THE DIARY OF THE WORSHIPPER by Isaiah Fosu-Kwakye Jnr.

WHY EVERY BELIEVER/WORSHIP LEADER NEEDS THIS BOOK IN HIS/HER LIBRARY.

Some years ago, a foundation I work with organized a worship concert at Perez Chapel and Pastor Isaiah Fosu-Kwakye Jnr was one of the big names on it. As usual, the time for the program was up and instead of the people taking their seats they were outside chatting. I don’t know if it is a Ghanaian problem or an African thing. I later heard my coordinator saying that Pastor Isaiah was going to start the program. I thought it was a bad idea because of course he is Pastor Isaiah and must wait for the crowd. But it was Pastor Isaiah's decision to start. Mind you, this is the first time I was meeting this wonderful worshipper who I had been hearing about.
If you have been at any worship program where Pastor Isaiah ministered, you would have realized that he mostly likes to speak and sing in tongues before actually singing a song or two at most. Now, I have seen him worship with at most 2 songs for 40minutes. Something most ministers find difficult to do. When he was singing in tongues, the atmosphere just changed and I don’t know why but I decided to look outside. To my surprise, the only people standing outside were our own ticket ladies and other technical members. Everybody in the auditorium had their hands in the air like they were waiting for the upper room experience.

Now, this is where it gets interesting. For the program, I was in charge of video and photography. Since the program had begun, it was only right for me to ensure that the cameras were rolling and each member of the team was in position and doing their work. The two gentlemen on the master camera were recording, and so were the gentlemen working on the reaction shots of the crowd and that of the stage. The only person that was lost in action was the photographer. I would like to say that this gentleman is very professional. When it is time for work, all games must go on standby. So, as a good manager, I decided to go around and look for him. I was hoping to see him doing something that would demand a slap but I got the shock of my life. I found this gentleman a few steps from the stage with the camera off and strapped around his neck. And yes, his hands were up in the air and his eyes closed in worship. As I stood for a few seconds to be sure that I was not dreaming, all I could ask myself was “What is happening?” This gentleman is not a fan of worship so what is he doing. He is not the type to easily do this. So, what is happening? The answer is simple: HE HAD COME INTO CONTACT WITH A WORSHIPPER WHO WAS LEADING A PEOPLE TO THE THRONE ROOM.
Anyway, I still gave him a slap on the head. He could not be enjoying intimacy while we were working. And if you are thinking this is nothing, the same gentleman had to be slapped again by me when our church invited Pastor Isaiah for one of our quarterly worship programs. Again, the fact is: HE HAD COME INTO CONTACT WITH A WORSHIPPER WHO WAS LEADING A PEOPLE TO THE THRONE ROOM.

If like me, you have been wondering why Pastor Isaiah has that unique stage presence then the book to read is – “THE DIARY OF THE WORSHIPPER (His personal reflections on worship)”.  In this book, Pastor Isaiah shares his thoughts with scriptural references to the following:

• What worship is.
• What the worship altar is.
• Who benefits when we worship.
• Faith and worship
• The importance of meditating on the lyrics of a song during worship.
• The importance of staying on a particular song for a while during worship.
• The importance of a worship leader being in tune with the Lord. 
• The importance of having your own perception of God.
• Learning to ‘sing-say’ instead of ‘sing-sing’.
• Learning to wait in worship.
• Difference between ‘thinking worship’ and ‘telling worship’.
• Difference between a worshipper and a singer.
• The true definition of a gospel song.
• The John 2:1-12 revelation on worship every worship leader must know.
• The importance of worship leaders availing themselves as vessels for God.
• The Worship Leader and the Word of God.

One interesting chapter you should read when you get this book is Chapter 2 (God in Need?). This chapter speaks on a particular notion most Pastors and Gospel Musicians keep saying each time they are about to worship or speak about worship – “God can do all things but, one thing He cannot do for Himself is to praise or worship Himself”. That chapter was a big blow to my face. Get the book and you will thank me later after reading this particular chapter.

