Free Food… You Should Have Some!

Hi friends. I’m so sorry I’ve not posted anything in over a month. Thing is, I’ve not been inspired to write anything blog-worthy and to be honest, I wasn’t really looking to write anything. This time in my Christian Race is a time strictly for learning, so I’ve tried to avoid teaching. I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing, but it’s the truth. Anyway, I was giving this some thoughts in the weekend, feeling guilty that it’s well over a month and nothing new on Temi’s Race, so I have decided to share with you how I am learning. I hope it inspires you somehow.

So, let me start by saying I recently got a new Teacher of the Word. Okay, fine, he does not know who I am – at all. But he’s become one of my teachers. And we have something in common – he loves Bro. Hagin too. Anyhow, so some time ago, I was complaining to Kunle (co-author, Temi’s Race) on my need to get “Real Food” and he suggested that I went on the church website of this my new teacher and download some of his free audio teachings. This I attempted to do, but that time, the church website seemed to be down. I tried a couple more times --- didn’t work, so I just let it go. Luckily, recently, a friend, Pastor Ibk, told me again about my new teacher and shared some of his audio sermons with me, I listened to a few and I was intrigued. Later, I found out that they had a branch of their church here in Port Harcourt, the city where I live. So, I began “stalking” their website. I made some calls and long story short, I found myself in their Port Harcourt branch – completely off my route… but I made it there. While I sat in the short pew waiting for service to start that evening, I almost began crying. You know the feeling – when you’ve been starved for soooo long and then you know that good food is coming, you just want to cry and laugh and sing at once, but then at the same time, you’re wondering where is the food… when is it coming? That’s how I felt. Anyway, fast forward… service started. It started with prayers. Pastor Ibk already told me that their service started with one hour prayers (in tongues). So I was ready for that. I however, did not know that I had been invited for a “Workers’ Retreat”; we prayed in tongues for two hours and half. It was refreshing. I couldn’t wait for the Word that night… ’cause remember, I said it was completely off my route. I had to find my way back home through the streets of highly unsafe city of Port Harcourt. The next day though, I left my house at 6:30AM and went for more Food. This time, I was ready for prayers and the Word was good. I have not been able to visit them again, but I’ve been stalking their website. It was on one of my “stalking” moments that I found their “media room” – lots of teachings. Good teachings and they were free. Free Food? Oh Heavens!!! I immediately downloaded some and the first I listened to on prayers was “When We Don’t Pray” and then “Unraveling the Myth of Unanswered Prayers”.  

Oh goodness! Friends, these two sets of teachings have helped change my prayer life. I’ve always known something wasn’t right with my prayer life. I could recognize wrong ways to pray and was careful to listen to people praying before saying “Amen”. But something was off, I knew. Funnily enough, I’d read Kenneth Hagin’s, “The Art of Prayer” which my new teacher referenced a lot in his teachings. I think, unlike my new teacher, what I got from that great book was more of sense knowledge (a mental assent) – sadly (all my fault)! I should have put the lessons from the book into better practice, like I did when I read “Tongues”. Gratefully, my new teacher exposed things in a way that made it all clearer to me. I also think visiting their church during that Workers’ Retreat was very helpful and timely. It helped kick start a new level in my prayer life. One thing I liked also was listening to a young modern day pastor who is so knowledgeable about the Word, and his place in Christ, take prayers very seriously. That in itself is inspiring. 

To God be the glory, my prayer life has improved greatly. These days, every day, when I’m awoken at night (don’t ask me by who), I have learned to discipline myself to choose prayers over sleep. At first, it wasn’t easy and it affected me a little at work; but now, it’s getting better and I’m keeping it together with chewing gums at work. My productivity level is still awesome. Praise God. I’ll get used to it as time goes on. And I won’t give up.  No no no. I’ll pray every day & night; even in traffic [traffic has been a blessing to me listening to these sermons, by the way].

Well, friends, so that’s what’s been up with me in my Race. I found Real Food and it’s highly uplifting. With permission obtained from my new teacher, I’m inviting you to the table too. If you’re tired of eating stale bread or finding no bread at all, check out this link from Saints Community Church and listen to sermons by my new teacher, Pastor Chris Onayinka. If your prayer life is as confusing as mine was, please, listen to these: When We Don’t Pray and Unraveling the Myth of Unanswered Prayers. I also encourage you to take some time out to read Kenneth Hagin’s “The Art of Prayer” and “Tongues: Beyond the Upper Room”. I trust you’ll not remain the same. 

I know I didn’t tell you anything I learned. That’s on purpose. Go get yours. ***wink***.

Finally though, let me state this clearly. Please, do NOT base your spiritual growth on just listening to someone else’s teachings. Please, study the Word for yourself. Each time I attend a church service, and leave unfilled, I always take consolation in the fact that I have my own Bible and I always study it. So as good Bible students, please, study your Bibles regularly and check out anybody’s teachings with what the Bible says. Don’t just accept anything you hear, even if it sounds great. 

