Ask yourself, would I court a girl like me...?

I promised my Facebook friends that I would share excerpts from CS Lewis's Screwtape Letters - a letter from a senior devil to a junior devil.

"Our third aim is, by these constructions, to destroy the devotional life. For the real presence of the Enemy (they refer to God as the enemy), otherwise experienced by men in prayer and sacrament, we substitute a merely probable, remote shadowy, and uncouth figure, one who spoke a strange language and died a long time ago. Such an object cannot in fact be worshipped. Instead of the Creator adored by its creature, you soon have merely a leader acclaimed by a partisan, and finally a distinguished character approved by a judicious historian." Page 125

It's interesting that this book was written in 1941, as the devil still uses the same strategy. Gradually worship & prayer where a man can actually come "face to face" with God & encounter His glory are gently being eroded and replaced by "other agenda", less and less room or priority is given to these important foundational truths. We have become too sophisticated, "skilled" and we must demonstrate those, I suppose?

The Pentecostal church came out of the old Anglican, Methodist - etc churches however it is interesting to note how the "Pentecostal" church is also starting to become muscle bound by over organisation (to quote Leonard Ravenhill quoting Dr J.B. Phillips), administration & so called "order" - some of the things we ran away from. Order was created for man not man for order, to help man not rule man. We must not be so structured that we stifle the moves of The Spirit. We must not be so administrative that we have little room for spiritual things.

I will sound the alarm even if I may not be popular for it.

Satan doesn't always come up with new tricks - he simply reinvents the old.

Why did Jacob wrestle with God all night, why not for a few seconds or minutes?

Why did Jesus ask His disciples the question: could you not tarry with me for an hour?

Why was it the manner of the early church to gather together to pray and worship God? Acts 12:5,12; Acts 13:2, Acts 1:14, Acts 16:6

Why was Moses's face changed when he spent 40 days in the raw and living presence of God? Could it be that there are some issues in our lives, some characteristics or lack thereof - which can only be formed when a man comes to stand face to face with God's Shekinah, when he comes to do business with God and God alone?

Where can we do this type of business with God other than in prayer & worship?

Why did Jesus remind us with a whip that His house must be called a house of prayer?

Why is prayer so unattractive to most churches & Christians? Why???

Habakkuk said "I will set me upon my watch and see what He says to me"... How do we watch???

Watching is spending time with Him - when we worship Him, when we pray and when we do these things, He will speak.

Why must God speaking to His church in the rhema be a rare or uncommon phenomenon reserved for a select few? Is it because these few are willing to pay the price on a regular & consistent basis and the rest of us are not?

If I were a guy looking to marry a girl whom I had been courting for quite some time, but this girl was predisposed to only spending any significant amount of time with me seasonally, where she would go for long periods of time without spending any significant amount of time with me and just when I was getting ready to really love on her and express My feelings for her or share my points of view with her she was consistently cutting Me off because of her "schedule" - how loved would I feel? Considering that I was an all or nothing kinda Guy?

"If you want anything from God, you will have to pray into heaven. That is where it all is. If you live in the earth realm and expect to receive from God, you will never get anything. The Church has been negligent in one thing... she has not prayed the power of God out of heaven. The Lord's model prayer provides the clearest instruction on how we bring the reality of His world into this one. The generals of revival speak to us from ages past saying, If you pray, He will come! Biblical prayer is always accompanied by radical obedience. God's response to prayer with obedience always releases the nature of heaven into our impaired circumstances. Jesus's model reveals the only two real priorities of prayer: First, intimacy with God that is expressed in worship-holy is Your name. And second to bring His Kingdom to earth, establishing His dominion over the needs of mankind-Your Kingdom come." Bill Johnson - When Heaven invades Earth

Tell them I want them to pray...

“Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.” John 13:23 KJV

That disciple was John. What made John so unique that the apocalyptic revelation was revealed to him?

John was unique because he found a place by Christ's bosom, that was why God kept and used him to deliver the book of Revelation, knowing that if there was anybody who would know what to do in exile, whose habit it was to lean on the Lord's bosom, it was John.

Now let's look at our lives today, at our private lives and our churches, how does that translate?

