Godliness is having the form of God; being conscious, sensitive and in constant awe of who He is!!
True sign of Godliness is having your heart in the right place; and with God in you, everything in and around you fades away.
True sign of Godliness is when you start hating sin and detesting the things of the world.
Signs of Godliness:
1. Godliness will take away the mode of vague and unnecessary talks. 2. Godliness will take away the desire of delighting in the things & entertainment of the world. 3. Godliness will fade in you the taste for sin and remove every sinful nature in you. 4. Godliness will uproot ungodly relationships and destroy every bit of unrighteous nature. 5. Godliness will release a sense of fear of God and His presence around you. 6. Godliness will create a sense of newness, clean heart and consecration in you. 7. Godliness will take us into God’s will. 8. Godliness will turn us into the likeness of God inside out. 9. Godliness is the essence of God in us. 10. Godliness is the transformation into God’s very nature and likeness.
A lot of Christian have a mindset of doing good things, living a life on the edge of commandments, and walk your life to Joy. That’s the life we live. We don’t go one extra mile above to this.
Apostle Paul says, we’re only babes when we come to the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Our actual growth begins in the spirit. Our spirit man must not only be quickened, but need to grow stronger day by day. The Lord is Spirit. The spirit of God abides in the spirit of man, and that’s where the spirit of man begins to grow.
1. Price of Spiritual growth:
Make no mistake; your spirit doesn’t grow simply because you’ve one time accepted the Lord Jesus; you go to church and give your tithe. Never!
When you accept the Lord, you’ll need to die to self first.
Peter writes: “So get rid of all evil behaviour. Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech”. – Eph 4:31
One must get rid of all this evil behaviour, and unholiness. Strive to be Holy and righteous through the help of the Holy spirit desired by you. You need to have the desire to get ride off these things and carry Holiness. It is almost impossible for God to do anything with you and in you, if you’re not clean and Holy. This criteria cannot be compromised. If you’re struggling with being Holy, then you’re far from the Fullness of God’s gift of His life for you.
Those who are born of God doesn’t not continue to sin! if you’re struggling with it, then you still need to do away with sin yet.
Die to self everyday, train your body to obey your spirit, as Paul does. And walk in Holiness. That’s the price of Spiritual growth.
2. Sign of Spiritual Growth:
1 Peter 2:2: “Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment“.
When you’re done with paying the price of Spiritual growth(walking in the spirit), there’s a sense of hunger that you develop automatically. It’s like you’re out of fever, and back to normal. The appetite you lost, is regained back.
There is a craving for the Lord. An unusual hunger and thirst for the Lord. This is the next phase of Spiritual growth. The hunger facilitates a believer to feed more on the word of God, seek Him more through prayers with an undying desire for the Lord.
These are sure indication of Spirituam growth. They will create an appetite that allows you to feast on God until your spirit is full. It’s the hunger of your spirit.
Remember, any unholy thing that you feed on during this phase will take you back to nullifying the appetite of your spirit for God.
3. Measure of our spiritual growth:
The Spiritual growth is often measured by the fullness of His Spirit in us.
When Jesus went into wilderness to be tested,
1. He overcame the first stage of dying to self.
2. He had the hunger for father, an appetite that kept Him away from all evil plots and temptations.
3. After this, He came out of the wilderness ‘Full of the Holy spirit’.
Stephen was testified as the Man full of the Holy spirit. for he had reached that fullness and could pray that prayer of forgiveness even in the jaws of death.
One of the other illustration could be Ezekiel 34, the level of water raising from the toe, feet, ankles, heels, stomach, neck and finally submerge totally.
The current of water has the strength to take you anywhere the current flows. In the fullness of Holy Spirit, it is often the Lord who takes over. It is a very deep level of intimacy and complete dependency on God.
This is exactly what God wants each of us to have:- “The Fullness of Holy Spirit.”
God gave Himself to us in full measure. He didn’t withheld anything, but gave up everything for us. It is with us as to how much we take hold of Him, and how much we let Him take hold of us!
