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Your Kingdom Come

Over the past month, I have been following the journey of the Israelites from Egypt to Canaan, the Promised Land. And I have been intrigued and awestruck by God’s mighty power among the Israelites. From parting the Red Sea to opening up the earth to swallow up Korah, and everything and everyone associated with him, the Israelites experienced a raw demonstration of God’s power. This week, I am in the book of Deuteronomy and here, Moses is nearing the end of his tenure of leadership and time on earth. In one of his final speeches to the Israelites, he summarizes their experience of God’s rule and authority thus:

“Now search all of history, from the time God created people on the earth until now, and search from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything as great as this ever been seen or heard before? Has any nation ever heard the voice of God speaking from fire—as you did—and survived? Has any other god dared to take a nation for himself out of another nation by means of trials, miraculous signs, wonders, war, a strong hand, a powerful arm, and terrifying acts? Yet that is what the LORD your God did for you in Egypt, right before your eyes. “He showed you these things so you would know that the LORD is God and there is no other. He let you hear his voice from heaven so he could instruct you. He let you see his great fire here on earth so he could speak to you from it. Because he loved your ancestors, he chose to bless their descendants, and he personally brought you out of Egypt with a great display of power. He drove out nations far greater than you, so he could bring you in and give you their land as your special possession, as it is today. “So remember this and keep it firmly in mind: The LORD is God both in heaven and on earth, and there is no other… Deuteronomy 4: 32-39 NLT

If you rushed through reading these verses, I encourage you to go back and read slowly and picture what is happening in the texts. Allow yourself to be amazed by what these Israelites experienced with their own eyes! God demonstrated to the Israelites that He was truly a God both in heaven and on earth! Now lets fast forward to the New Testament where the disciples ask Jesus how to pray and make some connections. Jesus teaches his disciples (and us) to pray:

Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:10 BSB

As the Israelites sojourned through the desert and into the Promised Land, they experienced the Kingdom of God among them. For them, the Kingdom of God may have looked like rolls of thunder, flashes of lightning, the voice of God amidst clouds of fire and billowing smoke- the sheer terror of it all! But they also experienced the providence and provision of God- food, water, shelter, protection from wild animals and other nations. More importantly, they had the tangible presence of God with them day and night. God sat as a cloud over the Tabernacle:

Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the LORD filled the Tabernacle…Now whenever the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out on their journey, following it. But if the cloud did not rise, they remained where they were until it lifted. The cloud of the LORD hovered over the Tabernacle during the day, and at night fire glowed inside the cloud so the whole family of Israel could see it. This continued throughout all their journeys. Exodus 40: 34, 35-38 NLT

The Israelites were constantly reminded that God was with them and for as long as they let Him, He was their King and Captain of their army. His kingdom “had come” for them. In light of the experiences of the Israelites in the wilderness, I ask myself, “What does it mean for us today when we pray God’s Kingdom come?”

In the current dispensation in which we live, it is easy to forget that God is still as powerful as He was back then. We do not see Him like they did or hear Him amidst the billowing smoke like they did. In fact, for many of us, praying His Kingdom come is asking for something we presume to be metaphorical. But let me challenge this presumption: God’s Kingdom is not a metaphor.

He is still doing the miraculous among us on a daily basis, In fact, through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and by the workings of His Holy Spirit, He is more accessible to us and even more so present with us than He was then. We seldom see his Kingdom here on earth not because it is not here, but because His Kingdom has been reduced to commonplace in our lives. Scientific and evidence-based discoveries have taken more pre-eminence in our world. The abilities that God gave humankind through the Adamic blessings in the garden of Eden- the ability to create and multiply knowledge, till the knowledge of God fills the whole earth have become perverted (then and even more so now), that we no longer see God’s Kingdom at work among us. The Kingdom of God is still manifest in the clouds, in the seas, in the mountains just as the Israelites experienced. We just do not see it anymore.

When we pray His Kingdom come, I believe we are asking to see manifestations of His power at work in our lives. We are asking for the intangible to be made tangible. We are asking for that which is hidden or has become taken-for-granted to be revealed in our everyday world. We are asking for the God of Heaven to be revealed on earth in palpable ways. We are asking to be awestruck by His power and presence among us. We are asking not just to be known by God but to know Him enough that we can see Him at work in the ordinary things as well as the complex ones. That is what I believe we pray for when we say “Your Kingdom come.” We are acknowledging that The LORD is God both in heaven and on earth, and there is no other (Deuteronomy 4: 39). God’s Kingdom is all around us, and more importantly in each of us who have come to know Him as our King (I will pick this up in another post soon).

