“A five stars marriage is like a five stars hotel: expensive, but worth it. True love unlocks doors and opens windows that were not even there before. A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person” (Mignon McLaughlin 1913-1983)
(In the picture Mr and Mrs Jacob, members of our church, who are happily married for more than 45 years! Praise the Lord!)
God has just blessed my family in Romania. My only sister’s only son, Mihai Alexandru and his wife Georgiana Alexandru had a baby girl called Iulia. They waited for this baby for years. They are both medical doctors but they had problems to get pregnant. Medical science said that they can never have their own child. But against all odds, Georgiana got pregnant and now they have a beautiful daughter. I am so happy for them! To God alone be all the glory! I use them as a point of contact to pray for other couples who trust God for the fruit of the womb. With God all things are possible! Praise the Lord!
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging” (Ps 46:1-3)
“Although I am dust and ashes, Lord, I am tied to You by bonds of love. Therefore I feel I can speak freely to You. Before I came to know You, I was nothing. I did not know the meaning of life, and I had no understanding of myself. I have no doubt that You had a purpose in causing me to be born; yet, I thought that You had no need of me, and on my own I was no use to You. But then You decided that I should hear the words of Your Dear Son, Jesus Christ. And that as I heard His words, You enabled His love to penetrate my heart. Now I am completely saturated in His love and faith, and there is no remedy. Now, Lord, I cannot change my attitude to my faith; I can only die for it. I can never go back! I fear not what men may do to me! In life or death I declare that Jesus Christ is Lord!
O Lord our God, who raised up Your servant Hilarius to be a champion of the Catholic faith: Keep us steadfast in that true faith which we professed at our baptism, that we may rejoice in having You for our Father, and may abide in Your Son, in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit; who live and reign for ever and ever. Amen”
This is a prayer by Bishop Hilarius of Poiters, 310-367, AD. He was born in a pagan family. He was well educated in the Greek philosophy. By the grace of God he became gloriously saved. The Christians in the city of Poiters, were so impressed with his conversion, his wisdom and courage, that they unanimously voted him as their bishop. His wife and his daughter got saved too. As a family they suffered much persecution for their faith. The religious leaders sent them to exile. The Christians they left in Poiters prayed him back. After five years in exile he and his family came back to continue the work of God. He wrote many books that became a great encouragement to Christians at that time. Even now, his words are filled with the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Thru it all Bishop Hilarius and his family remained faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ until the end! Child of God, be encouraged today and praise the Lord!
“Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the One Moses wrote about in the Law, the One the prophets foretold–Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph…They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?” (Jn 1:45; 6:42)
Last Sunday we celebrated ‘Father’s Day’. There is one holy man in the Bible that I admire a lot. My choice may surprise you. I am talking about “Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ” (Mt 1:16). He is one of the most neglected characters of the Christmas story. But his life is a treasure of encouragement to me.
What is his story? Humanly speaking, Joseph’s life was not easy. He had to deal with much disappointment. First of all, as a husband, he heard that Mary, the girl he loved and planned to marry, was pregnant!!! Of course the Angel told him that she got pregnant by the Holy Spirit. But in his flesh, it was not easy to accept this ‘good news’. ‘The joy to the world’ meant silent sorrow (at least for some time) in the heart of Joseph. As a father he had his own pains. His sons with Mary did not believe that their older brother is the Messiah. “For even his brothers didn’t believe in Him (Jesus)” (Jn 7:5). Because Joseph was a believer in Christ, to have unbelieving sons, that was not an easy fact to deal with. Until he died, Joseph did not see his sons converted to Christ. Then there was also another painful issue he had to accept: his loss of social status! Joseph descended from the direct lineage of King David. In the history of Israel, the people of God became rebellious against God. They needed to be humbled. God sent them to Babylon for seventy years. When they came back to their land, they came without their royal mantle (read Matthew 1). They ‘lost’ their crown in the wilderness of Babylon. They came back as ordinary men. If it is not for the rebellion of his people, Joseph could have been ‘His Royal Majesty King Joseph’. He could have lived in David’s palace in Zion, married to a Queen and with many servants around him. But that dream died and was buried in Babylon. Instead, Joseph was known as the village ‘carpenter’, too poor to bring a lamb when his Son was dedicated at the temple. He could only bring two doves, the offering of a poor man.
