hi guys! so, i've decided to start a new music series thingy where i share a unique song almost every monday. why? cos i love, love music!!! it's a part of me and it was about time it got it's own little spot on the blog. i pray they're songs that will leave us really pondering about our lives and have us re-examining our walk with the Lord. :) and hopefully it'll be a way to come across 'new' songs/artists that you would love. and i know how folks get about mondays. ;) poor monday, what did he (or is it a she?) ever do so wrong? ;) so, while you're out there wringing it out with monday, i'd like to invite you into my space cos i'll be here to offer some refreshing, soul awakening music. :) for the very first post, i'd like to share a song a friend shared with me last friday. it's really moving. have you ever been torn between the world and Jesus? yeah, me too. so. many. times. i know! i've been there, still end up there, if i'm honest. ...the times when you're worried about what names people will call you if you get really into God...when you want to party it out the wrong way, club it up, wear the super tight/low cut cleavage clothing, curse it out to look 'cool', listen to/sing worldly songs so you can look 'hip' and fit into today's cuture, ...and all the while you go to church more out of a ritual than a committed love for the Lord. ...when we turn some guy who couldn't really be bothered about our soul into an idol, a mini god of a sort, craving his attention when we should be craving Jesus to fill us up ...when we constantly put our quiet time with the Lord at the back burner ...when we know the right thing to do and yet we do the wrong thing...we've all pretty much been there. i'll be the first to admit. dear old paul said in romans:
ok, now the song: no gray by jonathan mcreynolds. it says: i wrote this song and i pray that you listen to all the words
cause i
feel like at some point in everybody's life
we feel like this,
Lord I'm split in two
part of me loves the
world
and the other loves You
so what do I do
i wanna be saved
but I got to stay cool too
and no i'm not a fool
i know eventually I'm
gonna have to choose
and really I don't wanna
lose
my ticket into heaven
and a chance to be used
by You
and if it's God that i'm after
i just can't serve two
masters
and before something happens
i got to turn it all around
because i know
i can't just have my cake and eat it too
cause it's real easy to
stay on the fence and still do you
and it'd be cool if we
could love the Lord and still go do our thing
but see it doesn't work
like that
you gotta to be white or
black
see, i've realized
when it comes to sin
You just don't compromise
see, it's a matter of death and life
be weak and do wrong
or be strong and do right
and i don't wanna keep
going to church
singing all about how
much You're worth
and then continue doing
my dirt
living as if i didn't
care if You're hurt
Lord, i really need you to help me
get it together fast
saints, we really gotta
get it together fast
no, it don't work like that
you gotta be white or black
no gray
no shades of gray
no no no no no... no no no no no...
don't work like that
you gotta be white or black.
i found this lovely mime video for the song.
"no one can serve two masters. either you will hate one and love the other, or you will be devoted to one and despise the other. you cannot serve both God and money." matthew 6:24
and though we can't attain perfection in our walk with the Lord, we can certainly intentionally cling to Him, and really try with our all to love and obey Him, and allow sanctification into our lives.
i hope you're blessed by the music. and i hope monday behaves. ;)
When i think of the fact that Father God is a jealous Father, i
try to understand it in terms of my personal relationship with Him. In exodus 20 verse 5, He says “ you shall not
bow down to them (graven images/idols),
for i the Lord your God am a jealous God...” wow. The God of the universe, the One who holds
all power and infinite wisdom, who created the sun, starfish, dolphins, the
galaxy, angels, and horses is jealous for me! Me, a mere shaped clay, kept
alive by His breath in me. That’s seriously mind blowing! I’m sure He could
busy Himself seeing to more complex things than sparing time to let me know how
He feels towards me, but no, He created me to have a relationship with Him, for
me to make Him my ultimate priority, and for Him to take care of the details.
I kind of understand how some people get this jealous part
of God a little wrong though. They perceive that a kind, loving, powerful God
shouldn’t by any means have this emotion, which is seen to be more of a human kind
than a supernatural kind.
