AKUBUEZE MUSIC MINISTRY: Articles

THE DEFINITION OF DEPRESSION








Have you been angry before without a reasonable cause? Been too tetchy, irritated by almost anything animate or inanimate? Furious over people who were well off than you for no good reason? Been disappointed? Experienced frustration as hopes were dashed when things went awry? Have you lost a loved one to death before? Lost a fortune? Been a victim of an accident? A disaster? A natural catastrophe? Do you currently find yourself in a quagmire with a feel of a thick cloud of hopelessness over you? Do you pity yourself or blame yourself for what you are? Maybe you are blaming somebody else for the problem about you and just can't compose yourself socially? Do you want to take revenge for wrong done to you? Do you see suicide as the only one solution? Are you trying to make difficult decisions and choices but you are put at the other end of the rope? At the end of your tether? Phew ! Why don't you call it by its name "Depression"?



Many people might not know it by its name yet have or are experiencing one of the above situations. These are symptoms of depression. Just call it "Depression," free it from any form of modification. It is true that human beings do get depressed at some point in time. "In every life some rain will fall" is an old statement true to humans. Studies have shown that in every given year, 8 to 9 percent of the world's population will face depression. And about 3 percent of these people would seek appropriate competent help. Most of them try to treat themselves by withdrawing from life, marriage, employment and other responsibilities. Some even attempt to commit suicide. Yet others try to ease the pain of depression with pharmaceutical therapies such as: alcohol, valium and other drugs, ending up becoming drug addicts and alcoholics. Our purpose of this study is to help identify depression to some extend, and talk about some empirical truths that, when applied, could help a victim overcome depression.




HOW SHOULD WE DEFINE IT ?



Before we begin, I would want to comment upon defining depression. Doing so would help us see it in its entirety. Depression as it affects the health of humans is like an elephant felt and defined by blind men. The one who touched the tail would define it differently from the one who touched the trunk and also differently from the one who touched the ears and the legs. Each of these men has touched an elephant and their different descriptions are correct but they just did not see it in its entirety.




An elephant is more than an ear, more than a tail and more than the trunk and legs; yet the tail, legs, trunk and ears are part of it. Similarly, they are many causes, kinds, and level or degrees of depressions. Although they share some similar characteristics, they are different in degrees and have no specific cure that is applicable to all. Let me put is this way: there is no specific medication that works for all causes of depression. You know the word "applicable," used there, might be deceptive. For all medications known and approved to the medical world are applicable to patients. Meaning they could be prescribed for cure to the patients, but being prescribed does not necessarily make it work. So a drug could be applied but the results poor.




There are cases where the applications of medication as a treatment for depression worked for some patients but did not work for others. In some cases they failed to produce satisfactory results. And there are still cases without medical solutions to them, absolutely not. It's humbling, isn't it? But sincere too, to accept that we, humans, are on the process of understanding fully this puzzling picture in its entirety. A definition that does not hold true for all situations and keeps changing is not a healthy one. You can only define something you understand fully and can deal with or bring it under control if need be. To this end, we are still working and I believe, by the grace of God, we would make great medical strides sooner.




With the above in mind, it would be presumptuous to define depression without knowing what it fully is. A better definition would be an ongoing definition that has a cause and cure connotation. Yes, because in most cases good treatment comes as one discovers its causes that were not obvious at first. If it were defined and treatment given, it certainly would have proven incorrect.
You see my point?



The world could tell you that depression is a situation where you are sad, unhappy and can't enjoy anything else because of the difficulties you find yourself in. There are those, however, who found themselves in these situations--sad and unhappy ones--yet weren't depressed. Others, who did not express these symptoms, maybe externally, were very depressed. I've seen those who were very sad but weren't depressed and the rich who got all what it takes to make people happy yet were depressed.
It goes against the rule does it not?



History is packed with records of men and women who were mad for changes in their societies but weren't depressed at all. They couldn't eat, nor enjoy the pleasures of life, they looked sullen yet these people were not depressed. They were in their right state of mind and had control over their affairs. They were so because they wanted a change in their era which only they could bring about. Some brought about economic and spiritual revivals. Some brought about new political climates over their nations and others great scientific and technological advances in the world. All these achievements consumed their time, thoughts and energy. They were great thinkers of their time, and I could believe that at the time of the gestation of their visions, they deprived themselves from the many pleasures of life yet these men of visions weren't depressed.




Let me mention some examples as to what I am saying. In the Bible they were men who refused to eat or find pleasure in certain things because they wanted to murder the one who posed a threat to their cause. Apostle Paul was scheduled for murder by some group of men who never ate, drank or looked happy but these men were not depressed (Acts 23V12-15). Daniel the prophet of God deprived himself from food and the glories of the Royal house not because he was doing some kind of economy, or was he afraid or depressed but because he was fasting and praying (DANIEL 10V2-3). Again Daniel was thrown in the lion's den and by logic or reason should be the one depressed but he remained calm, at peace and very composed with the lions. On the contrary, the king who had all his glories with him to make him happy in his Royal Palace was the one depressed having put Daniel in the Lion's den. He had no peace, no rest, could not sleep nor find pleasure in his usual royal entertainments and even detested the audience before him (DANIEL 6V14, V18-23).




In another sense, If you say depression is that which causes people to commit suicide, it may not fully be true because some commit suicide not necessarily because they are depressed but for other reasons and causes. We see on our T.V screens on a massive scale, what suicide bombers do in the name of a cause or philosophic persuasions but not of depression. Some people call them terrorists. Also there are some rich who looked so good externally but did commit suicide because they were depressed.




What is then called depression? How do we define it? Is it justified to define what we fully can't comprehend nor contain? Sometimes when we don't understand depression and try to help depressed persons, we end up being depressed ourselves. Yes, in some hospitals there are practitioners and care takers for the depressed who themselves became depressed in trying to help depressed patients because they did not fully understand the picture or condition.




Okay Let's go a step further now. When there is a depression, it indicates that there is a DOWN. Literally that word means something is down. A depression on a road is a deep inward curve in it. On the graph of economic depression, the line representing the gross national product of the land goes down. But it goes beyond just that. To humans, what is down is in the psychological realm.
But what is it that is really DOWN in psychological depression? And how can we explain this in terms of psychiatry and human experience?



Here we must look at the energy that influences enthusiasm for living. For the Christian something is wrong with the center of life which is JESUS CHRIST. Christ is the giver and the very source of energy for the saints. He is the one who sustains their every day expectation and strength. Christ is the one who provides for the believer whether materially, physically or spiritually. He is the source of their joy. So understanding these truths keeps the energy level constantly on its high. Anyway, Why do we talk about energy level? You see, Something happens to vitality, to life force, to drive in depression which makes it become less than what it should be.




We have been saying that depression occurs when there's a down. Now to look at this DOWN properly, there must also be a reference point. For there can't be a "DOWN" without an "UP" and there can't be an "UP" without a "DOWN" too. Each of which is valuable in determining something about the other. So the UP is our reference point here which refers to the vitality of life provided by Christ and as expected of us by God through faith in Him and His word. So if there is a depression, it tells us that there is a DOWN and this DOWN is on the psychological UP dimension of the individual. But exactly what may be a varied study of different cases. Yet a general truth is worth mentioning: that the UP is connected to one's vitality of life, which is closely related to the expectations of himself based on the needs.




In conclusion, we can help define depression as that condition which exists when one's drive and vitality are insufficient to meet one's expectations based on the needs and, or, wishes. If someone's vitality is down a little bit and he needs more vitality to cope with life and its responsibilities, that situation defines depression.
(see part 2)

May the good lord continue to bless you all,


MERRY CHRISTMAS

The Singer As A Recreated Being



What a joy it is to tell you that you've got a new brand on you when you are in Jesus. All what you perceived as weaknesses are rebranded in Christ. In fact, God calls you a NEW CREATION. "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a NEW CREATION; the old has gone, the new has come" (2 Corinthians 5v17). You are a new YOU. Were you a bad singer, bad music creator, making lots of mistakes? Well, now in Christ you are a brand new you, having a new personality, having a different title, identified by different qualities that are divinely eternal, ruled by different principles of life. You are a new YOU. Literally, on God's mind, the old you and all attached to it are gone, forever gone. It does not count any more. Am I now achieving clarity?


Yes for the NEW HAS COME via JESUS CHRIST the perfect man. Jesus has taken over control of all--spiritually and physically. Because when He came in He came with all the divine qualities of His. He came with what could cause you hopeful. They are all embedded in you in Christ.



You, in Christ, are not alone, so you cannot feel weak in the areas you used to fail if Christ is there. He is an invisible source of power, friend unlike any other and partner who is willing to add or perfect whatever does not measure up to the standard you cherish.



If you were good at something prior knowing Jesus, well, be ready to meet astonishing level of excellence. If you had lots of weaknesses before, never mind, haven't the old gone? So call yourself what God calls you now--a new creation, one in the likeness of God, with Christ within and as having a hopeful future, a new beginning; one in partnership with the perfect man Jesus.



Please, there is no where in the Bible that God calls you a failure and do not, I must say this again, do not believe whoever would tell you that you are a failure, verbally or biblically. Help that person instead by telling him not only what you are in Christ, or what God says of you, but also what God might say of him if he would believe.



Let us briefly summarize what we have just mentioned above: Note that your identity lies in what was on the mind of God when creating you. For the Bible reveals that you were created in the likeness of God. And having created you, God inspected you very carefully to see that you really remain the person He intended you to be and the result of that inspection was seen in His remarks: "very good indeed" (Gen 1v31). This is perfection in creation.



But when the man failed and his offspring shared in his failure, He wanted them to also share in the perfection of the man from heaven. And the perfect man in the imperfect becomes the hope of glory for the imperfect man. Giving the perfect man a total control of the imperfect man, indeed, absorbing all of his imperfections. That is a perfect idea to restore perfection.


Again, this wonderful creator calls you a new creation having accepted Jesus as Lord and savior of your life. Literally saying that the old has gone. The old you and its mistakes are gone. If all is really gone as God said it is, where does the weakness that seems to overcome the music maker come from? It would come either from the devil, which is a deception, or from the fact that YOU have not really understood who you are in Christ. Beloved reader, if we are to believe what is reliable, authentic and authoritative; take it from the mouthpiece of God.



You may desire to have your weaknesses transformed into strength for the glory of God. To have success in your music career as you share in the perfection of the perfect one. It all begins by inviting Jesus Christ into your heart as Lord and Savior of your life. He will come in if you do. If that is your choice then pray sincerely the prayer below:




Dear Heavenly Father, I believe that Jesus Christ is your son and paid the price for my sins by His death on the cross. I invite Jesus into my life now, and receive Him as the Savior and Lord of my life. Lord Jesus come into my heart, make me a child of God and change my entire life. I give you my sins and all its weaknesses and imperfections, and receive eternal life and all the perfections that come with it.




