PRODUCT OF DESTINY: MEEKNESS

TEXT: EPHESIANS 4:1-2

INTRODUCTION: When someone has graduated from the divine school of destiny, he becomes a new person. Certain characteristics begin to manifest in his life.

MEEKNESS IS POWER
Firstly, he becomes very meek. When you have passed through the fire of suffering, trained by the Almighty God, you become meek. You become like a sheep. A sheep is very simple and very gentle. When people see meek people they think they are weak. Meekness is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of tremendous strength. Col.3:12.

        There is an example of a man who was well trained in Judo. Some people were bent on fighting him but he kept his cool. In fact he ran. They pursued him. At a time, they cornered him. He had to fight back. He broke the hands of all his attackers.
         When you have become what God wants you to become, you will become so powerful that you will not want to fight because you know your worth. Moses said if God sent him, the ground must swallow up his enemies. Before he finished speaking, the ground had swallowed them up. Also, remember Elijah who, when the soldiers came and said they had come to arrest him, decreed that they be roasted. Before he finished speaking, they had turned to ashes. NUM. 16:2834; 2 Kgs. 1:9-10  

CONCLUSION

Apart from becoming very powerful, the meek are blessed people. Ps.22:26; Ps.25:9; Ps 147:6; Matt.5:5.

THE POWER OF TESTIONIES

INTRODUCTION:

Testimony is the act of declaring what God has done for you Ps. 66:16; Is. 63:7. It is witnessing to the glory and power of God to people Ps. 145:11; Ps. 26:7. It can also be regarded as the act of faith which can enter the heart of man Ps. 119:129. have you shared your testimony concerning recent miracles you received? Ps.119:46.

SHARING YOUR TESTIMONY IS WITNESSING

When you share your testimony, you are witnessing Christ to your audience. Testimonies attract attention easily. Those who may not want to listen to the gospel may want to listen to your testimonies. Therefore, give Christ the glory and shame the devil Jn. 4:39-42; MK.5:18-19.

POWER OF TESTIMONY

Testimony has power to produce more miracles in the lives of the hearer Ps. 119:11. It ia a weapon of warfare placed side by side with the blood of Jesus Rev. 12:11. It brings revival and divine visitation to the church. It is the evidence that God is alive and that he is still moving around performing miracles Ps 19:7; Acts 8:8. Testimony seals the blessing of the testifier permanently and the devil cannot do anything about it. Acts 3:8-9. Testimony indicates that you are connected with Christ Ps. 119:127. Testimony is like payment of your vow before God and his congregation 1 Sam. 1:26-28.

                                                      CONCLUSION

Believers should begin to testify henceforth. Somebody needs your testimony to receive his or her testimony.

PLEASE YOU ARE FREE TO SHARE YOUR TESTIMONY HERE.

OPEN MY EYES, O LORD

REVELATION 3:14-18 (From DADDY E.A ADEBOYE)

Today, we shall learn more lessons from the church in Laodicea.

SELF DECEPTION

In the letter to the Laodiceans, Jesus said they taught that they were rich. However, as far as God is concerned, they were wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked. This is the description of every Christian that is lukewarm especially if it is due to being rich Rev.3:17; Ps.36:2; Gal.6:3.

    You know the story of the fool in Luke 12:16-20. He had a lot of riches. He then told his soul to relax and enjoy. God called him a fool. If God calls a man a fool, he must be a fool indeed. God said he would leave the world that day.

    |He went on to say that the church in Laodicea was naked even though they had lots of clothes. Those of us who have Christ do not need the best clothes before we look important. When God wants to honor a man, He will clothe him with salvation.

    Jesus said the church at |Laodicea should ask for gold that is tried in fire from Him. The best gold, which is gold tried in fire, is faith in the Almighty God. The faith that God will meet all your needs is the gold that will never perish. Without faith, you cannot please God Rev. 3:18; Heb. 11:6; 1 Pt. 1:7.

     Jesus went on to say that the church in Laodicea should buy from Him eye drops to clear their eyes. All the while, they were doing wrong but they did not know. They did not stop anybody from preaching, yet, they were lukewarm. They did not know that they were doing anything wrong. Some of us are like this John 9:40-41.

                                          CONCLUSION

May the Almighty God open our eyes to know whether we are lukewarm or not because we have to discover whether we are good or not to be able to amend our ways. we have to know and accept that we are wrong before we can change.

