Passcode!

A person may be a duly registered client of a mobile company's network. But to be able to access the communication services offered, he/she must be in the service provider's network COVERAGE zone! The moment we confessed Jesus Christ as the Lord & Savior of our lives, our names were then written in the Book of Life. However, for us to access God's power, we MUST be blameless & acceptable in His sight! Righteousness is one of the two foundation stones of God's throne. Psalm 89: 14 records;
"RIGHTEOUSNESS & justice are the FOUNDATION of Your throne; mercy & truth go before Your face".

When we accepted the Lord into our hearts, we instantly received activation settings for holiness! The seed of righteousness was deposited in us. 1 John 3: 9 says;
"Whoever has been born of God does NOT sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God".

We therefore seized to sin KNOWINGLY because our conscience was renewed & made alive. We serve a holy God, who in turn, expects us to be holy! 1 Peter 1: 15 reads;

"But as He who called you is HOLY, you also be holy in ALL your conduct".

Besides, righteousness endears us to God! Proverbs 21: 3 records;
"To do RIGHTEOUSNESS & justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice".

God desires that our thoughts, speech & actions reflect holiness. By asking us to walk in His ways, He means well & is not after frustrating us! After all, whatever God expects from us, He injects it into us. 1 John 5: 3b reads;
"And His commandments are NOT burdensome".

God's commandments & expectations are for our own sake! John 14: 21 records;
"He who has My commandments & KEEPS them, it is he who LOVES Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him & MANIFEST Myself to him".

BUT WHY RIGHTEOUSNESS?

1.God's Favor, Honor & Protection
God KNOWS how to favor & honor the righteous. Favor & honor are a direct result of OBEDIENCE to God's word. Proverbs 21: 21 says:
"He who follows RIGHTEOUSNESS & mercy finds life, righteousness & HONOR".

In Psalm 5: 12, the Bible records;
"For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; with FAVOR You will surround him as with a shield".

2. God's Divine Direction 
When our thoughts, speeches & conduct PLEASE God, He is happy with us & directs us in all things! We get into God's network zone! So, He leads us away from the devil's snares or traps. Psalm 37: 31 says;
"The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide".

Read Psalm 37: 23 below which is my favorite & I love basing my prayers on this verse;
"The STEPS of a good man are ORDERED by the Lord, and He delights in his way".

3. God's Attention & Concern
Any time our ways are PLEASING in the sight of God, He hears our cry & prayer for help. But sin HIDES the face of God from us! Psalm 66: 18 below says;
"If I regard INIQUITY in my heart, the Lord will NOT hear".

But whenever we are righteous, God pays quick attention to our cry & prayer. 1 Peter 3: 12 reads;
"For the EYES of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are OPEN to their prayers; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil".

Righteousness makes our prayers effective & influential in God's presence! James 5: 16b records;
"The EFFECTIVE, fervent prayer of a righteous man AVAILS much".

4. Temples of the Holy Ghost
Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, and so, sin makes our hearts non-conducive for the Holy Spirit. He gets grieved when we sin & leaves us to struggle on our own. 1 Corinthians 3: 17 reads;
"If anyone DEFILES the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are".

5. God's Power & Presence
For God to deposit His anointing & power into our lives,  we MUST have  observed purity of heart. Every believer direly needs this power so as to lead a victorious life. Philippians 3:  9-10 reads;
"And be found in Him, NOT having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is from God by faith; that I may KNOW Him & the POWER of His resurrection...".

The  starting  point  is  having  a  GENUINE  desire  to  PLEASE God &  seek His righteousness, not necessarily being perfect, but a DEEP passion to obey the Lord. Purity of heart calls for SACRIFICE! 1 Corinthians records;
"All things are LAWFUL for me, but NOT all things are HELPFUL; all things are lawful for me, but NOT all things edify".

PRAYER
Dear Lord Jesus, deposit in us a BURNING desire to please You in our thoughts, speeches & conduct. Help us to identify the things that are NOT necessarily evil, but that cause Your power, presence & glory to DEPART from our lives. Let the carnality in us die so that we can be sensitive to  holiness. Keep our conscience  alive & help us to be CONSISTENT in our blameless walk with You. We receive special grace to walk in Your ways. Holy Spirit of God, take charge of our lives. We pray this, in the blessed name of Jesus Christ. Amen!!!

Battery Low?

The Church of Christ has so many PRAYING Christians, but very few FASTING ones! To the devil, praying alone has the power comparable to that of a grenade, but prayer coupled with fasting has the power likened to a nuclear bomb in the devil's camp! Do you want to be a REAL threat to the devil? Alright, then get out of the COMFORT zone, pray & fast! Personally, foregoing a meal or two has never been my joy because I love food so much! But if prayer & fasting will equip me with heavy spiritual artillery to wage triumphant combat, then the sacrifice is worth it? Prayer in itself is necessary, but NOT sufficient to guarantee a believer a consistent victorious life.