But thru it all, with all these losses and disappointments, I do not see any trace of bitterness in Joseph. He was a man of God! He was a good caring husband to Mary. He was a wonderful father to Jesus and to his other sons. He was a righteous man, a wise, patient and spiritual man. God spoke to him thru dreams and he obeyed God with all his heart. He was led by the Holy Spirit! The Holy Spirit chose Mary to carry God’s seed in her womb. God also chose Joseph to be a father to Jesus for many years. The greatest achievement of Joseph was that he was called the father of Jesus!!! He lost his crown but his adopted Son was the King of kings!!! What a vindication!
What are the lessons for us today? Be born again! That is the first and most important lesson! As a child of God you can live a life of humility and thanksgiving, no matter the difficult circumstances around you. There is no need to look back, at what could have been. There is no need to compare yourself with others. If you are saved and filled with the Holy Spirit, then you shall be free from inferiority complexes, depression, doubt and bitterness. Your greatest achievement, your heritage and gain is your relationship with Jesus! In the light of His glory and grace, nothing else matters! Hallelujah!
(In the picture, you see Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus, wonderfully played by Mr and Mrs Joseph Alika (and baby) who are part of the drama organized by our church every Christmas and called ‘The Nativity’)
‘Wisdom is more powerful
than weapons,
yet one mistake can destroy
all the good you have done’ (Ecc 9:18)
Today I learned another lesson in a painful way. My husband and I were planing to go out. I wanted to finish my notes on our trip to Phillipi. I was very Impatient to write as fast as I could. I finished my letter. Then I pressed ‘copy to paste’. By mistake, because I was in a hurry, I pressed ‘delete’. All my good work for the past one hour disappeared in less than a second. I was shocked! I wanted to hate my phone… It was very painful. For a moment I thought that God is not ‘fair’ to me. I could smell the devil coming close to attack my spirit… Jesus!!!! I quietly but firmly rejected the anger that wanted to enter my heart!
We went out. Later, the Holy Spirit reminded me that impatience is able to spoil much good work, especially in ministry. I remembered the scripture that said ‘a little mistake spoils much good work’. God’s Word is right! Always! God is not ‘fair’ to the flesh because the flesh must die! God is always fair to the Spirit! Finally, I ‘forced’ myself to thank God for the fulfillment of His Word. My pain turned to worship. I came back home and I wrote the notes again, this time I was patient and careful, as I should have been! Good lesson for me! The pain was only for a moment but the lesson is for a life time! Thank God for reminding me of the power of His Word! Hallelujah!!!
‘From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day we went on to Neapolis’ (Ac 16:10)
My husband and I we continue to follow the great Apostle Paul. This morning we took a small plane (like our Aryk in Warri) and flew from Athens to Neapolis. Apostle Paul wanted to go to Asia but he was directed by the Holy Spirit to go to Macedonia to preach the Gospel there (Ac 16:6-11). He saw a man in avision begging him to come to help them in Greece. He left Troas and arrived at the city of Neapolis.
We too arrived this morning at Neapolis. Today it is called Kavala, Greece. It is a quiet city of about a hundred thousand inhabitants but it has a village feel. This ancient city was founded 300 years before Christ. From the mountains near by the Romans excavated gold. The city was used as the main sea port for the Roman great city of Philipi, built in the mainland about 17 km from here.
We stay in a humble hotel by the sea. We ate a simple meal of fried meat, bread, garden egg and lettuce salad and potatoes in an open view restaurant by the sea. The sea gulls flew around waiting for crumbs. There are many butterflies and many flowers. I try to feel what Paul felt. We drove up the hill and took some beautiful pictures with the city of Neapolis (Kavala) down there in the background. There is a peaceful feeling about this place. Later in the day, we shall go to see the ruins of the Old city of Philippi which is not far from here. These mountains and the sea have not changed since Paul came here preaching the Gospel. In the first century Christianity became very strong here. Because of that they made Neapolis the city centre for the Bishop to reside here. They even changed the name of the city to Christopole. The city fell to the Otoman empire for a time. Sultan Suleiman ‘the Magnificent’ built an aqueduct to bring water to the city from the river in the mountain. You can still see the aqueduct today passing in the middle of the city. The town was freed by the Greek forces later.
It is Sunday morning. We just finished watching the service of Father’s House on the Internet. We loved it! We are far away in the natural but one in the Spirit with the brethren at home. We also feel good touching history, especially Biblical history. Today is a good day! Praise the Lord!