DIVINE PARTNERSHIP

2 CORINTHIANS 6:14-18

It is great to partner with the Most High God. However, there are certain conditions you must satisfy if you truly want to be God's partner.

CONDITIONS FOR DIVINE PARTNERSHIP

1. To partner with God, you must not partner with unbelievers in business, marriage or in any other area. Why?
a. You are made righteous by the blood of the lamb but they are not.
b. You are light but they are darkness and both cannot combine: one must displace the other.
c. When you are looking up to God for help, they will be looking down for help from satanic forces.
d. When you are praying for Jesus to guide and direct your meetings, they will be making enchantments.
e. You belong to Christ but they belong to Belial and each must serve his master or Master.
f. You are God's temple while they are for idols 1 Cor. 6:15-20

2. To partner with God, you must come out from among unbelievers Ezra 10:10-11. It is a backslider that abides in the midst of the dead Prov.21:16. Unbelievers are already condemned Jn.3:18. It is only when they receive Jesus that condemnation is lifted Rom. 8:1. The best friend of some Christians are unbelievers. This is unfortunate. If you are always in the company of unbelievers, something is wrong somewhere Lk.24:5; Eccl.9:3-4; Matt.22:32 Matt.8:21-22.

Why must you be separated from unbelievers? Although the scriptures Matt.5:45 talks of general blessings, certain rain showers of blessings will only come on believers. God has the ability to release rain on one part of the city and leave out the other. Amos 4:7. Be wise and do not let your partnership with unbelievers rob you of your blessings.   

OPEN DOORS

Today, we want to look at more lessons to learn from the church at Philadelphia.

IF GOD BE FOR US  
God said that He has set before the church in Philadelphia an open door which no man can shut because even though they had little strength, they still kept his word- Rev.3:8. With your little strength, if you have Jesus backing you up, you will be more successful than someone with great strength. Everything will be easy when God is backing you- Jn.15:1-2.
He said no one could shut the door that he will open. This is beautiful. When God is the one who    opened the door for you, let all the wicked people in the world try to shut the door. they will fail. When God wants to promote you, nobody can hold you down. This is why you must do his business fearlessly- Rom.8:34.

TYPES OF DOORS

What are the kinds of doors that God will open unto you? One could be the door of missionary opportunities- 1Cor.16:8-9.
God has a way of rewarding those who are witnessing for Him. He gives them more opportunities to witness. The most difficult soul to win is the first one. After this, it will become easier and easier. God will open the door for you to win soul and win it more in the name of Jesus.
There is also the door of prayer. It is open to everybody. Anybody can pray. Nobody can stop you from praying. Even if there is a government decree against prayer, those who will pray will still  pray Lk.18:1-8;

There are several promises that the Lord made to the children of Israel. After sometime, they lost their place with God and he created a new Israel which He called Israel of God. These are the born-again Christians- Gal.6:15-16; Gal.3: 28-29. All of us that are in Christ shall inherit all the promises of Abraham.
   
    

THIS WORLD CAN NOT BE COMPLETELY FIXED WITHOUT JESUS

A pastor was struggling to prepare his sermon and didn't want to be disturbed by his five year old daughter, so he removed a map of the world from his study, tore it into pieces and gave it to her daughter to assemble with the promise that he would answer all her questions and play with her when she was done.

He knew she would never be able to fix it. To his amazement, in less than five minutes, she returned to him in his study with the map in perfect shape, every continent and every country in its place. The surprised father asked, "Honey, you don't know anything about geography, so how did you fix the world so easily and quickly? The five year old girl smiled sweetly and replied, "The picture of JESUS was at the back of the map and i knew that if I have JESUS in the right place, the whole world would be in perfect shape". That was just the right inspiration he needed for his sermon.

He thanked his daughter and prepared a powerful sermon on the subject Fix your world by placing JESUS at the right place. Just place JESUS in his rightful place and your life will be in order. I hope you understand this just like I do. Spread it to the world, let them know that all you need to fix your life is Jesus.     

THE POWER OF THE PRAYING STUDENT

UNDERSTANDING WHAT IS PRAYER?

Prayer is a communication between you and God in order to establish the will of God in your life, situation and society. Prayer is not just talking to God. Prayer is talking with God in order to effect his purpose on the earth. This means every prayer must receive an answer from God. You don't just talk to God, He also communicate with you. Psalm 99:6-8.

