DON'T WALK ALONE!

Proverbs 27:17 (TLB)

A friendly discussion is as stimulating as the sparks that fly when iron strikes iron.

 

Proverbs 27:17 (CEV) 

Just as iron sharpens iron, friends sharpen the minds of each other.

 

Proverbs 27:17 (ERV)

As one piece of iron sharpens another, so friends keep each other sharp.

 

 

I am amongst the many youths who still ask their parents why they decided to make a covenant with God on their behalf without their permission. And like most of them out there, the answer always has these words, "It was for your good. God needed men, so I made a covenant like Hannah to offer you to Him. I almost died, so I made that covenant to save your life and mine." I didn't take my mum's stories seriously until I met ordinary people asking me to hold onto God because His hand was upon my life. To some of these people, I would try to mock their statement by raising my head to look into the sky as if looking for the hand of God. Then I started meeting Men of God who would just smile and say when the time is right, nothing but God will satisfy you.

 

Well, at 12, I gave my life to Christ at Winners Chapel International, Avenor (now Winners Chapel Ghana). I wish I could find the words to describe the fire and zeal I had then to know God. Time would not allow me to speak about my desire to evangelise anybody as long as I had the urge. As for service, I doubt I have given so much time and energy to things of God at any church as I did there. I can boldly state today that my desire then was to stay in the house of the Lord for the rest of my life. I didn't mind spending my whole day at church working and fellowshiping with fellow brothers and sisters in the faith. The house of God was home, and my spirit was always peaceful in His presence. Because we usually work during services on Sunday, some team of workers took time off every Saturday after preparing the place for service to study the word, pray, worship and sometimes break bread. Our unit leader was more like our shepherd. He ensured that our social status or educational background meant nothing to our team. We were all one in the sight of God. I was always eager for our Saturday fellowship because we all had to share what we had learned during the week through our daily devotion aside from the bible discussions on the topic our Teens Church Pastor preached. It was always refreshing.

 

Some years later, the family had to stop Winners Chapel International and move to another church. Although I enjoyed that church, I couldn't find the fire and zeal I found at Winners Chapel International. The message was powerful and had a great atmosphere, but I couldn't be as zealous there as I was at Winners. The once zealous Christian who would spend hours at church was now finding comfort in activities that had nothing to do with the Christian faith. Attending Sunday Services was now a chore that needed to be completed for others to know I was still in the faith. After eventually leaving that church to settle for another, I noticed a strange cycle in my life. I would find myself doing everything against the Word of God, and then, by God's mercy, I would meet someone or hear a message, and I would suddenly decide to go all out for Jesus. That cycle continued until I accepted the nudge to go to Bible school in 2017 to study the Bible and know God for myself. I knew I had to find a solution to that cycle quickly; otherwise, my lukewarm nature would kill me one way or the other.

 

God being so good, I met fellow brothers in the faith who were not only hungry for more of God but were far into the things of God than I was. Although I could pray, see one or two visions, study, and teach the word of God, my interaction with these anointed people caused a deeper hunger for God. I had read books and heard messages from several men of God about how they met God, but my desire to go deeper came from those godly interactions. My spiritual father had taught me about midnight prayers and having a consistent prayer life. He even tried to introduce it into my lifestyle by waking me up at dawn to pray. But, my interaction with James during night security at the Prayer Garden on campus quickly made that a lifestyle. I remember how James and I were discussing our prayer life one day, and I spoke about how I would spend an hour or, at most, two or three praying; James smiled and talked about the periods he would spend six, eight, twelve or twenty-four hours praying. I stared at him in astonishment, like I had heard the most absurd story. I thought only specially gifted people could do that, and here is this young man confidently telling me this. "My goodness, how am I not seeking God enough now that I am a youth like him?" I would ask myself. That is how James started writing our names for night security at the prayer garden every day. I would pray, dose off and wake up to hear James still praying. Who was I to come and kill myself? But that was how I birthed my desire for long prayers and went on to encourage others to do so. If, by association, a man can pick up harmful practices from a friend, then I believe the Christian can pick up several "special gifts" by associating with those with them.

