God’s "SetUps" (2)

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose”. - Romans 8:28

We are tested and stretched by the words we confess. (Copy and tweet). I wonder why we think the word will never come and try us. I have witnessed a God who takes delight in building bulwarks around someone He is taking through a stretching. (Copy and tweet). Whether sad or not, you will never escape the “set ups” of God for your life. David makes an assertion which is so true in Psalm 139:7-10 with respects to God’s “set ups”. One cannot but remain quiet and wait patiently for the day God will declare them free from His “set ups”. (Copy and tweet).

Abraham walked with God in integrity yet it didn’t stop God from setting him up first and his descendants later in the Egypt. (Copy and tweet). They were an innocent bunch who got caught up in the plans of God. Sometimes I wonder! They didn’t do anything for their years of slavery to be earmarked. Yes they endured four hundred years of slavery but when God got ready, they came out with substance. (Copy and tweet). Imagine all the pain, the poverty, imprisonment and torture they endured but came out with enough substance.

Interestingly everyone who had the privilege of being set up by God never came out the same. They started so badly that if you were told they will be victorious it would’ve been absurd and difficult to believe. (Copy and tweet).  Yet the set-up of God is strange! How can the poverty of Christ make me rich? How can a giant demand that a man be given him to fight yet God sends a shepherd boy? (Copy and tweet). How can a King be born in a manger? The list can go but one thing is true, God knows what He does and truly speaking He does it best. The Christian walk is laced with what I call the “unknowns” and the “inexplicable” in the immediate but which makes sense at the end. (Copy and tweet).

The challenge is for the believer to completely surrender totally to God and allow for the process to continue. Unfortunately even the staunchest believer often falters because it’s not the easiest place to be. (Copy and tweet) What did Job do….he was just afraid? Don’t we all walk in fear yet we never get attacked like Job. He inspite of his complains still trusted God will see him through. At one time we hear him say “though God slays him yet shall he trust him”. What did Abraham do….except out of frustration go ahead of God to manufacture his miracle which backfired. (Copy and tweet). Yet He kept on walking with God and it was imputed onto him as righteousness.

At some point, God will set you up. I see it more or less like the statements of Jesus- “if you love me, obey my commandments”. This is not as easy as it’s been quoted. (Copy and tweet). Loving Jesus might be easy yet obeying is where there is a catch for most of us. You cannot be called faithful until you’ve been stretched. (Copy and tweet). Faithfulness is a journey not something in the instant. 

When you realise its God who is setting you, it’s because He desires to prove you….may be your loyalty, faithfulness etc. (Copy and tweet).  People who are faithful are always given more to possess and are allowed to share in their master’s joy. Get ready, God is about to set you up!!

Talk About it-

A. Why do you think God sets His people up?
B. Have you experience God's Setup in your life? 

In His Service

J. Akuoko II

God’s "SetUps" (1)

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose”. - Romans 8:28

Does God really set His children up? What about "ALL" things working together for the good of them that love God and are the called according to the purpose of God? Does the scripture have any relevance to what God does? Believers easily rattle the above scripture yet you only need to endure the challenges of life to truly come to terms with what it really means.(Copy and tweet). The only time any scripture becomes significant is when its applied to a person's life. Popular opinion is simply not the opinion of God. If God desires that you go through the valley, it’s only through the valley that you will go. (Copy and tweet).

Earlier on in ministry, it was easy to pray for people going through a particular situation with an assurance for a way out. The desire was for a quick relief out of the problem. Yet after a while nothing seemed to happen. Many became despondent and angry because God seemed not to be quick in delivering them. (Copy and tweet). We the labourers in God’s vineyard lacked an understanding regarding the “set ups” used by God in strengthening His children. We kept reassuring people of a way out howbeit in the immediate. Many left without seeing the manifestation of the promise of an immediate release. Was it part of God's set ups?

Now the scales have fallen off my eyes, I know a truth - God has His “set ups" and He alone understands why He does these things. (Copy and tweet). I remind myself of the answer the Shunamite woman gave the Prophet Elisha even when her son had died- Is all well asks the Prophet? Yes, it is well said the woman even when her only son had died? Even the good, the bad and the ugly are all part of God's plans for a person so they can say it is well even when it isn't. (Copy and tweet).

Two extremities could be deduced when a person is facing the challenges of life - on the one hand could be God’s own set up which only produces good at the end of the day. (Copy and tweet). Whilst on the other side, the deception of the enemy will be at work. The tendency to keep fighting even when the fight is over is rife especially when all you know is to fight. (Copy and tweet).  Sometimes we get so used to the situation instead of the solution so much so that we forget there is always an end to a situation. (Copy and tweet). This is the deception of the devil to keep believers fighting when they are meant to quit and begin possessing.

