RHEMA From Heaven

The Christian walk demands that you exercise the ability to press on on. One thing you shouldn’t stop at as a Christian is forging ahead. You see, being born again doesn’t automatically take away opposition and hard times. However, irrespective of the circumstance God wants you to make progress.

The Apostle Paul explains this truth in Philippians 3:13, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but [this] one thing [I do], forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,”

Pressing on must be the believers lifestyle considering the awkward oppositions that we face every now and then in our walk with God.

You see, nothing must derail you from the faith. Troubles and tribulations must not make you cast off your faith and give up. No! In spite of what you face as challenges, you must press on. There’s a prize for your calling as a child of God and until you have mastered the art of pressing on you will miss your entitlement. (Philippians 3:14)

Retreating is not part of our mantra and language. You see, you may not have the best of opportunities today but don’t retreat and compromise your holiness. You don’t retreat working for God. You don’t retreat praying and studying the word. Never! We have just one mandate: Pressing on for the prize of the high calling.

Friend, be encouraged today. Don’t put an end to your walk with God because of perilous outcomes of life. God is destined to usher you into a colourful destiny. But until you endure to the end you might miss it.

PRESS ON! Keep pressing in prayer, in working for God, in holiness. Your reward is close.

Read: Philippians 3:14, “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

Study: Philippians 3:7-17

Matthew 1:21 says “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
More than people think, the name Jesus is a mission and a mandate. The name conferred a duty on the bearer and such was the case of our Messiah.

Jesus came to this world for a great purpose. He came to turn our heart that was derailed and corrupted to the father. He came so that, through him we might have life. John captured this truth in his account of the gospel. John 10:10 says “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full”.

You see, the Lord’s coming was basically because of man. It was for our rescue and restoration that Jesus came. He came to bring us to a life of abundance, a divine life and a life that transcends this “earthly domain”.

Not only that, the coming of the Lord was occasioned by God to destroy the works of the devil. 1 John 3:8 says “The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work”.

Thus, in remembering the birth of Jesus Christ these truths must resonate in your heart. It is a season to turn to the Lord, if you have not and a season to “walk in liberty” and not being entangled with the affairs of this life.

Read: Isaiah 9:6 “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”

Courage is what makes you break the doldrums of life and do what people dread. It simply means beating fear to do something different.

When you are courageous you don’t allow difficult tasks to overwhelm you. It gives you the urge not to give up when faced with challenging happenings.

The Bible talks about how God instructed Joshua to be strong and courageous when he was faced with the mandate to lead the Israelites after Moses.
See Joshua 1:6: “Be strong and confident, for you will give this people an inheritance, the land which I promise to their ancestors to give.”

Inasmuch as God chose Joshua, He expected him to show courage for the task ahead.

You see, one truth is certain, those who do not master courage, will never achieve anything in life.

The Bible says again that: “The sluggard says there is a lion out there, or I will be murdered in the streets”.(Proverbs 22:13)

The above verse explains that you will never get anything done if you allow the grip of fear. So until you are ready to face life’s challenges with courage, you cannot command any results in life.

Life’s journey will not always be favourable. You will not only be faced with situations you can handle. No! Challenging issues will stare and scare you in the face, but it will always take the courage to dare and win.

You see, courage is what helps you to stick your neck out when you could chose a comfort zone. Don’t remain in your comfort zone and do nothing. Be bold to move out and do what the Lord is telling you.

Wake up, be bold and take up the challenge. Carry the “I can do mentality”, and you will breakthrough. Remember that you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you.

Read: Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated), for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Speaking God’s word is one way to bring heavenly influence into your affairs. It is a sure way to chart the path of your life into greatness. Also, God’s word on your lips is an antidote against any devilish onslaught. This is why the Lord said unto Joshua “do not let this book of the law depart from your mouth”.

The word of God in your mouth is a weapon. You must constantly speak it to have victory and to bring things into existence. The Bible says, the word of God is the source of the cosmos we see to today. See Hebrews 11:3 “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear”.

