Making Jesus the center of this season

Do not neglect to pray and celebrate Jesus, the Messiah this season amidst all that is happening around you. Although everything seem to be moving at the speed of light, zero in your focus on “Immanuel”- God with US. It is God that is in us, that allows us to do the things that we need to do. When Jesus came to earth, he came to seek and save those who were lost. He came to give life and life more abundantly and to the fullest.

This is the season we celebrate not only the birth of Jesus Christ but his gift of salvation. It was prophesied in Isaiah 7:14, “Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: Behold, the young woman who is unmarried and a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel [God with us].” The world has made a mess of Christmas. They have taken the Christ out of it and it has now become Xmas or Happy Holidays. The question is not what the world is doing with Jesus but what are we doing with the perfect gift that we have received at this time. Will you and I allow him to be Lord of all, so the world will truly know who he is and choose to worship him? The angel of the Lord appeared to both Mary and Joseph at separate times and announced that the son Mary will give birth to, would be called Jesus. There is great significance in the name of Jesus. We cannot past the elementary stage of our Christian experience without acknowledging him as Lord. The very foundation of our faith sets firm on Christ the solid rock.

 Luke 1:31-33    

31. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.

 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

 It seems like the world has a huge problem with the name Jesus. You might get away by mentioning God but never mention Jesus. No one wants to hear that name. The same authority that Jesus entered this world with, is in the same authority he reigns today. The world’s neglect of Christ does not diminish his power in anyway. The events that are happening around the world does not diminish the authority of Christ in anyway. He is Lord and he continues to be Lord. He reigns over all, and of his Kingdom there is no end. Jesus is alive and well, he still sits upon the throne of David as Ruler and King.

There is power in the name of Jesus. “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11).” Jesus has the highest name, above every name.

 Some Takeaways for this season

Take the liberty and use the name of Jesus declaring what his word says, believing that he has already done everything that he needed to do to get you where you need to go.

Take the name of Jesus with you wherever you go and in all that you do. He is your ever present help (Josh. 1:9, Psalm 46:1).

 Take time to attend and mediate on the word of God, finding out more about his amazing grace, truth and promises designed to enrich and fulfill your life (Prov 4:20 -22).

 Take the time to be a blessing to someone this season. Give the gift of love and kindness to someone who needs it. Be a blessing on purpose.

 Take the time to celebrate in a whole different way, because Immanuel is not just a baby who became a figure of great historical significance but He has become your Lord and savior, Jesus, the One who die to save the world from their sins.

We are praying that this will be the best season you have ever had. Why not declare it.

 Be blessed.

 Advancing the Kingdom of God in the earth!

How many of us can appreciate having an uncomfortable situation that we just have to trust God to solve or bring us out? Our weakness

This is not a comfortable position to be in, I hate those “don’t know” or “why is this happening” moments. My nature is of such that I always, at all times want to know how to handle a situation or problem when it confronts me. 11 Corinthians 12:7 talks about a thorn given to Paul in the flesh to buffet him, less he should become conceited. This thorn was placed in his flesh, a messenger of Satan, to buffet him. Paul pleaded with God three times to take it away from him but instead, God’s response to Paul’s dilemma was, my grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor. 12:7-9).

Does God take pleasure in our demise or distress? His strength is perfect

After God’s response, Paul took a different posture, instead of becoming depressed, angry and frustrated, he boasted all the more about his weaknesses so that the power of Christ may rest upon him. Thus, Paul said, “For Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” This was a wake up moment for Paul, because when he realized that God was not going to change the situation, he knew at that point he needed to totally depend on God to sustain him in times of weakness. The point here, is not God’s desire to allow unpleasant things to happen to us, but more so our response to the situation. God will never do anything to destroy us, Paul could obviously still have a good quality life with the thorn in his flesh and so will we. Some things might not change like we want it but rest assure that God will never put us in a compromising position where we constantly fail. Our moment of weakness, becomes God’s opportunity to perfect his strength in us.

How can these things be applied in everyday matters?

Do you feel weak and powerless, as if you are going under, then call upon Jesus, his grace is sufficient for you. Your weakness is not a signal of hopelessness, because Christ dwells in you. He is the hope of glory, therefore, you are full of hope, even when it seems hopeless. His strength is made perfect in your weakness. Whatever your weaknesses turn out to be, it is important to understand that the same grace that saved you, is the same grace that is well able to sustain you, heal you, deliver you, and direct you.

Therefore like Paul, glory in your weaknesses, so that the power of Christ will be made perfect in your weakness. For when you are weak, then He is strong.

As you go through this week just remember to pray with “God confidence” focusing on His strength and not on your weaknesses.

Advancing the Kingdom of God in the earth!

Jesus wants to empower His church to do amazing things in the world today

The power of prayer creates amazing results when we take the focus off of the physical things and situations and place it on Him and His mission. Let us call upon Jesus today to reveal and make Himself known to us and everyone who do not know Him around the world.

Every nation, people and language will be impacted and radically changed with the gospel of Jesus Christ when we pray and seek God, with fervency and diligence. We are the army of the Lord and our agenda is to advance the kingdom of God in every nation and sector of life. We can start right where we are. You and I can start a godly revolution with the Holy Spirit right on our knees TODAY! “So too the Holy Spirit comes to our aid and bears us up in our weakness; for we do not know what prayer to offer nor how to offer it worthily as we ought, but the Spirit Himself goes to meet our supplication and pleads in our behalf with unspeakable yearnings and groanings too deep for utterance Romans 8: 26.” You and the Holy Spirit are a great team.

