Song
We are grateful, O Lord! x2
For all You have done for us,
Alleluia!
We are grateful O! Lord.
You are the Lord that is Your Name, Your glory You share with no one. Who is like unto Thee, Father. Blessed Redeemer, we bow before Your Throne and we give You all Praises, all Adorations, all Honour to You. For the health You gave to us, we came to say thank you. For the life You gave to us, for protections, provisions, safety, freedom, deliverance, divine help, restorations, peace, for quietness even in midst of turbulence, for your love that never fail and above all the victories You won for us,.
Beloved, this is the last day for us in the ministry in this great month and we are here to appreciate God for His kindness and leading all through this month. Am sure you have a testimony and a thanksgiving offering to give to the Mighty King this day, bearing in mind that many started the year with you and today they are no more. You are not better nor richer than they are but His mercy kept you. Glory be to God.
I don’t know what you are believing God for, but what I do know is that our God is ABLE, so whatever it is, I encourage you to encourage yourself in the Lord and keep believing Him that all shall be well whether the devil likes it or not. Our God is able to see us through every circumstances in life.
Apostle Paul, in 1 Thess 5:18 said “in everything give thanks”, he means everything, whether it wonderful, met your expectation, below expectation, he said, give thanks. Sometime we have problem with it, we allow the flesh to take over us, we make demands from God as if He is owning us, some of us will even remind God that they paid their tithe, they sowed seed, they give big offerings to God’s project, then why is God not honoring His own part of the bargain.
As truthful as that may sound, God choose whom He want to bless and when to do same. We should count ourselves lucky that our giving are acceptable to him and not rejected (Gen 4:3-6). So we should be thankful all through our life and not bitter about any situation. Come let us give thanks and rejoice before our Maker; for He is good:
Thankfulness Or Bitterness
QUESTION: Do you happen to have a gnarly problem in your life that simply will not go away? There seems to be no solution?
“When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives, my brothers, don‘t resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends! Realize that they come to test your faith and to produce in you the quality of endurance. But let the PROCESS go on until that endurance is fully developed, and you will find that you have become men of mature character with the right sort of independence.” (James 1:2-4 – Phillips Translation)
How are you handling it?
- Pouting over it?
- Smashing it?
- Trying to ignore it?
- Running away from it?
Or thanking God for it!
… And asking Him to use the problem as a CHISEL in His hand to fashion you into Christlikeness?
Thankfulness is the mechanism that releases us from the bondage of life’s “UNSOLVABLES,” thereby giving God permission to use the “UNSOLVABLES” to mold our character into His.
Once we release our anger, our control… our “rights,” God is free to go to work… on us.!
Paul’s “UNSOLVABLE” problem was a physical one. Relatively easy perhaps compared to yours. Three times he asked God to remove the problem… To no avail. But in releasing it to God, he discovered the two resources he most needed to live with his enigma: God’s GRACE and God’s STRENGTH:
“And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for POWER IS PERFECTED IN WEAKNESS.‘ Most gladly therefore, I will rather boast about my weakness, that the power of Christ may dwell in me… for when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9, 10b)
“The same sun that softens the butter hardens the clay.” In living with our unresolved issues we have a CHOICE of becoming softened or hardened: Christlike or embittered.
Again… the choice is ours!
So, what have you decided to do, be thankful or be embittered? Whatever you choose to do, just know that circumstances don’t make or break a man but it simply……. Find out in the message below:
Circumstances Don’t Make Or Break A Man
“Circumstances don’t make or break a man… They simply reveal him.”
CIRCUMSTANCES: Are you surmounting yours or allowing them to get the best of you?
According to Psalm 84:5-7 the OVERCOMERS OF CIRCUMSTANCES have four characteristics:
- They draw their strength from God:
“How blessed is the man whose strength is in Thee… ” (Verse 5)
When you purchase a new automobile there are two ways to get it off the lot. Push it or drive it. Many Christians push their way through life, never tapping into the energy source that is rightfully theirs: Jesus.
- Their heart is 100% given over to God:
“In whose heart are the highways to Zion!” (Verse 5)
Here is a person with a single purpose: The highway to Zion. The highway to heaven. This is the pilgrim with blinders on, headed in one direction: Zion, his eternal home.
- They overcome and even change their difficult circumstances:
“Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring, the early rain also covers it with blessings.” (Verse 6)
Baca is a place of weeping, sorrow, sterility and possibly death. In this barren environment these “OVERCOMERS OF CIRCUMSTANCES” “make it a spring” of water, a source of refreshment, a place of hope and beauty. Rather than being overwhelmed by their circumstances, they change them for good!
- They become stronger and stronger until they cross the finish line.
“They go from strength to strength, every one of them appears before God in Zion.” (Verse 7)
These OVERCOMERS OF CIRCUMSTANCES “gain new strength, (mounting) up with wings like eagles. They… run and not get tired… walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)
And they all make it: “Everyone of them appears before God in Zion.” (Verse 7)
So, we have a choice: To live “under” the circumstances or rise above them.
What are your circumstances revealing about you? Are they making you or breaking you?
Beloved, write down these four qualities if you want become an “Overcomer” and you are good to go. The circumstances that comes our way will lead to greatest, it will make us better and stronger in the Lord. Finally, when we overcomer, our testimonies will encourage those around us in Jesus Name.
As we round off this month, let us ask God for the grace not only to finish well but strong in Jesus Name. The months ahead are blessed in Jesus Name. See you next month by the grace of God.
Remain blessed in the Lord.
