Be Repositioned

Thenbook of 2 Kings 20:1-6 tells us of king Hezekiah who fell ill and the Lord sent His prophet Isaiah to tell him to prepare as he wasn't going to recover but will die. King Hezekiah faced the wall and cried to the Lord, reminding Him of how much he's been a faithful servant. The Lord heard him and sent the prophet back to tell him that He has heard his cry and would let him live another 15 years. That was amazing! This story shows us that the Lord has mercy for us, He sees our cries and is able to help us in time of need. He is able to turn things around, in our favour. Now as we enter 2022, may we be encouraged to ask Him for His intervention, in our situations. He is able to do it for us. Surrender all your plans to Him and align with His will for your life. We could never go wrong. Trust in the Lord with all your heart (Book of Proverbs 5).

 As the year 2021 draws to the end, I pray you will find time to reflect on the year it was. Thank God for all that has been, good and bad (remember Romans 8:28- He will work out ALL things for our good). May we show gratitude on His mercy on us, keeping and guarding us through the turmoil. It is also time to plan and prepare for the following year, trusting Him with our plans and praying for wisdom to ensure that they align with God's will, for our lives. Proverbs 16:9 reminds us of this: " The heart of man plans his way,  but the  Lord  establishes his steps." The will of God will prevail. The bible in Habakkuk 2:2-3 urges us to write down our plan/vision:   " And the   Lord   answered me:  ' Write the vision;  make it plain on tablets,  so he may run who reads it.  For still   the vision awaits its appointed time;  it hastens to the end—it will not lie.  If it seems slow,   wait for it;   it will surely come; it will not delay."  Therefore, as we prepare

When the grace of God is upon you, everything you do, will bear fruits. An example is the story we learn about Daniel, who was faithful and loved God very much (Daniel 6). He was chosen to be one of the supervisors of the governors and was being considered to be put in charge of the whole empire as a result of his outstanding work. This is evident in Daniel 6:3 " Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom."   Eventhough  this led to resentment from the other supervisors and governors who then looked for something to trap him with and his faith became an easy target.  They then told the king to release an order to everyone that for 30 days, no one should ask anything from their gods except the king, with the person violating  this, be put into a lion's den. The king agreed and set that out and Daniel faithful as he was to God, he continued to pray to God 3

 King 3 tells us of the request that was made by king Solomon. In this passage, Solomon was honest with God, as we see in verse 7 where he was acknowledging the position God gave him of succeeding his father, David to be the king, however, he indicated his insecurities that he didn't know how to rule this great nation that the Lord has given him to rule. He then asked for wisdom. The response from God shows us that God truly listens and He also looks at our heart, on the things we ask for. For example, verse 10 tells us that the Lord was pleased with what Solomon asked for, which was not a selfish request, such as long life, riches for self or the death of his enemies (verse 11). Instead of just granting him what he asked for, which is wisdom, God gave Him more. In verse 12 to 14 indicates that: " I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.   Moreover, I will give you wh

Nehemiah 8:10-12 Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing   prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy   of the   Lord   is your strength.”  The Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be still, for this is a holy day. Do not grieve.”  Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy,   because they now understood the words that had been made known to them. Few key take-aways from this passage: people gathered to listen to the word of God, where the law of Moses was read out to them. The name of the Lord was greatly praised and people responded by surrendering to God, lifting their hands up, worshiping. After this, the people were touched by the word and started crying. That's when Nehemiah gave an instruction for the people not to mourn, but for the people to be joyous, eat food and have a drink. To further share with those that are in need. The

The bible tells us that God had always desired for us to do life with Him, work with Him.  Matthew 11:2 7 says:  "Come to me, all you who are  weary and burdened , and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."  Here God invites us to do His will, not what we chose for ourselves that could've resulted in us being burdened and worn out, but to go to Him as His yoke is easy and the burden that is light. This results in us learning how to do things, as we rely on Him. Proverbs 3:5-6  Trust in the   Lord   with all your heart  and lean not on your own understanding;  in all your ways submit to him,   and he will make your paths straight. This emphasizes that leaning on our own understanding and ways, can lead to crocked paths, ones that can yield frustration, hurt, pain, delay, failures and more as our thinking and understanding is limit

Luke 2:11 says: "The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!" What a day, that has brought so much joy to so many people, from generation to generation, we have felt the impact.  “Glory to You in highest heaven, and peace on earth to me with whom God is pleased.”  Luke 2:14. We join the angels in worshipping the king of kings. We are in awe our Father's mercy and power. May this day be a reminder that miracles still happen, God is with us and we've been given the greatest gift of all!!! Amen. Merry Christmas!!

