Hope In The Lord – Psalm 146:5 “Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God,” This is month no 7 of the year widely refer to as the month of perfection, my prayer to all is that God will perfect all that concerns you in Jesus name. No wonder, God is asking us to hope in Him alone i.e. to lean on Him and trust Him as He makes all things perfect according to His Word. Our text for the month reads “Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, Whose hope is in the Lord his God,” The man that seek help from God will forever be in joy. Hope is faith is action. Hope is what gets you through the night when darkness closes in on you. Hope is the belief that you are not permanently in the dark and boxed in with no way out. As you move on in the month especially knowing that the second part of the year has started and you are moving to the next stage of 2014, I encourage you to hope in the Lord. God has a plan for your life. His plan is to give you hope. Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” ‘declares the Lord,’ “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” There is no doubt that our faith will be tested and we would go through trials yet we can overcome all of them regardless of our feelings for His truth is unshakable and certain. No matter how bleak or discouraging our circumstances may appear, there are always grounds for hope, because we are not alone. God is with us. And He is not merely present, but watchful and active. God is present in our lives, not merely as a passive observer, but as the active, sovereign ruler of the universe and the loving Lord of our lives. Our hope must be anchored in the promises of God, the promises concerning His goodness, wisdom, love and power. We must hold fast to these, even as the storms of life are raging if we’re to keep our grip on hope and keep the ship of our life on course. We must believe regardless of our circumstances that God is working out all things in our life for good and we do that by continually reminding ourselves of the promises of God. Our God is the God of hope, He always bring hope into our hopeless lives. Hope is one of the gifts God gives to every believer and He wants us to overflow in it. Pastor Yemisi Onanuga
Category: Pastor’s blog
Making A Commitment
Nehemiah 10:29 “These joined with their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a curse and an oath to walk in God’s Law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes.” Welcome to the year of Great Shepherd, my prayer is that the Great Shepherd will carry you and burdens in Jesus name. Therefore this first month of the year I want to encourage everyone to make a new commitment to walk with God as a sheep and Him as the Shepherd. The people of Jerusalem made a commitment to radically change how they were living; this was a radical commitment to serve God in a greater way than they ever had before this time. Prior to this, the prophets had come and warned the people, but the people had not listened. However, it seems that this time God had their attention and they seem to be serious about their commitment to God. This commitment took their focus off of themselves and placed it on their God. A commitment like this is needed for believers to fully focus on God and His plan for them and this type of commitment forces believers to focus more on how they live rather than what they say. Commitment is what we need today. It reflects the character of Christ and it is a virtue. It is a characteristic of God, who is always faithful and true. Commitment starts not with us, but with God. He has committed himself toward us, to call us and save us and build us up and give us an eternal inheritance in Christ Jesus. Commitment is the basis of our relationship with God. It is the basis of our faith in God. And it is the basis of any good relationships with people. Relationships break down when commitment is absent, when we start to find it difficult to trust. These people wanted to make sure that they will stay on course, and their children and children after them will do the same and so they made the oath to commit themselves to the service of God in unity. If we do not commit, we will find it easy not to do what is pleasing to God. When everything around you crumbles, commit on o the Lord and He will reflect His beauty on you. Make a commitment today to be on the Lord’s side no matter how rough the road may be and it will help you keep on the right track of God. How marvelous it is to be in the care of the One who provides for us so wonderfully. The shepherd does not take the sheep into barren places, but pastures that have sufficient supply. “May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that Great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” Hebrews 13:20. Pastor Yemisi
- Categories:Pastor's blog
- Tags:Jesus Christ
Overflowing Deliverance – 2 Sam. 22:7
“I cried out to the LORD in the middle of my troubles; I cried out to my God. He listened to my voice from his sanctuary, and my call for help was heard.” Very often, we find ourselves in very serious situation and get so caught up in the situation that we lose sight of what we are supposed to do as believers. But that is not the case with David as we read in this passage. The first thing that David did was to call out to the Lord right in the middle of his troubles. He called out to the Lord because he knew for a fact that man could not help; he knew for a fact that he could not help himself; he knew for a fact that all his weapons could not help him. So he called to the Lord because he remembered vividly what the word of God has said concerning him: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.” So he called unto God, not out of fear, but with boldness and the full assurance that God is able; willing and ready to deliver him from all his trouble – cp. Isa. 49:15-16. God will only respond to righteousness; holiness; purity of heart; clean hands. In the midst of his troubles, David had all these qualities – 2 Sam. 22:21. Do you have these qualities today? The second thing that David did was to cry out to his God – who do you cry to in the midst of distress? David said: “I cried out to my God”. Is God Almighty your God? – Dan 11:32. Do