Thank you God for giving me a new life, a new quality, a new beginning. Thank you Lord Jesus for saving me and making me God's son. Thank you Holy Spirit for indwelling me to help me live the new life, to help me be the new brand that God intends of me. Thank you Holy Spirit for the help you provide in uncovering the glorious riches that are mine in Christ Jesus. Thank you for making me a better singer, a better praiser of God, a better musician, a better producer and director as all my imperfections, limitations and weaknesses and my past are gone. I am a new creation, transformed and hidden in Christ Jesus the hope of my future. Thank you Lord in Jesus' Name. Amen.



Congratulations!! If you've prayed this prayer, why not share that joy with us. Just let us know about it.



We love you all and share in your prayers. May the Lord God continue to bless.





In His Service,





P.C. AKUBUEZE AND TEAM

The Singer Re perfected



However, God did not leave the perfection-marred man alone; He did something to help him out of his quagmire. The Bible tells us that through the sin of Adam all have sinned (Romans 5v12, 3v23). And sin came into man not without its repercussion which is death. In fact, Romans 6v23 says the wages of sin is death.




On the contrary the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord. So God's mind in all circumstances concerning you and me had always been that of life, of excellence, of perfection. He created man with His view to be like Himself. Now that the man sinned and distorted that original plan of God, He still made His view consistent with His former intention which is that of life for the fallen man. Thus freeing man from the effects of sin. You can see that God sets side by side the two--death via sin and life via Christ.




Beloved reader, the way back to perfection, free of weakness or may I say glorified weaknesses is very possible. I used the phrase 'glorified weaknesses' in two senses here.




First it is used to mean the weaknesses which are there but are used by God in a mighty way without physically changing them. For example: a lame or physically handicapped person might be given a great voice to sing ...etc.




And second, it is used to mean the weaknesses that are totally transformed because one is hidden in Christ. You could have identified no gift in you prior knowing Jesus but did notice something having received Him. Or you could have a gift before knowing Jesus, but having known Him, that gift seems to be better than before, better known or understood and of course, better used ...etc.



So the way back to perfection is still there, but how? By what means? Pretty good question! Well, BY CHRIST. Please wait a minute! Let me point out to you a truth here. The Bible says, " As was the earthly man (meaning Adam) so are those of the earth (all humans); and as is the man from heaven (meaning Jesus), so also are those who are of heaven (referring to all believers in Christ). And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man (sin is the likeness of Adam, so all humans sinned via Adam), so shall we bear the likeness of the man in heaven (we are to bear the likeness of Jesus the perfect man) (I CORINTHIANS 15v48-49).




You see the mind of God again that we may bear the likeness of the man from heaven who is Jesus Christ. Jesus is the perfect man (Hebrews 5v9). This perfect man is the perfecter of all imperfections (Hebrews 12v12). Beloved, your perfection is in Jesus. What an advantage to profit from. For you--whether you like it or not--have been marred by sin by nature. I do not imply that you physically do or did something wrong, but by your nature, from birth, you shared in the sin of the earthly man.



If this unchangeable fact applies to us all, then let's consider the other offer, that of sharing in the likeness of the heavenly man too. This is a great offer! You see, you qualify for this offer because against your own will, as anyone would say, you shared in the mistake of the first man. Who could then stop you from sharing in the perfection of the perfect man? Certainly not God but yourself. I think this is the right that God has given for all to exercise--the right to share in the perfect man's perfection.



Your perfection is in Jesus Christ. If I shared the pains of Adam, the mistakes of Adam, the fears, the insults, the limitations which Adam through his disobedience brought to mother earth; I too want to share in the goodness, the star likeness, the fame, the eternal qualities and perfection that the heavenly man Jesus Christ brings. Did you get that? That is truly the will of God for you the singers, music makers and all who believe this biblically founded truth.




Whatever weakness you might be suffering from, when Jesus comes in you, He brings with Him all He has to offer. When He comes in you He brings with Him His perfect nature. When He comes in you, He perfects the once imperfect. Note this right now child of God: Jesus couldn't be able to perfect something if He Himself weren't perfect. It's logical that He must be perfect in order to be a good perfecter of everything. And assuredly yes, He is.


With lots of love,


www.myspace.com/ammgospel

The Singer Marred



Yes, that perfection of man was distorted or marred by sin. It was marred but not destroyed totally. And sin brings with it death (Romans 3v26). When that perfect man sinned, he died spiritually (separated from God), and physically his body began to know sickness, limitations, disease and became subject to death. Sin brought in fear (Genesis 3v10), blames and accusations (Genesis 3v12-13), shame (Genesis 3v10) and every limitation or weakness that was which never entered the mind of God during creation. You could clearly see that when man fell, much of their energy was directed to their weakness rather than their strength. And believe me that was never the will of God. God never created man to undergo these series of psychological complexes.



We love all in the Lord,

The Singer On The Mind Of God

It is true that man was created by God. In other words, your gift of singing and making music to God is not a product of evolution but a gift of creation. If you believe in creation, then there is a creator, who is the Lord God. I would want to let you see, if you don't mind, the real YOU as a singer on the mind of God when He was creating the man.


You see, the Lord God created man in His image and likeness. The Bible records the very words of God as He revealed what was on His mind prior creating man. He said" Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule..." (Genesis 1v26).


Well, you might say ''Sorry brother, that was an idea not an action, not an accomplished act!'' Granted. But take this too, it says ''... God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (Gen 1v27). This is no longer an idea but an accomplished act. God created man in His God likeness, in His God image. Let's put it the other way round: YOU, in the Image of God are the intended YOU on the mind of God. That was not a mistake.


You were created in the likeness of God, and in that likeness there was neither weakness nor limitation. In that image was found no fault or imperfection. Everything was perfect in you during creation. Here, I defined perfection simply as the way a thing should be in the will of its creator. Only the creator can tell you what he intends to create and when it is achieved. When the desired results are reached, that is success.


And so God, having created the man and his world, said that it was very good indeed (Genesis 1v31). If God who cannot lie (Titus 1v2) said it was perfect and good, take it for what it is; if God said that you were very good when He created you, what makes you feel any less? What brought about any weakness or highlights what is perceived as a weakness? What makes you to feel you are not as good as the way you want to be? Something must have brought about these undesired, unintended thoughts that never entered the mind of the sole creator.


We pray for you all, beloveth.

The Singer As In God's Mystery


Jesus in you, the hope of glory has been what God kept secret for ages, that people couldn't understand. But God has chosen to reveal it not to all people but to all the saints--the believers. It was God's will that the people may understand this glorious hope having accepted Jesus as Lord first. It is not the other way round.



When Jesus the perfect man enters the heart of the imperfect creature, there is a spiritual fusion called GLORY in the bigger sense. Christ is your hope of Glory. He is the perfect man in the imperfect creature causing the imperfect man hopeful for a perfect beginning and future. This glory is too rich, and involves eternal qualities whether it's life, it is an eternal one; or are they divine rights, they all remain eternal. What do we see here again, we see the endeavor of God to let man walk in and enjoy that lost Godlikeness God created the man to explore.

To be continued

SINGER THE WEAKNESS IS NOT A TRUE ID

Over the years I have heard or seen gifted singers who so gave in much attention on their weaknesses, they allowed themselves to be defined, ruled or controlled by the enormity of their frailties. They forgot the truth that their existence, their person as human beings are not all made of weaknesses. Yes human beings are creatures of weakness but being a human is not all about being weak or having weaknesses.







Some have majored on their shortcomings or weaknesses because they have been intimidated, criticized, belittled or marginalized by others. Or that something self-caused, whether habit or not, hindered their progress. Some knew they could sing well but couldn't stand the crowd without being plagued by stage fright.







Others in the presence of more than one person could barely utter a word out. Some couldn't just look at others in the face, nor have eye contact when on the stage singing. Some were so conscious of making a mistake that they actually did make few, if not many. Others were people conscious; they were occupied in thinking about what others might say about their mistake or weakness.





Some in the search for position, favor, or fame, worried about their limitations, tried to please others, to do and act as the others wanted them to and thus lost being themselves on stage. They came short of the true joy in fulfillment. Others were so conscious of their amateurish accomplishments in comparison to the stars and the better generalized others.





Some emulated others because they just weren't confident in themselves and in their styles. Others fumbled with words when singing. They kind of lost mental concentration and in performing, they experienced lyrical verbal data deletion, where all or some of the lyrics were mentally lost.







Singer or music maker, whatever the weakness may be, just understand that human beings are creatures of weaknesses (Hebrews 4v15). And the world in which man lives is not yet a perfect place. Now, let me put it this way, the ardent scientific search for knowledge is an explicit veracity that their knowledge at the time of search is limited. That just sums up a lot germane to our context.



The Singer's Reality



Having understood that, I would like you to understand also the true reality of your identity. I don't know if you do believe in the Bible as the word of God from God. It would be right to say that we are among the many who believe the Bible to be divinely inspired, authoritative and authentically the truth of God. And it is the very source of our counseling and edification. This biblical edification is a general truth to all mankind, and works best for the believers of Christ. I think it's up to you to believe it and take advantage of it. However, your disbelieving does not affect its immutability, authenticity, veracity or authority. The truth still stands: Your true identity is found in God.

Jesus encountered in her hospital room


The name of Jesus is not limited to time and space. That name, Jesus, is not a respecter of persons either. That name does not honor one person more than the other. Not at all.




Jesus loves the Pope equally as well as He loves the prison inmates. The same amount of blood that He shed on the cross to redeem the great evangelists is the same amount He did for the yet lost souls. He loves the sick equally as much as he loves those in the church. Because you are sick does not imply that Jesus loves you any less or has forgotten about you.





The power of His word, His Spirit, and His presence have been real in the churches as well as in the hospitals and wherever in the world people are sincerely calling on the Lord's name.




Our Lord heals the sick and still heals by the simple act of faith on the part of the sick.




On one of my visits in a university teaching hospital in the nation of Belgium. I had a small gathering and was leading them in prayer when a lady in her twenties came in and stood by.




She wanted to talk to me about her experience the night before. So I invited her to join us in prayers. She began praying in tongues with such an excitement that I sensed there could be a story behind the experience. Yes, there was a story, but the story I heard wasn't quite the kind I had in mind.




This lady has had a spiritual encounter with the Lord in the private of her room. An unusual one. The kind that usually comes to the hearts that inwardly burn and cry to know Jesus just within the frame of their little understanding. Maybe, you know the kind I am referring to.




Actually, she was scheduled for death via a long road but she had already designed her short cut to death, silently and personally.




What do I mean by this?

