Eric was a great, famous man. He was a general in the US army, a pilot for many years. He invented many things.
During the Second World War, he was in a military plane with a special message from the president. He and seven crew members suffered a plane crash on the rough Pacific Ocean.
Miraculously, all of the men survived, crawled out of the plane, and climbed into life rafts.
Captain Rickenbacker and his crew floated for days on the rough waters of the Pacific. They fought the sun. They fought sharks. Most of all, they fought hunger. By the eighth day their rations ran out. No food. No water. They were hundreds of miles from land and no one knew where they were. They needed a miracle.
That afternoon they had a simple devotional service and prayed for a miracle. Then they tried to nap. Eddie leaned back and pulled his military cap over his nose. Time dragged. All he could hear was the slap of the waves against the raft.
Suddenly, Eddie felt something land on the top of his cap.
It was a seagull! Old Ed would later describe how he sat perfectly still, planning his next move. With a flash of his hand and a squawk from the gull, he managed to grab it and wring its neck. He tore the feathers off, and he and his starving crew made a meal – a very slight meal for eight men – of it. Then they used the intestines for bait. With it, they caught fish, which gave them food and more bait…and the cycle continued. With that simple survival technique, they were able to endure the rigors of the sea until they were found and rescued.
Eddie Rickenbacker lived many years beyond that ordeal, but he never forgot the miracle of that first lifesaving seagull. And he never stopped saying, “Thank You, Lord.” That’s why almost every Friday night, for as long as he lived, his neighbors in Florida will see him, an old man above ninety, slowly going with a bucket, full of fish and shrimps, feeding the seagulls. He always had a heart full of gratitude towards these birds, for one of them send by God, saved his life.
If Eddie can come back to feed the seagulls, as an act of gratitude for saving his life, how much more we should remember the good things God has done for us…Remember the miracles of the past…salvation, healing, deliverance, provision…this grateful remembrance is one of the greatest weapons in spiritual warfare!
‘Lord, on behalf of my family, I say: THANK YOU!”

These past few days…people just come to us with tears and they say something like this: ‘Pastor, I thought I was born again, but now I know I am not. Please pray for me for I want to give my life to Jesus’…
These are people that were considered serious believers for many years…
There is no other explanation except the move of the Holy Spirit convicting of sin (of unbelief, of religious false hopes…) revealing Christ Crucified to the broken hearts…
Blow your trumpets in Zion…shout from the rooftops…revival is at hand…even in Warri, Nigeria!
All glory to God Almighty!

The following are (edited) notes from a Chinese army general. Read them and pray for wisdom to apply them as a believer in spiritual warfare. Judge your self, man of God! Let the light of the Holy Spirit shine in your heart to expose hidden ‘pockets’ of sin. Even if the sin is small, repent BIG time! The weakness of a leader is more dangerous than the strength of the enemy outside! Be filled with the Holy Spirit and be strong in the Lord!

‘There are five dangerous faults which may affect a general of the army:
1-Recklessness (desire for fame, adventure and entertainment during warfare), which leads to division in the camp and destruction;
2-Cowardice (fear of death), which leads to capture;
3-A hasty (hot, impatient) temper, which can be provoked by insults;
4-A delicacy of honor (pride, self love) which is (over-)sensitive to shame (embarrassing situations); (Remember: a wise and humble man overlooks an insult!)
5-Over-solicitude for his men (pleasing men too much, pampering his soldiers), which exposes him to worry and trouble.
These are the five besetting sins of a general, a leader of men and it is ruinous (a disaster) to the conduct of war.
When an army is overthrown and its leader slain, the cause will surely be found among these five dangerous faults.
Let these words be a subject of meditation’
(Excerpts from the oldest manual on warfare: The art of war, by Sun Tzu, 1910)