People are often eager to know God's will for their lives, eager to ask Him to do stuff for them. But are we willing to get to know the God Who provides the stuff? Can we spend time with Him enough ourselves to know His will for our lives or do we always run to somebody else to find out on our behalf? Have we made the time to know Him - what He likes, what He is thinking about, understanding what the stuff on His mind is, what His priorities are for our lives, for us as His Church and our role as His representatives in the world?

Or do we think that God doesn't have stuff on His mind that He can share with us and take us in to confidence about? Or have we limited this to a calling for a select few?

God told me something this morning, He said tell them I want them to pray - that's one of the things He told me and we had a conversation about it. He has been saying this for some time now but will we listen, will we obey? Or has prosperity blinded us? Intellectualism? Distractions? Have we given in to satan's ploy to get Christians not to pray?

"But I withheld my hand, and for the sake of my name I did what would keep it from being profaned in the eyes of the nations in whose sight I had brought them out." Ezekiel 20:22

There are times when God does some things: “just about enough” for His name sake but He won't let you have that tangible shekinah glory of His awesome presence; even if at all He does it will be in a limited measure.

Well friends, I believe that is where most of the body of Christ is now. People think that because they have prosperity they think they really really have the mind of God, the heart of God and the presence of God but God says: No, you haven't - I have done just about enough for my name sake so as not to profane My name - because you are My Church and people know you profess Jesus so I prosper you - you bring the offerings to me, so yes -  I bless you in return. But My tangible shekinah I have withheld for those who are really hungry for Me and only Me, those who revere Me and keep My Sabbath.

The level of enquiring and hearing from God in the rhema, experiencing His awesome Shekinah glory is largely absent in many churches today, hence in most of the body of Christ.

Do we know why this is?

By large, the body of Christ is not a house of prayer, we are not a consecrated Church, we don't know how to tarry in God's presence, we are not worshippers who are serious about getting His attention and The Father SEEKS such to worship Him. Look at John 4:24 the literal translation from the Greek says For The Father such IS SEEKING. Can we not understand what that means? ...that His eyes are roaming looking for such a people who know how to honour Him, worship Him and fellowship with Him - as a lifestyle and in their churches!

He is NOT looking for a worship which is largely driven by teleprompters and time management, where God wants to speak but we shut Him up. It is becoming hard to find churches which really pray, if you find one which does - often the prayer meetings are need driven rather than by The Father's heart. The Father's heart does include our needs but our prayer meetings can not be spent on just material things, there is a world falling apart all around us and many on the fast road down to destruction, there is an enemy out there named satan with his demonic hierarchy - an organised order of wickedness who have been around for thousands of years on the earth who do not rest but yet christians are still sleeping and playing! I am sorry but today is a day for deep truths!

We have exchanged activity for prayer, administration for prayer, entertainment for worship, teleprompter for quality time with God, agendas & schedules for the move of the Holy Spirit, seeking stuff instead seeking The Father's delight.

When God asked satan in the book of Job what have you been doing - he said I have been walking up and down the earth (Job 2:2), going through and fro the earth, do you think that is one sleeps and relents? No, there is a very active order of spiritual wickedness.

Let me say one truth - you will not defeat him with your organising, administration and empty words and activities, you can only defeat with The LORD - the presence of The Lord - The Holy Spirit! That is why Jesus taught us in The Lord's prayer to pray Father lead us not to temptation and deliver us from evil - it means God help us to circumvent satan's plots and fight him on our behalf.

We can not defeat satan by mirroring the world but only by the power of The Spirit and walking in spiritual authority - to walk in it you need to be in step with The Holy Spirit. You need to make time for God to download from heaven, bringing heaven down to the earth - finding out God's will praying it into fruition, receiving insight for the future to circumvent evil pitfalls - therein lies the scripture Thine will be done as it is done in heaven.

Jesus asked to pray this way, the church is supposed to pray and live this way.

"For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way." 2 Thessalonians 2:7
The above gives a part of our job description, who should be holding back the power of lawlessness - darkness? The Church! Until we are raptured, that is part of our job description.

In Ezekiel 20, the elders of Israel went to enquire of the Lord and He was having none of it! People who want to enquire of God must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth, they must keep His "sabbath".

When you look at Ezekiel 20, God was upset about several things: disobedience, a lack of consecration/carelessness (vs 21) and in vs 24 - he talks about idols and the desecration of the sabbath.

Why did God create the sabbath? He created it as a day of rest from our labours, our activities - a day to honour Him as creator and as source.

