WHEN THE LORD…

When the Lord…
Psalm 126 v.1 “When the Lord turned again the captivity of zion, we were like them that dream.”

Today by the grace of God, the Lord is set to turn again our captivity. What does it mean to be a captive? A captive is someone in bondage. It can be bondage of poverty, you need money to do some vital things in lifebut its just not there, it can be bondage of sickness- you’ve been sick for quite sometime now, you’ve tried all you could to get well but its just not working. So many kinds of bondages there are that cannot be mentioned here, but in whatever category yours fall, the Lord is set to deliver you, He is ready to set you free today.

Being in perpetual bondage sometimes makes you get used to the situation to the extent that you’ve given up and decided to live with you condition. That is not the plan of God for your life. The Lord will set you free today.

Sometimes also when one is in bondage of some sort and you receive your freedom, it always sound too good to be true. The scripture above says we were like them that dreamt. Freedom looks like a dream.

Whatever trouble or pains you are going through right now, the Lord has come to set you free, the Lord will turn your captivity away today in Jesus name.
Expect a miracle.

THE EAGLE’S EYE

The scripture says in Job 39:28-29”  She dwelleth and abideth on the rock, upon the crag of the rock, and the strong place. From there she seeketh the prey and her eyes behold afar off”. 

The eagle lives on the mountain /rock.  It also abides there.  The eagle also has microscopic and telescopic eyesight.  It can see from afar because it dwells on high.  God is calling us to an higher relationship with Him.  The bible speaking in 1 Cor. 10v.4 c says “ and that Rock was Christ. 

 

We may not see clearly and view long distance object except we climb a high rise building or a mountain.  Our sight is limited when we are on the ground.  Just like the eagle is blessed with lonsightedness, so does God wants us to see afar off.  He wants us to move closer to Him, climb onto higher grounds in Him so that our vision can be broadened. 

 

It is when we live with Him on the mountain top and abide there that our vision for life, career, ministry, relationship etc can be broadened.  Some of us live on the ideology of man, religion and tradition and not on what God’s word says forgetting that we are not of the world so we cannot live according to the standards of the world but on God’s principles laid down in His word.  Then it will be well with us.  Some of the ideas the world gives are in conflict with the word.  So anytime you get confused about making a choice, make it in the light of the word and the Lord will direct your paths aright.

 

God bless you today.

 

THERE IS HOPE FOR THE LIVING (PART 5)

The next morning, Anna took Ify’s credentials to Mr. Bash, the Director and narrated Anna’s story to him, Mr. Bash told Anna to bring Ify at once with her the next day, so she can be interviewed.

“Thank you sir” Anna

“No problem, I just hope she will play game as you did. I hope she is not one of these born-again sisters”. Said Mr. Bash.

Oh no! she will play game sir, no problem about that. I will educate her! Replied Anna
Ok! Get back to work!

Anna joyfully worked out of the Director’s office. Yeah this is good, she thought to herself, hmmm, but I hope Ify will play game with my director. I just hope so. Her mind drifted back to when she first came to the company in search of work after her NYSC (National Youth Service Corps) a one year mandatory service for all higher institution graduates. She came that morning for interview and she was ushered in to the man’s office. A tall man with a protruding belly showing beneath his flowing gown was sitting at the desk. He had asked her about her area of discipline which she told him was Quantity Surveying. He had commented on the credentials affirmatively but said that the certificate alone cannot give her the job, she must play game with him. She had wondered what he meant, until he gave her an appointment to meet him in Millenium hotel by 6pm. She obliged thinking it will be a brief meeting with the man, not knowing he was up to something else. He ordered a room to be prepared for them, took her to the room and told her that if she really needed the work, she will have to have sex with him. She had begged him not to do it, but her plea fell on deaf ears. She agreed and today she has the job. But! But! Will Ify do this? Honestly, I hope so, if not, this job will not be given to her.
Anna dropped her bag and started her day’s job.

Back at home, Ify took time to clean the house and visited her only brother in the University. By the time she returned back home, Anna was back already.

“Anny, you are back?” Asked Ify

“Yes Ify, where are you coming from? Hmmm I went to see my younger brother at the University, its been long I heard from him last.

“And how is he, asked Anna. Oh! He’s fine. So how far Anna, did you see the Director?

“Yes I did,hmmm, he asked me to bring you for interview tomorrow, I hope you will be ready to do whatever he asked you to do! Asked Anna,

“Oh Yes Anna, I will do it, is it not interview, anything, am prepared to do it so I can start working again, my brother is in need of some things in the school, his school fees will be due in another one month, can’t watch him suffer”. Replied Ify

“Ok, that’s good, we will be going together tomorrow morning, then”

Thank you Anna, God will reward you. Am grateful.
Oh no problem, let’s give God the praise!