I know you might have experienced some sort of “keep fighting” even when it’s over.  When the Israelites got to the promise land, the strategy was to worship and not to fight physically. (Copy and tweet). This is what brought down the walls of Jericho. (Copy and tweet). God had moved in strategy and thank God they had a leader who understood God's "SetUp". 

God's "setup" will be initiated in a believers life whether if they are ready or not. Its part of God's strategy to churn out the power of faith and total reliance on His word in a person's journey of faith. (Copy and tweet). Get ready for God's "setup".

Talk About it-

A. Why do you think God sets His people up?
B. Have you experience God's Setup in your life? 

In His Service

J. Akuoko II

4PowersABelieverHas - (4.2) ThePowerOfPrayer (Part 2)

Pray without ceasing. ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Why are we instructed to pray unceasingly?  The devil is constantly at work seeking who todestroy. Woe onto that sleepy and lazy Christian, the devil will attack withoutanyone to deliver. (Copy and tweet). When the Publican and the Pharisee went topray, God had no problem with each other’s prayer until the Pharisee beganjudging the publican. We have to approach the art of prayer without anyprejudice or guilt. Carrying a conscience of judgement when we've all been saved by grace is futile if you desire you prayers heard. (Copy and tweet).

Any time you refuse to pray it’s not guilt thatyou feel its hunger spiritually. If you desire to have fresh manna every day,prayer is the only way to interpret the manna you receive out of God's word.Jesus started with prayer in the desert and ended with the prayer on the cross.(Copy and tweet). You can't but prayand pray until you can't pray anymore. Nothing of worth comes through withoutmuch push. As soon as Zion travailed shebrought forth. Selah (Copy and tweet).

One great man made this emphatic statement that “he is notimpressed by people who don’t pray".Boldly said, it connotes so much about thepower of prayer. How can you have words of encouragement, comfort, power andhealing to give others, when you haven’t received anything from God? (Copy and tweet). This isthe reason why, be you a preacher or a church member, you need the mind ofChrist when it comes to prayer. (Copy and tweet).

God's power is ready and available. The onlything left is a vessel willing to avail themselves. (Copy and tweet). If anybody should tell you praying is easy, then I would say to theindividual that they don’t actually pray but just say a few words. It is theviolent who take it by force!(Copy and tweet).

#Caution- A man who doesn't pray is setting his house for a great fall.
#Caution- A woman who doesn't pray is gradually gnawing her family's foundation.

Talk About it-

A. Why do you think we ought to pray?
B. How do you think believers should pray? 

In His Service

J. Akuoko II

4PowersABelieverHas - (4.1) ThePowerOfPrayer (Part 1)

Pray without ceasing. ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:17

The art of prayer is one that every believer should endeavour to master. Prayer is a two way communication between man and his creator. (Copy and tweet). It also allows for one to constantly reach out to God during times that are good, bad and ugly. (Copy and tweet).

Having ministered for some time now, I am quite used to hearing prayers that are mostly need oriented. However, I do believe prayer transcends beyond a person’s needs. (Copy and tweet). It also solidifies the value of the relationship they have with God. It is this relationship that guarantees a person success in whatever they do. Your skills, talents, opportunities might get you whatever you desire, but it is God that grants the power, peace and the prosperity that comes with it. (Copy and tweet).

Luke the writer recorded over ten times the prayer lifestyle of Jesus in his book. I am not surprised at all as his book is full of the healing God performed through Jesus. I believe he wanted us to understand the sole method by which Jesus operated in the anointing was through prayer. (Copy and tweet). The ever-increasing prayer and connection between himself and God was the hit that produced the power for divine manifestation. Selah!(Copy and tweet). When one relates to God through prayer, the reward has often been the enormity of the out pour of the anointing by God on such a person.

The efficacy of prayer is much seen when it is based on the word of God. Just praying without the backing of the word to me seems empty. Without a continuous and a sustaining prayer lifestyle, the events of life will break you. (Copy and tweet). Your greatness as a person is encapsulated in the process of prayer. The power to command and possess is given to any prayerful person. I believe the very day Adam refused to commune (pray) to and with God, the devil gained access into his domain. To be a casual prayer person is very dangerous. (Copy and tweet). The devil will seek to destroy you with swiftness so you don’t reawaken that power again.

I don’t believe prayer has any method. For me, prayer is prayer, but it is most effective when done in the name of Jesus. (Copy and tweet). You can pray when at work, eating, bathing, at any place as long as the name of Jesus is involved. The enemy wants you to believe that there are special people chosen for this purpose. It could be true, but if Jesus prayed, then you too can pray. (Copy and tweet).