You see, she was hospitalized because she was sick generally--a little bit of this, a little bit of that. But after some tests were done, she was told that she had been suffering from AIDS. That was the long road to death.




Usually the victims of AIDS used to face ''FDs'' we call it "First depressions". It is the initial breakdown, morally, that a patient experiences when told that he or she is a victim.




You may, and that is normal sometimes, have a depressive moment in life more often, of course. But the ''FDs" are quite unusual in that the patients, hearing for the very first time that they have AIDS, may not handle the shock properly, and if there's none to assist them morally , the consequences may be fatal. At this point many just think of committing suicide.




Some people do cope with it quite easily but some don't. Some are not just willing to think properly at all. The fact that they may not be accepted into the society as normal citizens, coupled with the idea of how they think that others might perceive them, bring a notably sharp decline in their morale.




In some cases, most of the FDs lie within the social stratum. A result or continued result of how people actually isolate the victims because of various reasons. And to tell you the truth, some of these victims could be much healthier than they really are at times if it weren't of people's judgmental behaviors toward them.




AIDS was her first death sentence. But there was a second one too: she had personally planned to commit suicide in the night in order to keep the news of her medical report secret. Maybe, to die with a clean bill of reputation, as some young adults may reason. That was her short cut to death. Nobody knew this but herself and the Lord. We wouldn't have known if she didn't tell us.




But how would she do this? You know, Some victims abuse drugs just to sleep off silently; some may use organized medical accidents to die (this is an intentional removal of any supporting tubes into the body from the body by the patient without the knowledge of any medical assistant present). However, that of this lady was quite wild.




Although she had planned to commit suicide, she had a painful plan. She had wanted to fall off her window from the eighth floor unto the ...who knows where?

When her hour was approaching, while waiting for the night to come, a thought came to her mind. A thought about Jesus. She has heard about Jesus from a sick friend few rooms away from hers. This friend had just mentioned of a Jesus that ''Pastor preaches'' and that pastor used to come around for consultation.




I believe she must have thought that "To wait for pastor to come the next day would be too late. This is my last night." But she did not know that there was someone closer--Jesus-- than pastor was. The greater Pastor of all time.




And it doesn't take pastor's presence for one to meet Jesus. You can meet Jesus just where you are right now and in whatever situation you may find yourself. All you need is faith not someone's presence.




So far as she was sincerely seeking for that Jesus which pastor preached, she did not need my presence at all. The great Pastor of all time--JESUS--who knows every heart, was easily available and accessible for her by faith.





But her friend didn't tell her much about Jesus than the truth that JESUS HEALS. That was all: JESUS HEALS. And this Jesus seemed to dominate her thoughts by the seconds.




She had never known Jesus personally as Lord and Savior of her life. She had never been to church, so never been a Christian. The Jesus she had seen or known in life was on the cross of a rosary. And now she heard of Him, not as the Jesus on the cross but as the Jesus who heals. H'mmm....

But the thought kept growing within her, giving her an ever increasing assurance that Jesus does heal. I think, I know what that means, that's faith. It is the assurance of something hoped for, the external intangible proof of something not seen, the conviction of a desire which the hands cannot literally hold on because it can't bring about it, but somehow, expresses its willingness to receive it if it does truly exist as it believes it does (Hew 11v1).




And too that faith is a gift of God (Ephesians 2v8 ). At times the Lord helps people here who know nothing about Him to come to Him and to receive from Him.




Biblically speaking, this faith has a spark. The word usually sparks this faith (Romans 10v17). It could be a deeper knowledge of God and what He does. Or just a whisper of that name JESUS which can birth faith.




There's a kind of faith which seems to stir you from within and which could be externally felt too. This faith could be perceived by any man of God present there. Just as it was in the case of the crippled man and Apostle Paul (Acts 14v8-10). The bible says the sick man listened to Paul as he was speaking. And Paul also perceived that this man had the faith to be healed. The faith which stirred this guy up was perceived externally by the man of God in the Spirit. Well, I wasn't present at the time of this event, but as I heard it, I knew without doubt what it was.




So the thought lingered, and lingered on her mind as she was waiting for her hour to put an end to all.




The Jesus on the cross heals? H'mmmm ... as she thought about it... and thought about it, closing the end of each second.




She was at the borders of death and life. On the mind were two thoughts: that of death on the one hand, and she had settled for death no matter what it took. It is hard to really say, but she was very bold to die. And on the other hand was that of the name of Jesus which dominated her every thought.





Suddenly, suddenly, I said suddenly because if you saw how she described it, you would know it happened quicker than her mind could recollect. But the impact or impacts are always seen and felt.




Whenever Jesus passes by, there is a trace somehow in that life which could testify of His presence. The impact is always a life changing and enduring one. Please, beloved in the Lord, whenever Jesus is coming your way in any form, literally tell Him to leave behind a notable trace in your life; to make an impact in your life.




This lady knew nothing of Jesus but she felt a presence, a sudden presence unlike any other she had known. She couldn't describe it, yes it is at times beyond description--the presence of Jesus--yet it leaves a remarkable life memory behind.




There suddenly came a flush of peace that went down her body quietening her whole being. It seemed to have absorbed all of the depressive pressure, leaving an indescribably peaceful atmosphere within her. She had a sense of freedom, as one set free from bondage. For she just felt different...it’s inexplicable, just different. She was so joyful in a different way, so peaceful in a different way, she just felt different, as one a heavy weight had been put off from her shoulders. She had a sense that she had no sin left in her, that she could be with God even at that time...so different she said!

No she had never felt or been in this 'different' state before and had never hoped to be in one in life. If at all she had any such hope, that was at the wrong moment and place--the hospital. The hospital was the end of it all. It wasn't a place to be hopeful about anything. But it became the beginning of another life caused by Jesus. The beginning of a new hope.




In addition something happened. A warm wave-like movement hit her body and ran through her from head to the legs. She became so strong that she rose to her feet with hands toward heaven, speaking in tongues aloud in the middle of her dark room.




She who had never been to the church, who taught her how to worship with uplifted hands? How to speak in tongues? Probably the great teacher--JESUS.





More so, she also sensed that she was healed from AIDS having felt the way she felt. And she was truly restored to perfect health. The presence of the Lord totally burned out her sick condition giving her a new clean bill of health.




She became a brand new child of God, a new person with the life of God in her and full of peace; filled with the Holy Spirit and speaking in Tongues. All of these--freedom, healing, salvation, tongues speaking--amazed her and many others in the hospital. Many who heard of it found strength to follow the Lord. Some found strength to pray loudly, lovingly and respectfully but with boldness. Some found tolerance to hear loud noises in the name of prayer and not be hurt or disturbed. The results of the gracious favor of God.




But what brought about these? It wasn't the pastor but the word about Jesus and what He does now, today. At the whisper of that name Jesus, faith could be birthed and nurtured to accomplish mighty deeds just as the faith of this lady did.




You may not know Jesus much, never been to church but are sick or are in need of Jesus deeply and sincerely. I assure you, it could be your day now.




Do not belittle yourself, Jesus does not respect any age group, any gender, or profession over another. Rather He honors but your faith, your sincere cry to know His power, see His works, experience His touch. That's all.




Just desire Jesus from within your heart. In that sick condition of yours, thirst for that name, call that name more and more and more, let that name saturate your soul--JESUS, JESUS, JESUS.




You see, the name of Jesus is rightly a name but more than a name. That name is packed with everything you will ever need to live on this earth and the one to come.




The name itself is the name God has given unto men by which men could be saved (in all aspects). It's a name higher than any other name. It's a name, the birth giver of faith. Faith comes by hearing the word of God. Faith also comes by hearing the name of JESUS; believing in the name of JESUS; honoring the name of JESUS without having read the Bible even for one day.


That simple? Yes it is!

Reading the word is good and all Christians should aspire to. But most of the time, God gives the gift of saving faith to sinners because of what they heard of God and saw God do than of what they actually read in the Bible.




In short, more than 90% are born again because of the word preached to them than that which they actually read from the Bible. And if any word is preached to anyone as a means to salvation without the word "Jesus" spoken of as the life saver, life giver and sin taker, that salvation calls for doubts. For NO salvation is true without the name of JESUS. It is the name given unto men by which they may be saved (Acts 4v12).




This lady didn't know my name, did she? But she knew the name of Jesus. She didn't call my name, did she? But she called the name of Jesus. The name of Jesus is above all other names (Philippians 2v9 ).




All what she needed was loaded in that name JESUS, think of that for a moment! She needed freedom from a depressive past and Jesus does set free (John 8v36). She was set free indeed.




She needed healing, JESUS HEALS (Acts 3v16). And she was totally healed.




She needed peace and JESUS IS PEACE (Ephesians 2v14). She received a well of peace.




She needed life and JESUS IS LIFE (John 10v10; 14v6). She was given a renewed, strong, physically healthy life.




She needed spiritual redemption and JESUS REDEEMS (John 3v16; 2 Cor 5v17). And she was saved as a child of God with the life of God in her.




She needed to be filled by the Spirit and with delight JESUS FILLS WITH THE SPIRIT (John 7v38; Luke 11v13). And she was filled with the Holy Ghost and given utterances.




She needed a new purpose to life, JESUS GAVE HER MEANING TO LIFE, A CAUSE TO LIVE FOR. For it is in Jesus that all things hold together (Colossians 1v17). It's in Jesus that life makes sense. For in Him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17v28). The name of Jesus is powerful and greater than any other name.




Now, please open your ears very carefully to what I am about to say: any sickness you know on the face of the earth has a name, and to be very simple and candid, call it by its name. Yes, do your very best to name that sickness, and having done so, take it to the name of Jesus. At the presence of the two names, one shall bow, one shall submit. And guess what? The sickness shall bow. Amen.




You may be reading this in the prison center, it may be your time to experience Jesus' presence there with you. He is right there within those walls yet He is not limited to them.




Are you sick in the hospital? On a sick bed? Jesus could be very real to you, beloved. You don't need any pastor's help than focusing on the Lord Jesus; Jesus is right there with you. The answer to all of your problems.




You may be sick reading this at the comfort of your homes, wherever it may be, I pray that the name above all other names, the name of Jesus minister to your situation right now in the name of Jesus.




Let that name be real to you, in your life. Ask the Lord Jesus to be real to you, to reveal Himself to you in the light of your little understanding of Him.




He understands that your sick condition has hampered your ability to always be by the Bible, His word. He understands that your medication posed a big hindrance to understanding His word even if you read. At times you can't just read the word, yet in the deep of your spirit you long for Him. Then ask Him to reveal His gentle self in a simple way that you could understand. To touch you that you may know this is what the Lord has done. That you may know, this is the impact of Jesus. Ask Him to leave a trace of His presence behind. Desire HIM.