I wish to share all that I learned from the book with you, but I would not be encouraging Pastor Isaiah to write volume two. I would encourage you to grab a copy from any leading Christian Bookshop or better still send me an e-mail at trotrodevotion@gmail.com or a WhatsApp on 0557445225 for a cool price if you are in Ghana.

Remain in the blessings of the Lord as you remain in Christ.
Have a blessed week!

THE COLD HANDS OF DEATH

"I walk a path that will definitely lead to my death, but the thought of that particular death makes that path attractive than ever. I will prefer to die living for God, than for a man or myself." 

I used to think about death and shiver and quiver like a fish brought out of water. And each time I asked myself:
Why fear death as a believer if my home is not this place but above?
Why fear death as a believer if my life is in the hands of God, and only He can do as He pleases with it?
Why fear death as a believer if truly the one living in me is far greater than he who moves about the earth like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour?
Why fear death as a believer if the God I serve is truly the giver of life?
Why fear death as a believer if I am a product of the Lion of the Tribe of Judah?
Why fear death as a believer?

The truth is this: We fear death because truly our hearts are not on the things above. Unlike Apostle Paul, we are afraid to die because we know deep down within us we still wish to enjoy certain privileges and things of this earth before dying. We have not driven that Mercedes, that Range Rover, that Bugatti, that Chrysler, that Toyota, that Bentley, etc. We have not bought that mansion, we have not traveled to that country, we have not enjoyed this or that. And until we do that, most of us are not ready to think or talk about death.

Some deceive themselves that they are afraid to die because they have not completed their mission. For a few it may be true, but how can you complete a mission you have no idea of? How can you complete a mission you have no interest in? How can you complete a mission you have not enquired about? Again, the answer is this: Our hearts are on things below, not things above. It has nothing to do with your mission on earth Mr. and Mrs. Believer, it has everything to do with the content of your heart.

Colossians 3:2 (KJV)
Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.

Others are quick to say that they cannot and must not die now because God is the giver of a long life. That is true. But what is a long life in the sight of God? A long life before God has little to do with the length of days as men see it today. It has everything to do with your kingdom's achievements on earth. It has everything to do with your mission being accomplished successfully on earth. Enoch lived 365years and Methuselah lived 969years, yet Enoch was remembered for his walk with God. We know nothing about Methuselah on the other hand. We mostly believe that John the Baptist and Jesus died prematurely or died too young, but what else must they do in a foreign world after completing their mission when they have a better place awaiting their arrival? Deacon Stephen never feared death and by the end of Acts chapter seven (7) gave himself for the truth he held in his heart and cherished above his life. Apostle Paul was never afraid to die because he knew where he would be and was more than ready to get there quickly.

2 Corinthians 5:8 (KJV)
We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.

It is the same for the many young men and women who gave themselves up for the truth they cherished. But that can't be said of most believers today. Why? We have set our eyes on the things below than on the things above. We will do anything to keep our lives so we can fully enjoy our many lustful desires.

Matthew 10:39 (KJV)
He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

I am only thinking aloud. I should end here.
Stay blessed!

PRAYER
Lord, help my unbelief. Help me trust you when there is no hope. Help me trust in your perfect plan for my life always in Jesus' name.

IS THE LORD TRULY YOUR SHEPHERD?

"If you are in want, then THE LORD is not your Shepherd; something else is." - MD

Unlike most children, I was brought up with two major prayers from the Bible - "The Lord's Prayer" and Psalm 23. The Lord's Prayer was mostly for the morning, but Psalm 23 was for any time of the day, especially at bedtime.
Like some of you, I grew up believing that Psalm 23 was a prayer for protection and provision; until the Holy Spirit gave me insight this year by asking me a simple question during a prayer walk. I would also want to ask you the same question before we begin: "IS THE LORD TRULY YOUR SHEPHERD?"
If your answer is a big 'Yes' and you already think this is one of those useless posts, I will ask you to indulge a little more by reading further. We will begin with four (4) major points.

