Testimony Time

Testimony Time
Just checking into His Presence...

Thursday, 28 February 2019

1st March 2019

Checking into His Presence... Genuine Christian Ministries are not set up for the purpose of game shows and they should not be perceived as a place for different rehearsals. Attending any of them should not in any way be a means to act as Christians, rather such gathering should aim towards showing results gained from the process of true worship and the believe that sets them in consonance to the rightful ownership to the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven. What is your Ministry to you and what is it to the outside world? Do you still wrestle between the emblem of Christ ownership upon your Ministry and the desires of the flesh? Ephesians 5:29 declares that "no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church". Know ye therefore that Christ sacrificed Himself for the sake of the Church; those who comes into relationship with Him through any of His Ministries must be ready to serve and worship Him with genuine desires. They must also love and honour Him, knowing they are dealing with the body of Christ when they present themselves before Him in their different Churches. Churches therefore are not meant for actors and actresses. They do not represent boxing rings or avenues for fashion displays; neither should activities therein be seen and classified as where a beauty contest can be held. It cannot be a den for robbers, drunkards or set up as stages to hold plays which deviates from the purpose of a Christian worship. A church is a place where those who seek God can congregate as Christians for the purpose of seeking redemption for their sins and ultimately gaining salvation for their souls. Oh Jesus we have promised to worship You until the end, do keep our souls and make them Yours in Jesus name. Just Checking into His Presence...

Wednesday, 27 February 2019

28th February 2019

Checking into His Presence... Standing tall in every gathering is not about height at all; although our aptitude can ensure we achieve greatness in every endeavours, the only minus is one still needs to keep working to maintain the flare. Few events in life have given me courage to write about the journeys of an ideal Christian. When we are in Christ, we are described by what people can say about us; nothing more! Definitely, aptitude can take anyone to a certain degree. Indirectly this can offer great medium for man’s unfortunate transformation. Which means to stand on the rock of Christ needs God’s intervention which must be grasped with both hands? This opportunity can offer modern miracle that amplifies Jesus as the rock and the way to salvation. The message on the Cross however is quite simple; in that Christ invitation to worship assures we can serve Him in a way that is inexpensive to improve the chances of gaining salvation. The decision to serve Him does not necessarily mean our faith in Him will not take some hit in form; when this happens, we are encouraged to consider such position as joy because we should walk with the knowledge "that the testing of our faith produces patience." (James 1:3) Standing tall in Christ therefore is not just about attractive displays of colours, grammar, and position but about the circumcision of the hearts which indemnifies and link us with the riches of heaven. "No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person's praise is not from other people, but from God." (Roman 2:29) May God help us to circumcise our hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer. (Deuteronomy 10:16) Amen Just Checking into His Presence...

27th February 2019

checking into His Presence... There can be absolute power in whatever we choose to control and or to dominate our lives. These attributes stem originally from what earns every individual enormous respect out of the ordinary things. However, and apart from the varying comforts derived from their dominance; If care is not taken what makes an individual so popular and relevant in life can also be misconstrued and used very wrongly even where ardent Christian eyes have been developed. In such manner, Christian developments would have been so reduced to a level where Satan’s effort on their attributes can now be seen to be very dominant. Are you therefore popular because of your pet, wealth, ministry, beauty or other gifts such as prophecy? What of the skills attributable to some sports and the ability to speak and write well? Does that have any bearing on what intoxicates you with power and beauty you may not have tomorrow? Quite naturally, many have been found to show more respect to all of the above mainly because of the fleeting comforts derived from each of the above gifts. Therefore "why should the living complain when punished for their sins? Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD. Let us lift up our hearts and our hands to God in heaven, and say: “We have sinned and rebelled and you have not forgiven. “(Lamentations 39-41) We pray to You Father, empower us so much that what gives us joy would also not be the reasons for our failures in Your presence. Amen Just checking into His Presence...

