Be Repositioned

 Matthew 20:16   “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” These were the words spoken by Jesus...The last will  be first, and the first will be last. In general, when you are a child of God, people think you are a fool, you don't know what you are talking about  or that you are worth nothing. They overlook you, talk bad about you, choose each other and overlook you. But that is far from the truth. When you are a child of God, you have this favour upon you, that no one can erase or take away.  In fact, God allows certain things to happen to His children, so that He can show His power through them. Take the children of Israel , they were enslaved in Egypt for over 4 centuries, imagine! They were used and abused by the Egyptian and God saw all of that. But one day, the time had come where God said enough is enough. He made Pharaoh  to be stubborn and not release His children, even after the many miracles that were performed for him. And then God showed His power so str

 Job 22:28 You will also declare a thing,  And it will be established for you ;  So light will shine on your ways. When times are tough, we can take a lesson from Job. Job had everything at one point, and the next, he lost everything. Satan wanted to prove to God that Job served Him only because  he had everything. However, that did not turn out that way. God remained Job's anchor . This  verse, reminds us of the power that we were entrusted with, in which our faith will materialize anything that we declare and believe. We don't live by sight but by faith; and if we have faith, and believe what God has spoken over  us, when we declare it shall be. I'm reminded of a bible story where Jesus was walking with His disciples and He saw a fig tree, He cursed that tree that it will no longer bear any fruit. His faith was so strong that He didn't  find Himself going to check the tree after a while if what He said materialized. But He knew that it was a done deal (which was the c

Genesis 1:27-28  So God created  mankind   in His own image ,  in the image of God  H e created them;  male and female He created them.  God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” What stands out about this verse, is that we are made in the image of God Himself. When we look at ourselves in the mirror, we can be  assured that's how God looks, amazing! We already know that God doesn't create sub-standard, duplicates and poor quality . That tells us that mankind, was made to perfection! After everything  God created, He looked at it and was pleased with it (Genesis 1). This includes us, we are perfect just the way we are. May we never look down at God's creation, seeing only the flaws, there's so much good in you that pleases God- focus on that. Furthermore , God gave us an instruction, to be fruitful a

 Isaiah 6:8 I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?   Then said I, Here am I; send me .  God was asking whom He can send for a task at hand and Isaiah accepted the invitation to be sent. I guess throughout the bible, we see God partnering with people on earth to achieve a particular mission, in one way or the other. Some that come to mind include Joseph, David, Mary, Daniel, Gideon, Moses and many others probably not even written about in the bible. I can even think of a few that I could identify to have been called by God, in our generation, for a particular assignment. All these individuals, had different assignments but in the end, God received honour and glory out of their situations, circumstances and assignment.  Now the question is, are you ready to be sent, to be used  by God for His will and glory? When we read about God, how He created everything in existence, how He loves humanity and willing to sacrifice for them, it makes it an eas

1 Peter 5:6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time.   Life in Christ is wonderful. You need not have to sell your soul for something, cheat your way up or connive in order to get what you want, no! God is our promoter, our provider! He says humble yourself and I will lift you up. Meaning, do not rush and cheat your way up, do what is expected of you, don't fight being overlooked, undermined and forgotten; He sees you and in due course, He will do right by you.  God pays close attention to our hearts, our actions, our motives and thoughts. He knows when we are sincere, He knows when we are treated badly and unfairly, lied about and all. Hence He says vengeance is mine. He will act when the time is right. Remember Psalm 23:5, that's the one! It sa ys:  “You  prepare  a  table  before  me in the presence of my enemies... ” This is when the Lord exalts you, He will not do it quietly , where only you will witness it, no. He wil

 Matthew 7:26-27 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.   The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” It is not about hearing the words from the bible, the word of God that will make a positive  impact on our lives, but what matters is what do we do with the word that we have heard. Do we believe it? Do we doubt it? That's  what will determine if we are building or the news just come in, in one ear and out the other. God wants us to internalize  what He says, believe and accept it for ourselves and that will bring about alignment  in our lives. If we hear the word, accept and declare it upon our lives, it shall be. That will be like building a strong foundation for ourselves, that  is unshakable...When the storms of life hit, we will remember what God said first. For example, the bible tells us that by the stripes Jesu