THE STORY SO FAR

THERE IS HOPE FOR THE LIVING (1)“A living dog is better than a dead lion” so says the wisdom book.  A dead lion is useless despite its reputation of been a wild animal.  A living dog may not be as powerful as a lion is, but it is still better because it’s alive.I have a story to narrate here, open up your heart and read with understanding and I know the Lord will speak to you. The message might just be for you!It was a sunny morning, Mrs. Bath had just finished going through some of the files on her desk.  She looked at the remaining files and sighed. She paused for a moment and her thought flashed back to when the company was still young, things were not easy then.  No contract to pursue, she virtually begged for contract from Parastatals. She has three staffs then, herself as the managing director, the Secretary and the Engineer. But now she can boast of a company with not less than Twenty (20) employees. Her husband Mr. Bath had raised objection at first when she first started, saying he doesn’t want her to start competing with men in her profession as an Engineer and also that there will be no time for her to look after their children, but Mrs. Bath pleaded and she succeeded in convincing him to allow her do it.  She hired a house-help and a nurse for her children. She became a success after five years of hard work and now she can be said to be one of the most popular woman Engineer in the country.  She was still thinking when she heard a knock on her door.  The Post man entered with parcels of mail for the company and some staff.  She collected the mail and started rummaging through it.  Most of the parcels were for her secretary Miss. Ify, she had subscribed for Christian Ministry Magazines through the net.  She called her and handed over the parcels to her.  PART (2)Ify received her parcel with exuberance and surprise.  Mrs. Bath is a very strict, disciplinarian  woman.  She doesn’t tolerate nonsense.  Since she got the job of a secretary in Mrs. Bath’s company, it’s been one challenge or the other to her Christian faith.  She used to be vibrant for the things of God, but now no time to even attend midweek service.  She must stay in the office until Mrs. Bath closes.  Which was usually late in the evening.  Ify shares an apartment with her bosom friend, Anna whom she met in the University Christian fellowship.  They served together in the same state but different organization and since then they had been staying together.  As Ify opened her parcel one by one, her thought flashed back to when she came for interview for the position of a Company secretary.  Mrs. Bath had poured a barrage of questions at her concerning her educational background, her family and her marital status. She had managed to type a sheet of paper given to her by Mrs. Bath when she came in to inspect it.“How far have you gone?”  Are you through with it”  Said Mrs. Bath“Yes ma, am trying to round it up” Ify replied“You better do because I don’t have time to wait, you must be very fast when working with me, I don’t tolerate sluggishness, is that alright?” said Mrs. Bath.“Yes ma”.  Replied Ify“Good. “Ify had continued her work.  Mrs. Bath made a lot of corrections on the script she typed.  She is a kind of person that wants her “I’s” to be dotted and her “t’s” crossed.  But she had endured because of lack of job.  She desperately wished she could get another job where she can be free to serve God the way she wanted or better get married.  Hmmm get married! She thought aloud! To whom? Hmmm.  She has had about three different kinds of man in her life in the past 10yrs, none of them was committed to the relationship.  Isaac was the first man she met back in the campus days.  Isaac looked promising then, and the relationship was moving on well until suddenly when she discovered that he was really double dealing with her.  She was on her way to the classroom in the night to read in preparation for her Examinations when she decided to pass by the Male hostel to see Isaac.  On knocking at the door, there was no reply.  But the door was not locked, she paused before going in. She stepped in and lo and behold what she saw!PART (3) Isaac was virtually on top of a lady.  As soon as Isaac saw her, he jumped up and quickly rushed to dress up!“Hi, Ify”. Isaac said.  Why did not you wait for my response before opening the door.Ify stood there transfixed, not knowing what to do, she ran out of the room back into her hostel room and she had wept her out.  That was the end of the relationship.  All efforts made by Isaac to pacify her was of no use because she had made up her mind to cut off from the relationship.  The second was Paul whom her roommate snatched from her. Paul was from a rich family and he had been showering her with gifts to the amazement of her room mates.  Unknowingly to her, one of them had been eyeing him.  She made her plans and went ahead to tell Paul all about Ify, she lied and told different kinds of untrue stories about her.  Paul believed without investigating and at the end of the day, the girl succeeded in cajoling him into a relationship.As Ify was thinking of all these, the intercom phone rang and jolted her back to reality.  Mrs. Bath wanted her in the office.“Type this document for me, I want it now and I don’t have time to read through it, so you better make sure everything in there is typed correctly, ok!“It’s alright ma” replied Ify.Ify collected the paper and went back to her office.  She started typing the document and her thought ran wild again.  She continued to think about her marital issue, since the last man she dated, she had been very careful with men.  She has also been praying that God would give her a good man to marry.  Age is not on her side.  She will be Thirty five come next month.  God! What kind of thing is this!  She said soberly.  She finished the letter, prints it out on a sheet and handed it over to her boss.  The boss parceled the letter without reading through it.  She sent her messenger to deliver it to the company it was meant for, not knowing that Ify had made a mistake in the account number  in the letter thereby altering the whole content.  The letter was supposed to be information about the company’s change of Bank account Number.  Ify typed the old bank account number.  The man went on to pay the money into a wrong account number.  Mrs. Bath was informed to go cash her money in the bank, on getting to the bank, the money was not there.  She became furious and called the man to inquire.She was told to come and verify the account number which she died.  She discovered that it was a wrong address Ify typed.  Immediately she went back to the office to confront Ify.“What sort of nonsense is this, Ify”  she retorted.  You typed a wrong account number after I warned you to type the letter correctly”.“I am sorry ma”. Begged ify. “Be sorry for yourself”.  Now I think I have had enough of you in this office, please pack your things and leave immediately.“Ah, am sorry ma, please forgive me”.  It will not repeat itself again.  All Ify’s pleadings fell on deaf ears.  She was issued a sack letter that same day.  She packed her things and left the office.  She got home and fell on the bed.  She wept her heart out.  No where to go, no one to turn to.  Her parents died some years back, her only surviving sibling Nath, is in the University.  She had managed to sent him to the University when she started working.  What will she do now, where will she turn to for help.  O God help me!  She sobbed. PART (4)As Ify sobbed her heart out.  She was still crying when her roommate/friend came in.  she was shocked at what she saw.Ify? She called, what’s wrong with you?  Why are you crying?”Hmmm” Ify sighed.  It’s my work.  I was sacked today”.My God!  What happened? Asked AnnaIfy then narrated the whole thing that led to her being sacked from the office.  After she finished, Anna drew close to her and put her head on her shoulder.  Oh! Poor girl!  Is that all?  No problem, calm down, calm down, don’t worry about that, its going to be alright!  Hmmm!Ify stopped crying.  Eh! Cheer up, that’s my friend.  Said Anna.  I will try and see how to help you.  You don’t have a problem.  Prepare your papers down, I will talk to my Director (Mr. Bash) for you.  Am sure he will give you a job in the company.  Is that ok?Oh! That’s kinds of you Anna, thank you.!  Replied IfyOh no! What are we friends for?  Don’t worry, everything will be alright.  Now what are we going to eat, am famished.  Been working all day!Ify hurriedly got up from her sitting position and hurried to the kitchen to prepare food for dinner.  Hmm! Thank you God, Ify said to herself, so God you are this good, I will soon be working again, hmmm, maybe the pay will even be better than Mrs. Beth’s, hmmm, how wonderful it will be for me to start work by next week Monday, hmmm, maybe I will even meet a guy I love there and before you know I will get married too!  Hmmm. Oh my!.my thought is running wild.

