Have you ever been offered a position or something that you knew was not the Lords will for your life? Very tempting, however you knew that it was a distraction from His purpose for you. What did you do?
 
Many times men see potential and skill in us and  try to channel it in the way they think is best. But what is the Lord saying?

 
Lets have a look at this scripture:


  John 6: 14 -  15

 14 Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that  Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the
world.

 15 When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a  mountain himself alone.


The world tried this with Jesus. What did Jesus do? The Lord did not wait for them to come, He took Himself out of the situation
before He was even approached. 
 
How many people have aborted destinies for titles and temporary positions? How many people have detoured from the path of life to that which seems to be good? Very dangerous and not worth it.

 
The wise resist any form of detour from the Lords  plan for their lives. Not worth it, for temporary pleasure which can end up being very costly. What matters most is 'well done good and  faithful servant'. Are you faithful and committed to what you know you need to  do?


  The Lord is counting on you. Refuse and resist  all the distractions. Stay on the path you know is right, The path to destiny and purpose.


  Bisi  Oladipupo

Have you ever asked yourself this question before ‘why do Christians go through hard times’? 

As we go through the journey of life, tough times will come. Sometimes we ask, why Lord?. Lets look at a few scriptures to see reasons why difficult times come our way.


Persecution for the Words Sake!

 Mark 4 verses 14 to 17  The sower soweth the word. And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard,  Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their  hearts. And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when  they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;  And have  no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for  the word’s sake, immediately they are  offended.


 The reason why affliction or  persecution came was for the Words sake. It came to try the Word. Thank  God that we know the Word always prevails. So next time sickness comes, or lack or cirumstances contrary to what the Lord had told you, stand on what He has already told you and do whatever the Lord tells us to do.


Hebrews 4:12 (a) For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword.


 Isaiah 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I  please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.


For committing your life fully to the Lord  and becoming His disciples.

 Mark 10: 29And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or  mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s, 30But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and  sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the  world to come eternal life.


 Persecution is part of the package.


For  living Godly.

 2 Timothy 3 12: Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
 
This scripture speaks for itself.


Attack from our enemy:


1 Thessalonians 2:18  Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but  Satan hindered us.

 Satan may hinder you but he cannot  stop you.

 Luke 22: 31 to 32 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift  you as wheat: But I have prayed for  thee, that thy faith fail  not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy  brethren.


 I know we talk about Peter denying the Lord, yes he did, but according to  this, the attack came from the devil.  Peter was probably not strong enough  to resist the attack but thank God the Lord had already prayed for him. We need  to pray for one another as the Lord leads us and especially when others are going through tough times.


Living in disobedience to Gods will, voice or purpose:

 Proverbs 13: 15 Good understanding giveth favour: but  the way of transgressors is hard. Lets look at this verse in other translations: 

Good understanding wins favor, but  the way of the transgressor is hard [like the barren, dry soil or the
impassable swamp]. (Amplified Bible)


Has the Lord told you to do something and you are doing something else? Or has He directed you to do something but you are delaying. The wise obey.


Lack  of knowledge.

 Hosea 4 verse 6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge:

 The study of the Word and church attendance or house church attendance is  very important. Sometimes the Lord is trying to prepare us ahead of a difficult  time but we don’t yield. Instead of studying what we has been laid on our hearts to study we  get too busy. What we fail to realise is that the  Lord is trying to teach us something that we will need, if only we attended  those meetings or studied our bibles as He has been trying to get us too. It  could also be books lying on the shelves or CDs that we should have listened  too.  When we get too busy and go a different way, not yielding to the Lords preparation, it makes the situation more difficult and sometimes more prolonged because we were not prepared for it.

 Have you ever said this to yourself before? I wish l had known this 2 years ago.

 Proverbs 10:14a Wise men lay up knowledge: (Even when you think  you don’t need it now).


Whatever the source of the difficult time is, we will always have the victory as long as we stay close to the Lord.


1 Corinthians 15 : 57 But thanks be to God, which giveth  us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 2 Corinthians 2 :14Now  thanks be unto God, which always causeth  us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge  by us in every place.


Tough times may come, but the Lord is faithful and ever ready to help us. He  is our ever present help. If you are going through a difficult time please be  assured that there is hope.


Bisi Oladipupo

Have you ever gone through a difficult time and  wondered to happened to some people that you called your friends? Let have a
close look at this scripture:
 
Proverbs 18:  24
   A man that hath friends must shew  himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a  brother.

 
Note the phrase ' and there is a friend' which means this does not apply to all friends.

