Keynote To Germination I
‘In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation’ 1Pet.5:10
There was king in the book of Daniel who had a dream but he did not understand the dream so he called on Daniel. And Daniel interpreted the dream to mean the king needs to humble himself so that the dream will not happen to him. Humble yourself. If someone has such a dream and gets such an interpretation, what do you think the person should do? Fall on his face immediately. God waited for twelve months yet Nebuchadnezzar did not change. After the first three months it seemed as though the dream will not happen. God can be patient but dangerous. Once it was the 12th month, he became an animal and he began to eat grass. He ate grass for 7years. I often say to the Lord, ‘I don’t want to eat grass, oh Lord’. For some people except they eat grass they would not learn. And once the process of eating grass starts, you cannot stop it. The time of seven years must pass. And seven years passed and Nebuchadnezzar said ‘I lifted up my eyes to heaven and I said heaven rules in the affairs of men’. It is good to read another person’s story and laugh but check your life. How are you responding to the dealings of God in your life? 1Pet.5:10, God is saying after you have suffered a while. There is a process, a death that needs to happen before the perfection comes. When God settles you, the people who don’t know the suffering will begin to envy you. They have refused to subject themselves to their own little suffering. Key note to germination, you need to understand the dealings of God.
Secondly, you need to understand the place of covenants. You can covenant yourself to break yourself and aid the germination like Job did [Job 31:1]. Otherwise God would have had to take him through a process. The choice is yours. God also comes into covenant with us to help us germinate and take root in Him. [Deut.29:10-13 & 18]. God says I am entering this covenant with you so that we are yoked together. So that you do not get into the corridor of power and start to bring forth strange fruit.
Prayer: Lord, help me pay close attention to the dealings of God in my life and respond appropriately. Lead me into covenants with You so that I will be yoked to You, in Jesus Name.
Germinate In Christ
‘My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me’ Gal.2:20
The second step in growing spiritual roots is to germinate in Christ. Allow yourself to die in Christ. Allow the old man to die in Christ ‘My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me’. [2 Cor.5:17]. Allow the germination to take place because it is not every seed that is planted that germinates. The parable of the sower: the first Read the rest of this entry
Fall To the Ground
‘My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him’ Isa. 53:2
When God wants to grow you, He will take you through the humbling process. He encourages you to keep your focus on Him. When God is building your roots there is nothing beautiful about it but guess what you are coming up with fruit. Do not be in a hurry about the process. Relax and let your life grow roots. You may not even like the process but endure it for the glory before you. Foundation work is a dirty process. The history of the land lies in its foundations. The foundation building process cannot be accelerated. You can only accelerate at your own peril. God wants to do great things in your Read the rest of this entry
Bearing Fruit
‘And you who are left in Judah, who have escaped the ravages of the siege, will put roots down in your own soil and will grow up and flourish’ 2 kings 19:30
If we are to bear fruit upwards then we have to take root downwards. The root is what supplies nourishment to the tree. If we must flourish this year, then we must grow roots. If we must survive the ever changing seasons then we must grow roots spiritually, financially, relationally and emotionally. It is inevitable if you want to survive. The process of growing roots was outlined in a way by the Lord Jesus ‘I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is Read the rest of this entry
Growing Spiritual Roots
‘Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness’ Col.2:7
The challenge with a lot of us is that different areas of our lives lack the fruit that is required and that God intends for us. So see lives that are void of the fruits of fulfilment. A lot of us need to sink our roots in God. God wants us to grow roots. God in His Word is saying we are to let our roots sink deep in Christ and not let ourselves get carried away with philosophies. Yes you are to open your mind to knowledge but be mindful of the content you take in. The only thing
Faithful in Little
‘If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities’. Luke 16:10
A lot of us have great dreams and huge ambition but God in His infinite wisdom has chosen to start us off in humble ways. The truth is your response to the little things will be your response to the little things will be your response to greater responsibility. Instead, a lot of us, dissatisfied with the size of our dreams and size of God’s response, choose to belittle what God has given us. The reason is simple, we want the big things which causes us to be blinded to what God is doing. God is saying ‘If you’re not Read the rest of this entry
Choose Light
‘For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light!’ Eph.5:8
Today’s devotional is inspired by a story, a parable if you will; two young boys, Bob and James, cousins. Bob was born and has lived all his formative years abroad. He is accustomed to uninterrupted power supply, this is what he knows. James on the other hand, was born and has lived all his formative years in Nigeria. James knows what it is to go three weeks without power supply. And as the story goes, Bob and his father came to visit. At dinner on their first Read the rest of this entry
God Thirsts
‘…I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink…’ Matt. 25:35
God thirsts – amazing right? Jesus said ‘I thirst’ when He was on the cross, scripture records that He said this in fulfillment of prophecies. Jesus said these words perhaps also because it was significant of what is important to the Father. As we have observed that Jesus spent His dying moments stressing things of utmost importance. To thirst is to desire, to crave; Desire and craving are words that suggest a very strong emotion. You thirst for what is deeply Read the rest of this entry
Are You Available?
‘…And from then on this disciple took her into his home’ John19:27b
Many have deliberated over why Jesus chose to commit His mother into Johns care. He had siblings, at least we know of two that were also used mightily by God – and Jude. Why not Peter, who was always so eager to run towards the Master? Others speculate that if He had entrusted Peter with His mother, Peter would have abandoned her and gone fishing. We cannot judge if there was a better option. However, the answer to this question is quoted in Read the rest of this entry
Seven
‘On the seventh day God had finished His work of creation, so He rested from all His work’ Gen 2:2
Seven is the number for perfection. God did all the work of creation within six days and on the seventh day He rested. In a sense, at creation, God also spoke seven words. The seven words that called forth land, sea, living creatures, plants, lights, man and rest. Jesus, God the Son, spoke seven words in His final moments to bring to perfection everything that is lacking in our lives and to bring us into His rest. Take Christ’s seven words on the cross and let them Read the rest of this entry