‘Listen my son to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching, they will be a crown to grace your head…’
‘These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up’ (PV 1:8; Deut 6:6, 7)
The family is God’s institution. It is made of father, mother and children. The father is the head of the home. The mother is the helper to the head. The children are commanded by God to obey their parents. This is not just a natural tradition. It is the command of God. The parents have authority over their children for as long as they depend on them. God has given the parents the right to train, to mold their children thoughts and opinions, by teaching them the Word of God. That is why the children are commanded to fear, to honor, to respect and to obey their parents. They are not supposed to obey the aunties, the uncles or the neighbors in the same way. They are to listen and obey especially their parents, because God gave the parents that authority over them. By learning to obey the parents, they learn to obey God.
God expects the parents to train and teach the children the Word of God. The parents are accountable to God for fulfilling this peculiar duty. This training is not to be left to the church, to the pastors or to the school teachers. It is the primary duty of the parents: mother and father. It is not easy to teach a student. Instruction is always hard. It is so much easy to play, to look for ‘fun’ and to be distracted by it. Entertainment is much ‘sweeter’ than learning the Bible or even studying science subjects. That is why discipline must be enforced in the home. As parents, we cannot expect our child to become a spiritual, mature person, if he stays in front of the TV set or the computer for hours.
The authority of the parents over their children represents the authority of God. These relationships are to be ‘unto the Lord’. God’s name is at stake in the way we handle authority. For example, as parents, we cannot teach our children how to steal money from the bank. That is an abuse of authority and shall be judged by God. The general principle in the case of abuse of power is to quietly disobey man and obey God’s Word (Ac 5:29). That means to be ready to receive the penalty from men, trusting God to bring justice to you at last. This peculiar type of suffering is seen when the children are believers and the parents are not. Or when the wife is a believer and the husband is not. It takes much faith, patience and prayer not to sin under such painful provocation. God allows these situations so that the oppressor may witness the Christian behavior in action. It is a very powerful weapon of spiritual warfare to learn submission unto God while rejecting the sinful abuse of authority. Many husbands and many fathers were brought to their knees in total surrender to God because of the grace upon the ones in subjection to them. Selah!
There is another point to be made: our children belong to God. He is their highest eternal authority over us all. Practically, it means that our plans for the future for our children should be totally under submission to God’s plans for them. Our duty as parents is to pray and find out God’s desire, plan and purpose for the future our children. Much pain can be avoided for the whole family if we remember that we are just care- takers and not the owners of ‘our’ children. This prayer is a very important spiritual work, but few parents take it seriously. May we humble ourselves and do it right, at least from now on!
As a parent, you do not have to struggle to earn this honor of respect from your children. This is God’s command to them and He will enforce it. Children do not respect their parents just because they are older or stronger than them. The parents do not have to be ‘perfect’ in all things. No! The reason why the children have to fear and respect their parents it is because God, who created all men, says so! Disobedience to this command will receive just punishment. But in the same time, as parents, we have to prove that we are worthy of the privilege of having children entrusted to us by God.

The following are notes from a Chinese army general. Read them and pray for wisdom to apply them as a believer in spiritual warfare. You can see that ignorance is deadly. Pray that the Holy Spirit will open your eyes to see yourself thru the eyes of Christ. Pray that the Holy Spirit will expose and reveal the strengths and weakness of your enemy. Remember, God never loses a battle! The more you are filled with the Holy Spirit, the greater the chance for victory each time you attack! Also remember that Love never fails and Love drives away the torment of fear (1Cor 13, 1Jn 4:18). Love means worship! Worship the King and under His banner you will be lead in triumph always! Jesus is Lord!

“Thus we may know that there are five essentials for victory:
He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.
He will win who knows how to handle both superior and inferior forces.
He will win whose army is animated by the same spirit throughout all its ranks.
He will win who, prepared himself, waits to take the enemy unprepared.
He will win who has military capacity and is not interfered with by the sovereign.
Hence the saying: If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle”
(Excerpts from the oldest manual on warfare: The art of war, by Sun Tzu, 1910)

“I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth” (Ps 121:1, 2)
Hills stand for successful men, mentors and teachers. We look up to them to be inspired, to grow to their heights. This may look good to the world. But to the Believer, looking to long at the hills brings discouragement, for we compare with them and feel cheated. ‘When will I be like Apostle Paul?’ –I used to ask myself. The more I tried to be like him, the more the gap between us increased. Then one day, the light of the Spirit shone on my understanding: ‘You look to low, Lia. Do not look at the hills; look at the Maker of the hills…’ The Lifter of my head adjusted my vision instantly. The Lord applied His salve on my eyes and now I see all things well. Since then, I look at the hills, but I do not stop there…they point me to their Maker who is my Lord! He never slumbers, He never sleeps. He watches me day and night.
My Helper, my God, how great Thou art!

OUR TESTIMONY
On this day, 20th of March, 2000, our Church, Father’s House was born!
After about 20 years of medical practice, God called us to full time ministry. This building was our private hospital, Lily Clinic, Warri, Nigeria. We were in the US when the Lord said that we should come back, sell the medical equipment and change the hospital into a church. We left our children with Christian friends in the US. We came back to Warri. It was not an easy decision, but we obeyed. We started with less than 20 people, now we are more than a hundredfold! The Gospel of CHRIST Crucified is preached, souls got saved, the sick were healed, the troubled were delivered, marriages got restored, ‘baby’ Christians are now mature men and women of God!
To God be all the glory!