All of you who are sick right now, please, this is your unique moment to get that name of Jesus to be real to you and work for you. Just lift up your hands in worship and begin to call on that name JESUS with your problems on your mind; and continue to worship the Lord in that manner.




May the Lord set his face toward you and cause His favor to rest upon you in Jesus' name. Amen.




Your Brother in the Lord loves you dearly.





P.C.


AKUBUEZE

www. ammgospel. com

Body: Did you read the title of this piece of read?





Just as it is:Your anger may be the reason for those unpleasant experiences.





The Holy book records:

"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should
be... slow to become ANGRY, for man's ANGER does
not bring about the righteous life that God desires" (James 1:19-20).











"An ANGRY man stirs up dissension, and a HOT-
TEMPERED one COMMITS many SIN" (Proverbs 29:22).











Man is created in three dimensions. He is a spirit being with a soul and lives in the body (I Thessalonians 5:23). The emotion, mind and the will are parts of the soul. And anger is one of the emotional expressions in man.











James emphasizes that all should be slow to become angry. Reader, you know, the feelings of anger come, and it is congenital with some animate creatures such as humans and animals. It is not sinful nor is it temptation to become angry. But how we react when we are angry may lead us into temptation, or into sin, or it may be sinful in itself.











The Bible gives us a succinct admonition not to sin when we are angry (Ephesians 4:26). Implying there is every possibility that when we become angry, when we are tetchy, when we are hot tempered, we can be misled into sinful actions. And at such times we give Satan greater access to our lives. The Bible calls it " a foot hold." I like that picture here ! It says, " Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foot hold" (Ephesians 4:26-27). Yes anger as congenital with the creatures of God, it may not glorify God if not kept in control.











Anger fortifies Satan's approaches against us to an extend that we are tempted into doing the wrong things. For man's anger does not bring about the kind of righteous living that our Lord desires of us.








To this, Proverbs says an angry man commits many sins. How many sins? Many it says. And the Psalmist adds that we should "Refrain from anger...." Why? Because" ...It only leads to evil " ( 37:8). I don't think that leads to godliness.











Moses' anger caused him to break the tablets of the law (Exo. 32:19). And if you read further in the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Old Testament), you would realize that he did not enter the Promised Land he so labored for because of his anger.











When we do not control our anger, we give Satan greater chances to tempt us to do regrettable things. Things you would otherwise not go in for. Things that are in conflict with the word of God.











Beloved, may the Lord who helps us live the life He called us to live in Christ Jesus via the power of the Spirit continue to cause you refrain from anger and thus avoid its repercussions. May He help you walk in victory in pleasing Him alone whenever you are angry. In Jesus' Name. Amen.











My Team and I love you in the LORD

Body: Any good counselor desires success for the one being counseled. His aim is to cause or help achieve the stated objectives for which he is there to bring about. Through his wise counsels, he can navigate you there via difficulty and obscurity. Except he is of the wrong kind, he would always aspire your success, that you do victory.






Proverbs tells us that victory and safety come by the abundance of counselors. In other words, the counselors all have the aspiration to be victorious in the first place. They are aiming for nothing less than victory, nothing less than safety; nothing less than success.






This is the biblical vision for our counselor. They are out to cause us to succeed. God wants you to succeed; Jesus wants you to succeed; The Spirit wants you to succeed. When God was talking to Joshua, He said the reason for His communication was His aspiration for Joshua as a leader. He wanted Joshua to succeed wherever he went and at whatever time of the day it was.




Whether in the morning, noon, evening or at night, He wanted Joshua to succeed. He wanted him to succeed from Monday through Sunday. At countryside or in the city; before his enemies and loved ones, He wanted Joshua to make a good success. And successful, Joshua was indeed (Joshua 1v7-8).




This didn't end with Joshua alone. It applies to us all. God wants you to be successful; He wants the singers to succeed; He wants the business men and women to succeed; He wants the pastors to succeed. God wants you to do good success. And successful you would be if you too hold the same vision with God for your good.




we love you all, beloved in Christ.

Body: Certainly by now you must have believed with me that God wants us to do good success and that the word of God is given to achieve just that. Now let me add to say that despite the Lord's word and His intention, you are the one to cause yourself to prosper or succeed.
Let's read what the word says here:

"Do not let this book of the law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you would be prosperous and successful" (Jos.1V8).


Who was to prevent the book from departing before his mouth? Joshua was. And Who was to meditate day and night upon the word? Joshua was. Kind of prerequisite for prosperity.
Isn't it?



I like to read the last phrase from the Amplified version of the Bible. It reads thus: "...For then you shall make your way prosperous and then you shall deal wisely and have good success.
"


Of course, Joshua was the one to make his way prosperous. Joshua was the one to go for the words which could bring him victory. Joshua was the one to approach the counselor of success to be successful. If that was true of Joshua, it is no less to us. The word is given that you may cause yourself to prosper.
What a paradigm!



You are the one to cause yourself to prosper not God. He already desires that for you and He's there as your counselor to counsel you, but you have to avail yourself toward Him. You are the one to approach the word for study. Yes, the word is reliable, the power is there with a good intention but for anyone who wills to consult it, who wills to find out, who wills to know. The very first step comes from our part to believe God and read what He designed for us. I am sorry! That’s the only biblical way you can cause yourself to prosper.




Joshua was told that too. When God called Joshua, He wanted him to succeed, to do victory and nothing less. But this success would depend upon the way Joshua handled the word of God. God revealed to him that His word was designed to cause him to succeed in whatever he did and wherever he went ( Joshua 1v7-8). But it should not depart from before him day and night. And Who was to do that? Joshua not God.




Solomon was told that too. When David talked with him on this subject, there was nothing less on David's heart than to expect success for his son Solomon. David helped him via the counsel of the word that he should walk in all the Lord's ways. He said that they were designed to cause him to prosper and succeed as a king over God's people (1 Kings 2v2-3).




But for that to be true, Solomon was to show himself a spiritual man as he walked daily, faithfully with the Lord. That was his responsibility for bringing about success for himself. God wasn't going to do that for him.




The word of God has the innate ability to cause us to prosper in whatever we do and wherever we go. But it is up to you to cause that reality to be true, to be your experience as you let the word counsel us daily.




Read the word daily and do not grow weary in doing so. If you're to do it, do it everyday. The Bible says all the promises of God are all "Yes" in Christ (1Cor 1v20). There's no room for unbelief. If you read the word once, read it again and again and everyday. If it is yes today, it's yes for all time. Thus let the reading be an act of faith.




To be prosperous and successful have been God's intention for all of His children. And everything you need to be successful in this life has been provided for by God imbedded in His word (2 Peter 1v3). But to literally have them, we have to be counseled by Him. He is got to tell us about them. We've got to discover them. This could only be so through the constant, daily act of reading or allowing the counsels of God's words to minister to us.




It comes by meditating, pondering on what the counsels say of us on a daily basis. God wants you to achieve good success, to be victorious, to be prosperous because you have trusted His counselor to lead you. And there's no safety without it.




In the abundance of counselors there's sure victory and safety. The word of God stands in the best position to counsel us in every aspect of life. Whether in the economic, medical, political, social or religious issues, it has good and healthy advices on how to prosper in them all.




To escape Satan's lies you need a counselor--the Bible-- to counsel you daily and so help change your mindset. It counsels you daily about your position in the plans of God. It counsels you about the advantages of serving God. It counsels you about your future victory. It counsels you about how fallen is your enemy. It counsels you about the new person you've become in Christ.




Without this counselor of God by your side, you probably would be believing Satan's lies about your problems, your solutions and position in Christ. You know, Satan is also a false counselor. If you reject or are ignorant of God's counsels, you would buy that of the devil. You truly should strive to belong to one camp. And Please, let it be that of God for safety reasons.




So get for yourself a Bible. If you need a Bible but can't afford for it, please, contact us immediately, we would make one available for you as quick as we can.




Probably you as a Christian do have one at home, or you can afford for one; if so, please get a copy and let it be very close and useful to you.




If you are not frequently at home, it won't make much sense to just keep one there. The reason for having one is to get in touch with it as often as possible; I mean to read it, to have fellowship with the word; to let the word minister to you.




It would do you much good to have one that you can reach very readily at work, in the offices; or perhaps a handy Bible convenient to carry around that you can use while in the public places or transport system. Whether in the bus, train etc. Or as you wait to be served in the public places such some super markets, post offices to name but a few. Any such places that can demand your time in waiting for a service to be rendered to you is a good time and place to read the Bible; to consult the counsel of God.




In addition, do your best not to counsel the word but let the word counsel you. As a mirror see yourself in its reflection (James 1v23-24). And accept what you see. We normally go to the counselor to listen what he has got to say. Similarly, in the word we consult it with a listening heart. We want to know, we want to hear, we want to learn. It usually tells us what to do and how to do so better.




There are ministers in the gospel who do plan for teachings yearly, but because they allowed the counselor to counsel them daily, they got within few days what they could teach for a year. A thing that could never be possible without having had fellowship with the word.



The businessman as he consults the word daily could be given ideas on how to make good business deals and become successful.



The singer, because she consults the word of God daily to counsel her may be given songs in days that couldn't be had for years. She could be given another vocal polish by the help of the anointing, because she reads her Bible daily.



The prayer warriors, because they read their Bibles daily, could be given strategic prayer points and each point when prayed about, brings a mighty breakthrough and blessings to the body of Christ.



The Evangelist, because he reads the word daily could be given plans on how to win souls for the kingdom of God. These plans when put into action will rain down the anointing of God that would leave a memorable experience in the hearts of men.



The musician because he reads the word daily can be given a fresh dynamics to play skillfully in a way he couldn't before with the aid of the counsels of the Lord.



The sick, because he or she reads the word, can be counseled that Jesus does heal and so receive divine healing. In addition, the Lord can put the life and affairs of the sick together again.



All of these examples are consistent to what the word revealed to us as a way to success. To keep the laws of God before the eyes on a daily basis. It was said to Joshua (1v8), admonished in Proverbs (24v6; 20v18). And we are told to find out what pleases the Lord ( Eph 5v10). What can please God more than your prosperity under His counseling? He delights in your success (Psalm 35v27).



We are told to strive to know His will (Eph 5v17), which is good, pleasing and perfect (Romans 12v2v2); and to grow in His knowledge (2 Peter 3v18) so that we may understand the availability of all what we need for success in life (2 peter 1v3), and thus participate in the blessings (success) that God intends for us free from worldly corruption (2 Peter 1v4). You see the success of God is unlike that of the world. You don't have to lie, to cheat or steal for gain.



But you cannot know all these blessings; you cannot grow in the knowledge of God, if you avoid reading the word. No, all you need is the word to counsel you daily. Let the word tell you about them.



