Friday, 22 April 2016
GENERATIONAL IMPACT CHRISTIAN YOUTHS NETWORK: EDUCATION VRS RENEWED MINDSET
GENERATIONAL IMPACT CHRISTIAN YOUTHS NETWORK: EDUCATION VRS RENEWED MINDSET: EDUCATION VRS RENEWED MINDSET Since my childhood days till now, I've heard and still hear people say "education is the key to ...
EDUCATION VRS RENEWED MINDSET
Since my childhood days till now, I've heard and still hear people say "education is the key to success".
Well, during my school days I used to agree with them because I believed education is really the key to success. I believed this quote so much because back then, I thought everybody who owns a house and a car is successful most especially those who work in government.
This quote really ruled my life until some few years ago when God opened my understanding to know what real success means.
Success according to what God showed me is not in riches but in living a fulfilled life- thus living a life that is driven by your God given destiny.
The Bible states clearly God's intention before, during and after creation.
Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
God’s original intent for man is for man to have dominion over evert other creature. Man was given the power to dominate but he sold it out to Satan through disobedience.
Since the time man lost his SONSHIP rights, he has been looking for things that he could use to fill the vacuum within him. Man has been looking for something in which he could find success and he eventually found a lookalike success in education.
Education is good because it gives you a certain kind of knowledge and also gets you a job from which you can earn a living BUT what education does not do is that it doesn’t make you successful.
Many are the people who have died without being successful not because they lacked education. Most trusted professors of higher academic institutions died the same way. Most of them died not because they lacked money but because life was meaningless to them.
What education teaches is: study hard, pass your exams, get good academic laurels, get a good job, raise a family, grow old and die.
*The meaning to life cannot be found in education because it is higher than education.
Now let’s define success.
Success is living, walking in your God-given path and working your God-given work.
Let me explain.
Each and every one living on planet earth is created to solve a problem which will positively affect the lives of generations. So it is only when you identify your God-given task and work to achieve it that you can be called a successful person.
Dr. Myles Munroe of blessed memory said “the greatest tragedy is not death but life without a purpose”.
*Purpose is our God-given assignment that drives one to success.
To be successful one needs to renew his/her mindset. A renewed mindset is the mindset which considers his God-given assignment as its number one priority.
The renewed mindset thinks beyond today because anything called success must not only be celebrated today but forever.
The renewed mindset creates a vacuum in man which cannot be filled with education but with Success.
Jesus Christ came to die for the sins of men to bring them back to their original SONSHIP status but He(Jesus) gave men the chance to choose for themselves. But choosing Jesus does not just guarantee you instant success. You need to keenly follow his teachings to be able to renew your mindset which is the key to success.
To be continued…
Saturday, 2 April 2016
GENERATIONAL IMPACT CHRISTIAN YOUTHS NETWORK: THE AB-NORMAL LIFE
GENERATIONAL IMPACT CHRISTIAN YOUTHS NETWORK: THE AB-NORMAL LIFE: THE ‘AB-NORMAL LIFE” God's plan for every true child of God is that he/she lives an 'Ab-normal life'(above normal). He in...
THE AB-NORMAL LIFE
God's plan for every true child of God is that he/she lives an 'Ab-normal life'(above normal). He intended for His children to live a life that is far high above the world's standards. God wants His children to be the pacesetters on earth in every endeavor.
3 John 1:2
Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and [that your body] may keep well, even as [I know] your soul keeps well and prospers.
This kind of life will certainly look absurd and foolish to the world because the carnal man cannot understand the things of God and the foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of this world.
This kind of life is what I call “the purposeful life'- thus a life that’s not just about belonging to a religious denomination. A life whose motto is not EAT,SLEEP,GO TO CHURCH, REPEAT but a life that is poised towards obeying the master(God) at ALL COST. Thus, this people just like the martyrs of Christianity(St. Stephen, James the son of Zebedee,St. Peter e.t.c.) are willing to give up their life for the sake of the work of God. They are comfortable even in their discomfort.
This kind of life is normal to those who belong to the best political party called H.M.P.P( HEAVEN MINDED PEOPLE'S PARTY).
This people remain focused and committed to living this 'Ab-normal' life despite the mockery and persecutions they receive from the world.
They hold on to Jesus' word that says in John 15:18-20
" 18 If the world hates you, know that it hated Me before it hated you.
19 If you belonged to the world, the world would treat you with affection and would love you as its own. But because you are not of the world [no longer one with it], but I have chosen (selected) you out of the world, the world hates (detests) you.
20 Remember that I told you, A servant is not greater than his master [is not superior to him]. If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word and obeyed My teachings, they will also keep and obey yours.
It is good to note that Christianity is not a religion but a way of life.
Religions are man made. Two Latin words make up our English word "religion;" "re" and "ligio." "Re" means to "go back," and "ligio" means "to bind." "Religion" then means "to bind back." Religions are man's efforts to bind himself back to God. They are Satan inspired.
So don't be discouraged when persecuted and never give in to the world's standards because in due season the master will reward your faithfulness with a crown of glory in his heavenly empire.
Always stay connected to Jesus the true vine and the true source of life.