It is truly an amazing story that the bible tells us (in Luke 1:39-45), of the miracle that Mary and her relative Elizabeth got, around the same time. This sounds like a twin miracle happened, where Elizabeth who was old and could not have children, but had miraculously fell pregnant and was now six months pregnant, when Mary came to tell her the good news of her own, that she too was pregnant. A young woman who was still a virgin but conceived through the Holy Spirit. How amazing that must have been. The excitement was even felt by the baby that Elizabeth was carrying, John, who leaped when he heard Mary's voice. A definite connection there. Luke 1:37 says: " For with God nothing shall be impossible." Indeed, God is able to do things that blow our minds off. He is able to make a way where there seems to be no way.  I pray this serves as an encouragement for those that might feel that in their situations, there is no way. Remember, God is still the same and is still able

We are drawing closer to Christmas and it dawned on me that we have to take a moment and remember the true meaning of Christmas, the reason why we celebrate Christmas. On this day, we remember that the king of kings was born, our Saviour, our redeemer in whom we find ourselves free. Free to have a relationship with our Father, free from sin and death, free from bondage, free from sicknesses. That we are guaranteed an external life after death. This shows that it is indeed a BIG deal. This was the greatest gift that God gave us, one we should be grateful for, for eternity. I'm reminded of one of the oldest bible verses I learnt which is John 3:16 that tells us that God LOVED the world so much, that He gave His one and only SON, so that whoever believes in Him, will not perish but will have eternal life. That is such a blessing!! Prophet Isaiah told of this in Isaiah 9:6 which says " For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. An

Isaiah 65:17-25   “See, I will create  new heavens and a new earth.  The former things will not be remembered,  nor will they come to mind.  But be glad and rejoice forever  in what I will create,  for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight  and its people a joy.  I will rejoice over Jerusalem  and take delight in my people  the sound of weeping and of crying  will be heard in it no more.  “Never again will there be in it  an infant who lives but a few days,  or an old man who does not live out his years;  the one who dies at a hundred  will be thought a mere child  the one who fails to reach  a hundred  will be considered accursed.  They will build houses and dwell in them;  they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.  No longer will they build houses and others live in them,  or plant and others eat  For as the days of a tree,  so will be the days of my people;  my chosen ones will long enjoy  the work of their hands.  They will not labor in vain,  nor will they bear children doo

 God is able and willing to shift things for us, from tears to laughter, pain to victory. The story of Hannah teaches us precisely that. The bible in the book of 1 Samuel 1:1-28 where a man named Elkanah had two wives Hannah and Peninnah. Hannah never had children whilst Peninnah had. During the time of bringing sacrifice to the Lord, Peninnah used to humiliate and torment Hannah about the issue of her being childless, this would break her heart and she would cry to the Lord about it. One time same thing happened, and she stayed a while longer at the temple, praying that God would remember her and bless her with a child; she made a promised to God that if God could bless her with a son, she would dedicate him to God. Prophet Eli saw her and thought she was drunk but indeed she was in prayer. He wished her well on what she was praying about. Soon thereafter, Hannah fell pregnant and gave birth to a son, whom she named Samuel. This brought joy for her and she kept her promise and dedicat

The book of Revelations can be intimidating and encouraging at the same time. Check what Revelations 21:1-8 says: Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.   I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.   And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.   ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”  He who was seated on the throne   said, “I am making everything new!”  Then He said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”  He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will giv

I remember at some point, our pastor preached about the message that comes from the book of 2 Chronicles 20:1-25 for a couple of weeks, where I ended up asking God what He was trying to teach me out of this passage. The lesson was profound and I held on to it. This is a story where the armies invaded Judah. A messenger came to king Jehoshaphat that a large army from Edom had come to attack them. Jehoshaphat was frightened and he prayed to the Lord for guidance. He gave an order that the country should fast and they started to pray. In their prayer they were reminding God of the great things God did for them and their ancestors, and that now they were being forced out of the land that God had given them. They asked God to help them. Then the spirit of God came upon one of them, where the Lord revealed that they must not be discouraged and not be afraid, that they must go out to the battle and the Lord will be with them. The king bowed down, thanking the Lord and they went out to fight.

