GOD MOMENTS

Our fallen sinful nature naturally focuses on the negative side of things effortlessly. This creates an imbalance in our perspective. If I told you to write down ten negative things about you, it most likely won’t take you more than 5 minutes to come up with ten. But if I told you to list 5 great things about you, you’d probably need an hour to do that - depending on your personality type.

Balance is key in life. There are always two sides to a coin, balance means acknowledging both.

To have a more balanced view of your life, I want to challenge you to start keeping a success journal. Spend a couple of minutes everyday journaling the things you could celebrate that day. Did you have a “God moment”? Something that happened and you knew it had to be God? Never let such moments pass by unnoticed. Relive them over and over again. One way of doing this is writing them down. Write down your daily successes no matter how little or trivial they seem to you. Some day, the things you wrote will be your anti depressant!

The God who came through for you in the past or for someone you know, heard or read about, is the same yesterday today and forever.

"I the LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed (Mal 3:6 NIV)

“God moments” are golden moments, relive them by journaling them!

Shalom!

With Warmth
Angela

FATHER FILTERED!

Have you listened to the news lately? It seems to be all gloom and doom! Is the world truly experiencing an economic crisis? Of course yes! God’s word tells us these things will surely happen as a sign that we are in the end times.

This knows also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away (2 Tim 3:1-5 (KJV)

Two things that are going to be an integral part of the last days are - difficult times (2 Timothy 3:1) and scoffers (2 Peter 3:3). In times of difficulties, people lose heart, are easily angered, depressed and fearful. But this should not be so for us believers because our heavenly Fathered already told us these things would happen.

We live in a dispensation like none other before us. Our generation is a fulfillment of Daniel 12:4. Today, more knowledge abounds on this planet than ever before. The availability of information is one of God’s provisions for our safety. To be lazy about studying and researching information will be a very costly choice.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children (Hosea 4:6 KJV)

Whether your need is spiritual, physical, financial, emotional, e.t.c. take time out to research and study, tap into the wisdom that God has bestowed on others. Use the library and internet facilities at your disposal. You can’t afford in this time and age to stay ignorant. This season calls for asking and diligently seeking wisdom.

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding (Prov 4:7 (KJV)

Another thing we can’t afford to do if we are going to stay strong through these trying times, is maintain the same word level. We need to grow in the word and get it in and out of us more than ever before. Into us when we read and listen to God’s word, and out of us when we speak and apply those words in our daily activities.

No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity. God is faithful and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape, so that you are able to bear it (1 Cor 10:13 (HCSB)

When you’ve done all be strong and of good courage. Trying times will come, but you’ve got God’s word on it that it will never be more than you can bear.

Your trials are Father filtered so be not discouraged or overwhelmed!

Shalom!

With Love

Angela

THE DAY OF ATONEMENT

Beginning from the evening of the 9th to the evening of the 10th of October is the most Holy day of the year in the Jewish Calendar and rightfully so because it is the Day of Atonement. This is the one and only day in the year that the high priest enters the Most Holy place to present the atonement sacrifice both for himself and the whole nation of Israel.

The LORD said to Moses, “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present an offering made to the LORD by fire. Do no work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the LORD your God. Anyone who does not deny himself on that day must be cut off from his people. I will destroy from among his people anyone who does any work on that day. You shall do no work at all. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live. It is a sabbath of rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your sabbath." (Lev 23:26-32 NIV)

How does this affect us? Under the old covenant, the high priest had to do all that the Lord commanded in Leviticus 26 to make atonement once a year for all the sins of the Israelites. This had to go on year after year because the blood of animals could not take away our sins. This ritual could only make them outwardly clean (Hebrews 9:13). To be clean from the inside out, a more superior sacrifice had to be offered and that not in a man- made tabernacle, but in the real tabernacle in heaven, one not made by human hands. This is where Jesus our Kinsman redeemer comes in (Hebrews 9:11-15).

Let’s go back to the resurrection morning as recorded in the book of John – Early that morning; Mary went to the tomb, found it empty. She ran to the other disciples to report the situation. They followed her back, checked out her story found it was true, startled but went back home. Mary stayed behind, decided to take one more peak into the tomb and behold she saw the likeness of the mercy seat!