There is power available to the praying student and also through prayers you can establish God's will in your academics. God is waiting for students to pray.  Students are the ones facing the challenges; Students, we must pray now because some issues we are facing are not just physical but spiritually manipulated. Sadly to say, not many students are driven to prayers as a result of these evils. We must wake up to pray for God. I challenge you to shake the fallow ground of your school and let righteousness rain upon it.

One area I urge all students to pray about is their school calendar. Many students, apart from personal problems, have stayed in schools longer than when they ought to graduate. External and internal strikes have made many students over stayed their years in school. James 5:16 God will never change what you have not prayed through on your knees. There is a song that says Prayer is the key, prayer is the key, prayer is the master key Jesus started with prayer and ended with prayer, prayer is the master key. Prayer is the master key to every situation in your Academics. I believe it is ungodly to be strong in prayers and be lazy in your studies as a student. We need to study well as student as we also pray. We shall excell in our academic in Jesus name.  

STORY OF ANGELS

Two traveling angels stopped to spend the night in the home of a wealthy family. The family was rude and refused to let the angels stay in the mansion's guest room. Instead the angels were given a small space in the cold basement . As they made their bed on the hard floor, the older angel saw a hole in the wall and repaired it. When the younger angel asked why, the older angel replied, Things aren't always what they seem"

The next night the pair came to rest at the house of a very poor, but very hospitable farmer and his wife. After sharing what little food they had the couple let the angels sleep in their bed where they could have a good night's rest.

When the sun came up the next morning the angels found the farmer and his wife in tears. Their only cow, whose milk had been their sole income, lay dead in the field. The younger angel was infuriated and asked the older angel how could you have let this happen?  The first man had everything, yet you helped him, she accused. The second family had little but was willing to share everything, and you let the cow die.

"Things aren't always what they seem," the older angel replied.

"When we stayed in the basement of the mansion, I noticed there was gold stored in that hole in the wall. Since the owner was so obsessed with greed and unwilling to share his good fortune, I sealed the wall so he wouldn't find it."

"Then last night as we slept in the farmers bed, the angel of death came for his wife i gave him the cow instead. Things aren't always what they seem."

Sometimes that is exactly what happens when things don't turn out the way they should. If you have faith, you just need to trust that every out come is always to your advantage. You just might not know it until some time later....

Some people come into our lives and quickly go... Some people become friends and stay a while.. Leaving beautiful footprints on our hearts... and we are never quite the same because we have made a good friend.

Yesterday is history.
Tomorrow a mystery.
Today is a gift.
That's why it's called the present.     

FEELING BETTER HAS BECOME MORE IMPORTANT TO US THAN FINDING GOD

MATHEW 7:13-14 In the world today, we have moved away from finding God to finding ourselves. Fondness for one's self has become the highest virtue and personal pain is now the greatest sin. 1. Marrying Late- Pastor Kumuyi's present wife 2. No Children in the marriage- Father of Faith ABRAHAM 3. First Husband's death- Ruth won't have met Boaz 4. Got jilted at the last minute- Saul's promise to David if he kills Goliath, Samson's wife after the riddle 5. In love with the girl about Town- Rahab the harlot of Jericho 6. My husband is Foolish and not organized- Abigail of Nabal 7. Spent on a woman and got cheated- Jacob and Rachael 8. I was born in pain and into a curse- Jabez says to shut up 9. I love too many girls- Solomon says Vanity upon Vanity 10. The economy is harsh- Jesus was born in a manger..... The bottom line is this: DO EVERYTHING TO KEEP THE ANOINTING ON YOUR LIFE. LIVE FOR GOD AND LET GOD FIGHT FOR YOU. It is not true that if you marry the will of God for your life and stay in the will of God, your marriage will be problem-free. It is an aberration of the Gospel to think that if you are led by the Holy Ghost and filled with the Holy Ghost, your marriage will feel better and you will feel better without any pains in life. Mathew 3:16-4:2 ASK YOUR SELF WHAT AM I FIGHTING FOR?

