WHAT IS SIN?

What is sin? Your guess might be as good as mine because the popular answer that sin is being separated from God will be given. Not good enough! It might be true to some extent. However, I believe there is a precursor to there being a separation. As maturity set in and after much study of God’s word, I asked myself this question- if holiness comes out of ones relationship with God and the practise of His word, where then does sin come from? I have concluded and can confidently say that "sin is a fundamental relationship". It isn’t a wrong doing but a wrong being. (Click here and tweet this). It is a deliberate and determined independence from God. It’s a premeditated rebellion against the word of God. (Click here and tweet this).

The 21st century has brought to bear the deep seated desire of man to be separated from anything God. (Click here and tweet this). There seems to be an amassing army of secularist demanding that “God” should be taken out of society. Yet the same people have no trouble advocating for anything sinful to flourish. It’s interestingly how most political leaders of our times advocate for sinful acts to flourish via their policies. (Click here and tweet this). Humanity seems to have been caught up in the web of the deception of the devil. Sin is now glamourized and glorified. Nevertheless, this attitude won’t negate what God’s word says about it.

Little do we hear even now in churches messages dwelling on sin and God’s redemptive plan? (Click here and tweet this). For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God describes the state of man before the redemptive plan of God was put in place. The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Thank God for saving us from the condemnation the world was facing. But as many as received Jesus, he has given us the power to be His sons….sons of God and not of sin!

God doesn't tempt anyone with evil (sin) but a person’s lust does it all says (James 1:13-15).God doesn't TEMPT anyone but rather TRIES by His word. Everyone is alive and very much aware when they are being led into sin. (Click here and tweet this). How do I know this? Because I am a human being! The writer says temptation happens when we are drawn away by our own lust. This is where most get it wrong because once you talk about lust many immediately think about sex. Lust has an itch sex alone cannot scratch. Click here and tweet this) .

Watch what you have an insatiable craving for that you know will lead you into sin. The enemy doesn’t come with a billboard on which is written “I want to tempt you”. The devil will always entice you by what you lust after. (Click here and tweet this). Could it be the fame, music, money, man or woman? What is that TV show or magazine saying to your spirit person? Can you see where it’s leading to? Infact have you noticed you’ve change lately? These are some of the fundamental pointers you should be aware of in dealing with the cunning approach of the devil to entice us through lust.

Question: What does sin mean to you? Kindly leave your comments on the blog.

Yours In His Service

Joe Akuoko II

#My10CommandmentsOfRelationships ~ (8) LEARN TO COMPROMISE, IT’S NOT WEAKNESS!!

A society that is geared toward worshipping the male machismo and Alpha attitudes wouldn’t be the one to accept compromising as being wise. (Click here and tweet this). Since ancient times, compromising has been a weapon used by the wise to win eventually. There is a saying that we have to agree to disagree as a way of going forward.  To be successful in any relationship, understanding that you can’t always insist on your right will go a long way to help you. (Click here and tweet this).

To COMPROMISE isn’t WEAKNESS but rather an easy way into having harmony and stability for a long time. (Click here and tweet this) Many at times, our emotions cannot be trusted and sometimes they deceive us. The only bulwark we have against the sudden urge of our emotions is the art of compromising. Why? It will allow you to ponder and reflect on the “what ifs” of any relationship. It’s equal to strategizing for the long haul. Interestingly, you don’t have to win it all in order to make a point.

To concede that you don’t know it all, haven’t got all the answers and cannot to everything to enhance the relationship is an act of compromise. (Click here and tweet this).  This sort isn’t the one which leaves the relationship vulnerable but rather strengthens it. Never forget relationship begets other relationships thus learning how to adapt to differences will be good for the long haul. 

Being headstrong will only lead to your ruin. People who always insist on being either the best or right never make it past the initial relationship. (Click here and tweet this). Not everything should make sense to you before you give in or decide to amend certain aspects of your relationship. If the business associate has genuine fears regarding a point, the wisest thing to do will be compromise. This will allow for the pursuit of the main aim for which the business has been or is being established. If the young man or woman believes a certain aspect of your lifestyle will ruin the relationship you have, it will be great to compromise.

