Category: Thoughts

Maybe This Is How HE Works

So, you really want to have a feel of how God works, eh?
My advice: Don’t even bother at all. Seriously.

The closest analogy I have for trying to understand how God works would be you trying to explain the beauty and complexities of the Milky Way to an ant. Yeah, and even that comparison is devoid of any form of justice to the Almighty. His Ways and Thoughts are simply not like ours. Even with the help of the Holy Spirit, we still can’t fully grasp how God works. The Holy Spirit would only tell us the deep things of God as it concerns us.

You see, God maintains balance in the World. From the physical principles that makes life on earth possible, to the spiritual laws, such as giving, tithing and positive thinking, that work for all and sundry!
And I’m just talking of life on earth!!!

However, the age-old questions that continue to caress the minds of many are:
If God knows everything, and all things are in His hands, why is there evil in the world?
Why did He allow sin and death enter the earth?
Why do all these things happen, after all, nothing in life is by chance and everything has been planned out by God?

The answer? I really don’t know.
But here is where the ‘fun’ begins.
Based on how ‘much’ you know about God, if you were in His Position, how would you have handled things?

I believe God is the Almighty that knows the end from the beginning since both are contained in Him. However, because of His great love for Mankind, God gave man a very crucial factor called CHOICE! As a result of this ‘Choice’, Man has more than one possible consequence for every action He takes. There are multiple futures for every action we take. And God knows them all. However, one of these multiple futures is known as the PERFECT WILL of God while the others are the PERMISSIVE WILLS of God. Note that ALL are God’s wills! The Holy Spirit’s job is to help believers to KNOW God’s PERFECT WILL.

Sounds complicated? Let me expantiate:

For simplicity’s sake, let’s assume that a man has two alternatives A and B. God already knows all the consequences (futures) of both alternatives. For example, God told Adam not to eat any fruit from the forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden. When Man disobeyed, God sent him out of the Garden clothed in animal skin from the Lamb that had been slain from the ‘before the foundations of the world’. Sin came into the world as a result of Man’s disobedience. But God had already made provisions for that since He knew Man would CHOOSE to opt out of His PERFECT WILL!

Again, all the evil and crises in the world today are as a result of Man’s choices over the course of time. As before, let’s imagine that sometime in the past, a group of people in a region were presented with two choices C and D; the consequence of C leading to an influx of demonic powers and forces of evil into that region; while choice D would lead to blessings untold. Now, if the former was picked by these people, what would happen in that region over the course of time? Evil and reports of evil. I believe this is the case in many regions of the world today. This generation is reaping the results of choices made by previous generations. And in all these things, God is just! Yeah! Because He has given every man (regardless of religion, culture or upbringing) the innate ability to know what right is. I proved this in a previous write up on this blog titled, ‘FR33 TH^T TH¡NG: In A Defence Of God’.

Now, here’s the stupendous awesomeness of God:
At any given point in time, every individual is simultaenously making more than one choice. And each choice has multiple futures that are in turn full of other choices and their own multiple futures. Yet there are over 7 billion humans on earth making choices with multiple futures EVERY DAY. And God already knows them ALL!

How do you think you’d fare as God in just a second???

P.S: I feel this MIGHT be how God works. However, I’m not a final AUTHORITY on this issue. It’s just an opinion.

”We know in part…But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away” (I Corinthians 13 vs 9 and10)

Men’s Talk: Hombre a Hombre (Ladies, We’d Chat Later!)

On a lighter note, my parents sometimes tease me that my mates in other countries are already settled- married with kids and working…while I’m still working on myself!

Based on age and experience, I’m not the best person to counsel others on relationships. But being a guy, I could share some wonderful insights on the topic with my fellow guys. Hombre a hombre!

Before you put a ring on it ;-), consider Adam:

After Adam was created, he didn’t start scouting for Eve. No! No!! No!!! Instead, he got his purpose for living, which was:

* to dress and keep the Garden of Eden.
* to name all the animals.

Today, the case has been totally reversed. Guys without any sense of purpose or direction want to settle down and get married. It’s funny because usually, these guys have not attained emotional, financial and spiritual maturity. They can’t fend for themselves, yet they want to add the responsibilities of another. Mind you, maturity is totally independent of age. Or sideburns and a 6-pack abs!

Embrace your God-given purpose. Unless you find that thing worth dying for, you aren’t fit to live at all. Not to talk of settling down. Find your purpose and set up yourself to fulfil it, then you’d get your own Eve- flesh of your flesh and bone of your bone.

Note that Adam never asked God for a wife. Not once! God Himself knew it was time to get someone who would complement and complete Adam.

As a guy, our lives are relatively straightforward:
Find purpose in God.
And all other things would follow…

P.S: Ladies, we’d have our talk soon. I promise. 😉

Who Needs Idols? We Are Gods!

