Letters For The PEW

It is from instances such as this that I come to realise my fault to be deeper than my own skin. For sin itself blinds me from seeing that I am wretched to think that GOD doesn't love me to save me from the deepest hurting. It is scripture that shows to me that I stand in the way of my own healing, I push the Healer away, I refuse the healing, I choose to be lesser and I choose to blame the solution for the problem.

At the beginning of GOD's leading, you will find the end of it, the purpose of it. GOD leads us from the place of a finished process. That means while HE leads us through the journey, HE is instructing us from the place of the conclusion of the journey. To know the end from the beginning is how GOD leads us.

In some agreements, and in some ways, to owe is to be owned; to owe is to have a piece of you given for a piece of your vision to be earned. In some ways when you borrow money, you have no space to waver because you either succeed at what you set out to do or lose something just as valuable. I reckon that a debtor is obligated to the courtesy of the indebted and no lender gives you a loan when they do not think you are valuable or have a portion of value they may have in their possession if their possessions are not recovered at the fulfilment of the agreement. In the same way, I think of loans and debts, I think of sin and the power of sin on the flesh.

Who said walking with God was easy? It is not easy, my love, because when you live a life of total surrender to the will of God, the things you love, the plans you have and the people you have had around you may need to change so you can align perfectly with His will.

As a pawn, you have no control over your actions; your choices are limited to begin with! You move forward when told to, never an option of backtracking, and many times you are stuck in one position by the opposition until he wishes to take you off the board to advance his own agenda. Yes, there is a promise of promotion to a higher rank at the end of the chessboard, but, Olu, you and I know that is only a mirage.

When the tough times are imminent, it is easy to justify keeping faith aside because your heart is right with GOD. However, "the heart alone" isn't enough. If we say the heart is right with GOD and so actions don't matter because we can repent later, we dig a pit while still in it. Why? Because the heart is deceitful, and actions or plans are tied to our hearts. So what we do or do not do is a direct result of the state of our hearts, whether we admit this or not.

Dear Akpan, I can hardly believe that July has decided to grace us with her ever-gentle presence. Where I am, the weather seems to change its mind every other day, but I have made a mid-year resolution not to utter a single word of complaint about it. Complaining about whatever season I find myself in […]

At every stage of creation where GOD is faced with a new task or for lack of better words, a challenge for creativity, how does GOD handle it? Does HE dwell on the problem or does HE solve it? He solves by HIS Word, yes? But what does HE not do? He does not ask questions. Now I know this is ironic since most of this letter so far has been about asking questions. I have asked questions to say that in the creation story, there are no questions. GOD doesn't create by questions and because we know that all things are of GOD and made by The LORD (1 Corinthians 8:6), then there are no questions in the core of GOD's creativity process.

In the first Calling Game, GOD called into existence things that did not exist. Unlike your children, what GOD calls to be becomes. When GOD says, ‘let there be light’, there's light (Genesis 1:3). GOD calls day and night and they don't take up any other name since then (Genesis 1:5). GOD calls the firmament (Genesis 1:7), calls the waters together (Genesis 1:9), calls trees to grow (Genesis 1:11,12), sea creatures to birth and flying birds too (Genesis 1:20-22). When it's time to make man, HE calls for man to be made in GODly Image and Likeness to have dominion (Genesis 1:26). You should tell them that GOD is the best caller in the Calling Game, and there lies the greatest lesson.

Have you ever wondered why there is evil in the world? Why does GOD allow evil even though GOD is good (all the time)? What does it mean for tragedy, destruction, aches, pain, evil-looking situations, harmful circumstances, and sheer bad luck to be part of GODs Will? Can we say evil comes from a good GOD? Do we say these things to keep up hope? Do we sometimes think GOD lost control, and then something bad happened? And does our faith oblige us to say it is what GOD wanted even if it is hurtful? How do we make sense of this inevitable paradox?

Though Scripture does not describe the details for us, I am convinced that there must have been a quiet and consistent role of faithfulness being played behind the scenes, a faithfulness that ensured the knowledge of God would be passed down. Timothy’s sincere faith must have affected Apostle Paul so deeply that he felt compelled to commend both his mother and grandmother for it. What may have appeared insignificant to ordinary eyes became part of the foundation that eventually gave rise to some of the letters we now hold in Scripture. Paul recognized Timothy as someone trustworthy enough to entrust with the teachings of the Gospel and the strengthening of the Church.

The Bible wasn't written in verses. Verses help us memorise, but don't fall into the habit of exalting one above another. Scripture is like a body—every part matters. Preferring one verse over another is like preferring your biceps to your triceps. That's not how a body works, and not how Scripture works either.

They knew only JESUS could end HIS own ministry. They knew the only force powerful enough to stop GOD is GOD. Even today, the enemy tries to use 'a work of GOD' to prevent "the work of GOD"—to distract, to water down, or to divide hearts and attention. No one but GOD can stop GOD and HIS will.

I think about how often the Lord reminds us that His strength is made available to us, especially in times of weakness and I am prompted to ask; how can strength be made available in weakness? The concept of strength that the world has always taught us is to always appear strong. However, God’s word says His strength is made perfect in our weaknesses

"We have freedom: freedom that is never bound, freedom that can no longer succumb to the boundaries of our human and unequal limitations. The righteousness of GOD, the righteousness of JESUS, shows us that we can live in righteousness and be strong by virtue of living in it."

It may seem strange to you, who would choose death? Yet the truth is that, left to ourselves, we often do, even when we try not to. But this is where the beauty of the gospel shines. Jesus Christ came and laid down His life for you and me, triumphing over sin, and all that held us bound

I'm learning to be and feel good and grateful to GOD when those who hurt me have goodness or good news in their lives. Example at hand, a manipulative ex getting married before me, a wicked senior and bully in secondary school becoming a big time success in their industry, a wayward colleague finding JESUS before facing the retribution of sin.

A soul without burden is one that has allowed Another (Jesus Christ) to carry it, and can now rejoice freely. We begin to see the light, and our backs grow light as well; the burden that once sat heavily on our hearts rolls away and rests in the tomb where Jesus Christ defeated sin.

Lately, I am trying to unravel the contribution of differences and repetitions in human record-keeping when it comes to portraying the image of GOD. I'm gradually coming to terms with appreciating the complexity of repetition as a means of depicting the full picture of several historical accounts of faith.

I am no longer afraid of myself; I am no longer afraid, nor am I weary of myself. Today is the last day I feel sorry for being the spitting image and likeness of GOD. I embrace myself, warmly, without pride, without prejudice, without procrastination.