You Can Make It In Life-No Matter What
By
Evangelist. Ilona Henry Afamefuna.
Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him. (Acts 10:34-35).
I wonder, if there is any person in this life, who has made it without failure and setbacks?
It seems that people these days are afraid of adventuring, just because the last one was a total failure and disgrace.
The scripture I just quoted was about a man called Cornelius, gentile by nature and birth, this man never heard the gospel, but he believed in a living God, the bible says that he was a generous man who gives much alms to the poor.
I believe that people of his own time might have ridiculed him, they might have told him all sort of nonsense just to discourage him from the good work he was doing.
But this man never stopped, rather being discouraged, he pressed forward, he never looked back or said one day, boy, this whole thing is nothing but a flop, I am tired, I will stop.
No, he continued doing what he was doing; he was a man in season and out of season.
Hear what the bible said about this man:
“There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band, A devout man, and one that feared God with his entire house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God always.” (Acts 10:1-2).
Notice what the bible said, “he prayed continually”, that is, he never got weary of communicating with God, and he was always there in the presence of God.
Then one day, the answer to his prayers came, this is what the bible said:
“He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius. And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.” (Acts 10:3-5)
I don’t know about you, I don’t know what you have been pray for, may be you have been praying for marriage, for financial breakthrough, etc, one thing I will tell you is this, the God that answered Cornelius will surely answer you, He has not changed.
Don’t just because of failures and disappointment loose hope, you can still succeed even at the least time expected, God’s timing for your life is quite different from yours (learn this secret & let it sink deep into your heart).
A person, who is afraid of making mistakes, will never succeed in life, only fools fear to fail.
Take for example the story of Jabez, the bible said he was born in pains, in other words, he was born miserable, but his weakness could not stop him from succeeding.
“Jabez was honorable above his brothers; but his mother named him Jabez [sorrow maker], saying, Because I bore him in pain.
Jabez cried to the God of Israel, saying, Oh, that You would bless me and enlarge my border, and that Your hand might be with me, and You would keep me from evil so it might not hurt me! And God granted his request.” 1 Chronicles 4:9-10 (Amplified Bible).
The word “Jabez”, literally means, one who causes sorrow, so you can see the miserable situation in which this young man found himself.
May be you are in such condition, may be you are now the proverb of your family, and may be your second name is Mr Failure, you might have tried other things to no avail, but dear friend that should not stop you, they are not reality, only you can stop yourself.
Now let me come back to Jabez, I want you to notice something about this young man, he possessed the quality of not accepting life’s defeat.
Despite the condition in which he found himself, it did not stop him from reaching out God in prayers, you also can do the same, and that God that answered Jabez will also answer you and change your situation just as He did in the life of Jabez.
Jabez broke his barriers, you also can break yours, this is not a theory, this is a practical life experience.
Yes, dear friend you can break your barriers, no matter what you are passing through presently, you can turn your stumbling blocks into stepping stones, only if you can reach out to God in prayers as did Jabez.
One thing you must know is this, failures, set backs and disappointments are instruments to prepare a man for success, without them coming to your life, you will end up a looser.
Has life slapped you on the face, keep on going on, are you at the end of your rope, just tie the nut and hang on, are the Egyptians behind you and the red sea in front, just look up you will see God.
Don’t you ever listen to what people are saying, listen to what God is telling you.
I will like to cite another bible example of trusting God in difficult times:
“And they told him, and said, we came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. But the men that went up with him said, we be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, the land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.” (Numbers 13:27-33).
I will not go into details in explaining this portion of the scripture, you can read the account for yourself, twelve men went to explore the land, ten men saw giants, but two saw God, ten saw defeat, two saw victory.
The ones who saw giants died on the way, the two which saw God made it to the Promised Land (see the difference yourself).
Now let me ask you, are you seeing God or your circumstances are you bowing before your condition or before the God who is greater than the condition?
Are you seeing defeat or victory, yes I see victory not defeat, because the bible tells me in the book of 1 John 4:4, “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”, glory, I am in God’s company, the ever winning team, one with God is a winner, because “With God we shall gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies” (Psalm 60:12).
Halleluiah, with God on our side, who can defeat us, it is well, it is well, no matter what happens, victory is sure, because with God, we are unstoppable, unmovable & undefeatable.
Don’t allow fear, doubt, unbelief and discouragement to stop you from climbing victory ladder, one truth that you must know is this, there is no short cut to victory, everyone passed through it, therefore you should not see yours different.
Learn to see things from God’s perspective, not from the world’s.
The world sees things from the negative angle, but God looks at the end.
It is the end that matters, not the beginning, the beginning may be bitter, but the end will tell it all, so it is not your beginning that counts, but how did it end.
That you failed today, does not mean you will not succeed tomorrow, never ever judge your future from the present, for you do not know what the future holds for you.
Forget your past, live your today, and face the challenges of tomorrow.