  This is why we get disappointed sometimes when we go through  difficult times. We think some people will be there for us and suddenly we find  out that they are not there.
 
Proverbs 18 :24 says that you can have many friends as long as you are friendly, but only few of  them  will stick closer than a  brother. Its only a friend closer than a brother that will go the extra mile for  you and hang in there during difficult  times.

  The above scripture differentiates  levels  of friendship,  not all friends  will stick closer than a  brother!

 
We need to be discerning when dealing with people so we don't  expose ourselves to the wrong people and get hurt. Its not everyone you can  expose yourself too during trials. Simply because not everyone has want it takes  to help. Some people are simply not matured enough to offer any assistance while  others may not have the commitment it takes.


  While is good to have physical support and encouragement,  sometimes it can be difficult to find it. But remember that whatever you are going through, our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ will always be there. For He will never leave  us nor forsake us! (Hebrews  13:5).


  
Bisi  Oladipupo

Have you ever been in a situation where you thought that there is no way out?  Our little minds sometimes play tricks on us. We get into a situation and we  think, ‘ there is no way out’, but that is a lie as with God nothing shall be  impossible and all things are possible to him that believes.

 Now just picture this. You are kept in a cell and bound with two chains. You are made to sleep in-between two soldiers. The prison door is locked. Could you ever think that there would be a way of escape?

Lets look at this account:


Acts 12: 1- 11 

Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.  2 And he killed James the brother
of John with the sword.  3 And because he saw it pleased  the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of
unleavened bread.)  4 And when he had apprehended him,  he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep  him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.  5 Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.  6 And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound  with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.  7 And, behold, the angel of the  Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the  side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from  his hands. 8 And the angel said unto him,  Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him,  Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me.  9 And he went out, and followed  him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he  saw a vision.  10 When they were past the first  and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city;  which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through  one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him.  11 And when Peter was come to  himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent
his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the  expectation of the people of the Jews.

See verse 5 prayer was made without ceasing unto God for Peter, and see what the  Lord did?  When God is on the case, anything can happen.

 Are you in a very difficult position or situation? Don’t give up and don’t  believe a lie. With God all things are possible and all things are possible to  him that believes. Do you believe that the Lord is able and willing to deliver  you? He is more than able to do it.


What l find interesting in this account is that, the keepers were keeping the  prison doors, and they did not even know when the gates opened. They must have  been standing right outside the same gates when Peter walked by. That is why God is God.


Can you also recall when Daniels friends (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego )  were cast into the lake of fire and came out unhurt?  Please read the full  account n Daniel chapter 3. That is God at work.

 So wipe away your tears, don’t believe a lie, believe that God is willing and  more than able to deliver you, and see  your deliverance come.


Bisi Oladipupo

Have you ever come across someone before and  found out that they no longer attend church? They tell you that they now read
their bible at home. Or have you ever come across someone who was so always  present at church suddenly now attends on occasions. You ask why? They tell you,  Pastor so so did this, Elder so so did that, did you not hear what happened at the church the list goes on and on.

 
The hard truth about this is that, its a sign of  the end times. As a Christian, our first priority is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul and mind  
  
Matthew 22: 37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy  heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind and to know the Lord. 
 
  Philippians 3: 10 That I may know him, and the power of his   resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto  his death;

 
Loving and knowing the Lord should be our first  priority. It comes before anything else. When we love the Lord and know Him, a
gracious and beautiful Lord, nothing will separate us from His love. 
  
We must make first things  first.
 
The scriptures are very clear, some people's love waxing cold is a sign of the end times. 
 

Matthew 24: 12-  13   And because iniquity shall  abound, the love of many shall wax  cold.
  But he that shall endure  unto the end, the same shall be saved.


It is save to say that the root cause of some  peoples love waxing cold is misplaced focus. Heaven is real, Hell is real, Jesus
loves you so much and laid down His life for you. He laid aside His majesty,  just for you. An awesome saviour, the one who owns our breath, a gracious Lord.  That is what is true and that is what we should focus on. Brother B did this to  me, Pastor K, did these etc is all irrelevant. Hold unto what matters most, your  salvation!.

 Romans 8: 38 -  39
  For  I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities,  nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
  Nor  height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our  Lord.

 Make  loving the Lord and knowing our gracious Lord your first priority. Everything  else will disintegrate and become nothing!

Bisi Oladipupo

Most people know the Lords prayer found in the gospels in the book of  Matthew  and Luke 11.

 Matthew 6: 9-13
  After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven,  Hallowed be thy name.
  Thy kingdom come, Thy will  be done in earth, as it is in heaven.  Give  us this day our daily bread.
  And forgive us our debts, as  we forgive our debtors.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For thine is  the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.