Read the word daily, meditate on it daily, let the word minister to you daily for by so doing you would achieve success and be victorious in all your undertakings. By so doing you would escape the lies of the enemy.



Only the truth can beat Satan's lies. Only the truth can set free (John 8v32). Only the truth is worth believing as it endures the test of time.
Sincere believer, what are you believing in? Are you believing in the truth? Do you want to believe in the truth? Then approach the truth daily.







With my love and prayers

Body: You, probably, must have been believing in something.


Let me ask you directly: What are you believing in? Negative thoughts or the positive ones? Thoughts of freedom or thoughts that keep you bound? Thoughts of possibilities or of impossibilities? Godly thoughts or ungodly ones?





Anyway! Whatever you may have been believing in falls in one category called WORDS. It is all made up of words. It is either words from God or from the devil. It is either a lie or truth. It's either words connected to doubt, fear and unbelief which are of Satan. Or words connected to faith and faith and faith which are steps on the path of truth.








What are you believing in? Is the thought on your mind the thought of God concerning you or another kind of thought? Are you believing what God says of you or what the situations, the others and the devil say of you?





Are you believing that your affairs shall prosper or the contrary? Are you believing that your bodies are destined for good health or the contrary? Are you believing that you as a singer cannot be a star for the Lord or the contrary?





Are you believing that you as a minister cannot serve God faithfully with a multimillion dollar bank account or the contrary? Are you believing that you as a man of God can't be debt free and serve faithfully with a comfortable financial situation or the contrary? Are you believing that your poor financial position, as a man of God, does not make your calling or life any less spiritual or the contrary?





Are you a Christian who thinks that being godly or living for God in this world is possible or the contrary? Are you believing that you're more than a conqueror in the face of difficulty or the contrary?





Are you believing that you can overcome your mistakes and be better for God or the contrary? Are you believing that God can change your situation for good or the contrary? Are you believing that your weaknesses are no hindrances for God to use you for His glory or the contrary?







Are you believing that God can cause you to succeed in whatever you do or the contrary? Are you believing that you wouldn't remain a single for life without seeing God's choice for you or the contrary? Are you believing that your children will walk with God and obey Him or the contrary?



Beloved, the list may be endless. But all these mindsets are made up of words. If you have been believing the contrary, you might have as well been believing words that are lies, communicated to you by Satan.






What are you believing in? Sincerely check it out please. You must belong to one of the two camps.




And if you do not know where exactly you belong, it's easy to find out. Simply examine yourself if you are in the word of faith just as the Bible encourages us to do (2 Cor 13v5). Ask yourself if you're walking by faith and if not so, you're surely on the other side of the camp. If you are not in the faith walk, you must have been communicated to by the devil. For Satan is a communicator whose communications are made up of lies. In him is no truth at all (John 8v44).






THE DEVIL : A LIAR AND THE FATHER OF ALL LIES

"You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a lair and the father of lies" (John 8v44).






There is no truth in Satan; he is a liar and the author, the birth-giver, the father of all lies. Can you just imagine that ? Someone whose nature is not just made up of lies, but who in himself, breeds out lies. The holy book calls him a liar and the father of lies, implying that he replicates his nature--lies.










In addition, the Bible tells us that lying is the first and best language Satan could speak or understand. "You belong to your father, the devil....When he lies, he SPEAKS HIS NATIVE LANGUAUGE, for he is a liar and the father of lies " (John 8:44).








You, probably, know that a language is literally used to communicate between people.


Now, if lying is his best or native language, think about this: when Satan confronts, approaches or communicates to you, would you find any truth in that encounter? "You better don't say YES"







Eve could tell you that there is no truth in Satan. When Satan communicated to her, she realized that she was totally deceived and said to God: " The serpent deceived me...(Gen. 3:13).










Judas could also tell you that his actions against Christ were as the results of satanic communications. All what the enemy communicated to his thoughts was full of lies and deceptions. Instead of honor, he was dishonored. Instead of his financial gain, he lost it as he returned it back. Instead of joy and satisfaction for his acts, he was filled with remorse and sorrow. And instead of life, he faced physical death by suicide and eternally died also. The Bible records that when Judas who had betrayed Jesus realized that He was condemned, he said, " I have sinned" (Matt. 27:2-6). That, certainly, is not a statement of one who confronted the truth. For no truth can lead to sin.










So if you've not been walking in the will of God, you must have been communicated to by Satan. If you've been thinking and expecting less than what God thinks and expects of you, you must have been communicated to by Satan.










Maybe you are comfortable with all you have and so have become complacent, you know, confronted by the temptation of not wanting more blessings because you're at the zenith of your career or achievements. I call this the temptation of idolatry. For anything that becomes complacent resists change.










God created everything to know and keep changing. Only God Himself cannot change (James 1v17; Hebrew 1v12, 13v8;Numbers 23v19; Malachi 3v6). Whatever resists change is setting itself up as a god. This is a kind of communication that comes from the enemy too. Don't limit Him. Don't be the idol.








God is not only able but wants to do more. It is from glory to glory that we are bound to change, to keep growing, to keep prospering and nothing less (2Cor. 3v18). There's no room for stagnation. For in any stagnation, there's a loss. You truly are clouded by his lies. And these are the state of mind that God doesn't desire for His children. You need a way out of it.


And a way of escape there is!

We love you all in the Lord

Beloved, If you've been on the side of lies. There's a way out of it. I mean, if you've been having those negative thoughts on your mind, there is a way out of that mindset.





But the first step is to ask yourself these questions : Do I really love the words I think? The words I hear? The words I speak? And how can I help change the kinds of WORDS I hear, think and speak? Pretty good questions in deed! Aren't they? This is the very first step to take--knowing the problem--if you would want to escape from the enemy's domain of lies.






Then the second step is to get for yourself a counselor. A counselor? Yes a counselor.





I Can't understand you brother! Can you recast your sentence?



Okay, let me put it this way! I said to escape from the daily lies of the enemy--the devil--you need a daily counselor to help you with certain kind of words that you need to hear, probably words of victory, you know.





Negative mindsets are made up of Satan's lies. And to escape Satan's lies, all you need is a counselor.

Hmmm!


Do I have to hire one? Not necessarily. But a counselor is of high demand in this context.

Just read on!




The Inevitability Of A Counselor


Go to any state house and enquire as to how the president runs his office. You would be told a number of things, one among which is the fact that there are advisers or counselors who counsel him on different subjects in connection to policies and decision makings. A successful leader does so because he has good advisers around him.





This is not only true with politics, but in all walks of life; in every field of engagement. A well defined objective, mission, purpose or set of actions could succeed if there is a counselor seeing to it that every energy is well directed to achieving the stated goals.





Biblically speaking, for any project (secular or non secular) to succeed it needs the aid of many advisers or counselors. And so the Bible encourages us to make plans, set goals, objectives and strategies by seeking advice and guidance.






"Make plans by seeking advice; if you wage war, obtain guidance" (Proverbs 20v18). The Amplified version reads this way " Purposes and plans are established by counsel; and only with good advice make or carry on war.

"




That's exactly the truth. Every purpose, every plan comes to fruition by the aid of good counsels; by means of good advices.





It also says in Proverbs 24v6 that "For waging war you need guidance, and for victory, advisers." With the Amplified version saying " For by wise counsel you can wage your war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory and safety.

"



Let's just read that last phrase once again, "...and in the abundance of counselors there is victory and safety." Great! How does it say victory and safety come? By means of abundant counselors giving wise counsels. Perfect! I am glad you're catching the point now! For victory in any walk of life, a counselor is inevitable.






BUT WHO IS A COUNSELOR?


This is a key question that deserves direct and clear response.



The word of God is a counselor (Psalm 119v24) . Jesus is a counselor ( Isaiah 9v6c; Rev 3v18, 19v13 ). The Holy Spirit is a counselor (John 14v16; 14v26; 15v26). And all of them do counsel via the word, I mean, with the written word of God as revealed in the Bible.





The word of God does counsel you directly through that same word you see, read or hear. The psalmist says the word is his delight because that same word is his counselor (Psalm 119v24). The word counsels using the word.






Jesus does counsel you through the word too. Jesus is the word of God and the word is the Lord. Both are one (John 1v1, v14). Jesus is the word revealed (this thought runs deep, you may call it : LOGOS) and the word is Jesus written. It reveals Jesus in every form.





The words which are written in the Bible are full of what Jesus physically spoke (John 14v26) while on earth. And what He spoke remained true for all time. He uses the same spoken words to lead us today.





Remember when He opened the minds of His Apostles, after the resurrection, what they did understand was the Scripture, the written word of God. It wasn't another kind of revelation outside of the Bible (Luke 24v45). So Jesus counsels by the word.





The Holy Spirit does counsel us through the word too. He is to guide (counsel) us into all truth and the truth is the word (16v13-14). He would not speak (counsel) on His own but what He hears from the Father, the one from whom He emanates (15v26).





The Spirit is to teach (counsel) us the word and remind (counsel) us of all that Jesus said (has counseled) (John 14v26). The Spirit is to testify about Jesus; taking what is Jesus' (His counsels) and making it known to us (through counseling) (John 16v14). And all what the Spirit takes from Jesus is from the Father as well (John 16v15).





So you see the Father as a counselor, the Word as a counselor, Jesus as a counselor and the Spirit as a counselor, are all connected and consistent in spiritual communication using the written word to counsel us.





This clearly implies that whatever the Spirit would tell you would be consistent and agrees with what the Lord and the word would tell you. There's no discrepancy in it.





There are some people who like to say " God told me...God said to me...God revealed to me...bla bla bla...I was on the mountain...blazing with fire...and God said...," and these people don't fully walk in the word of God. They bring confusion and division amongst the people of God by what they utter out in the name of the word from God.





No, beloved, God cannot tell you what contradicts His words. I agree that God can speak to you whether by dreams, prophecies or visions etc. But He would also do that to be consistent with His word, to uphold the integrity of the word, I mean. Everything shall pass away but the word abides forever (1 Peter 1v25;Matt. 5v18;). If you are to trust on anything on the face of the earth, please, trust in the word of God, the only one thing that would outlive all visions, outlive all prophecies, and outlive all dreams and all lives.





In all we may call visions, revelations, spiritual dreams etc., it would help avoid many problems if we follow this succinct biblical admonition: "Do not go beyond what is written" (I Cor. 4v6). Just stay within the frame of reference of God's word. Period.



We love you all, dear reader.




P.C.
& Team

continued from part one...


We have been saying that the presence of the Holy Spirit has always been within the creation of God before the world was made. The Bible records that in the beginning there existed a time that the earth was formless and empty with darkness all over it; it was void of anything but the Spirit of God.