"If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honourable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken." Isaiah 58: 13-14 

For the new testament believer - the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, I am not talking about Sunday or Saturday but about The Sabbath of the Lord as a lifestyle.

As a church - the body of Christ - can we ask ourselves if we give God quality time? As an individual, do we give God quality time? Do we lean against His bosom?

When The Lord said to keep the sabbath holy, this is what He meant - say to anything else that God is your source, you won't worship your business or your career that it takes all of your time, you can say to yourself I will stop before that last deal because it is going to take my time away from God and give that time to God because one understands (and acts like it) that it is not by trying to cut that last deal that gives one the power to get wealth, it is our God!

Pls read Isaiah 58:13-14 carefully - the literal translation of you will find your joy in the Lord is then you shall enjoy the deliciousness of Yahweh. God's presence is indeed delicious!

Can we for a minute put aside our mobile phones, our laptops, TVs, businesses, careers, teleprompters, itchy ears, activities and honour God in our lives and in our churches?

Can we prioritise prayer, worship and bible study? Prayer is not a happenstance, it is a deliberate seeking. It requires effort on your part. You make time for prayer, somethings will have to suffer so you can pray, you will have to go to bed early sometimes just so you can make sufficient time to pray and love on God before you leave for work in the morning, not waking up with only 5 mins to spare for the God of all the earth and heavens!

I remember hearing a sermon years back - Could you not tarry with me one hour?

Mark 14: 37-38 "Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Matthew 26: 40 "Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter."

We were urged to spend at least one hour with the Lord, I decided to deliberately and purposefully incorporate it into my lifestyle, I wondered if I would run out of things to say; I prayed in tongues, I prayed in my understanding, I worshipped, I sang to Him, to make sure I reached the hour and I tell you now one hour is just not enough for me - I wish I didn't have to work :-)

What am I trying to say here? Jesus asked the disciples a question because it will take a willingness on your part. There is a level of responsibility that must come from you, that’s what I found, which I will try to describe below. It will require you taking yourself to that meeting point with the Lord and discipline to watch with Him as a starting point for a recommended one hour. It will also take a willingness to commit yourself to Him to ask Him to give you that grace to tarry - asking His Holy Spirit to help you.

My personal experience was that I heard the word and I complied, grace was also there, I was not a big prayer warrior, I didn't know so so many songs, initially I didn't flow so quickly i.e. having so much to say for an hour, so when words failed me, I prayed in tongues, I worshipped Him, I sang to Him. Till it became such that the time was no longer enough by any means. And then as time went on, He gave more grace for intercession - a prayer mantle to press further plus I tell Him everything under heaven - so before I knew it, the one hour was no longer always sufficient.

What I am trying to say is simply, start somewhere and He will meet you, He will take you higher that you ever thought. I think one hour is a good starting point.

If we know we are struggling - tell Him, don't shy away from telling Him - He will give us the grace. The devil doesn't want you to pray, so if you are struggling take the battle to the gates and cry out to God about it.

Find the time and meet with Him there even if all you can start with is to say "Father I love you, I thank you, I praise you".

In a corporate setting (body of believers/church) there is further grace, because we will encourage each other, when you pray with someone else even if you could not pray as long in the past, you receive strength from that corporate anointing and encouragement from standing with others in prayer and worship.The job of the sheep includes leading the lambs into God's presence and from the doing with the more mature - they will learn. Prayer is best learnt by doing more so than by teaching alone, we can teach why we pray as we do - that is important but we can not teach on prayer and not pray corporately. A church must pray! The Church MUST pray! Jesus Our Lord said my house shall be called a house of prayer! Matthew 21:13. Even The Lord took his disciples with Him to pray at the garden of Gethsemane.

The church without prayer is a powerless church - yes we may have some level of prosperity financially but not the shekinah glory - the tangible presence of God where demons flee and the power of God is present to heal, where prophecies are uttered with direction and vision given to the Church as a corporate body, where spiritual eyes are opened, where hearts are converted and the whole world is turned upside down by the fruits of these gathering pulling men from the fire as we go forth in power to preach the gospel of salvation to a dying world.

Are we no better than a morally balanced country club OR ARE WE THE LIVING CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST?

When He gave me this message on Sunday morning, this was how He started: Get My Church stronger - that is His objective, saints.