POVESTEA NOASTRA (In Romanian)
Azi, biserica noastra este 13 ani! Sotul meu, Ruchmond si cu mine, am lucrat ca doctori an Warri aproape 20 de ani. Am facut bani si nume. am devenit crestina aici in Nigeria an 1986. Sotul meu de asemenea. An anul 1989 ne-am dus la America cu copiii. Acolo Donum ne-a zis sa ne antoarcem anapoi si sa vindem echipamentul medical de la spitalul nostru particular si sa schimbam cladirea antr-o biserica. Am lasat copiii acolo cu prieteni Crestini an SUA. Nu a fost usor, dar l-am ascultat pe Domnul. Pe 20 Martie, 2000 am deschis cladirea ca biserica (vedeti an poza). Se numeste: Father’s House (Casa Domnului). A, anceput cu 20 de oameni, prieteni si colegi, iar acum santem mai mult de doua mii de adulti. Cuvantul lui Dumnezeu e predicat, sufletele s-au salvat si botezat, bolnavii s-au vindecat, cei tulburati s-au eliberat, casatoriile s-au normalizat…
Toata slava merge la Domnul Isus!

‘So on March 7th, the two decrees of the king were put into effect. On that day, the enemies of the Jews had hoped to overpower them, but quite the opposite happened. It was the Jews who overpowered their enemies’ (Est 9:1, NLB)
There are two nations: the Jews and the Amalekites. One nation was blessed and the other was cursed by God. God picked their leaders: Mordecai, the servant of God on one side and Haman, the Amalekite, on the other side. God allowed Haman to be promoted first. Many accepted the king’s decision and bowed down to Haman, except Mordecai, who could not submit to a cursed man. This refusal to worship made Haman mad with rage. He decided to kill Mordecai, but his anger was too much to be satisfied on only one person. So he made a plan to kill not only Mordecai, but all his people, the Jews. He convinced the king that these Jews are trouble makers and they should be exterminated. The king, who loved to drink, was foolish enough to believe him and he agreed. Then Haman went to the court magicians to cast lots to know the day when this ‘sacrifice’ should be done. They gave him a date, on the 7th of March, eleven months later.
This is a miracle! On that day, the Jews were prepared for battle. By this time things have changed: Haman, who picked the date given by the magicians, was dead. Mordecai was promoted by the king and replace Haman. The king sent messengers with the news that the Jews are free to fight back for their lives. The fear of God fell upon all the people in the land. No one could fight the Jews. So the tables were overturned and the victims became the victors in less than a year.
Spiritual lessons:
*God is faithful and He chose His faithful servants ‘for such a time as this’. During times of crisis, God will position true believers to help and counsel you!
Esther did what she was supposed to do and Mordecai did what he was supposed to do. Each one was faithful and wise in his own area of influence. There was no confusion in God’s camp!
*God restrains the evil people so that they are not able to attack the believers even when they are angry. Haman wanted to kill Mordecai, later he changed his mind, and making plans to kill all the Jews. God was behind this change of mind. When Haman asked the magicians to play lots and to find a date for slaughter, they could have said: ‘immediately’. Then Mordecai and all the Jews could have died. But God was restraining the evil and the magicians gave him a date on the 7th of March, eleven months later. Haman was too superstitious to ignore the magicians. The period of almost a year was enough time for God to completely change the scene, spiritually and naturally. Haman died before the date of his expected victory. Mordecai was recognized as a loyal servant in the court who saved the king’s life. He replaced Haman. And Esther became not just a pretty face in the palace, but a wise, spiritual queen, a helpmeet comparable with her husband.
*The wicked people may be crafty and make ‘perfect’ plans, but God is in charge of all human affairs and He can never lose a battle. No weapon fashioned against the people of God can ever prosper, for this is God’s inheritance to them!
*Wicked, greedy, unrepentant people, you who hate all the is good, you that hate the Word of God and the people of God…repent if not you shall perish!
*People of God, rejoice, for the victory is here and the joy is complete!
In Jesus name, amen!

‘Everyone must submit to the governing authorities for there is no authority except that which God has established…Consequently, he who rebels against the authorities is rebelling against what God has instituted and those who do so will bring judgment in themselves…for he is God’s servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing…’ (Rom 13:1-5)

This is the definition of authority: The right to rule, to decide, to command and to judge others. Authority is the power to influence the thoughts, the opinions and the behavior of others.
The following are some Biblical principles concerning authority in general:
*God is the only authority that has authority and power within Himself
*God is the only original source of all secondary, delegated authority and power in the universe.
*God delegates His authority to men, by His sovereign will. He also decides the level and the boundaries of that authority
*God’s Word is the final authority over every area of life. Therefore authority must be a good thing.
*God has established institutions thru whom He carries out His authority on earth (for ex. the family, the civil governments…)
*Any word from the authority is a command to be obeyed. Without obedience, a command is lowered to the status of a suggestion. Even a suggestion coming from the one in authority should be taken very seriously, just like it is a command!
*There are consequences (punishment) for disobeying the authority (for without consequences, there is no authority)
*God establishes and protects His delegated authority. All rebellion is punished by God!
*The preaching of the Gospel is always powerful for it is done in the Supreme, eternal authority of Jesus Christ!