God wants to achieve more, through us. When God created man on earth, in the garden of Eden, we are told that God gave man dominion over everything, animals, the earth. This is in Genesis 1:26 " Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." By this, God was giving us the responsibility to take care of everything, look after and nurture His creatures. One might ask, what is my role in this? We understand that when God created each human being, He had a specific call or purpose for each one. These purposes differ  from one person to the other. Some purposes have an impact on many people at a time, whilst others are focused on impacting one person at a time. Remember God controls the world (Psalm 24:1 that says the earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world and all who live

The book of 2 Samuel 22:1-51 is an encouraging chapter, where king David expresses his joy and gratitude over what the Lord has done for him, defeating his enemies (including Saul). In this book, David describes how the Lord saw him being fearful over his enemies whom he describes as powerful and the Lord heard his cry and came to His rescue. David describes the Lord as his protector and strong fortress. In this chapter we see the description of God's anger over those that were oppressing and contending with him, where in verse 15 says: " He shot his arrows   and scattered the enemy,   with great bolts of lightning he routed them." Remember Romans 12:19 " Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord." God expects us to call on Him to fight our battles. 2 Samuel 22:17 further shows how God rescued David: " He reached down from on high   and took hold of me; H e dr

 The book of Proverbs chapter 3 and 4 talks about wisdom as being very important, that we need. We are told that wisdom will protect us, that we must love wisdom and ensure we don't lose it. This is in agreement with what we learnt from king Solomon, who said he wants wisdom which was granted and he lived to accomplish so much, he even got respected.  This shows us that in order to lead a life that is purposeful, pleasing to God and that gives honour to God, we need wisdom. James 1:5 says anyone who lacks wisdom, must ask God. Ask and it shall be given (Matthew 7:7). May we never get tired of asking...

Amos 9:13-15 is very encouraging and gives us hope. It says: “Yes indeed, it won’t be long now.”  God ’s Decree.  “Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other. You won’t be able to keep up. Everything will be happening at once—and everywhere you look, blessings! Blessings like wine pouring off the mountains and hills. I’ll make everything right again for my people Israel:  “They’ll rebuild their ruined cities.  They’ll plant vineyards and drink good wine.  They’ll work their gardens and eat fresh vegetables.  And I’ll  plant them on their own land.  They’ll never again be uprooted from the land I’ve given them.”  God , your God, says so."  How powerful is that! Sometimes being in a position of lack, the enemy might lie to you that things will remain that way forever, that freedom and prosperity doesn't belong to you. However, this bible verse reminds us that God has the best interest at heart, for His children, that He will

The bible story of the rescue of the Children of Israel from slavery, shows us some of God's characteristics that we can hold on to, for our own life experiences.  One of the biggest lessons in this story is that God sees everything! He might allow certain things to happen in our lives, but He also has an "Enough is Enough". The bible tells us that the Israelites were enslaved by the Egyptians for over 400 years, and one day, God said it is Enough! That it was time His children be freed and that's when miracles started happening. Exodus 14:14 shows us that the Lord is our Defender: " The  Lord  will fight  for you; you need only to be still.” Also Exodus 14:31: " And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand  of the  Lord  displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared  the  Lord  and put their trust  in him and in Moses his servant."   God handled the battle for them and He  rescued  them from the Egyptians.   God is also our Guide. This is evident i

Matthew 18:23-35 tells a story that was told by Jesus as an example. This story is about a king who checked on the accounts of his servants and found one that owed him a lot of money. He called him in and asked him about his money. The servant told him he didn't have enough money to pay him back and the king as punishment said he should be sold as a slave together with his family. However the man begged the king to forgive him and give him a chance to pay back the money. The king felt sorry for him and released him. Now the man after this incident, met up with a man that owed him some money and insisted that he pays him back. The man didn't have money to pay him and begged him not to harm him, that he was going to pay it back. But that servant didn't hear any of that and sent this man to jail. People told the  king of what happened and the king was furious on the act of this servant and called him in and ended up putting him to jail as he didn't have the same mercy that