WHY PRAY AND FAST?
The Flesh
Whenever we pray & fast, we silence the demands, passions & desires of the flesh. The carnal mind is suppressed while the spirit man is strengthened. A believer who prays & fasts regularly OVERCOMES sin & temptations with the greatest ease. But the one who is sluggish in prayer coupled with fasting is ALWAYS vulnerable to sin & temptations. In 1 Corinthians 9: 27, the Apostle Paul says:
"But I DISCIPLINE my body & bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified".
Fasting is the best way to discipline & tame our bodies alongside the carnal mind, which is not subject to the things of God.
 

God's Power & Glory 
Prayer & fasting is synonymous with CHARGING a dying battery: it brings with it POWER! One of the major reasons as to why the devil is frustrating us is because we haven't cultivated the culture or lifestyle of prayer accompanied with fasting on a regular basis! The same way a phone's battery needs to be charged regularly is the same way a believer needs to CHARGE his/her spiritual battery consistently. Some of the obstacles, demonic oppression, generational curses, miracle delays, or health problems we face require greater power that God can ONLY release upon our lives when we pray & fast. When the disciples of Jesus were UNABLE to cast a demon out of a child, He gave them the divine secret in Matthew 17: 21:
"However, this kind does NOT go out EXCEPT by prayer & fasting".

Whenever we fast, we are simply engaging a higher & more powerful gear. The devil HATES it when we fast! He can NEVER withstand the power that comes with it, so he makes sure we remain in our comfort zones & fore-go fasting, and even if we fast, he ensures we lack consistency.

God's Voice
Fasting boosts our HEARING ability of God's voice & direction in a matter. When a radio's antennae is weak, the transmission of radio waves is adversely affected, and so, the radio produces unpleasant noise & more than one radio station can be heard at one go. But when the ANTENNAE is powerful, the transmission of radio waves is perfect, and so, only  one station can be heard at a time & is quite clear! This is true with fasting: it enables us to be perfectly in tune & in step with the Holy Spirit & hear His voice with clarity, and eliminates our own voice & that of the devil. A believer who fasts consistently has an easy time capturing God's voice & leading. Acts 13: 2:
"While they were worshiping the Lord & FASTING, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for me Barnabas & Saul for the work to which I have called them".

Therefore, prayer & fasting makes us SENSITIVE to the voice of the Holy Spirit who indwells us.

During Jesus' Ministry on earth, He always valued the lifestyle of prayer & fasting. In fact, He began His mission on earth by prayer & fasting. Luke 4: 2b
"...And in those days [forty] He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry".

If you find yourself praying over an issue for too long without any improvement, change your strategies! May be the key to your miracle lies in fasting, giving, intercession or even a good worship of God!

Our Lord Jesus Christ wanted us to be upholding the culture of prayer & fasting, and that's why He showed us by example. I am calling it a LIFESTYLE because prayer & fasting should reach a point where it's part & parcel of our lives. This is just a summary, but there are many more important reasons as to why we should  pray & fast on a regular basis. For  further reference, read  Nehemiah  1,  Esther 4 & Daniel 9. Spiritual battery low? Connect it to POWER from on high.

PRAYER
Dear Lord Jesus Christ, we pray that You grant us the grace & ability to pray & fast. We are tired of living a powerless & mediocre Christian life. We refuse to give the devil such pleasure! Deposit in us a BURNING desire to pray & fast. And as we do so, MANIFEST Your power in us. Let the investments of the devil in our lives be razed down by Your consuming fire. We give You all the praise, glory & honor. We pray in the blessed name of Jesus Christ. Amen!!!

The Lord of Mercy

The ministry of Jesus on earth had one central & recurrent theme: COMPASSION. It was entirely a people-centered ministry, propelled by God's unconditional love. Wherever Jesus went, He did GOOD! He knew the secret of Touching Heaven & Changing Earth. I love the quote below:
"A gospel that does NOT deal with the issues of the day is NOT a gospel at all". [Rick Warren]

It is high time that the Church of Christ doubled up its role in the provision of more SOLUTIONS to the problems bedeviling the modern day society. The Lord Jesus was NOT only interested in teaching multitudes the word of God, but more so, He was interested in practicing what He taught by literally addressing the challenges people faced. Why? Because He was full of compassion! Luke 9:12 records:
"When the day began to wear away, the twelve came & said to Him, 'Send the multitude AWAY that they may go into the surrounding towns & country, and lodge & get provisions; for we are in deserted place here".

However, the Lord of Mercy was NOT ready to listen to the lame excuses His lieutenants were giving for not showing compassion to the multitudes. The devil, in most cases, will give us the "DON'T CARE" attitude towards those that we need to show mercy towards. Matthew 15: 32 illustrates the compassionate nature of Jesus Christ, the great Lord of Mercy:
"Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself & said, 'I have COMPASSION on the multitude, because they have continued with Me three days & have nothing to eat. And I do NOT want to send them away hungry, lest they FAINT on the way".