I conclude with a hymn I learned as a child to remind us all of God’s kingdom among us (If you know this hymn belt it out as you reflect on God’s Kingdom come):

1. I sing the almighty power of God, that made the mountains rise, that spread the flowing seas abroad, and built the lofty skies. I sing the wisdom that ordained the sun to rule the day; the moon shines full at God’s command, and all the stars obey.

2. I sing the goodness of the Lord, who filled the earth with food, who formed the creatures thru the Word, and then pronounced them good. Lord, how thy wonders are displayed, where’er I turn my eye, if I survey the ground I tread, or gaze upon the sky.

3. There’s not a plant or flower below, but makes thy glories known, and clouds arise, and tempests blow, by order from thy throne; while all that borrows life from thee is ever in thy care; and everywhere that we can be, thou, God, art present there.

Yours Truly.

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Our Father who art in heaven…

In my readings this week, the Israelites have journeyed from Egypt to the foot of Mount Sinai where God was to meet with them. They spent three days consecrating themselves and preparing for this moment of meeting with God. Finally, the day arrived and Mount Sinai was covered in smoke and fire. God descended onto the mountain amidst thunder and lightning and the blast of a ram’s horn. However, the anticipation and maybe excitement the Israelites were feeling very quickly turned to fear.

When the people heard the thunder and the loud blast of the ram’s horn, and when they saw the flashes of lightning and the smoke billowing from the mountain, they stood at a distance, trembling with fear. And they said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!”

Exodus 20:18-19 NLT

So terrified were they of God and so fearful were they for their lives that the Israelites did not want to have a personal relationship with God. They were content to know God from afar, through Moses as a mediator. Earlier on, God had revealed Himself to Moses in Exodus 3:14 as YHWH- I AM. This name was the most revered name of God that the Israelites would not even dare speak this name out loud (There remains some Jews to this day who replace YHWH or any proposed transcription forms of the word, such as Yahweh or Yehovah, with other names of God rather than say that name aloud). Psalm 103:7 tells us what kind of relationship God had with the Israelites: He made known His ways to Moses, His deeds to the people of Israel (BSB). The Israelites knew God by the things they saw Him do: their deliverance from Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea so they could walk across, the provision of food and water in the desert, and keeping their neighbours at bay while they sojourned to their Promised Land. But Moses, on the other hand, knew God’s ways and His character.

As generations came and went, God continued to show the Israelites that He was the I AM: Anything and Anyone they needed Him to be. Now fast forward to the New Testament and one day Jesus is approached by one of His disciples who says, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Jesus opens up with what would have been the most unheard of phrase: Our Father…

Our Father? Are we talking about the same God whose very name simultaneously evoked fear and deep reverence? You mean that God? Even though the Lord’s prayer is so commonplace now that sometimes we miss the power in the words, to the disciples hearing this for the first time this would have been a shocking and novel concept. Jesus, through his miracles, was showing the people of that time the deed of God but was also steering them towards knowing Him beyond the deeds. He was introducing them to the concept of God as ABBA FATHER, a concept that would sweep through the early church and be passed down through faithful stewards to us today. In fact, we do not even need the Lord’s prayer to remind us that God is our father. That is one of the workings of the Holy Spirit: to tell us that we have a Heavenly Father.

Now that we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts. And his Spirit tells us that God is our Father.

Galatians 4:6 CEV

Did you know that it was not only Moses that saw God’s face? Although the Israelites were afraid to approach God and Mount Sinai for that matter, there were at least 73 other people who went up the mountain to see God but did not die as the Israelites had feared.

Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel climbed up the mountain. There they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there seemed to be a surface of brilliant blue lapis lazuli, as clear as the sky itself. And though these nobles of Israel gazed upon God, he did not destroy them. In fact, they ate a covenant meal, eating and drinking in his presence!

Exodus 24:9-11 NLT

The rest of the Israelites had nothing to fear at all. They also could have approached God just like the other 73 to eat and drink in God’s presence and have fellowship with Him. The same thing applies to us today who have come to hear about the character of God as our Father. We have no excuse. Others are enjoying this side of God: I AM FATHER. So if you are not, why not? What is standing in your way? What are you afraid of?

Join me today as we proclaim:

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be your name.

Yours Truly

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The lifter of my head

For the past few months, I have been following the Israelites journey from Abraham’s loins to becoming an independent nation in my bible studies. And a few days ago, something caught my attention in Joseph’s story.

