by Jeanie | Nov 1, 2007 | Uncategorised
Dear Friend,
I believe that by now you have the word of God addressing your need and you are warring a good warfare with them. Continue with it, your breakthrough is around the corner, you’re going to rise. As promised last week, I will continue with the story about the lame man who rose and walked. Enjoy!!!
STUDY TEXT – Acts 3: 1- 10
1 Now Peter and John were going up into the temple at the hour of prayer, [being] the ninth [hour].
2 And a certain man that was lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the door of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;
3 who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked to receive an alms.
4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him, with John, said, look on us.
5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something from them.
6 But Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but what I have, that give I thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.
7 And he took him by the right hand, and raised him up: and immediately his feet and his ankle-bones received strength.
8 And leaping up, he stood, and began to walk; and he entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.
9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God:
10 and they took knowledge of him, that it was he that sat for alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him.
The feet are the part of the body responsible for weight-bearing and propulsion. Without this very significant part, the body is immobile, unstable, and cannot function maximally.
In the above passage, we see the record of a man lame from birth. It is recorded that this man now forty-plus would normally be carried to the gate so he could beg for alms from the people going into the temple. The scripture does not tell us his name or when this man started going to the temple, however; we know he was well-known for his alms begging. In today’s society, he’d be on a Department of Social Security (DSS) disability allowance.
I could picture him arriving at the DSS office with dial-a-ride on a wheelchair, waiting for his care assistant who’s deliberately wasting time to help him onto the lift. I see tears drop from his eyes as he approaches the counter for his bi-weekly allowance, and perhaps the object of ridicule and discussion. The sight of his fellow men walking around unaided with their wives and kids makes him even more sorrowful.
He may have had a fine face, nice build, and even all the good qualities a sister would desire in a brother, but he was incapacitated, immobilised, disabled, helpless, hopeless, broken, poor, weak, and in short, lame from birth. He was at a gate called beautiful but his situation was ugly. I don’t know about you but I can relate to this man.
Talk about having an ugly situation, it’s like having enough cash to make a down payment for your home but you can’t get a mortgage because of your previous bad credit history. You love the lord and you are called according to his purpose but nothing seems to be working out for your good. You are lame physically, emotionally, financially, socially, mentally, and even spiritually.
We read that one day at about 3 o’clock in the afternoon, Peter and John approached the temple to pray as it was their custom and saw this man. They were looking at him intently to pray for his healing, and he was looking at them eagerly expecting a gift.
Let me ask you; what are your expectations? Would you prefer to be pitied than be healed? Would you rather be given alms than receive your breakthrough? Do you know God’s will concerning your situation? You, who are believing God for a partner, a child, a house, a car; whatever your desire, can you tell me what you know the will of God is regarding your need?
It is crucial you find out because if you know then you will know not to ask amiss. This man would have asked to receive his healing so he could be able to make money only if he knew the promises of God.
I encourage you to seek the will of God concerning your situation today. Next week I will bring you the rest of the story but until then, Remain Blessed.
Related journals:
RISE UP – Part 2
RISE UP – Part 3
by Jeanie | Oct 30, 2007 | Uncategorised
Dear Friend,
I hope you’ve been enjoying reading this journal. Proverbs 14:12 says that there is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end, it leads to death. Our steps determine the way we take and our ways are headed towards the direction of our thoughts, our thoughts, ideas, and understanding produce beliefs-a trust. In order to trust Jesus, lean on his understanding and walk in his ways, we need to take a step and that step needs to be ordered. Have a good read.
PSALMS 119:133
Order my steps in thy word And let not any iniquity have dominion over me.
Every journey is made of steps; big steps, little steps with big feet or small feet. The truth is that some folks with big feet, who ought to be taking big steps, end up taking little steps and those with small feet take big steps. Is this shocking to you?
A step according to the Macquarie dictionary is:
- A movement made by lifting a foot and setting it down again in a new position as in walking.
- A movement or proceeding as towards some end
I love these definitions so much because they teach me that each step I take ushers me into a new position towards my expected end. Therefore, every move I make and every step I take should be the right one to enable me to reach my end. Are you getting this?
