I HAVE FOUND
THE BOOK OF THE LAW IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD (2 KINGS 22:8). FIND THE BOOK!

One Sunday
at the church where I pastor, I invited three children to find several scrolls
with Bible verses written on them that I had hidden in our worship centre. I
told them that once they found them and read the words aloud, I would give them
a prize. You should have seen those kids! They ran, moved chairs, and looked
under plants and in purses (with permission). Their search for the scroll was
intense, but exciting. Their diligent search and subsequent discovery of the
scrolls led to joy in the children, affirmation from our congregation, and a
renewed sense of the importance of God’s Word.

In 2 kings
22-23, we read how King Josiah and the people of Judah rediscovered the joy and
importance…

HEROES WORSHIP! I WILL PRAISE YOU, FOR I AM FEARFULLY AND
WONDERFULLY MADE (PSALM 139:14)

When I was a kid, I had a hero: Peter Maravich, a
high-scoring basketball player who handled the ball like a magician.

Problem was, my desire to be like Pistol Pete blocked my
satisfaction with who God made me to be. When I realized I could never play
like Pete, I grew discouraged. I even quit my college team briefly because I
couldn’t measure up to the Maravich standard.

Kids still do that kind of things. They grow unhappy with
who God made them to be because they measure themselves by their “perfect”
heroes.

Christian singer Jonny Diaz recognized this and wrote a song
called “More Beautiful You.” The song begins: “Little girl fourteen flipping
through a magazine; says she wants to look that way.” Some young girls wish
they could…

TEACH US TO NUMBER OUR DAYS THAT WE MAY GAIN A HEART OF
WISDOM (PSALM 90:12)

GRANDFATHER’S CLOCK

In 1876, Henry Clay Work wrote the song “My Grandfather’s
Clock.” The song describes a grandfather’s clock that faithfully ticks its way
through its owner’s life. Childhood, adulthood, and old age are all viewed in
relationship to his beloved timepiece. The refrain says:

Ninety years without
slumbering,

Tick, tock, tick,
tock,

His life’s seconds
numbering,

Tick, tock, tick,
tock,

But it stopped, short,

Never to go again,

When the old man died.

The relentless ticking of the clock reminds us that our time
on earth is limited. Despite the joys and pains of life, time always marches
on. For the believer, our time on earth is an opportunity for gaining wisdom.
The psalmist writes, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of

Jesus loves you and He understands your pains and sorrows!

The Lord Is Gracious And Full Of Compassion. Psalm 145:8

I have a friend who was working in his home office one evening, trying to get some necessary paperwork done. His little girl, who was about 4 years old at the time, was playing around his desk, puttering about, moving objects here and there, pulling out drawers, and making a good deal of noise.

My friend endured the distraction with stoic patience until the child slammed a drawer on one of her fingers and screamed in pain. Reacting in exasperation he shouted, “That’s it!” as he escorted her out of the room and shut the door.

Later, her mother found her weeping in her bedroom and tried to comfort her. “Does your finger still hurt?” she asked. “No,” the little girl sniffled. “Then why are you crying?”…

HONOURING YOUR PARENTS

Honour your father and mother that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you. Exodus 20:12

My dad recently turned 90 years old and his physical capabilities are fading. He can still move around with his walker, but he needs someone to cook his meals and help him with other tasks.

My older brother Steve and his wife Judy lived close to him, so they decided to move in with Dad to care for him. Wanting to help in some way, my wife and I flew across the country to help out a bit by watching Dad while my brother and his wife had some time away together. We enjoyed our time with my father and were glad to ease Steve and Judy’s load – even if it was only for a few days.

The Bible…

DON’T LET THE NOISE OF THIS WORLD KEEP YOU FROM HEARING THE VOICE OF GOD!

IN SEARCH OF SILENCE!

I HAVE CALMED AND QUIETED MY SOUL. (PSALM 131:2)

My next record should be 45 minutes of silence”, said singer Meg Hutchinson, “because that’s what we’re missing most in society.”