God bless.

The GOD WHO answers prayers!

'He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.' 1 Kings 19: 4b-5

That was a prayer request made by Elijah. We were looking at prayers and answers in today's bible study at my local church and we looked at this verse. It's interesting to note that this is a prayer request that was not granted as asked, as we all know Elijah was caught up into glory and did not die.

But did God hear him? Yes He did and we have proof:

'All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he travelled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. There he went into a cave and spent the night. 1 Kings 19:7-9

Who do we think sent the angel? It was God of course.

And Jesus our Lord said: "I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me." John 11:42

God hears all our heartfelt prayers, In Jeremiah 29:13, He says:
'You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart' (NIV)
'If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me' (NLT)

Therefore now let us always pray with this confidence, God hears us always, the answers may not come at the time we want it or in the way we want because God's aim is to give the best response, the best gift and at the best time.

Rather than letting Elijah die as requested, he sent him refreshment and strength. Dying was not the best answer for Elijah and God gave him a greater gift than dying, the man who asked to die, never did die but was eventually taken up to heaven in the most dramatic and beautiful way, after going on to fulfil his assignment in God. That's God! Always better than we could ever fathom, ask or think.

As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind 2 Kings 2:11

Coming to a place of thanksgiving...

"Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think..." Ephesians 3:20a

In the middle of believing the Lord on an issue, the Holy Spirit impressed upon me to start thanking the Lord. The impression of the Holy Spirit was so strong that it quieted any questions I had within me 'am I just thanking Him because I want to force His hand on the issue? Is this what He really wants for me?' It was like the Holy Spirit had spoken to my inner man and said 'peace be still'!

I thanked Him concerning the particular issue i.e. what He was going to do about it, this did not mean attempting to force His hand to say it has to be my way but rather saying what You are going to do about it is going to be great, meaning whichever way it works out the outcome in the long run will be great, You will steer me in the best direction towards that ultimate good You have planned for me. You said if I commit my ways to You, You will establish my path so I am thanking You for the establishment of my path, I am thanking You for how you will sort everything out above what I asked You for, I am thanking You Lord for that breakthrough beyond my tiny imagination.


As I began to thank my Abba, the Spirit of the Lord reminded me of the word of God in Ephesians 3:20 around which a friend had been sharing a few days earlier. The Holy Spirit reminded me of certain things that God had brought me to, which before He did, I had no idea that they even existed, so really how could I have asked for them? Therefore I realised that one of the principles of faith God wanted me to tap into was trusting Him that He can do much better than I can ask or imagine and to begin thank Him that what He was going to do would be beyond my human requests or well beyond my imagination - better -abundantly better - exceedingly greater.

So I came to a place of thanksgiving, where I began to thank the Lord for that which He was going to do, thanking Him that it was going to be better than I had asked for or wished; the answers started to come through better than I asked or imagined possible!

This kind of thanksgiving represents trust in what God intends to do in and with your life, it signifies surrender that His way is better than your way - you can't out think God, so it's best to let "the PRO" handle it. Why grapple for a tricycle when you can get a Ferari? The Lord says just as the heavens are higher than the earth so are His thoughts higher than ours... see Isaiah 55:9

We really can't out think God.

This kind of thanksgiving facilitates breakthrough and exercises our faith...

''Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God'' Philippians 4:6

Is there something in your life today that you need to be thanking God for - thanking Him that He will do more for you than you have asked or imagined? 

Heaven is still watching...

When I heard the man of God say 'Heaven is watching', it jolted me. He said Heaven is watching to see how much we really believe God's promises. He went on to illustrate that the demonstration of our faith will be shown by our actions... what do our actions say to heaven? 

Does my action say Father, I trust you completely with my future. Does my action say, it may not be the way I planned it but I have absolute peace and trust because my heart is stayed on you, so I am beyond fretting about timing now or how things will take shape, you have my absolute confidence. Does my action say, if there is one thing I know about you it is that you are faithful, the circumstances may not be lining up but God You will come through for me. Will I meet with You everyday for the rest of my life because I trust you and I am in fellowship, covenant and relationship with You. Will I tell You every time it bothers me that I judge You faithful, will I fall on my knees consistently and begin to thank You for what I already believe You are going to do, will I begin to ask You to prepare me in advance to be able to handle the blessing and fulfillment of Your word that is coming.

'Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised' Hebrews 11:11

My friend Mo the other day pointed this out to me - judging God faithful. What is the value that we place, that I place, that you place, on God's integrity. To judge someone faithful is to mean that based on the character and the strength of who that person is they will do what they've said.  A lot of young parents love to drop off their kids with the grandparents because they know they will be loved and cared for, they trust their parents... in that regard they have judged them faithful.

My understanding really started to open up that God watches to see if indeed I have judged Him faithful, do I really believe, what does my action say? my attitude? am I speaking with Him about the issue constantly - wheter it is to assure Him that I trust Him that He is still on the case, or to thank Him in advance, or to ask Him to prepare me so that when the opportunity comes I recognise it and when the blessing comes I am equipped to deal with it both mentally and physically. Consistency... do you judge Him faithful? How consistent am I... what does my consistency say about me? Have I set the Lord always before me. 'I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.' Psalm 16:8 To set God always before you means consistency... steadfastness... on an issue, in ur prayer life, in your decisions.

There are so many times that we say yes we believe for one thing or the other but deep down we know we don't, we just can't see how it can happen, we are disgruntled, we are put out, we are weary, we are downright discouraged. It is then that we need to come up higher in our walk with God, come up higher... come up higher in the Holy Spirit.

We need to come up higher to the place of judging Him faithful...

And here are some of the things I have been learning about that...

Jesus said I have many things to tell you but you can not bear them now, when the Holy Spirit comes, the Spirit of Truth, He will guide you into all truth. A lot of times we become discouraged, it is because we are not bearing the promises of God in the Holy Spirit... that is in the strength of the Holy Spirit.

That is why the baptism of the Holy Spirit is PARAMOUNT for every bible believing christian and the gift of an unknown tongue, praying in the Holy Spirit is important for our personal edification.

The bible says 'He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself...' 1 Cor 14:4a

Pastor Agu taught on this the other day and opened my eyes to so much understanding...

He explained the greek word described to mean 'to build a super structure', I went and looked it up on scripture4all Greek to English translation, the word used was translated as 'home building'. When we pray in the spirit we are being edified, we are being built up, being translated to becoming superlative, the Holy Spirit builds us up to receive what God has for us. Your faith or understanding of a situation might be shaky initially but as you open up to God and tell Him what you are dealing with, asking the Holy Spirit to pray for you and begin to pray in the Spirit, as you continue to be steadfast in prayer, you will begin to receive that superlative ability to come to the same understanding that Heaven has about your situation, your faith begins to stand, shakiness starts to fade. Jude said in verse 20 'But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost'

You YET beLOVED to-THE HOLIEST OF YOU BELIEF ON-HOME-BUILDING selves IN spirit HOLY praying

ye yet beloved to-the most holy of ye faith  building up yourselves in spirit holy praying

The above are the two literal Greek to English translations from scripture4all, the same translation of home building is used in both Jude and I Corinthians 14. The words translated to home building are 'epoikodomountes' & 'oikodomei'  respectively.

 

Paul said 'I thank my God, I speak with tongues more than ye all:' 1 Corinthians 14:18. Because of the controversy that has been around the understanding of some of 1 Corinthians 14, I feel people have often missed the point. Paul said he speaks in tongues more than all of them Corinthian people, he did not mean that he was speaking a much more celestial language than they were, we all speak according to the same spirit as He gives utterance, he meant that he spent more time praying in the spirit in tongues in his closet than them all. Paul, the man who gave us half of the New Testament Bible by the Holy Spirit, prayed in tongues so much that he could say he spoke in tongues more than the Corinthians. Simple as that big bro Paulo was a major "skabasha" in his bedroom, on his personal retreats, thats one of the reasons he was so effective, full of faith and courage.

Releasing faith, moving from a place of fear to faith can be done in prayer, in the bedroom, on your knees before God, praying in the Spirit, building yourself up on your most Holy faith... this is what I am learning.

 

"I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you." John 16: 12-15

Heaven is watching...

"Heaven is watching" the preacher's words jarred through my thoughts and resonated with me, it reminded me of what my grandmother had said to me. "Demilade" she'd said, "your heart is too big and I worry about you, when choosing a spouse -  promise me that you will watch closely before letting your heart go, that you will be observant - to judge first who is worthy of you - with a heart equally as big as yours"; And I had tried to live by that motto especially in recent times, I think I know now what my responses to Dipo & Boye will be. Dipo and Boye, two men who happened to both be in my life at the same time asking the same thing, both wanted me to say yes to being more than friends and consider a relationship with marriage in view.