THE GRASSHOPPER’S NIGHTMARE
(to be fried and eaten like chips)
‘But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak (giants) come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them’ (Nu 13:31-33)
In certain countries, grasshoppers are eaten as a good source of protein. In southern Mexico, China and Africa, they are usually collected in the evenings, using electric lamps in sweep nets. Sometimes they are placed in water for 24 hours, after which they can be boiled or eaten raw, sun-dried, fried, flavored with spices, such as garlic, onions, chili, drenched in lime, and used in soup or as a filling for various dishes.
The ten spies doubted God’s protection and became afraid that they will be eaten just like the grasshoppers. Fear and doubt poison and damage the faith. You can never be a true leader once you indulge in doubt. Fear not: just believe God! In Christ, all His promises are ‘yes’ and ‘amen’!

“Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it” (Nu 13:30)
The people of God were ready to cross over and enter the Promised Land. They should have trusted God’s promises and just move on to occupy their possessions. But doubters prevailed and convinced Moses to send spies to confirm the blessings (Deut 1:22). They left the desert and went into the valley of Eschol. The word ‘eschol’ means fruitfulness. They came back after forty days with a cluster of grapes, too big to carry by two men on their backs. They confirmed that the Land is good, exactly the way God promised them. ‘But…’ they say, the giants that occupy the Land are too big to be destroyed. So they spread an ‘evil report’ among the people, who soon started grumbling. Only Joshua and Caleb brought a good report, based on truth having God in the middle of the picture. They said: ‘We can certainly do it because God is with us and not with them. Their ‘protection’’ has left them. The word ‘evil report’ in Hebrew comes from the word ‘snake’. The doubters spread snake evil spirits among the congregation with their doubting words. They saw themselves as grasshoppers, like nobodies, like failures.
Doubt quenches the Spirit. Doubt is having two contrary opinions in the same time. Doubt is damaged faith. God does not answer the prayer of a doubter (Jam 1: 6-8). Doubt is much more contagious than faith. Doubt is the faith of a fool. Doubters see the problems first of all, and God is in the background. The people of faith see God first of all, and the challenges are in the background. What do you see first, in your daily life?
Joshua had faith in God’s promises. He encourages the people to trust God for the dispossession of the giants. He said that their ‘protection’ has left them. The ‘protection’ in Hebrew is the same as the word ‘shadow’. It is like a hen protecting her chicks. What Joshua was saying is that ‘the mother hen of the giants has abandoned her chicks for now. Let’s go and kill them before she returns’. There is a window of opportunity for every attack to become victory. The doubters prevailed and the people hesitated to go ahead. Doubters hate spiritual warfare. God gives the judgment. The ten doubters are killed by God. The rest people shall suffer and die in the desert. Doubt kills before you are able to enjoy your fulfilled, fruitful dreams of life. When later they tried to enter the Promised Land, they were defeated by the giants. This is because the window of opportunity of faith has been closed. In other words, the mother hen has come back to protect her giant chicks.
May we trust God and move, led by His Spirit, when the window of victory is opened! Never follow the crowd for most of the time the crowd is wrong. Follow the leading of the Spirit and the tracks of the remnant of grace. That is the narrow, holy, safe and sure path that always leads to victory and eternal life!

‘The LORD our God said to us in Horeb, ‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain. Turn and take your journey, and go to the hill country…and by the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites… I have set the land before you. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their offspring after them.’ (Deut 1:6-8)
I remember hearing a naturalist describe a species of jelly fish which, he said, lives fixed to a rock, from which it never stirs. It does not require to go in search of food, because in the decayed tissues of its own organism there grows a kind of seaweed on which it subsists. I thought I had never heard of any creature so comfortable. But the naturalist who was describing it went on to say that it is one of the very lowest forms of animal life, and the extreme comfort which it enjoys is the very badge of its degraded position.
Dear ‘Jelly Fish’, it is time to move on! Leave the rock and go, dance for the Lord who created you to float!
You have stayed long enough in this position! You have learned all the lessons you can learn here! Move on! Use your spiritual ‘legs’ to walk in the Spirit! From ‘comfortable’ sadness to adventurous joy! From settled ignorance to active understanding! From ‘ease in Zion’ to ‘dancing until your feet hurt’ in worshipping God!
May the strength of God fill you today! May you hate to live a passive, barren and stationary life! May your ‘comfort zone’ be revealed to you as bondage! May the sense of adventure grip your heart as you start to follow Jesus once more! On your mark…set…go! In Jesus name, amen!