If Christ be ours, all things, one way or another, shall be for our eternal good. The man who is a new creature in Christ, may rejoice in all the precious promises God has spoken in his holiness. The people of God are through Christ more than conquerors. Though sometimes they think that the Lord has cast them off, yet he will bring them into the strong city at last. Faith in the promise will assure us that it is our Father's good pleasure to give us the kingdom: Hope in God is the best principle of true courage, for what need those fear who have God on their side? All our victories are from him, and while those who willingly submit to our anointed King shall share
Evangelist. Ilona Henry Afamefuna.
Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him. (Acts 10:34-35).
I wonder, if there is any person in this life, who has made it without failure and setbacks?
It seems that people these days are afraid of adventuring, just because the last one was a total failure and disgrace.
The scripture I just quoted was about a man called Cornelius, gentile by nature and birth, this man never heard the gospel, but he believed in a living God, the bible says that he was a generous man who gives much alms to the poor.
I believe that people of his own time might have ridiculed him, they might have told him all sort of nonsense just to discourage him from the good work he was doing.
But this man never stopped, rather being discouraged, he pressed forward, he never looked back or said one day, boy, this whole thing is nothing but a flop, I am tired, I will stop.
No, he continued doing what he was doing; he was a man in season and out of season.
Hear what the bible said about this man:
“There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band, A devout man, and one that feared God with his entire house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God always.” (Acts 10:1-2).
Notice what the bible said, “he prayed continually”, that is, he never got weary of communicating with God, and he was always there in the presence of God.
Then one day, the answer to his prayers came, this is what the bible said:
“He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius. And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.” (Acts 10:3-5)
I don’t know about you, I don’t know what you have been pray for, may be you have been praying for marriage, for financial breakthrough, etc, one thing I will tell you is this, the God that answered Cornelius will surely answer you, He has not changed.
Don’t just because of failures and disappointment loose hope, you can still succeed even at the least time expected, God’s timing for your life is quite different from yours (learn this secret & let it sink deep into your heart).
A person, who is afraid of making mistakes, will never succeed in life, only fools fear to fail.
Take for example the story of Jabez, the bible said he was born in pains, in other words, he was born miserable, but his weakness could not stop him from succeeding.
“Jabez was honorable above his brothers; but his mother named him Jabez [sorrow maker], saying, Because I bore him in pain.
Jabez cried to the God of Israel, saying, Oh, that You would bless me and enlarge my border, and that Your hand might be with me, and You would keep me from evil so it might not hurt me! And God granted his request.” 1 Chronicles 4:9-10 (Amplified Bible).
The word “Jabez”, literally means, one who causes sorrow, so you can see the miserable situation in which this young man found himself.
May be you are in such condition, may be you are now the proverb of your family, and may be your second name is Mr Failure, you might have tried other things to no avail, but dear friend that should not stop you, they are not reality, only you can stop yourself.
Now let me come back to Jabez, I want you to notice something about this young man, he possessed the quality of not accepting life’s defeat.
Despite the condition in which he found himself, it did not stop him from reaching out God in prayers, you also can do the same, and that God that answered Jabez will also answer you and change your situation just as He did in the life of Jabez.
Jabez broke his barriers, you also can break yours, this is not a theory, this is a practical life experience.
Yes, dear friend you can break your barriers, no matter what you are passing through presently, you can turn your stumbling blocks into stepping stones, only if you can reach out to God in prayers as did Jabez.
One thing you must know is this, failures, set backs and disappointments are instruments to prepare a man for success, without them coming to your life, you will end up a looser.
Has life slapped you on the face, keep on going on, are you at the end of your rope, just tie the nut and hang on, are the Egyptians behind you and the red sea in front, just look up you will see God.
Don’t you ever listen to what people are saying, listen to what God is telling you.
I will like to cite another bible example of trusting God in difficult times:
“And they told him, and said, we came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. But the men that went up with him said, we be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, the land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.” (Numbers 13:27-33).
I will not go into details in explaining this portion of the scripture, you can read the account for yourself, twelve men went to explore the land, ten men saw giants, but two saw God, ten saw defeat, two saw victory.
The ones who saw giants died on the way, the two which saw God made it to the Promised Land (see the difference yourself).
Now let me ask you, are you seeing God or your circumstances are you bowing before your condition or before the God who is greater than the condition?
Are you seeing defeat or victory, yes I see victory not defeat, because the bible tells me in the book of 1 John 4:4, “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”, glory, I am in God’s company, the ever winning team, one with God is a winner, because “With God we shall gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies” (Psalm 60:12).
Halleluiah, with God on our side, who can defeat us, it is well, it is well, no matter what happens, victory is sure, because with God, we are unstoppable, unmovable & undefeatable.
Don’t allow fear, doubt, unbelief and discouragement to stop you from climbing victory ladder, one truth that you must know is this, there is no short cut to victory, everyone passed through it, therefore you should not see yours different.
Learn to see things from God’s perspective, not from the world’s.
The world sees things from the negative angle, but God looks at the end.