“When our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work.” (ESV) – Nehemiah 4:15
(Speak it aloud over you!)
Who are you?:I’m made in the image of God, clothed in power and strength of the Holy Ghost. I’m called to operate in the capacity of God. I speak and call forth the plan of God to establish over my life in Jesus name.
Taking charge of the enemy:I declare and decree every plans of my enemy is nullified. I speak confusion in the camp of my enemy. Every scheme of his shall work to entrap the devil himself. Let distraction walk his way, and take him down by force. The God of my life shall frustrate the plans of my enemies. Not one will prevail, not one will pass. Everything will come to halt and turn to nothing.
Everything that went by me, that which I missed in my yesteryear I call them out back to life, and back here. Back in Jesus name in double fold, with double interest. I declare in Jesus name that the blessing which is held, and is stuck for long shall be released, at my command you’re to come back to me; come running and join the will of God for my life. I break the chains and shackels that has withheld any and every blessing over my life to be released, unleash over my life and my family in Jesus name.
‘Victory’ I claim it loud and clear. I’m the chosen vessel of God. I will stand and declare the works of the Lord that is being established over my life.
The hand of God over my life has crushed the work of the enemy, his bones are crushed, and his plans thereofshattered. Hallelujah!
I’m under the saving hand of God that protects me, shields me, and preserves me.
I remain under the banner of Jesus name. As for me and my family, we stay under the hand of God, forever. Amen!!
I recieve it, walk into it and experience it! Glory Glory Glory to Him who sits on the throne, forever and ever. Amen and Amen!!
Have you ever felt like you’re going in circles and not making any progress? At least not the kind of progress you are expecting.
The constant appeals of the world is pulling you in a million different directions, causing you to question if you’re headed in the right one? You have plans and dreams that you want to fulfill, but life is confusing at times. And there are days it seems like you’re just surviving instead of living out those dreams or accomplishing your goals.
Numerous distractions. Too many choices. Endless interruptions!!
There have been days I’ve felt like one foot on the ground, while my other foot scurried in every direction. Spending a lot of energy and mental fatigue, but going nowhere. Can you relate?
Wouldn’t it be awesome to wake up every morning and be assured you’re on the right path? To know with certainty that you’re headed in the right direction? To feel confident with each step without constantly questioning yourself?
Too many times I’ve second-guessed a decision I was confident about. I want so desperately to follow God’s will, but then feel uncertain, not wanting to make a wrong move. I wonder: Maybe this isn’t what I’m supposed to be doing. Maybe this isn’t part of God’s plan for my life.
As I wrestled with indecision and insecurity, I’ve sought God’s Word for help. A few months ago I found a priceless nugget of truth in the Bible. It addresses our desire for guidance and shows us what to do when we need a clear-cut direction.
King David composed these words in a beautiful psalm, tucked within the pages of the Old Testament:
“Show me the right path, O LORD; point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you” (Psalm 25:4-5).
These verses reveal David’s humble and learning heart. He wanted to be guided by God and led by His truth. David knew God was his Savior and placed all his hope in the One who created the right path for him.
We find the answers to David’s request for guidance only a few short passages away. Promises we can claim for our own lives:
“The LORD is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray. He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way. The LORD leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all who keep his covenant and obey his demands” (Psalm 25:8-10, NLT).
When our hearts are humble and truly seeking God’s will, we can be confident of this:
1. God will always show us what is right for us. 2. When we get sidetracked, God will direct us back to the right path. 3. We are not alone. God leads and teaches us along the way.
4. God leads those who obey Him with unfailing love and faithfulness.
If you’re unsure about some things in your life, don’t wait another day to figure it out on your own. Ensure your heart is in the right place of humility, and then ask God to help you. Once you’ve asked, simply trust that God is directing you!.
If you know you’ve gotten on the wrong path, seek God for direction instead of looking to the world for answers. As you take steps to follow and obey God’s voice, He will lovingly show you the way.