Ephesians 4:2 (NIV) Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. The Lord expects us to be kind to others, showing compassion to others. Showing   compassion  implies that are to show concern for others, be sympathetic towards them when they are going through a tough time. Life can be too busy, that we get consumed by our own world that we miss or overlook the distress in others. God wants us to take a moment, and be considerate of others. Support them where we see fit. Life is full of ups and downs, and sometimes all that a person needs, is compassion, understanding of what they may be going through. Matthew 9:36 says: " When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So He began teaching them many things." Jesus displayed compassion whilst He was still on earth. Feeding people, healing people, spending time with those overlooked, teaching them and so mu

Romans 12:1 (ESV) Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” The main principle we learn from our Father through Jesus, is forgiveness. If God was able to forgive us our sins  (no matter how bad), we can also forgive others. God wants us to forgive and not take revenge for ourselves, where we've been done wrong. God wants us to be free, not hog bad emotions within us, which could lead to hatred, love and hatred cannot co-exist. Hence we need to let it go and hand it over to God. Matthew 5:44 says love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. When you do so, God will take over and fight for you where He sees fit. He says vengeance is His, He is the one to get revenge on your behalf. This means, those who persecute you, will be dealt with by God, as He sees fit. For you, is to forgive and release them, pray for them as well. It is a difficult  thing to do, which is why you need to

 Deuteronomy 6:10-12  When  God , your God, ushers you into the land He promised through your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give you, you’re going to walk into large, bustling cities you didn’t build, well-furnished houses you didn’t buy, come upon wells you didn’t dig, vineyards and olive orchards you didn’t plant. When you take it all in and settle down, pleased and content, make sure you don’t forget how you got there— God  brought you out of slavery in Egypt. The Lord is so gracious, the promises that He made to Abraham, move from generation to generation. We are also beneficiaries, by faith. God promised Abraham to have many descendants that can't be counted, like the starts, and it's a blessing that we are part of that. The bible explains how blessed Abraham was, financially too, when you consider all that was in his position. Those blessings are an inheritance to us too.  This verse paints a picture of receiving the promises from the Lord, those that were promis

 Isaiah 44:3-4 For I will pour water on the thirsty land,   and streams on the dry ground;   I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring,  and my blessing on your descendants.   They shall spring up among the grass   like willows by flowing streams. This is such a wonderful promise from the Lord, that not only will He pour His Spirit upon us and bless us, but He will do the same for our children and many generations thereafter. It is such a relief that God will take good care of our offspring as He does with us. They shall excel in every area that they find themselves in. Receive these promises, come in agreement with the word and decree it over your life, over your family. Call it forth and claim it! it is not enough to just read the word of God in the bible, we need to receive it for ourselves and I believe that's when it gets activated in us. Remember we are told that we have the power to bind things on earth and they shall be bound in heaven; also when we loosen things on earth,

 James 4:7-10 (MSG) So let God work His will in you . Yell a loud  no  to the Devil and watch him make himself scarce. Say a quiet  yes  to God and He’ll be there in no time . Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet . A firm instruction for us, if we want to see ourselves get on our feet. God wants us to allow Him, give Him the right of way to do His will in our lives, to have His plans come to pass. This, by rebuking and chasing away the devil, not allowing his ways to prevail in our lives. Also, by saying yes to God, who will come in no time, as He waits on us.  Let us allow the Holy Spirit to purify us, cleanse us and give us a fresh perspective, that will lead us on the path God has for us. The Holy Spirit is there to guide and show us the way. We need to stop taking things for

 Genesis 43:26 When Joseph came home,  they presented to him the gifts  they had brought into the house, and they bowed down before him to the ground. This is a powerful passage, that gives us hope that it might take many years for the promise to come to fulfillment , but eventually it will. This is about Joseph, who had a dream/vision when he was young, that his brothers will bow down before  him. He told them about the dream and they were jealous  and angry that how dare he says something like that. However, this was no random dream, it was planted by the Lord, where He was showing him who he will become one day. After many years of struggles, going from pit, to prison and eventually to the palace, He was appointed second in command in Egypt. Circumstances  forced the same brothers to go look for help in Egypt (due to famine in their land) and of course Joseph was in charge , they ended up bowing down to him, just as he had told them many years ago. What we can learn from this, is th

 Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours . We have an open door with God, where we are able to bring our prayer requests of all sorts. Two key things I'm learning from this bible verse, is to ask. We may have a particular need, all we need to do, is to take it to the Lord in prayer. Matthew 7:7 says ask and it will be given to you. The second lesson is that as we ask for whatever we need, we have to believe that we will receive. God loves us and He told us that like our earthly fathers, He will not withhold anything from us that we ask for. However, we need to believe that we will receive.  This is aligned with James 2 that tells us that faith without works is dead. Meaning, if you have faith you'll receive something but you are not acting inline with what you are believing for, then that faith is dead. It is an honour to have a Father that cares and wants what's best for us. One who understan

 Psalm 84:10 Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. Life presents us with many choices, options to be this or that; to do this or that. What is important  is what do we gain out to those choices that we make? Would we rather be in the presence of the Lord or far away from Him? We may sometimes take for granted the time we spend learning, worshipping and being intimate with the Lord; however, it is never overlooked by God Himself. Obviously what you hear repeatedly , is bound to be your reality. Now, would we rather hear repeatedly the word of God or the sorrows of the world, which  has the potential to lead us to depression? Let's look at the scenario that was painted for us, about the two sisters  named Mary and Martha. This is found in the book of Luke 10:38-42, where Jesus and His disciples were on their way and they then visited Martha who had a sister, Mary. Upon t

 John 13:14-15 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.   I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. These were the words spoken by Jesus, just before the time came for His crucifixion. Jesus did what amazed His disciples, which was unexpected, due to His stature. Those days, travelling by foot like they did, meant walking in dusty roads in sandals, hence feet getting washed after a trip. However, this was a task that was done by people of lower class; which is why the disciples were shocked to see Jesus do that, for them. However, as Jesus mentioned, He was setting an example. Him washing their feet was an act of serving them, which He then told them that is what they must do for each other. Which is a powerful message that is applicable to us as well. God blessed us with different talents and gifts, to be a blessing to others, to serve them. The kingdom of God is about seeing each other as equals, not

 Isaiah 66:9  “I will not cause pain without allowing something new to be born, says the Lord.” If you are going through pain now (of any sort) rest assured, it is a down-payment for the joy that will follow. God likens this with the child birth, asking if He can allow someone to go through the pain and not let the child be born? God is a God of mercy, His plans are to allow that process, that will strengthen you, that will build your character, and thereafter, when He deems it enough, joy will follow. Psalm 30:5 tells us that weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. This shows that you may go through some difficulty, but it shall pass, joy will come. What's important during the pain/trouble/the night, is your response to that difficulty, your attitude. Will you allow that difficulty to consume you, make you bitter, angry and to lose faith in God? Or will you allow that difficulty to bring you even closer to God? Meaning, will you run away from God or will you

 Acts 1:7 He said to them:  “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by His own authority." These are the words that were spoken by Jesus that tells us that God is the One who sets the time for everything that happens. He knows the time and the date for everything. For us is to trust Him and remember that He has our best interest at heart. Our role or the expectation from us, is to hold on to His word, His promises which will come to pass. The bible has so many promises that we are made aware of, some might've come to pass and some are still to come. No matter how long you might've waited, remember God is not man that He would lie, the word that comes out of His mouth, can be trusted- Isaiah 55:11. What are you trusting God on right now? With that in mind, pray about it, instead of rushing God to bring that to pass, instead thank Him in advance that He will fulfill the promises He made to you. Ask Him for grace and strength to wait on Him. His promi

 Nahum 1:7 The  Lord  is good,   a refuge in times of trouble.  He cares for those who trust in Him, God is our shelter and our hiding place.  When trouble hits, we can run to Him for help, protection and guidance. He is our ever-present help. The key is to remember that God is on our side and He will not condemn us (Jesus sorted that out); instead, we can come boldly before Him and ask for help. Remember the story about the prodigal son, in the book of Luke 15, the story is an illustration of how God sees us. The prodigal son took his inheritance, went away, spent all his money and found himself in trouble, with no food and no place to stay. He decided to go back home and ask for forgiveness from his father and ask if he can work for him. However, we are told that  when the son came back, his father embraced him, welcomed him with open arms and threw a party for him as he was joyful   that  his son had returned home. In the same way, we might find ourselves in trouble, feeling guilty