(In the pictures you see my husband and I during our stay in Kavala. I also took some pictures with our lunch, flowers and seagulls there. It is an old beautiful city)
It is not easy for me to read or talk about food. This is because I like it too much. Most of my adult life I struggled with my weight. Even as a born again Christian, it was very hard for me to have victory in this area. I fasted, prayed and cried to God for help, for deliverance. Then one day the Holy Spirit reminded me of this scripture: “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1Cor 10:31). He told me that this is the key to conquer the demon of gluttony, guilt in the area of eating and obesity. He said that God looks at the purpose of the action more than at the action itself. He said that the purpose of my eating was wrong. I was eating because I was hungry, because I liked to eat food, because I like to cook, because I can afford to buy any food I like, because I do not want to waste food or because everybody is eating…. Ok! What is wrong with that? The Holy Spirit said: ‘Everything! This type of eating is like food dedicated to idols. The purpose of my eating must be ‘to the glory of God’. ‘But how do I eat to the glory of God?’ – I asked the Holy Spirit. He said to me: ‘See yourself as God’s creation. You are not your own! You belong to God! Your appetite is given to you by God. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. You need to eat to ‘maintain’ the temple of God. Losing or gaining too much weight, or neglecting your body is not your personal business, but is damaging the property of God’.
I suddenly got the revelation! Since then, I try to remember the real purpose of why I eat food and drink water (or fruit juice): to the glory of God who created me and whose Spirit dwells in me! Praise the Lord!
(in the picture is me, at a restaurant in Athens, Greece, eating what else? Greek salad! It is very good!)
“Jehovah, Jehovah, Jehovah Nissi!
Jehovah, Jehovah, Jehovah El Shaddai!
You sent Your Son, You gave Your all!
You shed His Blood on the Cross of Calvary!
You gave Your Spirit, to us, who are called by Your name!
That we might become like You!”
(by Pastor Richmond Leigh)
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you” (Ex 20:12)
Today we celebrate Father’s Day! It is a good thing to remember our fathers. A father is a man who has children, natural or spiritual. He has a relationship with them. He invests his life in them. He prays for them. Fatherhood is a gift of God. It is not by might or by power that you become a father. It is a grace gift from God. Give Him praise!
Honoring your father and mother is a command. It releases great blessings upon you, upon your descendants and upon the land God is giving you. You cannot be a happy father or landowner if you disrespect, dishonor or ignore your parents. Honoring them breaks the bondage of the fear of untimely death. In your heart, honor your fathers! These men were not perfect. They were sinners saved by grace. If they are dead, think of a little personal detail that you remember, so that you make this day special and holy. God bless you, sons! God bless you, daughters!
Today, it is my desire to honor three fathers. The first one is my dear husband, Pastor Richmond Leigh. He is a wonderful father to our children and their spouses and a great grandfather to our grandchildren. He is also a great man of God, a pastor, a mentor and a spiritual father to many. Pastor and I we are now happily married for 44 years. If Pastor Richmond Leigh has influenced your life for better, please acknowledge that and pray for him! To God alone be all the glory!
The second father I want to honor is my natural father: Prof. Albai Ion. He has gone to heaven about 15 years ago. He was a wonderful father to my younger sister, Adica and I. He was the principal of the school we attended. He was openly proud of his love for our mother and us, his daughters. Each time we went to an exam or an interview, he went with us to encourage us that we can pass it. We grew up feeling protected and loved. He encouraged us to be the best we can be, without any inferiority complex that we are girls and not boys. He was very worried when I told him that I want to marry a man from Africa. I told him that he should meet with the one I love. My husband and himself met and they discussed things about life and future. Immediately he trusted my future husband and ‘adopted’ him as the son he never had. He gave his life to Christ before he died. To God be all the glory!
The third father I want to honor is my father in law, Engr. Fredrick Mene Leigh. He was a wonderful father to his children and even to me. Initially, when his son told him that he married an ‘oyinbo’ girl he too was worried. He was afraid that I will run away from Nigeria and break his son’s heart. With time, he learned to trust me. The last two years of his life he was very sick. I became his personal doctor and pastor. By the grace of God I lead him to Christ and he after he made peace with God. Six months before he died, he called me to ask for forgiveness that he doubted his son’s marriage to me. He said that he does not want to die with the burden of un-forgiveness in his heart. I was very surprised because I did not expect an old man to ask for forgiveness. I knew then that his conversion was genuine. He then told me something very wonderful. He said: ‘Lia, from today, you are not my daughter in law. You are my daughter. Anything you see my children do, do like them. Where they walk, you too feel free to walk…” I was touched. He destroyed my inferiority complex of being a foreigner. Since then I feel at home in Nigeria, both spiritually and emotionally. To God alone be all the glory!