HOW DO YOU BECOME A COMPLETE WOMAN

1. Discover God's purpose for your life and desire to bring it to pass- Jeremiah 1:5, Romans 5:29 2. Be progressive. Don't give in to discouragement, Philippians 3:12-14, 3. Be willing to pay the price through prayer and fasting. Today, there are several ways to learn of the lord: your personal bible study, worship, prayer attending fellowships, church services, listening to good christian messages, reading good christian books. can help you grow spiritually. Before others can learn from you, you must have learnt from the master yourself. Make sure you "buy the truth and sell it not" forevermore on your soul that is eternal than your body which is temporal. You can only give out to others what you have. The question is where are you dwelling". At times we are so consumed before our needs to the extent that it become difficult for us to see how we can sacrifice and be a blessing to others; whereas the key to getting our desires is in being of help to others, Ruth decided to stay by her mother-in-law who was a widow and needed the company of someone close to give her comfort. At the same time, Ruth was a younger widow who needed the company of a young man in - her life as a husband. She sacrificed for her mother-in-law. During her time of sacrifice, Boaz the wealthy Jewish businessman met her, blessed and married her. God crowned her sacrifice with the gift of a son named Obed. Obed became the father of Jesus, the father of David, The lineage through which our lord Jesus Christ was born into the world. Come unto me all you that labour and are heavy laden and will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me.

COMPLETE IN HIS FULLNESS PART 2

W- WINSOME PROV. 31:11 Says the heart of her husband trusts in her. She wins everybody's heart especially her husbands's and that is because of her good attitude, she is not slothful, careless, wasteful, she is hardworking and manages her home well, she is not frugal to the extent that her efforts brings gains to her family. O- OBEDIENT Because she obeys her husband, everyone praises her. Prov. 31:28 (her children call her blessed and her husband praise her). M- MINDFUL She is mindful of the fact that it is her responsibility to take care of her household, siblings, in-laws etc. Prov. 31:13-16. Confirms that she is an early riser (she works willingly with her hands, always willing to get her hands dirty, because she understands that it is her duty to ensure her family is well fed). A- ACCOMMODATING She accommodates all and sundry Prov.31:20 (she is very hospitable). she stretches her hands to the poor and needy. N- NATURE She is a care giver. The above five characteristics is a typical nature of Ruth. Ruth was a woman that is complete in his fullness. 1. She fears God. Prov. 31:30 beauty is vain but a woman who fears God shall be praised. Ruth 1:16-18 2. Hardworking- prov.31:13-18, Ruth2:1 and 7 3. Obedient and commitment Deut. 6:5 Ruth 3:3-6. all that thou sayest unto me, i will do. her obedience and commitment was heard all over the city that Boaz in Ruth 3:11 testified that all people in the city know that Ruth is a virtuous woman (complete woman). Finally she was found to be: 4. Praise worthy Ruth 2:11, Ruth3:11, Ruth4:15 In conclusion, if you want to be complete in his fullness be an obedient and humble woman in total submission to her husband in the fear of God

COMPLETE IN HIS FULLNESS Part One

1. Every body wants a life of completeness and this is fundamentally why Jesus came to the earth to make us complete and whole. 2. The word complete cannotes fullness, wholeness and totality. So to be complete in his fullness is to be totally formed in him. 3 Christ is the manifestation of God.Phil.2:5-11. 4. Christ is life. Jn10:10 without Christ, life is incomplete. Jn 15:1-5 5.Jesus himself told us that without him we can do nothing, He is our peace, Joy,salvation, health and giver of long life victory etc. A complete woman in his fullness is a woman who has received Grace. The book of John in chapter 1:16-18 says that, of his fullness have we received Grace for Grace. And this is the Grace that makes us complete in him. Phil 2:10 the word "Woman" is five letters and five is the number of Grace. Prov.31:10-31 gave us five attributes of what makes a woman complete in his fullness in the five letter of a woman as stated below: W WINSOME O OBEIDENT M MINDFUL A ACCOMMODATING N NATURE

