Love lives here

“These things I command you, that ye love one another.” John 15:17

The Lord Jesus in His earth walk was a master in love. We read stories of how His liquid love poured on those who were rejected , the afflicted , the possessed and the sinners. His hands touched the outcast of the day and they received wholeness. 

On that wretched cross He spoke the words that have become a top story into this day ,"Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing!" This is what stirs my heart every time I think about Jesus ; it is the reason why we can make Him a model for our lives. Yes, it's Jesus : love in action!! 

It is very imperative that everyone makes a decision to walk in love at an early stage in their life. This is what really matters in this life and the one to come. This is the law of the New Testament. This is the fulfillment of all the law and the prophets. Yes, it's the most excellent way to live your life. 

There are two kinds of love : human love and the God-kind of love. Human love has limits , it gets worn out , it is not pure and genuine , human love does not stand the test of time, human love cannot give without expecting something in return, it is self seeking. This human love is preached by worldly music , movies ,talk shows and the celebrities who preach about it have failed dismally at it. No , there is God's way ; an unfailing way. 

Thank God that when we were born again , we received a new type of love. Look at that scripture: 

“And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”

Romans 5:5

The love of God has been poured in our hearts by the Holy Spirit!! Did you know that you can love like God because His love is in you. Love is the proof of the divine life in our hearts. 

“We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.”

1 John 3:14 

Oh what a scripture!! We know that we are alive because we love. Love is not what we do , it is our life. We talk love , we touch others with love , we intentionally demonstrate love wherever we go , we believe the best for every man. We are passed from death to life. 

However , we can only give to the level we manage to receive. How much of God's love have you received? Do you know that God is kind , that He is patient , He is not proud or rude , He seeks only for your best , He is slow to anger , He does not take into account the wrong you do, He does not rejoice when injustice occurs to you , He is glad when truth prevails in your life, He does not give up on you , He looks out for the best in you, He is hopeful concerning you and He never fails. 

“Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

1 John 3:16

Receive His love for you today and see how much it starts to overflow to those around you. You will be a blessing to your family , your workmates , your friends , your husband or wife , strangers will call you an angel. Christ lives in you. Love lives in you. 

Say to yourself daily : LOVE LIVES HERE. 

I give you a challenge today to study 1 Corinthians 13 continually. We have made it a foundational chapter with my fiancé. You will be surprised with the direction your life will take. 

Remember : You are loved by God.❤️

Foundation of righteousness

“For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.” Romans 10:2-3

The foundation of the Christian walk is understanding righteousness. Righteousness means being able to stand in the presence of God without fear , condemnation or inferiority. This is because a person who has been born again has actually received a brand new life that is created in the likeness of Christ; Christ actually lives in the person. The person might not acknowledge it or acknowledge it but fail to take advantage of it. God's will however is for us to acknowledge this gift of God called righteousness. 

The opening scripture clearly shows us that there are two kinds of righteousness in the bible. One is "self righteousness" and the other one is "God's righteousness". One is by self effort to impress God and the other is by submission to what Christ has already done and this one is a gift(given without works but by faith in Jesus ). There are many people who love God but are living frustrated lives because they are trying to do right without Him. They are establishing their own righteousness instead of submitting to the righteousness of Christ. 

Some people cut themselves, try to pray more , confess their faults more , some even go to the extent of killing themselves in an attempt to accomplish what God has already done. These spend a lifetime battling with sin, continually in a war. No , righteousness is a gift.

“But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify.” Romans 3:21 

Can you see that ? Apart from the law means without considering the law , God's righteousness has been revealed. Your obedience does not make you righteous, your faith in Jesus made you righteous. 

If this righteousness was given to you without any good work , this means no amount of bad works can take this righteousness away. It is a gift. 

“For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!” Romans 5:17

The disobedience of Adam made every person on the planet a sinner. This sinner is not just a wrongdoer but is by nature a child of the devil. By the obedience of one man , Jesus Christ , the gift of God's righteousness has been made available to all who believe. God would be unrighteous to judge the world on the account of Adam's failure so to prove His justice ; He gave His son as a gift. Thank God for His love. 

“The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 5:20-21

When you sin, you don't need judgement, you need more grace. This is too good to be true but that's the gospel.

So , God's grace (that favor that endeavors to do you good and make you happy) will reign in your life according to your level of understanding righteousness. This is a foundation for the Christian victory walk.

Remember: You are the righteousness of God.

Transformation

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”  Romans 12:2 

I believe this scripture is the first page a person who has been born again needs to open. To the man that hasn't accepted Christ , we say "you must be born again". To the man that is born again , we say "you must renew your mind". 