Boye... a cardiothoracic-surgeon, Oxbridge trained like I was, our fathers had been at school together, our parents had introduced us and needless to say for them it was a match made in heaven. Boye was good looking, tall, slender, an impeccable dresser, rather easy on the eyes, had that whole Boris Kodjoe thing going on and had the Oxford tlit to his voice, well spoken and well mannered. He'd taken me out to Claridges for my birthday and made sure we'd called mummy, he let her know he was looking out for me, that I wasn't alone on my birthday. He called regularly for a busy surgeon, almost every other day to say hello. He'd invited me as his date for the annual cardiothoracic-surgeons' ball at the Dorchester, Kemi had said that was a total sign of my 'wifey' status, I'd met some of his work colleagues, it was an absolutely grand affair... plus all the good they were doing in the world saving lives. He was an exteremly intelligent man, went to university at 15 plus, already a consultant and visiting surgeon at teaching hospitals in the UK, US & Australia, at 36 that was a considerable achievement and everyone said what a fine mind he had. We moved in the same circles, it was an easy transition hanging out together socially...

Dipo... Dipo... Dipo, we were both project managers on the same program running parallel projects, he was man's man in a no of ways, average height, slightly stocky, slightly rugged with the cutest dimples ever, he had more of the Taye Diggs look, a Cranfield man - engineer turned investment bank project manager. For my birthday he'd got me the Anya Hirschman glitter clutch I'd been eyeballing the last time we'd been at House of Fraser during lunch, I'd said I'd wait for it to go on sale in January but He'd slipped it into my desk drawer on my birthday. He'd been there when I had foot surgery, groceries and take out in hand, quite unannounced, rang me up 5 mins before and said he was in the area and if it was ok he stopped by to see how I was doing. He'd joked about how he'd worried I'd starve to death, cooking up a storm of a week's supply of jollof rice, spiced chicken and efo, he'd also taught me how to make microwave eba all in the same afternoon - to save me standing on my feet for too long... all the while joking that he just felt like showing off his culinary skills, I think I knew better than that or was starting to... The same way he'd turned up at my doorstep the day after my sister had gone off to the US for her masters program and taken me bowling to cheer me up, he knew how close we were. He teased me whenever he called and my voice was muffled because I had been crying from watching a movie but tried to pass it off as a regular cold. He admired me insistently and was always very attentive whenever we were together.

I had been watching these two men for some time now and my decision was made, good enough my project was rounding off and I had already accepted an offer at a different bank, that would sort out the issue of Dipo and I working together.

Dipo - the man who seemed to know me inside out, despite the tough exterior I put up at work, we worked in a cut throat investment banking environment, there were deadlines to be met and deliverables we had to enforce across our teams, with high maintenance investment bankers to please. He saw through all that, He knew when I was hurting even when I tried to hide it, he made a note of things I liked and his heart was huge; Raised by a single mom, he'd put his brother through university. He was kind and also driven, most importantly he feared God, Dipo couldn't hurt a fly. Boye hmmm you couldn't really fault Boye, he did all the right things but I noticed how he never really remembered anything special or important to me except those "official" good boyfriend type things you had to do to tick the boxes, how his eyes glazed over anytime I tried to discuss my work, how his phone calls only managed to last for not more than 2 mins, he didn't even remember I was going in for surgery and then pretended that he did, his work and his opinions always seemed more important than anything I had to say; I always got a sense that I never quite had his full attention, like the other day we went out to the Kemi's party, his eyes kept darting all over the place, scoping like a predator and I knew if I wasn't with him, it probably would have been a different story. He didn't know my story, all he knew was 'I fitted the bill' but Dipo, he knew my story, he knew the stuff that made me up. Boye had no real depth neither did I really matter enough to him, I was his audience whilst he wanted always to be my stage.

Yes the preacher had a point, if I can watch these two men and weigh in the balances their actions, surely the Lord must do the same.... after all didn't He say He looks at our hearts not the lip service that we may pay but the heart and the corresponding actions that demonstrate our hearts.... Paul said I will show you my faith by my works...Grandma was right, now I had found a man with a heart that matched and understood mine & I his...