1) That you have accepted Jesus Christ as your LORD and your Personal Savior does not make HIM (THE LORD) your Shepherd automatically. You must ask Him and be prepared to let Him be.
2) Psalm 23 was not written as a prayer for protection and provision.
3) Psalm 23 was written to show believers the signs and benefits a person who has asked, accepted and allowed THE LORD to be their Shepherd enjoys.
4) The entire Psalm 23 rests on the statement, "THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD".

Psalm 23:1 (KJV)
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

David, a learned and Spirit-filled Prophet and King, understood God more than any other person. He had a personal Prophet and a Seer. As a King, he had access to all the books of the fathers. From the books, he knew God as Jehovah-Jireh, Jehovah-Rapha, Jehovah-Shalom, Jehovah-Nissi, Jehovah-Tsidkenu, etc. Yet, when David was talking about whom he had made the Shepherd of his life, he chose Jehovah; not Jehovah-Jireh (the Lord that Provides).

At this juncture, if you are confused then you are following. Let's quickly consider an example.

For example, My name is Paul. I am 30 years old. I am a husband, a writer, an editor, a church elder, 6th born of my father, a casual footballer, and a casual rapper.
Now, some people relate with me as an editor, others relate with me as a church elder, and others as a writer. Aside from relating to my wife as her husband, she benefits from every other aspect of my life because of our union.

Now, let's relate the above example to David's statement in Psalm 23 verse 1. Instead of David allowing an aspect/nature of God be his Shepherd, he rather chose to see and accept JEHOVAH for who He is and decide to have HIM (in full) as his Shepherd.

WHO IS JEHOVAH/WHAT DOES "JEHOVAH" MEAN?
Exodus 6:3 (KJV)
And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name, JEHOVAH was I not known to them.

According to the Hebrew translation, Jehovah means THE SELF-EXISTENT ONE/THE ETERNAL ONE.
The dictionary describes anyone or anything that is not caused to live by someone or something else as self-existent. That is, the thing or person lives independently.
Also, anyone or anything that is eternal has no beginning or end and exists at all times.
So, what God was saying to Moses when He called Himself Jehovah was that, "I do not need my creation to be God. I cannot be limited by the very time I created. I am God all by Myself"

This is the kind of God David chose to be his Shepherd. A God who will only do what pleases Him knowing best that that is what His Creation needs. So, instead of making Jehovah-Rapha his Shepherd so as to enjoy (only) healing, David rather chose Jehovah in order to benefit from the healing, the peace, the favor, the provision, the protection, etc. And all that was made manifest in King David's life. Unlike David, most of us have made just an aspect of Jehovah as our Shepherd so we find ourselves wanting in other areas of our lives.

Until Jehovah is your Shepherd/Ruler/Teacher/Companion, you will continue to want in other areas of your life. You will not lie down in green pastures. You will not be led beside the still waters. Your soul will not be restored. You will not be led in the path of righteousness for God's namesake. You will be afraid when you walk in the valley of the shadow of death. God's rod and staff will not comfort you. God will not prepare a table for you in the presence of your enemies. Your head will not be anointed. Your cup will not run over. Goodness and mercy will not follow you all the days of your life. You will not dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

If THE LORD has been, is and will forever truly be your Shepherd, you should have benefited, should be benefiting and should forever benefit from the good things - peace, restoration, protection, provision, honor, etc - mentioned in Psalm 23.



PRAYER
Lord Jesus, from today I ask and permit you to be the Shepherd of my life. I refuse to have anything to do with the devil and his demons. I will from today do as you wish no matter how difficult it may look or feel. This I promise to do with the Holy Spirit you have given to empower me. Thank you, Lord Jesus.

