Passion for Jesus

God loves fellowship: it is one of the main reasons he created us, so He may fellowship with us. Despite our imperfections since the fall, he has still maintained a relationship with us. The Creator of the world has gone out of His way to make sure we still have a chance to keep our end of the relationship through grace, even though he knew that we will still sin afterward. A lot of us would not want to invest in a relationship that would make us feel that we will be cheated out afterward. Really sucks, don't it.

But our God is Love. How can this God have it any other way? Today while I was reading the Word and thinking about all the other possiblities if Jesus wouldn't give His life for us, but then I knew he wouldn't want it any other way.

But us? Most of us are nowhere near the required level.

Since God is our role model and not people, let's love each other. Despite the short comings, despite the mistakes, despite the screw ups, despite the betrayals. You love. It's not easy, it's not supposed to be, whoever said being a follower of Jesus Christ is easy.

Love. Unconditional.

Stale

"So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth." - Revelation 3:16.

"Well cold water we drink hot water we cook, But lukewarm does nothing it just sits and it looks" - New Reality, Lecrae Moore.

I don't think it's strange how some of my favorite verses come under 3:16. For a long time I had wanted to make a post in regards with this verse, but I guess I was waiting for the right time. Being a new believer most of us are filled with passion and zeal, ready to bring down the house, literally willing to proclaim the truth on the rooftops. There are very few things that can be compared to the strong desire of a new believer.

I myself had the strongest enthusiasm, to be able to change the world for the cause of the Word. I didn't care if that got me in some pretty sticky situations. However, after a while sometimes I found this enthusiasm go down. The sad part is, the same is the case with many Christians. They lose the zeal to serve God.

The reason why different people lose the desire and passion of servant hood before God, is of not having the sincere relationship with God you had a one point. How this plays out in your life, that is every individual story.

Sometimes we may grow too "smart" for who we used to be, it's so easy to keep altering who we are in this rapidly changing world. So easy to get sidetracked by the bright lights at the shore. The stories that made a difference in your life and changed who you were into a renewed self, may not mean anything to you anymore.

But the truth is, it was never about that story, circumstance, or situation. It was about God reaching out and us accepting that relationship. It is so important for us to realize who we are in the Lord, for us to not lose focus. Somewhere in all the commotion and noise and commotion of the world, we have forgotten our true identities. That will come back only through a continual renewal of the commitment you have made in God.

You can't be lukewarm. Or you will be spit out. No twist, no turns, no gimmicks attached. Very plain and simple.

Live. Experience Holy Fire.

-Aneel

Magnitude

A true leader is one who can stand in the face of a problem, know it's magnitude, and still trust in God to take control.

Sometimes the heavy weight of our lives is so big that everything else fades away. I've got into trouble more times than I can count and every time that I do get into trouble my problem seems like the biggest problem in the world, no matter how many people are starving to death, no matter how many people are being taken advantage of and no matter how many people are dying from the sickness, that is sin. I hate it when I'm so selfish to forget the magnitude of the responsibility that I have in my life.

We are just far too carried away in our own lives. It's like we are stuck in an illusion to ignore everything else, somehow this illusion has put all of us in the centre of the universe. In fact it is somehow human nature to believe that we are in the centre of the universe. That's just the way our minds think. Pride and vanity may not be the same thing, but are somehow very closely related, it corrupts the way our minds are working.

God is of immense magnitude, there is nothing that is bigger than him. How can you be covered by the magnifience of this God and worry about your own little problems? You can't man!

God the most supreme being, reached out to His people and He expects us to be the same. He showed us how to live through His Son. How he lived in humility, lived for others and understood the magnitude of things.

Your place in the world does make a big difference, so don't limit yourself to your problems to your struggles.

Realize that Magnitude of God is limitless.

Endure

Music is one of the many beautiful things that I have had the privilege to experience in this life. God has been gracious enough to bless us with the awesomeness of such a magnificent gift that stirs our very spirits.

For quite sometime I have wanted to write about hardship and struggle. However, very recently I felt led in the spirit to write about endurance. The reason I love to write is more than half the time I don't have any idea what I'm going to even end up with which makes it much more like a journey. Very similar to the journey that we are going through today, tomorrow and for the rest of the days that God wishes us to be here.

One of my new favorite songs has a line that keeps ringing in my head:

His love endures forever...

Usually one wouldn't even takes time to think about the meaning. Sometimes we take the liberty of just reading or listening and not going into the depth of the meaning. Endurance sometimes to me is like rubbing sandpaper on my skin and me not saying a word.

Every time we sin we hurt God more than we can imagine, I'm talking about even "little sins" but the word of God says:

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

1 Chronicles 16:34

God has a loving, forgiving hear, t man. He is the most awesome guy I know. He loves so us so much that he sacrificed his son.