The above story is fiction, my name is not Demilade and there are no two men called Dipo and Boye vying for my attention at the moment... but I wanted to get your attention. The only reality in it was that I did hear a preacher say 'Heaven is watching' and he challenged something in me and taught me a thing or two... which I hope to share in the next blog.

Some things I have learnt about prayer...

What do you do when things go horribly wrong or when there's a lot coming at you at d same time and you feel overwhelmed or you are just plain... dare I say it... scared?

Cover yourself in prayer... it seems pretty basic but you'd b amazed how many times the enemy talks us out of praying either by trying to make us feel guilty for getting scared or we just get plain lazy or are too busy worrying...

Friend get ye praying...
Get thee to a good old holy roller prayer meeting where there are brethren praying & you can be lifted up... A wonderful woman of God used to tell me 'Sister Lara as long as you can still sit, get yourself to a prayer meeting' and if there is something I learnt from this woman of God and her Pastor husband it was the power of prayer...

There seems to be a lot I'd like to share on prayer, so I'll post this message as a series...

There are several types of prayer and there are several ways you can feel when facing difficulty, my goal is to share scripture and truth on how we should address each situation...

I was reading 2 Chronicles 20 today, it's one chapter that I really like because it encourages me and because Jehoshaphat was so plain. "Brother Jeho" did not form, he was not a "former". Those not familiar with this Nigerian Urban English... to form means to pretend, to hide who you are, to give an impression other than what is. 

The bible says in verse 3 that 'And Jehoshaphat feared...'  However he did not just stop at being afraid, he went beyond himself, he went beyond fear (we can all get scared though we don't always have to but we can). The bible goes on to say that he 'set himself to seek the Lord'. Jehoshaphat ran to God, he humbled himself and prayed, he told God 'for we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us, nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You' verse 12b. Jehoshaphat knew he could not face the multitude on his own and he acknowledged that before God, he knew he was afraid and yep he ran to Daddy...

Neither did he let satan beat him down with the fear, he went to the only place where fear can be turned to faith...he went before God. The bible says in Proverbs 25 vs 26 that 'a righteous man who falters before the wicked, is like a murky spring and polluted well.'

Two things Jehoshaphat did: he did not retreat before the enemy and he sought the Lord where the fear was dealt with, God said 'do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you' 17b

There is a point where fear has to end and faith start, however you may not reach that point until you get on your knees before God in prayer like this... Father I am overwhelmed & afraid but O God is it not You Who created the heavens, the moon and all the stars, my eyes are on You, I am here before you waiting to see what You will do for me, I will wait on you, I will come here everyday and kneel before You and wait on You...

Next time lets talk about how to unlock that faith in the place of prayer.....

Are you HUNGRY??

This is for the hungry, the poor & the sober. If you are full, rich & laughing, then it's really not for you. See Luke 6 vs 20-26

When I listened to Leonard Ravenhill like I was telling my friend Mo I wept...fell on my knees before the Lord and wept, I didn't go to bed till about 2.00 a.m. that morning. It is as simple as that: I wept. Want to know one of the things that leave me speechless? This is it ...when a man speaks and I hear the very heart of God. I also said to Mo: he is very extreme - he seems to hate TV & what nots. Mo remembered a pamphlet he had written which she had back in our school days (sometime in the 80s probably), it had a picture of a man with his feet on a couch watching TV and written across the pamphlet was the phrase we wrestle NOT! ...get it? It means we do nothing ..the giant sleeps ..coasting through and it is still happening today.

We have designed our own agendas and set our own priorities, who are we lifting up? Is it Jesus? Or is it the by products of serving Jesus? "Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed." John 6:26-27

Jesus said "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men unto me" John 12:32

Leonard Ravenhill speaks truth ...what he is against: is us being distracted from Christ as our No. 1 priority, from spending time with God in the prayer closet knowing God and anything that will seperate us from the presence of God in-dwelling & moving within us. Jesus spoke a lot about priorities - see Luke 9 vs 57-62 and it's still the same Jesus, He has n't changed.