 Luke 11: 1-4
  And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain  place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to
pray, as John also taught his disciples.  And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in  earth.  Give  us day by day our daily bread.
 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to  us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

  The emphasis of this article is the phrase ‘ Give us this day our daily bread’ or give us day by day our daily bread’.


From scripture, we know that the word ‘bread’ can signify other things such  as doctrine (Matthew 16;12) , healing (Matthew 15:26) etc so we need to be  specific about what ‘daily bread ‘ means.  In other words, it has to be what we require on a daily basis.


Our physical food required for our bodies is the first thing that springs to  mind for it strengthens us:
 Psalm 104: 14- 15 confirms this,   He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the  service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth;  And wine that maketh glad the  heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and  bread which strengtheneth man’s heart.


To have a daily supply of food, most of us will agree that one needs a job or  a business that will generate an income. This is how in a practical way we all  get food to eat. There is some form of labour required for us to have our daily  bread.


Proverbs 12: 11 He that tilleth his land  shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain persons is void of understanding.

 Proverbs 20: 13  Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt  be satisfied with bread.

  Therefore when we pray: ‘give us this day or day by day our  daily bread’, we are asking for:

             a job

• or a business


• good health  to work


• peace of mind to be able to do a good job


• good business ideas to make an income


• strength to go to work

All these are a requirement for daily physical food/ bread.


The second daily bread requirement is our spiritual food.


The Word of God:

 Matthew 4: 4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread  alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.



 Spending time in His presence:

 Just as our physical food strengthens our bodies, spending time in His  presence renews our inner man:


Isaiah 40: 29-31

 29 He giveth power to the faint;  and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

 30 Even the youths shall faint and  be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:

 31 But they that wait  upon the Lord shall  renew their strength;  they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and  they shall walk, and not faint.


Jesus is the bread of life (John 6:48). The true bread (John 6: 32)


To live a vibrant life we must eat our physical food, hear from the Lord  through His Word daily, and linger and spend time in His presence.

 This gives the phrase ‘Give us this day our daily bread’ a deeper  meaning.


Just as we don’t pray for our physical daily bread and just wait at the bed  for food to be sent, but go out to work to earn a living, so should we not be  passive about getting our spiritual daily bread.  We must feed on His Word  and spend time in his presence. This is how we will get our daily bread.


   Bisi Oladipupo

It can be very difficult when a church leader falls. What l mean is when they have made a mistake and it becomes public.

 We all sin and make mistakes and this is why we have the provision of 1 John 1: 9, which says:  If we confess our sins, he is
faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

This scripture is evidence that the Lord is aware that we may make mistakes and sin and hence this provision.

 But he/she is a leader? They should know better?

 Unfortunately good men and women do wrong things sometimes as they are also flesh and blood just like everyone else however the impact of what they do can  have more significance because of their position.


So what do l tell my child?


The amount of information you tell your child depends on their age and level  of maturity in the Lord. But in summary, you want to make sure of the  following:


They continue to Love the Lord passionately and serve Him


And


They don’t think this is a licence to do the same thing.


Thank God that there is nothing new under the sun. Tell them how David loved  the Lord, a man after Gods own heart but sinned against the Lord. Can you  imagine if David was alive today and did what he did then?


Tell them that David was forgiven, but he paid a very heavy price for what he  did. This is a brief account.

 2 Samuel 12:9
 Wherefore hast thou despised the  commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the
Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. 

  10Now therefore the sword shall  never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the
wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. 

  11Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I  will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy  wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with  thy wives in the sight of this sun.


 12For thou didst it secretly: but I  will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.


 13And David said unto Nathan, I  have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. 

  14Howbeit, because by this deed  thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.


Part of the fulfilment and the heavy price that David paid can be found in the following scriptures: 2 Samuel 13, (Absalom plotted and killed his  brother Amnon,  15, 2 Samuel 16: (Absalom went in unto his father’s  concubines in the sight of all Israel.)


David was forgiven, but he did pay a very heavy price for what he did. Tell  your child, depending on how old they are that what happened to Leader D, is not  a licence to do they same or else they may pay the same price for what they have
done. This should instil the fear of the Lord in them. Tell them that there is  no respect of persons with God (Romans 2: 11, For there is no respect of  persons with God.)

 Secondly tell them, that the only person that laid down His life for them is  our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ and He should be their example. Let them know  that Jesus Christ should be their example and it is  unto Him we all live  too. Tell them that in spite of whatever goes on, they can always live above  reproach and honour the Lord in all things. And also let them know that heaven and hell are very real places.