God bless you.

There's More... So Much More!

Hi Folks. Happy New Year… Welcome to 2016. I’m trusting God that this will be a great year for all of us in Jesus’ name. Last year, on January 1^st, I challenged y’all to take God’s Word as it is and live in His promises. I know some of us who took that challenge seriously and are happy we did. Praise God for that.

For about three weeks now, I’ve been praying, asking God what He wanted to share with us here on Temi’s Race for the New Year. Just a few days ago, I sensed that He'd like me to share what He's been dealing with me on.

Recently, as I studied my Bible, I had a sort of déjà vu kinda moment. I didn’t enjoy my Bible study that day like I should have. I realized there was hardly any connect between my spirit and God’s; and honestly to myself I observed it had been going on for days. I was learning alright, but the thrill wasn’t there and it sucked. (For someone who enjoys studying her Bible more than anything else, that was a big deal). I’d been there before. That was some years ago. That time my drum was a lot smaller and so was the content, but proportionally, it wasn’t much different from what I realized that it is now. Yeah, now I have a bigger drum and more content of God, but there’s still too much space for more in my bigger drum. The knowledge I have about Christ isn’t enough. Now, I want Christ Himself. I want closeness. I want a more intimate relationship. Yes, I have Him. But what I have is not enough anymore. I am thirsty; I need my thirst to be quenched. But after it is quenched, I want to thirst again. I am hungry; I want to be filled. But once I’m filled, I want to be hungry again. I need more of God. Not a one time or seasonal dish anymore. I want Him daily; every moment of every day – all of the time. This is what I found myself telling God over and over again during my church’s one week global congress this past December. I just really couldn’t pray for anything else sufficiently. I just want more of HIM. 

And from this year on, He wants you to desire more of Him too – desperately, like everything depends on it, because it does.

Enough of doing things to please yourself. Enough of running after ambition for your own benefit. Oh, brothers, enough of getting drowned in those success, prosperity and self-improving sermons. Enough of flipping over Matthew 6:33. Enough of using Christ only for your personal gain; quoting and holding on to scriptures in “faith” for the sole purpose of enriching yourself and having having having. Enough! Enough, please. Let’s focus on Him. There’s sooo much in Him. So so much. Focus on Him this year and beyond. Enough of all that pleases you. You were made for His pleasure (Revelation 4:11; Isaiah 3:7); please, give Him pleasure. 

See folks, it may surprise you to learn that God does NOT have a purpose for YOUR life. No, He doesn’t. God has a purpose. God has a plan. It DOES include you; but it is NOT about you. The fact that it includes you is what makes Jeremiah 29:11 for you; but there is no part of His purpose or plan that is about you. No. there isn’t. It is not, it cannot – never has, never will be – about you. So, enough of making it about you. It is His desire that every believer would understand this truth and begin to live it out. You see, at every crucial/changing point in your life, God expects you to take a step back, and rather than ask, “What is God’s plan for me here, or at this point?” He wants you to ask, “What is God doing in this place, at this point? What is His purpose? And how can I fit myself into His plan?” Whatever the answers to these latter questions are become your purpose. That is, His will becomes your will. His desires become your desires and His plans, your plans. It is always about Him.

This simply means that your good paying job, your education, your nice house/car, your business, your money in the bank aren’t part of His plan for your life. No. Instead, they are some of the tools you will need to achieve His purpose. Your spouse, your children aren’t His purpose for your life. No. Your union with your spouse and your children is a tool you’d use in fulfilling your own bit of His purpose. There is no “your” ministry. There is HIS ministry that you are meant to work in. 

Brothers and sisters, stop paying too much attention on the tools; focus on the task and more on the One who assigned you the task. A mechanic who keeps admiring His solid and beautiful new tools will never get the job done. Focus on His task. Give Him pleasure. When you understand that nothing is about you, you won’t be too downcast when things don’t seem to be going favorably. If you’re in the center of His will, you’ll know that however things go, as long as they work together to get His job done, you’re good. Unlike the fair weather believer, you’ll be able to say, “When things look up, LORD, it’s all about you; and when things look south, it’s still all about you, GOD.” (But don’t be afraid. No one works for Him without getting rewarded). 