WHY DO I HAVE TO FEAR AND HONOR MY PARENTS?
Letter to you, our child…
‘Your mother carried you in her womb for nine months. Your parents were there every evening when you went to sleep and there when you woke up in the morning. Eighteen years of your life was spent under the same roof with your parents. Human beings imitate what they see. The majority of what you know as an adult comes from your parents teaching you. You say that your parents are not ‘perfect’…OK, I agree…But no human being is perfect except Jesus…Even if your parents made mistakes, you can still learn from them, at least not to repeat those…
Your parents were your first role models… Until you grew up, your parents decided what clothes you wear and what type of food you eat…And they provided those…Did you forget how hard your dad worked to pay the bills? He is old now, maybe you have forgotten, but it is true, your dad tried his best to pay for the rent, the food on the table, the clothes and the school fees…
When your parents were sick or in need, you did not solve their problems…they sheltered you from the life storms the best they could…
Look into the palm of your hand and see the lines. In between them you shall see your parents’ faces and all the generations of your ancestors. You are not an island! You are not self-made! Each is present in your body! You are a continuation of all these people…But most of all look up and think of God….Fear God! That will make you wise and pure! God alone will give you the strength and the inspiration to live well, to be a blessing to others… Remember to pray and read your Bible daily…
Surely you know that for better or for worse, you had parents who loved you and did the best they could to raise you. Their mistakes and their successes made you into the person you are today…
We, your parents, we have tried our best to be a good example to you…Mostly, we wanted you to see Christ in us, so that you may be inspired to follow Him too…Sometimes we encouraged you, sometimes we rebuked you, often we made mistakes…but we repented and made corrections and you saw the changes with your eyes…even when life was hard and no words were left to explain the pain…one thing is clear, we never regretted to be parents to you…We loved you then, we love you now…
We pray for you every day that you be blessed with the blessings of Christ…there is nothing more we can do for you now, for there is nothing better in this whole world than the gift of prayer…
If it is hard for you to understand our pain, but we have hoped that you may know it later, when your own baby will be placed in your arms…Then, we believe, you shall better understand our love for you…
We do not beg for honor or respect…we do not beg for your words of gratefulness…we do not beg for your money or time…but this is the will of God, that you should do so!
Be a servant of Christ! Be a worshiper of God! May God bless and keep you! May God’s face shine on you and give you peace!
Love in Christ alone,
Your parents’

The Parable of the Laborers can also be described as the parable of ‘whatever is right’ (Mt 20:1-16). The Landowner stands for Jesus. He went to look and hire laborers to work in His field. These were rejected people nobody hired, idle, ‘doing nothing’. They did not look for work. It was the Landowner who went ‘early in the morning’ to look for them.
The word ‘idle’ means lazy or useless. A lazy man is someone who hates activity and loves a wasteful life of ease. These people stand for us, the sinners. We were ‘dead in sin’, careless about our soul. We did not even desire salvation.
Laziness is quite common. It is the sin of the people of God. It manifests itself especially in spiritual work.
Are you lazy in prayer, in the reading and the study of the Bible? Are you lazy in offerings, tithes or ministry in the church?
This is a reminder that Jesus is the One who takes the initiative, seeking the lost and bringing them unto salvation. If He did not come to us ‘early in the morning’ we could have still wasted our lives doing nothing, under the deceptive shadow of the world.
The first batch of people hired in the morning was promised a denarius as payment for labor. The Landowner went out every three hours to look for more laborers. Each time He found some more and promised to pay them ‘whatever in right’. At the end of the day, he decided to start the payment with the last group who came ‘at the eleventh hour’ and worked the least amount of time. He paid each one a denarius. I am sure they were pleasantly surprised and grateful to be paid that same amount promised to the ones who were hired in the morning. Immediately this group rejoiced in the generosity and kindness of the Master, something evil happened in the hearts of the first group. They expected more than they agreed at the beginning. But the Master paid them all the same amount. Then they became angry and complained against such ‘injustice’. What God called ‘right’ they called it wrong. The Master rebukes them and reveals to them the source of their wickedness: ‘an evil eye’. The word evil here means wickedness, envy and lewdness. The word ‘eye’ means vision.
The question still remains: how does God reward His laborers? The people who work longer in the ministry, are they paid more than the rest? For example, is Apostle Paul paid more than the thief on the Cross who repented at ‘the eleventh hour’?
The answer is not necessarily ‘yes’! God is sovereign in all His ways, including the choice of reward. The Kingdom of God is not based on economics but on GRACE! We start by grace and we shall end by grace!
The lesson is this: the motives in ministry are very important. If you work for God with payment of rewards in mind, you shall end up angry, wicked, ungrateful and jealous on others. Your vision of God shall be damaged and you shall find Him to be an enemy in His House (1Sam 2:32). But if working for God is a privilege to you, as a debt of love you can never fully repay to Him who died to save you, then ministry will be a joy and any reward received, much more than you have ever expected.
Please note this: the word ‘rewards’ in the Bible, in the plural, is always connected with evil and sin. For example, Balaam was hired with a divination fee as ‘rewards’. The backsliding Israel is compared with an adulterous wife, who makes friends with murderers and who loves the ‘rewards’ of sin. Nebuchadnezzar promised his magicians great ‘rewards’ if they can interpret his dream. Belshazzar also promised old Daniel great ‘rewards’ if he can tell him what the hand wrote on the wall. Daniel refused the bribe and interpreted the writing as the sentence of death. The wife of Hosea was boasting of ‘rewards’ received from her lovers (Nu 22:7; Is 2:23; Dan 2:6; 5:17; Hos 2:12; KJ).
For as long as you expect many rewards on earth and in heaven, you shall remain disappointed and angry, for God’s work among men is only a GRACE privilege, a totally unmerited favor to men.
This is my personal testimony: I am never disappointed to work for God! The safest way for me is this: whatever I do, I do it for the sake of my Loving Jesus, who saved me from sin. I love my Lord with all my heart! His love constrains me! I am ready to work for Him forever in any capacity He chooses for me. I do not look for many rewards. Not on this earth, and not even in heaven. Only hirelings look for ‘cash’ payments! God forbid! God’s children receive an inheritance they do not work for! Christ alone, His Person, His approval, His name of my forehead is my eternal Reward!!!
“Fear not… (Lia Leigh)…. I, Adonai, I am your Shield and your Exceedingly High Reward!” (Gen 15; 1, 2)
Thank You Lord! I believe!
I trust you for ‘whatever is right’
My heart is satisfied! Peace has flooded my soul!
There is nothing more that this!
Amen!

