Month: July 2017

Now, not Later

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“I will hurry, without delay,
    to obey your commands.”
[Psalm 119:60]

Today’s post is one where I want us to look at this verse uttered by David the Psalmist, and pray for our hearts to have the same attitude to do God’s will NOW, rather than later ‘when we’re ready’.

Let’s talk…

You see I get it.
We have the freedom to live however we please.
We have the liberty to live life to the fullest and not be bound by any limitations.
We all want to do things at a time convenient for us, and when it fits into our timetable and works well for us.

All this is perfectly understandable!
But in the midst of our freedom, we have to remember who permits it…

We have to remember the One who enables us to live this life, so freely, so easily and so fully.
And in remembering that it’s God’s grace which allows us to go about our business, day in, day out, then we too must realise that we ought to honour Him, listen to Him, and yield when He instructs us to do things.

I guess we can point out two types of commands from God; there are those which we find in His word – right there in the scripture, either telling us to do this, or not to do that.
Then there are those commands which God plants into our spirit personally. These are instructions He gives us regarding how to act, move, and behave in our daily life.
These are the things He shares with us when we’re engaging in conversation with Him – often perceived by some of us as an urge to do something (sometimes totally different from what we’re used to).

So anyway, David says in this verse,
‘I will hurry, without delay… to do Your work, God’.
He’s basically saying, ‘I’ll do it immediately Father’.
He’s saying, ‘I’ll drop whatever my plans are, and get stuck in with Yours’.
He acknowledges that the will of God takes precedence over all else.

Anyone else agree that this is BOLD?
Like, really bold, and forward.

But friend, this is definitely something to emulate.

You see, David demonstrates that he understands that we are made for God’s glory – Isaiah 43:7.
He demonstrates an understanding of the fact that his life belongs to God – Psalm 100:3. And so in knowing that he is God’s, he realises that fulfilling God’s desires should come first.

Now I want us to look at the sense of urgency in this verse…

David says he will hurry, hasten, not delay…
This aspect of the verse is extremely important for us to pay attention to; the ability to not only say yes to God, but to also say, ‘I’ll get on it Right Away!’

I want us to dwell here a little, and be real with one another…
David sets the bar kinda high here, right?
I mean not only is he setting the example of obedience, but he also crosses into the timing factor – not wasting time, and not doing it when it suits him, but actually doing it diligently and in a timely manner – which essentially gives the obedience a greater sense of wholeness.

Can we pray to have this heart of obedience too?

I know immediately, you’ll probably think of all your life plans, and your personal schedule, and all the fun things you currently indulge in, and think to yourself – no thanks, I’m gonna give it time before I do what this post is saying.

But that’s exactly my point.
Many times, we have read things, heard sermons, watched videos pertaining to the things of God, and the commands and instructions of God, and even though we have felt a shaking in our spirits for us to make a change, we have resisted that change because in our opinion it just simply was not convenient.

That’s what I want us to break down today –
The attitude of not being ready, or rather, or not wanting to be ready to live by God’s word when we receive it –
And we’ll do it with a few prayers…

(With regards to the commands in the word of God):
Father help me to not spend a day longer pleasing my flesh and engaging in sinful ways which Your word has commanded me not to indulge in.
Help me to do the things You have instructed, such as sharing love, peace, joy, and bearing with those around me.
Help me to look at the things within me that are contrary to what Your word says, and rather than wait till later to deal with them, give me the courage and the respect for the authority Your word carries, to deal with them NOW.

(With regards to personal instructions from God):
Father help me to act on the things You place in my spirit, immediately.
Let me not deprive the manifestation of Your word or Your will with the stubbornness of my heart, but rather let me move according to when You say so.
Every inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Father I pray that I will not ignore it, or brush it aside, but rather I will acknowledge, honour, and fulfil the assignment, by Your grace and strength.

(In general about this topic):
Father rid me of any spirit that is lazy when it comes to doing Your work.
Take away every wrong desire to dwell longer doing things of the flesh ‘until I’m ready to change’, and place in me a burning fire that will long to do the things which please You, Right Now, and always.

All this we pray, in Jesus’ name,
Amen.

If we’re being fair, we’ll be able to admit that God doesn’t constantly demand different things from us each day, nor does He wake us up each morning with a long list of Dos and Donts.
In fact, His most important instructions to us as followers of Christ are to Love Him and Love one another.
Subsequent instructions, therefore, are simply a guide for us to know how best to get these two Great commandments right, so friend, I pray that we will listen, trust and obey God’s word when it comes, and very importantly, I Pray we will do so, on-time, in God’s time, to honour and reverence Him.

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you.

Schedule Him In

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This is somewhat a PFP, but soon I feel I’ll need to announce that less, because I can feel God transforming the tone of this platform.

That out of the way let’s talk…

If you’re someone who already actively makes time for God, and spends time with Him consistently, then well done, but still, keep reading.
There is something in here that God has for someone you know, and it is your responsibility to share it with them.
So make sure once you’ve read it, and God shows you exactly what you need to show them, you share it with them.

