God Has Changed the Order!

Why are so many people hung up on fulfilling the law? The same law that separated you from God (if you were not a Jew). The fact that God gave the law to Jews was the evidence of your condemnation and separation from God; now, you (a non-Jew) has made it your life's work to fulfill a law that was never given to you?

Jesus came to make of two men one new man in Him, meaning in the eyes of God, the

re were only two men in the world - the Jew and the Gentile, one chosen and the other condemned. But, in Christ, a new man has been created - neither Jew nor Gentile.

Today, God does not see Muslims, Buddhists, Christians, Taoists, etc. He sees only two men - the new man in Christ and the unregenerate man. The only difference now is that being the new man is your choice, your decision.

How I love Jesus!

The Final Word

“And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.” (Luke 5:5)

Faith is a choice – one so simple it could be relegated as foolish. Faith speaks of conviction; holding so strongly to the truth that you have been persuaded about. Many years ago, I would tell myself that even if all of the world around me physically fell, and I stood on a piece of earth only big enough for the size of my two petite feet, completely exposed to space with one breath as my only possession, I would spend that one breath prophesying ”it is not yet over.” I thought that way, and I still do, because I am convinced that God’s Word works – no matter how long it takes.

In these days, more than ever before, we must believe that God’s Word is absolute in its strength and judgments. Today, we have Christians who have convinced themselves that the Bible is not reliable, claiming contradictions that would not have been contradictory if they had studied with the Spirit of God. Many have judged the Word by their feelings and made accommodations based on so-proclaimed science. Others have made all effort to believe, and because it did not seem to work, they got tired of believing it was something they were not doing, so the blame was shifted to God’s Word to bear.

In the scripture with which I opened this post, we see Peter with all his understanding of “reality and sensibility” challenged by the Master’s instruction to try one more time. The Bible records that he had troubled the waters all through the night prior to that. He was a professional, one that knew his job well; Jesus’ instructions challenged his “scientific” knowledge. Yet, when he held the Word as final authority, he saw something that science and all the veterans of fishery could not explain.

If you take time to dissect that scripture, you’d notice Peter said, “At thy word, I will.” Whatever you will because of God’s Word is your act of faith, and it is sure to produce results. I’ve heard faith described as an “unqualified committal to God’s Word.” You may not know why you should believe, but you believe anyway. It’s from your spirit, something God made possible for every human person to do. That which you will because of God’s Word is what pleases the Father’s heart.

You may have made the same mistake a thousand times and still find yourself back in it each time you repent. Practice talking to yourself each time the error is accomplished; say “against hope, I believe in hope. I am more than this. God made me more than this.” When there’s no reason for you or anyone else to believe in you, that’s the time to insist on an unqualified committal of yourself to God’s Word. Just believe because God’s Word says you are “the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) Whether you feel it or not, because you are born again and filled with the HolyGhost, the righteousness of God is working in you.

In the same vein, do not accept anything as truth if the Word does not have room for it. I’ve heard people say “I’m hot-tempered; it’s the way I am.” It’s so sad, because that person’s future has been restricted, contained in boundaries of uncontrolled anger. He or she has accepted the cards they were dealt. If there is anything about you that God’s Word does not support, that thing is not your uniqueness. A disease, bad attitude, inappropriate affections and other such things cannot possibly be your uniqueness; God doesn’t deal that way. Those things are what this world (a result of the Adamic fall) gave to you; you had no choice in that matter. But, seeing as Christ has died and was raised for you, you now have a choice. Refuse to be reined in by circumstances that can be changed. Against your feelings and condition, be determined to take God’s Word as final. Confess the truth of God’s Word over yourself in that matter, and refuse to give in. Take sides with the Word, even when there is no “good reasoning” to do so!

Split Second

8:09 AM 7/12/2015

I had just gotten off the phone with Pennie. She couldn’t have sounded more enthusiastic; I marveled at how important this truly was to her. I couldn’t screw it up in anyway. I had never met a woman more excited about a wedding, or maybe I just never got around to listening in on some girl-talk, because it seemed all her friends shared the excitement, including Jennie, whom I had previously dated. Memories.

Now, if only this executive position I was applying to would pull through.

1:07 PM 7/26/2015

All through the lunch at Cheesy Stix, I was distracted. Everyone from my team was deep into the send-forth festivities organized for Will, my 4-year boss, but all I could think about was my daughter, Carrolton (or Karrie, like we fondly call her). I had to be at this recital; it seemed like everything to her. But, with the wedding plans and this impromptu party for the boss, there seemed to be no way I was getting there in time. Once again, I experienced that dreaded sinking feeling, surprised that I hadn’t gotten used to it by now.

But, there was a lot to look forward to. Karrie was excited about getting a step brother, since me and Pennie were both bringing a child into the marriage. Over the past year and a half, I had also developed a father-son bond with her son (well, mine too), Craig. I couldn’t wait to see that relationship grow.

Amidst the excitement rushing through me, I didn’t hear Will call out to me, neither did I hear the sound of tingling glasses. I looked up and apologized to everyone, but there was something strange about the way they stood, the way they smiled, the way they looked in admiration. “Mike, it is my pleasure to announce that you got the position. From now on, you are the Executive Director of Marketing and Public Relations. You deserve it. We all know that, and you know it too. Effective after your honeymoon, Mike, you’re the new boss. Congratulations!” 


Those words from Will almost brought tears to my eyes. Not only was it a lifelong dream for me, but with the pay raise, I can make sure me, Pennie and the kids are adequately provided for.

I thanked my boss and spoke high-sounding words that I didn’t remember few minutes later. Most of all, I thanked God in my heart and silently reassured myself: “once the honeymoon is over, I’ll be more committed to God than I’ve ever been.”