Its is also good to tell them that they need to forgive the person as the  Lord forgives when we repent and so should we. Explain to them that he who gives  mercy will reap mercy (Galatians 6: 7).


Above all pray that the Lord will protect your Childs heart and the Lord give you wisdom to train them up in His ways.


Bisi Oladipupo

The bible makes it clear that we should not judge, yet many people find  themselves judging situations and people. Only the Lord knows the exact details to judge.

 
Have a read of this account:

 I once attended a conference with a brother whom I have known for years would be a significant prophet in the last-day church. This man had been rejected by much of the church because of the status of his marriage, which at  that time was in a state of separation and had been one of many  difficulties. 


 One night the Lord spoke to me in a dream about my own  marriage, which l consider to be in compliance with biblical standards. He said  that this other man was more righteous in complying with His standards for  marriage than l was.


 I had been given a godly wife who loved the Lord and  sought Him, and the condition of my marriage was purely the result of grace. I
had been given little effort to comply with His mandate in this and had been  hard, unyielding, and resistant to things He would have me to do to improve my marriage.
 


  Against the most humiliating circumstances, and  resistance, this other man for years had devoted himself to complying with the
biblical mandate to make his marriage work, even when he had every right, both  biblically and morally, to walk away from it. Yet the church has judged him as a  failure and me as acceptable in this area. God had a very different  opinion.


(From The Harvest, page 203 by Rick Joyner)



The above account speaks for itself and brings this scripture into  reality:

 1 Corinthians 4: 5

Therefore judge nothing before the  time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things
of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.


Bisi Oladipupo

The Lord has His ways and the wise agree with the ways of the Lord. Its amazing, but in certain ways we can limit what the Lord wants to do in our lives if care is not taken. I recently heard a testimony and l was eye witness to the  account.


A lady was about to board a plane in June 2012. She said that she heard very clearly three times ‘ do not board that flight’. She went to the airport and  told the airline that she does not want to board the flight. The airline told  her, that they cannot refund her money, she either boards the flight or loss the  money. She choose to loose the money and thank God she did. The flight crashed  with NO survivors. When she was giving the testimony, she held the ticket for  the flight and waved it standing on the pulpit.


Thank God she obeyed and listened to the warning of the Lord. The Lord wanted  to deliver her, and her obedience to the Lord did not limit Gods delivering  power which was manifested on her behalf. A very sobering lesson, disobedience  to the voice of the Lord can limit God.

 
In the book of Numbers 20, Moses disobeyed the Lord. This was the  consequence:


Numbers 20: 12
And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed  me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall  not bring this congregation into the land which I have given  them.

 
Lets look at another scripture:

 Deuteronomy 31 : 1- 3
1 And Moses went and spake these words unto all Israel.


2 And he said unto them, I am an  hundred and twenty years old this day; I can no more go out and come in: also  the Lord hath said unto me, Thou shalt not go over this Jordan.

 3 The Lord thy God, he  will go over before thee, and he will destroy these nations from before thee,  and thou shalt possess them: and Joshua, he shall go over before thee, as the  Lord hath said.


If you note from verse 3, Moses said that he is 120 years old and can go no  more out and come in and also (which means in addition to this), the Lord had  told him (Moses) that he cannot go over Jordan.

 
Moses would have taken the children of Israel across the Jordan had he not  disobeyed the Lord. Which means that Moses would have been given strength and  everything required to complete the job. There would have been no need for Moses  to say ‘ l cannot go in and out’ in verse 3. We properly would have had an  account of a 120 year old still leading the children of Israel. He would have
been strong enough to do it, but he limited God.

 
The children of Israel also limited God.
 
Psalm 78: 40 – 43

 How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!

  Yea,  they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of  Israel.

  They remembered not his hand, nor  the day when he delivered them from the enemy.

  How he had wrought his signs in  Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan.  


Please read the full account in Psalm 78.
 
So can we limit God?  Sometimes, yes we can, in many ways. We must be  careful not to limit God in what He wants to do in our lives. Many today are  refusing to yield to Him and come to the Lord. The Lord wants to reveal His  saving power to many.  The Lord is faithful and able to do exceeding,  abundantly, above all we can ask or think. Refuse to limit the One who wants to  do great things through you and for you. An ever great, awesome and faithful  God!

 Abraham is a good example of one who did not limit God. Quick to believe and  obey. The Lord wants to do great things and He will as long as we let Him. He is  ever ready to do good!



Bisi Oladipupo