 The story of the Israelites being delivered from Egypt, is one of the greatest bible stories. The bible tells us in the book of Exodus 13:17-18 that when the Lord rescued the children of Israel from Egypt, there was a shorter route that God could have directed them, but He took them in a roundabout way through the desert toward the Red Sea, as the Lord was preparing them for the battle. This is the exact spot where Egyptians drowned as they were chasing after the Israelites. In Exodus 14,  we see God making the king of Egypt stubborn, who then changed his mind and insisted that the Israelites be followed and brought back to slavery. He took his very best army and they chased after the Israelites and managed to catch-up with them. The Israelites were terrified and cried out to Moses, who told them not to be afraid, but to stand their ground and see the salvation of the Lord. God instructed Moses to hold out his hand over the sea, which he did  and it parted the sea, so the Israelites c

Human beings can be seen to be fending for themselves, for the needs they have, in comparison to non humans. But this thought is corrected by the scripture in the book of Matthew 6:26 that says: " Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? This verse shows us that God so wants to take care of us, if we would let Him. Phillipians 4:6 reminds us that we need not be anxious  or worried about anything, but in prayer, be thankful to God. Therefore, a new mindset that we need, to trust God more with our needs, bring them to His attention, with a heart filled with gratitude. Gratitude for what He has already done for us.

 The story of Gideon in the bible reminds us of a few things that are lessons we need to take note of. Judges 6:11-16 reads: The angel of the  Lord  came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah  that belonged to Joash  the Abiezrite,  where his son Gideon  was threshing  wheat in a winepress  to keep it from the Midianites.   When the angel of the  Lord  appeared to Gideon, he said, “The  Lord  is with you,  mighty warrior. ”  “Pardon me, my Lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the  Lord  is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all His wonders  that our ancestors told  us about when they said, ‘Did not the  Lord  bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the  Lord  has abandoned  us and given us into the hand of Midian.”  The  Lord  turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have  and save  Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”  “Pardon me, my Lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan  is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family. ”  Th

 Psalm 126:4-6 "Restore our fortunes, O  Lord ,  as you restore streams  ⌊ to dry riverbeds ⌋  in the Negev.  Those who cry while they plant  will joyfully sing while they harvest.  The person who goes out weeping, carrying his bag of seed,  will come home singing, carrying his bundles of grain." God is not deaf to our plea, He sees every effort made to build His kingdom. It is God's will to restore His children, to allow them to reap a harvest. The thing is that in order to reap, we need to sow. Sowing in the kingdom can be in many things, remember  we are the hands and feet of Jesus on earth. Helping a needy person, is sowing in the kingdom, as it is God's will for us to help the poor, widows and those in need. However, in whatever we do, we need to know that God sees our intention as well, doing one thing to get something in return that is not a good intention. The second most important law, as Jesus taught us is to love your neighbor as you love yourself- Matthew

 God is the God of the impossible. He parts the sea for His children to walk on. Isaiah 43:19 says: " See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the wilderness  and streams in the wasteland." This verse tells us that God is making a new thing for us. This could mean anything in relation to your season or circumstances. Whatever stagnation, difficulty, challenge, lack of progress, God is saying He is making a new thing. Some seasons might seem longer, tougher and never-ending but when the time is right, God intervenes and make things alright. He is faithful and we can count on His word. Isaiah 55:11 tells us that God is not man that He would lie, the words that comes from His mouth, will not return void or empty, they will accomplish that which was meant for. When God speaks a word, things happen. Remember how the earth was created, just by a word. Therefore, we can depend on what He says, we can trust what He promises, in d

 One of the greatest principle I've learnt, is that of a half-empty vs half-full glass principle. This principle is profound in a sense that to some degree, it tests our perception in life, on how we view things. Those who see it as a half-empty glass are seen as people who notice the negative thigs, in most cases, over the positives (that could exist). Whilst those who see it as a half-full glass are seen as more positive people that looks at life with a positive lens, that in as much there could be some challenges, there is some good in it somehow. Negativity has the ability to suck out joy from our lives, where if we constantly complain about everything, discredit and criticize all the time, we find ourselves attracting the negative spirit that erases any peace and joy that we are supposed to enjoy. This boils back to where does our trust lie? If we trust ourselves for everything, we are bound to be crippled by fear, because we can never know everything, control everything nor i