 Romans 12:9 Love must be sincere.  Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. God gives us an instruction that we must love and our love must be sincere; it must be free from pretense, it must be genuine. God sees our hearts and He knows our intentions, our thoughts and He's able to tell if we are sincere or not. Furthermore, He says hate what is evil. Good and evil cannot co-exist, one has to be displaced. In the book of Deuteronomy 30:15 God said I set before you life and good, death and evil. The choice is ours on which combination we take. However, He urges us to choose good over evil, life over death. We need to cling to what is good. Life is full of many choices, the danger is if we choose the wrong option which can lead us astray, towards the road to death. Hence, we ought to examine the options set before us in life, invite God to help us make the correct choice. The book of Proverb, speaks about being wise and foolish. Furthermore, the bible tells us that if we lack wisdom

John 15:2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. God is so thoughtful and considerate. Everything He does (which sometimes is painful), He does it for our benefit. Today we learn that God prunes us like trees or plants. He examines our lives, every associate, every thing or area in our lives and consider it, if it is to our benefit or if it is hurtful to us (whether now or in the future). God is aware of people's intentions in our lives. He examines them them too, and if He deems them to be to the detriment of our wellbeing, our future or His plans coming to life in and through us, He cuts them off. This is a painful process, as at times we have people we think are for us, meanwhile it is all pretense, and when that chopping takes place, it hurts. However, the good news is that, that thing or person that was not suited for you, will no longer pose "danger" to your wellbei

 1 John 4:19-20 We love because He first loved us.   Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. We learn to really love, from God. God is love, everything He does is out of love. One of the well-known bible verses John 3:16 tells us that He loved us so much, that He gave up His Son, for us. That's perfect love, unconditional, never-ending love of God. So, in  the same way that we have experienced God's love or have been touched by His love, we find ourselves walking on His foot steps. Jesus being our model and example, we learn from Him how to love others. This verse challenges us that if we are not able to love our brothers and sisters, our neighbors and everyone around us, how can we say we love God when we've never seen Him before. This shows that as children  of God, we are commanded to love one another. That's the second most i

 1 John 4:4 You, dear children,  are from God and have overcome them,  because the One who is in you  is greater than the one who is in the world. God is basically saying, you are powerful. You can overcome whatever that is that tries to come against you. He says the One that lives in you, this being the Holy Spirit, is greater than the devil that is in the world. When Jesus ascended to heaven, He left us with the Holy Spirit who is with us all the time, helping  us, comforting us, guiding us and so much more. The Holy Spirit is part   of the  Holy Trinity- Father, Son and the Holy Spirit; hence, God Himself is with you wherever you may be. Wake up to the truth of how powerful you are. On how victorious you are. By virtue  of you being the Child of God, you have access to God your Defender. Do not let the enemy lie to you that you are nothing, you are way more powerful, capable than you can imagine because  of the One that lives in you!  God has already given us dominion  over all thin

Isaiah 41:10 God says to “fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”  The Lord says to you not to be afraid, for He is with you. It d oesn't  matter the circumstance, or the assignment,  the Lord is assuring you that He is with you. He will strengthen you (if you are feeling weary and worn out) and He will help you. You are not alone. Over and above that, He says He will uphold you with His strong and mighty hand. He will bring victory for you! The enemy may throw curve balls at you, to distract and make you doubt the love of God for you. Or to keep you so consumed by fear and by the things  that are not going your way, that you forget to praise Him, that you forget you are loved and precious, please do not fall for that scheme. God says we must keep our eyes fixed on Him, not to pay too much attention on the storm, it will pass. Remember Jesus has overcome for us, therefo

 Romans 8:31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us ? Do you believe that God is for you? I think that is the question we should ask ourselves, do we believe? Jesus said it is done, it is finished. Meaning, everything  that the Lord had sent Him to accomplish for us, it is done. If God sent Him to show us that He is for us, then it is done, what remains is for us believing  it. Our religion is based on faith, believing  in that which we have not seen, believing the word hat is spoke by the Most High and what is. Therefore, if we believe God is for us, then by no means, nothing can be against us, nothing! God is our protector, He may allow some things that the devil wants to test us with, but rest assured, those things will not proper (Isaiah 54:17). The enemy came to destroy, kill and steal (John 10:10), but God told us already that the enemy's plots and schemes might form but they will not prosper, because He is for us. I wou