26th February 2019

Checking into His Presence...   Let us talk about motives today, this simple word can be a blessing and at the same time can be responsible for some curses. The operations of the word are unique; simple as it sounds and people are very conscious of it. At the end of the day, it can be accepted, abused and misconstrued. It can be ill timed, misjudged and have also been found to be responsible for every suspicion walking through every facet of life today which can be found in homes, work places, businesses and churches too. The word itself transcends its expectations because every deed revolves round the word ‘motive’. Quite honestly, the word underlies every attribute; whether good or bad or indecisive. Talking about motives, "the Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7). Looking at the story of Saul in the Bible, his motives were to please man and not God. The Lord commanded him to destroy the Amalekites including their King but Saul did something contrary to the instructions of God (1 Samuel 15:1-35). Whereas, David's motive was to please God, after committing adultery with Bathsheba he knew he needed a new heart which only God can fixed. He therefore asked the Lord to "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." (Psalm 51:10) What is your motive? Are you a user, a cheat, a bench warmer in a house of God, a liar, rumour carrier, a skiver, a true husband/wife or a true worshiper? What other motives have you set up for your ministries, your skills, gifts and position in any assembly? Can they be likened to Saul's or to David's? You can make amend today because God really cares. Father, create in us a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within us in Jesus name. Amen Just Checking into His Presence...  

25th February 2019

Checking into His Presence... To have been kept alive till today shows God to have taken a very big gamble upon us. These investments have not come very lightly, they have been designed with Christ enormous desire to see if we can make and or maintain our way back to Him. Having the grace to live rests squarely on the assurance given by Christ so that we can improve our conduct before Him if indeed they had been faulty or filled with uncertainty. The only way to make this achievable is by having a perfect relationship with the commandments of God. (Psalm 19: 7-9) Not only that, such person must also keep abreast Satan's overpowering intention; and that is to prevent any perfect relationship with God the Father by standing in the way of erring and dithering Christians. John 10:10 describes Satan as the thief that "comes only to steal, kill and destroy;" and that Christ have come that we may have life and have it to the full." Every Child of God must always act and press towards the eternal race armed with this notion. In other words, they must refuse to slip into things that will snatch the victory of the Kingdom of God away from their hands. You must also know that if Satan sees any child of God dejected; he will be quite happy. Whereas, God is the last person that can let anyone down and will not rejoice in their downfall. Let us therefore participate passionately in the fellowship of Jesus Christ; we must refuse to be absent from His presence and be steadfast to His work in beliefs, truthfulness and honour to His name. These are the basic needs required to excel in His Kingdom and live to enjoy a worthy life in this world. In Acts 2:42-47, Apostle Paul was clear about how to maintain a perfect relationship with God so as to maintain and retain a peaceful life. In that "they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.” "So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved." Today, don't allow God to repeat the same sermon over and over again. Begin to master His Creed and preach the good news of the finished work of Christ. Stop, think and consider the effects of sin! Don't remain a sinner so that God won't be disappointed in you and finally; publicly declare His glory today and then pray without ceasing. May the riches of His Kingdom give us the power to sacrifice our inordinate desires in return for a perfect relationship with God in Jesus name. Amen Just Checking into His Presence...

Saturday, 23 February 2019

Renewal and Charismatic Movements.