(In the pictures, you see my husband, Pastor Leigh, holding our grandson Oliver; my father, Prof Albai Ion, holding me as a child, and my father in law, Eng. Fredrick Mene Leigh)
HAPPY WITH CHURCH TONIGHT
The Lord Jesus Christ says: “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close” (Rev 3:8)
The prophetic prayer meeting this evening was very good. The Holy Spirit came ‘quickly’ and stirred our spirits to pray with faith and holy zeal. The Lifter of our heads did just that! We prayed for a clear and pure vision, singleness of hearts and minds! ‘Turn your eyes upon Jesus! Look full on His wonderful face! And the things of this world, will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace!’ Look up to Jesus! Do not look right, left, or back! Look up to Jesus, the Author and the Finisher of our faith! Be healed! Be strong! Be delivered! Let the poor say: “I am rich!’
Jesus!!! ‘You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains! You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas! And I am strong when I sit on Your shoulders! To be all that You destined me to be!’ Every evil spirit of inferiority complex, useless doubt, stupid anxiety, deceitful poverty, nonsense distractions, backsliding… we command you to go away in the name of Jesus!
Holy Spirit please come and take control! Lead us into the whole truth! Show us things to come! God has given you the key! Open the door that was previously closed! Open the door and passed thru it! Enter into a new season of beauty, holy adventure, satisfying provision and joyful promotion! “Jesus, You are my Lord, You are my Lord! You are the eyes I use to see! You are the Key that opens the door! You are the Owner and Lover of my soul! The bush that burns but never consumes! What shall I render to You my Lord, I will bow down and worship Your name, for You are my Lord!” Jesus!!! Thank You Jesus!!!!
‘While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols’ (Ac 17:16)
Today, my husband, Pastor Richmond Leigh, our daughter, Alina and I, went to see the ruins of the ancient city of Athens. This area has been inhabited since 4000 BC, making it the oldest capital in Europe. About 500 BC, Athens became the ‘golden city’. It became the leading naval city of the day, the bastion of democracy and the centre of cultural and intellectual activity of the times. It produced the greatest poets, writers, philosophers and thinkers of men. Later, Athens fell under the Roman empire. The rich Romans came to study in the universities of Athens. The Greek education was the pride of all scholars.
Apostle Paul said that ‘Geeks seek for wisdom…’ (1Cor 1:22). They considered Christianity as foolishness. The rising of Christianity was the downfall of the city’s famous schools. They are now all in ruins. Interestingly, the Bible authors used the Greek language to write the New Testament.
We went to the high hill in Athens to see the ruins of the Acropolis, the theater where they played the famous Greek dramas, the temples dedicated to the goddess Athena and to the other gods. I saw an ancient canon in a stony box lying there. It was broken in pieces. I also saw some doves resting near it. To me it was a prophetic sign that the Greek proud gods fought their foolish fight but lost it. The Prince of Peace is King overall. Apostle Paul said it well: ‘the wisdom of the world is foolishness to God’. God said: ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise! I will frustrate the intelligence of the intelligent’ (1Cor 1:19). In Athens today I saw a lot of destruction and frustration of what is called worldly wisdom!
We went to the very place where Apostle Paul argued with the educated Athenians. It is called Areopagus. The truth is that it was not easy for Paul to go to this missionary trip to Athens. In fact, it was the hardest trip of all. He had to go alone, leaving Silas and Timothy behind in Macedonia. He was provoked in his spirit by the many idols and gods worshipped in great temples. He argued with the educated religious pagan men who looked down on Christians. Paul stood and fearlessly told them about the God they called ‘the Unknown God’. He said that he knows this ‘unknown God’. Can you imagine Paul’s boldness? Some believed and some mocked, but the Gospel’s seed had been planted on this beautiful but spiritually dry land.
