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BIBLE AND WEALTH

MORE BLESSING IN GIVING THAN RECEIVING!

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When I was growing up in elementary school, I had a teacher who always advised us to teach each other after classes on topics that some of us did not understand. The selfish students among us did not practice the advice of our teacher. However, I realised that the more some of us explained our understanding on a topic to our peers, the more clarification or understanding we got on those topics. I carried this quality to the university level and it was still helpful. Spending some time to clarify lecture notes to colleagues is not time wasting but very beneficial to the student doing it.  How true the scripture is in Act 20:35 which reads “….it is more blessed to give than to receive”.

 Some countries like the U.S.A., Britain, Germany and many others have become rich because of several development policies they have implemented over the years including aid support to less endowed countries. A church or institution which gives to support others become rich.The principle of giving and receiving is a spiritual principle and operates for everyone who obeys it.

Less endowed people always look up to rich people for hand outs. Rich people mostly give out to people and as a result become richer. The rich people would hardly blame some ‘entities’ for where they are but more often than not, the less endowed would blame almost everybody for their current state of deprivation. You may have a legitimate reason to blame an external force for your current poor state but that should stop at a point in time. What is important is to move forward to bring about a positive change in status rather than engaging in the ‘blame game’ business.

No matter how small what you have is, you can give out to pull yourself out of poverty or deprivation. What you give may not be in monetary terms; you can give out your time to help out people in need of it. You can give out your ideas to help in the development of people around you. Giving always comes with a reward greater than what you gave though the reward may not be in kind!

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BIBLE AND WEALTH

BECOME BETTER IN 2014 THAN…..

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In December every year, a lot of activities take place including the characteristic merry making euphoria. Also, most people take stock of the whole year and try to improve on areas which need improvement though some individuals and institutions do their stock taking in other months of every year. Whichever period we do our stock taking really does not matter; it is the content that matters. Stock taking exercise has come to be known as New Year Resolutions and for churches, we prefer using the word ‘theme of the year’ to mean the broad objective of the church for the year.

The question I would like to ask in this article is this- what is your New Year Resolution for 2014? Almost all churches have their themes or New Year Resolutions for 2014 and these themes directly or indirectly affect the members of the church.

As individuals, the contents of our New Year Resolutions are very important. Irrespective of the style of writing our New Year Resolutions, we should aim at implementing these resolutions for us to become better in 2014 than we were in 2013. Our Resolutions should aim at developing our human spirits and our minds in order to influence the environment around us. We must see ourselves growing more in the word of God, in the propagation of the gospel of Jesus Christ and in our professions. If we have so much of the word of God in us and we are lacking in skills for our professional careers, then somethings may be wrong and need immediate correction. I have come across several so called Christians who claim that they know the word of God but have nothing to show for it. We should be living testimonies of the Gospel. The child of God has to be an ‘all-round person’ because as the good book says, we are the light of the world.

The word of God is always important to give us an urge in this turbulent world. We must also aim at closely walking with the Holy Spirit because He reveals more of Jesus and His word to us for us to know what to do at any particular time. Happy and Prosperous New Year to everyone.  

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BIBLE AND WEALTH

HAVE FAITH IN GOD

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Most of us, if not all, have boarded commercial vehicles and or airplanes before. Anytime we are going on-board, we do not go asking for the experience records of the drivers or pilots to be sure that they can take us to our destinations safely. More often than not, we do not even get the opportunity to see or have chats with the drivers or pilots before departure. We only hear their voices intermittently in the course of the journeys. During the journeys, we are confident that we will get to our destination safely. But you will agree with me that in spite of the confidence we usually have in the drivers or pilots, some vehicles and airplanes have crashed before because of varying causes.

If we are this confident in the drivers or pilots and in the airplanes and navigation gadgets which sometimes fail us, then we should be more confident in God who is so big and never fails.

Faith is an important element for Christian growth. However, most Christians find it difficult to develop and demonstrate their faith. As somebody once said, God does not respond to our tears but rather He responds to our faith. The good book says in Hebrew 11:6 that “But 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. Faith in God is trusting God or confident assurance in God. Hebrews 11: 1 defines it best as “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. Faith in God is trusting the word of God to deliver its offers because the word of God is life and spirit.

How do we develop our faith in God? Romans 10: 17 states that “So then faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God”. We need to enrich our mind and spirit with the word of God. This is the way to develop our faith in God. We need to watch tapes and videos of men of God teaching the word of God. As we listen and watch, faith ‘swells’ up in us; our confidence builds up and we are able to receive direction from God for areas in our lives. You will suddenly realise that you are doing the right things and getting good results.  You will also have the special experience of God’s word flowing in your thought every now and then.

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BIBLE AND WEALTH

BRING FORTH GOOD THINGS

ID-10033670Can you imagine a world where everything is perfect? Can we have a world where there are no robberies, no murders, no diseases, no poverty and deprivation, no pollution and what have you? What a utopian proposition! The statistics of the elements above are always not pleasant for most countries on this planet. All of us have the ability and responsibility to make this world a better place but not all of us have the mind-set of making the world a better place- that is why some people work to generate wealth and some others refuse to work but will rather rob the wealth of others. Why is this the case? We are going to explore this using the scripture below.

A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things (Matthew 12:35). You will always give what you possess and you cannot give what you don’t possess. If you give what you don’t possess, then it is likely that you have either stolen from somewhere to give out or you have borrowed from somewhere to give out.

A good man always has good treasure and therefore brings forth good things. Good men will not rob from people; good men will not murder; good men will not blame the systems of the world as being responsible for every bad thing that happens but will rather contribute to ensuring that the world is a safe haven for everybody on earth. A good man will always discover something glorious and share to improve the lives of people in the world. A good man will invest in appropriate sectors after hearing from God. A good man will hunger for increase in order to bless the world. A good man is full of love, hope and faith. If you love people, hurting them will never be an option.

The negative things happening in the world now are as a result of the fall of man resulting in a heart that always brings forth evil things. To change an evil heart requires the word of God. Therefore if you want to enjoy the treasures of prosperity and meaning in life, change your heart by receiving the gospel of Jesus Christ.   You may have heard the phrase “born again” several times and may not have been moved by it. But this is the truth, to be born again is to discover who you truly are and the abilities God has deposited in you to bless yourself and the world around you. “Born again” goes beyond mere religious rhetoric.  

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