You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold; two and a half cubits shall be its length and a cubit and a half its width. And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work you shall make them at the two ends of the mercy seat. Make one cherub at one end, and the other cherub at the other end; you shall make the cherubim at the two ends of it of one piece with the mercy seat (Ex 25:17-19 NKJV)

She saw two angels in white seated at where Jesus (our atonement sacrifice) had been, one at one end and the other at the other end! (John 20:10-12). The Angles ask mary why are you weeping? She told them she was crying because someone had removed Jesus’ body. At that Jesus showed up but Mary did not recognize Him thinking He was the gardener! Now pause for a minute and think about it? Mary was one of Jesus’ closest friends, how could she not have recognized Him and mistake Him for a gardener? Then Jesus calls her name in way only He used to and immediately she knew who He was. Mary reaches out to touch him and He instructs her not to hold on to Him because He has not yet ascended to His Father? Now what’s up with that?

The answer to all this is hidden in the book of Leviticus 26. The high priest on the Day of Atonement did not wear his regular garment; he wore special clothing (Leviticus 16:3-4, 23-24) (which according to history was similar to what gardeners wore in those days). Jesus being our high priest was dressed like God commanded the high priest to be on the Day of Atonement. Mary of course had never seen Jesus in such an outfit (especially with a turban on His head), and not expecting to see a high priest by the tomb mistook Jesus for a gardener. Jesus was on His way to the Father, to fulfill the Day of Atonement and told Mary not to hold on to Him.

Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?" "They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him." At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. "Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?" Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him." Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher). Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" (John 20:10-17 NIV)

Have you ever wondered why prior to Jesus, no man had ever made it into heaven? When Jesus died, the bible records that the tombs broke open and the bodies of many patriarchs were raised to life.

At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people (Matt 27:51-53 NIV)

I want you to use your imagination right now, at Jesus’ resurrection, the likes of Moses (he finally got to step into the Promised Land!), Abraham, David, Samuel, Elisha, Samson, Jacob, Isaac, Joseph e.t.c got to take a stroll around the promise land and introduced themselves to some people! Awesome! Wao! What a day that was! But they couldn’t go up with Jesus just yet. Why was that so? Again Leviticus 26 has the answer – No man was allowed to be in the tent of meeting when the high priest went into the Most Holy Place. Jesus had to go it alone. But after He returned from appearing for us in God’s presence, He opened the gates into heaven!

It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence. Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him (Heb 9:23-28 NIV)

I have told you all these to show you how the Old Testament is in the New Testament revealed and the New is in the Old Testament concealed. Our God is indeed an awesome God! The Day of Atonement should rightly be the Most Holy day of the year, because it marks the day that we as believers gained our independence from Satan. It marks the day God ‘signed the treaty’ with Jesus that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). It marks the day our obligation to Satan and our sinful nature was terminated.

Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation--but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God (Romans 8:12-14 NIV)

I want to encourage you to wait upon the Lord on this Day of Atonement. Let it indeed be a holy day unto you; make out time to linger in God’s presence on this day. This was the Day about two thousand years ago, that God received the payment for our sins, past present and future. I believe it was Adam’s happiest day, for finally the acceptable price was paid and his seed can now be fully reconciled to God. What a glorious event! Make it a special day!

Shalom!

With Warmth

Angela

HOW TO FIGHT DEPRESSION AND CONQUER

Have you ever read the book of Ruth? You will need it to gain the most from this week’s topic.

The book of Ruth starts off with the story of Naomi and her family emigrating from Judah to Maob as a result of the famine in the land. Within about ten years her husband and two sons died. I don’t know of any woman in Naomi’s shoes that will not be plunged into at least a season of depression. If Naomi was from some parts of Africa, some members of her community may accuse her of being a witch because of the death of her husband and sons. If she was a member of the 21st century church, she may have been accused by some of living in sin hence the judgment of God upon her life.

Naomi was so grieved; she changed her name from ‘pleasant’ to ‘bitterness’ – Naomi to Marah. Think for a moment on what may have run through her mind as she mourned for her sons. Perhaps when her husband died, she was able to handle it because she had two sons who comforted her. But for those two sons to follow after their dad within a short period of time was indeed a very devastating experience for her. She concluded that God was against her. She was understandably depressed.