There are many churches now but few people attend them. Most of them are museums. You pay a fee to enter and see past glories. Greece is struggling with economic recession. Many beautiful houses have the ‘For sale’ sign on them. Many Greeks have abandoned their home land and have gone abroad to ‘greener pastures’. There are also illegal immigrants here trying to survive. We saw a number of Nigerians selling little gifts. They were speaking ‘pigging English’ among themselves, arguing about some money. One came to me asking me: ‘hey, lady! Do you want to come to a party this evening?’ I did not answer him. I felt sorry for him… He was the age of my son… In Nigeria he would have respectfully called me ‘Mama’ but here I am ‘Lady’. I almost shouted on him, rebuking him saying: ‘You no get mama? You no get Papa? You miss road my son…’ But the heat was too much to exercise my Naija language on him. I passed by leaving him behind to search for things money can buy. It was his dream to live in Athens, in the shadow of ruins that failed the best of men. My dream is to go back to Nigeria, to serve the King of kings and that my dream, money can never buy it!
What are the lessons in all these things? Pride and idolatrous worship trouble any land, no matter how famous, rich or educated its citizens may be. If you are a ‘big man’ or ‘small man’, humble yourself and give your life to Christ! It is only in Christ alone that there is peace and fulfillment in this life and hope of glory in the next! If you are saved, if Christ lives in you, then you are wiser than the wisest and richer than the richest. Serve the Lord Jesus Christ wherever you are right now! Child of God, be encouraged today! Jesus is Lord!
“After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth” (Ac 18:1)
My husband, our daughter Alina and I, we travelled today from Athens to Corinth. This is the exact same way Apostle Paul took to go to Corinth. In Corinth, we saw the ruins of the Corinth Castle built in the 4th century. From up the mountain you can see the city of Corinth in the valley. Surely Apostle Paul saw it when he stayed in Corinth. We then went to see the ruins of the ancient city of Corinth. In the museum we saw many statues and sculptures that they have dogged out from the area. They are well preserved showing the life as it was then. The best preserved ruin is the Temple of Apollos. It stands tall but lonely, a sign of lost interest of the worship of idols in the Ancient Greece. We then went to see the old Church of Saint Paul built in his honor in the city of Corinth. We also went to see the ancient Corinth Canal, manually carved in stone so the the ships can pass from one place to the other. Apostle Paul may have seen it and passes thru it. Today was a wonderful day of Biblical history and revival, especially as we did this as a family. To God be all the glory!
(Acts 17:15-22; 18:1; 19:1; 1Cor 1:2; 2Cor 1:1, 23; 2Tim 4:20; 1Thess 3:1)
(In the pictures you see Corinth Castle, the ruins of Apollo and other artifacts in Ancient Corinth, the church of St Paul in Corinth and the the Corinth Canal)
“You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows” (Ps 23:5)
The women fellowship was very good. We praised God with songs and we shared testimonies of God’s power and grace. We encouraged one another in the way of the Lord. Then there was a prophetic word concerning marriages in Nigeria. Many couples struggle with the idea of marriage. There are very few successful Christian, Spirit-filled homes. There are very few role models for the younger couples preparing for marriage. Most marriages are based on worldly, pagan, religious concepts or the practice of polygamy. I have lived in Nigeria since 1980. Both as a doctor and a pastor, I have rarely seen truly happy marriages. It is very rare. If the husband is happy, the wife is sad. If the wife is happy, the husband is frustrated. Most couples are more concerned about their children, about money, than the level of happiness in their marriages. Most couples here do not divorce but they learned to ‘manage’. Because they come from polygamous background, many wives are not devastated when the husband cheats on them. In a way, they even ‘expect to be betrayed’. Many wives tell me: ‘I don’t care about my husband’s girl friend. When he go tire he go come back home. So far he takes care of me and my children, I go manage…’
Spiritually and romantically, this is a compromised marriage. That is the reason why love is not getting stronger, holier, more romantic, pure and passionate. The love is more of less ‘practical’ and lukewarm. This is more or less the culture here. This ‘tolerating evil for the sake of peace’ is very dangerous. This attitude spills over even in the relationship the women have with Jesus Christ. The spirit of religion allows for a little bit of emotional display in worship, but the rest is ‘business as usual’. Praying becomes boring routine and worship is some musical entertainment. Men and women become too shy to display their true feelings. They feel guilty to be seen ‘in love’. The devil has taken advantage of this and quenched the Spirit in many churches. The marriages suffer too. If there is any woman who loves Jesus with all her heart, like the way Mary of Bethany did, that one may be tagged as a witch in the church. Any wife who next to Jesus loves her husband with all her heart, she may be called ‘materialistic’. Her in-laws may say that she married ‘our son or our brother’ for money. It is hard to fight such painful unfair accusations. As a pastor, I am a witness to their pain.