How can you not love this God. Why won't we stop complaining about our lives and see the blessings He has given us. Why can't man up (or woman up), and live to learn. Learn to endure and grow stronger, we believe in a God who is ready to endure, why do we complain when we have to endure to glorify the name of God and bring pain to our flesh.

May the God of ages reign in our lives.

The great odessey

Along this journey of life, we halt at the valleys and mountain tops.. We have moments that we least expect.. moments that we wish wouldn't occur for the fear of them being too lovely that we won't have the heart to resume our journey.. These are moments that gladden our hearts and bring liberty to our spirit. They are like vacation spots that take us away from the routines and allow us to just be.

Yet instead of keeping ourselves from receiving such timely moments we might as well embrace them for what their worth in a time we are in. Perhaps these moments give us hope & strength to pursue the rest of journey through. Maybe these moments make us feel the way we've only dreamed of. And perhaps these are gifts from above to put a smile on our face and bring a song to our soul..

Some stop overs can't be described..

And if these moments were to be our life without the long journey, I wonder if perhaps we would take them for granted..I guess these stop overs are much appreciated because they shine light in the void of our great odyssey. Taken by surprise, we let our hearts go to experience that which we held back n be enlightened enough to make it through.

So when you're on that stop over, you see what you've forgotten.. what you left behind at the back of your mind...

Sometimes we are afraid to embrace the good..the lovely not because they won't be good enough but just cause they might be too good to be true.

QUOTE

Our decisions and judgments can longer depend on the experience of the past but must totally be led by God even if our flesh thinks otherwise.

LEADER'S PERSPECTIVE

Rebuilding our church, means understanding the state of where those who serve with us are at through the power of the Spirit. It means digging deep into what our stewards truly think of their Church and know where we have fallen short to serve and nurture them. It may even mean surprising them with our passion to pursue them in spite of their doubts in our authority and love.

PSALM 20

Psalm 20

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

¹ May the LORD answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.

² May he send you help from the sanctuary
and grant you support from Zion.

³ May he remember all your sacrifices
and accept your burnt offerings.
Selah

⁴ May he give you the desire of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.

⁵ We will shout for joy when you are victorious
and will lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the LORD grant all your requests.

⁶ Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed;
he answers him from his holy heaven
with the saving power of his right hand.

⁷ Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.

⁸ They are brought to their knees and fall,
but we rise up and stand firm.

⁹ O LORD, ..
Answer us when we call!

To see Your Face

God in you is my delight.. You are my friend, my hidden treasure, my anchor in storms. And you are my shield, my pride, my glory. It is You who lifts my head up high..

In peace you let me lie down n sleep for you alone, make me dwell in refuge. In the morning you hear my voice, you answer my call. You have surrounded me with your favor and you never forsake me when I seek you. You have counseled me, instructed me and in the day of my disaster you were my support. You were the light through my darkness who kept my lamp burning and your help has made me great. You hide me in the shadow of your wings.

So, I will always keep my eyes on you for with you at my right hand I will not be shaken.. My desire is that I may see your face. And when I awake I shall surely be satisfied with seeing Your likeness.

The words of David in a true record of my own.

PASSION TO LIVE

Based on a question I've been asked more than once.

Unknown to what tomorrow brings I'm asked what keeps my spirit alive. What is my fire. I have no great answer or goal except this that I may help another become what God created them to be. My passion is not limited, neither can it be put in a box for truly I can't tell you one specific thing that allures me except for this, that I may use artistry to inspire.

I could be a lotta things but I doubt any of it could satisfy me as it does to make a difference & bring hope to a soul. I guess I could write you a letter, buy you a gift, prophesy or pray, encourage you or serve you. I could make a film or write a song.. I could call u up or send you a text.. I could publish a book..cook you a meal.. Take you to dinner.. Love you.. be a friend.. help you out.. listen.. counsel.. I could paint you a picture..teach you, lead you.. I could do more..all for the love of lifting you to greatness..

..allow me to serve you crazy creatively and as you do that you'll give me a passion to live.

TRUTH

Darkness can never hide the light just as a lie can never overshadow the truth. Just as the moon comes up for a while so must it go down that the sun may rise in it's power and might. Darkness has its moment.. but only for a while until the truth has been set free.. Truth can only be hidden for a while until it exposes what's real. One cannot hide from the light forever, for darkness is not all that dark at all in the measure of light.

But only for a moment does darkness dwell, unable to hide what is true. Truth reveals herself, is restored and shines bright like a city on hill that cannot be hidden.

Thus why should truth hide and sacrifice her presence? Why should she cry or be afraid to declare herself if darkness can only veil her for just a while..

