. You went to the hospital pregnant and returned with a baby. You  went to college years ago and you returned to your family. You started a business venture and you returned with profit. You went for surgery and you returned alive. Every time we return we have a chance to celebrate the faithfulness of God. When we celebrate God’s faithfulness we open doors for greater blessings.

The Response of a Lover

I will rise now, and go about the city in the streets, and in the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. The watchmen that go about the city found me: to whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth? It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go………………………………… (Son 3:2-4 KJV)

Every time I see him my heart skips a beat, my palms begin to sweat and the smile on my face is so bright it can light a stadium. I seldom look into his eyes, not because I am shy but because the intensity of his loving gaze seems more than my mind can contain. Could a man love a woman this much? Many times when I am alone I wonder aloud, ‘can there be a greater love than this?’

In all things however, it is our fellowship with one another that I love the most. By fellowship I refer to time together spent talking, walking, holding hands, feeding on the uniqueness of each other’s celestial and terrestrial beauty, having intercourse or simply enjoying the tranquility in silently gazing at nature’s beauty. 

Please do not imagine that this relationship is all about me. It is true that I cannot equivocally say that I love him like he loves me but I keep trying.  You see, it seems as if all he needs from me is to have the right attitude to his love towards me. I see him smile when I respond to his words and his touch. It is obvious his delight emanates from my positive response to his love for me.

I look forward always to his speaking to me, talking with me or instructions for me. I delight in the wisdom in his words and the now expected positive result from heeding his instructions. Well, many of the female specie would frown at my dependence on him and fascination with who he is. But, day after day, week after week, month after month and year after year, the more I depend on him the better my relationship with him becomes. The interesting thing is; the benefits of our relationship supersedes the two of us, it brings the best out of my relationship with others and more importantly I feel whole in my body, soul and spirit.

This is my story; the story of a lover and the one he loves. I know you want to know more about me but I don’t think you need to. Anyway, let me at least intimate you with my name and the name of my lover.

My name is ‘Christian’ and my lover’s name is Jesus. 

God is faithful (reliable, trustworthy, and therefore ever true to His promise, and He can be depended on); by Him you were called into companionship and participation with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. (1Co 1:9 AMP)

God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship [Greek; koinonia: participation, communion, fellowship, intercourse] of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. (1Co 1:9 KJV)

It Will Come To Pass!

Just as rain and snow descend from the skies and don't go back until they've watered the earth, Doing their work of making things grow and blossom, producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry, So will the words that come out of my mouth not come back empty-handed. They'll do the work I sent them to do, they'll complete the assignment I gave them. (Isa 55:10-11, MSG)

Abraham was now 70 years old and he had been married to beautiful Sarah for quite some years now. Thiers was a blissful marriage, what you would call a marriage made in heaven BUT they had no child. Year upon year it was the same story. Abraham and his wife grew old and the shame of childlessness stuck to them like a stamp. God had told Abraham he would make him the father of many nations but how could that be when Abraham didn’t even have a child. But then God visited them when every physical fact pointed to the impossibility of their situation; Sarah gave birth to a baby boy when Abraham was a hundred years old. God promised the impossible; it didn’t look like it would happen; BUT IT CAME TO PASS. [Genesis 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21]

Once upon a time there lived a young boy with his family in a certain country. This boy, though young, had great expectations for his future. He constantly shared his visions with anyone who cared to listen. The young boy believed that it was God who had given him these visions so he was confident of their fulfillment. However as time went on everything went wrong! It seems as if he was moving in the very opposite direction of the fulfillment of his dreams and he began to wonder if these visions of his were just figments of his imagination; he wasn’t sure anymore if God was the source of these visions. That boy was Joseph and it took him more than two decades and painful experiences in the pit and the prison before God’s word came to pass; BUT IT CAME TO PASS.  [Genesis 37, 39, 40, 41]

What about David, the man after God’s heart. He was a boy of seventeen when Prophet Samuel came to his father’s house and anointed him as the next king of Israel. The events that followed in the after years supposedly contradicted prophecy about him. For many years he was a fugitive in his own country running from pillar to post. King Saul was bent on destroying him but in the face of all his troubles the word of God still CAME TO PASS.

Many times as Christians we have found ourselves in similar dilemmas. We have visions that we believe God gave to us and we have believed God for the fulfillment. God has given us promises that seems would never come to pass. Months have passed and years have rolled by and the fulfillment is not in sight; at least that is what it looks like. For some, the situation about which God spoke to them about has gone from bad to worse. The question now remains: will God’s word come to pass? Can we still trust God in the midst of all these? Why does it look like there is such a wide gulf between God’s word and our experiences? 