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, AND THE SPIRIT OF GOD WAS HOVERING OVER THE WATERS" (Genesis 1v2).

The Holy Spirit did not only preexist the earth but also kept the chaotic earth under control before any single creature of God within the universe came into being or existence. Thus, we may conclude that the coming of the Holy Spirit should have a different connotation than just being present on the face of the earth. And What it really does mean or imply is the subject of this study we are going to do.





5) The coming of the Holy Spirit is an human experience of the fusion of the trinity of God

Basically the doctrine of the trinity teaches that God exists in three persons as God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. All of whom are coequal and coeternal.

When it was said that the Holy Spirit was to be poured out unto humans, there was this reality of the fusion of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit all in the body of the believer. The believer is thus experiencing the presence of three divine excellencies.

Look with me carefully here: Jesus said in John's Gospel that " On that day (that is when God the Spirit is given) you will realise that I (Jesus: God the Son) am in the Father (God the Father), and you (humans: the believers) are in me (Jesus), and I (Jesus) am in you (humans: the believers) (John 14v20).

So while we have the presence of the Spirit of God in us, we must understand that He the Spirit comes in us, the human bodies with Jesus and the Father who are all God, coequal and coeternal. What a mystery brought about by the Holy Spirit's presence.

And this mystery, although it was hidden from the understanding of the Jews before Jesus' coming, it is now something Jesus wants you the believer to know about now. It mustn't be a mystery to you any longer but a mystery within understanding, child of God. For Jesus clearly said that ''On that day YOU WILL REALISE THAT... (John 14v20). Who would realize? You the believer. When would you realize? When the Spirit is poured. And what would you realize? That the Spirit comes together with the Father and the Son all in the believer. That is the fusion. Before that day, it wasn't possible. But now you can understand the reality of the trinity in YOU.

6)The coming of the Holy Spirit is an experience coming from the Father

When the Counsellor comes whom I will send from the Father, the spirit of truth who goes out from the Father" (John15v26).

"...whom the Father will send...(John14v26).

The Spirit is of the Father and we, the Father's children, have been given the Father's Spirit. This Spirit we have received is no different from the Spirit of God the Father.Jesus tells us that the Spirit is sent from God and He goes out from the Father. He, the Spirit emanates from the Father. Thus the Father has given from what was in Him.

No, we have not received the spirit of the world nor of slavery and fear but the spirit of son ship by whom we cry Abba Father, testifying with our spirit that we are God's children (Romans 8v15-17). All these are so because we are begotten by somebody--God the Father. Why don't you feel proud of having that precious Spirit of the Father within you.

7)The coming of the Holy Spirit is an experience sent by Jesus
"
"When the Counsellor comes whom I will send from the Father..." (John 15v26).
Unless I go away the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will SEND him to you (John 16v7).

Jesus tells us that the Coming of the Spirit upon men and indwelling them is an experience that He sends from the Father into the lives of His disciples who have believed in His name. So He is actively involved in that act of letting the Spirit of God from the Father dwell in us. He has the ability and capacity to cause the Spirit to come dwell in us. Whatever it takes Jesus has provided for it to lubricate the way and experience that the child of God become the temple of God.

8) The coming of the Spirit is an experience co sent by the Father
"...whom the Father will send...(John14v26).

Not only is the Spirit emanating from God the Father but also He the Spirit is sent by the Father too. The Father does desire that the Spirit comes in us; He the Father is the main source from which the Spirit comes; and He the Father practically is involved in the act of sending that Spirit into our lives. He has the ability and capacity to do so. Since He is one with Jesus, both are co senders of the Holy Spirit experience. Thus, it is right to say Father Send your Spirit...as well as Jesus send your Spirit....

9) The coming of the Holy Spirit is an experience the result of Christ's Prayer

Our Lords Jesus literally told the apostles that He would ask the Father to give us another Counselor to be with us.
" And I WILL ASK the Father, and he will give you another Counsellor " (John 14v16).

For this to be true, there has to be an experience of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. It is a result of the fact that Jesus prayed for it; that Jesus asked for it to be so. Long ago this promise has been made but never has it been fulfilled until the time that Jesus came on scene. If Jesus hadn't asked for it, we could have still been on the wait until the right moment of God. Thank God He did.



10) The coming of the Holy Spirit is an experience to cause us feel loved by God.
"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another counsellor....I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you (John 14v16-18)


He was to send another Counselor like Himself. A counselor does show love in counseling for the one being counseled. This other counselor is now the Holy Spirit who continues to show or expressed the love of God to us as Children of God, not as slaves or orphans but as children born of God.

An orphan has no parents and that love which comes from the side of the parents might not be a true experience to the orphan. But the Lord says this scenario is unlike that of an orphan who kind of feels unloved. No, Jesus is not going to leave us as orphan and has not left us that way. He has sent the Holy Spirit to come and live in us and with us forever. His presence assures us that we are loved by God.

11) The coming of the Holy Spirit is an experience, a clear approval of Jesus' work on the earth

According to John's gospel, this experience of the indwelling Holy Spirit was not fully real when Jesus was on the face of the earth doing the will of the Father, because Jesus wasn't yet glorified when He was still working on this earth (John 7v39; 20v17).

It only began to take place when the Lord was glorified. By glorification, we mean the divine acceptance of what Jesus accomplished in the redemptive calendar of God and, by so doing, was elevated to the highest position given a highest name and thus allowed to take His rightful seat in the right hand of God the Father in heaven. It was a strong approval by God of all what the Lord did for us concerning Salvation. The Spirit being given is an attestation that the lives of people are worth the temples of God brought about by Christ. It was truly finished when Jesus said it was ( John 19v30). But until then it wasn't.


12)The coming of the Holy Spirit is an experience in the name of Jesus

"But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit whom the Father would send IN MY NAME..." (John14v26).

The Lord made it clear that the coming of the Holy was an experience possible because of His name. Implying that for one to be filled by the spirit or for one to receive the Holy Spirit, he or she has to call on the name of Jesus.

We can, of course, ask the Holy Spirit to fill us as an ongoing process in the walk of Salvation. But to receive the Holy Spirit in the first place as in regeneration of one's life, you have to call on the name of Jesus as sin taker and sin bearer. It is when Jesus comes into one's life that the Holy Spirit comes in. Without Jesus first cleansing or reborning a person, it can't be possible.

The Spirit comes in as an assurance of salvation. And what is salvation? The work that Jesus does in the life of a sinner making that sinner a child of God. It's all about Jesus. Jesus said the Father is sending the Holy Spirit in His NAME, in the NAME OF JESUS. Let that be your prayer: IN THE NAME OF JESUS...Father send your Spirit....

The Holy Ghost doesn't come because your hands are so stretched out toward heaven, or because you are taller than the others. No, it comes because you believe in Christ as Lord and savior of your soul. Your out stretched hands could help you worship the Lord, but don' t be deceived for how closer your hands are toward heaven really doesn't matter. What matters is how close Jesus is to your heart, or how close is your heart to Jesus.

You may not be a believer but desire this experience, yes it could be true even now, where you are right now. Just call on the name of Jesus as the sin bearer, sin taker and savior of your life. Ask Him to come in you with all He has to offer. Ask Him to fill you with His spirit. Just flow into that river of worship and adoration.

May the good Lord continue to guide you all into His perfect will, and cause you to fully stand in the place He has called you to be by the power of the Holy Spirit which is already within you. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

We love you all.

"...PRAY that you will not fall into temptation" (Luke 22:40).

"...get up and PRAY so that you will not fall into temptation" (Luke 22:46).


"Watch and PRAY so that you will not fall into temptation" (Mark 14:38).



It is an inevitable and biblically stated fact that temptation would come toward humans as long as they live on the face of the earth. Our Savior and Lord revealed this truth to us when He said that the things which cause sin are bound to come.



"Jesus said to his disciples:'Things that cause people to sin are bound to come...'" (Lk. 17:1).



Notice that the things which cause people to sin are not sins but something other than sins. Although one sin could lead to another sin, the things that cause people to initially sin are but temptations.



The Amplified translation reads this way: " And Jesus said to His disciples, Temptations (snares, traps set to entice to sin) are sure to come...." They are what? They are SURE to come. What exactly are sure to come? The TEMPTATIONS. That truth is not the word of man, it came from the mouth of Jesus Christ Himself, speaking as Lord over life and death.



However, our Lord didn't just leave us there. He went further to admonish us to keep on praying. We are neither praying that temptation won't come into our world, nor that we might avoid being tempted. Rather we are praying that we may not fall into temptation, or yield to it, or give in to its unholy desires. In other words, that we might not sin having been tempted.


You see, prayer is one of the powerful weapons we have at our disposal with which to overcome or prevent temptation. To be more precise, it is the act of praying, the constant communication with God; that which is done daily, not necessarily when temptation hits us. No, do not be of the kind who loves praying only when temptation hits.



Since we know that it is bound to come our way, the need to constantly pray, praying daily, is of enormous importance to us. For we do not have the capacity to know when exactly it may come and how exactly it may look like when it comes; nor through whom exactly it may come. This imprecision of knowledge should cause us to always be connected to God.


We often read in the Bible how Jesus overcame temptation when He was tempted in the desert. But have you ever considered the factor that caused Him to be triumphant over the temptations He faced ? No, no, no beloved! Do not say that Jesus was God. That wasn't the factor.



Of course, I agree with you that Jesus was fully God and fully man when He lived on the planet earth. But He did not live on this planet as God would, for God cannot be tempted by evil (James 1:13). No. He lived as humans live, just as you and I. The Holy Bible says Jesus was tempted in every way just as WE HUMAN BEINGS, not divine beings, are tempted, but He was without sin (Hebrews 4:15). It also talks of Jesus becoming flesh (human) and dwelling amongst men (humans) (John 1:14). So, you see, being in the nature of God wasn't the factor that put Him through.


The main factor that put Him through was prayer. He was a man of prayer. He lived a life of prayer. He taught about prayer (Luke 11v2-4). He was always connected to the Father when He was on this planet earth. He prayed very early in the morning (Mark 1v35), when raising the dead (John 11v41-42), when teaching (Luke 11v1). He prayed during conversation (Luke 10v21), during meals (Luke 9v16), in Gethsemane (Mark 14v32), and on the cross itself (Mark 15v34).


Haven't you read that He fasted for forty days and night, without food prior His trials ? Satan, the tempter, did not confront Him until after many days of fasting and praying. "After fasting for forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said..." (Matt. 4:2-3). Now the tempter didn't come until the praying was well on its way. Prayer is one of His secrets to success over temptation. He prayed to the Father constantly. He was prayerfully prepared before Satan confronted Him. Prayer strengthened Him during His difficult times.