Joseph had been sold into slavery by his brothers because they were jealous of him. While in slavery, his master’s wife tried to force herself on him which landed him in jail. Through all his woes, the favour of God continued to rest on him and distinguished him even in the jail cell. One night, two people in the jail had dreams and woke up quite disturbed because they did not understand what their dreams meant. And Joseph through God’s power, interpreted their dreams. Lets read together:

So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, “In my dream, behold, there was a vine in front of me; and on the vine were three branches. And as it was budding, its blossoms came out, and its clusters produced ripe grapes. “Now Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; so I took the grapes and squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.” Then Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: the three branches are three days; within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office; and you will put Pharaoh’s cup into his hand according to your former custom when you were his cupbearer. [Genesis 40:9-13 NASB]

This is a long passage so lets pause for a second and pay attention to the bolded words: Pharoah will lift up your head. Got it? Ok let’s continue:

When the chief baker saw that he had interpreted favorably, he said to Joseph, “I also saw in my dream, and behold, there were three baskets of white bread on my head; and in the top basket there were some of all sorts of baked food for Pharaoh, and the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.” Then Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days; within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head from you and will hang you on a tree, and the birds will eat your flesh off you.” [Genesis 40 :16- 19]

This time, pay attention to the bolded statement: Pharoah will lift up your head from you. Same guy, Pharoah; same kind of dream for the butler and the baker; but very different outcomes. One’s head was lifted up and the other’s head was lifted up from his body. This is what God was drawing my attention to this week.

There is a psalm that I pray over myself every time I need to experience God’s supernatural favour in my dealings with people. And it is this:

But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.

Psalm 3:3 ESV

And although I pray this prayer very often, I sometimes find myself seeking personal recognition and honour from people or find myself trying to curry favour with people using my own efforts. This week, I found myself in such a position and as I was walking away from that situation, I heard God’s rebuke as the scripture Psalm 3:3 came to mind. God was reminding me from His word that He alone is and should be the lifter of my head.

The baker thought that because the butler had received favorable news about Pharoah lifting the butler’s head, that he would receive the same news. However, his interpretation was rather grave (no pun intended): Pharaoh would lift up his head right off his body! You see, human beings are fickle. The bible tells us that the arm of flesh (human beings) will fail us but the One who created the arm is mighty to save (2 Chronicles 32:8). We are encouraged to not put our hope in any human being.

Looking to people to bestow honour on us, that is not God-sanctioned, can only lead to trouble. When we look to mere humans for our elevation and promotion, you never know what you will get: either your head will be lifted up or it will be lifted up from your body! But God’s promises are yes and amen: to be the lifter of your head.

This week, God reminded me that instead of praying this psalm as a request of Him, that I confess it as my positionality. GOD is my Shield. GOD is my Glory. GOD is the Lifter of my head. This confession delimits my tendencies and desires to chase after promotions and recognition. If God wants honour and elevation for me, it will happen. I do not need to chase after them. After all, God’s goodness and His mercies have been designed to follow me all the days of my life (Psalm 23: 6) and not the other way around.

Today’s post is a message for me. It is deeply personal. However, it might be a word of caution or a sweet reminder of God’s tender love for you. Which ever the case, God is always and forever for us, guarding jealously and fiercely our inheritance in Christ Jesus. He is a shield about us, our glory, and the lifter up of our heads. Amen.

Yours Truly

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The adventure of a lifetime

For the past few weeks at church, we have been going through a series on spiritual formation. This series is anchored in Galatians 4, especially verse 19 which says “Oh, my dear children! I feel as if I’m going through labor pains for you again, and they will continue until Christ is fully developed in your lives” (NLT). Whenever I think spiritual formation, the image that comes to my mind is a river; and not just any river. I think of the river described in Ezekiel 47. Lets read together:

In my vision, the man brought me back to the entrance of the Temple. There I saw a stream flowing east from beneath the door of the Temple and passing to the right of the altar on its south side. The man brought me outside the wall through the north gateway and led me around to the eastern entrance. There I could see the water flowing out through the south side of the east gateway. Measuring as he went, he took me along the stream for 1,750 feet and then led me across. The water was up to my ankles. He measured off another 1,750 feet and led me across again. This time the water was up to my knees. After another 1,750 feet, it was up to my waist. Then he measured another 1,750 feet, and the river was too deep to walk across. It was deep enough to swim in, but too deep to walk through.

Ezekiel 47:1-5 NLT [Emphasis mine]

In the scripture, I flag for your attention the progression from ankle-deep water to knee-deep water to waist-deep water to water that is too deep to stand in. I love this scripture because it signals to me the kind of relationship God wants from me. In the context of a river, the progression from ankle-deep water to water that you cannot swim in suggests a deepening relationship with God and an increasing experience of His power and presence. For me, this is the life that God has called us to: an adventure of a lifetime.