Our Father is jealous for us for very good reasons. Now, let’s
say you have a child you dearly love. you made sure this child was growing
healthy right from day one in the womb, you pray over this child, you spend
money for clothes, food, shelter for this child, you spend precious time at the
hospital with your child when sickness strikes, you watch this child grow and
bloom, you feel the love and bond the two of you share, then gradually, you
begin to feel distance coming in between you two. You discover your now adult
child likes the company of another family, some strangers who’re known to be
notorious in your community. after school and during weekends your child
becomes rebellious and doesn’t spend time with you, but drifts off to hang out
with this other family and honors the notorious parents...how would you begin
to feel? I believe you’ll be unhappy, sad, angry and jealous to have your
child’s heart back with you, because you know the dangers of being in the
company of very bad people. see? maybe this isn’t a perfect example but it’s
pretty much the same way God feels towards us when we abandon and neglect Him,
thinking we know better than Him.
He made us, He yearns for us to get to know Him. He already
knew us, way before He even formed us in the womb. He wants our loyalty to lie
with Him.
He bends low and near to hear me. He’s interested in seeing
me read and obey the love letters He wrote for me long before i came to be.
He doesn’t want to be competing for my attention, my
affection, my time, not with any other thing, not even an earthly romantic
relationship with a special someone.
Father God pursues our hearts, and heartbreakingly, He
becomes jealous, and rightfully so, when we make other things our god/s...
“shall the ax boast itself against him who chops with it? or
shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it? As if a rod could
wield itself against those who lift it up, or as if a staff could lift up, as
if it were not wood!” isaiah 10:15
“woe to him who strives
with his Maker, an earthen vessel with the potter! Does the clay say to him who
fashions it, ‘what are you making’? or ‘Your work has no handles’?” isaiah 45:9
He formed us with a wonderful purpose, to worship Him alone and
reflect His glory. We mustn’t fight it, it’s our call, our destiny.
He is jealous for me, because He created me to love Him, not
foolishly give my attention to the wrong things. And like He was telling the
Israelites, anything i put before Him is an idol...job, school, hobbies, a
person, busyness, even the idol of self...anything i think of more than my
Father and His interests is an idol and needs to be shown the exit.
Let’s admit it, we’re the clay, He is the potter, we can’t
go about rebelling against Him and intentionally making Him jealous to test
Him. We’re human, with yucky, messy hearts (bcos of the sin of adam and eve)
that needs the light of our dear maker and the salvation of Jesus. So, i see it
this way, the more i make something else my idol, the yuckier/sick my heart
will be, + the more jealous He will be, but the more i cling to Him and chase
after Him, the more my heart will be filled with unbridled joy! The amazing
thing is, the times he gets jealous for me, His love still remains faithful!
It’s the kind of jealous that is heartbroken and dying and longing for me to
come back to Him, my first, true love.
He is jealous for me, to give Him my heart, and for me to
receive His love, and i must be crazy to let go of this love i share with Him.
He is jealous for you, too. Have a heart-check and be
sincere if there’s anything at all coming in between your love for Him.
His love and grace is steadfast, constant, but must never be
taken for granted.
If
you know me well, you’ll know I love books. A few years ago, I was interested
in a book. It was super hyped and I wanted to get it. But I didn’t. And I’m
glad I didn’t. The book I’m talking about? ‘Act like a lady, Think like a man’
by Steve Harvey. Before I found out it was no good for me, I had already
watched the movie based on it. Well, at that time, the very wrong 90-day rule
from the story appealed to me. It did probably because I wanted so badly to
feel justified if I was to follow the rules of the book. Sad, but true. But when
I started drawing closer to God and I began to really hold things according to
His standard, the Bible, I began to see just how wrong that luring rule was.
For
those who have no clue what the 90-day rule is, well, Steve Harvey, who claims
to be Christian thinks it’s okay for ladies to ‘give up the cookie’ after 90
days. Wrong. Urm, where in the Bible does God tell us it’s okay to have sex
outside marriage after 90 days of meeting some guy?! That rule is just so
wrong! Ridiculously wrong, and I could have fallen for it if the Word was
nowhere in me.
“Do you not
know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be
deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor sexual perverts,
nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor robbers will
inherit the kingdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-10
What
surprises me is that the author says he’s Christian, and yet it seems he lives
by a set of different rules and polluting many others out there. It’s made me
very careful of the kind of books I decide to read. Even if the author is
‘Christian’ I make sure it’s safe for me, and not a bunch of lies dressed as
truth.