Talk About it-

A. Why do you think we ought to pray?
B. How do you think believers should pray? 

In His Service

J. Akuoko II

4PowersABelieverHas - (3) ThePowerOfRighteousness

……He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’ sake.~ Psalm 23:3

The question many ask is how can one be righteous before God? Righteousness is initiated by God in a person’s life. (Copy and tweet). He is the only one who leads us in the paths of righteousness for His name sake. There are two things I can deduce here- Firstly, God is interested in protecting His name invested in a person’s life. Secondly, He started this journey and knows how best to carry a person through this life in order to make them right before Him. (Copy and tweet).

My difficulty with ritualistic Christianity is that it’s empty, powerless and never fulfilling. (Copy and tweet).  It’s synonymous to the other religions where adherents are made to believe that their wholeness comes through the performance of certain rituals. God is the only one who teaches a person how they can be right with Him. (Copy and tweet).  

I believe a person’s ability to walk righteously with God is seen in their understanding of the instructions of the relationship. (Copy and tweet). Until a person maintains their relationship to the source of their strength, they will lose out. (Copy and tweet).  There is more power in righteousness! A person can pray for the anointing and for the performance of miracles, but if they don’t live righteously, they should forget it.

It’s a journey which requires everything of the individual. I have seen God do more through me these times than ever when I began to desire a deeper  walk with him. You might be thinking can a person serve God and not have a deeper walk? Yes and a big yes! Many walk with the maxim that to the pure all things are pure yet live a contrary life to what the bible teaches. (Copy and tweet). In these times when many have the notion that correcting someone might offend them, which is different from judging, the desire to live right has been compromised. (Copy and tweet). This I believe has accounted for the loss of God’s power in individual lives.

You will only see the fullness of God’s power when He leads you in the paths of righteousness. (Copy and tweet).  This is like quid pro quo - God initiates the process and man allows himself to be consumed by it. God knows at some point you will falter, but still finds a way to make His power available so you can cross the finish line. (Copy and tweet). When you look onto Jesus who initiated the faith you possess and don’t allow anything to distract you , you can receive all of God's power that comes out of walking righteously with Him. (Copy and tweet).

Talk About it-

A. What does righteousness mean to you?
B. How do you think one can apply the power of righteousness in their lives? 

In His Service

J. Akuoko II

#4PowersABelieverHas - (2.2) ThePowerOfFaith (Part 2)

Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrews 11:6

The power of faith is seen much in its enduring state. The most difficult stage a person can ever get to is the waiting period. (Copy and tweet). The anticipation of a turnaround can be very daunting when waiting on God.  Yet it’s during this time that a person should learn to activate the power of the faith they have. (Copy and tweet). The best out of the exercise of faith is received when an individual endures the testing period of the word of God. (Copy and tweet). 

There is so much power to be gotten out of faith and one has to go through the process before arriving at that place. The churning of milk produces butter. (Copy and tweet). The milk has to go through an unfamiliar process for its chemical composition to change. The power to become butter is not seen when the milk is in its natural state yet when it is placed in a barrel and turned over severally at a particular speed and temperature, change happens. It is only at this stage, that the milk is gradually forced to accept the changes its owners’ desires of it – to become butter. Selah!

We all desire that God will bring the best out of us. This will only happen when we are prepared to be taken through the spiritual "churning" process.  (Copy and tweet). The word of God is a double edged sword which cuts deep into the recesses of man. He uses this process to divide that which He desires in us from that which we have brought onto ourselves. (Copy and tweet). It is at this stage that a person has to make a choice -either to yield or keep fighting the spiritual incision of God. 

We love the addition that comes from the word of God but not the cutting away by the sword of the word of God! The enduring power to be gotten from faith is released when a person has gone through their spiritual incision. (Copy and tweet).

Talk About it-

A. Why do you think most people fail to apply the power of the faith?
B. What does faith mean to you personally and how have you applied it in your life? 

In His Service

J. Akuoko II

4PowersABelieverHas - (2.1) ThePowerOfFaith (Part 1)

Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrews 11:6

Your ability to exercise faith cannot be more powerful than the one who seeded you with it. (Copy and tweet). The concept of faith has been given a new definition by neo-Pentecostalism as whenever faith is made mention of, it has to do with needs. I sometimes find myself wondering why faith is equated to wealth and power. Well, am not amazed as to why many are made to believe exercising faith can be equated to the acquisition of power and wealth. Simply because, a person is shaped by their background and it’s something you can't avoid. (Copy and tweet). 