THERE IS HOPE FOR THE LIVING (5)

As Ify sobbed her heart out.  She was still crying when her roommate/friend came in.  she was shocked at what she saw.Ify? She called, what’s wrong with you?  Why are you crying?”Hmmm” Ify sighed.  It’s my work.  I was sacked today”.My God!  What happened? Asked AnnaIfy then narrated the whole thing that led to her being sacked from the office.  After she finished, Anna drew close to her and put her head on her shoulder.  Oh! Poor girl!  Is that all?  No problem, calm down, calm down, don’t worry about that, its going to be alright!  Hmmm!Ify stopped crying.  Eh! Cheer up, that’s my friend.  Said Anna.  I will try and see how to help you.  You don’t have a problem.  Prepare your papers down, I will talk to my Director (Mr. Bash) for you.  Am sure he will give you a job in the company.  Is that ok?Oh! That’s kinds of you Anna, thank you.!  Replied IfyOh no! What are we friends for?  Don’t worry, everything will be alright.  Now what are we going to eat, am famished.  Been working all day!Ify hurriedly got up from her sitting position and hurried to the kitchen to prepare food for dinner.  Hmm! Thank you God, Ify said to herself, so God you are this good, I will soon be working again, hmmm, maybe the pay will even be better than Mrs. Beth’s, hmmm, how wonderful it will be for me to start work by next week Monday, hmmm, maybe I will even meet a guy I love there and before you know I will get married too!  Hmmm. Oh my!.my thought is running wild.