#the Impact Vessel
Wednesday, 23 March 2016
GENERATIONAL IMPACT CHRISTIAN YOUTHS NETWORK: CHRISTIANITY'S AFRICAN ROOTS
GENERATIONAL IMPACT CHRISTIAN YOUTHS NETWORK: CHRISTIANITY'S AFRICAN ROOTS: CHRISTIANITY’S AFRICAN ROOTS Thousands of years ago, the great rivers of the world held a conference and decided where they would go and ...
CHRISTIANITY'S AFRICAN ROOTS
CHRISTIANITY’S AFRICAN ROOTS
Thousands of years ago, the great rivers of the world held a conference and decided where they would go and settle.
“I’m going to London” said River Thames,’where I shall be mistress of all rivers of the world.
“I’m going to America” said river Hudson. ‘ Beautiful tall buildings will be built on my banks. I shall be the wealthiest river in the world.
“I’m going to India.” Said Ganges,’ where I shall be worshipped. Children will be thrown into my holy waters. I shall be the sacred river of the world”.
One river remained quiet till the end.
“who are you?” the other rivers asked.
“I am the River Nile”
“ where are you going?”
“To Africa – to the Sahara Desert where no man can live. I shall roll down my waters from the mountains to bring life to the desert”
The other rivers laughed. “Africa! Africa! Why Nile? Why don’t go to a better place than that?” But Nile would not change her mind. She went to Africa.
James Aggrey, an educator born in the Gold Coast (now Ghana) in the nineteenth century and the person credited with this story, said that God was pleased with River Nile for her self-sacrifice. He rewarded her in many ways.
When baby Mosses was born, his life was protected in the River Nile. The baby Jesus, too, was brought to the land of the Nile for protection. And when the Son of God was crucified, a man from the banks of the Nile carried His cross.
“One wonders,” Aggrey said, speaking of the African people, “whether this meek race may not one day save Christianity for the world”.
If, indeed, Africans save Christianity for the word, it will be history coming full circle, for Africa was one of the cradles in which Christianity was first nourished.
It was in Africa that one of the writers of the four gospels was born. It was in Africa that an understanding of God and his relationship with humankind was refined. It was in Africa that monasticism developed, a way of life introduced to Europe by Athanasius, an African, and a way of life responsible for much of the early spread of Christianity throughout Europe.
Christianity in Africa did not fare well when the spread of Islam began in the seventh century. And when the European missionaries brought Christianity to Africa one thousand years later, they brought a European Christianity imbued with colonialism, ignoring for the most part Christianity’s African roots.
Sankofa is an Akan word from Ghana meaning “returning to your roots, recapturing what you’ve lost, and moving forward.” What are some of the African roots of Christianity? We know from early texts, church paintings, oral storytelling traditions, and archaeology about the “living stones” who helped build the Christian church. The African people, clergy, teachers, theologians, martyrs and Desert fathers and mothers are a gold mine of spiritual resources and intellect. Exploring their memories will root us in history and empower our vision.
Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus became refugees in Africa when Herod ordered the slaughter of the young boys in Bethlehem. We are not told where in Egypt they went although a fourth-century Coptic Church was built on the spot in Cairo where it was believed they stayed. And we are not told how long they were there, although it has been estimated anywhere from several months to several years.
Matthew says their African sojourn was in fulfillment of the prophecy of Hosea: “ I called my son out of Egypt”.
Simon, an African from Cyrene was forced by the Romans to carry the cross of Jesus on the way to Golgotha where the Lord was crucified. Cyrene, in the modern Libya, was founded by Greeks and Jews lived there for more than two hundred years before the birth of Christ. Cyrenian Jews had a synagogue in Jerusalem and Simon was probably living nearby.
The first Gentile convert to Christianity was an African. Philip, a man of good reputation and one of those chosen to serve the early church, was directed by an angel to a desert road where he encountered the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority”. Philip told the treasurer the good news about Jesus. The treasurer believed, was baptized, and went away rejoicing”. This man was most likely from Meroe, a city on the Nile in modern Sudan about two hundred kilometers northeast of Khartoum. Jews had settled there- as well as in other areas of Africa – where Solomon expanded Israel’s influence and trade. Meroe was the capital of the rich and powerful kingdom of Kush, known for its iron smelting, gold mining, and trading. Kush was several thousand years old, at one point had conquered Egypt (the 25th Dynasty of Egypt was Kushite.), and about fifty years before the tresurer’s conversion had battled Rome in a five-year war. Christianity’s first gentile convert, the Ethiopian eunuch, came from an amazing kingdom in the heart of northeastern Africa.
The earliest of the four gospels was written by an African. John Mark was born in Cyrenne in modern Libya to a Jewish family of the tribe of Levi. He grew up in Africa until, due to civil unrest, the family moved to Jerusalem. Mark was the cousin of Barnabas and according to Coptic tradition, Peter was married to the cousin of Aristopolus, mark’s father. Peter disciple the young mark. Mark’s mother had a large house where the first Christian church met, where the Holy Spirit came upon the believers, and ¬–possibly- where Jesus ate the Passover with His disciples. John Mark, an African, heard the preaching and teaching of Peter in Rome and incorporated it in the earliest gospel narrative.
The influence of the early African church was profound and concentrated in three arrears. First, Alexandria, Egypt was the intellectual capital of the Mediterranean world. John Mark, Alexandria’s first bishop, was martyred there in AD 68, but the thrived. Second, the largest Christian community in Maghreb ( an area from modern Libya to Morocco) was Carthage, in modern Tunisia. Three early popes were African from this region. Third, Coptic Christianity flourished in Egypt and Sudan. In the early fourth century, Christianity was declared the state religion of the Kingdom of Askum, part of modern Ethiopia.