You see, speaking the word of God daily gives you supernatural results. This is why what you say matters.

The Bible again gives an account of how an officer was healed by the word of God spoken by Jesus. Matthew 8:8 says “The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed”.
The centurion understood the power of the “spoken word” and therefore never bordered Jesus to come to his house, but to only release the word needed for the season.

Today, you have the incarnate word of God who is Jesus in you. You also have the knowledge of the written word. This is enough to produce the MIRACLE you need. Stop looking around and speak the word and it shall be unto you according to your faith.

Remember that, your healing, prosperity, appointment letter, promotion, admission, breakthrough, next level is all in the Word.
Arise and start speaking the word. Your confession will surely bring a possession.

Read: Mark 11:23 “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith”

One of the things we can’t deny in life is the benefits that the Lord provides for us daily. Psalm 68:19 says, “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah”.

Thus, it is a very good thing to always look back and appreciate how far the Lord has brought you, and to also do good to people who have done you much good in life. This is what it means to “render”.

The Bible has a classic example on this subject in 2 Chronicles 32. It tells how God saved a King called Hezekiah from an attack of the Assyrians and also healed him when he was sick unto death. See 2 Chronicles 32:22 says “Thus the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all other , and guided them on every side”.

Also, 2 Chronicles 32:24 says “In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, and prayed unto the Lord : and he spake unto him, and he gave him a sign”. Yet in all these, King Hezekiah forgot all the interventions that helped to save his life. He did not render again according to the benefit done unto him. But in all these, Hezekiah forgot about the kindness he received.

But dare to be different. I admonish you to look back and to consider the benefits you have received from the Lord during the course of the year and praise his name. Don’t forget that, you have made it this far because of God.

Also, remember the people God brought your way that helped you, and render to them accordingly.

Read : Psalm 103:2 “Bless the Lord , O my soul, and forget not all his benefits”.

One of the priceless and precious things you can have in life is the voice of the spirit. In fact, nothing can be compared to it. Walking through life and hearing the voice of God makes you a stalwart.

You see, what the Holy Spirit says is the direction and guidance that the Holy Spirit gives to the Christian. It is through this leading that we can make real progress in life.

Every Christian must master the art of following the voice of the Spirit. Nonetheless, this can only be possible if you learn to know and distinguish the voice of the Holy Spirit from all other voices.

Most people who made great impart in the days of old knew and followed the voice of the Spirit. See how Apostle Peter described his experience in the city of Joppa when he was invited by a gentile. Acts 11:12 “And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man’s house”.

Upon following the voice of the Spirit, God brought salvation and poured the Spirit on the gentiles for the first time.

Learn to follow the voice of the Holy Spirit in all that you do in life. Follow the leadings of the Spirit in the area of your ministry, education, finance, career, relationship and marriage, and all that concerns you.

Don’t act without hearing the voice of the Spirit. Remember that, as many as are led by the Holy Spirit, they are the sons of God. Always stay in prayer and be sure you have heard His voice before you start out to do something.

Read :John 16:13 “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come”

Although many have used the word “maneuver” in relation to warfare by a well organized army, it is also something we can deploy or use in our daily walk as Christians.

The word “maneuver” means a planned action that is intended to obtain an advantage, a skillful or careful move, or overpowering a situation to achieve an end.
You see, your success in life is heavily dependent on how you master this art of maneuvering.

Life’s journey is not and will never be a straight line. It has ups and downs. It has mountains and valleys, it has lacks and wants, and all sorts of situations. You see, whether you like it or not, you will not only be faced with things you have planned for or made provision for. No! It has never been like that. That would have made life more certain and predictable.

The truth is that, you will see all kinds of situations in life as you move day by day. Some will be good, some will be bad, and others will be ugly. But that is not a reason to give up or let go of your vision or God given agenda.

This is why, you must be a master of maneuvers so that you will put up the best action to win even in the face of your worse moments.
You see, whatever the situation will be like, God expects you to win by putting the wisdom and the understanding you have to work.