It is the end that matters, not the beginning, the beginning may be bitter, but the end will tell it all, so it is not your beginning that counts, but how did it end.
That you failed today, does not mean you will not succeed tomorrow, never ever judge your future from the present, for you do not know what the future holds for you.
Forget your past, live your today, and face the challenges of tomorrow.
If Christ be ours, all things, one way or another, shall be for our eternal good. The man who is a new creature in Christ, may rejoice in all the precious promises God has spoken in his holiness. The people of God are through Christ more than conquerors. Though sometimes they think that the Lord has cast them off, yet he will bring them into the strong city at last. Faith in the promise will assure us that it is our Father's good pleasure to give us the kingdom: Hope in God is the best principle of true courage, for what need those fear who have God on their side? All our victories are from him, and while those who willingly submit to our anointed King shall share
his glories, all his foes shall be put under his feet.
I want you to consider the following words by William Cowper:
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs
And works His sovereign will.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.
Blind unbelief is sure to err
And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain.
Always keep on focus, keep your eyes on Jesus, not your circumstances (Hebrews 12:1-3), don’t listen to what people are saying about you, it makes no sense.
People may say negative about you, but that is not God’s thought concerning you, the truth is that, as far as you are living, whether you are rich or poor, people must talk about you, so listen to God not people. (Isaiah 51:4-8)
Stop looking help from men, they will surely fail you when least expected, man can not be faithful, he changes with changing days, if man changes every minute and then, why seek help from him, God hates it with all hatred, David said his help will come from God who made the heavens and the earth, only God can truly help.
Please I am not saying that human help is useless, what I am saying is that you should not depend on it as the ultimate solution to your condition.
Though life can sometimes seem like an endless journey of questions without answers, if we truly reach out beyond our inner walls, a lifeline awaits us.
Consider also, those who have gone ahead of us, none of them found it easy, but by grace and divine assistance, they were able to make it through.
That Grace is available to us today, simply reach out to God in prayers, and He will help you in the most daring time of your need. (Hebrews 4:14-16).
In conclusion, I want us to read this portion of the scripture together:
Now may the God of peace [Who is the Author and the Giver of peace], Who brought again from among the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, by the blood [that sealed, ratified] the everlasting agreement (covenant, testament), Strengthen (complete, perfect) and make you what you ought to be and equip you with everything good that you may carry out His will; [while He Himself] works in you and accomplishes that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ (the Messiah); to Whom be the glory forever and ever (to the ages of the ages). Amen (so be it). Hebrews 13:20-21 (Amplified Bible)
May the God, who brought His son back to life, also bring you from every dead which you are experiencing in your life, may He never abandon you in the grave of the enemy, may he cause a divine resurrection in your life, through Jesus our Lord, amen.
I want you to consider the following words by William Cowper:
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs
And works His sovereign will.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.
Blind unbelief is sure to err
And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain.
Always keep on focus, keep your eyes on Jesus, not your circumstances (Hebrews 12:1-3), don’t listen to what people are saying about you, it makes no sense.
People may say negative about you, but that is not God’s thought concerning you, the truth is that, as far as you are living, whether you are rich or poor, people must talk about you, so listen to God not people. (Isaiah 51:4-8)
Stop looking help from men, they will surely fail you when least expected, man can not be faithful, he changes with changing days, if man changes every minute and then, why seek help from him, God hates it with all hatred, David said his help will come from God who made the heavens and the earth, only God can truly help.
Please I am not saying that human help is useless, what I am saying is that you should not depend on it as the ultimate solution to your condition.
Though life can sometimes seem like an endless journey of questions without answers, if we truly reach out beyond our inner walls, a lifeline awaits us.
Consider also, those who have gone ahead of us, none of them found it easy, but by grace and divine assistance, they were able to make it through.
That Grace is available to us today, simply reach out to God in prayers, and He will help you in the most daring time of your need. (Hebrews 4:14-16).
In conclusion, I want us to read this portion of the scripture together:
Now may the God of peace [Who is the Author and the Giver of peace], Who brought again from among the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, by the blood [that sealed, ratified] the everlasting agreement (covenant, testament), Strengthen (complete, perfect) and make you what you ought to be and equip you with everything good that you may carry out His will; [while He Himself] works in you and accomplishes that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ (the Messiah); to Whom be the glory forever and ever (to the ages of the ages). Amen (so be it). Hebrews 13:20-21 (Amplified Bible)
May the God, who brought His son back to life, also bring you from every dead which you are experiencing in your life, may He never abandon you in the grave of the enemy, may he cause a divine resurrection in your life, through Jesus our Lord, amen.
Two travelling 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," he 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 farmer’s 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...
May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the sun shine warm upon your face
And the rain fall soft upon your fields
And until we meet again
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.
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," he 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 farmer’s 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...
May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the sun shine warm upon your face
And the rain fall soft upon your fields
And until we meet again
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.
No comments:
Post a Comment