Factors that led to the great awakening and their characteristic. The term Great Awakening is used to refer to a period of religious revival in American religious history. Historians and theologians now identify three or four waves of increased religious upheavals occurring between the early 18th century and the late 20th century. Each of these enthusiastic waves in religion were classified as "Great Awakenings" which became characterized by widespread revivals led by evangelical Protestant ministers, a sharp increase of interest in religion, a profound sense of conviction and redemption on the part of those affected, a jump in evangelical church membership, and the formation of new religious movements and denominations. Debate over the reasons behind the Great Awakening was nothing compared to the somber spirituality felt in 1700 as the revivalism ushered in by the Awakening brought people back to “spiritual life” because they now felt a greater intimacy with God. Up until this period, there had been fighting between religious and political groups which ended in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. This ensured the establishment and the dominance of the Church of England as the primary religion of the country. As a result, other religion such as the Catholicism, Judaism and Puritanism were then repressed. Everyone now practiced the same religion which may sound right from a political perspective. However, in the religious sense it created disenchantment and alienation which eventually brought some reactions against this complacency which now developed into a new spiritualism or revivalism which enables Christians to believe from the depth of their hearts during worship as opposed to going through the motion during services. People like the Wesley brothers and George Whitefield in England were affected by this new breed in spiritualism which now spread to the American Colonies during the first half of the 18th Century. Consequently, the Awakening ensured the practice of new style of sermons, therefore the way people practiced their faith breathed new life into religion in America. Participants became passionately and emotionally involved in their religion. Hitherto, they had passively listened to intellectual discourse in a detached manner at most service. This new style of preaching enabled people to nickname Ministers who used this new style of preaching as "new lights", while the preachers who remained unemotional by still treading in the old path were referred to as "old lights". However, people affected by the revival also began to study the Bible at home which was quite unlike the period before the Great Awakening. This effectively decentralized the means of informing the public on religious manners and was akin to the individualistic trends present in Europe during the Protestant Reformation. The Awakening also played a major role in the lives of women especially, though very rarely were they allowed preaching or take up public roles. Conclusively, however the following characteristics can be identified with the period of the Great Awakenings as a result of an encounter with the Holy Spirit 1. Every period of Revival started with prayer that came not mechanically but intuitively upon the witness of the Revival 2. The people were drawn closer to the authority of the word of God which put them at variance with established religious norms. 3. The Holy Spirit spurred them to doing things that are not sensible but super sensible, just like the day of Pentecost. As a result, people became passionately and emotionally involved in their religion as opposed to listening to theological/intellectual discussions in the worship 4. There were spiritual cleaning not to man but to God and there were complete turnaround and restitution. 5 The supernatural occurrence miracle that defy human scientific arguments. Some of the things that will happen when you have an encounter with the Holy Spirit: People were pulled away from ceremonies and rituals with severe emphasis on faith. 6. You must put away any un-confessed sin. The powerful preaching during the awakening moved people beyond its base, thereby encouraging them to recognize their sin and the need for them to take decisive action in coming back to God. It also taught the fact that peoples action will dictate their relationship with God 7. Any doubtful habit 8. Obey the Spirit promptly and the importance of Baptism with the Holy Spirit was stressed. 9. You must confess Christ publicly. The Great Awakening therefore has become a religious revitalization movement that swept the Atlantic world, especially the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, leaving a permanent impact on American religion. It resulted from powerful preaching that gave listeners a sense of personal guilt and of their need of salvation by Christ. Pulling away from ritual and ceremony, the Great Awakening made religion intensely personal to the average person by fostering a deep sense of spiritual guilt and redemption, and by encouraging self belief and a commitment to a new standard of personal morality which hitherto were non existent.

24th February 2019

Checking into His Presence... It does not matter how much beauty you think you possess; if such beauty cannot be translated into the true reflections owing to the righteousness of God, then there is a problem. Can I then ask what sort of experience you are giving those who come into contact with you? We must always remember that in life, we all must live within certain boundaries where we profess the name of God. To cross these boundaries is to transgress only to cope with what can be described as the "sins of the enlightened". This is because such people have come into contact with the revelation of Christ which shows the transgressors to be automatically accessible with the revelation Christ. Presumably with what they must have learnt in the name of Christ, therefore they should know what they are doing. It is therefore not a misjudgment for Christians to be defined by their actions. What they say and do plays major part in any relationship, nothing more! The Bible already professed "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of"-Luke 6:45. Hence, most problems people claim to face cannot be attributed to the church and immediate family per se; but to the sins of their hearts. Clearly, there had been numerous opportunities to get to hear the word of God at the altar of God EVERY service day. Scripture states that "if we build again the things which we have destroyed, we make ourselves transgressors" (Galatians 2:18). What have you disowned in the name of Christ that clandestinely you have linked up with a bridge? Consider the anger you probably have jettisoned and now it is worn through the look of your eyelids. What of lying in God's name? Take us, make us, build us and cleanse us; make us Your own. Amen Just Checking into His Presence...