The Lord had asked us for one thing and one thing only on our prayer line, He had asked for our hearts and the same night He led me to the video below. Jesus is after your heart as well as mine. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength Mark 12:30

Leonard Ravenhill was a man who pointed us to Christ, to learn to pray and cultivate the presence of God so that our lifes can be changed. We can not change the world when HE hasn't changed us yet and we don't carry HIS presence. We can only change when we spend time before God like Moses. When Moses came out from being in the presence of God, the reflection of the Lord on him was so strong. Exodus 34:30 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord.

I like something Mr Ravenhill said: that you can not explain God to people because people have to experience Him. The interview is almost 2hr long so it's not the microwave type thing, this is baking ...real cooking. You know the kind of teaching like when Paul preached so long that Eutychus fell asleep ..see Acts 20 vs 7-12

All quotes except the Bible passages below are Leonard RavenHill's and they are life changing.

The question isn't were you challenged. The question is were you changed?" Isaiah 29:13 "Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men"

“My main ambition in life is to be on the devil’s most wanted list.” Acts 19:15 "And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”

•  Most Christians pray to be blest, few pray to be broken.
• There is a cost in discipleship-- God has no basement-bargain blessings.
• If Christ isn't worth everything you have, He isn't worth anything you have.
• You can’t develop character by reading books. You develop it from conflict.
• The law of spiritual progress goes like this: Process then crisis, followed by a process then crisis, ad infinitum.
• The Christian has every right to tell God he wants to be a saint, but the Christian has no right to tell God how to make him one.
• If a million people smiled on me while I knew God frowned on me, I would not be happy. But if God smiled on me while a million people frowned on me, I would not be unhappy.
• No man ever did, or ever will do God a favor - God does all the favors.
• God owed us nothing - He gave us everything pertaining to life and godliness in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

"You see, today we try to organize. We try to get a bunch of people together. God never did that. God takes individual men. He takes Moses to the backside of the desert. John the Baptist was in the wilderness until the day of his showing forth. Jesus, the Son of God who had left the Glory, spent thirty years in training to minister! John Baptist thirty years in training. The apostle Paul at least thirty years. Moses at least forty years; and we want to go to Bible School six months and come out like a super prophet! It’s the time factor that kills most of us. Tell me how much time you spend alone with God and I will tell you how spiritual you are."

I urge you to read the sermon on the website:  http://www.ravenhill.org/weeping1.htm and listen to the interview below.

    

Many pastors criticize me for taking the Gospel so seriously. But do they really think that on Judgment Day, Christ will chastise me, saying, 'Leonard, you took Me too seriously'? Leonard Ravenhill 1907-1994

Lord, teach me how to pray.

As I stood by my kitchen sink, I called out these words; almost immediately the Lord's prayer came to mind. Lets look at the principles the Lord Jesus taught within this simple prayer in context of our daily approach to prayer.

Matthew 6 vs. 5-14

"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Prayer should always be sincere, let it come from the heart, involving you and God, not to validate your righteousness before men. Don't use meaningless words and repetitions, understand that you are speaking to a God who is attentive and understands your need. Stand in the confidence that He hears you always. John 11 vs 41/42 ".......Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me......." Don't allow yourself to be robbed of that confidence that God hears you as soon as you speak.

"This, then, is how you should pray: " 'Our Father in heaven,
You are our father, my dad, my daddy, my papa, I am your responsibility.

hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
I honour Your name, Your will is done in heaven let it be done on earth, in my life, concerning this matter that I bring before You, let Your govt come, rule in this matter O God.

Give us today our daily bread.
Give me all that I need today O Lord

Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Father forgive all that is outstanding against me, where I have missed the mark and trespassed, as I have also released those that have trespassed against me. At this point we have to let go of every offence, we do not need to seek restitution. When you forgive a debtor, it means they no longer owe you, their account with you has been balanced:  there is nothing to pay

And lead us not into temptation,
Here we are praying into our future, we asking God to order our steps, to keep us from temptation.
We are admiting to God that we know we are susceptible to being tempted and ask for strength to stand without falling. In Luke 22 vs 31, the Lord exercised this principle by praying ahead for Peter that his faith should not fail him.

But deliver us from the evil one.
Deliver us God from the devil and his cohorts. We are praying against satan's work to subvert,  distract & devour us. We are enlisting God to strengthen and deliver us from all satan's plans against us..

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." The Lord teaches us further the principle of forgiveness, that to receive forgiveness, we have to forgive.

Cheers,
L