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LYDIA

  CHARACTERISTICS: A Gentile adherent of Judaism, she was a successful businesswoman who sold a type of cloth prized for its purple color. As head of her household, she may have been either widowed or single. So strong was her faith that her entire household followed her example and was baptized. She extended hospitality to Paul and his companions, even after their imprisonment. Her Sorrow: To see Paul and Silas beaten and thrown into prison for the sake of the gospel she had embraced. Her Joy:  That God’s Spirit directed Paul and his companions to Macedonia, enabling her and others at Philippi to hear the gospel for the first time. STORY IN BRIEF: Lydia, a business woman who made her living by selling clothes, lived in Philippi, Macedonia. She was a gentile but Judaism-addict. Paul had a vision where a man pleaded that he came to Macedonia with the gospel. So he headed there. After sharing the good news with the Philippines along the coast, Lydia and her household believed an...
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THE GREATEST WEAPON !

  “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds…. “ 2 Corinthians 10:4 KJV As christians, we are not improverished of ammunitions with which to withstand the enemy and his wiles. Yet these weapons are variably effective. There is, therefore, the need to look into the nature of each of them and reasonably determine the most productive. According to Paul, in the preceding scripture, our arms are not physical; prayer, praise/worship, faith, obedience and Light, are all rather abstract though results-yielding. Now, which of these does satan fear most? Let us find out from the following paragraphs. Prayer is a good arm. It transforms both on the inside and on the outside of us. But if prayer is a request, then satan can pray too; he got far into God’s presence, requesting of His permission to try Job. He demanded of The Lord to sift Peter like wheat. Thus, prayer is not satan’s most-feared ! Afterall, he too can pray to God. D...
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DEBORAH

  MEANING OF NAME :  Honey Bee CHARACTER :  Deborah was not just a political leader, but was also one who trusted in the faithfulness of Her God, resulting in their victory over foreign oppressors. HER REGRET :  Herpeople's faith had grown weak after deviating from their God. HER JOY :  Through her courageous and faithful leadership, God, again handed them victory over their opposers. STORY IN BRIEF :  Following the reign of Joshua and Rahab, was DEBORAH - the prophetess. Deborah was not dispirited like her fellow Israelites but rather remained loyal and strong in God.   Israelites, would practise idolatory after conquering the gateway to Caanan ( Jericho). Thus, they became timid and discouraged in the face of the uprising Canaanites led by their king, Sisera. But Deborah would keep her trust in the God that brought them this far. She joined Barak and his thousands of men in an attack at the Canaanites. And God was faithful - He granted them Victory a...
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THE GREATEST WEAPON ( Part 2))

And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. 1 Samuel 15:22 KJV . Our preliminary article has established that of all the weapons, including prayer, praise/worship, knowledge and faith, obedience is the greatest. Faith is proved by obedience. As the popular adage is, ” practice makes perfect.”, so knowledge itself is also not complete without obedience. Prayer, praise and worship are all forms of sacrifices, yet God says obedience is better than them all. Today’s piece reveals why Obedience is God’s number one ! As quiet as obedience is, it remains the loudest tone of faith amongst prayer, praise and worship. The three Hebrew boys had not even the slightest hint of deliverance from God if they disobeyed the king’s orders.But their faith-oriented obedience was voiceferous in the ears of God ! How about Daniel, Job and Joseph? They equa...
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RIZPAR

Rizpar was one of Saul's concubines. She stood and witnessed the gruesome murder of her two sons -  Armoni and Mephibosheth.  More disdainful to her is the fact that the two were not burried; they were left to rot contrary to the prevalent tradition of burrying the dead within the next 24hours.  With sorrow, Rizpar spent days and nights with the corpses ensuring that they were neither swamped nor dragged away by any animals. Soon enough, King David noticed her discomfort, and was moved by her attitude; David ordered for the burrying of Rizpar's sons, the remains of their father, Saul and that of Jonathan. BACKGROUND:  Joshua promised that Israel would be at peace with the Gibeonites. But Saul broke that oath, killing as many Gibeonites as he could in his time. In retallating, the Gibeonites asked David for seven of Saul's son whom they murdered in the presence of Rizpar. LESSONS:   1. Customes can be broken; protocols are skipable. If only we consistently...
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THE VOICE OF GOD !

 

God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night.
Genesis 1:16

There are two major sources of God’s Word – the scriptures and the direct Voice of God ! Whereas the former of these sources is limited or general, the latter is specific,  more empowering, and most reliable. Apparently, the Voice of God is the greater of these two Lights. Not so, Peter wouldn’t conclude, ” We have a more sure of Word of prophecy”, referring to God’s Voice that had come to them on the Mount ( 2 Peter 1:19). But why is His Voice so indispensable? Let’s find out !

THE NATURE AND BENEFITS OF HIS VOICE.
Inherent in His voice is the Spirit of Faith that comes to replace fear, dissipate darkness, and strengthen the weak. This Voice is self-reliant, forceful and fiery. It lifts up the seated back on his feet, and the one that already walks, it puts on the run ! Remember how The Spirit of this Voice lifted Ezekiel back on His feet while He spoke to Him. Paul himself did no further consultations with flesh and blood on hearing God ! I  always find myself suddenly obeying His Voice without knowing it too. God’s Voice isn’t a mere compromisable instruction, revelation or warning; it requires no struggling effort from the hearer in order to manifest itself. Even before God speaks, He makes available the material of His Voice. So don’t wait for Him to land while He speaks to you. Start watching out for your testimonies because the evidence of His voice is already in existence around you ! His voice shapes, repostions and makes happen; contained in this Voice is that zeal, power, and passion that makes us become what He speaks to us ! His voice is self-sufficient !
( Ezekiel 2:2, Galatians 1:16)

HOW TO HEAR GOD.
” The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the LORD is upon many waters.” Psalm 29:3.
The above verse lays emphasis on the written word as the major bait for God’s Voice. Same is seen in Psalm 23:2, when the Psalmist says, ” He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,”.
But God’s written word is likened to water in Ephesians 5:26. So it goes to say that God’s Voice, whether thunderous or still and soft,  is mostly heard while meditating on His written words. John, however, heard God’s Voice when he was in the Spirit – Revelation 1:10. Until we die to self and become alive to God’s Spirit, we cannot hear Him – It’s the reason we fast. That way, the Human Spirit gains ascendancy over the flesh. Three more basic ways of obtaining God’s Voice are through prayers, worship, and praises. The Lord does not only inhabit our praises; He also causes His voice to be heard as we praise Him ! ( Isaiah 30:29-30). Let me sharply expound that just as an experienced casier can easily detect counterfeit note, so it is that a matured believer can easily identify the Father’s voice, and differentiate it from a stranger’s voice. Jesus said so but in different words – My sheep hear my voice. ( John 10:27). The only way to mastering the Voice of God is by keeping a continued, but more intimate relationship with Him !

When we approach Him, He either offers us His vision, insight or Voice; hearing God  matters  when it comes to walking with Him; But here’s The Lord saying, ” Be careful therefore how you hear…” – Luke 18:18. He likes us to consider the source of these voices so what we hear is neither from our flesh nor from the devil, but from Him alone; The Lord wants us to consider how often we hear because The Spirit is always saying something. Praise God ! 

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