‘Ask (pray to) the Lord your God for a sign…’‘Hear now you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God also?’ The Lord Himself will give you a sign. The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel’ (Is 7: 11-14)
King Ahaz of Judah is under attack. He and all the people panic at the sure defeat. He goes to inspect the Upper Pool, possibly to see if the reserve of water will be enough in case of war. That speaks of self-confidence. He is a proud and wicked king who deserves no mercy. But we see that God encourages him to trust in Him alone and the victory will be sure. We see here that our God is a God of covenant, a merciful and faithful even with sinners.
Faith helps you to stand and doubt weakens you until you fall. ‘If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all’ (Is 7:9). Faith is God’s command and the only option for righteousness, for pleasing Him. God commands Ahaz to pray, to ask for a sign that will strengthen his faith. In other words God tells him that he must ask to be filled with the Holy Spirit, the Encourager. But Ahaz thinks that more encouragement is unnecessary, trusting that his faith is strong enough. That is when God gets angry and rebukes him for ‘trying His patience’. This word is Hebrew means to weaken or to grieve someone. The lesson is this: religious faith is weak faith and it is polluted; it is mixed with doubt and fear, and it grieves God, the Holy Spirit.
God sovereignly overrules Ahaz foolishness and gives a sign that will forever strengthen the faith of all believers, to the end of time. It is called Immanuel sign, ‘God is with us’. It is a miraculous sign that God knows we need. God recommends the revelation of Immanuel as a sign to establish our faith. Spiritually speaking, Ahaz is commanded to remove his attention and trust from the Water Pool and ‘to look unto Jesus, the Author and finisher of our faith’ (Heb 12:2). We are commanded to look away from self- confidence, which is pride, the result of doubting God, and to behold the beauty and power of Jesus our Savior and Lord. Then all fear is gone! Then faith is established and doubt forever defeated in our hearts!
When the enemy came to attack Jerusalem he was shocked to discover that ‘God is within her – she will never fall’ (Ps 46:5).
Do you believe that the presence of God with you is the only protection you need? This is the Word of God! If you doubt it and you look for the help of man, you will surely fall during times of trials.
O…the presence of God the Holy Spirit in the heart of the believer… Immanuel sign and seal…eternal encouragement!!!

“If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder spoken of takes place, and the prophet says, “Let us follow other gods” (gods you have not known) “and let us worship them,” you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. THE LORD YOUR GOD IS TESTING YOU The to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. It is the Lord your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him. That prophet or dreamer must be put to death for inciting rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. That prophet or dreamer tried to turn you from the way the Lord your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you.