As someone who does not swim, this image conjures for me an ultimate dependence and reliance on God as I adventure with him through the days of my life here on earth. I was recently “swimming” in beautiful turquoise waters out in the Caribbean sea. First I got into the water and after overcoming my initial fear and I loved the feel of the waves as they lapped around my ankles. So I decided to walk further into the ocean and now the water was knee deep. It was unnerving at first but I got comfortable very quickly and so decided to venture even farther. Soon, the water was waist deep and my footing was not firmly planted in the soil. Next thing, a big strong wave covered me and swept me right off my feet and into the water. Luckily there was someone close by and I grabbed on to their feet to stand.

This imagery can be likened to the spiritual growth of believers, as they move from initial faith to deeper commitment and understanding of who God is. There comes a time in the life of every believer where we must make a decision to commit more deeply to following Jesus Christ. As Paul so aptly says,

You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong. So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God.

Hebrews 5:12-14; 6:1 NLT

God calls us to a deeper life in Him. And as we get deeper, we get to know Him more and more. This is the adventure of which I speak: the adventure of a lifetime.

Back to my story: After getting back to the safety of the shore, I watched surfers in the water get covered by these huge waves, only to emerge from them seconds later and ride the waves. As you get deeper with God, it is inevitable that you get to a point where the water gets too deep and you simply cannot stand in the water. The bible says in Psalm 47, “Deep calls to deep in the roar of Your waterfalls; all Your breakers and waves have rolled over me” (NIV). In order to not get swept away by the waves of God’s presence and power, it is important to practice the spiritual disciplines. These keep you grounded- planted firm and deep in the Savior’s love. Spiritual disciplines are habits or practices that teach us and help us grow in our spiritual walk with Christ (Eboni, 2020). Although there are about a dozen of them, some of the common spiritual disciplines are:

  • Reading & studying the Word of God
  • Prayer
  • Fasting
  • Praise and Worship
  • Fellowship
  • Service
  • Evangelism
  • Discipleship

Just as we need to learn to walk first before we can run, so it is with going deeper in God. The spiritual disciplines prepare us for the knee-deep water, the waist-deep water, and the water that is too deep to stand in. They help us to move to “solid food”- maturity in Christ so that we can experience the fullness of God.

As I close, my question to you is simple: Are you ready for the adventure of a life time?

I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. (Ephesians 3:16-19 NLT)

Yours Truly.

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Promises…Promises

Have you ever heard the phrase, “God of Abraham?” Have you ever sang this phrase in a song or used it in a prayer? If your answer was yes to any of those three questions, then you, my friend, have fulfilled an everlasting promise God made to Abraham. In Genesis 7:17, God said to Abraham:

I will confirm my covenant with you and your descendants after you, from generation to generation. This is the everlasting covenant: I will always be your God and the God of your descendants after you. NLT

And guess what? Every time we say “God of Abraham,” we are affirming God’s everlasting promise to be a God to Abraham always. Even thousands of years after Abraham has been dead, the promise still remains. For this to happen, Abraham had to fulfill his part of the covenant, which was circumcision of each male in his household and lineage.

Do you know that God has made the same promise to you? By faith, we share in the inheritance of Abraham and have become part of his household. And as members of Abraham’s household, this is what God says of us:

Listen to me, descendants of Jacob, all you who remain in Israel. I have cared for you since you were born. Yes, I carried you before you were born. I will be your God throughout your lifetime— until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you. I will carry you along and save you.

Isaiah 46:3-4 NLT

God promises to be our God throughout our lifetime just as he promised Abraham. We too, just like Abraham have a part to play: circumcision. Unlike Abraham though, this circumcision is not one of the foreskin but of the heart (Jeremiah 4:4, Romans 2:29). Circumcision of the heart is a metaphor for changing your heart and this can only be achieved by the help of God’s spirit.

…true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people.

Romans 2:29 NLT

God’s spirit changes us to be conformed to the image and likeness of God (2 Cor 3:18)- if we let Him. For Abraham, a big part of circumcision was about obedience and it is same for us. Though our daily obedience to God, and the Spirit’s leading and nudging our hearts are changed. We are transformed into the image of Christ and can fully enjoy God’s promise to be our God throughout our lifetime.

Such reassuring words: to have God be our portion for a lifetime- and even forever! This week, I leave you with a scripture to remind you of God’s everlasting promise to you:

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Psalm 73:26 NIV

Yours Truly.

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Hello 2025: Walking in Purpose

Have you ever met a young couple who almost immediately after getting married think they are sages on everything about marriage? This is actually one of my pet-peeves. For the longest time, I have believed that young married couples (myself included) are inexperienced and have nothing to offer when it comes to giving marriage advice. Similarly, I have applied this principle to many aspects of my life. Sometimes, I have shied away from certain opportunities because I feel I am not old enough or experienced enough.

