The Slippery Slope Of Success


Anointing of Jesus

Anointing of Jesus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Slippery Slope Of Success

READ: 1 Samuel 15:10-23

When you were little in your own eyes, . . . did not the Lord anoint you king over Israel? —1 Samuel 15:17

Among the more than 19,000 original epigrams penned by chemist and writer Dr. O. A. Battista is this wise observation: “You have reached the pinnacle of success as soon as you become uninterested in money, compliments, or publicity.” Unfortunately, just the opposite often happens when something we have done is praised and rewarded. A humble heart can quickly become a swelled head.

Just before Saul was anointed king, he saw himself as a member of an insignificant family in the smallest tribe of Israel (1 Sam. 9:21). Within a few years, however, he had erected a monument in his own honour and had become the supreme authority for his conduct (15:11-12). The prophet Samuel confronted Saul for his disobedience to God by reminding him, “When you were little in your own eyes, were you not head of the tribes of Israel? And did not the Lord anoint you king over Israel?” (v.17).

Self-importance is the first step down the slippery slope of what we call success. It begins when we claim credit for God-given victories and modify His commands to suit our desires.

True success is staying on God’s path by following His Word and giving Him praise instead of craving it for ourselves. —David McCasland

Help me, O Lord, lest my heart become proud,
For all of my talents by You are endowed;
Nothing I have can I claim as my own—
What mercy and grace in my life You have shown! —D. De Haan

True humility credits God for every success.

May the LORD bless Nigeria, American and Israel and take care of us; May the LORD make His face shine upon us, And be gracious to us; May the Lord lift up His countenance upon us, And give us peace, In Jesus Christ Name, we pray! Amen!

Great Power, Great Grace


Stained glass at St John the Baptist's Anglica...

Stained glass at St John the Baptist’s Anglican Church http://www.stjohnsashfield.org.au, Ashfield, New South Wales. Illustrates Jesus’ description of himself “I am the Good Shepherd” (from the Gospel of John, chapter 10, verse 11). This version of the image shows the detail of his face. The memorial window is also captioned: “To the Glory of God and in Loving Memory of William Wright. Died 6th November, 1932. Aged 70 Yrs.” (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Great Power, Great Grace


And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection
of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all

Acts 4:33

Notice the words great grace. The anointing can increase in your life.
The prophet Elisha stayed with Elijah for twenty years, and at the end
of Elijah’s life he asked Elisha what he wanted. Elisha requested a
double portion of the anointing. He knew the value of more and more
anointing.

The anointing is measurable. You can have a little anointing, or you
can have a lot. The more anointing to prosper that you have, the more
of this blessing you will receive on your life. That anointing will
bring more prosperity your way.

May the LORD bless Nigeria, American and Israel and take care of us; May the LORD make His face shine upon us, And be gracious to us; May the Lord lift up His countenance upon us, And give us peace, In Jesus Christ Name, we pray! Amen!

I Can Do All Things Through Christ Which Strengthens Me (Philippians 4:13)


Stained glass at St John the Baptist's Anglica...

Image via Wikipedia

I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHICH STRENGTHENS ME
(Philippians 4:13)

Christ in our
opening Scripture doesn’t refer to the Man Jesus; it means The Anointed One and His Anointing. It refers to the supernatural
empowerment Jesus received when the Holy Spirit came upon Him, which made Him
the Christ. You received the same Holy Spirit when you were born again. Thus
the same anointing that made Jesus The
Christ
and gave Him the ability to do the impossible is at work in us. Apostle
Paul understood this truth, and by the Spirit said, “I can do all things
through Christ which strengthens me.”

Like Apostle Paul, we ought to make this our constant
confession; The ability of The Holy Spirit has been granted to us to achieve
supernatural exploits in life. The Bible says, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of
ourselves; but our sufficiency is of GOD
” (2 Corinthians 3:5). The word
“sufficiency” in the verse of scripture means “ability”. The Spirit of God is
letting us know that we’ve been endued with God’s supernatural ability.
Therefore, look beyond what your physical ability can do.

Never let your confidence rest in your intellect or in your
physical ability because there’s a divine energy available to us. That energy
is the power of The Holy Spirit which we must recognize and put to work in our
lives every day. With us, nothing is impossible. Cultivate the “I can do
mentality” and be possibility- conscious.

For example, if you’re a student, never admit that something
you’ve read is too difficult for you to understand. Rather, tell yourself, “I
have the ability of God in me; I can do all things through Christ which
strengthens me. I have the ability to comprehend everything I read and pass my
examinations with flying colours.”

If a project or an assignment is given to you in your place
of work, no matter how difficult it may look, don’t say it can’t be done. Never
say something is impossible; we have the ability of God in us, therefore we can
do all things.

PRAYER

Dear Heavenly Father,
thank You for Your power that works in me mightily. I declare like Apostle Paul
that I can do all things through Your anointing that’s at work in me. Thank You
for helping me build an “I can do mentality”, and because I’m conscious of Your
divine energy that’s at work in me, I know that nothing will ever be impossible
for me to accomplish, in Jesus Christ Name! Amen!

www.rhapsodyofrealities.org

May Our God The Almighty prosper Nigeria
and Israel and defend us from all our enemies in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

 

 

Invest in yourself .


Image via Wikipedia

A hypocrite with his mouth destroyeth
his neighbour: but through knowledge shall the just be delivered (Proverbs
11:9).

The future
belongs to those who are knowledgeable. That’s one of the reasons I encourage
young people to go to school. Educate yourself; make sure you read the necessary
materials that will enhance your intellectual capabilities. Don’t spend all
your time reading newspaper; otherwise, you’d merely end up in life reading the
news, when you should actually be making the news. Think at a high level.
Refuse mediocrity; polish yourself by opening your mind to current and relevant
information. I’m not just talking about reading international magazines and
listening to international news .I’m talking about activating your mental
processes, using your mind, having a motivation and strong propensity to
acquire more knowledge in order to be excellent, being the best at what you do.

Become
influential. To do that, you have to study. You have to read and improve
yourself by investing in your mind.

There’re
folks who have been through school but haven’t learnt to task their minds. You
see, it’s not enough to know everything in your course curriculum in school;
the world is bigger than your chosen field of specialization.  You must begin to task your mind to learn at
least, little about other fields. You must always create the time and
opportunity to learn more. As a child of God, you’re anointed and that
anointing gives you the advantage in life. Therefore, you have the intelligence
and everything it takes to do the necessary homework that will get you ready
for the future.

I’m not
saying you must become a university professor to be successful. No, I’m talking
about you improving your intelligence and your understanding of things in life
around you. In other words, apart from carefully studying your Bible, which is
the number one success manual, train yourself to learn about other fields.
Discipline yourself to acquire knowledge. That way, you’re improving your value
and relevance in today’s world.

PRAYER

Father, thank You for opening my
understanding to learn and acquire the knowledge and skill I require to be
relevant and indispensable in my world, and for granting me knowledge of witty
inventions. My mind is activated to receive the right kind of information
always, in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

 

www.christembassy.org