 

I later met Emmanuel and Solomon. I thought I knew seasoned men of God who stood for the truth till Emmanuel and Solomon opened my eyes. These two would share specific experiences in the faith as if they were meant to be expected of all Christians. If not till I started experiencing some of these things and advocating for other Christians to make them a lifestyle, I always thought they were crazy to make such "special graces" look normal. I remember some of the random bible discussions we would have during our walks on campus. In my mind, I would think I am sharing some "wild revelation" from the Bible, and like a joke, they would pick the same scripture and begin to break it down from different angles. I may have brought up the topic, but I would start to open my mouth in shock because I never saw it from those angles if not for that sharing opportunity. It was always the humility they had to listen and encourage me to speak before they added; otherwise, I would have always been silent. That hunger always led me to spend hours reading and studying the Bible. Time wouldn't allow me to share more of these stories, so let me go straight to my point.

 

Looking back at those days in Bible school, I realised I never had a "spiritual relapse." I thought it was because I was on a religious campus, but that couldn't be the case because I could have fallen quickly. I realised it was the spiritual community I had at my church back home and the community I had on campus. Every Monday to Friday afternoon, you would find me in the company of some of these anointed people on campus, discussing scriptures or a particular message, church history, or sharing encounters. Then, every Friday evening to Sunday evening, I would go home either to help with teachings and prayers during the main church all night or that of the youth ministry on Fridays, Saturday prayers and church cleaning and Sunday morning teachings and evening prayers. These discussions had no immoral topics to draw one's thoughts to such things, so the desire for the things of God was always strong. We were always discussing scriptures and talking about spiritual experiences. We could easily discuss issues and get spirit-led directions before the end of those discussions. 

 

So, when I started foreseeing the cycle coming back a year or two ago, I asked the Lord, whose response was Proverbs 27, verse 17. He added, "You have chosen to walk alone, and those who walk alone easily get tired and fed up." Immediately, the following scriptures began to flood my mind: Jesus sending His disciples out two by two (Mark 6:7), Peter and John (Acts 8:14-15), Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:14-15), and Priscilla and Aquila (Romans 16:3-4). Those scriptures paint a unique picture of the importance of having a partner in our faith walk and the need to maintain such association at all costs. "If you remember the story of Elijah, DON'T WALK ALONE!" He stated lastly.

 

Fellow Christian brothers and sisters, don't be deceived; spiritual peer pressure is a thing. It is a God-given strategy to keep Christians rooted in the faith while encouraging simultaneous growth. I haven't lived for long, but in my over fifteen years as a Christian, I have enough knowledge to stress the importance of every Christian taking the faith walk in pairs or a group. This may sound far-fetched, but your current lukewarmness was birthed the minute you decided to be on your own…(to be continued)

 

Remain in the blessings of God as you remain in Christ.

MD.

WHO TOLD YOU?

 

Genesis 3:8-13 (NLT)

[8] When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the LORD God walking about in the Garden. So they hid from the LORD God among the trees.

[9] Then the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"

[10] He replied, "I heard you walking in the Garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked."

[11] "Who told you that you were naked?" the LORD God asked. "Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?"

[12] The man replied, "It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it."

[13] Then the LORD God asked the woman, "What have you done?" "The serpent deceived me," she replied. "That's why I ate it."

 

 

These passages are excerpts from the full story in the third chapter of the Book of Genesis, which discusses the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. The 11th verse, where our Heavenly Father asked Adam, 'Who told you that you were naked?', is pivotal. This simple yet fully loaded question opens the Christian's eyes to the devil's deceptive strategy and how, if not correctly handled, it can lead to our eventual fallout with God.

 

Let's dramatise the scripture so you can understand what we need to discuss. Adam and Eve eat from the forbidden tree and realise they are naked. Quickly, their fashion design sense kicks in, and they make some Ad-Eve clothing from fig leaves. Before they could think of making more for their daily activities in the Garden, they heard our Heavenly Father walking in the Garden. Knowing that God is a Spirit, they still wanted to play hide-and-seek with Him by hiding among the trees. God played along and called out, "My baby man, Adam, where are you?" Adam hesitantly responded, "I heard you walking in the Garden, so I hid." God stopped in His tracks. Something wasn't right. The man he has created in His image and likeness is deliberately hiding from Him. He thought it was one of the usual days when Adam and Eve wanted to play with their Father.