Every person has a philosophy they live by which they got from their environment while growing up , their parents , their friends , TV shows , movies, music , print media and many other sources of information. All this information is endeavoring to shape us into different people. 

What we see and hear has the power to shape our thinking and in the end form the course of our life. 

A philosophy is just the way you view life and this shows up in your decisions, language and your response to situations. However , the bible is advising is NOT TO BE CONFORMED to the patterns of this world but to BE TRANSFORMED. 

Apostle Paul makes it clear how we will be changed; by changing the way we think. You can leave where you are today by changing the way you think. You will have the future you will have by the way you think. This means the way I think shapes my life. Sometimes people get a wrong thinking and get to that place where they are not ashamed to display it and I wonder why they allow themselves to be shaped by the devil instead of our loving Father. But as the children of God, we are different. 

I made up my mind that I was going to live by the bible. I will build my family on the principles of God's word. I have studied the lives of man who have refused the word and their end is never pleasing. The bible let's us know that there is a way that seems right to man but in the end it leads to destruction(Proverbs 14:12). Look at life from the end, don't be shortsighted ;the word says the end of a thing is better than its beginning(Eccl 7:8).   

God is the creator of the world and He let us know the way to follow. Jesus says He is the truth, anything outside Him is a lie. Paul says something amazing : 

“In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Colossians 2:3

All that you need to know about your life is hidden in Christ. Remember : all that you need to know about your life is what God already knows. God's word is the mirror of His thoughts towards us. Look at this again : 

“Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.”

Colossians 2:8-9

Make up your mind today to be a student of the word. Many people are willing to study everything else except the blueprint of their lives; the message that God uses to change them into a new, successful, unstoppable person. Don't be like that. Allow God to transform you by changing the way you think , then you will be able to know God's will for you. 

Remember: you are the righteousness of God

He rose from the dead

“Constantly keep in mind Jesus Christ (the Messiah) [as] risen from the dead, [as the prophesied King] descended from David, according to the good news (the Gospel) that I preach.” 2 Timothy 2:8

The resurrection of the Lord Jesus is the miracle of Christianity. This is the power of our gospel and the centre of it. It is how God proved that Jesus is His son. Yes , it is the mystery about faith in God. 

“Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:” Romans 1:3-4 

The resurrection from the dead signaled a new era in the universe. The angels in heaven celebrated , the demons in hell cried and moaned. Death has been defeated , life has been brought to us. Access to God has been made available once again. And the biggest of all : man has been justified. 

“Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.” Romans 4:25

Justification means declared not guilty. In other words it-is-just-as-if you never sinned. This justification is once and for all time. Apostle Paul made this even more clearer in Romans 5:1 - 

“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:” Romans 5:1

We were justified by faith in His resurrection. Not only were we justified but righteousness was imputed to us. This means the rightness of God which is that inherent life that causes us to align to the divine will was given to us as a gift. Man could now be right , how could this be!!! Jesus made it possible. This is the mystery of all ages. Man has received eternal life. Even the angels of heaven are still looking into this matter(1 Peter 1:12)

When you begin to identify yourself with this reality of His resurrection, the victorious life become yours. Look at the thinking of Apostle Paul : 

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

Galatians 2:20

Can you wake up everyday and proclaim - Christ lives in me!! He is alive but thank God His life is in us. It's Christ in you the hope of glory.  

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9 

Constantly keep in mind Christ as risen from the dead and alive in you today. This is the message Lord Jesus left us to tell the untold. It's all going to be revealed that we are exactly like Him when He appears the second time and we shall be caught up together to be with the Lord and so shall we be with Him forever and ever. What a day in glory!!!

Remember : You are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. 

Shout GRACE GRACE

“Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.”

Zechariah 4:7 KJV

Whether you're on top of the mountain or deep in the valley , thank God for grace. This revelation I am writing is transforming my life. It's living in the light of what Jesus has already accomplished for us. What grace has already made available. Yes! You can shout GRACE GRACE. 

Grace in the Strong's Concordance(Hebrew to English translation) is the word khar' -ece which surprisingly is a noun. This actually means God's favor freely extended to all those who would receive it. It's God endeavoring to run you over with blessings , do you good and make you joyful. This came as a package in the man , Christ Jesus full of grace and truth. Grace is embodied in Jesus. 

When we see Him , all we see is GRACE. We are driven into the torrents of God's love for us; a place where all the good happens. Apostle Paul does his best to reveal this to us in 2 Corinthians 13:14 

“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.”

2 Corinthians 13:14

He calls it "the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ". When we think about Jesus , all we think about is favor. When we think about the Father , all we fathom is His amazing love for giving us favor .When we think about the Holy Ghost , we behold that beautiful fellowship with the Father and His son that He makes accessible to us from our hearts to experience this favor. What a great life to live with God!!