As I mature in age and experience, I have realised that you will only go higher in life with strategic compromises. (Click here and tweet this). No great leader can wholeheartedly say they didn’t or haven’t compromised in order to push through a policy or something of that sort. They all learn how to compromise positively and sometimes negatively in the course of their leadership lifecycle. 

Life is full of compromises and it’s the way God created humanity for co-existence. (Click here and tweet this). Never let go of  your core points entirely in a relationship but learn to amend or better still rewrite it in order for the other to feel worthy to be part of the chosen cause. Pride, self –conceit and arrogance will be the voice that will speak against your intention to compromise. Watch out for them because they come out strong when a person decides to give in and let all win at the end of the day.

Question: Is it easy to compromise? Kindly leave your comments on the blog.

Yours In His Service

Joe Akuoko II

#My10CommandmentsOfRelationships ~ (5) MAKE IT A WIN-WIN DEAL!!

It is said that in any relationship, there has got to be a sort of 60/40 approach- where one person is expected to give the 60 and the other 40. I believe however that relationships are never about numbers but achieving a win- win deal.(Click here and tweet this). My argument is this, it doesn’t matter who is contributing what, once the mentality is that of a win-win deal, happiness will be achieved.  Any relationship where one person tends to give so much and receives less in return is a toxic one. (Click here and tweet this). Its either the loser is holding on based on fear or has nothing to live for anymore.

Have the decency and the humanity to decide on making sure it’s an all profit gig! Anytime a person walks away with all the winnings at the expense of another’s input, they end up heaping it up for another to easily possess. (Click here and tweet this). Nobody invests in anything to lose even though sometimes providence has a way of conducting the affairs of man: we invest in order to receive that which is due us.

Never try to deprive someone of the love, care, money or opportunities they have invested in your life. The few years I have been around has taught me a great lesson: life is lived in stages, people will always grow into sizes. Today might be yours and tomorrow could be for the one you abused or cheated. (Click here and tweet this). You don’t lose when you decide to make it a win-win deal. Rather, you will continue to enhance your life by seeing others profit from a relationship. There are some unspoken spiritual laws that operate in human circles. You don’t need to believe in God to see them operate everyday yet they do.

I have seen many who abused and deprived others of the returns due them yet they never amounted to anything with what wasn’t theirs. (Click here and tweet this). Growing up, I saw many who thought they were all that mattered and didn’t need others. They trampled underfoot the love, finance, time others invested in them but as time went on, they also became casualties of their deeds because they refused to make it a win- win deal.

I love God with every available fibre in me. Serving God all these years has opened my eyes to how God practises the win-win deal I am talking about. He gives seed to the sower. By default the job of the sower is to sow but without credible seeds, he is handicapped. It’s at this point that God steps in out of His generosity to make it a win- win deal with the sower. I give you seeds you go and sow! If the sower obeys and sows according to the agreed vision and principles, he will yield fruits worthy of God blessing. The sower receives the profit whilst the glory goes to God-win-win deal. (Click here and tweet this).

To make it a win-win deal also means to learn to share. Relationship building is an investment that requires the art of sharing. After all SHARING is CARING! The ethos of any relationship should be that of sharing and subsequently caring. (Click here and tweet this). Until we get it right with making it a win-win deal, you will suffer needlessly.

The law of the mirror also comes to play when thinking about a win-win deal. When you stand in front of the mirror you don’t see me you see you. If you don’t like what you see, change it. Thus in any win-win deal, your heart’s desire should be reflected in the way you treat the next person. The person you are in the relationship with is the mirror you reflect yourself in. (Click here and tweet this).You don’t lose in the long run when you understand making everything you do with others a win-win deal is more spiritual than the natural.

Questions: What does it mean to you when we say make it a win-win deal? Do you believe you are being cheated when the scale doesn’t balance in a relationship? Any experience to share? Kindly leave your comments on the blog.

Yours In His Service

Joe Akuoko II