Folks, it’s not enough to know about God. This is especially to my fellow New Creation Realities’ friends, Bible teachers, and Pastors. I know we love to seek His word, hold on “Rhemas” and share them. There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, that’s awesome and highly encouraged. But let’s not only learn about Christ, let us learn Christ. Let’s know Him (Ephesians 4:20; Philippians 3:10). Anybody can know about anybody. But not anybody can know anybody. There must be relationship. There must be fellowship. There must be intimacy. I know too many pastors/ministers who search scriptures only because they have to preach a sermon. This should not be so. No. This is why hungry sinners come to church and go back hungry. A lot of “active” believers don’t even know their Shepherd. They don’t know His voice. They don’t hear. They don’t listen. They don’t follow. This is why winds of doctrines come and attempt to sway them about. Jesus said in John 10:28-29 that there are some people who can NEVER be snatched from His hands. He described them in verses 3-5, 27. They are His sheep. Are you His sheep? Do you know His voice? Or you’ve only heard that He’s a gentle talker? Do you know Him? Or you only know about Him? Do you listen to Him? Or you only listen to those who listen to Him? Do you follow Him? Or you only follow man and what men say? If you don’t even know to whom you belong, how do you expect sinners to come to Him? Paul said, I know whom I have believed (1^st Timothy 1:12). This means, it is one thing to believe Him, it’s another to know Him. God is calling out to us at this time, folks. He’s inviting us to come know Him like we never have before. How will you RSVP His invite? Positively or negatively? 

Brother and sisters, I’m writing with so much passion. There is more of Him. He wants that quiet moment with you – often, not seasonally. He wants to tell you secrets. He wants to whisper in your ears. He was to listen to you too (a back-and-forth communication with Him). He wants you to find solace in His arms. He wants to love you. He said this in Zephaniah 3:17 (I love the NLT version). Don’t get carried away with the busyness of life. This world will pass away. It’s only a matter of time. Don’t get carried away by the beauty and sturdiness of the tools He has given you. Partner with Him who has given you the tools and together with Him, get the job done. Stop running after the comfortable things of life. I know they are nice. But I’d rather you run after Him who is called Comforter. In the words of Tommy Tenney, be a God Chaser. There’s so much more of Him that you can have, and like me, I know there’s a lot lot lot of space in your drum for more. You only need ask. He’s more than willing to give you more of Himself in ways that can’t be explained with words.

I encourage you brethren in Christ, from this year on, have Him and seek to have more of Him – every moment of every day. It’s so much worth more than anything else. 

 

Happy New Year once again. I long to hear from you as you experience intimacy on a fresher level with HIM this year. God bless you.

And please, share this post with other believers. Perhaps, this is a timely message for them too.

WHAT GOD EXPECTS OF US AT CHRISTMAS

Hey guys, Kunle came around from Australia to visit and we had a wonderful time. Before we parted, I gave him a notepad and a pen to write down a Christmas message for y’all, our readers on Temi’s Race and he did. So this piece is from Kunle & I. By the way, it has been a great year writing for this blog this year and I’m very grateful to you for taking out time to read, make comments, share and even send personal encouraging messages. I appreciate you all. 

So, this Christmas, I chose to run away from the hustle and bustle of Port Harcourt (the city where I live and work) to a very serene environment where my parents live. There’s not a lot of noise about Christmas here, but I must say I’ve had a really great time resting, reading, eating, and meeting a few very nice people, some of whom I joined for prison evangelism last Friday. 

The requirements to go along for the female prison visit were simple: bring along some [specified] gifts for the inmates, come with a valid identity card, and be at the bus stop for 7:30AM wearing a Christmas hat. I was fine with all the requirements except for the “wear a Christmas hat” part. Even though I love Christmas very much, I hate Christmas costumes [-apologies to all the Christmas costume lovers; they are cute, but not just for me]. I struggled so much with that part that I even thought that N600 (less than $3) for two Christmas hats (one for my sister) was too much. Crazy, I know.  Hehe… Despite all my silent tantrums, I succumbed and got the Christmas hat and I wore it to the prison visit the following day. After our leader had shared the message of Christ’s love and hope to the inmates and we were about to take our leave, a few of the inmates approached us to request that we give them our Christmas hats. Of all the things we took along with us to them, the only thing that got them really excited was the Christmas hats. Of course, I was too happy to let mine go. Not particularly because I hated it, but because it made someone smile. I still remember the cheer on her face when she looked at me a short distance away and mouthed, “Thank You”.

Christmas for so many around the world is a season for celebration. Mothers are excited about their turkeys; kids, snowman; and some others, lights and fireworks. I love all these things myself. But Christmas has only one reason and that is JESUS. And for Him, since His mission was to save man, the best way He’d like us to celebrate Christmas is by telling people about Him, giving to the poor, visiting the imprisoned, and showing kindness to the homeless and love to the orphans. 

This Christmas, we (Kunle & I) encourage you to take a step out of yourself and those lovely gifts you got and just share some love. Share your food with a homeless person, give a Christmas hat to someone you know may not be able to afford one, sow a Bible or devotional into the lives of the lost, tell people about Jesus. He’s the reason for this season and without Him, everything you do at this time really means nothing.

Thankfully, I’ve had another opportunity to sow into another prison visit this Christmas and also participate in  a neighborhood outreach. I hope y’all can find a way to reach out with Jesus’ love too.

DO HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS.

Hey… I’m gonna leave you here with the Jackson 5’s rendition of “Give Love on Christmas Day”. Enjoy it!