In life , many problems come and many are driven away into worry and deep pain. That is the mountain Zechariah 4:7 is talking about. But He says who are you mountain before Zerubbabel? Zerubbabel was the man that was with Joshua leading the return of exiles from Babylon(a place of bondage). 

This was the man who received the message, "It's not by might or human strength but by my Spirit." Then it was said to him that a headstone or a cornerstone shall be brought forth and the people shall shout GRACE GRACE. This cornerstone is the Lord Jesus and this chanting is by the church celebrating that favor has come. 

No matter what's in front of you today ,you can shout GRACE GRACE and watch God's beauty running you over. 

Remember: You are loved by God

The art of work

“........make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.”1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 

I have received many questions on the subject of work ; one of them were - If you live by faith , does it mean that you don't have to do anything? My response in all these instances was , "Do not be stupid." That sounds a bit harsh but that question means the person is ignorant , foolish or both. 

Hard work has always been part of the human race. God told Adam is the garden of Eden to be fruitful , multiply , replenish the earth. This was gonna take some work. The great inventions that we have seen in transport , information technology, electricity, architecture, medicine and many others were because of people who dedicated their time to work.

It's the idea of "making a difference" , not simply "earning a living". 

This is the reason I personally do not go with the notion "do what you love". I believe that's a sentiment for the lazybones. The discovery of fire or more precisely the controlled use of fire was not born out of people just "doing what they loved" , it was born out of necessity. They say necessity is the mother of all invention. Yes , that's absolutely true. 

So I give you a new thought , I believe you have to "love what you do". Where you are today is where you're spending this part of your story on the earth. Make it worth it , make a big difference in that place of work or study. It does not mean you have to stay there forever but it means you have to do your best and make a difference. 

Tomorrow is not better than today; it's just another day in the story of your life. 

The master in Matthew 6 made it clear concerning how we need to live one day at a time. Preparing for tomorrow but enjoying while making impact today. 

In physics ; work is defined as a force that's applied on a body to cause displacement(movement) in the direction of the force. Mark the words DISPLACEMENT & DIRECTION. That's the yardstick!! Do you have a PLAN daily and are you moving in the DIRECTION of that plan. That's how you measure success. 

Those outside the Christian compass look at these things. We cannot win their respect if we don't value the art of work as the Apostle made clear in our opening scripture. 

The promise is that when we put our hands on anything , because of the blessing of God's grace on our lives ; we are definite to produce tremendously amazing results. 

Remember: You are loved by God

➕ = ❤️

Promises of the internet: 3 Cs

I am currently working on my soon to come mobile application. It's amazing how the advent of the internet has made billionaires across the globe from one roomed apartments.The Zuckerbergs , the Hoffmans , the Huffmans ..... the list is endless. 

I believe that everything on the planet exists for Jesus. Apostle Paul made it quite clear in Colossians ; 

“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:”

Colossians 1:16 KJV 

How can we harness the powers of the internet to impact our world to the glory of God? Think about 3Cs!!! 

✔️We have received the right message but the beginning of change is when we : 

• Communicate 

“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Mark 16:15 KJV

That word preach means to proclaim , to make known or simply to "communicate a thought". Information technology has made it easier to share our thoughts with people all around the world without physical contact. Someone is reading this thought from Boston-USA , Windhoek - Namibia, Tanzania , Zimbabwe. Isn't it amazing that we can communicate good news across the world at such a pace. Why is this important? Because Jesus is coming back again!!

Remember; Each time you post something on the internet, you're preaching. 

✔️The power of communication is driven by the idea that human beings have always been searching for a common ground in life which brings me to my second thought ; 

• Connection 

“While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples.” Matthew 9:10

The Master was not just a great communicator but wonderful at connecting. He connected with the weirdest people in His day : sinners and tax collectors. I always wonder what they were discussing but I am sure Jesus found a common ground of approach to them. 

The internet has such a way to bring us on a common ground of thought. I met a certain lady a few weeks back in town and she said with excitement ,"You always share on grace and I love it!!". My response was , "Have we met before?". And you know the answer, "You're my friend of Facebook!!". Wow!! I had never met her but we had connected through the power of the internet. 

✔️That brings me to the last BIG C: 

• Community 

“...........This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. 

Ephesians 2:19-21 MSG

I call the church my home. It is my family. It's those who have believed the same message of the gospel. Those with unstoppable love that brings revival to nations. Irregardless of the physical location , we are united by the thoughts and beliefs we hold, by the Father we have , one Savior for us all and one Spirit who lives in us. That's what I call COMMUNITY. 

Yes!!! Communication, Connection, Community. 

The internet is not against the church , it's meant for the church

Remember: You're loved by God 

➕ = ❤️