Heralds Digest

  ” Then he said, “O Lord God of my master Abraham, please give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. Behold, here I stand by the well of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. “” Genesis‬ ‭24‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ While the context of success here is marital, the principle can be generalized for all sides of success in life. Unlike the mindset of pinning the primary determinant on human perspiration, inspiration from God is revealed as the primary source of success in life. Even when Eliezer the servant of Abraham was still praying for divine intervention at the well in Nahor, Rebekah had already appeared with the perfect positioning along with the contents of the prayer. It implies that successful events in life are exactly the orchestration of divine appointments. Focussed men are merely moved in line with divine revelations to uncover divine manifestations. Little wonder the biblical reference on success to Joshua decla...

  ” Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm .“ ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭8‬:‭25‬-‭26‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The major lesson about the reality of the storms of life is that it is not enough to claim little faith in God. Our faith must be sufficient to acknowledge the presence of God in all affairs of life. When the disciples of Jesus cried out ‘Lord, save us! We are perishing! ’, they clearly ignored the fact that Jesus was present with them in the storms. Although they said ‘Lord, save us! We (inclusively) are perishing !’, they actually meant ‘save us! We (exclusively) are perishing!’ . Likewise, believers are called to daily practice the presence of Jesus, while sent on an errand or obeying His commands. Storms will arise and the challenges of life will rage; but children of God on the Master’s errand do not send the ...

  ”“ Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. “ Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭24‬-‭25‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ If everyone knows that all that flashes are not gold, perhaps all will be careful before building their life project on the sands, composted of roughage-appearing rock (i.e., rubbles, obstinacy, carelessness, and killings). After Christ’s lengthy sermon on the mount, He divided the audiences into two categories of people: builders on the real rock and builders on roughage-appearing rock. Unfortunately, it is always easier to build on rubbles, obstinacy, carelessness, and killings. And as long as many people are on the highway of this fake building lifestyle, everyone endorses the lifestyle by saying ‘it rocks! ’. Whereas, nothing actually rocks in life’s ambition fabricated from disobed...

  ” But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble .“ Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭33‬-‭34‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Compared with concerns about today’s worry - wait, opportunities, revelations, riches, and youthfulness - that drive believers on their knees on a daily basis, the common worry in life is concerned about the coordination of human’s limited resources towards meeting tomorrow’s needs and challenges. This carnal worry prioritizes the seeking and establishment of the kingdom of men and the manipulation of their influences for personal gain and the service of their greediness. Unfortunately, there is no rest, contentment, and a sustaining pleasure in this worry, because of inevitable disappointment, discouragement, and depreciation in human expectation. Whereas, Jesus teaches that wise worry is focussed on seeking the kingd...

  ” Return, O Lord, deliver me! Oh, save me for Your mercies’ sake! For in death there is no remembrance of You; In the grave who will give You thanks? “ Psalms‬ ‭6‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ One of the greatest deceptions of the enemy against mortal men is the misconception about our merciful Maker - God. The mercy of God is unfathomable, unlimited, and boundless. Unfortunately, mortal men are readily deceived to accept the irredeemable fate of their archenemy Satan, who is forever doomed from the presence of God. Whereas, all humans have sinned and come short of the glory of God is merely one part of reality; the second part is always the redemption plan of God through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, when the psalmist cried out “ Return, O Lord, deliver me! Oh, save me for Your mercies’ sake! ”, he was bringing his soul into the acknowledgment of God as a merciful Maker. The past offenses of all mortal men do not define everyone who appears before the merciful Maker. Amazing...

  ” Lead me, O Lord, in Your righteousness because of my enemies; Make Your way straight before my face .“ Psalms‬ ‭5‬:‭8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Getting a good navigation system is priceless in arriving at a safe destination in the journey of life. Although with technological advances and dependence on Google maps, people often sometimes miss their ways for several reasons, including error in poor coordinate settings, inability to follow directions, and even technological hitches. Likewise, dependence on human-initiated influences and guidance in life is subject to some factors of vulnerability. And as we start a New Year, it is important to establish a strategy on following reliable and good guidance, possibly devoid of total dependence on human influences, including self, if getting into and fulfilling destiny in the promised land is of any essence. For example, Abram and Lot got into the promised land, but Lot lost his way in the promised land because of dependence on his human senses as the ...

  ” You have put gladness in my heart, More than in the season that their grain and wine increased. I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety .“ Psalms‬ ‭4‬:‭7‬-‭8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Given the numerous challenges of life, economic meltdown, and the escalation of social insecurity, political instability, and international destabilization in the passing year, it is understandable that praise and thanksgiving are comely only for grateful hearts. While grainful gladness is the derivative of grains, including material prosperity, physical fitness, and carnal promotions in the head; graceful gladness is a reflection of grace, with the assurance of the presence of God in the hearts of believers, especially in the midst of the numerous challenges of life. Little wonder the psalmist declared ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits ’ (Psalms 103:2). With the abundant grace of God in the heart, the ceaseless mixture of battles and bless...