Many of the notable African Christians of the first few centuries were known for their writings and teachings than for their actions. Tertullian from Carthage (160-215) is said to be the father of western theology. Clement of Alexandria (150-215) was called a messenger of Christianity in a philosopher’s garb. The great theologian Origen of Alexandria (185-254) created the Hexapla, a massive edition of the Old Testament containing six version in parallel columns. The complete Hexapla was said to be six thousand pages in fifteen volumes and exists today in only fragments. Origen is called the” father of biblical criticism” because he was one of the first to develop a theory of interpreting the Bible
One of the most important long lasting debates about the person of Christ originated in the African city of Alexandria. In the early fourth century, Arius, pastor of the church founded by Mark, began teaching that the only Father was truly God eternal – without a beginning – and that Jesus was not fully God and was not eternal. He had a beginning. This teaching appealed to Gnostics and converts from paganism because it seemed easier to understand then the mysteries of the Trinity. The Council of Nicaea was called by the Emperor Constatine in AD 325 to settle the matter. The result was the Nicene Creed, which declared that Jesus was “true God of true God, begotten not made, of one substance with the Father”
The creed did not settle matters, however, and over the next fifty years the “Arian Controversy” debate continued, led on one side by Athanasius, an African born in Egypt and on the other until his death in 336 by Arius, an African born in Libya.
Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria defended the deity of Christ and is labeled “Father of orthodoxy” by the Eastern Church. “Jesus that I know as my Redeemer cannot be less than God”, declared Athanasius at the council of Nicaea. He is also called “Father of Canon” by some Protestants because he was the first to identify the twenty-seven books of the New Testament that we use today.
Although the church in Alexandria grew rapidly, when it suffered persecution about AD 250 under the roman Emperor Decius, many Christians fled into the desert. When Rome turned its attention elsewhere, most Christians returned to Alexandria, but those who remained in the desert as hermits were the beginning of Christian monasticism, an African institution that had a profound effect on Europe, particularly Ireland and Britain. Many early African clergy and lay people were examples of deep spirituality. They lived a simple lifestyle of prayer, enduring harsh persecution and martyrdom. Mark in Alexandria, Cyprian in the Maghreb, Vibia Perpetua in Carthage all died for their faith. “ The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church”
And we must not forget Augustine of Hippo, the greatest of the early church fathers. His writings influenced Western Christianity and Western philosophy. Augustine was born, died, and served as Bishop in modern Algeria and considered himself African. His early life was one of parties, entertainment, and worldly living. Through the prayers of his mother, the witness of St. Ambrose, and the words of Paul to “put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you… and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him”, Augustine became a Christian. He wrote about his conversion in Confessions. More than 350 of his sermons are still available.
The Christian church thrived in northern Africa for the six hundred years after Christ. It helped formulate the West’s understanding of Christian theology. It provided three popes to the church in Rome. It contributed to the determination of the canon of Scripture. It developed a rich heritage of biblical scholarship, teaching on Christian living, and evangelical zeal. And monasticism, an African institution, was a powerful force for the spread of the gospel throughout Europe.
But after the death of Mohammed in AD 632, Islam spread quickly across northern Africa and into Spain as a result of military conquests and forced conversions. The African church did not fare very well, and Africa lost its position as an important center of Christian thought and evangelism. Although Christianity in Ethiopia survived the spread of Islam- and was the home of the only Christian church in sub-Saharan Africa before colonial times- it was geographically isolated from the rest of the Christian world and became even more isolated due to the rise of Islam.
The Christianity that came back to Africa under the European missionaries was Western in thought and colonial in spirit. For instance, Egypt, which figures prominently in the Bible, is not usually presented in Western Bible studies as an African country, but as the essentially Middle-Eastern society it is today.
If we lose this tradition and forget to honor our history, we won’t discover the wealth of early African Christian resources. We stand on the shoulders of our African spiritual ancestors, the martyrs, teachers, clergy, and intellectuals, who have already run the race of faith. Their witness gives us an example and encouragement (Hebrews 12;1). We should not neglect them nor the rich treasures they offer. These ancient African brothers and sisters are roots of Christians throughout the world.
With the boldness of Sankofa, may the children of the Nile Valley, all of Africa, and the African Diaspora quench our spiritual and intellectual thirst! We are the heirs to a rich history of ancient Christianity. But the question is: Do we know this history? Do we know the stories and contributions of early Christianity? Do we tell these stories to our children and grandchildren? May the knowledge and legacy of such African giants ignite our devotion to the Lord!
Source: Africa Study Bible
Thousands of years ago, the great rivers of the world held a conference and decided where they would go and settle.
“I’m going to London” said River Thames,’where I shall be mistress of all rivers of the world.
“I’m going to America” said river Hudson. ‘ Beautiful tall buildings will be built on my banks. I shall be the wealthiest river in the world.
“I’m going to India.” Said Ganges,’ where I shall be worshipped. Children will be thrown into my holy waters. I shall be the sacred river of the world”.
One river remained quiet till the end.
“who are you?” the other rivers asked.
“I am the River Nile”
“ where are you going?”