Now getting into the post…

Today I led a short bible study titled ‘Using your free time wisely: Getting closer to God’.

Now while the emphasis is not necessarily on the fact that it’s only in our ‘free time’ that we should attempt to grow in God, the point here is simply Making Time for God.
So truthfully, for many people who may not already actively spend enough time with Him, yes, it may start out that you find you only want to fit ‘God stuff’ in when you’re less busy – but I am sure that once you begin studying Him more, and growing in Him, you’ll understand that He deserves much more than just your left-over hours of the day.

Now let’s look at something – many of us will proudly and openly say that we love God. This is great.
However moving on to knowing God, it’s likely that fewer of us are able to claim this so boldly.

So I asked during bible study today, ‘How can you love a God you don’t know?’

I mean it’s already one thing that we don’t see Him, but then to not really know much about Him either – how is it possible to love Him?

Well here’s what we raised in our session – yes, we can still love our God without knowing Him properly.
How?

Well, it’s because we know of Him, we hear of the things He does, we are cultured and steered by peers and parents to believe in Him, we ourselves are direct beneficiaries of His kindness and mercy and grace and so much more, and most simply, because we are recipients of His love. The bible tells us that we are able to love Him, because He first loved us – (1 John 4:19). All these things enable us to love God, or rather, have love for God, despite not necessarily knowing Him.

So here’s the thing, knowing of God, is not knowing Him. Knowing of Him is not understanding Him, ‘getting’ Him, relating with Him, knowing where He’s coming from.

Friend, knowing of God is therefore probably good enough to love Him superficially but it’s hard for it to go any further than that.
And the thing is, I’m sure you desire more.
I’m sure you desire to worship God in spirit and in truth, and honour Him with your life, and Love Him with all your heart as the bible says in Matthew 22:37.
I’m sure you yearn to love Him deeper and grow in Him more than ever before.

Which is why we need to make time for God.
And in making time for God we’re studying His word, we’re opening our hearts and ears to Him, and we’re drawing closer and closer, day by day.
In drawing closer to Him, we’re learning more about Him, about His mind, about what pleases and displeases Him, and essentially we are walking and living in a way that exudes a true deep Love and Reverence for God the Father…

Now I like practicality, so I’ll share a few ways how we can begin to spend more time with God, and doing the things of God.

Remembering that this is a PFP, please understand that these ideas are simply suggestions of resources, as well as people/ministers whose teachings have personally agreed with my spirit and have benefitted my walk with God.
There are also some suggestions included below that were raised by other individuals at the bible study today.
I want you to note that this list isn’t exhaustive, nor a guide to being the perfect Christian (if that exists at all), but rather it provides (hopefully) relatable and realistic ways for you to take an active step forward in Getting Closer to your God.

Before anything on the list –
The first step is to make time for God!
Whether you start by dedicating five minutes of your lunch break everyday, or by deciding to get up thirty minutes earlier each day – decide a realistic (but worthwhile) period you want to set aside for God, set it aside, spend that time with Him and just see how it goes.

Now here you are, different things you can begin to incorporate into your life, to get closer to God:

Watch videos of teachings, preachings, sermons, topics, bible discussions and so on.
Swap that music video, or reality TV show for a word of God – initially you won’t really want to do it, but just click on it (the God vid), and you’ll see how your day becomes transformed by the presence of God.
Examples: I follow One Church LA on YouTube and enjoy teachings by Pastor Toure Roberts and Sarah Jakes Roberts.
Also on YouTube, Ify Alexis has a range of messages/sermons, as well as a young women’s ministry called Love Limitless.
Whether it’s Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat – seek that Christian video/word and click it instead of skipping past it.

Read the bible – Joshua 1:8.
Now this is one of the most obvious ones, but possibly the hardest to know how to do.
A suggestion I have is to select a book in the bible, skim through to see how many chapters there are, and then create a reading plan for yourself with an aim of when you would like to read it all by e.g. one week, a few weeks, a month.
Tip: Always ensure to pray before reading – for God to give you understanding of His word and ability to apply it to life where appropriate.
If you don’t have a physical book bible, it’s easy to download any available bible app on to your phone, or access one online – I often use BibleGateway for my online bible, easy to navigate.

Use The Bible App.
There are many reading plans on this App that encourage a structure to read the bible.
Look through and pick one/some that suit you, and begin them. Once you’re done, choose another, or you may at this point want to do the above, and create your own reading schedule of a particular book in the bible.
I’ve enjoyed many of the plans written by Joyce Meyer.

Read articles on Christian blogs/platforms from people of relatable backgrounds.
This could be someone at a similar stage of life to you e.g. student-student, or someone at the stage you’re aspiring to reach next e.g. single-married; whatever you find resonates well with you for whatever topic/topics you’re seeking to learn about.
Examples: Hopefully this platform (Untainted Word) plays a helpful part in being one of the platforms you can come to, and learn.
Love Limitless as mentioned above.
My friends have also enjoyed and shared with me words from desiringgod.org.