I want you right now to think about a step you recently made – Selah! Think about it. Now think about the position you’re in? PAUSE II. Is that really where you are supposed to be? Could you have been in a better position if you had taken a shorter step or maybe a longer one? Oh, but how could you have known which step to take? Did your guesswork or flop?
I can’t but imagine the psalmist taking this little exercise, pondering on how different things could have been for him if he had let God order his steps prior to the writing of this verse.
The word “order” in this verse is the Hebrew word translated firm, kept, steadfast, stable, established, set up, fixed, secure, enduring, directed aright, prepared, arranged, and guided. Does this sound like what you need?
Psalms 37: 23 says that the steps of a righteous man are ordered (appointed) by God. Another meaning of the word order is “command” and you know sometimes we just need that order; that command, that gentle force from God to walk in his ways even when we don’t understand it, or we don’t feel like it. I guess that it’s in these times that you need to tell God to swerve you, to move you in the direction you need to take your steps towards.
When you’re ordered you’re sent to or held back from something until the right time. No wonder David always prayed to be kept: kept back from, preserved, guided, ordered, warned, and instructed. He understood that if God appointed and anointed his steps iniquity would not come upon him; iniquity meaning naught, vanity, trouble.
Let’s just recap. A step involves lifting up and setting down the feet. If there’s a mishap in this simple activity it will result in a fall – this is not God’s desire for you so ask the Lord today to order your steps for a firm and lasting peace.
More in this series:
Trust in the Lord
God’s Understanding
God’s Way
by Jeanie | Oct 20, 2007 | Uncategorised
Dear Friend,
Previously, I’ve shared with you the benefits of trusting in the Lord and leaning on His understanding. Today, we’ll be looking at how walking in his ways can deliver us from evil and lead us to our expected end. Are you ready for this?
PROVERBS 3:5-6
- Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding; - In all your waysacknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.
The word “Way” in the King James Version of the Bible is mentioned 608 times while the plural “Ways” occurs 205 times in 198 verses and they both in many cases refer to one’s direction, manner, character, habit (way of life) and action.
In Isaiah 55:8-9, we see God making a clear distinction between our ways and His ways. It’s amazing that before God talks about His ways, He mentions something about His thoughts. Psalms 92: 5-6 makes a correlation between God’s thought and His works and here’s what I’ve been pondering on: Had God’s thoughts not been deep, profound, unsearchable, His works would probably not be great. Likewise, if our thoughts are still simple (foolish, silly, seducible), we cannot attain much in life; we will not achieve our purpose.
Our lives, our ways are headed towards the direction of our thoughts. If what we imagine is not concrete enough to sustain us in our journey then we need God’s help, we need to know what He’s thinking. Here’s what Jeremiah 29:11 says: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”
An expected end is a destination, final/closing stage, finishing line, last part, conclusion, it’s an ending. Every journey takes a while to end and is sometimes hard to complete therefore during this journey (life), God has made provision for us that all we need to do is acknowledge Him and He will direct, smoothen; make easy the paths that we walk on for our own good.
One of the inventions of this age that I admire so much is the satellite navigation system. According to Psalms 32: 8, God wants to guide you and instruct, teach, and guide you in the way that you should go but just like the satellite navigation system will not help you if you don’t engage it during your journey, God won’t. He’ll be waiting till you involve him so He can lead you forth in the right way that you may enter your habitation – your territory – resting place – just another term for “your expected end“(Psalms 107:7).
You may say, well, I definitely haven’t been walking in God’s ways and I’m far too gone – That’s not true beloved because, just as the satellite navigation system can re-route you from where you are when you’ve missed the prescribed route, so can God redirect your way to get you to your expected end.
If you’ll be meek enough today and submit your ways to Him, God will guide you and teach you his way (Psalms 25: 9 ). He knows the way that you ought to take, trust Him today to be your guide.
Isaiah 30:21
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
More in this series:
Trust in the Lord
God’s Understanding
Order my Steps
by Jeanie | Oct 10, 2007 | Uncategorised
Dear Friend,
Today, I’ll share a word titled God’s understanding with you. I’m so excited about this word which is going to revolutionize your life. I pray it’s a blessing to you. Have a good read.