You know what I consider the most powerful statements in the Bible?

‘So God created man in His own image…’

Do you know the gravity or import of that statement?
It means that you are a product of God’s imagination.
You were created in God’s image.
As a result, you have the ability to exhibit God’s own characteristics too. Another portion of the Bible is more succinct: ‘You are gods…’

All these doesn’t mean that one day, Man would become Omniscient, Omnipresent or Omnipotent. No! Instead, it means we also have the power of creation in us.
We have that ability to call those things that are not, as though they were.
The proof is all around us. The TVs, mobile phones and computers and other inventions you now see, once existed before.
Yeah, as an image in someone’s mind!

Knowledge of this truth is what true power is all about. I’d never forget these quotes:

‘The only way you can predict the future is to create it’
‘The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible’

Nothing is closer to the truth!

How many of us have consigned our destinies to the cold hands of fate? It doesn’t have to be that way. After all, you are a god! You don’t need to have an ‘idol’ as a role model or compete in the ‘American Idol’ before you make things happen.

By faith, God spoke the heavens and the earth into existence.
What is wrong with you that you can’t do the same?
By faith, you too can create your world of possibilities by the words of your mouth.

You are a god.
Act like one!!!

FR33 TH^T TH¡NG: In A Defence Of God

No. I’m not writing an argumentative essay.
I felt I should step down (albeit temporarily) from my position to prove the same point my initial position would satisfactorily prove.
Gibberish, you say. Well, not exactly.

You see, as a Child of The Light, I am to walk on the pedestral of FAITH. Yes, that beautiful act of knowing that the physical absence of something doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist.

But now, I’m going to try to use FACTS to prove God to you!
Fasten your seat belts.

Starting from the title of this post, it’s very likely you read it as ‘FREE THAT THING…’. Apparently, I most definitely DID NOT write that!
Look at the title again.
Can you see it now?

Your mind obviously made up for my ‘errors’ because it KNEW what the right words were meant to be.
Even if they were absent from what I wrote.

This proves ONE thing:
Everyone, from the deadly atheist assassin to the most pious monk, has the idea of what ‘right’ is.

In a narrower sense based on the aforementioned, everyone also has a moral sense of right and wrong. Moreso, everyone has embedded in the seat of his or her subconscious, what the ideal ‘Perfect Person’ should be like. And how well an individual is doing is measured against the character of this ‘Perfect Person’. It’s the same for every individual, regardless of upbringing, nationality or religious affliations.

The question now is this:
Are you this ‘Perfect Person’ with the perfect character?
Definitely not! Neither am I. At least from the factual point of view.

So, why then do we almost automatically know what is right (whether morally or in the broader sense)?
Why do we subconsciously pattern or measure our character and behaviour by the standards set by our minds’ perception of this ‘Perfect Person’?
Come on, let’s reason together! Because this ‘phenomenon’ happens to everyone, be it atheist or religious. It’s not some random isolated occurence.

Could it not be that there’s actually the ideal ‘Perfect Person’ who’s better and greater than whatever we could ever achieve on our own?
Could it not be that God is actually this ‘Perfect Person’, the standard by which we measure our day to day activities?

Let me know your thoughts. 😉

Feet Crushed And Eyes Plucked Out!

We notice them all around us. It’s simply impossible to miss them. Yet we are oblivous to certain lessons that Nature is trying to get into our skulls.

The Lame can see their destination, but they are unable to get there because of the weekness in their legs and feet. On the other hand, the Blind can’t seee their destination, despite the strength in their feet and legs. The bottomline is that both parties are unable to get to their destinations!

Let’s redefine THE LAME and THE BLIND, shall we?

To me, the ‘lame’ are people who have a purposeful vision about the direction their lives are headed. They

¤ have no zeal to carry them to where they want to be.
¤ are characterized by character flaws.
¤ have the ‘head knowledge’ of the right things to do but are weak in the spirits of their minds, so they still end up doing the wrong things.
¤ know The Word but still have serious issues in their closet lives.
¤ have the ‘will’ but cannot ‘do’.

As a result, they can’t maximize potential, fulfil purpose and please God.

The ‘blind’ do not have any clearcut vision or sense of direction for their lives. They

¤ have zeal and fiery passion which is always unguided.
¤ are characterized by 99% perspiration and less than 1% inspiration.
¤ have the mental ‘toughness’ to do the right things, but the don’t know the right things, so they up doing the wrong things.
¤ misinterpret God’s Words and cling to the traditions and customs of men, more than life itself.
¤ do not have the ‘will’ but can ‘do’.

As a result, they too can’t maximize potential, fulfil purpose and please God.

Sad, eh? I know. And I’m not even done yet!