It is obvious that when God speaks to us the manifestation of that word is usually not immediate; that is, there is usually a time interlude between when God speaks and the realization of his word. On the other hand the scripture states that God’s word CANNOT return to him void without accomplishing what it was it was sent to do (Isa 55:11).   How then do we marry these two seemingly divergent realities? What exactly do we need to understand?

Every Christian must understand that the veracity of God’s word is absolutely predicated on who God is. That is, the ‘sureness’ of the fulfillment of God’s word to a man is a direct result of the character and personality of the almighty God. And the one character of God that gives us the assurance of the fulfillment of his word is his faithfulness. What is faithfulness? Faithfulness is a firm adherence to promises, duty or friendship; it is a state of constant and sincere moral fidelity. In relation to God what this means is that God cannot lie: He means what he says and he says what he means. No wonder the bible says in the book of Hebrews chapter six verse eighteen that it is impossible for God to lie.

Many of us have held on to God’s word for a long time and it seems as if it will never come to pass.  You have believed God for the salvation of your spouse; for that promotion at work; for a house of your own; for healing of a disease and one time or the other God has spoken to you about these things but it has not yet been made manifest. At this point it is tempting to just give up and conclude that it isn’t ever going to happen. However, I stand to tell you that if God said it, and you believe it, that settles it; it will surely come to pass. I like the way the message translation of the bible put Hebrews 6; 17-19:

When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee-- God can't break his word. And because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable. We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It's an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God.

Brothers and sisters let me state unequivocally that God’s word is worth holding on to no matter the situation you are in now because IT WILL SURELY COME TO PASS.

BREAK OUT! Exploring the power of forgiveness in your relationships.

Ton

By Damilola Whenu

Tony said, I’m sorry, I won’t do it again’. Sade replied, fuming in anger, “That’s what you always say. Why do you like making me angry all the time? You always make me cry and I keep forgiving you all the time”.

We are angered and hurt by different people for varied reasons. Some are justified while some are not. It’s usually more painful when it’s a loved one that offended us. We hold on to the offense at times and expect they apologize for the wrong done to us. In relationships, it seems or appears as though our partner keeps doing what we have complained about or what we don’t like.  At times, we feel he or she is intentionally hurting our feelings. In this kind of state we often feel as if people are all out to make us miserable! First and foremost, let me say ‘chillax’, this is a blend of chill and relax!

If the hurt is not dealt with, it springs up feelings of resentment towards the ‘offender’ and as a result of this, little issues are magnified out of proportion. The issue is mainly because we didn’t truly forgive the past hurt, and that is why we still keep seeing every little mistake our partner makes or things he or she does as an intentional act of hurting us.

Forgiveness is important to sustain relationships and marriages. Some relationships and marriages have reached boiling points of conflicts and chaos just because of feelings of resentment of one partner to the other. Let’s see what the bible has to say about this issue:

Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?

Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. Mat 18:21-22 KJV

We can see from the above scripture verse that no one was secluded or exempted from being forgiven. So your partner (spouse as the case may be) is not an exemption. I saw it in an article that a friend put up in a post sometimes ago that says this about forgiveness: ‘Forgiveness is to set a prisoner free and then discover that the prisoner was you’ [Max Lucado]. Many have been held in the bondage of unforgiveness, nursing thoughts that cause them to be bitter, angry and resentful towards their spouse. When we refuse to resolve issues that make us constantly angry and hurt, our minds are hardened with bitterness and resentful feelings. This has a direct negative influence on our relationship with God. Forgiveness is not saying that what they did was okay or they’re going to get away with it. It’s simply letting go of your anger and turning over your feelings to God. Forgiveness is the oil of relationships.

Sometimes, we easily forgive others but when it comes to our spouses or those we are in a romantic relationship with, we want to punish the person and make the person also feel the hurts we are feeling inside. We want him/her to keep saying sorry or buy something to appease us for a wrong done. This is not good enough and it has damaging implications on our relationships in the long run. Forgiveness is a choice and it’s important that we make that choice. You will most likely not feel like forgiving the person. True forgiveness is a strong rational decision based on spiritual values, fueled by spiritual resources, and modeled after the spiritual principle of God’s forgiveness (Dr Ed Wheat).  To forgive is the highest form of love. In return , you will receive untold peace and happiness. When you truly forgive, you will feel relieved and discover that you were harming yourself. 

I find the story of the wicked servant in Matthew 18:23- 35 very key in understanding the destructive impact of unforgiveness. A servant was forgiven the debt he owed, which is equivalent to about 10 million dollars but couldn’t forgive his fellow servant who owed him 10 dollars. He eventually pushed himself to an undesirable end. So you see, you can’t afford to make unforgiveness a clog in the wheel of the progress of your relationship with your spouse and loved ones.