This weekend, I read a children’s mystery story, the Jones & Parker Case Files. The story of sealed safe really inspired me to think differently about my giftings and abilities in relation to my age. In the story, Emily Jones and Matthew Parker are kid detectives who help Dr. Graham solve the mystery of the missing codes to get into a safe. As the case unfolds, Dr. Graham, says, “I shouldn’t have doubted you just because you are young.” The story ends with this scripture from 1 Timothy 4:12:

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity (NIV)

This is one of Paul’s many words of advice to young Timothy: Do not let anyone think less of you because you are young. He further encourages, even though you may be young and inexperienced, you can still be an example in the way you talk and behave, in how you love, exercise your faith, and demonstrate purity. This verse prompted me to examine areas in my life. I realized that I have disqualified myself because of my own perceptions. My internal dialogue has contributed to this disqualification. There are two pieces of encouragement I have gleaned from this scripture which I share with you:

  1. In this new year, I know that there are great plans that God has in store for each of us. Many of these plans may require putting yourself out there. You might need to tread in unfamiliar territories. I want to encourage you to not disqualify yourself even before the race has started. Do not look down on your abilities by letting your inadequacies be louder. Seek to live in the reality of all that God has in store for you. Do not let the voices of naysayers or your self-doubt be louder than God’s purpose for your life.
  2. Set an example for others by how you live this year. Whether it is in what you say, what you do, or how you go about your daily practices of life, be an example to others both old and young. What ever you do, do it well, in such a way that people will want to exemplify you in those aspects. When we think of our heroes and people we admire, our minds don’t go to their shortcomings. Rather, we picture the things about them that we love. We think about aspects we might want to emulate. Or, we remember what endears them to us. One of the ways we are able to rise above the voices of nay-sayers, our inadequacies, fears, and self-doubt, is to live a life worthy of emulation. When you do, there will be very little reason for people to look down on you.

As we start this year, my prayer for you is that God will lead you to places and spaces in your life you could have never imagined. May God give you vision to dream beyond your current abilities. May God increase your faith to anticipate the greatness He has in store for you. And may God hasten the day when your faith is sight! Welcome to 2025.

Yours truly.

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Silencing the Other Voices

 A few months ago, my counsellor taught me how to use socratic thinking to help improve my thought life.  For those of you not aware of what this is, socratic thinking is a technique used to examine and validate ideas and underlying beliefs through thoughtful questions. It is also a powerful tool to learn critical thinking skills. However, the reason I was undergoing this exercise was because my counsellor has drilled into me over an over again that if I change how I think (of myself, of others, and of the world), my behaviors will also change and then my emotions (anxiety) will follow suit. Let me walk you through one of my thought processes that I have run through socratic thinking so you see how it works: “I am a bad mother”.

First, I ask myself, what is the evidence that I am a bad mother? Then I walk through the evidence that I am not a bad mother. After I have compiled my list, I then weigh it to see what the evidence says. If all evidence points to the fact that I am a bad mother, then the next question is do I want to do something about that? And if so, what? And how do I change? However, if the evidence shows that I am not in fact a bad mother, then I move on from that thought and every time I think I am a bad mother I remind myself that the evidence says contrary and then move on.

While this is great practice and it is helping me greatly understand how to deal with some of the peripheral things that make me anxious, I found very quickly that this method does not help to fix those deep-seated anxieties rooted in my psyche- things that are tied to my self-identity and self-esteem. One’s sense of identity has to do with who you think you are and how you perceive and define yourself. Self-esteem is how you value yourself, your self-worth.

Self-identity involves looking inwards to discover who you are—both your strengths and weaknesses—and defining and accepting yourself for who you are. This forms part of our self-talk i.e. what we say about ourselves. We also develop a sense of self from what we hear others say about us. When we internalize what people say of us and repeat those things to ourselves, they shape the way we think about ourselves and consequently shape our identity. It is out of this introspection that we either develop a healthy or low self-esteem.

 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.

Proverbs 23:7a KJV

Reading that whole verse in context reveals that the thoughts and inclinations of the heart shape the reality of who you are. What you think about shapes your actions and forms the basis of who you are, or are becoming. So why doesn’t socratic thinking help with anxieties rooted in our self-identity? Jesus tells us why in this profound scripture:

The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

Matthew 6:22-23 BSB

The reality is that our worldview and what we think of ourselves and others, as well as what others think of us, have been shaped by sin and brokenness. Even when the evidence shows that we are good people, the light within us is darkness! We view ourselves and others through a lens of brokenness and we measure the health of one’s self-esteem by how broken a person is. Our yardstick for someone with a healthy self-esteem is a person who accepts themselves for who they are- faults and all; is confident in themselves; and has a strong sense of self. But if our yardstick is tainted by sin and brokenness, then our measure is tainted by default. We were born a broken people into a broken world and so looking within for a sense of self that is “whole” just does not work. As Jesus says, “If the eyes are bad, then the whole body is in darkness.” This all sounds grim and if you have made it this far into the reading, you may be asking, “Is there hope?” How can we be filled with light on the inside instead of darkness and brokenness?