“To Africa – to the Sahara Desert where no man can live. I shall roll down my waters from the mountains to bring life to the desert”
The other rivers laughed. “Africa! Africa! Why Nile? Why don’t go to a better place than that?” But Nile would not change her mind. She went to Africa.
James Aggrey, an educator born in the Gold Coast (now Ghana) in the nineteenth century and the person credited with this story, said that God was pleased with River Nile for her self-sacrifice. He rewarded her in many ways.
When baby Mosses was born, his life was protected in the River Nile. The baby Jesus, too, was brought to the land of the Nile for protection. And when the Son of God was crucified, a man from the banks of the Nile carried His cross.
“One wonders,” Aggrey said, speaking of the African people, “whether this meek race may not one day save Christianity for the world”.
If, indeed, Africans save Christianity for the word, it will be history coming full circle, for Africa was one of the cradles in which Christianity was first nourished.
It was in Africa that one of the writers of the four gospels was born. It was in Africa that an understanding of God and his relationship with humankind was refined. It was in Africa that monasticism developed, a way of life introduced to Europe by Athanasius, an African, and a way of life responsible for much of the early spread of Christianity throughout Europe.
Christianity in Africa did not fare well when the spread of Islam began in the seventh century. And when the European missionaries brought Christianity to Africa one thousand years later, they brought a European Christianity imbued with colonialism, ignoring for the most part Christianity’s African roots.
Sankofa is an Akan word from Ghana meaning “returning to your roots, recapturing what you’ve lost, and moving forward.” What are some of the African roots of Christianity? We know from early texts, church paintings, oral storytelling traditions, and archaeology about the “living stones” who helped build the Christian church. The African people, clergy, teachers, theologians, martyrs and Desert fathers and mothers are a gold mine of spiritual resources and intellect. Exploring their memories will root us in history and empower our vision.
Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus became refugees in Africa when Herod ordered the slaughter of the young boys in Bethlehem. We are not told where in Egypt they went although a fourth-century Coptic Church was built on the spot in Cairo where it was believed they stayed. And we are not told how long they were there, although it has been estimated anywhere from several months to several years.
Matthew says their African sojourn was in fulfillment of the prophecy of Hosea: “ I called my son out of Egypt”.
Simon, an African from Cyrene was forced by the Romans to carry the cross of Jesus on the way to Golgotha where the Lord was crucified. Cyrene, in the modern Libya, was founded by Greeks and Jews lived there for more than two hundred years before the birth of Christ. Cyrenian Jews had a synagogue in Jerusalem and Simon was probably living nearby.
The first Gentile convert to Christianity was an African. Philip, a man of good reputation and one of those chosen to serve the early church, was directed by an angel to a desert road where he encountered the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority”. Philip told the treasurer the good news about Jesus. The treasurer believed, was baptized, and went away rejoicing”. This man was most likely from Meroe, a city on the Nile in modern Sudan about two hundred kilometers northeast of Khartoum. Jews had settled there- as well as in other areas of Africa – where Solomon expanded Israel’s influence and trade. Meroe was the capital of the rich and powerful kingdom of Kush, known for its iron smelting, gold mining, and trading. Kush was several thousand years old, at one point had conquered Egypt (the 25th Dynasty of Egypt was Kushite.), and about fifty years before the tresurer’s conversion had battled Rome in a five-year war. Christianity’s first gentile convert, the Ethiopian eunuch, came from an amazing kingdom in the heart of northeastern Africa.
The earliest of the four gospels was written by an African. John Mark was born in Cyrenne in modern Libya to a Jewish family of the tribe of Levi. He grew up in Africa until, due to civil unrest, the family moved to Jerusalem. Mark was the cousin of Barnabas and according to Coptic tradition, Peter was married to the cousin of Aristopolus, mark’s father. Peter disciple the young mark. Mark’s mother had a large house where the first Christian church met, where the Holy Spirit came upon the believers, and ¬–possibly- where Jesus ate the Passover with His disciples. John Mark, an African, heard the preaching and teaching of Peter in Rome and incorporated it in the earliest gospel narrative.
The influence of the early African church was profound and concentrated in three arrears. First, Alexandria, Egypt was the intellectual capital of the Mediterranean world. John Mark, Alexandria’s first bishop, was martyred there in AD 68, but the thrived. Second, the largest Christian community in Maghreb ( an area from modern Libya to Morocco) was Carthage, in modern Tunisia. Three early popes were African from this region. Third, Coptic Christianity flourished in Egypt and Sudan. In the early fourth century, Christianity was declared the state religion of the Kingdom of Askum, part of modern Ethiopia.
Many of the notable African Christians of the first few centuries were known for their writings and teachings than for their actions. Tertullian from Carthage (160-215) is said to be the father of western theology. Clement of Alexandria (150-215) was called a messenger of Christianity in a philosopher’s garb. The great theologian Origen of Alexandria (185-254) created the Hexapla, a massive edition of the Old Testament containing six version in parallel columns. The complete Hexapla was said to be six thousand pages in fifteen volumes and exists today in only fragments. Origen is called the” father of biblical criticism” because he was one of the first to develop a theory of interpreting the Bible
One of the most important long lasting debates about the person of Christ originated in the African city of Alexandria. In the early fourth century, Arius, pastor of the church founded by Mark, began teaching that the only Father was truly God eternal – without a beginning – and that Jesus was not fully God and was not eternal. He had a beginning. This teaching appealed to Gnostics and converts from paganism because it seemed easier to understand then the mysteries of the Trinity. The Council of Nicaea was called by the Emperor Constatine in AD 325 to settle the matter. The result was the Nicene Creed, which declared that Jesus was “true God of true God, begotten not made, of one substance with the Father”
The creed did not settle matters, however, and over the next fifty years the “Arian Controversy” debate continued, led on one side by Athanasius, an African born in Egypt and on the other until his death in 336 by Arius, an African born in Libya.
Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria defended the deity of Christ and is labeled “Father of orthodoxy” by the Eastern Church. “Jesus that I know as my Redeemer cannot be less than God”, declared Athanasius at the council of Nicaea. He is also called “Father of Canon” by some Protestants because he was the first to identify the twenty-seven books of the New Testament that we use today.
Although the church in Alexandria grew rapidly, when it suffered persecution about AD 250 under the roman Emperor Decius, many Christians fled into the desert. When Rome turned its attention elsewhere, most Christians returned to Alexandria, but those who remained in the desert as hermits were the beginning of Christian monasticism, an African institution that had a profound effect on Europe, particularly Ireland and Britain. Many early African clergy and lay people were examples of deep spirituality. They lived a simple lifestyle of prayer, enduring harsh persecution and martyrdom. Mark in Alexandria, Cyprian in the Maghreb, Vibia Perpetua in Carthage all died for their faith. “ The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church”
And we must not forget Augustine of Hippo, the greatest of the early church fathers. His writings influenced Western Christianity and Western philosophy. Augustine was born, died, and served as Bishop in modern Algeria and considered himself African. His early life was one of parties, entertainment, and worldly living. Through the prayers of his mother, the witness of St. Ambrose, and the words of Paul to “put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you… and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him”, Augustine became a Christian. He wrote about his conversion in Confessions. More than 350 of his sermons are still available.
The Christian church thrived in northern Africa for the six hundred years after Christ. It helped formulate the West’s understanding of Christian theology. It provided three popes to the church in Rome. It contributed to the determination of the canon of Scripture. It developed a rich heritage of biblical scholarship, teaching on Christian living, and evangelical zeal. And monasticism, an African institution, was a powerful force for the spread of the gospel throughout Europe.
But after the death of Mohammed in AD 632, Islam spread quickly across northern Africa and into Spain as a result of military conquests and forced conversions. The African church did not fare very well, and Africa lost its position as an important center of Christian thought and evangelism. Although Christianity in Ethiopia survived the spread of Islam- and was the home of the only Christian church in sub-Saharan Africa before colonial times- it was geographically isolated from the rest of the Christian world and became even more isolated due to the rise of Islam.
The Christianity that came back to Africa under the European missionaries was Western in thought and colonial in spirit. For instance, Egypt, which figures prominently in the Bible, is not usually presented in Western Bible studies as an African country, but as the essentially Middle-Eastern society it is today.
If we lose this tradition and forget to honor our history, we won’t discover the wealth of early African Christian resources. We stand on the shoulders of our African spiritual ancestors, the martyrs, teachers, clergy, and intellectuals, who have already run the race of faith. Their witness gives us an example and encouragement (Hebrews 12;1). We should not neglect them nor the rich treasures they offer. These ancient African brothers and sisters are roots of Christians throughout the world.
With the boldness of Sankofa, may the children of the Nile Valley, all of Africa, and the African Diaspora quench our spiritual and intellectual thirst! We are the heirs to a rich history of ancient Christianity. But the question is: Do we know this history? Do we know the stories and contributions of early Christianity? Do we tell these stories to our children and grandchildren? May the knowledge and legacy of such African giants ignite our devotion to the Lord!
Source: Africa Study Bible
Thursday, 4 February 2016
FROM SERVANTHOOD TO SONSHIP (PART II)
FROM SERVANTHOOD TO SONSHIP (PART II)
THE ABILITY TO MAINTAIN AND ENJOY FULL SONSHIP RIGHTS
Text: Acts 1:8
8 But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends (the very bounds) of the earth. (AMP)
Memory Verse: Romans 8:16
The Spirit Himself [thus] testifies together with our own spirit, [assuring us] that we are children of God.(AMP)
Beloved, once you accept Jesus into your life, you are divinely elevated from being a servant to sin to a joint-heir with Christ Jesus.
Now, even as a child of God, you need to perform certain responsibilities to be able maintain your sonship right and even become your father’s favorite.
One problem many people face is the inability to maintain their sonship less to talk of becoming their father’s favorite.
The devil is a tireless worker. Even when you are saved by God from his kingdom, he (devil) works tirelessly just to win you back to his kingdom.
Therefore we need to be conscious of the fact that being saved from the kingdom of darkness does not mean the devil will just sit down and fold his arms and watch you.
The Bible makes it clear in 1 Peter 5:8
Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour.
Now the ability to maintain and enjoy your sonship comes from God through the indwelling of the HOLY SPIRIT.
A child of God without the indwelling of the holy spirit is as powerless as a toothless dog. That's why Jesus told his disciples they will receive power when the holy ghost is come upon them.
Acts 1:8a “But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you”
I believe in prayer but without the indwelling of the holy spirit, you will get fed up whilst praying.
When the holy spirit comes, living the Christian life becomes easy because he (holy spirit) empowers, teaches and directs you in your walk with God.