Silence is indeed hard to find. Cities are notoriously noisy due to the high concentration of traffic and people. There seems to be no escape from loud music, loud machines, noisy generators, and loud voices. But the kind of noise that endangers our spiritual well-being is not the noise we can’t escape but the noise we invite into our lives. Some of use noise as a way of shutting out loneliness: voices of TV and radio personalities give us the illusion of companionship. Some of us use it as a way of shutting out…

Excelling  In Life
by Pastor Afolabi

People often busy themselves with some  activity that they believe would give them an edge for excellence in various  areas of their lives. For some, it is enrolling for that extra on-the-job  course to sharpen their business acumen; for others, it’s hiring the services  of a pro trainer or coach to improve their skills in some sport. For some  others still, it is sitting for weeks, months or even years under the tutorship  of world class professors and ultimately obtaining a first class degree from  some renowned institution in well acclaimed areas of the world. And maybe for  some, recruiting the best skilled hands to execute the goals of their companies  or organizations would definitely do the “excelling” trick.

These are undeniably laudable efforts,  worthy of emulation. However, that individual who will become truly excellent  in his or her life…

LET US RUN WITH PATIENCE THE RACE THAT IS SET BEFORE US,
LOOKING UNTO JESUS THE AUTHOR AND FINISHER OF OUR FAITH

Wherefore seeing we
also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witness, let us lay aside
every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with
patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and
finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:1-2)

In life, you must never compare yourself with others;
rather, run your race and be the best of you. The Bible talks about “the race”
that is set before us; thus you’re not called to run someone else’s race.
Hence, it’s needless to engage in any kind of unhealthy rivalry or competition
with others. You’re only permitted to compete with yourself and outdo your
past. Never allow yourself to be…

FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD, THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN
SON (ELECTED BY GRACE)

But ye are an elect
race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession,
that ye may show forth the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness
into His marvellous light (1 Peter 2:9 ASV).

In Genesis 6, the Bible tells us of certain angels who
married the daughters of men and produced giants in the earth. Thus their seed
spread upon the earth till they had cousins and relatives everywhere. These were
not godly seeds; satan’s ploy was to pollute the human race. But God put a stop
to this pollution by destroying the whole world.

Satan knew God had promised that the seed of the woman would
bruise his head (Genesis 3:15), so by polluting the human race with the

THROUGH FAITH WE UNDERSTAND THAT THE WORLDS WERE FRAMED BY
THE WORD OF GOD

Through faith we
understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things which
are seen were not made of things which do appear (Hebrews 11:3)

The Greek word translated “framed” in the opening scripture
is “katartizo” which is to repair,
frame, perfect, mend, or restore. In other words, through faith we understand
that the worlds were repaired, framed, mended, restored and perfected by God.
This lets us understand the power of faith because that was how God framed the
visible world from the unseen.

Another word to study in the opening scripture is “world”,
which is translated from the Greek word “aion”. “Aion” refers to the structure
and administration of one’s life; how things go with you from day to day,
including how they affect…

Office Safety Tips – Safety in the workplace

Office safety is very essential in today’s world. That’s why  it’s important to plan ahead for all kinds of workplace emergencies. Think  fire, think electric shock – absolutely anything and everything that you can  think about. Make a list of all these emergencies. Based on this list, make  another list of things you need to have at your workplace to ensure the safety  of your employees. And then install these things.

Here are a few safety tips for the office or for the  workplace:

Keep your working area neat and clean.  One cannot emphasize on this enough. Piles of papers and stacks of files  combined with a tangle of wires are a disaster waiting to happen, on several  fronts. A clean work space will also enable you to identify a problem and  tackle it faster and more effectively.

Developing  Bolder and Brighter Kids
by Pastor Joy Amenkhienan

Learn how to take care of your kids from  the stage of growing up (between the ages of 3-7) to the stage of discernment.

The  Growing Up Stage
At this stage, parents should ensure that  their kids attend church services regularly. They should not leave them at home  while they are in church.

