PRAYING IN SOLITUDE

Chi-Chi

Very early in the morning, long before dawn, Jesus got up&left the house and went off to a lonely place and prayed there.(Mark1:35).

None of us can ever be as busy or holy as Jesus was while He was on earth. Yet, he saw the need to withdraw from everyone and everything in order to have a quiet time with his Heavenly Father. The value of private meditative prayer can never be over emphasised. Indeed, it is in peace and solitude that a devout soul finds God!

Our busy lives would be more rewarding to us and others if we spend a quiet hour/ time in prayer before we rush into the activities that demand so much of our time. The busier we are, the more prayerful we should be. We should make out time to pray/ commune with God as often as we can, all through the day.

Prayer is not so much about the words we say but about being present with God,being conscious of God's presence every hour of our day and acknowledging his presence by our thoughts,words,or actions. There is a need to recreate yourself in God at every given opportunity by communing with him.

Let us remember: you cannot be doing the work of the Lord and yet abandon the Lord of the work. Endeavour to spend time in private prayer with your God EVERYDAY.

Remain blessed!!!

THE PARABLE OF THE TEN VIRGINS

Ifeoluwa Babajide

Matt. 25:1-13

There were ten virgins who received call to meet the bridegroom.They heard call bcos they were qualified.They were qualified bcos they were virgins.By that i mean they were christians, not just christians but saved ones they had to go and meet the groom by leaving everything and everyone behind.In the christians race to meet the Lord, one must focus on the bigger picture.
Leave everything and everyone who may act as impediment behind. Remember you heard the call they didn't have.
While the groom delayed his coming, they all slumbered and slept. Many christians had zeal for God in the yonder years but as He 'delayeth' his coming, they slumber and are sleeping spiritually.They use boldface to cover up but are asleep. At the time of slumbering, there was nothing to ginger them and then the sleep came in.The first love is gone and carelessness sets in and you know while men slept the enemy came and sow tares among the wheat.

Good enough,there was another call,another message, another opportunity to meet the groom because He cometh. He may delay but will surely come.We are blessed if we hear messages that change and remind us of His coming again,so we can check our lamp.

They trimmed their lamps. Interesting to know that there are levels of burning the light can give. A just lit candle glows and becomes steady as time goes on. As it is burning, it comes to a stage where it has reduced to its bearest minimum yet is still burning. If care is not taken to get replacement at that time, the candle will burn down.  We may be burning as a christian but the question is 'How are we burning? Are we observant enough to notice the candle going down or living with the illusion that at least there is light? Once the light goes off,  there might be injuries on the way to getting another one.

The foolish discovered there was no oil and asked of the wise who told them to go and buy.Oh how pathetic is it that the virgins left all behind,probably slept in the cold,mosquitoes(if any) yet had not the easiest,cheapest and the most available thing to have (oil), which in the Bible signifies grace.
How many christians today get awash with activities yet don't have oil.They don't stay true to themselves.They forgot where the Bible asked us to examine ourselves.They go hypocritical about it all till the lamp is gone out.They ask from their friends but forget those who have 'enough' grace do not have any to spare other than the little one that will make them qualifies to appear before the groom. They went to the market to buy when selling is over.Oil is not transferable,you must buy for yourself.

The groom came and the door was shut. Surely, He will come.Those who were ready went in with Him. The key word is READY.  The foolish came and beg Him to open the door but He vehemently denied knowing them. Maybe they tried to give reasons why they should be considered like being a worker, this and that in the church but He said He never knew them.

We are finally challenged to watch for we know not when the time shall be. May the Lord find us watching and waiting when He comes. May we have oil in our lamp to keep us burning. May our heart not be overcharged by drunkeness,cares,activities of this time that that day meet us unware. Amen
Shalom!

Deborah, The Nurse

Adenike Morounke Adebola

I thought I had my night planned out - Movie while relaxing on the couch and finally we'll all have a great night rest. Great, right?

Well... I 'mistakenly' dozed off so no movie or relaxing on the couch. I woke up to find my daughter bright-eyed and ready to play...We're still up and well, please pray for us that we go to bed SOON!
As I was praying and meditating while waiting for my daughter to sleep (thank God for the early doze), the Holy Spirit led me to what I'm about to share....