Life can feel like we are carrying burdens that are wearying us off, slowing us down and making us unproductive in every task we perform. This can be as a result of many life situations, in any area of our lives. That's when we know we need to find help. Matthew 11:28-30 says:  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.   For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Jesus offers to do an exchange  with us, to take the burdens  and weights  off our backs so that we can find rest. He says His yoke, is easy and the burden is light. What does that mean? It means the life we might've chosen for ourselves, such as careers or jobs, could be bringing grief into our lives, causing us a lot of stress, anxiety and lack of rest. This could be as a result of poor choices, peer pressure or simply the tough life that we find ourselves in, where

When Jesus was walking on earth, He proved to us that His will is for us to be healed and be made whole. We see this in many stories in the new testament, with examples such as the man that was sick, paralyzed for 38 years and had been lying by the pool to get an opportunity get in when the water was stirred, but was always overtaken (John 5:1-15). Another one being the woman who was oppressed with the spirits of infirmity for 18years, that kept her bent down and could not straighten up; all she could see was the dust and people's feet (Luke 13:10-13). Also a man with a withered hand, that was paralyzed (Luke 6:6-10). These are just a few examples of how Jesus intervened in their situations and made them whole. They all got healed and in His act, Jesus went beyond what others (such as the Pharisees) expected that no such acts (healing) could be done on a Sabbath. Jesus proved them wrong and showed that helping people gain restoration was far more important that the law. What was ap

 As humans, in one way or the other, we are bound to come short, in living a righteous life. How wonderful that the time that we live in, we no longer live under the law but under God's grace where God made us righteous with Him through Christ Jesus. Romans 5:1-2 says: " Therefore, since we have been made righteous through his faithfulness combined with our faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  We have access by faith into this grace in which we stand through him, and we boast in the hope of God's glory." By faith we are righteousness of God through Christ. This means that when Jesus was crucified on the cross, all our shame, sin, unrighteousness was crucified on His body, so that we may have a relationship with God. God sees us righteous because of what happened on the cross. We are forgiven not because of what we did, but because of what Jesus did for us on the cross. He is worthy of our praise. What God expects of us, is to live out this rea

 The bible tells us that Abraham is our forefather by faith. When God made a promise to him, He said he will have many descendants, countless. That the nations will be blessed through him. Genesis 8:2-4 says: " And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.   I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and  in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” In verse 8, Abraham built an altar for the Lord as a result of the promise:   "From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD." That was his act of appreciation... What we learn from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is that where they saw the hand of God in their lives, or where God made them a promise, they sealed the covenant by putting up a remembrance of sort. Jacob in Genesis

The book 1 Corinthians 12 speaks about the different spiritual gifts that each one of us are gifted with, as the body of Christ. Verse 7-11 shows that whilst some are gifted with the spirit of wisdom, spirit of knowledge, spirit of faith, spirit of healing, spirit of miraculous powers, of prophecy, of tongues, and others are gifted with the spirit of interpretation of tongues. The bible tells us that all these, is the work of one and the same Spirit that distributes them the way He determines. This is not based on our wishes or desires, but it is according to what God has determined to see fit. Ours, is to embrace and put them into good use; afterall, we are part of the same body and each one with their own function to perform. In the same way, as in verse 27-31, God appoints apostles, prophets, teachers, those performing miracles, healers, those helping with guidance and those with tongues. God encourages us to eagerly desire the greater gifts (verse 31). This shows that whatever you

 A concept that we might find hard to accept, but it is true, God is our door keeper. This means He controls the doors that opens and those that shuts in our lives. Sometimes we can see an opportunity that we might think is lucrative and is meant for us, but only to find that it might not end well at some point. In that case, God closes such doors; painful as it may be, but we ought to accept, as we might not know what God is protecting us from. However be assured that God does open doors as well, should He decide that a particular opportunity belongs to you, it doesn't matter who thinks you don't deserve it, or don't qualify for it, He will orchestrate things to favor you. Ecclesiastes 9:11 s ays: " I have seen something else under the sun:  T he race is not to the swift  or the battle to the strong,  nor does food come to the wise   or wealth to the brilliant  or favor to the learned;  but time and chance   happen to them all.  " Thus, when things seems pear-sha