The Bible is full of types and shadows. Like, David could be said to be a type of The Christ. So, when he embarked on the conquest of the Jebusites in Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5), he was told that his mission wouldn’t be possible. Until the land had been cleared of THE LAME and THE BLIND. Interestingly, it was said David’s soul loathed the ‘lame’ and the ‘blind’ (vs 8) !!!

Now, if David was a type of The Christ, and he didn’t like the ‘lame’ and the ‘blind’, how much more Jesus Christ Himself? Why wouldn’t Christ loath those who can’t maximize potential, fulfil purpose and please God?

But I’m still not done. Because I’ve got some good news for you.

Yes. There’s a ray of hope.

It’s God’s will for man to DO all that pleases Him.

You see, when Christ restored order to the Temple in JERUSALEM the second time (Matthew 21 vs 12, Oh my gosh! Jerusalem, again? This is more than coincidence!), guess those who came to meet Him for healing?

THE LAME AND THE BLIND!!!

Yeah! Not the mute, or the deaf, or the maimed. No! Just the ‘lame’ and the ‘blind’ came to meet Christ for healing. And He healed them. Why?

So as to qualify them for service in the House of God He had just cleansed! Now they could maximize their potential!
Now they could fulfil purpose!
Now they could please God by ‘willing’ and ‘doing’ His good pleasure!

What category do you find yourself today? The visionless and purposeless ones. Or the passionless and apathetic ones. Good news is that He’s still in the business of restoring vision and zeal to ALL who desire to please Him. God wants you, yes you, to walk and work with Him.

Hop in!

Don’t Lose That Peace

In the fulness of time, I’d share my testimony. In the meantime, I can emphatically tell you that JEHOVAH is The Awesome God. You know what? It’s easy to give advice to one that is going through hard times. Talk is quite cheap! But when (not ‘if’) you are to face your own ordeals alone, you are left with whatever you believe in.

Good News (Pay attention now!)

Isaiah 59 vs 19b says,
‘WHEN the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him’

Encouraging, right? But watch how I’d use a single comma to ‘re-interprete’ that verse:

‘WHEN the enemy shall come in, like a flood the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him’

Isn’t that wonderful? The Spirit of the Lord coming like a Flood against our enemy! Look, the enemy would come. There’s nothing you can do about that. Didn’t he come to Jesus too? But whosoever you fix your attention is the one that would have the pole position in your mind. Your problems might be big. But put that in perspective behind the Almighty Father, and you’d see how infinitessimally small your problems actually are. He can, and would solve them!

Don’t lose your peace, friend. The battle isn’t yours. No! The battle is The Lord’s!

Dubbers United

During my early years in high school, I remember having to adapt to a whole lot of things. And at a fast rate too. Previously, in elementary school, we had just one classroom teacher that taught a wide variety of subjects. However, by the time I got to high school, things were more specialized. Everything was mechanically efficient to my young mind. There was a teacher for each subject. And each subject teacher gave his or her own assignments that had to be submitted the next day! THAT was way out of our comfort zones then. Some of us forced ourselves to cope with the increasing number of take home assignments. Others were not able to do that. So, they came very early to school on the day of submission of assignments to plagiarize the work of the diligent ones. Word for word, without any remorse. Back then, we dubbed these students ‘Dubbers United’. Plagiarism was so much ingrained into this bumch, that these guys couldn’t do without it. No matter how simple or straightforward the assignment was.

One fateful day, I needed to complete a classnote, as I was a slow writer during classes. As I settled with the note, one of the chief ‘Dubbers’ spotted me. In a twinkle of an eye, without asking any questions, he started copying out from my note! To say I was bemused, would be an understatement. So, after a little while, I asked him if he knew what he was ‘dubbing’. He replied no. Mercifully, I explained to him that he was rewriting the notes of an earlier class. The shocked look on his face was priceless!

Anyways, what triggered this story was The Message’s translation of Romans 12 vs 2. You need to read this:

‘Don’t become so adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without thinking. Instead, fix your attention to God. You’ll be changed from inside out. Readily recognize what He wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you’

Quit ‘Dubbers United’ now. Team up with the winning team. FC MindOfChrist!!!

God WEEDS!

Shocking title, eh? I bet some of you are thinking of a smoke-filled room with a Big Fellow getting High on pot and the like. If that was your line of thought, it goes a long way to tell how much our generation has watered down the meaning of the words in the English Language.

Well, to help you have a better perspective on my ‘shocking’ title, let’s examine the Words of Jesus in Matthew 15 verse 13:

”But He answered and said, ‘Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up’ ”

The mind of an individual is like a farmland. The farmland could either be overgrown with weeds of evil immoral thoughts and negative self-talk. On the other hand, the farmland could have the seeds of God’s Word flourishing and blossoming, producing Fruits in their thirties, sixties and hundreds.

