Heralds Digest

  “ But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed .” Acts 16 : 25 - 26 NKJV If only men can understand the potency of prayer, there will be little or no longer attention to the politics of power. In the days of God’s power at the early church and behind the prison doors, the politics of power riveted the prisoners to their invisible chains and stocks, despite the fact that the potent prayer had resulted in the incredible “ so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed ”. And while reality of the potent prayer almost led the prison jailers to commit suicide, the prisoners were merely listening to the prayers of Paul and Silas…completely blinded to the potency of prayer. Pr...

  “ Which we have heard and known, And our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, Telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done. ” Psalms 78 : 3 - 4 NKJV Manifestation of works is the evidence of active living; and a reflection of the supporting supernatural influence towards the living. We cannot sit on the fence: we will either show the wonderful works of God or manifest the wicked works of the devil. Whereas, the wonderful works can be easily rendered by the testimonies of God’s healing from sicknesses, the supernatural deliverances from the satanic setups, and divine guidance through our different stages of confusions in life. Unfortunately, when we cover up these beautiful experiences and pretend as though these manifestations are the reflections of our personal skills and creativity, we will succeed in bringing up new generations of people that are alienated from the grace of Go...

  “ but Paul chose Silas and departed, being commended by the brethren to the grace of God. And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches. ” Acts 15 : 40 - 41 NKJV Friendships and relationships have always suffered shipwrecks when the original purpose goes out of focus. Many painful treatises have been documented on the end of an encouraging ministerial friendship between Paul and Barnabas. Unfortunately, at the end, contention and disagreement resulted in “ but Paul chose Silas and departed “…leaving one undoubted focus in perspective, which is the grace of God. Isn’t this grace of God what originally attracted Barnabas to the friendship and relationship at the church in Antioch? (Acts 11:23). And apparently Silas also became riveted to the same friendship and relationship at Antioch by the grace of God. It remains clear that only the grace of God can sustain focus in all relationships, be it purposeful marriage, principled ministry, and project methodologies...

  “ So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith .” Acts 15 : 8 - 9 NKJV When someone says the heart of the matter is the matter of the heart, it definitely implies that the heart household is the most important preoccupation of man on earth. Solomon, in all his wisdom and heavenly endowment, messed up this assignment in his old age and he lost out completely “ For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David ( I Kings 11 : 4 )”. And “ So the Lord became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the Lord God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice (I Kings 11 : 9 )”. The list of other gods that do mess up other people’s heart households includes money, position, and privileges. Even today, some have always boast...

  “A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken. The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, But the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness.” Proverbs 15 : 13 - 14 NKJV The major difference between hedging and hunting is the use of intelligence in the former, compared to the probable reliance on faith in the latter. Hedging makes use of the head, while hunting depends on the heart. And unlike the use of head hedging in our competitive world, heart hunting is inspired by divine revelation and spiritual discernment on every subject matter. Those who will use the heart hunting in life must have faith in God, without which they are inadvertently subjected to the whims and caprices of men and the system of this world. Unfortunately, the best of worldly intelligence for the feeding of head hedge is summarized by the scriptures as foolishness. Whereas, a merry and wise heart is redeemed from the corrupt world to seek the knowledge ...

  “ And it came to pass, when the priests came out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord .” I Kings 8 : 10 - 11 NKJV A persistent preparation of the people’s hearts has always preceded the prevailing presence of the Lord. Just as the preparation of the temple materials and their setup were exhaustive (even the reading of their documentaries is often boring!), the entertaining and preparatory events with their circumstances leading up to the prevailing manifestations of God’s presence in life and ministry is always not funny. Notwithstanding, the experience of the eventual presence of God filling our homes, workplaces, and the places of the believers’ engagements is always worth the waiting time. It is worth the sacrifice for preparing the hearts and ministering to invite the prevailing presence of the Lord in any system that aw...

  ““I said to the boastful, ‘Do not deal boastfully,’ And to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up the horn. Do not lift up your horn on high; Do not speak with a stiff neck.’ ” For exaltation comes neither from the east Nor from the west nor from the south. But God is the Judge: He puts down one, And exalts another .” Psalms 75 : 4 - 7 NKJV Without prejudice to the omnipotence and sovereignty of God, networking is key to breakthrough and promotion in our world. Anyone who has tasted the influence of political power, professional excellence, and business dominance can attest to the boastfulness of networking. Actually, God also leverages the influence of networking in the execution of His projects and purposes through the immeasurable wealth of His resources, including the diverse shades, senses, and sincerity or subtleness of people. Unfortunately, many of God’s boastful children often walk away from His superior networking to pursue their personal and limited agenda to their shame and de...