YOU ARE NOT ALWAYS PRAYING BECAUSE YOU HAVE NOT READ AND UNDERSTOOD LUKE CHAPTER 18 VERSE 1 TO 8

“Prayer should be the key of the day and the lock of the night” – George Herbert

Luke 18:1 (KJV)
And He spake a parable unto them to this end, that MEN OUGHT ALWAYS TO PRAY, and not to faint;

According to Luke chapter 18 verse 1, Jesus was about to share a parable with a believer – it could be a pastor, evangelist, prophet, apostle, pastor’s wife, choir member, sanctuary cleaner, youth member, prayer warrior, drummer, keyboardist, usher, banker, journalist, politician, professor, teacher, DJ, filmmaker, etc, to affirm a statement and way of thinking as the son of God; which is, “MEN HAVE TO ALWAYS PRAY, and not to FAINT”.

In other words, Jesus is sharing this parable with us with just one agenda: TO MAKE YOU AND I SEE THE NEED TO ALWAYS PRAY, AND NOT TO FAINT. This parable has no other meaning to a believer than to teach him/her the importance of prayer.


“The opposite of a PRAYERFUL man is a FAINTING man, not a PRAYERLESS man” – Apostle Arome Osayi

Luke 18:2-4 (KJV)
2 Saying, there was in a city A JUDGE, which FEARED NOT GOD, neither REGARDED MAN:
3 And there was A WIDOW in that city; and she came unto him, saying, AVENGE ME OF MINE ADVERSARY.
4 And he would not for a while: BUT AFTERWARD he said within himself, though I FEAR NOT GOD, NOR REGARD MAN;

According to Jesus, there was a city which had a Judge who did not fear God, nor had respect for people. In that same city where the Judge lived was a Widow who needed urgent judgment against her enemy. So, she decided to visit the chambers of this Judge in that city for him to grant her justice.

On the first day the Judge, who did not fear God nor had respect for people, ignored her. And this attitude and decision of the Judge continued for a long time. But, this Widow kept going to the Judge with the same request daily.

After a period of time, the Judge decided to change his mind and grant the Widow the justice she needed. The Judge did not want to grant her the justice initially, but he finally did it. WHY?

Luke 18:6 (KJV)
And the Lord said, HEAR what the unjust judge saith.

At this juncture of the parable, Jesus gives you and I a quick assignment: “HEAR WHAT THE UNJUST JUDGE SAID”. In other words, you and I must go back and reread what the unjust judge said to himself before granting the widow her heart's desire.

To Jesus, that statement is the key you and I need to better understand; what He is trying to say about US (BELIEVERS) ALWAYS PRAYING. And that statement can be found in the fourth and fifth verse of Luke chapter 18.

Luke 18:4-5 (KJV)
4 And he would not for a while: BUT AFTERWARD he said within himself, though I FEAR NOT GOD, NOR REGARD MAN;
5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I WILL AVENGE HER, lest by her continual coming she weary me.

I will use the original Greek translation for us to better understand what Jesus is driving at. I am doing this because our understanding of OUR NEED TO ALWAYS PRAY stands/rests on our understanding of what the unjust Judge said within him before granting the Widow her justice.

This is what the unjust Judge said within himself, “Though I do not fear God nor have respect for people; yet because this Widow KEEPS SHOWING UP/PRESENTING HERSELF BEFORE ME, I will grant her justice. If not, her continuous coming to me will annoy me.”


“Is Prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” – Corrie ten Boom

Luke 18:7-8 (KJV)
7 And shall not God avenge His own elect, WHICH CRY DAY AND NIGHT UNTO HIM, though He bear long with them?
8 I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?

From the above, this is what Jesus is trying to tell you and me; “If the unjust Judge decided to grant the Widow justice because she KEPT SHOWING UP/PRESENTING HERSELF BEFORE HIM, why would God not do something for you and me, believers who have been bought and washed by the precious blood of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, if we would only continuously CRY/TALK/PRAY unto Him day and night according to His Will.”