The devil is well aware that we really want to be like Jesus [merciful], and so, he will always make us find sufficient EXCUSES as to why we CANNOT show mercy to those that deserve, and MISS out on the accompanying blessings [Psalm 41: 1-2]. At times we will find ourselves in the company of people that may discourage us from showing compassion to others. A Christian devoid of compassion is a great oxymoron! This is because we are PRODUCTS of mercy & daily recipients of God's tender mercies. The disciples of Jesus never got tired of shielding The Lord of Mercy from showing compassion to the needy. Matthew 15: 23 is a good example of this:
"But He answered her not a word. And His disciples came & urged Him, saying, 'Send them AWAY, for she cries out after us'. 

The Lord of lords was ever tolerant with His self-centered right-hand men, and ignored them by showing mercy to the woman of Canaan all the same, whose daughter was demon-possessed. In most cases, Jesus NEVER waited for the people to beg for His mercy. Luke 7: 13 records:
"When the Lord SAW her, He had compassion on her & said to her, 'Do not weep'. Then He came & touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still. And He said, 'Young man, I say to you, arise'.

The fact that Jesus wept when He heard about the death of Lazarus is a clear confirmation of how compassionate He was. The Son of God crying? What a merciful Savior we have! John 11: 33 recounts this:
"Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, He GROANED in the spirit & was troubled". Verse 35-36 records:
"Jesus WEPT. Then the Jews said, 'See how He LOVED him!'.

Love & compassion go hand-in-hand. It takes the sincere love of God so as to show others compassion. We can NEVER be merciful to the people we don't truly love! God is full of mercy, and so, may God help you & I to grow & increase in mercy, the same way we grow in faith. This is a very important ATTRIBUTE of God that we can' afford to lack. It is the TRUE religion: of love. Ever wondered why some of the CELEBRITIES we may want to classify as the most wicked are living LONG & getting wealthier? The wonderful Madonna, Paul Hewson...just to name a few? They are full of charitable deeds towards the needy! It could be the only reason God is protecting them, as we concentrate on pointing accusing fingers! They seem to understand some portions of the scripture better than you & I do, though they are non-believers. We don't have to be wealthy so as to show mercy, even the POOREST man on earth is EXPECTED to be merciful! Matthew 5: 7 records:
"Blessed are the MERCIFUL, for they shall OBTAIN mercy".

I will close by quoting one of the greatest men in the history of America & the whole world.
"How FAR you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, COMPASSIONATE withe aged, SYMPATHETIC with the striving & tolerant of the weak & strong. Because some day in your life you will have been all these". [George Washington]

May the Lord of Mercy BLESS you in every way as you grow & increase in mercy. Amen!!!

Kingdom Investment

Manufacturers produce goods so as they serve specific purposes. Any time a manufactured product fails to accomplish the intended goal, this frustrates the manufacturer! Similarly, God created each one of us so as we fulfill a particular MISSION in life. Life should be more than simply growing up, getting a good education, securing a nice job, accumulating some wealth, getting married, raising children & grand-children, retiring and  dying comfortably, LOL!

In the book of Genesis 5: 1-20, we are given a genealogy from Adam to Noah. Interestingly, there is nothing MEMORABLE about all the people mentioned, except the outstanding case of Noah in verse 21! Genesis 5: 12-14 records:
"When Kenan had lived 70 years, he became the father of Mahalel. And after he became the father of Mahalel, Kenan lived 840 years and had other sons & daughters. Altogether, Kenan lived 910 years, and the he died ".

Nothing significant can be remembered of Kenan! What will you be remembered for?

Dorcas (Tabitha) left an INDELIBLE mark in people's lives. She was full of good works and charitable deeds (Acts 9: 36). When she died, everyone was overcome by great grief! Acts 9:39 recounts this.
"Then Peter arose & went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the upper room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics & garments which Dorcas had MADE while she was with them".

Because Dorcas was in the Heavenly records of GOOD WORKS, God could NOT allow her to die! He had to use Apostle Peter to bring her back to life! Your good works will always present themselves before God  any time you're in danger or whatever form of distress & PLEAD for your safety, and God will always come to your rescue (Revelation 14: 13 & Psalm 41: 1-2). Let's examine the account of Cornelius in Acts 10: 1-2.
"There was a certain man in Caesaria called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, a devout man & one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always".

Due to the kind of man Cornelius was, God was always PROVOKED to bless him! Acts 10:4b recounts this so well. And an angel said to Cornelius,
"...your prayers & your alms have come up for a MEMORIAL before God".

What will we be remembered for? Do we have any good works that will follow us?

PRAYER:
"Dear Lord Jesus Christ, we not only want you to do something for us, but we want to do something for You. As children of DESTINY, we ask you to help us to leave a positive impact in peoples lives, to do something you will always remember us for. We declare that our destinies are SECURE, they will not be terminated prematurely in the name of Jesus! Give us the grace to TOUCH HEAVEN & CHANGE EARTH, our small "earth" which is the HEARTS of people. Our Kingdom investment shall NEVER be in vain. Amen!!!