Whose Voice Are You Listening to?

From Our Pastor's Desk

Proverbs 1:7 - The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Same emphasis was made in Proverbs 9:10 God is the source of all knowledge. And He speaks.

If all of us will truthfully seek wisdom by listening, we might just hear the voice of God. He spoke throughout the scriptures, through the prophets, judges, kings, teachers, shepherds, in Old Testament and then sent His Son Jesus to speak to us about Him and then sent the Holy Spirit to teach us what was written before and bring everything to our remembrance.

Unfortunately, there are many other voices out there speaking. Man speaks. The devil, satan, the liar and the father of lies spoke in the days of old and still speaks.

He got the ear of Eve. Even though God came down in the cool of the day to speak & fellowship with Adam & eve daily in the garden of Eden, Eve still listened to the voice of satan and obeyed the voice of false wisdom, thereby disobeying God.

Mankind has been in sorrow ever since as the devil laughs. God is still speaking to us today, but we have to take care who we listen to or who has our ears. If the voice we hear is not matching up with what God has already said in His Word, we are hearing the wrong voice. 

There are many strange voices out there. We teach our children about the danger of talking to or listening to strangers. That is true in the spiritual as well as the physical realm.

John 10:5 - And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers John 10:27 - My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.

Who has your ear? Whose voice are you following; Christ's or a stranger?  According to Isaiah 11:2, may the Spirit of the LORD rest on us, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD, in Jesus mighty Name. Amen.

You will have a great turn-around this 2020.
Remain blessed. 
Shalom.

April 2020 - Our Month of Godly Wisdom & Counsel

From Our Pastor's Desk

Welcome to this our new Month of Godly Wisdom & Counsel, in Jesus name. Rev. 7:12 – “Saying, A men: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen”

 Yes, Wisdom! Having wisdom is important. Wisdom puts all of the puzzles of our lives together in the proper order.

They all fit together in the proper place& order when wisdom arranges the pieces. But where do we get wisdom?  Godly wisdom.

The wisdom that God gives. Different from earthly wisdom or wisdom of man. 1st Kings 10:24 says “And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart” Man’s wisdom is foolishness to God, but a godly wisdom is above all wisdom of this world. 

And counsel provides direction or advice as to a decision or future course of action. Godly counsel is therefore, counsel that God gives & has His hands in, based on His words. Psalms 16:7 says “I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel...” 

In this Month of Godly Wisdom & Counsel and beyond, we ask God for His wisdom & counsel so as to apply in our life affairs, daily endeavors, careers, relationships, business ventures, health-related issues, vocations, & our relationship with God.

The Lord will give us godly wisdom, knowledge & understanding to know & declare with boldness His counsel without fear and favor, in Jesus Name.

Amen.

Becoming a G.O.A.T

From Our Pastor's Desk

This message is a tribute to all those at the frontline of the covid-19 battle, the medical doctors, nurses, health workers, social workers, the teachers, the various governments, task forces etc. You’re all G.O.A.T.s Thank you.

Greatness is not for us, but for others. We were born with gifts, and to serve the gifts. Your gift is not for you. Greatness is like a smile. When you smile, others can see it, but you cannot. It benefits others more than it does you.

Proverbs 18:16 – “A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men” Greatness is service. Anytime you serve humanity, success is a natural by-product. Examples are Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King Jr. etc. And the G.O.A.T. (Greatest Of All Time) Himself – our Lord Jesus Christ.

Greatness is a growth process of becoming more like Jesus Christ. It is an ongoing process of surrender and obedience.  MARK 10:42-45 – And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.

But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” These verses clearly define “greatness.”

And in the words of the Lord, there is only one thing, one role, He recognizes as the true measure & definition of greatness – servanthood. Our servant role is the measurement of greatness because it makes us like the Greatest Servant ever – the Lord Jesus Christ.

Nothing is of greater importance in the life of a Christian than conforming to the image of Jesus. Let that be the ultimate measure of greatness – becoming more and more like the Servant of Servants. Lord Jesus, please help us to be more like You, live as one privileged to serve, not deceived to think we are to be served, in Jesus mighty Name. Amen.

You will have a great turn-around this 2020.

Remain blessed. 

Shalom.

What's a Glory Without a Story?

By Sis. Helena Bennie Missamou

We are familiar with the beautiful tales in the Bible of our ancestors that went through great measures to achieve what they have achieved, but we prefer to familiarize ourselves with their glories instead of their stories.

Let’s take a look at Sarah in the book of Genesis 17:15-22 when the promise of God is given to her and when she mocks the promise of God in Genesis 18:11-12 -”Abraham  and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing.

So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought,’ after I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”

I am sure Sarah was not the only one laughing, but the whole town probably had a say in her matter, questioning her faithfulness to God, trying to discourage her and even mock God because of her but that was her time of story.