In other words, God will surely answer the prayers of believers if they will continuously pray unto Him day and night according to His Will, and be patient with Him.

Brothers and sisters, STOP expecting answers from God if you only SHOW UP/PRESENT YOURSELF to Him weekly, monthly, quarterly or yearly.


"Our continuous SHOWING before God is proof of our faith in Him" - MD

HAVE YOU CONSIDERED THE WAY YOU ARE LIVING?

[BUILD THE TEMPLE BEFORE YOU DO ANY OTHER THING (2)]

When the Israelites were considering their needs instead of rebuilding the Temple of God for God to rest in, strange things were happening in and around them. It was happening to them each day. They saw it happen to their neighbors also as they experienced it, but they could not see the hand of God in it. They thought it was normal because everybody was going through it. So, the Lord drew their attention to what they were failing to notice as a sign from Him to them.


Haggai 1:5-7, 9-10 (TLB)
5 Look at the result:
6 You plant much but harvest little. You have scarcely enough to eat or drink and not enough clothes to keep you warm. Your income disappears, as though you were putting it into pockets filled with holes!
7 “Think it over,” says the Lord Almighty. “Consider how you have acted and what has happened as a result!
9 “You hope for much but get so little. And when you bring it home, I blow it away – it doesn’t last at all. Why? Because my Temple lies in ruins, and you don’t care. YOUR ONLY CONCERN IS YOUR OWN FINE HOMES.
10 That is why I am holding back the rains from heaven and giving you such scant crops.


According to the above scripture, they were harvesting little after planting much because of their failure to rebuild the temple. So, if they knew that, they would have been wise to continue with the rebuilding of the Temple of God for God.

If they knew that they scarcely had enough to eat or drink because of their failure to rebuild the temple, they would have been wise to continue with the rebuilding of the Temple of God for God.

If they knew that they did not have enough clothes to keep them warm because of their failure to rebuild the Temple, they would have been wise to continue with the rebuilding of the Temple of God for God.

If they knew that their income was disappearing as though they were putting it into pockets filled with holes because of their failure to rebuild the Temple, they would have been wise to continue with the rebuilding of the Temple of God for God.

If they knew that they had little when they were hoping for much and the little they were bringing home were being blown away and were not lasting because of their failure to rebuild the Temple, they would have been wise to continue with the rebuilding of the Temple of God for God.

If they knew that the rains from heaven were being held back and they were receiving scanty crops because of their failure to rebuild the Temple, they would have been wise to continue with the rebuilding of the Temple of God for God.

If they had known, they would have been quick to rebuild the temple before doing any other thing. But, they failed to notice because they were not considering what was happening to them as a result of their inactions.

They were not considering their lives!

It is the same today. Our failure to notice the little things happening to us because of our failure to rebuild our spiritual walk/life with God is the reason we are going through those little things each day and ignorantly blaming the devil. But the devil is not to blame, YOUR SO-CALLED "CHRISTIAN LIFE” is to blame.
If you have placed the world, thus, the cares of this world, before God, then you are to blame; not the devil!


Matthew 6:33 (TLB) (emphasized)
And He will give them [(food, drink, clothes)] to you IF YOU GIVE HIM FIRST PLACE IN YOUR LIFE AND LIVE AS HE WANTS YOU TO.


Until you put God first, you are to blame, not the devil! The devil has no right over a believer, God does! And God will do everything in His power to grab the attention of His children again. Even if it means taking away what they love most.

So, how are you living your life as a Believer/Christian? Are you living your life for God or for man? Are you living your life according to what God wants or what man wants?

If your answer so far has been in the favor of man, you should now understand why you are going through such misery in life. You should understand why you are still living a powerless life though your Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, had all power and authority in Heaven and Earth given to Him. You should understand why other believers are happily manifesting the power of God when you are not.


CONSIDER YOUR LIFE!