The answer my friends is that there is HOPE, and this hope is found in an identity outside of ourselves. When our identity is firmly planted in Christ and in His work on the cross to make us whole, we become secure in who we are because of what Christ has done for us.

This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!

2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT

This is what God says of you and the new identity you have in Him:

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

1 peter 2:9 NIV

You are chosen, you are royalty, you are a priest, you are holy, you are special, and also, your “bad” eyes have been made “good” so you are no longer in darkness but in light (Read Isaiah 9:2)! Oh and that is not all; I can add some more: Through Jesus you are righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21); You are forgiven (Jeremiah 31:34); You are loved (Jeremiah 31:3, Romans 8:5); You are enough (Titus 3:4-7). I can go on and on.

Now try using the process of socratic thinking for any of the thoughts that are rooted in an identity that comes from brokenness- “I am unlovable”; “I am not good enough”; ” I am not worthy” and my challenge to you is to first list all the evidence of why you think you are unloved or not good enough or unworthy or whatever that thought might be. Then stack up your evidence against what God says about you. You will realize very quickly, your evidence does not hold a candle to God’s illumination of who you are. As Jesus said, “If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light.”

Today, many of us need a prescription change. We need to change our lenses and come to a place of acceptance of the free gift of God-our salvation- which gives us a new identity. We need to see ourselves as God sees us! The eye is the lamp of the body- if you see yourself as God, who is the Light of the World, sees you, your body will be full of light indeed! That friends is one of the surest ways to silence the voices rooted so deep in our psyche. So to work on my self esteem issues I do not need to reach down into the recesses of my childhood memories and traumas- I know them all and I lived them all. The answers are not in reliving them or relieving myself of them. The answer to my profound anxieties is in believing who God says I am and as I think these things in my heart about myself, my behaviors will mimic my thoughts, and my actions and emotions will also be aligned to my identity as one who has been loved with an everlasting love- the daughter of the Most High King!

Yours Truly.

Posted on by intentional4christ

Sanctification: Living our identity

Twenty years ago, I learned how to play the bass guitar. As someone new to the instrument, I was a blank slate ready to pick up a new skill. In those formative stages, I picked up a bad habit with my finger positioning and instead of my teacher to correct it, he assumed I would self-correct as I moved from novice to expert. However, much to my disappointment, my finger techniques did not get better, instead, I got good at using the wrong technique as those pathways formed in my brain. Its been twenty years and every time I pick up the guitar, I fall effortlessly into my old patterns of playing. My experience with the bass guitar is not unlike what it means to be a Christian. Let me explain.

When we accept Jesus into our hearts, something happens right away: we are translated from the kingdom of darkness into the God’s Kingdom and given a new identity as children of God. Our old self and all its trimmings are stripped off and everything about us is made new. This transformation happens instantly and we get adopted into God’s family under the terms of the New Covenant. For those of you not aware of what the New Covenant is, this was a contract that God made with Himself to redeem humankind from sin and destruction and to bring us back into relationship and fellowship with Him. God came down to earth in human form in the person of Jesus Christ and fulfilled the covenant by taking on the punishment that everyone deserved. Since covenants are usually sealed with blood, the covenant was fulfilled when Jesus shed his blood through death on the cross; and now those who accept that the penalty has been paid for their sins by Jesus Christ, get to enjoy the benefits of the covenant. Under the terms of this covenant, we are given the identity as children of God which is a two-fold identity: as kings (royalty) and priests. In another post, I will break down our identity as royal priesthood. This work of Jesus was finished thousands of years ago and even before time began. We do not have to do anything to earn this benefit; it has already been accomplished. All one has to do is to accept this free gift of salvation.

What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir. Galatians 4: 1-7

So what has this got to do with the bass guitar? As people born into sin, we have been coached, groomed, and formed into sinful habits and patterns which come naturally to us. When we accepted the free gift of salvation, our new identity as heirs of the Kingdom of God was instant but our mindset, habits, and patterns which have been fashioned after the ways of this world takes time to adjust. We need to learn how to be free from the slavery of sinful living. We need to learn how to act as children of God. We need to learn how to exercise our dominion as heirs and representatives of God’s kingdom here on earth. But this switch in identity does not come easily to us. Just like my finger techniques on the bass, it is easy to comfortably remain enslaved by a life that is not fitting of an heir of the Kingdom of God. It is easier to be a slave than to enjoy freedom if slavery is all you have ever known. Scripture says:

So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free (John 8:36 NLT)…It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1NIV)