The Apostle who described himself as the least but yet accomplished great things for God was a master of maneuvers. See what he had to say in Philippians 4:12-13: “I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me”.

People who are masters of maneuvers see every set back as a set up to move up.
Don’t sit and complain. Don’t sit and fold your arms because you are in a fix, or people have rejected you or no one seems to came to your aid.

Arise and maneuver your way through. Remember that, you are more than a conqueror. Don’t carry defeat and failure as a brand. It is not allowed in the Kingdom of God.

Read: Psalm 24:10 “If you falter in a time of trouble, how small is your strength”

Self-control is the nature of the recreated human spirit. See Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
Meaning that as a born again Christian, you have what it takes to put your emotions, and flesh under control.

Even though this is a great departure from the “way of life” of the old nature that is not to say it is impossible to be done. Self-control is ours as Christians but you must deploy it to make it vital.

Self-control is having rule over your spirit. One author defines self-control as self restraint, slow to react, and keeping ones emotions, feelings and behaviour within biblically accepted confines. Thus, anytime you deploy the virtue of self-control you don’t do things anyhow.

By self-control you are able to put your appetite or desires under check. You also get to know how to handle issues so that you don’t result to violence.

Although most people limit their understanding of self-control to “the control of sexual desires”. Self-control is broader than that.
It has to do with how you put your ” human nature” under control so that you don’t do stuffs that is inconsistent with the word of God.

Don’t think that self-control is not possible. As a matter of fact, the ability to exercise self-control is in you as a Christian. Put it to work and you will stand out among many.

Read: Proverbs 25:28 “He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls”

Planning and preparation are two important factors for success. You can’t just walk through life and succeed without a plan and adequate preparation. You see, if you sit and wait for things to happen it is certain that you will not accomplish much in life.

One truth you must know is that, nothing good just happens. Every good thing that you want to enjoy will only come after planning and preparing for it.

As we draw close to the end of the year, start planning and preparing for the things the Lord will be requiring of you. You must know that, knowing God’s plan for your life can’t make you successful if you don’t plan and prepare to execute it.

No one gets to have a great future only by talking. You need to take great actions to get there.
You see, the future is always made from the investments of the past. Thus, the seeds of your yesterday and today determines the quality of your future or tomorrow. You can’t have success in life without planning and preparation.

Anything that you desire to see in the future or the coming year must be worked at.
Planning and preparation helps you to prioritise your life for success.

Read :Proverbs 16:9 “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.”

There are many things that people trust in today. But the Bible teaches us not to trust in anything except God. This is because trusting God puts us on the highway to success and victory in every endeavor we undertake.

To “trust” means to have confidence in someone or something. It is also a belief that someone or something is reliable, good, and honest. From this understanding of the meaning of trust, you must know that some things can’t be trusted.

You see, trusting in the wrong things can bring you to nothing.
For instance, trusting in riches will bring you into failure. This is one truth many people will argue against, but that’s what the word of God says. See Proverbs 11:28 “He that trusteth in his riches shall fall: but the righteous shall flourish as a branch.”
Also, people who put their trust in men, will be limited in life. See Jeremiah 17:5: Thus says the LORD: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the LORD.

You see, you can put your confidence in man, who is just flesh and blood and succeed. The truth is that, some people can be good and may want to help you genuinely but their life is not in their hands. Today they can be here, and by tomorrow they are gone because it is not in their power to give themselves life.

Thus, when the word directs that we put our trust in the Lord, it is for a good course.
God can’t die, God can’t fail, God can’t disappoint, and God can’t be taken by a misfortune. In fact, it is God that rules in the affairs of this life.

Psalm 5:11 says “But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee”. Those who trust in God have every course to rejoice because God will forever stand for them without any fail.

David in Psalm 56:11 also said, “In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me”.

Resolve not to trust in the wrong things in life for they that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever.

Read: Jeremiah 17:7 “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord , and whose hope the Lord is”