The
Bible seriously has answers to all we seek. I’ll be the first to admit the standards
of God are pretty high, but they are honestly what’s best for us.
Another
over hyped but inappropriate book I nearly bothered myself about was ‘50 shades
of grey.’ I got it downloaded ‘cause I wanted to know what all the fuss was
about. Funny thing is, I never read the thing and ended up deleting it. The few
reviews I read about it was enough to make me realize it was no good either. (I
have to remember to check reviews before actually getting the book. Silly
mistake.) The message it carries is a very negative one and I wouldn’t
encourage anyone especially a Christian to read it or watch any movie based on
it. (Erin, a trusted fellow blogger blogged about it here. You really need to
read it.)
“But as for
the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, as for murderers, fornicators,
sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their lot shall be in the lake that burns
with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.” Revelations 21:8
Again,
one book I nearly made the mistake of reading is the memoir, ‘Eat, Pray, Love.’
The hype around it obviously caught up to me. But after I read a few pages, my
spirit was not having it. Which Christian would really want to know about Hinduism?
I wouldn’t want to go about reading books about sorcery or witchcraft, and
that’s the same way I shouldn’t read books about false religions/doctrines no
matter how fictitious the novel is or not.
“Jesus said
to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father,
but by me.” John 14:6
“Now the
works of the flesh are plain: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry,
sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissention, party
spirit, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you
before, that those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Galatians 5:19-21
I
have to be careful not to let my love for books lead me to lies. You need to be
careful the things you choose to feed your mind with. At first I didn’t find anything
wrong with romance novels, but the more God breaks my heart for what breaks
His, the more I see how unnecessary it is for me. I mean romance novels are
just like porn. The only difference is one is written, leading you to think up
very wrong images, and the other is visual. But porn is porn whether written,
audio or visual. Let’s be real here, as a Christian, does these romance books
equip you spiritually or is it feeding you carnally, drawing you to be lustful?
Does witchy, vampire novels draw you any closer to godliness? C'mon, stop telling yourself you only read it for fun and that it's no harm. It is harmful to your life. The devil will use any means available to sully our minds. It’s time to wake up
to truth.
Ask
yourself if the books you read encourage you to live by God’s standards or if
they entice you to compromise the best way God wants you to live life. How do
you know the best and true way God intends for you to live your life? It’s all in His
Word. Spend some good time reading it everyday. Really read it and live by it, it’ll
work so beautifully on your heart. Guard your heart and suit up with the armour
of God always.
"All scripture is given by
inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for
correction, for instruction in righteousness" 2 Timothy 3:16
Hello,
hello! So I’m back from camp. Well, I have for some days now. I’ve just
been taking some time off to really rest. Rest. A word I didn’t get to
experience at camp. LOL Everyday was so packed with activities.
One word to
describe the whole experience for me is ‘challenging’. Why? You may ask. First
off, I had to share a small room with soooo many people. There was barely space
to move, it was crazy and I had to wait forever to have my turn in the shower.
Sleeping extremely late and waking up so early at dawn was just not my style
and it made me feel so grumpy in the early part of the day. There were days we
had to fast from 6am till 6pm. That part wasn’t easy too. The latest I fast is
till 3pm. I wouldn’t deny that it was a struggle for me. I had so many
I-didnt-sign-up-for-this moments. Oh, and I had to be social with a gazillion
new people. It was a bit too much for me but camp had its good side though.
The parts I enjoyed
were the teaching parts. I learnt so much and got lots of encouragement. I was
reminded of the great sacrifices I need to make for my Jesus- my time, effort,
money, my whole life. I mean the Guy laid down His life for me, doesn’t He
deserve my all? Whenever I felt camp was going downhill for me, I remembered
this great sacrifice done on the Cross for me, and how I need to sacrifice my
sleep, comfort and energy.