Beloved the holy spirit is a MUST HAVE for everybody who wants to remain a child of God.
PRAYER
Dear Lord, I realize the need for the indwelling of the holy spirit in my life. Spirit divine I thirst and long for you today. Come dwell in me, satisfy my hunger and quench my thirst so that I might live for you and enjoy all the benefits that comes with serving you. Thank you Lord for answered prayer in Jesus Name.
Amen.
QUOTE OF THE DAY.
The Holy Spirit is the grease to the Christian life. He makes,life run smoothly without stress.#g.impact quotes.
SHALOM!!!
Source: G.impact devotional
THE IMPACT VESSEL
THE ABILITY TO MAINTAIN AND ENJOY FULL SONSHIP RIGHTS
Text: Acts 1:8
8 But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends (the very bounds) of the earth. (AMP)
Memory Verse: Romans 8:16
The Spirit Himself [thus] testifies together with our own spirit, [assuring us] that we are children of God.(AMP)
Beloved, once you accept Jesus into your life, you are divinely elevated from being a servant to sin to a joint-heir with Christ Jesus.
Now, even as a child of God, you need to perform certain responsibilities to be able maintain your sonship right and even become your father’s favorite.
One problem many people face is the inability to maintain their sonship less to talk of becoming their father’s favorite.
The devil is a tireless worker. Even when you are saved by God from his kingdom, he (devil) works tirelessly just to win you back to his kingdom.
Therefore we need to be conscious of the fact that being saved from the kingdom of darkness does not mean the devil will just sit down and fold his arms and watch you.
The Bible makes it clear in 1 Peter 5:8
Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour.
Now the ability to maintain and enjoy your sonship comes from God through the indwelling of the HOLY SPIRIT.
A child of God without the indwelling of the holy spirit is as powerless as a toothless dog. That's why Jesus told his disciples they will receive power when the holy ghost is come upon them.
Acts 1:8a “But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you”
I believe in prayer but without the indwelling of the holy spirit, you will get fed up whilst praying.
When the holy spirit comes, living the Christian life becomes easy because he (holy spirit) empowers, teaches and directs you in your walk with God.
Beloved the holy spirit is a MUST HAVE for everybody who wants to remain a child of God.
PRAYER
Dear Lord, I realize the need for the indwelling of the holy spirit in my life. Spirit divine I thirst and long for you today. Come dwell in me, satisfy my hunger and quench my thirst so that I might live for you and enjoy all the benefits that comes with serving you. Thank you Lord for answered prayer in Jesus Name.
Amen.
QUOTE OF THE DAY.
The Holy Spirit is the grease to the Christian life. He makes,life run smoothly without stress.#g.impact quotes.
SHALOM!!!
Source: G.impact devotional
THE IMPACT VESSEL
Wednesday, 3 February 2016
FROM SERVANTHOOD TO SONSHIP
FROM SERVANTHOOOD TO SONSHIP (PART I)
Text: Romans 8: 14-17
“For as many as are led by the spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage to fear, but ye have received the spirit of adoption whereby we, ‘Abba, Father’. 16 the spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. 17 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together”
Everybody who accepts Christ as his lord and personal savior is called, cleansed and elevated by God from servanthood to sonship.
As Christians, we have been called by God to be joint-heirs with Christ Jesus to enjoy full sonship rights.
Most Christians today remain in the servanthood stage till they die. They do not really enjoy the full benefits of being sons or joint-heirs in the kingdom of God.
Once you confess and accept Christ, your level is changed, you no longer exist in the kingdom of darkness but rather the kingdom of God (righteousness). Your godly nature is restored once you accept Christ to be the Lord of your life. Your right to have dominion is restore back to you. Though you still exist in the flesh, you become a new creature.
Every Christian is supposed to have dominion over everything as heirs in the kingdom of God. Christians are supposed to live a life of authority over darkness to draw men to Christ.
Christianity, we should know is not a religion of modest living, but a way of life. Christians are supposed to have full access to all the benefits of a heir in the kingdom of God – thus they are supposed to enjoy the full riches in Christ Jesus. They are not supposed to live a beggarly life but rather a life worth envying by the unbelievers.
The child of God is to be the head everywhere he finds himself, live in good health, a lender and above all exercise full authority over all forces of darkness.
The essence of accepting Christ Jesus is not just living a lowly life and expecting to be in heaven one day. I strongly believe that if going to heaven alone is the reason of salvation, then God would have been killing us just minutes after salvation.
You are a son, a prince and a joint-heir in the kingdom of God so stop living like a servant. Exercise your God-given authority today and see the hand of God at work in your life.
SHALOM!!!
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
The price paid on the cross by Christ for you is too expensive to live a cheap beggarly life.
Source: G. impact devotional
THE IMPACT VESSEL
Visit www.genimpactchristyouths.blogspot.com for more.
Text: Romans 8: 14-17
“For as many as are led by the spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage to fear, but ye have received the spirit of adoption whereby we, ‘Abba, Father’. 16 the spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. 17 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together”
Everybody who accepts Christ as his lord and personal savior is called, cleansed and elevated by God from servanthood to sonship.
As Christians, we have been called by God to be joint-heirs with Christ Jesus to enjoy full sonship rights.
Most Christians today remain in the servanthood stage till they die. They do not really enjoy the full benefits of being sons or joint-heirs in the kingdom of God.