REBUILD THE TEMPLE BEFORE YOU DO ANY OTHER THING.

Haggai 1:8 (TLB)
“Then go up into the mountains, bring down timber, and REBUILD MY TEMPLE, and I will be pleased with it and appear there in my glory,” says the Lord.

When the Israelites returned home after their time of exile in Babylon, their first and main assignment from the Lord through the Prophet Haggai was for them to rebuild the Temple. In God's plan, for His children, Israel, to be considered as a nation, they needed to build a Temple of God for God. Israel would never be a nation without a Temple of God for God to rest in. To be a nation, Israel needs a Temple for God, not a human governmental structure.

The Israelites in this scripture happen to be believers like you and me who once lost our way in the world and have finally returned home to God by rededicating our lives to Him. Again, Prophet Haggai is giving us the first step we need to take for a fruitful and lasting walk with God. Prophet Haggai is asking you and me to rebuild the Temple for God before doing any other thing.


1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (TLB)
16 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the house of God and that the Spirit of God lives among you in his house?
17 If anyone defiles and spoils God’s home, God will destroy him. For God’s home is holy and clean, and you are that home.

1 Corinthians 6:19 (TLB)
Haven’t you yet learned that your body is the home of the Holy Spirit God gave you and that he lives within you? Your own body does not belong to you.


If you still do not understand what I am driving at, I am not talking about you going to buy land to start a building project for God. The Temple of God today is far different from what it used to be then. The Temple of God is YOU and ME. It is YOU! The Temple of God is YOU, the person reading this.
Our ignorance of the above fact is the reason we are facing difficulties in our Christian walk. When we, therefore, come to the realization that the Temple of God is not the beautiful edifice we meet in every Sunday or Thursday or Friday to worship but our own bodies, we will begin to better understand our Christian walk.

Like the Israelites then, most of us know or knew this before we fell for the things of the world.
Like the Israelites then, most of us started rebuilding the Temple but stopped because of external opposition, discouragement, and self-interest.
Like the Israelites then, we had seemingly good reasons to stop rebuilding the Temple.

But, what we are not considering now is what they also did not consider then – the danger of NOT BUILDING THE TEMPLE.
Like them, we are not considering the absence of an Almighty Ruler, the absence of divine law and order, the absence of divine development or developmental structures, etc.

Then, the Lord was very surprised at the actions of the Israelites; and He is surprised that we are walking in the same ignorance today. The Lord did not expect the Israelites to think of themselves when the correct structure – A Temple of God for God – was not in place.
It did not make sense or look right for His people, called by His name, to think of themselves first when they knew very well that they had to put the correct structure in place first, which was God's Temple

It is the same today. The Lord does not expect you to be thinking of your worldly needs when you have not thought of your spiritual need, which is Him (GOD). Why? When your attention is on the Spiritual need (GOD) first, the physical needs will automatically align themselves to you.


Matthew 6:33 (TLB)
And He will give them [(food, drink, clothes)] to you if you give Him first place in your life and live as He wants you to.


To the Lord, it did not make sense for the Israelites to think of settlement when they did not have a Temple in place for Him to rest in.
And it is the same story today. We are thinking of our physical needs more than our spiritual need – GOD. We are more concerned about what we need to eat, what we need to wear, where to sleep, the business to establish, who to marry, the car to buy, etc.

What happened to we knowing Jesus for ourselves? What happened to us understanding salvation with fear and trembling? What happened to us walking in faith like the heroes of faith in Hebrew 11? What happened to us praying without ceasing? What happened to us putting on the whole armor of God so that we will be able to stand safe against all the strategies and tricks of satan? What happened?!


Haggai 1:2-4 (TLB)
2 “Why is everyone saying it is not the right time for rebuilding my Temple?” asks the Lord.
3-4 His reply to them is this: “Is it then the right time for you to live in luxurious homes when the Temple lies in ruins?