So how do we live like we are free? By the renewing of our minds (Romans 12: 2) until Christ is formed in us (Galatians 4:19). This week my counsellor said to me, “You cannot change your behavior and the way you feel until you change the way you think.” This is similar to what Romans 12: 2 tells us but with an important caveat:

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Romans 12:2 NLT

The only way we can change our behaviours and live in the new identity that Jesus gifts us is by changing the way we think. The secular world says, “If you think it, you can be it.” Problem is, we cannot do it by ourselves; we have always had a mentality that is counter to our new identity. If we try to change our thinking by own strength, all we do is go back to our familiar core beliefs and neural pathways. God has to transform us by changing the way we think. As we walk with Him in fellowship- reading our bibles, praying, spending time with other people of similar identity, God’s spirit works on our heart to change the way we think. and when we change the way we think, we become more like Him.

For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…

Proverbs 23:7a

This is why God is so interested in our hearts. Because that is where the transformation happens to make us live out our identity. This transformation is what we call sanctification. One of the ways we are sanctified (or made holy) is by the word of God, which is truth. The word of God reveals to us our true identity so that we can walk in the freedom of that identity. Jesus prayed:

Sanctify them by your truth; your word is truth.

John 17:17 NIV

The things we do in the process of sanctification, do not earn us our identity as children of God. We already are children of God. Sanctification helps us to be (live, talk, act, think) like children of God. The bible is not a rule book in the sense that you do not need rules to be children of God but we certainly need instructions and guidance on how to live like children of God; particularly since we have not always been part of God’s family until Jesus made it so.

So dear friends, I leave you with these thoughts: You do not do anything to earn God’s salvation you just have to accept it. Once you do, you have to live like one who has become part of God’s family- and we do that through sanctification by letting God transform the way we think so we can act like children of the King. It is not always easy, and sometimes we forget who we are. Jesus told a parable in Luke 15 of a wealthy man who had two sons. One son asked for his inheritance and squandered it to the point where he became destitute. He ended up working in a pig sty and was so hungry he contemplated eating the grub he was feeding the pigs. Sometimes we forget our identity and end up in situations akin to the pig sty. Jesus is here to remind you that just like that prodigal son was no less of his father’s son, the fact that you may be in a sticky situation today does not make you any less of God’s child. He loves you just the same and He wants to remind you of who you are so you can walk out of that pig sty and return home. Will you allow God to transform the way you think today? Will you let Him sanctify you by the truth you have read today? Stand firm, my friends, in the identity that Jesus has given you and do not short change yourself as a child of God.

Yours truly.

p.s. We will remember lest we forget. Happy remembrance day.

Posted on by intentional4christ

The Journey to the Promise

The first time I travelled from Calgary to Banff, I got lost. I had heard that it was approximately an hour’s drive but because I did not know where I was going I decided to trust my GPS which took me around the mountains in a nine-hour journey from Calgary to Banff! The Israelites in departing from Egypt to their Promised Land, Canaan, were in a similar situation. They were being led by an ancient GPS- the Ancient of Days- who appeared as a cloud by day and fire by night to guide them to the land that was flowing with milk and honey. This journey which should have taken them at most 40 days, took 40 years! How? and Why? Today’s reading gives us a clue:

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle.

Exodus 13:17-18 ESV

God (their GPS), did not make a mistake! It was always God’s intention to lead them the roundabout way and for their own good! Although the Israelites left Egypt equipped for battle, they were unprepared for battle and would have balked at the first sight of war, running straight back into captivity. By detouring them, the Israelites got to have and learn from many life experiences; they became more rugged, seasoned, and battle-ready. In the 40-year detour, God stripped the nation of unbelief, rebellion, disobedience and through the process, taught them how to trust and depend on Him.

Friends, the story of the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt to Canaan is as relevant for us today as it was back then. There is a Promised Land we are journeying to- the City of God and God is leading us there through detours, zig-zags, and backtracking in a roundabout way. This is a process of sanctification, to cleanse us of the idols of Egypt- our old way of life which we gave up when we asked Jesus into our lives, and to prepare us for battle against the fiery darts of the evil one. In the journey towards our forever home, we have a lot to learn about ourselves and our Heavenly Father. We have a lot to learn about what it means to be truly free- to be translated from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of God’s marvelous light (Colossians 1:13) and to no longer be slaves to sin (Romans 6).

Many times the journey seems arduous and frustrating and the lessons we learn along the way may be painful and seem unnecessary. However, it all comes full circle. James 1:3 and Romans 5: 3-4 assure us that when it feels like our faith is being tested, we should take solace in this fact that we are building character which works to strengthen our confident hope in the God who saves us.