We had some
great speakers who shared about how they personally sacrificed their personal
careers to answer to the call of ministry. Learning about the huge sacrifices
the martyrs did just to bring the Good News to Africa was eye opening and
inspiring. Like they knew they would die out here cos of malaria but they still
came. They knew the persecutions they would face but still they set out on the
mission to bring the saving knowledge of Christ to people they didn’t even
know...at the very peril of their lives. Shows how important it is for me and
every Christ follower to also go forth to the nations and share Jesus. I learnt
that a true follower of Christ cares about the souls of those who have not
accepted Christ as their only Savior, and that means I have to sacrifice my
vacation, my comfort, my money and all of me to go out there on a Kingdom
Mission.
“And Jesus came and
said to them, “All authority in Heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go
therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that
I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age.””
Matthew 28:18-20
I also enjoyed the cookout we had and the
sports evangelism bit (maybe cos my team won the games. Heheh.Go Team Faith!) I learnt about
so many reasons why I shouldn’t date or marry an unbeliever. Yes, no matter how
attracted I feel to a cute guy who seems good but not a Christ follower, it’s a
no-no. The person I get married to is to help me walk in the purpose of God’s
plan for me and vice versa. If the person doesn’t share my beliefs, which form
the foundation and pillars of my life, that relationship will be a disaster,
it’ll wreck the purpose of my life.
“Do not be mismatched
with unbelievers. For what partnership have righteousness and iniquity? Or what
fellowship has light with darkness?” 2 Corinthians 6:14
I went to
this camp expectant of God’s direction and boy, He sure doesn’t disappoint. God
spoke to me through a good number of prophecies almost each day of camp. I’ve
journaled each of them, waiting and trusting God to see each manifest. But of
course, it requires my diligence, prayers and carrying through my side of the
deal. God was moving and at work. He still is. :)
I learnt the
hard way that I can’t let my introvertedness get in the way of pursuing God and
His purpose for me. I’m learning how to be a sweet quiet spirit, and not a
bottled up quiet spirit in the midst of lots of unfamiliar people. I’m learning
to smile some more no matter the anguish coursing through me.
I’m learning
how to bear shame and surrender the dignity of nature, knowing that whenever I
suffer shame, I gain strength. My choice to follow Christ and live for Him may
look very foolish now, but I know the rewards that await me in eternity. My
time on earth is for sowing, reaping is for eternity.
I’m learning
that the love of God must and should constrain me. It must constrain me to
continually die to self and keep loving others even when the pain they’ve
caused is just too real. It must constrain me from enjoying the ‘pleasures’ of
this life that only leads to eternal destruction. The love of God was what made
Him sacrifice His only begotten son to die for my sins, our sins. Jesus died
for me and now, I live for Him. I live to respect and obey His authority. It’s
the least I can do, really.
“Enter by the narrow
gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and
those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard,
that leads to Life, and those who find it are few.” Matthew 7:13,14
I forged
some really cool Godly friendships too. I met ladies and guys who are
desperately chasing after God’s heart. I don’t see that often these days. I see
lots of lukewarm Christians. Note to
self: there are still Godly guys (cute ones too) out there, don’t be
disheartened. Wait on the Lord. :)
So, are you
learning the lessons the Lord needs you to learn as He takes you through the
chapters of your life? Or are you feeling so comfortable where you are, ignoring
His cues? We need to learn the lessons, hard as they may be. We need them to
refine us and be well equipped for our daily battles as Christ followers. I’m
taking these lessons along as I go forth, giving hope to the least of us and
living for my Jesus. xoxo
Today, I
want to encourage you. I want to remind you that you were made to bloom. Yes,
you. God penned down your story, my story way before we were even formed in our
mothers’ wombs, just as He told Jeremiah... “Before I formed you in the womb
of I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a
prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:4,5 He made each of us for great
things. Jeremiah’s purpose on earth was to be a prophet of God. That’s the same
way you and I are here, walking this earth because of the purpose of God. He
appointed you to come to this earth to do something unique.
Now, won’t
it be a shame if you plant a seed of a rose flower, but instead of fully
growing and blooming, it sadly has a stunted growth? How come you may ask. Well, you barely had time to water it or tweak out the weeds that were hindering
its growth. Weeds only consume the nutrients in the soil that plants need to
thrive and grow well. So, that’s how come. The rose plant never bloomed.