you know God the way David did? If so, rest assured that this is your season of Overflowing Deliverance in the mighty name of Jesus. Before the end of June, God Almighty will deliver you from all your troubles. God responded to David’s dedication to the word of God, and his complete obedience of what the word says. God will always respond to your total commitment to HIS way and your complete adherence to HIS precepts – because HE will never compromise on HIS standards. David knew this and he was able to present his case to God – 2 Sam. 22:22-24. I challenge you this season: adopt David’s approach – strive for righteousness; desire a pure heart towards God and man; strive for holiness; stay away from the congregation of the scornful; walk not in the way of sinners; be fully committed to the word of God; obey completely what the word of God prescribes; above all, love God with all your heart and I guarantee you will surely enter your season of Overflowing Deliverance this month of June in Jesus name. God bless you richly. Pastor Edmund Abekhe
- Categories:Pastor's blog
- Tags:Jesus Christ
The Key to Answered Prayers
“Little children, we must stop expressing love merely by our words and manner of speech; we must love also in action and in truth. This is how we will know that we belong to the truth and how we will be able to keep ourselves strong in his presence. If our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts and knows everything. Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence in the presence of God. Whatever we request we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. And this is the confidence that we have in him: if we ask for anything according to his will, he listens to us. And if we know that he listens to our requests, we can be sure that we have what we ask him for.” – 1 John 3:18-22; 5:14-15 (ISV). Prayer is one of the greatest privileges we have as children of God. The Hymn Writer – Joseph Medicott Scriven – in his hymn titled ‘What a Friend We Have in Jesus’ penned these two lines: “Oh what peace we often forfeit; oh what needless pain we bear All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer” In other words, whenever we fail to make use of this great privilege, we stand to miss out of so many good things that God has prepared for those that truly love HIM. According to Apostle Paul in his first letter to the church at Corinth, there are three things that are vital for every true believer – Faith, Hope and Love – and he said also that the most important is love and I am persuaded that Apostle John is also drawing from what Paul has said in his letter when he wrote this first Epistle to the entire church of God. Apostle John mentions the fact that love must go beyond words; love must be demonstrated by action; and in truth. This demonstration will give the believer a confidence that can only be described as supernatural. It is this confidence that fires the believer’s faith and gives the believer assurance that every issue brought before God, will receive the desired result. So Faith; Hope (or Expectation); and Love are all at work because love is the foundation. What the Beloved Apostle John is saying here is that when these three elements come together, we receive a key that will always unlock the heart of God to us at the place of prayer. When this happens, our prayers will be unselfish; they will change our character; and we will always pray for God’s will (“May your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” – Matt. 6:10). Welcome to the month of Answered Prayers.
- Categories:Pastor's blog
- Tags:Jesus Christ
An Open Door Before You
Revelation 3:8 “I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it.” The God we serve is a God who opens doors for us and when He opens a door no man can shut it, and so as He has lifted us He is promising us this month an open door to His plan and purpose for our lives which is better and greater than our thought. We may try to open doors in our own strength and fail because they are too strong for us. Sometimes we may succeed in opening a door in our own strength only to find that somebody has closed it again. When we face such situations we should allow the Lord to open these doors. His mighty strength and power will open doors so that no one can shut them again. He will go before us and break down every hindrance and break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. We should not struggle in vain in our own strength against these strong barriers, but instead allow the Lord to open the doors for us. The doors that the Lord opens for us cannot be used by our enemies. The way of escape for us will become a way of destruction for our enemies in Jesus name. When God opens a door for us we do not have to fear whether anybody will close the door that God has opened for us unless you do. Sometimes we live in fear of men and of the devil even after the Lord has opened a door for us, we live in constant fear and worry whether the door will be closed again by anyone and we begin to suspect everyone that they might do something harmful to us. God wants us to live in assurance and confidence that the door He has opened for us cannot be closed by anyone. Remember, He has not given us the spirit to fear but the spirit of power, love, and a sound mind. On the other hand when the Lord opens a way for us, we should not try to close it. Sometimes the Lord may lead us in a difficult path; at such times we should not try to escape from it. When Jesus faced the cross, He did not run away from it. Jesus was willing to drink the cup which His Father had given Him. He did not call the cross as a cup given by the devil or His enemies, He called it a cup which His Father had given him. He was willing to follow the path in which His Father was leading him. Even in our own lives we should not try to escape from the path of suffering when the Lord leads us through it. We should not close a door that the Lord has opened for us. Through disobedience to His will and commandments, we can close the door but my prayer for everyone is that the Lord will grant us the grace to walk in His path holding on to Him at every step of life in Jesus mighty name. Extracts from: Dr. Stanley Vasu’s sermon.