THERE IS HOPE FOR THE LIVING (3)

 Isaac was virtually on top of a lady. As soon as Isaac saw her, he jumped up and quickly rushed to dress up!

“Hi, Ify”. Isaac said. Why did not you wait for my response before opening the door.

Ify stood there transfixed, not knowing what to do, she ran out of the room back into her hostel room and she had wept her out. That was the end of the relationship. All efforts made by Isaac to pacify her was of no use because she had made up her mind to cut off from the relationship. The second was Paul whom her roommate snatched from her. Paul was from a rich family and he had been showering her with gifts to the amazement of her room mates. Unknowingly to her, one of them had been eyeing him. She made her plans and went ahead to tell Paul all about Ify, she lied and told different kinds of untrue stories about her. Paul believed without investigating and at the end of the day, the girl succeeded in cajoling him into a relationship.

As Ify was thinking of all these, the intercom phone rang and jolted her back to reality. Mrs. Bath wanted her in the office.

“Type this document for me, I want it now and I don’t have time to read through it, so you better make sure everything in there is typed correctly, ok!

“It’s alright ma” replied Ify.

Ify collected the paper and went back to her office. She started typing the document and her thought ran wild again. She continued to think about her marital issue, since the last man she dated, she had been very careful with men. She has also been praying that God would give her a good man to marry. Age is not on her side. She will be Thirty five come next month. God! What kind of thing is this! She said soberly.

She finished the letter, prints it out on a sheet and handed it over to her boss. The boss parceled the letter without reading through it. She sent her messenger to deliver it to the company it was meant for, not knowing that Ify had made a mistake in the account number in the letter thereby altering the whole content.

The letter was supposed to be information about the company’s change of Bank account Number. Ify typed the old bank account number. The man went on to pay the money into a wrong account number. Mrs. Bath was informed to go cash her money in the bank, on getting to the bank, the money was not there. She became furious and called the man to inquire.

She was told to come and verify the account number which she died. She discovered that it was a wrong address Ify typed. Immediately she went back to the office to confront Ify.

“What sort of nonsense is this, Ify” she retorted. You typed a wrong account number after I warned you to type the letter correctly”.

“I am sorry ma”. Begged ify.

“Be sorry for yourself”. Now I think I have had enough of you in this office, please pack your things and leave immediately.

“Ah, am sorry ma, please forgive me”. It will not repeat itself again.

All Ify’s pleadings fell on deaf ears. She was issued a sack letter that same day. She packed her things and left the office. She got home and fell on the bed. She wept her heart out. No where to go, no one to turn to. Her parents died some years back, her only surviving sibling Nath, is in the University. She had managed to sent him to the University when she started working. What will she do now, where will she turn to for help. O God help me! She sobbed.

THERE IS HOPE FOR THE LIVING Contd.

Ify received her parcel with exuberance and surprise. Mrs. Bath is a very strict, disciplinarian woman. She doesn’t tolerate nonsense. Since she got the job of a secretary in Mrs. Bath’s company, it’s been one challenge or the other to her Christian faith. She used to be vibrant for the things of God, but now no time to even attend midweek service. She must stay in the office until Mrs. Bath closes. Which was usually late in the evening. Ify shares an apartment with her bosom friend, Anna whom she met in the University Christian fellowship. They served together in the same state but different organization and since then they had been staying together. As Ify opened her parcel one by one, her thought flashed back to when she came for interview for the position of a Company secretary. Mrs. Bath had poured a barrage of questions at her concerning her educational background, her family and her marital status.

She had managed to type a sheet of paper given to her by Mrs. Bath when she came in to inspect it.

“How far have you gone?” Are you through with it” Said Mrs. Bath

“Yes ma, am trying to round it up” Ify replied

“You better do because I don’t have time to wait, you must be very fast when working with me, I don’t tolerate sluggishness, is that alright?” said Mrs. Bath.

“Yes ma”. Replied Ify

“Good. “

Ify had continued her work. Mrs. Bath made a lot of corrections on the script she typed. She is a kind of person that wants her “I’s” to be dotted and her “t’s” crossed. But she had endured because of lack of job. She desperately wished she could get another job where she can be free to serve God the way she wanted or better get married. Hmmm get married! She thought aloud! To whom? Hmmm. She has had about three different kinds of man in her life in the past 10yrs, none of them was committed to the relationship. Isaac was the first man she met back in the campus days. Isaac looked promising then, and the relationship was moving on well until suddenly when she discovered that he was really double dealing with her. She was on her way to the classroom in the night to read in preparation for her Examinations when she decided to pass by the Male hostel to see Isaac. On knocking at the door, there was no reply. But the door was not locked, she paused before going in. She stepped in and lo and behold what she saw!