 

Adam added, "I was afraid because I was naked." God immediately knew that something unusual had happened in His absence. Adam is speaking the thought of another being. Adam is stressing a known fact that was previously never a problem. God needed to get to the root of the matter, so He asked, "Adam, who told you that you were naked?" Adam is silent. Eve is silent. One could hear the droplets of water sipping through the rocks into the flowing river if one would pay attention in this silence. "My son, have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?" Adam was scared. He has betrayed the one instruction our Heavenly Father gave him. "But it wasn't my fault", Adam thought to himself. "It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it," he quickly stated. Eve couldn't believe her ears. "Is this the man who said I was the bone from his bone? Is this the man who said I was the flesh from his flesh?" she thought. Then the Lord God asked the woman, "What have you done?" "THE SERPENT DECEIVED ME. That's why I ate it," she quickly replied. Our Heavenly Father finally found the root of their strange words and perception - the devil.

 

My brothers and sisters in the Lord, our thoughts, statements, and actions are not random, as some have been made to believe. Every thought, statement, and action you have made or will make is based on a specific knowledge intercepted while it is being transmitted either from the kingdom of light or darkness. The Christian who constantly finds excuses to distance themselves from a relationship with the Holy Spirit through reading, studying, and meditating on Scriptures, prayers, worship, and fasting would always be a perfect prey for the numerous demonic insights. However, with discernment from a close relationship with the Holy Spirit, we can recognise and reject these deceptive influences. The failure of the Christian to spend time with the Holy Spirit is why many Christians still find it challenging to live the crucified life.

 

Like he did with Eve in Genesis chapter three, the devil always starts by either questioning what God has said or stating what he wants you to believe. The only way a Christian would be brought to the consciousness of his deception is through a relationship with the Holy Spirit born from consistent reading and studying of the Bible, prayer, worship, and fasting. Scripture is our guide, providing us with the thoughts of God on all matters of life. We can only fight the thoughts of the devil with the thoughts of God, not the thoughts of men. No wisdom from the wisest man or woman on earth can ever outdo the devil's wisdom. All dead men (sinful men) transmit from the kingdom of darkness, so do not be surprised when their opinions or 'wise counsels' offer results in a world principally ruled by the devil, the prince of darkness.

 

Who told you you will fail in life?

Who told you you are a failure?

Who told you you are daft?

Who told you you cannot live a holy life?

Who told you you cannot be successful without being corrupt?

Who told you you cannot surpass the achievements of your parents?

Who told you you could not take over territories, although you were born into a low-income family?

Who told you a Christian cannot own industries and run them with godly principles?

Who told you virginity is a scam?

Who told you marriage is for the weak?

Who told you women are weak?

Who told you?

 

If the statement you have heard doesn't have a well-explained scriptural basis, you have no right to believe it and speak it. The fact that it makes sense doesn't mean it is a truth to run with. Be like the Berean Christians; go home and search the scriptures until you find the truth.

If the success keys of the Christian are at par with those of one from the kingdom of darkness, then that Christian needs to question the transmission they have intercepted. How are you a successful Christian, and the man or woman in darkness cannot testify of a certain strange Grace at work in your life? How is the man or woman in darkness comfortable that you two are doing the same thing the same way and getting the same result? Where is Grace?

 

Let's go back to the days when we spent hours reading the Bible, studying verses in the context of a chapter or story, and long hours of worship and prayers based on the scriptures studied until the Lord speaks. Let's spend time in the Word of God. Let's acquaint ourselves with the speaking patterns of our Heavenly Father. I can differentiate between the voices around me because I have spent time with the people around me. You cannot know the voice of God if you haven't spent time with God.

 

CONFESSION

I am a child of God. I have been bought with the blood of Jesus. I have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness to light. I am hidden in Christ and Christ in God. I have the life of God, so I cannot based on the decree of men. I have the mind of Christ, so I think and live based on the thoughts of God. I live in the will of God. I am favoured wherever I find myself. I am Graced for every and any assignment the Lord has communicated. All that concerns me is soaked in the blood of Jesus. I carry the fire of God wherever I go. I operate with the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. I depend on the Holy Spirit. I am not a failure. I succeed at everything I do according to God's success standard. I flourish wherever I find myself. My presence changes any atmosphere I find myself in because I carry God wherever I go. I am a blessing to every man and woman who encounters me. God loves me dearly. I am forgiven and free of all guilt because of the blood of Jesus. I am seated in heavenly places far above all principalities and powers. I am blessed. I am victorious. I am full of joy, no matter the circumstances.

 

Remain in the blessings of God as you remain in Christ.

MD.