N.B No matter how or when, the truth will always prevail. (It's all just a matter of time)

Holy Spirit

If the Holy Spirit dwells within you, you'd understand beyond what you can see and know beyond what someone says. The spirit is able to discern true joy, sadness or deceit. It exposes the source, revealing the truth beyond what you'd think for yourself.

The spirit is sensitive to others, allowing you to see through the eyes of God for who people really are and for what's really going on in their hearts & in their lives. And that same Spirit enables you to respond to them in wisdom, where you speak the truth at the right time with perfect accuracy. The Spirit shares knowledge through you that brings joy to others and enables you to be a friend to the broken, the misunderstood and labeled. The Spirit is inoffensive.

The Spirit reveals secrets and mysteries that are hidden, partners with you through decisions & is the peace-maker of all time. It helps you operate in justice, even though experience lingers on and brings peace even though you've moved in faith.

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Selah

Patience

I can't stand to wait at the traffic signal, it so gets on my nerves. Even though I don't drive yet (yes, I will get my license soon in faith), I still can't wait. Most people are very impatient individuals, we as people want everything to be at our immediate disposal, everybody today wants to get rich overnight, wants to get famous overnight, wants success overnight. Then we wonder why God doesn't give us these things that we desire for, we wait one day and on the second day we're already tired of waiting. Sometimes we think that we've reached a point where we are faithful to God and believe that we deserve to get those things we desire, but, we're not quite there. When I woke up today God put a beautiful revelation into my heart: our God is the most sensitive and tasteful artist. He wants us, his creation to be perfect. If you observe a true artist, they won't care how much time it takes to perfect their work, they will make sure that they keep struggling to perfect it with all they have, are willing to go above their limits to perfect their art.

Our God is willing to take His time to make sure we become the perfect example of creation. God is so proud to have created us. A quote that spoke to my heart is Corinthians 13:4 "Love is patient, love is kind."

Our God is the God of love, He is patient.

God took time to make sure that David was worthy to become king when he did, David went through all sorts of hardships to become king, even though he had a heart for God, he had faith in God when he was younger, but God made sure that David would be a worthy king when he did, so David had to wait. Joseph had to spend years as a slave and then in prison before he was put in his position of authority. Moses had to spend sixty years in Midian before God sent Him to lead His people out of Egypt. When I was younger I wished to grow very fast, but now my heart has learnt patience and now I savor the journey with God.

Be like love. Be Patient.

Identity

Our identity should never be based on what we do but on who we are. When all is said and done & our time is up I never want to be known for my works & skill but rather for the person I was in Christ. I want to be known for my obedience to Him rather than a fulfiller of my dreams. Being titled a creative ingenious is nothing compared to being called a true Christ-lover. My identity is not what I do or how much I've accomplished. My identity is simply in Him who lives in me.

FREEDOM

Every passing moment is a gift to us from God..If only we could see things from the eye of the future & look back, we'd believe. We crave for more & what we think we need, when actually where we are at and who we know now are a gift from God already. When we rush into that which is meant for later, we loose out on the beauty and power of NOW. The joy of experiencing timely blessing looses essence & our desires become the entrapment. God offers us freedom. Yet, we choose other wise. We have been taught to follow our hearts but I'd rather follow God's for He knows the plans He has for me; plans to give me a hope and a future.

Know that we are not bound by anything and that the future is ours Know that if we choose the wrong door, there may be no turning back.. no chance to pursue our dreams..maybe no chance to even dream. Even more, know that some decisions cost us everything and that experience doesn't necessarily have to always be our teacher. Learn from the Truth that comes your way through the story of friends who just pass you by..whether through a book, a song, or reality.

However..

it does not mean that we have to live by the norms of man made standards 'cause if we do that, we are setting goals based on others' expectations, not God's. In fact, we find ourselves chasing after someone else's aspirations. After all, there is a God-time for everything and that time line is different for each individual.

Living in the freedom of God means that we are not bound by a time span set by man or culture over our lives. With God it's never too late nor too early. With God's it's perfect and perfectly done. Beautifully put, in the Bible, notice that no two stories or lives are the same. Everyone's life was unique. God limited no one in His perfect will.

If we give in to God's freedom & we'll never find ourselves disappointed. When we walk in His will time nor age binds us. Our story is different.

* There is never a set way as to how & when one has to accomplish things in life except to live in the God-time even if it goes against the norms. There's nothing wrong with standing out as long as you are where God wants you to be.

Our future is limitless when we walk in His will for us today.

- Mary was Betrothed to Joseph at a young age
- The oldest person in the bible was Methuselah. He died at the age of 969 years .
- Sarah was ninety years old when God promised that she would have her first child.
- David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years.
- Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem 31 years.
- When Isaac was forty years old, he married Rebekah
- Paul never married.