Tonight we did spiritual warfare! We prayed against the demons that hate agape love in worshiping God and in Biblical marriages. We prayed against the demons that attack the holy pure intimacy with have with our Lord Jesus Christ! We prayed against the demons that try to destroy our good, Christ glorifying marriages. We declared that we are not ashamed of Jesus and we are not ashamed of our love for our husbands. We commanded the evil spirits of religion, confusion, poverty, divorce, fear, sickness (malaria, typhoid fever, diabetes, hypertension, depression…), ogbanje, water spirits and untimely death to leave us and to go away, in the name of Jesus! We asked the Holy Spirit to come and fill our hearts. We declared that we are hungry to know and love Jesus more than ever before. We prayed that God will ‘turn the water into wine’ in our marriages. We prayed that the Holy Spirit will purify our hearts with a new holy boldness to stand for Jesus and to serve Him forever! I am a witness that the Holy Spirit came and filled these needy precious holy vessels. I so much love the women of God who obey God’s Word!!!
In Christ I declare:
I am a woman of God! I am born again by the Holy Spirit! My husband and I are happily married and Christ is glorified thru words and deeds in our home! I declare that the Lord has set a good table of ancient wine and great promises before us. God’s promises are fulfilled in our home! I declare that our marriage is blessed and our children (spiritual and natural) are blessed! Our cup of love overflows! This overflow will drive away our enemies and bless our friends! This table of blessings is an open door of ministry that no one can shut! All glory and praise to the Lamb upon the throne! In Jesus name, Amen!
My husband and I are pleased to announce that in few months we shall be grandparents for the 7th time! Our daughter, Jemine and her husband, Matthew Oakes are expecting a second baby boy. Their son Oliver will have a little brother! We are so happy hearing this wonderful news!!! In this world of pain, any good news is so much welcomed! To God be all the glory! Praise the Lord! Singing Nigerian chorus: “Jesus You love me too much-ooo….Too much-ooo … Exces love-ooo…”
HAPPY WITH CHURCH TONIGHT
“Restore unto me the joy of Your salvation
And grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me” (Ps 51:12)
The prayer meeting was good. I say ‘good’ because the Holy Spirit was with us, to direct, rebuke, comfort and strengthen. Tomorrow many people celebrate ‘Mother’s Day’. Maybe I needed to remember the feelings of a mother whose baby is sick. The congregation was weak this evening. My instincts as a mother in Zion were stirred to the core of my being. The baby was too weak to swallow the solid food I prepared in advance. I had to give the baby the water of life, drop by drop on its feverish tongue. I reminded the brethren that only the child of God ‘feels’ the presence of the Holy Spirit. Only the child of God is able to truly love God and other people. The unbelievers talk about love but it is only a fading imagination in their confused puffed up minds. Only in the presence of God there is ‘fullness of joy’. Nowhere else can this free powerful liberating joy be found!
King David committed adultery with Bathsheba. For an hour of pleasure he killed her marriage, he killed her husband. Unbroken and unrepentant, for about a year, the beloved King of Zion survived on past glories. He gained a woman and he lost the joy of his salvation. He repented at last but the pain was deep and lasting.
In the same way, this evening, we repented because our hearts were hardened too. Religion is spiritual adultery. In the midst of men who lust after miracles and grieve the Holy Spirit, we stumbled and fell. Thank God for the drawing power of the Holy Spirit! Back to the Cross! God wants our hearts to be tender, trembling at His Word, humble and faithful, at peace with Him and self. Led by the Holy Spirit, we came back to the source of life, to the fountain of joy. We sang and prayed: ‘Create in me a clean heart, Oh, Lord…And renew the right spirit within me… Cast me not away, from Thy Spirit, Oh, Lord… Take not Thy Holy Spirit from me… Restore unto me, the joy of my salvation… And renew the right spirit within me…’ In the presence of God we found ourselves. It is so easy to become hard of hearing and stiff-necked. It is so easy to lie that all is well, when all is not well. It is so easy to become proud. Truth liberates but truth is so hard to be appreciated. Truth is a choice. We choose truth tonight! ‘Unto Jesus I surrender…Unto Him I freely give…Worldly pleasures now forsaken, Take me Jesus, take me now…’ I love You Lord Jesus! There is none like You! In weakness and strength I am Yours! I will never be ashamed of my tears! I was born to worship You Lord Jesus! I love You Jesus! Let the whole world say what they may, nobody can take this joy away….Lord I believe… Take me Jesus, take me now!’