Read devotionals.
These are words (and in some cases prayers too) that encourage you for the day, and also give a few scriptures for you to read as well.
Examples: UCB’s Word for Today was suggested at bible study today.
But you can also type in ‘devotionals’ into Google, and see what it brings you.
The Bible App above also has many of these.

Pray.
This is another obvious one and a very very important one but sometimes a difficult one when it isn’t a common practice. A suggestion raised today was to set a timer and don’t stop praying until it rings. You may only set it for 2 minutes initially, but just start with something, and gradually increase the time.
What to say when you pray? Friend, I’m not telling you what to say, I’ll just remind you that God is YOUR Father, you are HIS child, therefore be free with Him and just have an open and honest conversation with Him, and hey, don’t forget to listen back for Him speaking too.

‘Alone-time’ with God; Dates with God.
This could be dinner for two – where the other party is God, or a walk in the park, or a sit-down in the coffee shop – dedicate moments of pure ‘alone-time’, listening-time, with God.
You’ll be surprised how much He’s been waiting to share with you – He just needs you to give Him those moments.

Now go ahead and choose a couple…
I encourage each of us to select Prayer by default – as we know that this is key, and the bible does say to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17), so let’s try not to go another day without a prayer, from today onwards.
From the rest of this list, I hope there’ll be at least one or two more things that you’ll be willing to try out – starting today!!

I want to end by saying this…
Having shared so many different suggestions, and opened you up to many different platforms being led by other people in the Christian faith, it is important that we always always always seek out the truth. I’m not saying question everything you read or hear, but simply pray beforehand that God will direct you to resources that will teach sound doctrine, and enrich your spirit in the way He desires for it to be!

I hope you’re excited for a new walk and a new level of Loving and Knowing God!

(Please please feel free to talk to me – let me know how this goes, how you find some of these resources and share with the rest of us some other things that maybe work well for you.)

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing,
God Bless you.

 

*Disclaimer: (and I chuckle as I write this, but it’s important that I do) I haven’t been paid to ‘advertise’ any of these ministries/platforms/websites/resources. These are genuine suggestions from myself of resources that I personally use and feel benefit my walk with God.*

Through Christ…

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Overwhelmed?

Just think for a second…

Are you leaning on your own understanding?

Are you relying on your own strength?

Are you trying to do everything all by yourself?

Sometimes when we get stuck and overwhelmed, and feel like we’re literally over-stretched with responsibilities and tasks to fulfil, we ought to stop and ask ourselves; by which strength are we trying to do it all?

Yes, friend, this is the best time to reassess the way we’re functioning and really ask ourselves;

Are we resting on our own power, or on God’s?
Are we depending on our own human strength, knowledge and wisdom, or are we giving everything up to God and saying ‘I surrender my plans, tasks, responsibilities to You, work through me!’?

I don’t know why we do it, but many of us have made Jesus a mere spectator in our lives as we run our race, rather than our personal Coach!

And we’ve got to realise this – if we only give Jesus front-row tickets to watch us ‘do our thing’, then He’ll get the message, and understand that we don’t want His input.
Yes, He may be close enough for us to hear Him, but as He knows that we invited Him to watch us do it our own way, He will simply assume the position and just watch.

As our Coach, however, Jesus is our strength and encouragement every step of the way! Front-row seats or not, we will have a sensitivity to His voice to hear Him whenever He speaks to guide us on the journey.
The fact that we work closely with Him daily, and have decided to trust in Him and trust in His direction, means we will be able to take on board every tip, skill, and instruction that He offers in order to ensure that we run well!

So with that being said, ask yourself;

Have I told Jesus to Watch me or Direct me?

If you realise that He’s simply watching from the sidelines, despite His love and desire to lead you aright, then it’s time to seek forgiveness and mercy, and ask Jesus to take the lead and have His way.

The Bible says that we should acknowledge the Lord in all our ways, and He will direct our paths. (Proverbs 3:6)

Therefore rather than struggling to juggle everything, and barely making it work, why not place Jesus at the centre of it all, and allow Him to direct your path, just as the word says?
Trust me, even if it seems like a lot to the human eye, when you are doing it ‘Through Christ‘, you’ll see that you are more than capable of fulfilling it all, and then some.

So friend, please allow Jesus to take the appropriate role in your life.

 

I hope this blesses your Wednesday evening, and I also take this opportunity to apologise for the lack of posts in the past three weeks!

I myself had to knuckle down during university exam time, but we’re back now, and God willing back with better time management and organisation skills, as Jesus is the one steering!

I pray the rest of your week is saturated with favour, strength and grace, in Jesus’ name. Amen!

Keep the Faith, Don’t Stop Believing
God Bless you.