When Job was tempted, troubled by all that befell him, having heard of the bad news in its series, the Bible tells us that the first thing he did was to pray. To worship God and be connected to God was his priority (Job 1v20-21). Prayer prepared him for victory and a victor, he was.


Prayer is a powerful source of strength to overcome temptation available to all believers. Apostle Peter was made to understand this source of power when Jesus revealed to him the solution to what Satan proposed against Peter. "Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. but I have PRAYED for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail" (Luke 22:31-32). The solution to Satan's attack against Peter was that of PRAYER. Jesus prayed in advance for Peter that he might not be trapped in all what Satan planned against him. He prayed that Peter might not fail in his faith. He prayed that Peter might be successful; that Peter might overcome the temptation coming his way. Prayer set Peter on the path to victory. He wasn't a dropout.


More so, during His difficult times, in order to prevent His Apostles from falling into temptation, our Lord encouraged them time and again to get up and pray, to watch and pray, not necessarily that they may not face the temptation, but that they might not fall into it; that they might not give in to whatever the temptation presented. They were to pray that they might overcome (Luke 22:40, 46; Mark 14:38). And they got the message.


When they were persecuted and threatened by the Jewish leaders as they obeyed Jesus' orders, the Bible says "They raised their voices together in PRAYER to God." In effect, they were filled by the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly (Acts 4:24, 31).


When Peter was in temptation and trials, it was prayer that put him through. Because prayer was going on for Peter's behalf while in prison, God did intervene and set him free. " So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly PRAYING to God for him....Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. `Quick, get up!´ he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists" (Acts 12:5, 7).


It was prayer that caused Paul and Silas to overcome their trials when they were persecuted, beaten and jailed. Because they prayed, despite their difficulties, despite the temptations that Satan brought against them, God miraculously intervened and set them free. "The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrate ordered them to be stripped and beaten. After they have been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. About midnight Paul and Silas were PRAYING and SINGING hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose" (Acts 16:22-26).

There would have been no violent earthquake, no shaking of the prison's foundations, no opening of the prison doors, no loosing of chains, if there weren't men of prayers involved. Men who even sent prayers to God at the time of their great trouble.


Prophet Daniel constantly overcame the trials and temptations that came his way because he was a man of prayer. The Bible records that "Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to God, just as he had done before" (Daniel 6:10). You see, he had a lifestyle of prayer. Let me ask you beloved! Have you done what you did yesterday? Yes, pray today because you prayed yesterday. Amen.


God can, at any time, turn around your situation for good if you will highly consider the prayer factor. It says in the Scripture that in all things (whether good or bad), God works for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). Every lover of God is a talker to God, they talk to God constantly. Your level of love for God is the degree to which you talk to God. And whenever you talk to God, you are praying to God.


For these God-talkers, God always intervene for good in their times of trials and temptations. Whatever Satan sends against them becomes a blessing to them, as it causes them to experience a much greater power of God. Every temptation becomes a stepping stone into the threshold of divine blessings. Every temptation becomes a vehicle of divine promotion God uses to bring them higher and closer to Him.


When you understand that you are living in a tempting world, a world where temptation is bound to come, you would not allow a day go by without communicating to God in prayers. You would not allow an occasion slip without making it a subject of prayer to God. You would not wait until temptation hits you before you begin to pray.


No. Rather, devote yourself to prayer (Colossians 4:2), praying continually (I Thessalonians 5:17). Do your best to get up and pray (Luke 22:46) and be very watchful while praying (Mark 14:38). Endeavor to present every aspect of your life to God through prayers and petitions (Philippians 4:6). And in all occasions, do pray in the spirit with all kinds of prayers and requests (Ephesians 6:18).



Do you want to experience victory as Paul and Silas did ? As Apostle Peter did ? As Daniel did ? Even as Jesus did experience ? Then don't ignore the power of prayer.


If you are a born again Christian, there is a power already at your disposal for you to use to overcome your struggles, your trials and temptations.


And if you're not a Christian yet, you can become one right now and make use of this prayer power too. If you would want to become a Christian, then sincerely pray with me now the following prayer:


Dear Father in heaven, I am a sinner destined to perish, but I come to you in the name of Jesus Christ according to your word that says, " And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved " (Acts 2:21).


I am now calling on the name of Jesus who died for my sins, and whom you raised up from the dead for my justification. Lord Jesus, come into my heart and make me a child of God. I give you my sins and receive eternal life, the God-kind of life, by faith.


Thank you Jesus for saving my life. Thank you Lord for making me a Christian. I am now a born again child of God. Jesus my Savior has now become my advocate and speaks for me before your throne, Father. I can now, in prayer, access your throne of Grace in Jesus' name and I would be heard. Thank you for that divine attention given me in my moments of trouble, trials and temptation. Thank you for intervening into my life at difficult times, turning all of my hurts and pains, the persecutions and ridicules from others, the delays, setbacks and defeats, into blessings and, of course, new subjects of praise to you Lord.



Father, your word also says, " If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, HOW MUCH MORE WILL YOUR FATHER IN HEAVEN GIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT TO THOSE WHO ASK HIM " (Luke 11:13). I humbly ask you Father to fill me with the Holy Spirit. Spirit of God, be released within me as I praise and worship God.



I believe in speaking with other tongues as you give me utterance. Thank you Spirit of God for filling my whole being. Thank you God for filling me with the Spirit. Thank you Jesus for saving me.



Child of God, just continue praising God by faith for filling you with the Spirit. Loose your tongue, and speak out the syllables you receive from the Spirit. No, do not try to understand them before speaking them out. It may not make sense to the mind. And do not be afraid or be ashamed of what the person next to you might think or say of you, just flow with the Spirit and speak them out anyway !



Dear Spirit filled Christian, worship God in your new language daily, and look for a good Bible preaching church and become part of that family. Your life will never be the same again. God bless you.



If you have just prayed this prayer, we would like to hear your testimony and of course help you get started in your new found faith. But above all: you must understand you've got the power of prayer at your disposal now, and please, USE IT.




We love you all.



P.C. AKUBUEZE AND TEAM


__________________________

Are you a singer? A music maker? A praiser of God? Do you feel you are not given a chance to express your musical talents or singing abilities? Do you wonder why your music making talents seem not to evolve at all, be in kind of abeyance?



Our unique intention, at this time of the Christian calendar, is to help you see the chances you've got to stir up the gifts within you. And as you see these chances, don't give up that precious gift. Don't let it go for it is a seed that can never die unless you kill it. No, the pastor can't kill it, neither can the Christian neighbors. You are the only one who has got the full ability to cause it to grow and to cause it to die.



Understand and keep believing God has a purpose for giving you that gift. It takes an unswerving act of believing in one's God given abilities to see them come to pass. I must say here that believing is faith in action, else it is just dead (James 2v17). And how do you put your faith in action in this respect?



Well, here comes the first platform: YOUR PERSONAL WORSHIP ALTAR where you praise God in your private inner chambers. Use the God given gift for yourself and the Lord in the first place. This is a personal platform which involves the FOUR of you that every Christian has. (God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit all of whom are as personal as yourself). No kidding! Use your vocal power in your private prayer and worship sessions. It talks of a personal relation with the Lord, yes. Minister to the Lord daily in songs. Praise him with the gift daily. Sing to Him in your bed, in your private prayer time etc.



You may be tired of praying--as talking to God--then it's a good time to rehearse the songs already written or one still in the making. There are some who've written many songs yet have no kind of release or are not heard at all by others. Oh! Blood washed singer or music maker, this is not a new story. It has been happening before. However, such a moment is quite the right time to go back to your song bank if you have any, or just the few songs you plan to sing about. And what do you do with them? You begin rehearsing them. Yes in that chaotic period of your career, keep rehearsing the songs you know you have. The very act of rehearsing one's songs is the use of the first platform you've got. In effect, this would help you discover another dimension of that musical career and consequently usher you into the purpose for which God gave you that gift. In any case, keep fanning that gift, do not neglect it (1 Timothy 4:14).



It is easier, you know, to be a great singer in the face of the crowd encouraged by those you see. But it would be much better for you not to neglect or to start being the person God wants you to be in the absence of the crowd. This is faithfulness and calls for the deployment of the gift during private altar sessions with God. Let it be that you are that great singer of praise before the triune God and yourself, when none is watching at you. Praise Him in your private prayer life in a great way, with a great voice, and with a great song.



Be like that great biblical praiser called David who never let go his vision of leadership when brushed aside. He ministered to God as a great singer and played skillfully when none was present but God and himself. He began praising God skilfully, faithfully not publicly but privately. Before he could lead multitudes in the presence of God in praises, he had been a great praiser in the desert, the farms and bushy valleys (1 Samuel 16v18-19). Before his great presentations, he has learned how to praise God in the bad times, while on the run and threatened by death (Psalm 59v16-17; 1 Samuel 18v10, 19v9). Yet in all, he did not lose that vision of a great leader in praise of God.



Do not only desire to sing because someone decides to give you the microphone some day. The decision is God's and the timing is His not man's. Rather, desire to sing for God perfectly well in the absence of the crowd. In other words, your privacy is where faithfulness begins and where the gift can grow. It might seem insignificant or little to you. But with God we do not despise the time of little beginnings (Zechariah 4v10), for God always promotes you because He trusts you in the small matters (Luke 19v17). Yes, for the one who is faithful with the little will be faithful with the greater things as well (Luke 16v10). And God who sees what goes on in the cover (Matthew 6v5) is able and would make a way for you. He will set you in the presence of the great.





The second platform is the GENERAL CONGREGATION ON THE CHURCH PEW. While some gifted singers might excuse, delay or hinder themselves from using their gifts to glorify God because they are not among the choir members, it is worth understanding that they are among the congregation in the church. The church pew is made up of the general body of believers who aspire to lift up Jesus alongside the choir too. Both the choir and those on the pew have similar praise objective and should do so with all of their might; with every thing within you, I mean. Notice that your gift to sing is within you. Like the choir singing with that glorious voice, sing to God in a glorious way from among the congregation. There's nothing wrong with that.



Yes, you are not in the choir; or maybe, there was what you may call prejudice, you know, having justified yourself, that you were better than those choir members but were not chosen. Thus, you backed down from singing; maybe, in reprisal you've become kind of cold or lukewarm in praising God during service. In other words, you have rebranded your praise attitudes. Someone who sees you among the crowd could hardly tell if you're a singer or not.



Phew! No child of God, this must not be the picture, not at all. Amen to be among your church choir, it's a platform that helps stir up the gift to sing. But glory be to God for having you among the congregation, beloved. Among the congregation you can sing as you want to; dance as you want to; inflate your vocal power just as you want to. I mean, you are the master of your gift there. It is a platform of great discovery. But this may not be the case when with the choir members performing. You may not have the freedom to exercise certain skills totally independently. You may be one among many lead vocals in which case you may have to sacrifice yours to carry on collectively. Some of your liberty may be forgone in order to attain the goal of the group. The goal is no more ''the my way issue'' but ''the our way issue.'' It becomes a collective goal very different from the individual interests and styles found among the congregation.