If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you love, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods” (gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, gods of the peoples around you, whether near or far, from one end of the land to the other), 8do not yield to them or listen to them. Show them no pity. Do not spare them or shield them. You must certainly put them to death. Your hand must be the first in putting them to death, and then the hands of all the people. Stone them to death, because they tried to turn you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. Then all Israel will hear and be afraid, and no one among you will do such an evil thing again” (Deut 13:1-11)
Our love and loyalty to God shall be tested.
God tests His servants,
God tests His worshippers.
Many are called, but few pass His test of loyalty!
The test of love comes from people who are ‘among us’. It is not thru strangers. It is thru people you may call friends. The intent is always the same: ‘let’s serve other gods’. They are not saying that you should forget the worship of Jehovah God, but that you should ‘enlarge your vision’; you should accommodate and tolerate other views, more modern…that you should avoid talking about sin and repentance, the Cross or the Blood of Jesus. They tell you to make your message softer, broader, sweeter.
The test comes in three ways:
*thru prophets, church, religious leaders, spiritual ‘giants of faith’ able to back their message thru ‘signs and wonders’
*thru family and close friends you love and you usually listen to
*thru political, government laws directed against your faith in God
The aim is to destroy your foundation as a Believer. The best word to use for this type of attack is spiritual subversion.
The word subversion means the act of destroying the foundation of faith or loyalty. Once the foundation of a building is destroyed, the same shall collapse by its own strength. Politically, subversion means high treason against God and the king of the land. It means rebellion to overthrow a legal government. The punishment for subversion is death. No mercy is given to the man who attacks another believer with the intent of destroying his spiritual foundation, which is Christ Crucified.
When attacked by ‘rebellion- witchcraft –subversive’ evil spirit, learn to apply survival skills! These are all negative actions:
*Do not listen to them (do not lend your ear, do not try to understand their words, do not give them your attention with promising obedience, do not consider their religious theories, do not repeat their words to others as a witness)!
*Do not yield or consent to them, do not agree or approve of their sayings, do not say ‘amen’ to them!
*Do not have pity on them (do not sympathize with their sufferings; do not regret separating from them)!
*Do not spare them (do not avoid or postpone in attacking them, do not keep silent in their presence but rebuke them with severity)!
*Do not shield them (do not hide them in your house, do not tolerate them, do not protect them) but expose them!
Run to the Cross! Cling to it! Hold it! Embrace it! Kiss it! Love it! Stay there until the test is over and after that, still stay there!
Remember your foundation which is Christ Crucified for your sins! It is not by works, but by grace!
Please always remember that God permits these traitors and false prophets to come and tempt you. God is testing you of you are truly faithful to Him and love Him unto death. Great is your reward for passing this difficult test!
Please also remember that the safest place is at the Cross of Christ! Be nailed with your Lord! Let it be that even if you want to go down from the Cross, His nails will not permit you to betray your Lord! God’s love is stronger than death!
Love God with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength!
No place for failure!
“Father in Heaven, help Your children pass Your test! In Jesus name, amen!”

‘He executes justice for the fatherless and widow, and loves the stranger, in giving him food and clothing. Love you therefore the stranger: for you were strangers in the land of Egypt’ ‘Never mistreat or oppress foreigners’
“Cursed is the man who withholds justice from the alien, the fatherless or the widow.” Then all the people shall say, “Amen!”
The LORD preserves the strangers; he relieves the fatherless and widow: but the way of the wicked he turns upside down.
(Ex 22:21; Deut 10:18, 19; 27:19’ Ps 146:9)

The definition of xenophobia is this: deep rooted fear and irrational hatred of foreigners. The origin of these negative emotions can be past wounds from foreigners or listening to political propaganda about ‘national purity’. Racism, tribalism, these are branches of it. People hate foreigners because they fear losing control on their culture or national identity.
Why should we be interested in the lives of foreigners, people who look different than us, speak another language or with an accent, dress differently or have another color of skin? Why should we love, accommodate, help or pray for them?
The first reason is because God loves them! Jehovah God is the friend of the foreigners. Jesus said that the way we treat foreigners is the way we treat Him (Mt 25). A place in heaven or in hell, rewards and punishments shall be awarded to religious people based on their acceptance or rejection of foreigners. (Mt 25:35. 43)
The second reason why we should love foreigners is because we know how it feels to be one. All sinners are foreigners to the Kingdom of God, without hope and without God in the world. Jesus died to bring the foreigners like me and you into His Father’s House, to receive the full rights as sons (Eph 2:12, 13)
Did you forget what it was before you made peace with God? Don’t you remember the feeling of being outside and knocking to come in…? It is not easy to live in a land different than your native country. It is not easy to be an immigrant, a permanent guest and never a citizen. It is not easy to be ‘a second class person’, to accept injustice daily because you are different than the majority of the people. It is not easy to live alone, for all others fear your person. Anyone taking advantage of a foreigner, who oppresses and forces him to be in a position against his will, that person is cursed by God. He can never have peace on earth!
This is the promise of God: He is their provider for all the basic things of life for foreigners
*Food- in Hebrew it means bread, fruits; it also means victory over his enemy and the power to take over his property!
*Clothes- it means physical clothes but also favor and salvation!
*Protection- There is a fence of thorns around the foreigner! Anyone who tries to break into his house shall be wounded!
*Relief, preservation- in times of trouble there is a double strength to endure until there is promotion!
*Victory over his enemies- the people who hate foreigners shall be frustrated, their lives shall be upside down, full of disappointments, their paths unstable and slippery ending in ruin. God overturns their plans; defeats their schemes; makes their purposes accomplish what they did not intend they should accomplish. They shall not do all the wickedness they wish; they shall not do all that is in their power. In their career God will stop them, turn them aside, or overturn them!