Sarah had to go through this temporary process in order to enter into her glory! The glory of God overflowed in her life and she birthed one of the greatest servants of God in the Bible – Isaac.

And some of us believe that our past sinful nature is a hold back to the promise of God when it isn’t. Mary Magdalene was labeled & humiliated because of her mistakes but accepted by God because of the decision she took to run to Him, even when she was being stoned in John 8:1-7.

From a prostitute to an evangelical icon, she was the first woman to see Christ after He rose in the tomb, now that is major Glory! 

Keep your faith and pray, run to Jesus for all that you need in your time of story because your story will end up in glory, in Jesus mighty Name. Amen.

You will have a great turn-around this 2020.
Remain blessed. 
Shalom.

When Our Faith is Under Fire

From Our Pastor's Desk

Mark 5:22-23 – “And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, And be-sought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live”

 Jairus was a man who went to our Lord Jesus Christ to seek help for his dying daughter  and while he was with Jesus some members of  his synagogue came and told him his daughter  had died, saying to the man in verse 35 – “They  daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master  any further?”

Couldn’t these friends see the  heart of Jairus break when they told him the bad  news? Thank God, Jairus was standing in the  presence of the only person on earth who could  help him Jairus was a man  of faith, got Jesus’ attention and received grace. 

Brethren, it doesn’t matter what your problem  might be, satan means to use that problem to  destroy any hope you might have in the ability of the Lord to help you.

He knows once hope is gone, you are forever defeated. But if he cannot take away your hope, he knows you will find a way to overcome the problem. Jesus, the Hope of the hopeless, Help of the helpless, will wade into your situation TODAY.

In spite of all discouragers, nay-sayers, devil-helpers, Jesus will awaken every dead dream, dead vision, dead life, dead organ, dead finances, dead business, dead hope, in Jesus mighty Name. Amen. 
You will have a great turn-around this 2020. 
Remain blessed. 
Shalom.

Showcase His Glory

By Deaconess Ronke Ademosu

The song writer Vicky Yohe sings “Because of who you are I give you glory…..”  That is in praise and worship of our God.

The Glory of God is the essence of God, His Totality, His Habitation, The Beauty of His Holiness, His Awesomeness, The Worth of God: If you can imagine the worth of notable people around the world, created by God, living or dead, combined and multiplied by the greatest number you can think of, then, you can imagine how incomparable and immeasurable our God is!

1st Chronicles 29:11 says “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all’ GLORY!!

If He is the head above all kingdoms, then, you, as heir/heiress of His throne, should give Him His dues: ‘GLORY’ God explicitly states in Isa 42:8 that ‘I am the Lord: that is my name: and my Glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images’ Our God is a jealous God!

We are not exempted from being part of His Glory, Hallelujah!! Our Bible text from John 1:12-13 gives us the mandate to par take of the power that resurrects, delivers, transforms, overcomes and that is readily available to those of us who are “born of God” Are you born of God? Have you truly accepted Jesus?

Please connect with Him today. 1 Peter 2:9 calls us “a royal priesthood…peculiar people…  and that we should shew forth the praise of Him who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light”.

To showcase His Glory, you have to: Believe in Him, Nurture your spirit, Believe in yourself that you can do all things through Christ, Surround yourself with positive minded people, Always write down your  visions, Share your testimonies, Be a giver and a light in the midst of darkness…. When we do all these, we exhibit the beauty of God and advertise His Glory and God will use us to draw men unto Himself.

May your life be a showcase of God’s abundant beauty indeed, in Jesus mighty Name. Amen. You will have a great turn-around this 2020. Remain blessed.  Shalom

Tales from the Brothel

From Our Pastor's Desk

Hebrews 11:31 “By faith the harlot Rehab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace”.

Joshua 6:25 – “And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho” If anyone had told Rahab, the harlot, she would be ancestor of our Lord Jesus, the messiah, the Holy One…she would have called the person crazy…harlot – Holy?

When the nation of Israel crossed the Jordan into Canaan, Jericho was the first place to be conquered. Until Jericho was conquered they could not fully move into the promise land. So, Joshua sent out two spies who came into the house of Rehab the harlot.

When the king of Jericho knew of it, he sent soldiers to capture the spies but Rehab hid them and distracted the soldiers. The soldiers came to kill the spies, but Rehab the prostitute hid them and distracted the soldiers.

God sent the spies into the house of the prostitute to protect them. Some of us will probably say; “God, that cannot be, you have made a mistake, how can sanctified people go and stay with a prostitute”!

Beloved, grace overrules our flaws. Grace overrules our mistake. It over-rules our shortcomings. That is why you cannot write off anyone who is still breathing and is still sitting under the word of God.

Don’t ever write that person off. May the glory of the Lord and the beauty of the King rest upon us, in Jesus mighty Name.

Amen You will have a great turn-around this 2020. 
Remain blessed. 
Shalom.