It’s also at this stage that parents ought  to start activating their plans for their kids. That’s when they should  compliment their children on whatever they do. This would give them the  boldness to do better next time. They should not be hushed up whenever they try  to say something and emphasis should not be placed on the wrong things they do  but on the good. Parents must also talk their children up. For example, they  don’t need to have passed an examination before…

Discipline and the Child
By Deaconess Dolapo Layode

The word “discipline” refers to training  which is both instructive and corrective. The word of God shows us very clearly  that training is targeted towards achieving preset goals and objectives.  Proverbs 22:6 tells us “Train up a child in the way He should go”. The expected  outcome of any training exercise must be clear from the onset.

The responsibility for having a clear  understanding of the expected results of training and discipline lies primarily  with the parents. As Christian parents, it’s important to realize that it is  your responsibility to raise godly children who will grow in the ways of the  kingdom. The Word of God speaks expressly of the uniqueness and peculiarities  of the Christian. (1 Peter 2: 9)  Child  training and discipline therefore should have one primary objective; the growth  and development of a child…

Fashion! Accessorizing Do’s  And Don’ts

When it comes to accessories, many  individuals are unaware of the appropriate items that will best work with their  outfit. There are so many options available, it is easy to throw up your hands  and agree to live a life completely void of any accessories. Instead, look  carefully at these accessorizing do’s and don’ts before you let go of these  delightful items that will add polish to any outfit.

Accessorizing Do’s

Choose accessories that will enhance  your outfit. Look at your outfit’s colours, feel, and texture when choosing  appropriate accessories. Work to find accessories that will successfully  benefit a variety of wardrobes to stretch your budget and the items available  to you.

Follow current trends when  accessorizing your wardrobe. Following a fashion magazine to see exactly what  is considered in and what is totally out when it comes to accessories isn’t out  of…

Taking  Initiative

Initiative is the motivation to direct  effort toward achieving challenging goals and remain determined even when  things get difficult.

Here are some ways any employee can take  greater initiative in his or her job. It’s one thing to tell your employees to  take greater initiative, but another to provide them with easy and clear ways  to do it.

Ways  To Take More Initiative In Your Job 

Innovation—thinking outside the box–is  the spark that keeps organizations moving ever onward and upward. To think  outside the box, you must think differently.

Tips On Thinking Differently

• Look for new combinations.
• Ask “what if?” or develop  “what-if” scenarios.
• Consider approaches you’ve never thought  about before.
• Brainstorm with others.
• Be a champion of new ideas — the old ways  aren’t always the best ways. Without innovation, new products, new services,  new ways of doing business would…

Jesus is considered by scholars such as Weber to be an example of a charismatic religious leader. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

THEY THAT TRUST IN THE
LORD SHALL BE AS MOUNT ZION, WHICH CANNOT BE REMOVED, BUT ABIDETH FOREVER
(PSALM 125:1).

As a child
of God, you dwell in Zion. That’s the city of your habitation, and you’ve been
planted there to shine. In Psalm 1:3, the Bible talks about the man whose
delight is in the Word and meditates on it day and night: “…….he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that
bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and
whatsoever he doeth shall prosper”.

This verse
of Scripture is talking about the saints; that’s you. You’re like the tree
planted by the rivers of water; you’re bringing forth your fruit in season, and
your leaves…

GOD TAKES PLEASURE IN THE PROSPERITY OF HIS CHILDREN.

God takes pleasure in the prosperity of His children. The fact
is, He longs to see His children live every day in prosperity. Once you can
find your place in God, you’ll prosper as God has ordained: “The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich,
and He addeth no sorrow with it” (Proverbs 10:22). Any of His children who
is not prospering in His Word hasn’t found his place yet.

God will never withhold any good thing from us (Psalm
84:11). As a fact, He loves to give to us more abundantly above all that we can
ever think or imagine (Ephesians 3:20). He can give you whatever you desire
beyond what your mind could ever fathom. All you need do is to believe and
trust Him; you shouldn’t limit Him in…