Once you confess and accept Christ, your level is changed, you no longer exist in the kingdom of darkness but rather the kingdom of God (righteousness). Your godly nature is restored once you accept Christ to be the Lord of your life. Your right to have dominion is restore back to you. Though you still exist in the flesh, you become a new creature.
Every Christian is supposed to have dominion over everything as heirs in the kingdom of God. Christians are supposed to live a life of authority over darkness to draw men to Christ.
Christianity, we should know is not a religion of modest living, but a way of life. Christians are supposed to have full access to all the benefits of a heir in the kingdom of God – thus they are supposed to enjoy the full riches in Christ Jesus. They are not supposed to live a beggarly life but rather a life worth envying by the unbelievers.
The child of God is to be the head everywhere he finds himself, live in good health, a lender and above all exercise full authority over all forces of darkness.
The essence of accepting Christ Jesus is not just living a lowly life and expecting to be in heaven one day. I strongly believe that if going to heaven alone is the reason of salvation, then God would have been killing us just minutes after salvation.
You are a son, a prince and a joint-heir in the kingdom of God so stop living like a servant. Exercise your God-given authority today and see the hand of God at work in your life.
SHALOM!!!
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
The price paid on the cross by Christ for you is too expensive to live a cheap beggarly life.
Source: G. impact devotional
THE IMPACT VESSEL
Visit www.genimpactchristyouths.blogspot.com for more.
AFRAID OF MYSELF?
AFRAID OF MYSELF?
Yes, you are afraid of yourself.
The real self is the person within not the person without. The real self is who you were created to be. The real self is the dream and vision that you keep having always even though you try to avoid them.
Most of us are fail to become who we were created by God to be because of:
Unbelief
Many of us don’t believe we are qualified to do what we were created for. We look at our body sizes, shape, height and condemn ourselves.
We don’t believe God can help us to accomplish what he has created us for. We rather believe people’s comments about us. We believe people when they say “that dream is too big for a boy or girl like you to achieve, your parents are too poor to help you achieve your dreams or you are useless”.
We look at our present conditions to determine our future.
Whenever you chose to believe people’s comments rather than God, you prevent him from working in your life.
It takes faith to keep God active in your life for the accomplishment of purpose.
It took faith in God on the part of Abraham to become the father of nations.
It took faith in God for Moses to be able to lead the Israelites out of Egypt.
Whatever you are created for needs God to come to come to accomplishment. Take a break from believing people’s comments about you and start believing God.
You are too great to fail.
Fear
Fear of failure is another great factor that prevents us from becoming who were created to become.
Because people who missed purpose, because people who left God out of their lives failed, we also fear we will fail in our mission.
We fear people might kill us if we try to rise higher above them.
Fear is the path to death and fear of failure is the beginning of rottenness.
Fear prevents you from reaching your God destined height in life.
Fear of failure lets you become stagnant even though you were not created to be stagnant.
Due to fear, you refused to be interviewed for the position of the Managing Director of your company, you refused to travel overseas, you refuse to pursue higher education, you refuse to bring out the invention inside you.
The Bible makes it clear in Romans 8:37 “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us”.
You are more than a conqueror once you have Christ in your life, so no need to fear man or failure.
Challenges will come but just like the eagle, you will use them to soar effortlessly even higher.
Kick fear out of your life today!!!
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous. Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people the permission to do same”.
#G. Impact devotional
THE IMPACT VESSEL
Yes, you are afraid of yourself.
The real self is the person within not the person without. The real self is who you were created to be. The real self is the dream and vision that you keep having always even though you try to avoid them.
Most of us are fail to become who we were created by God to be because of:
Unbelief
Many of us don’t believe we are qualified to do what we were created for. We look at our body sizes, shape, height and condemn ourselves.
We don’t believe God can help us to accomplish what he has created us for. We rather believe people’s comments about us. We believe people when they say “that dream is too big for a boy or girl like you to achieve, your parents are too poor to help you achieve your dreams or you are useless”.
We look at our present conditions to determine our future.
Whenever you chose to believe people’s comments rather than God, you prevent him from working in your life.
It takes faith to keep God active in your life for the accomplishment of purpose.
It took faith in God on the part of Abraham to become the father of nations.
It took faith in God for Moses to be able to lead the Israelites out of Egypt.
Whatever you are created for needs God to come to come to accomplishment. Take a break from believing people’s comments about you and start believing God.
You are too great to fail.
Fear
Fear of failure is another great factor that prevents us from becoming who were created to become.
Because people who missed purpose, because people who left God out of their lives failed, we also fear we will fail in our mission.
We fear people might kill us if we try to rise higher above them.
Fear is the path to death and fear of failure is the beginning of rottenness.
Fear prevents you from reaching your God destined height in life.
Fear of failure lets you become stagnant even though you were not created to be stagnant.
Due to fear, you refused to be interviewed for the position of the Managing Director of your company, you refused to travel overseas, you refuse to pursue higher education, you refuse to bring out the invention inside you.
The Bible makes it clear in Romans 8:37 “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us”.
You are more than a conqueror once you have Christ in your life, so no need to fear man or failure.
Challenges will come but just like the eagle, you will use them to soar effortlessly even higher.
Kick fear out of your life today!!!
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous. Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people the permission to do same”.