Your background plays an integral in all that you do. It’s only when you've challenged your experiences with divine knowledge and a “can do” attitude that you'll be empowered to break free. Thus a leader who hasn’t yet challenged certain beliefs they hold regarding faith will only raise followers of their kind. Faith isn’t what you have been told it is until you have an encounter with faith yourself. (Copy and tweet).

The writer in Hebrews  11 expresses faith differently from what we have been made to believe it connotes.  From verse 1 through the 31, a picture is painted of the “receiving” or “favourable side” of the practice of faith. (Copy and tweet). He expresses voluptuously what happened to those who practiced faith until you reach verses 32 where the testing of side of faith begins. This is also the other side of faith. Faith does not only learn to walk in the good but also exercises its enduring power in the ugliest of times. (Copy and tweet).

To exercise faith, is to have what it takes to please and believe God in His existence. (Copy and tweet). The ordinary person will find it difficult to appreciate this meaning especially when all around the interpretation we have had concerning faith is based on solving the needs of people. The reason we struggle to maintain the faith we have is due to the misapplication of the potency thereof. (Copy and tweet). There are three sides to faith that I have discovered- faith learns to accept, reject and also to endure. (Copy and tweet). In so doing, we expressly tell God it doesn’t matter what we face, our ability to believe and trust Him will not wane even in the face of the insurmountable. (Copy and tweet). 

Talk About it-

A. Why do you think most people fail to apply the power of the faith?
B. What does faith mean to you personally and how have you applied it in your life? 

In His Service

J. Akuoko II

4PowersABelieverHas - (1) PowerOfTheWord

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God -John 1:1                                                                                                          

The centurion implored Jesus saying "Sir only speak the word and my servant will be healed". It did happen as the centurion had faith for. As your faith is, so shall it be onto you. The substratum of all that we see, hear or have is the word of God. (Copy and tweet). The opening scripture says through the word, God created all that we see and all things were created for the word. For those of us who are familiar with the Bible and its theological meaning, we know that this expression is about Jesus. (Copy and tweet).

In simplicity we are being told that there is power in studying the word of God. The word is the manifestation of the thoughts of God for mankind. The more a person studies it, the more they will be in tandem with the mind of God for their lives. (Copy and tweet). God reveals His thoughts to us through His word. This only comes to those who are constantly seeking him in the study of His word.

The fight we have with the devil has never been about what we desire, but to stop us from studying the word of God. (Copy and tweet). In order to have power to overcome, a deeper search for revealed truths of God’s word is what will make the difference. The devil is not afraid of the Pope, Archbishop, Prophet etc. but the word of God. Jesus counteracted the devil with the word of God and he left for a season. If Jesus studied the word in order to defeat the enemy, then the responsibility to do likewise falls on us. (Copy and tweet).

Mere words don’t make a person wise but it is the word of God that makes the difference. (Copy and tweet). One cannot overemphasise the value the word of God plays in our lives. You cannot win convincingly when you underplay the significance of the word of God in your life. We are commanded in Joshua never to depart from the word if we require good success. This means there are levels of success but it is the word which insures that you achieve good success as a child of God. Anything a person builds or amasses outside the word of God will not last forever. (Copy and tweet). Anything built on the principles of the word, survives the onslaught of the enemy for ages to come.

John Harvard the first benefactor to the now Harvard University, was an English Pastor who emigrated from the United Kingdom to New England and settled in Charlestown. Upon his death, he bequeathed half of his estate to the new college which had been founded which was headed by his friend Nathaniel Eaton. It was later renamed Harvard University. The essence of this history is to depict what the word does in a person’s life. (Copy and tweet). Harvard is recognised as one of the world foremost Ivy League universities in the word.

Dr Kwame Nkrumah, one of Africa’s foremost sons, had a bachelor’s degree in theology. It is said he had thought of preaching until the need to lead his people and subsequently the entirety of Africa into liberation, consumed him. His leadership beliefs stemmed from the word. The word has enough dynamite to change a life, a corporation, vision, and an entire continent. (Copy and tweet). You can be everything God has destined you to be when a concerted effort is made into studying the word and living off it. (Copy and tweet).

If by the word God created everything we behold, then I can say that by the same word, God rewards. (Copy and tweet). The word has potency which can never be underestimated by any. God shows respect even onto his word. The writer in Psalm 138:1 says “He has lifted His word above his name”. (Copy and tweet). When you walk with God according to the word, men will be drawn to you. Your good success is waiting in the word. The jewels for overcoming, is hidden in the word of God.

Talk About it-

A. Why do you think most believers fail to apply the power of the word?
B. How do you think the power of the word can be applied in your life?

In His Service

J. Akuoko II