If like the Israelites then, you are still saying or thinking this: “IT IS NOT THE RIGHT TIME FOR ME TO REBUILD MY TEMPLE”, you are walking or living in a demonic delusion from the pit of hell my brother/sister.


THE TIME TO REBUILD THE TEMPLE IS NOW! (…to be continued)

CHURCH FLYER DISTRIBUTION IS CHURCH FLYER DISTRIBUTION, NOT EVANGELISM!

"If your specialty as a believer is to distribute your church's flyer every week or weekend in the name of "evangelism" without speaking to the recipient about Jesus, then you are Church Flyer Distributor doing Church Flyer Distribution; that is not evangelism and you are surely not fulfilling the Great Commission as a believer."

I was one day walking in town when a beautiful lady walked up to me and gave me a beautifully designed and neatly printed flyer. First of all, I was amazed at the quality of the print as a wannabe designer so I quickly decided to scrutinize the print work. As usual, it was the flyer of a growing church. It had the name of the church and talked about a three-day program which the church was about to organize for people having financial problems or who wanted to see a dramatic change in their financial status. It was a front-and-back print work so I turned it to read what was written at the back. At the back were testimonies given by people who had attended previous sessions of the program, and this served as a motivation of a sort for the reader to take advantage of the upcoming one.

All I could say in my head was, “This is a good marketing strategy!” But, I had a problem with the flyer and with the one distributing it. The flyer NEVER SHOWED ME OR SPOKE TO ME ABOUT JESUS. The flyer distributor also DID NOT SPEAK TO ME ABOUT JESUS.  It was more about the Pastor and his gift, and less of THE PERSON THAT CREATED THE PASTOR AND GAVE HIM THE GIFT.

I quickly asked, “How could this change my life or save my life from Hell if I am to die some minutes after reading this?”  How?!

There was nothing in that flyer to speak to me about the Saviour Jesus. There was nothing in that flyer to speak of the Heavenly Father’s love for me. There was nothing in that flyer to convict me of my sins. There was nothing in that flyer to show me the power Christ has to cleanse my sins with His blood. There was nothing in that flyer to encourage me to draw closer to God. There was nothing in that flyer to talk to me about Holiness. There was nothing in that flyer to speak to me about true repentance. There was nothing in that flyer to speak to me about my Adamic nature. There was nothing in that flyer to speak to me about the Cross of Jesus Christ and its benefit to me. There was nothing. Absolutely nothing!

You may be thinking that I am being too hard because some Pastors use these programs as an opportunity to talk about the power of Jesus Christ to change lives. That is very true. But you said "some", not all Pastors. What happens to the poor souls who attend programs that have no connection to Jesus Christ? What happens to them? For some, the world has already given them the money and the worldly materials that they desired and made them lose focus on God. Why then is the church trying to offer them that same thing when we know the consequences of being very desirous or lustful of money instead of God?

I expected the testimony to focus on the power of Christ to change situations. It rather went on and on about how the man of God made people sow certain seeds and had millions afterward. It rather went on and on about how the man of God saw demons fighting the finance of a man and had to cast them out for the man to become a millionaire today. If the lady had even spent a minute or two to share Jesus with me, she would have been fulfilling the Great Commission given by Jesus Christ. But she didn’t! She was far interested in making sure that the flyers in her hand were all distributed in the shortest possible time so that her church would be full of people on the said date, unlike a few others who use the flyer as an avenue to speak to others about the changing power in the name and person of the man Jesus Christ.

SPEAK TO THEM ABOUT JESUS, not your Church.
INVITE THEM TO JESUS, not your Church programs.
CONNECT THEM TO JESUS, not your various Church groups.
SHOW THEM THE LOVE OF JESUS! The world needs Jesus, not our programs, structures, strategies or gifts. 



"If you cannot speak to me about Jesus, do not approach me with your church flyer. My attending your church would not assure me of my salvation. It is my connection to Jesus Christ that will."