So the two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. And when they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them. And the women said, "Is this Naomi?" She said to them, "Do not call me Naomi] call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi, when the Lord has testified against me and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?" (Ruth 1:19-21 ESV)

When Naomi and her family left for Moab, they probably thought they were doing the right thing. To move away from a land of famine to that of plenty sound like a smart move to me. But followed by a terrible disaster, it is possible Naomi questioned whether or not the move was the perfect will of God for them as a family.

You may have suffered loss as a result of a decision you made that seemed right or smart at the time, and now you’re wondering if you heard God correctly. God never promised that being at the centre of His will is pain free or disaster proof. He did however promise that He works everything together for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). I like the word everything because it includes our mistakes and foolishness. Our God is the only one that can take our messes and create something outstandingly beautiful from them.

In Naomi’s case, she lost two sons but gained two daughters. However she was so focused on her loss that she failed to see or appreciate her gain. She like most women may have wished she had a daughter at some point, but it did not happen until God gave her daughters in –law who treated her like their own mother. Ruth was so bonded to Naomi that even the community regarded her as been worth more than seven sons.

But Boaz answered her, "All that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told to me, and how you left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did not know before. The Lord repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge!" (Ruth 2:11-12 ESV)

Then the women said to Naomi, "Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him." (Ruth 4:14-15 ESV)

Are you so focused on what you don’t have anymore that you can’t see or rejoice in what you now have? Are you so focused on the weeds in your garden that you can’t see how well your wheat is doing? This, my friend is a root cause of depression – an unbalanced perspective of our situation.

To fight depression and conquer it, learn to count your blessings during your midnight hour. There are always two sides to every situation; a balanced view of any experience brings stability. Depression cannot thrive were there is emotional stability, so I encourage you to take another look at where you are, God surely has placed treasures within and around you. Can you see them yet?
When you do, send me an email, I’d like to share in your joy!!

Shalom!!

With Warmth
Angela

THE MINISTRY OF THE MIRROR

Pastor Tristan Harvey of CHCC during his sermon today mentioned something about the mirror that triggered off the train of thoughts that I’m about to share with you.

I don’t know when the modern day dressing mirror was invented or who invented it, but I do know it has become an integral part of every home especially to us ladies. We not only have them in our homes, but we carry them with us in our bags or purses. I don’t know how many people (especially ladies) will go a whole day without taking a look at themselves in the mirror at least once.

Why do we go to the mirror? Basically to check out how we look. If we don’t like what we see, we try to do something about it. Time spent before a mirror varies from person to person, but regardless of who you are, we all go to the mirror to get some kind of feedback. Some people’s day may be marred or made based on the feedback they get from the mirror. As a matter of fact some people’s entire lives are marred based on what they see in the mirror. For some, they get mad at their mirror because it does not reflect back to them what they want to see (poor mirror!). A dressing mirror is what it is, it does not lie. It faithfully carries out its ministry whenever we come to it.

The ministry of the dressing mirror reminds me of the ministry of the word of God. While our dressing mirror can only reflect that which is external, and temporal, the word of God reflects the internal and eternal issues. The word of God as contained in the bible is the ‘authentic mirror’ for our lives. If we dare to look into this mirror as often as we look into our dressing mirror, and walk away, correcting whatever flaws in our lives are reflected back to us, we will be happier, with more fulfilling and rewarding lives.

Do you want to raise your self esteem? Do you long for more happiness and fulfillment? Your desire is within your reach! Count how many times a day you look into a dressing mirror, then set yourself a challenge of looking into the word of God (the authentic mirror) that number of times daily. Walk away applying whatever was reflected back to you as you stayed in the word. Do this for a hundred and twenty days; you will be amazed at the transformation that will take place.

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does (James 1:22-25 NKJV)

Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you (John 15:4-7 NKJV)

Staying in the word long enough for the word to stay in you is top on every saint’s secret to a successful and fulfilling life!!

If you get the ‘authentic mirror’ (the word of God – your bible) to become a more integral part of your life than your dressing mirror, you will be well on your way to the life you’ve always dreamed off!