Truly speaking, the choir members are usually limited to the select few, but not the best few anyway. The best singers are not those in the choirs. They could be good and gifted singers just as you are. But being in the choir does not make them better than you. You are the best of your kind. So while being in the choir is good, being within the pew is yet better.



If you think the pastor did not give you a chance to sing in the choir, well, think about this too: he has given a second chance, a second platform, having you within the congregation. You can sing together with them. But this time you are the sole controller of every thing that could make a great singer. Don't miss that unique chance. Use it fully, sing well in it; dance beautifully to God right there; praise God magnificently with that gift of yours right there on the church pew. It could be developed just there in the service. Yes, you've got the right to two platforms.

God richly bless you all


The Team,

AMM

Let there be a man and a woman of God before marriage. It would help many marriages avoid headaches, heartaches, heartbreaks, separations and divorces if those involved are spiritual men and women.

The word tells us something about the man when God created him.

"Then God said,' Let us make MAN IN OUR IMAGE, IN OUR LIKENESS, and let them RULE...' " (Genesis 1v26).

" So God created MAN in his own IMAGE, in the IMAGE of God he created him; MALE AND FEMALE he created them" ( Genesis 1v27).

"When God created MAN, he made him in the LIKENESS of God. He created them MALE and FEMALE..."(Gen 5v1-2).

The word MAN is used in a general sense as a person having the life and seed of God in him. But there is a difference between being a MALE and a MAN. And being a FEMALE and a WOMAN. Male and female are the creations of God as to genders. But Man and Woman are MADE of God; or are creations of God brought up to the purpose for which God created the male and female. And you know what? that unique purpose, intention or divine desire is: the IMAGE and LIKENESS of God.

Talking about the created man the Bible says MALE and FEMALE he created them (Gen 1v27b Gen 5v2). But MAN or WOMAN was made by God in His Likeness and Image (Gen 1v27a; 5v1). God's intention for what would be called MAN was to make him in His Godlikeness and God image (Gen 1v26). This wasn't the picture for the male and female but for the man and woman. The man existed because of the image of God and the likeness of God in him. He is seen through those qualities. Do you see the difference with me here?

THE DIFFERENCE: A SPIRITUAL ONE

There's a difference between being a male or female and a man or a woman. And the difference is a spiritual one. You could be a female but never a woman or a male but never a man. You are not a man because you've beard on your chin and some moustache. Neither are you a man because you have some loose change in your bank account. No those are for males. You're a man because you've been made of God. Similarly a woman is not one because she has reached the puberty stage, able to bear children, aiming at weight loss, and knows her gender rights. Those also are for females. A woman is made of God.

God never created the male in His likeness but the Man. He never created the male to rule but the Man. And the MAN to rule was to be in the LIKENESS AND IMAGE OF GOD. It takes the likeness and image of God To rule. These God likeness and image were innate the male potentially, but fully developed in the MAN. The male has to become a man, a man of God. A man in God's image. A man in God's likeness. It takes manhood to fully realize the Godlike potentials in the female and the male respectively.

It is not fitting for a male to leave his mother and father and be united to his wife. No. It is for the man (Gen 2v24), the man of God; the man who has understood God's ways of doing things; the man who fears God; the man who aspires to promote the ways of God by his personal lifestyle; a man who must have developed spiritually. It is for that man to leave his father and mother's house and be united to his wife. Such a man can indeed become one flesh with the wife.

He leaves his parents who were responsible, have given him guidance and good care because he is now qualified and can give good guidance and care to others. Because he is able to take healthy decisions for the good of himself and others under his leadership and for the good of those around him. Because he is now a responsible citizen generally in the eyes of God.

Being a man, aspiring manhood is to be the man created in the image of God. It is to be the person God wants you to be. And you must have outgrown maleness and femaleness to attain this level of expectation.

When David was about to die, he appointed his successor Solomon over his throne. But before he actually took over, there was something David said to Solomon that could catch our attention as to what we mean by being a MAN or a WOMAN.

David's son Solomon, was a male already, but something more was required of him. He was demanded to show himself a MAN not A MALE. Let's read what David said, " SO BE STRONG, SHOW YOURSELF A MAN AND OBSERVE WHAT THE LORD YOUR GOD REQUIRES: WALK IN HIS WAYS AND KEEP HIS DECREES AND COMMANDS, HIS LAWS AND REQUIREMENTS; AS WRITTEN IN THE LAW OF MOSES, SO THAT YOU MAY PROSPER IN ALL YOU DO AND WHEREVER YOU GO...(1 Kings 2v2-3).

You see, David was talking to a male called Solomon. Now if a male and a MAN were the same why did he have to show himself a MAN? For he was one already. But the male and a man are not the same. The male is created but the man is made. The male is created but must not remain a male, he has to grow up and become a man. A man of God. But how too is good to note!

Solomon, as a male, was asked to show himself a qualified man of God not through wordly credentials but in the spiritual dimension. He was not to show how rich he was, how wise he was, nor how powerful he had become. Rather, he was to show himself a man by keeping the ways of God, obeying Him and walking faithfully with God . His constant fear of God was being a man of God. A spiritually matured man.

We are to be mature men and women with an increased intimacy with God if we aspire healthy marital relationship. A man should know the heart of God, the ways of God if he is to leave the level of maleness behind. For you could be a male and never a man and it's a pity.

In the Bible, there was a time that God was seeking for a MAN, just one MAN out of millions of males but He couldn't find one. " I LOOK FOR A MAN ( NOT A MALE) AMONG THEM WHO COULD BUILD UP THE WALL AND STAND BEFORE ME IN THE GAP ON BEHALF OF THE LAND SO THAT I WOULD NOT HAVE TO DESTROY IT, BUT I FOUND NONE" ( Ezekiel 22v30).

Isn't it a pity that among the many millions of males that were present with long beard, not one was a man. A man was searched by God out of many males but He couldn't find one. Not one male was spiritually matured to be a MAN. God wanted to spare the city but needed a spiritual man who aspired the ways of God but He couldn't see one.

You can see clearly again that to be a male is different from being a MAN. Male is the creation of God but MAN is made of God. To be made means to put things together in the right proportion. Some characters might fall off and others imbibed. To be a Man is a walk. A Man must have outgrown maleness. A Man must have developed the Godlikeness in him to think, to talk and walk with God. A Man has an intimate relationship with God. A Man aspires to fear God in the planet Earth. Are you a man or male? A female or a Woman?

MAN AND WOMAN RECREATED IN CHRIST

Those involved in marriage should be men and women of God in Christ. They must have demonstrated the innate Godlikeness and image, recreated in Christ Jesus as they walk with God on the face of the earth. For Christ is the IMAGE of the invisible God ( Col 1v15), who had all the fullness of God in Him (Col 1v19). The sin-marred Godlikeness and God image in Adam is recreated in Christ who is the very IMAGE of God. It is in Christ that male and female become new creations of God (2 Cor 5v17). It is in Christ the male becomes a man; the female a woman. Living for Christ and letting Christ to shine through them is not an issue for the marred male and female any more but for the new creations of God in Christ which should be a man and woman of God. They must have been obedient children of God here in this world if that marriage is to be a blessing to them and those around them.

They are the light of Christ on the earth (Ephesians 5v8), led by the Spirit of God ( Galatians 5v10), who live and move and have their beings in Christ (Acts 17v28) and daily add to their faith certain qualities that make them effective and productive in the Lord's service (2 Peter 1v5-8). They aspire to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord (1 Peter 3v18), doing whatever (problems and solutions inclusive) and speaking every word in the name of the Lord ( Col 3v17), able to respond to others about their faith(directly or indirectly by actions and behavior) with graceful words (Col 4v6), free from anger, rage and bitterness ( Ephesians 4v31 ).

Man and Woman are imitators of God ( Ephesians 5v1) and coworkers with Him ( Ephesians 2v10) who live a life of love (Ephesians 5v2; John 15v12) compassion and forgiveness (Ephesians 4v32); and do not gossip or slander each other in the name of reasons for being or having done something ( Ephesians 4v31), but are bearing with the failings of the weaker partner whether the husband or wife ( Romans 15v1;1 Peter 3v7). They make all efforts toward what leads to mutual edification (Romans 14v19) as they build each other up in difficult times with encouraging words, meeting various needs within their marital parameters to the glory of God (Ephesians 4v29).

MAN AND WOMAN KNOWN IN GOD'S HOUSE

If the Christian is not a good Christian, he will probably not make a good father or husband. If he cannot obey God, he cannot admonish one to do so. It all begins in the house of God. A Christian who is not submissive to her pastor cannot be submissive to her husband at home and could not make a good mother too. If the Christian can't love the neighbor as self he or she cannot love the marital partner adequately. The house of God, the church or a well organized God fearing flow of leadership, a worshipful Christian organization with sincere Christian fellowship within are the areas where you can train yourself to becoming a man and a woman.

Spirituality (I use that word with great care) is the very test of MANLINESS, with the house of God as its litmus arena where the would be husband and wife should carefully consider their motives to know what they are out for and up to in marriage. The fear of God stands out so clearly. He who can't fear God is not spiritually balanced and cannot love you better. It takes a man and a woman of God to be husband and wife. It is not a male and female thing.

MAN AND A WOMAN ARE FAVOR OF GOD

"He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord (Proverbs 18v22).

"...a prudent wife is from the Lord" (Proverbs 19v14b).

You probably have read that many times over, but let's look at something here. The word says he who finds a wife receives favor from God and a prudent wife is from the Lord (Proverbs 18v22, 19v14). For a wife to come from God, she must have been by God, she must have known the ways of God. She must have loved God. And for a man to have such favor from God, he must have been by God, loving God's ways, and praying to God. He must have been spiritual enough as to search for a wife from the Lord's camp.

Please, there's no lottery here. Both the husband and wife are of God. God cannot give a praying and godly woman to a bad father and husband who never prays or aspires the things of God. He cannot give a spiritually healthy wife to a non spiritual husband. Conversely God cannot give a bad wife to a good and prayerful husband. If the wife is spiritual, she would beget her kind spiritually; she would be spiritual as to have or be given a spiritual husband. Part of her spirituality is to be alert in the spirit to know that this or that man is of God or not. The fact that she is given a spiritual husband attests to the veracity that she is right with God, that she is spiritually balanced. But the bottom line is: Both the wife and the husband have risen up to the challenge of what it takes to be a man and a woman. They are already man and woman of God.

And Please to be a man of God is not to be a pastor or preacher. No No No, it