#G. Impact devotional
THE IMPACT VESSEL
AFRAID OF MYSELF
AFRAID OF MYSELF
Text: Genesis 1: 26-27
And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him, male and female created he them. (KJV)
It is so sad that many of us today especially in the church are doing nothing or very little of what we have been created by God to do. Most of us fail to do what we’ve been created by God to do because we feel inadequate.
Let’s take a closer look at the meaning of some key words.
Man (‘âdâm’) – human being.
Image (tselem) – resemblance
Likeness (demûth) - resemblance
Dominion (râdâh) – to prevail against, to reign, to rule
Created (bârâ’) – to make
Man is an intricate product of God’s creation. God in his wisdom has deposited so much into man. After creating man, God breathed his own breath into him (thus his life) and gave him the authority to be the head of all of God’s creation.
God also deposited into man, the creative ability – the ability to create the rest of the things that can make life comfortable to him or her.
“And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness”. This statement changed my way of thinking. The Bible didn’t categorically state the skin colour of God but what it made clear was that man was created in the image of God. This means the both the black and the white man are all carrying the image of God.
There is a saying “ as a man thinketh so is he”. This statement is very true.
I discovered that our physical appearance is not really the image of God. God is the creator of everything, so if we are created in the image of God, then it means God has deposited into the creative ability to make life comfortable for us.
None of us existing on planet earth is empty or useless. Even the uneducated person has something to offer to the world.
Basically, we are created to give life to the planet earth. This means we all have something deposited within us that is very important to make life comfortable to the inhabitants of the earth. You were born to make an impact on the generations to come – thus to leave an indelible footprint on the shores of the earth for which generations will look at and thank God that you once existed.
Today, we are all grateful to God that a man such as Thomas Edison once existed. Thomas Edisson the inventor light bulb will never be forgotten because he despised all odds and made a positive impact on all generations.
Beloved, you are not an empty tin or vessel on earth. God never made any useless thing. Everything God created has something great to offer, even the weeds and flowers.
Many of us don’t do what we are created to do because we feel we are not qualified. The good news about God is that he doesn’t take into consideration the circumstances surrounding your birth. Whether you were born outside wedlock, beside wedlock, in wedlock or even behind wedlock. You still have something to offer the world.
Nobody on planet Earth has the same thing you have to offer the world. It might look the same but it is different. The sun and the moon were created to give lights but at different points in time.
Your parents don’t determine what you were created to be. The bible says in Jeremiah 1:5 “ before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee and before thou camest out of the womb, I sanctified thee, I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations”.
God knew what we should become before we were conceived by our parents. He already finished us before our parents even met. God never starts anything before he finishes it.
I used “ should become” because only very few us would actually become what we were designed for.
SHALOM
#THE IMPACT VESSEL
Text: Genesis 1: 26-27
And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him, male and female created he them. (KJV)
It is so sad that many of us today especially in the church are doing nothing or very little of what we have been created by God to do. Most of us fail to do what we’ve been created by God to do because we feel inadequate.
Let’s take a closer look at the meaning of some key words.
Man (‘âdâm’) – human being.
Image (tselem) – resemblance
Likeness (demûth) - resemblance
Dominion (râdâh) – to prevail against, to reign, to rule
Created (bârâ’) – to make
Man is an intricate product of God’s creation. God in his wisdom has deposited so much into man. After creating man, God breathed his own breath into him (thus his life) and gave him the authority to be the head of all of God’s creation.
God also deposited into man, the creative ability – the ability to create the rest of the things that can make life comfortable to him or her.
“And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness”. This statement changed my way of thinking. The Bible didn’t categorically state the skin colour of God but what it made clear was that man was created in the image of God. This means the both the black and the white man are all carrying the image of God.
There is a saying “ as a man thinketh so is he”. This statement is very true.
I discovered that our physical appearance is not really the image of God. God is the creator of everything, so if we are created in the image of God, then it means God has deposited into the creative ability to make life comfortable for us.
None of us existing on planet earth is empty or useless. Even the uneducated person has something to offer to the world.
Basically, we are created to give life to the planet earth. This means we all have something deposited within us that is very important to make life comfortable to the inhabitants of the earth. You were born to make an impact on the generations to come – thus to leave an indelible footprint on the shores of the earth for which generations will look at and thank God that you once existed.
Today, we are all grateful to God that a man such as Thomas Edison once existed. Thomas Edisson the inventor light bulb will never be forgotten because he despised all odds and made a positive impact on all generations.
Beloved, you are not an empty tin or vessel on earth. God never made any useless thing. Everything God created has something great to offer, even the weeds and flowers.
Many of us don’t do what we are created to do because we feel we are not qualified. The good news about God is that he doesn’t take into consideration the circumstances surrounding your birth. Whether you were born outside wedlock, beside wedlock, in wedlock or even behind wedlock. You still have something to offer the world.
Nobody on planet Earth has the same thing you have to offer the world. It might look the same but it is different. The sun and the moon were created to give lights but at different points in time.
Your parents don’t determine what you were created to be. The bible says in Jeremiah 1:5 “ before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee and before thou camest out of the womb, I sanctified thee, I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations”.
God knew what we should become before we were conceived by our parents. He already finished us before our parents even met. God never starts anything before he finishes it.
I used “ should become” because only very few us would actually become what we were designed for.
SHALOM
#THE IMPACT VESSEL
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)