To be continued

THERE IS HOPE FOR THE LIVING

 Ify received her parcel with exuberance and surprise. Mrs. Bath is a very strict, disciplinarian woman. She doesn’t tolerate nonsense. Since she got the job of a secretary in Mrs. Bath’s company, it’s been one challenge or the other to her Christian faith. She used to be vibrant for the things of God, but now no time to even attend midweek service. She must stay in the office until Mrs. Bath closes. Which was usually late in the evening. Ify shares an apartment with her bosom friend, Anna whom she met in the University Christian fellowship. They served together in the same state but different organization and since then they had been staying together. As Ify opened her parcel one by one, her thought flashed back to when she came for interview for the position of a Company secretary. Mrs. Bath had poured a barrage of questions at her concerning her educational background, her family and her marital status.

 

She had managed to type a sheet of paper given to her by Mrs. Bath when she came in to inspect it.

“How far have you gone?” Are you through with it” Said Mrs. Bath

“Yes ma, am trying to round it up” Ify replied

“You better do because I don’t have time to wait, you must be very fast when working with me, I don’t tolerate sluggishness, is that alright?” said Mrs. Bath.

“Yes ma”. Replied Ify

“Good. “

Ify had continued her work. Mrs. Bath made a lot of corrections on the script she typed. She is a kind of person that wants her “I’s” to be dotted and her “t’s” crossed. But she had endured because of lack of job. She desperately wished she could get another job where she can be free to serve God the way she wanted or better get married. Hmmm get married! She thought aloud! To whom? Hmmm. She has had about three different kinds of man in her life in the past 10yrs, none of them was committed to the relationship. Isaac was the first man she met back in the campus days. Isaac looked promising then, and the relationship was moving on well until suddenly when she discovered that he was really double dealing with her. She was on her way to the classroom in the night to read in preparation for her Examinations when she decided to pass by the Male hostel to see Isaac. On knocking at the door, there was no reply. But the door was not locked, she paused before going in. She stepped in and lo and behold what she saw!

To be continued

THERE IS HOPE FOR THE LIVING

“A living dog is better than a dead lion”. so says the wisdom book. A dead lion is useless despite its reputation of been a wild animal. A living dog may not be as powerful as a lion is, but it is still better because it is alive.

I have a story to narrate here, open up your hearts and read with understanding and I know the Lord will speak to you. The message might just be for you!

It was a sunny morning, Mrs. Bath had just finished going through some of the files on her desk. She looked at the remaining files and sighed. She paused for a moment and her thought flashed back to when the company was still young. Things were not easy then. No contract to pursue, she virtually begged for contract from parastatals. She has three staffs then, herself as the Managing Director, the Secretary and
the Engineer. But now she can boast of a company with not less than twenty (20) employees. Her husband Mr. Bath had raised objection at first when she first started, saying he doesn’t want her to start competing with men in her profession as an Engineer and also that there will be no time for her to look after their children, but Mrs. Bath pleaded and succeeded in convincing him to allow her do it. She hired a house help and a nurse for her children. She became a success after five years of hard work and now she can be said to be one of the most popular woman engineer in the country. She was thinking when she heard
a knock on her door. The post man entered with parcels of mail for the company and some staff. She collected the mail and started rummaging through it. Most of the parcels were for her secretary Miss Ify, she had subscribed for Christian Ministry Magazines through the internet.
She called her and handed over the parcels out.

To be continued.

THE COUNSEL OF THE WICKED

 

We established yesterday that God has plans for us and that His plans for us are for good and not for evil to bring us to an expected end.  As God has good plans for us, so also the wicked ones has their own plans mapped out to counter the plan of God for our lives.

 

The Psalmist says in  Psalm 33v.10 “  The Lord bringeth the counsel of  the heathen to nought.  He maketh the devises of the people of none effect”.

 

God knows very well that the wicked ones will like to counter His plans for us, and so He made provision for our victory over them in Christ Jesus.    The Lord declares in that verse that every counsel of the wicked for our lives will not stand and so shall it be for us in Jesus name. Only the counsel of God concerning us will stand.  God will put our enemies in confusion forever in Jesus name.  Amen.

 

Have a blessed day!