 4:15 PM 8/14/2015

It was my final day at work. The wedding plans were slowly winding down. Bachelor’s party was a blast, thanks to my best man. I knew he could do the job. It was the right mix of naughty and responsible. Thoughts of that night still make me feel like I’ve done my due diligence to bachelor-hood; now, I can really have a wife. I laugh inside when I remember.

As I was about to turn off my iMac for the last time till my fall wedding and honeymoon was over, I felt something rather strange. It started from my heart and spread through my body. It wasn’t a good or bad feeling. All within a split second, I felt my legs shake uncontrollably, and it seemed other parts of my body were doing the same too. At this point, it was becoming a pleasurable feeling of some sort. It felt like I was being compressed from all sides, as though the earth was about to vomit me in a projectile motion into space.

Out from nowhere and everywhere at the same time came a blasting trumpet, and all within a split second, I knew what it was. RAPTURE. Though my heart erupted with joy, I still had just one split second to think to myself that all the time I had spent working hard at the job, investing all I am into the relationship and pushing my service to God till later was in vain. I knew the word well enough to know I’ll have to make a report of my life in Heaven, and in that split second, I couldn’t think of anything I did that could impress the Lord of my life.

You are a MODEL!

@stburnish

Model {mod-l}: "A small object, usually built to scale, that represents in detail another, often larger object." 

Have you ever come across (be it on TV or actual contact) an expensive artwork that just did not look like it was worth the price placed on it? Every day, many thousands of dollars are spent on one-of-a-kind’s that may not seem appealing at all to the average man. With wrinkled hands, a strange woman in a little village somewhere stooped into dirty earth and mud in order to bring forth a creation – one that ended up costing so much that it could only be owned by nation states.

Many of these artworks only cost so much for one of two major reasons: on the one hand, it may have to do with the renown of the artist who created the work, while on the other hand, it almost always has to do with the originality of the product, the fact that it is the only one. Do you realize that God feels the same way about you?

Our individuality makes every one of us a model – an extraordinary masterpiece – fully representing God in our looks and functionality. Regardless of how your nose, ears, mouth or eyes are, you are the only one of you that God has, created to “model” Him. God was well aware of your looks before He boldly declared that you were made in His image and likeness – to look and act like Him. Our value is not in how appealing we look in comparison to the other person; our value relies on the fact that we cannot truly be compared with anyone else. You are in a class of your own; you have no real competition, because no one looks, acts, thinks, talks or is created exactly like you. You are the only you God ever had and will ever have.

Even in this season where everyone is seeking to lose a few pounds here and there and a great number of people are also looking to gain a few pounds, you should never forget that you are a model. You model God, a different dimension of Him that no one ever saw before. Of course, you may have done some things to the exterior of the model that is “you,” but don’t be mad at yourself. You have God in you to show you how to get your model to the optimal standard, but you MUST start by believing that you are one-of-a-kind, not to be compared with anyone else.

For a while, I tried so hard to lose a few pounds in order to get to a certain BMI that I felt would be healthier, but the more I tried, the more it failed. When I gave up on my own ability to make it happen and started enjoying liberty through the Spirit of God, He Himself taught me habits that caused me to get to a weight that did not just look great on the scale but felt good on me. I have learned to never measure how “good-looking” I am in comparison to anybody else. I am the best looking ME there could possibly be, so I walk with my shoulders square, knowing God is proud to show me off to the world – a truly divine, handsome, rich, healthy, blessed and favored representation of HIM!

The Scandal of Grace

Sitting here on my bed, I still feel the presence of Jesus so intense that I said to Him, “how do I express how I feel right now?” The thoughts are overwhelming and His love is palpable. A lot of things happened today, but the most of it is that I saw Jesus clearer and now love Him more.

In the evening, I set out for some of my friends’ house for a hangout, not knowing what to expect. I like to consider myself as a spiritual person, and I am proud of it, but I don’t feel the same way about being referred to as “religious.” So, the main thing for me tonight was that nothing was religious. Everything was simple, fulfilling and pleasurable. At the house, Yinka Karis and I began to watch Pastor Chris Online clips and the presence of Jesus was so strong. We laughed and almost fell out under the power; boy, were we DRUNK in the Spirit.

Shortly after that, we heard Pastor Joseph Prince was ministering LIVE from Lakewood Church, and we decided to watch. WOW!!! It was a gathering of kings, and I believe heaven watched intently with excitement. I STRONGLY believe Jesus couldn’t contain Himself anymore; He DANCED! Boy, did JESUS dance tonight, while the devil cringed in fear and shame. As we watched, we celebrated Jesus, and we celebrated Him with so much joy. One of the highlights of Pastor Prince's message for me was when He talked about how Jesus decided to go hangout with Zaccheus, the tax collector, and the religious folk immediately took offence against Him. Pastor Prince said it was the beginning of “the scandal of grace.” Those words caught my attention, causing me to make up my mind to be a proud bearer of Christ’s grace message. I hope to write a book with that title, the Scandal of Grace, sometime in the future; it’ll be lovely.

Finally, I thoroughly enjoyed a great time with the people I call “friends.” I tend to pay a lot of attention to people’s eyes, and tonight all I saw was a lot of love being communicated - so much love it was impossible for Jesus to have been absent.  In everything we did, you could tell that Jesus was there. Now, I’m home, full of exuberant joy. I never stop being impressed by Jesus’ sacrifice for me. He bore it all. Now, all I have to do is look into His eyes and become more like Him as I do so. I’m not sure how to best communicate it, but I am convinced that HE LOVES ME!

P.S: Suggest a song for this post, please. Thanks!