Yes, the devil would come. Wanting to sell to us his wares of tares. Sometimes, we resist him and at other times, we buy his tares of worry, fear, negativity and evil thoughts. We sow them on the farmlands of our minds. And water them, till they grow out of our controls. Then, we see them for what they truly are. Weeds. Horrible, stubborn weeds.

But I have Good News for you. God WEEDS. He knows what the seed of His Words should produce in our minds. And when He sees anything contrary to the Fruits like peace, love, joy, faith and so on, He steps into action. He WEEDS out all that He hasn’t planted in our lives. He uproots them and burns them to ashes. He clears our farmland and then plants into us The Seed of His Words which is able to save our souls. He then waters us with His Spirit till we bear Fruits. He even prunes us and we bear more and more of His delightful fruits!

So, where are you today? Overgrowing with weeds of sin, worry, doubt, evil thoughts and fear? God is still in the business of WEEDING. Why don’t you cry out on to Him and let Him step into your situation right now?

Oxygen And Nitrogen Are More Than Gases.

In those days, during elementary school, we were thought that air is a mixture of gases. Oxygen is the most important gas, as all living things need it to survive. Yet, we were told that oxygen only accounts for 21% of air. Nitrogen, which on the other hand, wasn’t necessary for respiration accounts for a whooping 78% of air. I always wondered why this was so. At least, it was only logical for the ‘most important’ gas to be the most abundant by percentage!

But as important as oxygen is, it’s very combustible. If the percentage of oxygen were to be any more than it currently is, every rock that has been heated by the sun would spontaenously go up in flames. And this is where the importance of nitrogen comes into play: Nitrogen, due to its non-combustible nature, slows down the combustible activities of oxygen. Thus, oxygen can support both life and combustion, without things getting out of hand.

In life, we meet people with ‘combustible’ characteristics. They are the bubbly people that like to make things happen. They are usually risk takers. And they are an embodiment of life. I’d call these ones the ‘Oxygen’ people. On the other hand, we meet people who aren’t as charismatic as those aforementioned. They have a cooler approach to life. They could be overly calculative. I’d call these the ‘Nitrogen’ people.

The TRUTH is that God is a God of variety. David, Peter, Barnabas, Paul, John all had different characteristics. He made everyone to be unique and different from others. Imagine how life would have been if everyone were to be of the ‘combustible’ nature. The whole world be on fire. Literally! Conversely, if everybody were to be of the ‘cooler’ nature, the whole world would be dry and colourless. So, does this mean that an ‘Oxygen’ person is better than the ‘Nitrogen’ counterpart or vice versa? No. None of these things makes one category of people to be more important than the other. Instead, we are all required to act to the strengths of our characters and live together in unity.

7 Lessons From The Sons of The Prophets.

Elisha carried a double portion of Elijah’s anointing. He seemed to be involved in every miracle mentioned. However, in a rare moment of scintillating brilliance, the much less heralded sons of the prophets took the limelight in the opening verses of II Kings 6. Their actions are practical and applicable to our everyday living. The 7 lessons are:

1. Don’t be comfortable with your shortcomings: The sons of the prophets found themselves in a tight corner. Literally speaking. They were quite happy to be wining and dining at the feet of Elisha. But they didn’t allow that opportunity to blind their minds to the harrowing problem of limited resources of space they were all facing with Elisha.

2. Speak out: The sons of the prophets spoke their minds out. They didn’t cower in the presence of organized and recognized authority. They weren’t murmuring and grumbling in the background. They presented their thoughts in an orderly and respectful manner.

3. Think Big: The sons of the prophets were not scared of an avant-garde thinking. It is never a sin to think big. You see, it’s only when one thinks big that he’d get big things out of life. The sons of prophets were not afraid of embarking on a large-scale project.

4. Do not procrastinate: It’s nice to have good intentions, but it doesn’t stop there. The sons of the prophets desired to move out of the tight corner they found themselves in. They didn’t wait for good weather conditions. Or when the mood was perfect. They acted immediately.

5. Be willing to progress: The sons of the prophets had identified the problem of limited space. They were ready and had the right mindset to ensure the status quo changed.

6. Plan: The sons of the prophets laid up strategies that would help them attain their goals. They had a good idea of the land to build on. They knew how to get the human and material resources for their assignment. They didn’t have a haphazard approact towards their set goal.

7. Don’t forget the God-Factor: The sons of prophets didn’t assume that their plans, strategies and feasibility studies would get the job done for them. They didn’t think they could do it all. They understood the role God plays in our endeavours. They wisely implored Elisha, whose life oozed with God’s presence, to go with them. And they didn’t regret it.

These very practical lessons would spark a sporadic turnaround in your life. Please pass the knowledge on. Cheers!