I pray that our hearts will be stirred this week to go beyond ourselves and allow the Holy Spirit to pray through us. “Pray in the Spirit at all times with all kinds of prayers, asking for everything you need. To do this you must always be ready and never give up. Always pray for all God’s people Eph. 6:18.”

Be blessed.

Advancing the Kingdom of God in the earth!

Victory

I know many of you are aware of songs that declare our victory in Christ. We sing it lustily and become very excited about walking in that victory. What is sad for many of us, is that we do not experience this victory in our daily lives and so prayer is monotonous and our efforts to reach God is an idea of someone else’s experience and not our own. How about praising with all your heart today, knowing that this is not just a wonderful song I sing, or the words on a page I read, but a reality in my life. Our first recognition and grounds for victory declaration, is that the Victor lives in me.

 The word assures the believers of victory

John puts it simple, greater is the One (the Victor), who is in you than the one (defeated foe) who is in world (1 John 4:4b). In all these things, we are more than conquerors through Christ who loves us (Romans 8:37).

Thanks be to God who always causes us to triumph in Christ (2 Cor. 2:14). I can do all things, Paul declares, through Christ who gives me strength (Phil. 4:13). Take the time to educate yourself on the word of God, so when you pray, you know what the word says and you declare what God has already predestined to happen. The word of God is forever settled in heaven, it’s a done deal, sealed in blood. The knowledge of the word removes ignorance about what God wants. When you pray his word you pray his will, because He honors his word above His name.

 Stop begging and start declaring

 The Lord has spoken to me so emphatically one Sunday as I was worshiping in Church. The song was “Halleluiah You have won the victory”. He has already won the victory and when we pray, we need not beg Jesus to do, what he has already done. Our part is to start declaring His promises and blessings. What was evident to me, was that much of my prayer whether, I was praying for myself, family, other people, nations or other things; I was begging Jesus to do what He has already done, instead of declaring his promises and finished works over the situation. So it was clear to me, to stop “BEGGING and start DECLARING”. Much of our prayers could be filled with more thankfulness and declarations.

Now do not get confused with asking God to do something, this is different, although it seems like it is the same, there is a difference. Jesus said ask and it will be given, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be open (Matt. 7:7). Thus asking is requesting Him to do something on our or someone else’ behalf. I don’t mean to start a theological discussion on whether begging or asking God is right or wrong, but when you consider yourself, would you prefer someone begging you or simple asking you, and once it is in your power or reach, you will respond accordingly. The point behind begging is pleading with God hoping he hears and answers.

 We must believe that, “Before we call, he answers; while we are still speaking he hears”, the answer is guaranteed before we even ask, because it is already there. We can approach God with confidence and therefore ask anything believing he hears us and if we know that he hears us, then we have the petitions we have prayed for (1 John 5:14-16). Jesus said, “When you pray believe that you receive it and it will be yours” (Mark 11:24).

 Don’t assume that when you have cried long enough, or begged long enough, God is moved; he is moved by faith. This is evident in every miracle account of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Believing starts with knowing what the Bible says and consciously believing it.

 Pointers to follow:

 Consult the word like you would a professional for expert advice

Just as you would consult a lawyer for legal advice, a doctor for medical advice, an accountant for financial advice. It is important to consult God and His word for spiritual advice. It is vital not just to read the Bible but know the Bible. It is of paramount importance that we know the word and allow it to dwell richly in us with all wisdom. It is of great importance that we know what the Word says concerning the circumstance before we pray. If we don’t know what the word says about healing, deliverance, finances and other things, we would feel like we need to beg God, to answer our petition.

 Be thankful and grateful

Take time out daily to tell Jesus how much you appreciate him. Tell Lord how amazing and awesome he is. Express your gratitude to him for his amazing grace and His abounding love toward you. Make his praise glorious, flowing out of your lips. Let your mornings be filled with praise and adoration to God, the One who sits on the throne. You can only but imagine how he longs for and takes pleasure in his creation. We are his workmanship, created in Christ to do good works (Eph. 2:10). He admires his creation, because we look like him. How beautiful it is when we express our love to him. Praise sounds like music in his ears. He is waiting on you. Tell him how good he is, he knows but he wants to hear it from you. The book of Psalms is a great place to start, it is filled with praises and adoration to God.

You have the keys to the kingdom – Full access has been granted to you

When you think about what Jesus did, absolutely nothing was left undone, victory is complete. Regardless of how impossible the situation seems, believe that Jesus Christ has already conquered ALL things and has made available the keys to the Kingdom. Full access is granted into the store rooms of heaven filled with all precious gifts, with your name on it, waiting to be claimed. The Father of lights has already determined and provided all things you need that pertains to life and godliness. All things have been made available by His sacrifice. Your access is assured by His Blood, His Name, His Word, His Spirit and By His love. No begging is needed!

Rest

Rest in the finished works of Jesus Christ. When you rest in Jesus, you are not relying on your self- effort or self – confidence, you are relying on God- confidence. When step out your doors, you do not know what awaits you, or what is likely to confront you each day. What you do know, is if you rely on Him, He is well able and capable of taking care of you. You are trusting Him to do the work through you. You can provide for yourself but He can do it so much better, without you having to toil tirelessly. You might be worried about many things in this area, especially, when economies are going through recessions, depressions and all sorts of economic conditions. That’s where you enter into rest, because you know God’s got you. You know when the economies fall apart, government becomes chaotic, companies fail and others fall apart, God is your provider and he will sustain you in the worst of times. God speaks about a rest for his people. When we rest, God works and when we work God rests. Therefore, it is imperative that we enter into God’s rest, which means we rest from all our work, just as God did from his work (Heb. 4:10).

 Be encouraged to rest and walk in victory everyday.

Advancing the Kingdom of God in the earth!

Advancing the kingdom of God!