MY PERSONAL TESTIMONY
I was born in Romania. I live in Nigeria since March 1980. I did not choose to live ‘abroad’ but it was God’s will for me. I know how it feels to be a foreigner. I know the fear, the insecurity, the loneliness, the proud stares and the discrimination…
Yet, the grace of God is my Portion. The Word of God is my Food, my Medicine and my Defense. The promises of God are my Hope. The anointing of the Spirit is my Covering. The Body of Christ is my Home. The ministry is my Business! Prayer is my Joy!
The Lord has brought me to His Holy Mountain and gave me an extraordinary capacity to experience pure Joy in His House of prayer and worship. He has accepted my offerings of praise on His altar. The Door of His house have been widely opened to me, a poor sinner saved my grace. His House is a House of prayer for me and my children, the remnant of grace! We are gathered to freely worship the King of heaven! His presence connects us with Believers from all the nations and tribes from all over the world. There is no Jew, nor Greek, no male and no female, no slave or master, no white or black, no rich or poor, no educated or illiterate, but we are all one before the Throne, and of the Lamb who was slain that we may live (Gal 3:26-29).
I am a witness to this amazing grace (Is 56:1-8)
‘O… Come, Let us adore Him….Christ the Lord!’

‘Who has anguish? Who has sorrow?
Who is always fighting? Who is always complaining?
Who has unnecessary bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?
It is the one who spends long hours in the taverns, trying out new drinks.
Don’t gaze at the wine, seeing how red it is, how it sparkles in the cup, how smoothly it goes down.
For in the end it bites like a poisonous snake (cockatrice); it stings like a viper.
You will see hallucinations, and you will say crazy things.
You will stagger like a sailor tossed at sea, clinging to a swaying mast.
And you will say, “They hit me, but I didn’t feel it.
I didn’t even know it when they beat me up.
When will I wake up so I can look for another drink?” (PV 23:29-35)
This is a sad picture of man addicted to drugs or alcohol. This addiction is described as a snake bite (the same word ‘cockatrice’ again). The drunkard sees strange sights that intimidate and confuse him. His imagination is unsanctified. His conscience troubles him but he is too weak to answer it. He has false hopes of success and false confidence of a better life. In the same time he is not in touch with the reality that he is sinking down to hell. He resists the truth so he cannot change. He has lost all feelings, he is hard hearted he is not sensitive to any other person’s pain. This is the picture of the tragedy of a life lead by pleasure and be entertainment. The flesh is in control, the very thing that destroys a man. Time goes on, he gets older but there is no wisdom available. Bitterness has filled his heart, unnecessary sorrow and regrets plague him.
Maybe you read these words and you congratulate yourself that you are not a drunkard or a drug addict. Thank God for you! But these words also describe the effect of spiritual addictions, all things that excite the flesh and quench the spirit.

FINALLY
We are living in the last days. The devil is real and warfare is real. One reason why Eve was deceived long ago was because she was unprepared to resist him. We should never under estimate the devil’s experience, craftiness and power in dealing with sinners. We cannot resist him in our own strength. It is only the genuine child of God, filled with the Holy Spirit who can win the victory and set other captives free. Gambling, the occult, drugs, alcohol, pornography and all addictions are just names that have to bow at the name of Jesus! There is hope for deliverance and freedom. Confess and expose your sins to God and to your pastor! Repent of them! Turn from them! Forsake the devil! Betray the devil! Come to the Cross, there is healing and salvation and victory and deliverance! I am a witness that Jesus is able and willing to make you free! You have only one life here in earth, why waste it? You can give it to Jesus who will gather the broken pieces and make something wonderful from your failures and pains! Come Home, you sinner, Come Home!!!!!
There is power in the name of Jesus!
There is power in the Blood of Jesus!
Be free, in Jesus name! Amen!