PROVERBS 3:5-6
5. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
As human beings, we are in constant pursuit of knowledge and understanding. We attend various institutions to learn and understand the appropriate course of action to take on a particular incident within different fields. For example, we may attend a stockbroker seminar to learn the undergirding principles of managing investments for clients or go to church to know and understand God better, etc. Hence, we are able to analyse a situation and then apply our skills, knowledge, intelligence, ideas – our understanding whenever challenged to.
Philippians 4:7 says that “the peace of God that transcends all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus”. This suggests to me that besides God’s understanding, there are other kinds of understanding which possibly will include human understanding.
Human understanding is a natural ability to comprehend, perceive what is meant, grasp the idea of something(s). However, there is the supernatural understanding of God that surpasses our intellectual faculty, intelligence, enlightenment, senses, ideas, and thoughts. Isaiah 40:28 says “No one can fathom this understanding” which means this kind of understanding defies interpretation and explanation.
The psalmist in Psalms 119:34 said, “Give me understanding”. In essence, he was saying: Give me insight, discernment, the ability to distinguish, perceive and know, and to consider diligently. I think this should be our heart cry today, Lord give me understanding.
Psalms 119:104 says “Through Your precepts, I get understanding” denoting that all the knowledge, skills, the information we need to tackle life situations are in God’s precepts, His laws, His Word, The holy bible. Verse 130 of Psalms 119 also supports the above text by saying: “The entrance of your word gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.”
The word simple here is a Hebrew root word that means foolish, silly, and seducible. As you may have noticed, these are character traits often exhibited by us humans. God is not foolish neither is He silly nor seducible but we sometimes are therefore we need His understanding.
For a moment, I want you to consider laying down all your ideas before God, search the scriptures, get God’s supernatural understanding, lean on it and watch your life change for the better.
More in this series:
Trust in the Lord
God’s Way
Order my Steps
by Jeanie | Oct 4, 2007 | Uncategorised
Dear Friend,
My heart is filled with so much Joy as I send you this journal because I know that God will speak to you through his word today, Read on and have a blessed day.
PROVERBS 3:5-6
- Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
- In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
This passage of scripture opens up with the word Trust which is a result of one’s faith, assurance, confidence, dependence, reliance, belief, and hope in another.
Trust is a very delicate subject that is handled with so much care whenever mentioned or discussed due to the above-stated factors involved. It is often seen as risky and thus creates fear in the hearts of many causing them either to never trust or to partly trust. No wonder the scripture encourages us to trust in the Lord with all of our hearts.
2 kings 17: 14-20 and Psalms 78: 21, 22 records the consequences of not trusting in the Lord. The descendants of Israel were rejected and punished just because they did not place their confidence in God their creator and sustainer. Sad, very sad.
I wonder how many believers are living their lives not trusting God, not believing that he who has begun the good work in them is faithful to complete it.
Brother Job was being tried and tested yet he put his hope in God (Job 13:15) because he believed just like David that God will never forsake or leave him destitute (Ps 9: 10), he would experience God’s goodness (Ps 27:13) and the fulfilment of God’s will (Ps 37:5) for his life.)
There is prosperity (Prov 28:25) and safety in trusting God (Ps 125:1, Prov 29:25). When you trust in the Lord, you’re blessed, covered, hidden, protected, never shaken, never moved.
I am reminded of a hymn I sang as a child
Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to take Him at His word
Just to rest upon His promise, Just to know “Thus saith the Lord.”
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er!
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more!
Oh how sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to trust His cleansing blood
Just in simple faith to plunge, ‘neath the healing cleansing flood!
Yes, tis sweet to trust in Jesus, Just from sin and self to cease
Just from Jesus simply taking, Life and rest and joy and peace.
I’m so glad I learned to trust Him, Precious Jesus, Saviour Friend
And I know that He is with me, Will be with me to the end
(Louisa M. R. Stead)
O for grace to trust him more in your education, career, relationship, finances, plans, etc.
God has made his sufficient grace available to strengthen and enable you to trust him more, I encourage you to withdraw as much as you need and trust him today even concerning that situation challenging you now.
More in this series:
God’s Understanding
God’s Way
Order my Steps