Months ago I asked the Lord to etch these verses on my heart and mind so I’d always have them with me — especially the days when I feel like I’m going in circles and lacking direction.
Today, if you’re there and you can relate this to your life, I bring this to you. God will surely direct your paths and lead you into the peaceful green pastures. So, get going!He is our good shepherd.
Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him (Ps 127:3). It is a woman’s joy and privilege to give birth to children. They are everything a woman would want to have. There are few women in the Bible whose wombs were shut. They struggled with barrenness, and transited to be a great blessing. The Process prepared them for the greatness.
Sarah, though a chosen vessel, and the wife of the friend of God, faced barreness. Her womb was shut. Not a curse, but just the shut womb.
Hannah, loved by her husband was given a double portion and was shown more love. She definitely would be a woman of good nature. Yet, her womb was shut.
Elizabeth, a righteous and a godly woman, dedicated to the Lord’s service along with her husband, in the temple of God, and yet her womb was shut.
A shut door doesn’t always mean a curse, a barrier, or a shame!
In the kingdom of God, a shut door is the phase of preparation for a greater glory.
God shut the door of Noah’s ark to preserve a generation. The tomb of Jesus was shut and sealed. On the third day out of the shut door came forth the ResurrectedJesus. If God has shut some door in your life, He is either preserving or preparing you!
God shuts some doors, slows down some process and halts certain phases to push us through that breakout point of transformation. During this wilderness, nothing around you seems to work. No progress; only stillness. It is so hard-pressing as if you’d either want to give up, or strive to emerge out.
In this process, God cultivates in us the very essence required to birth out great things. Like the pregnant women in pain during delivery trying to push the child out, to a new life.
God chooses some vessels and shuts them in the wilderness to push forth a new life out of them. Sarah, Hannah, Elizabeth, and many more went through challenging times of great shame, taunts, discouraging voices, insults, hurdles, pain, agony, and yet they stood. God was working greatness in them behind their shut doors.
At the right appointed time of their breakthroughs, each of them brought forth the greatest prophets of the century; they shook the world, wrote history and created a legacy.
Are you someone behind the shut door of: Job, financial crises, marriage, children, provision, healing, or a miracle?
Are you going through pain, agony, and shame?
Let this word be known to you, what will birth out of you in this season will not be ordinary. You will rise above and beyond your companions, to write history and create legacy!
Hold on, God is birthing greatness out of you. Just remain at His feet until He’s done with you!
Endless efforts are put to fight the Pain, agony and struggles. It is as if life is getting tougher day by day. Let’s face it : there are times we have the strength to fight, there are times we collapse; there are times we feel helpless and stuck; and times we don’t know what to do!
I’m glad there are people in the Bible who had a similar situation, even tougher ones. The Psalmist Asaph had many challenges and storms. He seemed to have lost God somewhere, as if God had abandoned or is angry with him. He wept, wailed, and shouted. He couldn’t sleep, he was distressed, hopeless and lost!
But how he responded to the situation caught my attention! Let’s read this:
After all the wailing and weeping, he stood the ground and said: “But then I recall all you have done, O LORD; I remember your wonderful deeds of long ago” – Psalm 77:11
He sat down, and re-read the God he knew. He travelled back to those junctions of his memory where he encountered God. One by one he pulled them out and read them aloud to himself:
I was down and hopeless, but the Lord came to my rescue!
I was sick and dying, but the Lord miraculously healed me!
I was rejected and looked down, but the Lordlifted me and gave me position and honour!
I was sorrowful, but the Lord brought Joy!
I was in a mess, but the Lord traded beauty for ashes!
I was so confused, but the Lord took over and directed my steps!
I’m overwhelmed at the wonders of God in my life!
He recalled them all to his mind,flashed those memories before his situations. His faith began to rise! His strength gathered. His past memory of God began to defeat his present challenges and storm.
“I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings.” Psalm 77:12
He whispered to himself: The same God that I met before, is the same God whom I serve today. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. What he did before, He will do it again! I will see the hand of God like I saw before. I will see the salvation of God, like I tasted before! The God of wonders is still alive, He did it at Egypt, and He will do it today, and He will do it again!