- Categories:Pastor's blog
- Tags:Jesus Christ
A Living Hope
1 Peter 1:3 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
We live in a world that is filled with despair and hopelessness. Unemployment, weapons of mass destruction, confused government, sniper terror, travel crisis and even trouble in the church. With all these, an average man needs a bright hope for the future.
Hope in the bible has multiple meanings. It is a favorable and confident expectation. It has to do with the unseen and the future, a living hope that will sustain us. Living hope is the constant expectation of attainment. It is a virtue which leads us to expect the things which God has promised us. It looks to God as its principal object.
There is no hope without faith. Faith apprehends the promises and hope expects what is promised. The natural fruit of a living hope is joy and delight in God. When in this world our vision is impaired with sorrow, hope reminds us that our greatest joy is in the unseen world.
The more we experience God’s power, the greater our hope. Hope looks to the grace of God, while fear looks to the wages of sin. Our living hope is based on the mercy of God. Christian believers have a living hope because Jesus is alive. Our hope is based on the solid evidence of Jesus’ resurrection.
Those who have been born again have a living hope through their new life in Christ; my friends, we have a promise not only of living again, but also of a better tomorrow. We have the hope of a future inheritance. Because of our living hope we can place our faith in God’s protection, God has promised to shield us with His power as we walk in faith with Him.
What greater hope could be given to those undergoing persecution than the knowledge that God’s power guards them from within, to preserve them for an inheritance of salvation that will be completely revealed to them in God’s presence.
To those who are feeling discouraged, displaced, depressed, or in danger, I want to encourage you that we have a living hope based upon the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour. The believer’s hope is sure, certain, and real, as opposed to the deceptive, empty, false hope the world offers. The living Christ is the source of our new birth and our living hope.
Do you have this hope? If not, would you like to have it? God the Father offers you a hope that you can have and maintain by faith. He has done all the impossible part so that all you must do is surrender your life to Him, entrusting yourself and committing yourself to the truth of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection.
Pastor Yemisi Onanuga
- Categories:Pastor's blog
- Tags:Jesus Christ
All Thanks Be To God – Psalm 107:1
Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.
Wow, last month of the year already!!! I believe I should be more than grateful to God for His mercy and loving kindness towards me all through this glorious year. Have you enjoyed His overflowing mercy this year as promised? Look inwards and see what He has actually done for you. I have seen His goodness in my life and I can say without any iota of doubt that God has been so good to me (good health, promotion, favour, needs met, etc). I cannot sincerely count them all.
It is true that in today’s society, some of us may think we don’t have much to be thankful for. From loss of jobs, homes, cars and possessions, what’s left? Is it the never ending war and the bad economy, why should we still be thankful to God? 1 Thess. 5:16-18 says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” This means, no matter what we may go through, good or bad, God will always make a way for us. Even at our darkest time or hour, God will always turn a negative into a positive, if we only believe and trust in Him.
In this life there will always be things to complain about. But God gave us a choice. Do we choose to be positive or negative? Is the glass half empty or full? No matter how grim our situations may be, there will always be something to be thankful for. Did we live to see another day? Do we have our health and strength? Are our families ok? Do we have clothes, food and shelter? If we only believe and trust in God, He will give us our needs and not necessarily our wants. Rom. 8:28-30 says, “For those who know Christ, God also works everything together for good, even events we would not necessarily consider good.”
As we come to the end of the year, I believe gratitude should be our offering to God, the One who has made all things work together for good in your life. The Psalmist says in Psalm 107:1-2 “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy”.
Even when we receive something that doesn’t seem good, we can be grateful because we know there is more to it than we can see. What seems like an imperfect gift may be the means by which God perfects us. This month let us choose to be grateful to Him for a thankful life is a fruitful life.
Congratulations and rejoice that you are alive and well. Let the peace of God rest on you always in Jesus name.
Merry Christmas.
Yemisi Onanuga.
Content retrieved from: http://rccgpottershouseed.org.uk/all-thanks-be-to-god/.
- Categories:Pastor's blog
- Tags:RCCG
Vessels Of Honour
2 Timothy 2:21 “Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.”
We thank God for His goodness over us for the last four months and praise to Him for another opportunity to witness a new month. The fifth month of the year, a month of grace as the Bible Scholars refers number 5 as number of grace. I pray that His grace will draw us closer to Him as He requires us to be vessels of honour in His hands and His House.