Your life can
be compared to this rose plant. To be able to fully plug into your full
capabilities as a child of God, you need to allow God water your life. You need
to feed your life the right things to bloom. When we begin to feed our lives
with the Word of God and prayer on a daily basis, we start to grow as God
intended us to. We start to hear God’s voice clearly about what steps we should
take. Without constantly seeking God’s face in prayer and in the Bible, we’re
bound to live according to our own plans which might very well conflict with
our Father’s plans for our lives.
“He destined us in love
to be His sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to
the praise of His glorious grace which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.”
Ephesians 1:5,6
The weeds
that hindered the growth of the rose plant are those people and things that
stand in your way from experiencing the beauty of living a purposeful life, the
things that hold you back from shinning and living out loud for God. You know
very well the ungodly inner circle of friends you have around you prevent you
from passionately pursuing God’s will for you...those unhealthy habits of
watching porn, fornicating, profanity, adultery, smoking, getting drunk, clubbing,
going to worldly parties...they are all NOT God’s will for you. How can you
bloom when you are so busy chasing after sin which will only kill you? “For
the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ
Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6;23
Sin separates
us from God. The more a person sins, the farther God is. The Holy Spirit can’t
dwell in a body that is dabbling in an unbroken chain of sin. When we sin, we
are more or less driving away the Spirit of God in us, because the Spirit is
holy and can’t dwell where sin is. Sure, we are human and we’re tempted to sin
often times. But isn’t it far better to strive to live the life God called you
to instead of willingly going after things that cause you to stumble and die
out fast?
“Now the works of the
flesh are plain: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery,
enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, envy,
drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you as I warned you before, that
those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of
the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law. And those who belong to
Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Galatians
5:19-24
I encourage
you to seek God’s face, let Him become very personal and real in your life. Surround
yourself with people with Godly wisdom. Ask Him what He planned for your life.
You were not made to have a stunted life, you were made to bloom. :) Stop selling yourself short. God filled
each of us with wonderful talents and spiritual gifts. 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 says “To
each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is
given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance
of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit,
to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of
miracles, to another the prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish
between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the
interpretation of tongues. All these are inspired by one and the same Spirit,
who apportions to each one individually as He wills.”
Dear one,
God made all these spiritual gifts available to help us bloom. He placed the unique abilities to write,
sing, paint, teach, sew, act in us. It’s not by our own might or some
coincidence. It is His will. It is our duty to humbly ask Him to make known to
us which talent and spiritual gifts He planned for us to have. He needs us to
use these gifts to serve Him and draw people to His saving grace. You can’t
know God’s will for you if you only know Him on Sunday mornings in a church
building. He needs to be a part of your everyday life. He needs to be present
in the songs you listen to, the movies you watch, the company you keep, clothing
you wear. You are His representative, you need to act as such. How can you
really know God without constantly and intentionally spending time with Him? You
need to pursue a relationship with Him cos He’s the answer to all the questions
you have.
“But, as it is written,
“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God
has prepared for those who love Him.””1 Corinthians 1:9
You might be
experiencing a season of drought where it’s hard to completely trust God’s plan.
I’ll be the first to admit I’ve been there before. But the Word, O the Word! It
constantly speaks to me and urges me on to keep believing. There are times when
God seems silent. Those times are when you need Him the most, not when you
throw in the towel and abandon His plan for you. Times like that are when He’s
watching to see if you’ll exercise your FAITH or if you’ll let your current
circumstances dictate your future. Without faith we can’t please God.
“Now faith is the
assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1
Stay
encouraged dear one. You have the Creator, the one who calls things that be not
as though they were as your Father. Value this relationship you have with Him
and honor it by following His will. You were made to bloom. Come out of your
bud, your shell, your insecurities and doubts and display the beauty God
Himself has clothed you with, inside and out. He has a reason for making sure
you were born and raised where you were, the schools you went to, the people you
met. The wrong friends and relationships
you had serve a purpose to make you realize you deserve better and eventually
lead you to the right friendships. Trust God’s process. There’s purpose behind
your struggles, a purpose that’ll refine you and make you grow in Christ to be
the best He made you to be.
“Trust in the Lord with
all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways
acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.” Proverbs 3:5,6
I want to
share this lovely song by Moriah Peters. It speaks into my life and fill me
with happy, hopeful thoughts with every word.
Stretch out
your faith and bloom, darling. :) xoxo