Life sprang forth even as he recollected from the pool of memories with God. It is wonder how God works through our memories. There is power embedded within it. Every memory of yours with God has a small seed of faith fold in it. In your times of dark, open it, and light it up. It will spark the miracle for you!
Remember always; When you’re stuck, when you’re sinking, and when you’re helpless, the gift of memory is a powerful tool. Unwind to those junctions of God’s blessings. Recall and bring to your attention, the acts of God, meditate and ponder on them. Speak of them; Let it sink, absorb and release the faith. It will invoke God’s power and invite God to move over you, and you shall rise!
Memory is indeed a beautiful gift and a weapon of Recovery. You’ll be suprised how recollecting memories can do wonders!
Jacob, the Lord’s chosen wasn’t exempted of painful journeys. When he learnt about the death of Joseph, He wept for the loss of his most beloved son and for many years his joy was incomplete. Everytime he saw the coat he gifted Joseph, his pain would shoot up unbearably and he wept bitterly. It was a deep pain inside his heart. Though Joseph was alive, God hide this truth from him for almost 20 years.
In all those years Jacob didn’t get any dream, vision or a word about Joseph being alive. Remember, Jacob was walking, talking and having communion with God everyday.
Years of pain, kept for a purpose. Jacob began to lean on God. His strength failed him, and this kept him near to God. The Loss of his beloveds, first his wife Rachel whom he loved the most and then his favourite son Joseph both was too heavy a pain for him to bear alone.
When Jacob saw Joseph as the Prime minister of Egypt, the pain he bore for years turned into Joy, his strength revived. It was worth; worth all those years he silently bore. Finally the day dawned, the sun shown, the hidden pain revealed in Joy, Jacob bowed down and worshipped the sovereign God.
Paul had a pain, a thorn in his flesh, and God did not remove it, but poured grace to sustain. He wrote half of the new testament.
There are some paths that God allows us to travel, and He breaks us on the way, until our strength is sapped. Until we are broken and fall dead. And for our sake He keeps a part of the pain, not as a curse but as a blessing. A reminder, an element of God’s dependency. That’s His way of making!
Every great men of God had a broken past, pain and hurt that kept them bent, and they walked straight and long, in the strength of God.
When we don’t understand this, we would only be fighting against this pain. Pain remains a pain as long as you fight it but when you begin to accept, it turns into healing. Let it work on you, God has hidden a purpose in your pain. He plans our life meticulously, and articulates them wonderfully.
Pain from the Lord is beautiful and is a healing to us!
“….Wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out, for the man will not rest but will settle the matter today”. (Ruth 3:18)
The story of Ruth takes a twisting events after the above verse. Until then Ruth, the moabite did everything she was told to do, on her part. The last she did was to rest at the feet of ‘Boaz’, as instructed.
The immediate verse in the next chapter starts with Boaz calling the assembly to settle the matter for Ruth, and Naomi. The events that lined up pushed the long awaited helplessness, and hopelessness of Ruth, unto settlement, once and for all.
Boaz took the matter into his hands, and stepped up to redeem Ruth, and everything pertaining to her. Ruth left everything to follow Naomi to a place unfamiliar, and to a future unknown. That day, Ruth a hopeless widow got married to the best man of the land, blessed with a good family, became the owner of the field she worked in, and was clothed with honour and glory! Besides, blessed with a Godly generation(JESUS CHRIST)
Boaz, symbolizes a picture of Jesus Christ, Our redeemer. Our helper. Our advocate, and Our Love!
If we could only go to the presenc of Jesus, and lay there; He will pick up our matter, and will not rest until He deals with our concern, our challenges, our storms. He won’t sit quiet until He redeems us from our misery, and restores us to a glorious life unthinkable.
Has he not brought us with a price, His life? He will also redeem us from our troubles, and will give us a life and future. A life you can’t imagine.
Are you troubled, and restless today? And do not know what to do?