Verse 20 says “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honour and some for dishonour.” In the house of a wealthy man there were different types of vessels. Some were made of gold and silver. Some were made of wood and clay. Those that were made of gold and silver were used for special tasks while the cheap ones were for everyday use.
We all have various vessels at home and there are some we love to display as well as bring out for use when we have VIPs visiting our homes, these are the ones we cherish as vessels of honour. Vessels of honour refer to men and women God has chosen to honour to bring glory to His Name. The people God chooses are vessels that have been appointed to carry and reveal the ways and wisdom of God; to manifest His power and glory in their time.
Honour is something everybody seeks. Honour by men is for a fee; anybody can get it. You cannot talk about honour from men because a lot of times it is born of ignorance. In John 5:41-44, Jesus said to the Jews: “I receive not honour from men. But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you. I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?”
If you want to be a vessel of honour in the Hands of God, you want God to use you, your time will no longer be your own, you will no longer be able to sit down and enjoy comfort as you used to enjoy because God will have to display you and use you as He wills. It is important to know that anybody who desires can become a vessel of honour in his or her time and that vessels of honour are people who are consecrated, sanctified and determined to please God in their lives.
Being a vessel of honour makes individuals to consecrate their lives unto God, you can be a vessel of honour if you decide from today to surrender your life to Jesus, walk in His way and obey Him. Repent of your sins, ask God to forgive you of all your sins, and tell Him you desire to be a vessel of honour so that His Name will be glorified. The power of the Holy Spirit will come upon your life and begin a new walk in you.
Content retrieved from: http://rccgpottershouseed.org.uk/vessels-of-honour/.
- Categories:Pastor's blog
- Tags:RCCG
Our Victory Is Assured
1 Corinthians 15:57: “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
I hope we all remember the promise of ‘New Songs’ from the Lord for this year? He promised that no one shall be left behind in Jesus mighty name. Perhaps you are thinking or asking the question; ‘where is this promise because I am still singing old songs, this is the 12th month and I have nothing to bring a new song into my mouth?
Beloved, our God is not man that He would lie, in fact let God be true and let man be a liar. It is not over until it is over, our victory is assured and if you can hold on you will sing a new song before the year comes to an end. From now start counting all you blessings, name them one by one and you will see what the Lord has done for you.
God gives us the victory through our faith in Christ. Our faith and inspiration must be in God and this faith will overcome the obstacles and bring us the victory. We must not allow doubt and unbelief to rob us of our victory through Christ. In all the obstacles that we face we must continually draw inspiration and encouragement from the faithful promises of God and stand firm in our faith to experience victory in our lives.
God gives us the victory by pleading our cause. He is our mighty redeemer who will thoroughly plead on our behalf and give us the victory. The Lord Jesus Christ is interceding on our behalf. He is our Heavenly advocate who will plead on our behalf before the throne of Heaven. The Father would not deny the plea of His Son Jesus when He pleads on our behalf.
God gives us the victory when we stay close to Him. We must maintain our intimacy and close relationship with God. As we stay at His right hand we will make our enemies our footstool. He will be with us and no one can overcome us. He will deliver us and honour us. Our intimacy with God helps us to experience victory in all our battles. The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are perfect towards Him.
God gives us the victory when we invoke His presence with our praise and worship. As we begin to praise and worship Him in the midst of our battles, God causes confusion in the enemy’s camp. His mighty presence fills us and we experience a mighty deliverance and victory. Our praise and worship is a two edged sword to destroy the enemy’s attacks. Jehoshaphat experienced a mighty victory through praise and worship. Paul and Silas experienced a great deliverance through praise and worship.
God gives us the victory through His intervention. He will not be a silent spectator but will come to our defense and rescue and give us the victory. We need not fear those who rise against us in their fleshly strength. We have our God to help us and fight our battles.
But we can’t expect success in our own strength. We must rely on the Holy Spirit’s power and guidance. Then, as we walk with God in faith, we can more fully appreciate the victory our Champion has brought us. No matter what giants we face, we can win by God’s grace. And you will win.
There shall be a shout of victory for you this month in Jesus mighty name. Have a glorious Christmas; maranatha, Jesus is coming.
Shalom.
Yemisi Onanuga.
Content retrieved from: http://rccgpottershouseed.org.uk/victory-is-assured/.
- Categories:Pastor's blog
- Tags:rccg edinburgh