Have a blessed week!

With Warmth
Angela

HOW TO SUPPORT THE VISION OF THE HOUSE PART 3

AIM FOR PERFECTION

Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you (2 Cor 13:11 NIV)

Depending on your personality type, the word perfection will either sound exciting or annoying to you. Regardless of our feeling about this word, God’s word does instruct us to aim for perfection in every area of our life. Remember He is a perfect God and created us in His image and likeness. God predestined us to be like His Son who became flesh and blood and lived in our world yet was perfect in all His ways.

For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren (Romans 8:29 NKJV)

Perfection is not something that will come naturally to us because we bear a sinful nature and live in a fallen world but it should be something we aim for in all we do. One way to go about this is to raise our personal standards. Standards refer to the behavior we choose to hold ourselves to e.g honesty, diligence and self control. No one will sustain a rapid personal or professional growth unless they continually raise their standards.

Whatever responsibility we are given, be it at home, work or church, let’s aim at doing it perfect the first time. This could mean learning to ask for help when needed, giving feedback to your team and leaders and be diligent.

Part of aiming for perfection is learning to bridle our tongue (James 1:26). Learn to refrain your tongue from evil (1Peter 3:10). The tongue is one organ in the body that can inflict wounds that may take a life time to heal. It can also impart blessings that several generations may not outlive. Let’s use our tongue for the latter rather than former – BUILD PEOPLE UP, NOT TEAR THEM DOWN. Aim at raising your standard to where no unwholesome talk is allowed out of your mouth.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you (Eph 4:29-32 NIV)

Also keep your speech free of exaggerations. Think before you speak, so you don’t find yourself needing to pad your stories to make them look attractive or credible. Most of all heed James counsel - be slow to speak and quick to listen (James 1:19)

To all laborers in the US, do not be weary in well doing for in due season you will be amply rewarded! HAPPY LABOR’S DAY!!!

Have a blessed week!

With Warmth

Angela.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE VISION OF THE HOUSE (PART 2)

BECOME A RESOURCE
The bible calls us salt and light of the earth (Matt 5:13-14), implying that we are saved to be a resource wherever God places us. The first step to becoming a resource to our local church or place of assignment is to embrace personal development.

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth (2 Tim 2:15 KJV)

The principle here is that you cannot give what you don’t have. In whatever area you feel called to serve, be diligent in developing yourself in those areas. Gain more skills. Don’t wait till you are appointed to start training, start now. Preparation precedes performance. Your rewards in life come from the solutions you provide to the needs around you. Your recognition in life is also tied to the solutions you proffer. Employers pay you based on the value of solution they perceive you bring to the organization. The more of a resource you become, the more your worth increases.

Every organization exists to solve a perceived problem, the more of a solution you are, the less of a burden on the house. The risk of being a ‘burden’ rather than an ‘answer’ to a problem is that you stand to be made redundant, trodden upon or eliminated because that’s what people do to problems so they can get ahead with their lives.

The quickest way to be obsolete and become a problem rather than an answer, is to stop growing in your knowledge and understanding of who you are and what you do. I’ve heard it said that when people stop growing they start dying. To avoid this, seek out growth areas in your life and skills and do something about them, also review your strengths from time to time to see how you can develop them further.

BE EQUIPPED TO TAKE OUT ‘SPECKS’ IN PEOPLE’S EYES
Last week I wrote about being prepared to be part of a team, it is very easy however to spot the ‘speck’ in your teammates eyes. To be well equipped to help them get rid of the ‘speck’, Jesus says we should first remove the log in our eyes (Matt 7:5). It is important to note that both the speck and the log will hinder the team’s performance; therefore to do nothing should not be an option. But when we first deal with the ‘log’ in our eyes, we receive the grace to be able to help others with their ‘speck’ (‘logs’ and ‘specks’ here refer to our personal limitations or struggles).We are tender in our approach and more patient with others once we’ve dealt with our ‘logs’.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God (2 Cor 1:3-4 (NIV)

We will truly be a support to the vision of the church God has planted us if we embrace personal development and deal with our personal issues.

To be continued!

Have a real blessed week!!

With Warmth

Angela