AUTHENTIC PRAISE AND WORSHIP

PASTOR PAUL ENECHE IN ONE OF HIS BOOK ONCE TAUGHT US THIS: MATHEW 15:8-9 Authentic worship is very important in order to access the presence of God. The anchor Scripture makes us understand that it is possible to offer vain worship; What then is Vain worship? It is the worship that is useless and empty and produces no result. This means that worship or praise is beyond just singing. On the other hand, worship can also be authentic. It is important for us to know what makes praise authentic. Authentic worship or praise is beyond singing; the quality of the voice is not as important as the state of the life that is offering the worship. The meaning is that God sees your heart before he hears your voice. There are deep worshippers of God who do not know the difference between alto, tenor and soprano and bass and there are singers of alto, tenor, and soprano who don't know what worship is. What is so important to God is not musical ability, theatrical ability or ability to dance, jump, sing or clap but the state of our heart with him. What then makes worship authentic and productive? One of them is SOLID CHARACTER. Characterless worship is useless worship. Isiah 43:21 said these people have i formed myself, they shall show forth, not 'sing' forth. so, what your life shows is a higher worship than what your mouth sings. Your character is either bringing God glory or shame. God is interested in whether your life is acceptable before your worship can be acceptable to him. for instance, if somebody serves you food in a plate, you will be interested in the neatness of both the person and the plate in which the food is served. When you offer God worship, He would want to know the kind of vessel that is producing that worship. Authentic praise must come from a solid character because an unrepentant sinner dancing in church is not different from somebody who is dancing in a disco hall. Beloved, watch your character so you can offer quality worship to God. Remember this: God sees your heart before he hears your voice.

CELEBRATING SINGLENESS WITH A DIFFERENCE

ECCL 3:1, 11 Singleness spans the whole of the human race. It is a separate, unique and a whole stage in one's life, at one point in time or the other. We are going to talk about those who are waiting for the day they will walk to the altar and say yes i do. Remember that one day, you will surely give account to God on how you spent your life. There are different causes of singleness: Yet to find Mr. /Miss Right, educational ambition, freedom, sexual challenges, deliberate action, bitter experiences from people, marital pains and chronic illness among other things. ADVERSE EFFECTS OF LONELINESS 1. Problems of Loneliness 2. Loss of self esteem 3. Problem with self 4. Unable to handle emotional issues 5. Others HOW TO HANDLE SINGLENESS (Text: Luke 18:28-32) 1. Do not be subjected to pressure. 2. Stop canopy ministry; ladies don't sell your body. 3. Do not 'box' God out. 4. A broken relationship is better than a broken marriage. 5. Work on your appearance and self esteem 6. Do not covet to marry (prov 14:12). 7. Do not marry to solve problems. 8. Base courtship on the spiritual and not on physical attraction. 9. Celebrate each other. 10. Develop scriptural understanding about marriage. Conclusion Any relationship that does not draw you closer to God must be avoided.

PRESSING FORWARD

MARK 10: 46-52

This is the records the opening of the eyes of blind Bartimaeus by Jesus Christ. The account of this story tells us that Bartimaeus did not allow those with two eyes intact to discourage him from getting help from the person he believed could deliver him. Blind Bartimaeus knew he would be the greatest enemy of himself if he allowed Jesus, whom he must have heard a lot about, to pass without calling his attention to his situation. After all, he was only blind, he wasn't deaf or dumb, he used what he had which is his voice and sight. He shouted louder to the extent that Jesus heard him, and sent for him. This year let nothing hinder you, you must press forward. The irony is that the people who tried to hinder Bartimaeus from getting his miracle were the same people who told him to cheer up because Jesus was calling him. That is why you must not listen to discouragers, mockers, negative people etc the only person you will listen to is the bible (the word of God) Just like David ignored Eliab, his brother, who was making an uncomplimentary statement about his enquiry as regards Goliath on the battle field (1Sam 17:26-30).

You must be determined to receive your miracle. No matter what, You must not stop crying to God until he answers you, until you receive your miracle, until your story changes. You may have been praying over a matter for some years, never give up. Don't be weary in prayer. Trust the lord, Jesus was on his way to the house of the Jairus whose daughter had died but was interrupted by the woman with hemorrhage for 12 years. Unfortunately, while the woman must have been rejoicing over her healing at last, he received a bad news that the daughter was dead."Yourlittle girl is dead. There's no need troubling the teacher now," he was told (luke 8:49) They're in essence saying there was no need for him to cry to the master again: he should accept the condition as his fate. But Jesus heard them and told the Jairus, Don't be afraid just trust me, and she will be alright. Luke 8:50 in the Name of Jesus everything shall be alright for you this year.  
 
WHAT TO Do

1. Study the bible
2.Pray according to the word of God. The word of God is the will of God 1 John 5 14-15.
3.Keep asking in faith and thanking God 1 These 2:13
4. Don't neglect the gathering with fellow believers.
5. Be patient. Heb 6:12
6. Listen and obey the spirit of God.
Who is he who speaks and it comes to pass, when the lord has not commanded it.