 Isaiah 43:25 “I, even I, am He who blots out  your transgressions, for my own sake,  and remembers your sins no more." This word is so comforting, so reassuring and a stress reliever. God tells us that He is the one who cleanses away ALL our sins, for His own sake. He is a forgiving Father, who is merciful, which is why He relieves Himself of holding on to our sins as a grudge, but chooses to forgive us of our wrong doing. We can be sure that we are forgiven of our sins. This gives us courage and boldness to come at His presence and be able to have a relationship without feeling ashamed as a result of our sins. In the olden days, before Jesus was sacrificed  for our sins, animals had to be slaughtered, burn the sacrifice, have a priest go into God's presence to ask for forgiveness. Which was cumbersome, however, with just one big sacrifice, which was Jesus Christ on the cross, we are forgiven! And God says He will remember our sins no more. Hallelujah! Let us take advantage o

Philippians 4:19   And my God will meet all your needs  according to the riches of His glory  in Christ Jesus. The Lord is our Provider. He knows every need you have and He has promised to meet each one. In Genesis 22:14 the Lord came through for Abraham and Abraham called the place he encountered God, Yahweh-yireh; Jehovah Jireh. This is all so true for us, the Lord will provide for us. We just  need to take off the limits from God, as He controls every resource and His provision might be different from what we expect at that time, but the need provided for. Take the children of Israel for example, whilst they were in the wilderness, manna dropped from the sky every single day, yes they got tired of eating same thing everyday but the fact is that the Lord provided for them. Another lesson from them, is to be patient and not complain, those who kept complaining, they never made it to the promise land. Therefore , w hilst God is providing for you through manna, be grateful. When the tim

 Philippians 4:6-8  Do not be anxious about anything , but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.   And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding , will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy— think about such things. This sounds like a recipe, of how to have a peaceful and healthy life. First, God urges us not to be anxious about anything, to pray about everything and give thanks for everything we have and what we are. Secondly, by so doing, we will experience this supernatural peace, one that we can't even explain, which will guard our hearts. This is the type of peace that doesn't depend on the worldly circumstances, or situations we go through, but it comes from within which we experience even during storms. That&

 Isaiah 49:2 He made my words as sharp as a sword. With His own hand He protected me. He made me like an arrow, sharp and ready for use. We all belong to the Lord and we were all created for His own will and purpose. Psalm 24:1 says that the earth is the Lord's and everything that dwells in it, we are included in that. Therefore, God created us exactly as He wanted to use us. As we continue living, facing life's circumstances, we are sharpened like a sword. Those things shape us into that which God wants us to be. And when He deems us ready, He will use us for that purpose.  We are likened to clay, where God is a porter and like a porter molding the clay to that which they like, so does God with our lives. He continually shapes and molds us, to the images that He desires for His use. We can't question Him why He does what He does; for us is to be obedient and follow His lead. To some degree, that takes away the pressure of making mistakes in one area, because He will direct

 Ezekiel 37:14 I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD. These were the words spoken by the Lord when He made similarities of the Israelites with the dry bones in the valley, that had no breath and no life in them. However, God made a promise that He is all powerful and is able to bring them back to life. Which He did through the demonstration of the dry bones coming back to life after He gave them life again. In the same way, God wants to breathe life into our dead areas. God desires for us to live life in full. With no limits, no reservations or fear. To life passionately and living out our purposes. What good is a talent or gift that God has deposited within us that we are not putting into good use? A gift that is supposed to unlock someone's destiny but it lives buried? It is time we see ourselves as God sees us. We have the potential to become gre

 Romans 9:14-16  Are we saying, then, that God was unfair? Of course not!   For God said to Moses,  “I will show mercy to anyone I choose,  and I will show compassion to anyone I choose.”   So it is God who decides to show mercy. We can neither choose it nor work for it. God is a just Father, who is never unfair. We might not understand His ways nor His thoughts, however, what we are to remember, is that we can never be able to influence His decisions to have mercy on us or not. It is His decision to show mercy or not. Everything works according to His plan. Verse 18 of Romans 9 further  tells us that God chooses to show mercy and He also chooses to harden the hearts of others. Remember what happened to the king of Egypt, where God sent Moses to ask him to release His people, God was able to make the king stubborn, so that He can show His power to everyone that He is in control. That He did, we can never forget the terrible things that happened then as a result of stubbornness  of Phar