You may be waiting for a miracle, a breakthrough, a light of hope, and do not really know what else to do, how to process, how to get things back, and get going. Do not be restless, but instead go and rest the matter at the feet of Jesus, He will not rest until He settles it for you. His settlement is the full flegde restoration of all the matters of your life. Not just the request with which you go to Him, but YOUR EVERYTHING.
He owns all of you, and all that happens with your life. You simply need to rest! Your part of the story is to go to Him and lay there. It’s over. His part will begin, and His finish will be a dramatic end to all your sorrows and beautiful beginning to a new Life and Hope in Christ Jesus, with Jesus.
Times innumerable, I ponder and strive for a progressive blessed Life. Even at rest, my mind keeps thinking on what more can I do to credit the grace and blessings for a glorious life. Which of my works will move God into releasing His favour upon me. What kind of ministry will please God, what alms will catch His attention, what of my works will attract the glorious future over me. I tried everything possible within the reach of my hands, I recollected all the extra miles that I took for Him. Yet, none of my works seemed appealing. I did my best to prove until I fainted. Nothing seemed to work out things in my favor. Trying hard to peddle in every direction, I saw myself drowning.
I then finally ended up before the old rugged Cross, the last symbol of hope, where all the weak and weary find rest. I glanced at it. I saw all that happened to this man hung on the cross. How he took all the pain, suffering, groanings, insults, blame and the severe punishement. He looked at me, smiled and said “All of this is for you. I chose to do this for you. You dont have to do anything. I took the pain for you. I took your sins upon me. I fought your battle, I shed my blood for you, and I’m a ransom on your behalf. It is finished”, saying so, He gave up His life for me!
My mind paced back and forth, the Cross still lay in the background of my life’s good works, striving to do my best in my own strength. I said to myself, it is done. He has done everything for me on that Cross and has credited that everything to my account.
I stopped wading. All the list of good works in my mind faded away, all that I had planned, I thrashed them down. I replaced it with the finished work of Jesus on the Cross. It said “Paid all dues, cleared all backlogs”. The balance that was left on my name valid unto eternity.
Every morning when you wake up, remind yourself of the Cross, meditate on the finished work, claim the credit, walk into victory. Every night thank Him for the cross. Very soon you’ll see yourself walking into a wonderful, blessed and a glorious Life that is assured now and forever in Christ Jesus, our Lord and saviour! “The Work of the Cross has availed an effortless blessed and glorious life for all those who believe in it”
“His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you”. John 2:5
In any wedding, the abundance of the banquet, feast and wine speaks of the grand celebration of that wedding. Jesus and his disciples were invited to a certain wedding. Unfortunately, the wine run out, and the guests were still walking in. There began a chaos and worry in the kitchen, situation went out of reach. No one knew what to do. But how Mary responds to it adds a twisting turns to the story.
Mary took the charge, stood the chaos and simply called Jesus into the picture. Her simple words were “Do whatever He says”. The plight of Mary not being seen anywhere around after handing over the charge to Jesus amazes me of her complete trust in Him.
There are times we all go through unexpected turnover of events, loss, incidents, and situations of chaos. We’re not sure what to do. It is then that we need to simply give the charge over to Jesus and walk out of the way. You dont need to know how it works. Jesus knows what to do and how to do.
Mary’s extraordinary faith didnt even bother any of it. She blindly told the servants to do whatever Jesus tells them to do and walked away
Often times we hold on to our buggages, worries and concerns to ourselves. We stick on to them and stand in the way of God’s miracle. The key is to let go off and simply trust God, and do WHATEVER he asks us to, even if it looks really stupid, illogical, impractical and unreasonable.
It was very simple: Fill the water; draw the wine; serve the guests and the result was astonishing! It is God’s simple approach towards man’s complicated situations.His ways are very different!
All it takes is the ‘blind faith’. When you don’t know what to do, simply Step up, give Him the charge and step aside! And you’ll see God taking over it. When He does, He will restore the Joy and celebration once again in double fold!
Raising Beyond 