DEBORAH
Deborah on my mind! No, not Mrs Deborah Lappidoth, the judge... Are you surprised that there is another Deborah in the Bible?
Okay, let's find HER!

"But Deborah Rebekah’s nurse died, and she was buried beneath Bethel under an oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bachuth." (Genesis 35:8).

That's not the first time the Bible talked about her but that's the first time we were given her name. She was first introduced in Genesis 24:59.

"And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go. And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant, and his men." (Genesis 24:58-59).

Deborah was the only familiar person Rebekah had in a strange land; the only 'family' Rebekah went with to join her new family. I wonder what the age gap was between Deborah and Rebekah. They were obviously close. Deborah had known Rebekah as a single lady.
Then came the 19 year wait for Rebekah and Isaac. (According to Gen 25:20, Isaac was 40 years when he married Rebekah and he was sixty when the twins were born per Genesis 25:26). No kids for 19 years! I wonder what it was like for Deborah having to tend to Rebekah for those 19 years. I believe Rebekah's attitude was what drove Isaac to intreat the Lord (Genesis 25:21). He probably had had enough Rebekah drama and was like 'Oh Lord, please give us kids so this woman can let me rest and meditate in peace', lol.

One striking thing for me is that unlike Sarah/Abraham/Hagar before them and Rachel/Leah/Jacob/Bilhah/Zilpah after them, Rebekah/Isaac/Deborah did not make the messy 'Go into my maid' arrangement. 19 years sure was a looong time to wait! This is definitely a time in history I wish I witnessed. :D
Finally, there came twin boys with all their drama! Jacob, the fast guy and Esau, the profane. Add Rebekah, the schemer and Isaac, the meditating prophet. Include Esau plotting to kill Jacob. I can imagine how much drama Deborah had to witness on a daily basis.
In all these, Deborah remained a faithful nurse. No mention of her contributing to the drama Isaac had to deal with. She played such a wonderful support role that no one remembers her, lol.
My friend put up a post on her Facebook wall  about doing whatever God has called you to do no matter how trivial the task appears to be. As mundane and insignificant as her tasks appeared, God considered her important enough to tell us her name. Many men and women in the Bible who achieved what would be considered more significant feats were not mentioned by name. But God considered Deborah important enough to tell us her name. SELAH.
And for whatever reason, a great judge and leader was given the same name many generations later.
She served in the household that brought forth the Messiah!
I'll like to pause here to acknowledge and thank every Deborah (the nurse) who labours in the background everyday - every lady irrespective of her status that labours FAITHFULLY to ensure that the work of the Lord is moving forward. Your labour is not in vain. The Lord who sees what you do in the background will re ward you openly, in Jesus' Name. Amen.

If you are yet to join the train, please locate your position and man your office. It starts with a prayer of salvation. You can pray the prayer below and send an email to kneekey2@yahoo.com for more information on the next steps.

PRAYER OF SALVATION
O Lord God, I come to You in the Name of Jesus Christ. Your Word says, "...whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2: 21)
I ask Jesus to come into my heart to be the Lord of my life. I receive eternal life into my spirit and according to Romans 10:9, "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." I declare that I am saved; I am born-again; I am a child of God! I now have Christ dwelling in me, and greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4)! I now walk in the consciousness of my new life in Christ Jesus. Hallelujah!

The Fear of falling Again

Oluwafolakemi Ibidokun

Some people, because of the fear of falling again they.....
*Have refused to get up from their last fall
*Have refused to try one more time
*Have refused to risk being hurt again...
*Have decided to make a home lying down
*After all, they say, he that is down needs fear no fall (but that's not what that line means)

They look for people in similar situations, people who have written themselves off to leak their wounds; they encourage themselves that success is not for them, they lament, the problems are just too much!, they sit around and moan.
Come on sisters!
Deal with your worst fear!
Don't be intimidated by bad news!
Confront and throw your fears out the door!
Take on life with confidence!
God is on your side!
Keep your trust in God!
He is going to cause all things work in your favour, for your good.
That's a GUARANTEE! !
So let nothing STOP YOU, not even fear!!