David Livingstone (1813-1872) was a Scottish explorer, medical doctor, missionary, and anti-slavery campaigner. By the time he turned twenty-one, Livingstone had accepted Christ and made up his mind to become a medical missionary. He became a great hero for his epic discoveries in the heart of unexplored Africa. He spent the last six years of his life almost cut off from the outside world, refusing to leave his beloved Africa. He preached the Gospel to the un-reached tribes in Africa. He used his medical knowledge to treat many people in the jungle and in the villages of Africa. After suffering a variety of tropical illness’ throughout his life, Livingstone died of dysentery in 1872, aged 59. He passed away kneeling in prayer. His body was taken to England and buried in Westminster Abbey. However, the local African attendants were somewhat reluctant to give up Livingstone. In the end, they cut out his heart and buried it in the African soil. They gave back his body to the English men saying: “You can have his body, but his heart belongs in Africa!” Because of his books, Africa became at once the favorite field for missionary enterprise of almost every denomination.
Some sayings of David Livingstone:
“People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. Can that be called a sacrifice which is simply paid back as a small part of a great debt owing to our God, which we can never repay? Is that a sacrifice which brings its own blessed reward in healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good, peace of mind, and a bright hope of a glorious destiny hereafter? Away with the word! It is emphatically no sacrifice! Say rather it is a privilege! Anxiety, sickness, suffering, or danger now and then with a foregoing of the common conveniences and charities of this life, may make us pause and cause the spirit to waver and the soul to sink; but this is only for a moment. All these are nothing when compared with the glory which shall be revealed in and for us. I never made a sacrifice”
“Would you like me to tell you what supported me through all the years? It was this promise of Jesus: ‘Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ On these words I staked everything, and they never failed me.”
“Therefore watch carefully how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise” (Eph 5:15)
This month, three years ago, I fell and broke my left ankle. It was a painful time, but I had learned many lessons. To the glory of God, I am now healed, both in my body and in my spirit. Part of the healing was to become wiser in the way I walk. I cannot avoid that place in my house that brought so much pain. Daily I have to pass thru the same ‘dangerous’ area at the bottom of my steps; the place were I missed it and fell. I am wiser now. I am more humble. I am slower… I carefully study my steps. I do not just run ignoring danger. My heart is filled with thanksgiving for what God has done in my heart since that terrible fall. It could have been worse. Thank God for His presence and for His healing!
We are commanded to walk carefully, wisely and not foolishly. It is our responsibility to avoid pitfalls. This is a command for the believers! Our ‘walking’, our behavior, our way of life should be totally in the Spirit and not lead by emotions or by the lust of the eyes. We should walk ‘circumspectly’, says King James. What does it mean to walk circumspectly? The answer is simple: walk like a cat!
Have you seen a cat walking on dirty or wet ground? She hates it! She has decided to remain clean. She wisely chooses her steps. She walks carefully, slowly, looking where to place each foot, jumping over if the place is too soiled…At the end of the journey, unbelievable, walking on mud and dirt, her body and even her paws are still clean. At last, she will not rest until every stain is removed by her rough tongue. You may not like cats like I do, but please accept this: pigs are dirty and cats are always clean!
This world is full of sin. Some believers boast that they can go anywhere and visit anyone, no matter how corrupt or wicked. If the Lord sends you with a message to ‘the red district’ or to ‘the mafia headquarters’, then go with faith and you shall be protected. But if the purpose of your spiritual journey is a mixture of religion, adventure and material gain, you will not be protected from the corruption of the flesh or from unclean spirits soiling your garments. You shall lose your spiritual ‘virginity’ to satan, just like Eve lost hers. You shall hate the light for exposing your stains and you will run towards darkness like unto a friend.
It is only true confession and repentance, the deep work of the Cross, that can change the heart. It is only the Blood of Jesus that can cleanse these stains of lust, foolishness, deception, mockery and shame. Be wise therefore! Even a stray cat knows how to avoid dirt! Be clean! Be pure! In Jesus name, Amen!
Green Pastures 