For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. James 1:3NLT

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. Romans 5:3-4 NLT

Being equipped for battle does not equate to being ready for battle. But guess what, God promises to guide us along the best paths for our lives even if they seem convoluted; and fully girded in His armour, He promises to train us for battle along the way. We can rest in these promises:

The LORD says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you…” Psalm 32:8 NLT

Praise the LORD, who is my rock. He trains my hands for war and gives my fingers skill for battle. Psalm 144:1 NLT

So back to the story of my journey to Banff: About four hours into this trip around the mountain, I stopped being upset and fussing at my GPS for taking me the wrong way. The sun had started to set and I was feeling even more lost now than I was four hours prior. Instead of trying to fight it, I leaned into the journey by trusting that my GPS had brought me this far and would see me through the rest of the way, even through the darkest valleys (no pun intended- I was literally driving through the peaks and valleys of the terrain). When I stopped complaining about my “faulty” GPS and started to trust that the GPS would get me there, it was only then that I noticed how majestic the snowcapped mountains and the lakes that meandered through them were. The forest around me was so serene and the wildlife was just incredible. That journey, at least the second half of it, remains till today the most breathtaking journey I have had in my entire life!

Friends, the journey home to life everlasting is everything but a straight line! There will be highs and lows; ups and downs; there may be u-turns along the route; and sometimes, boy will it feel like you went the wrong way! But rest assured, as long as the Lord is your guide, you are not lost…just being prepared for your eternal home where God Himself shall receive you to glory.

You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory.

Psalm 73:24 ESV

Yours Truly.

p.s. we will pick up the topic of sanctification in another post

Posted on by intentional4christ

Billions of puzzle pieces

Do you like to solve jigsaw puzzles? Can you imagine solving a 20-piece puzzle without a picture? Pretty easy, right? How about a 100-piece puzzle without knowing what the final product looks like? I guess that just got a tad difficult! Now imagine a jigsaw puzzle with billions of pieces but you were not shown what the final completed picture was. Where would you even start? How would you know what piece fits where?

Yesterday while I was lamenting to someone about what the next big direction of my life was going to be, I had an epiphany: my life is like a jigsaw puzzle and each second constitutes a puzzle piece of my life. So far, over a billion pieces have been put together already and there are so many more pieces to go until the final picture is done. This is where faith and trust take center stage.

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

Hebrews 11:6 NIV

Faith allows us to envision what the next puzzle piece of our life is- allows us to hope beyond the now to a future state; to be assured that the next piece of the puzzle whatever it is will be just the right piece that needs to interlock with the piece before and the piece that will come after. Not all the pieces will be joyful, indeed some will be filled with sorrow, heartbreak, and disappointment- but rest assured, they all fit together to paint the complete picture of your life.

What’s more, even though we do not know the full picture of the sum our lives and we live through life one puzzle piece at a time, there is someone who has the full picture and is actually the Orchestrator of each puzzle piece. Afterall, many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails (Proverbs 19 :21). Scripture encourages us to put our trust in the One who has the master plan for our lives. It says:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Proverbs 3: 5-6 NLT

Why? because He knows the full picture and knows how the next piece fits into the next and the next. The reality is, even though we think we are in the drivers seat of our lives, there is nothing farther from the truth. Proverbs 20: 24 clues us in:

A man’s steps are from the LORD; how then can man understand his way?

In fact, that is the source of all anxiety and worry: thinking that we can fit together the billions of pieces of our lives without a picture of where pieces are supposed to go. Sometimes if we are lucky, we succeed in fitting just the right piece on “our own” without the help of the master “Puzzler.” More often than not, we pick the wrong piece and try to jam it into a space that it was not designed to fit into. We end up with choices that we regret or with more heartache than we should have had. But thanks be to God who leads us in His triumph and gives us victory through Jesus Christ our Lord! Jesus takes those “wrong pieces” and works them out for our good and His glory sake. This is why we can look back on some of the self-inflicted messes in our lives and they appear to all still be connected to a larger picture. God works out everything back into place within the puzzle. How? Only the Master Craftsman knows! And the best thing we can do for ourselves is to put our trust in His plan- the one that brings us to an expected end and gives us a future and a hope! When you feel overwhelmed with what the next steps of your life should be and you are unsure if that move, that decision, that action is the right one or not, can I encourage you to say this to your soul:

But I trust in You, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in Your hands…

Psalm 31:14-15a BSB

Indeed He’s got times and seasons in His hands- in my home we call it the bird’s eye view. He has the bird’s eye view of our lives; he sees the whole picture which is why He alone is the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2)! From our first cry to our final breath, He commands our destinies! So friends, will you join me today to trust God for the next step in whatever season of life you are in? The next piece of your life’s puzzle is in His hand.

Yours truly.