Temptation

   What is temptation? Temptation is anything that makes you go on your own way and leave the way of God. Temptation is an enticement that makes us go beyond Godly bounds. It is an enticement to disobey God.

   "1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it" The bible says No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man meaning that the temptation that you face is not new or special. Everybody is being tempted in many different ways.

   God is not the source of our temptation but the devil. The devil will tempt you in an area that he knows you will be easily tempted and he shows you clearly the benefits of the temptation. When the devil tempted Jesus he presented Him with some benefits. Look what the devil told Eve.....;Genesis 3: 4 but the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

   Don’t forget that temptations come with benefits but the consequences are bigger! Many people want to talk about what they will gain but they never talk about the consequences. Don’t be fooled by what you will gain, how it will make you look good but rather pay attention to the consequence.

   One major source of temptation is a thought, leading to imagination, a desire and a will, which stays in our heart leading us to making a choice. Let me explain that…. Like you think about what it would be like if I do this, then you start imagining what it would be like, then it enters in your heart and you actually do it. You have to be wise and stop it at the beginning stage of a thought because when it goes through imagination, and your will and your heart then you act upon it then it becomes like fire that cannot be easily stopped.

   Something that I learned about temptations is that we give in saying that next time we won't do it....well the truth is when you give in to a temptation you become weaker and when you refuse to give in you become stronger. Every temptation you give in to weakens you for the next temptation!

   Nothing is wrong with being tempted. Temptation is not a sin but when we give in it becomes sin. God does not promote temptation and we should never blame God for our temptation. 

   The devil tempts us to destroy us. God allows us to be tested to strengthen us. Choose to be strengthened by God by doing the right thing. God Bless You. Masinga  

Our Daily Bread

Matthew 6:11 says ‘Give us this day our daily bread’

After reading this verse over and over I got some great understanding.

This is what I got:

It means you can only live one day at a time

It means you can’t live today and tomorrow the same time, it means bringing your past into today will destroy today completely!

See what God said in Isaiah 43:19 see I am doing a new thing NOW. This means that NOW matters to God more than yesterday and tomorrow. If we want the new thing that God is doing we won’t find it in yesterday and tomorrow but now.

It means God has provided all you need to tackle today.

And notice what the Lord said in the Prayer; Give us this day our daily bread. This means that it is all about living for Him today.

It means you can’t wait to do the right tomorrow or later but now.

It means the day of forgiving those who hurt you is today not tomorrow

It means the day of showing love and kindness is now and today not tomorrow

It means God has already provided for our needs for today we only need faith and obedience to connect to the daily bread (or would you pray when you have no faith that God will help?)

It means that what happened yesterday does not count, God does not think about our yesterday (That’s why He did not say "give us our yesterday bread"!)

It means it doesn't matter what you did yesterday, His grace will give you the power to change now

It means the moment of now (or today) matters to God than your past

It means you should not worry about tomorrow; do today, tomorrow will have its own Daily Bread

It means God will never give you a better past, so why are you still dwelling on it.

It means the time for doing the right thing is now not yesterday or tomorrow.

It means the day of salvation is today and now.

It is means no more postponing, do it today.

Enjoy your daily bread God Bless You!

Masinga. 

The Eagle

“Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

The eagle is such an amazing bird of the wonderful and perfect Gods creation. It is the only bird which can fly up high and look at the sun with naked eyes, amazing right? Yeah super amazing!

As Christians we can learn many amazing things from the eagle. An eagle always eats fresh meat for strength and survival; an eagle will never eat dead meat. The same to us Christians we are supposed to feast on the word daily, not depending on the word we ate on Sunday or weeks ago. Some of us are still depending on yesterday’s obedience for our victory; obedience is a language of now not yesterday.

Eagles fly higher when they face the opposing wind with a proper angle, that way the wind carries them higher. Eagles use such opposing winds to reach the greatest heights. The same applies to Christians who want to become stronger and fly up higher. Every opposing wind is an opportunity to go higher, if you will approach it at the proper angle, or attitude. Everything which is opposing you and working against you is the opportunity for you to fly higher and become stronger.

Every time you are having a bad time is the best time for you to grow. Most of the spiritual growth does not happen when things are smooth and calm but when things are ugly and tough. There is always a heavy downpour when the clouds are dark, or do we have great rainfalls when the sky is clear? Our strength is not in the good we are but rather in the bad we have seen, fought and conquered. When you are facing temptation and you give in you become weaker but when you refuse to give in you become stronger and stronger.

Every temptation is an opportunity to do well. Temptation is a stepping stone rather than a stumbling block. Anything wrong and difficult we face is the golden opportunity for us to shine by doing the right thing.

Pass the test, seek wisdom, walk in truth and love become stronger, please God only.

Quick and Temporary Fixes

I am hoping you have read the story of Jacob and Esau in the Bible. Esau sold his birthright to Jacob in exchange for stew because he was hungry. His hungry move wasn't good! Don’t settle just for satisfying your hunger and end up missing the mark. 

The story is in Genesis 25; 29

29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. 

30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” 

31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” 

32 “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said.“What good is the birthright to me?” 

33 But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. 

34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.

One of my fave preachers said never make a major decision based on a temporary situation, Esau did exactly that. Don't draw conclusions about your life just because somethings are not working. So many relationships and marriages are being teared down into pieces because people run into making permanent decisions based on a temporary situation. 

You know those moments in life when the heat is on. There are something’s that we do when the heat is on and we later on regret because of the consequences. In any kind of situation that you find yourself in you either respond to God or the wrong side, there is no middle ground. Watch out for what you say, what you think, what you do, whom you choose to stick to when the heat is on. Don't drift from the main thing so that you satisfy your current need. Never let what you are wanting get in the way of the right thing.

You know bending the truth, settling and compromising so that your situation wins. Watch out for the 'quickies' you have in life just because you want convenience. Remember we are not here to have a good time; we are not here for convenience but to have a good time while doing the right thing. Doing the right thing must always come before having a good time. 

Before you make that quick fix always examine yourself from a biblical perspective not from what you are feeling and seeing, you might miss the mark but with the Word of God you can't.

The last thing you don't want is having life's pleasure and eternal pressure.Our feelings and flesh will always somehow try to justify the situation when we know it is wrong. Look at the devil tempting Jesus, he was trying to show him that you need this and the truth is Jesus was hungry after fasting for 40 days, He needed food but He did not give in. 

My Bishop Dag Heward Mills said this: It’s easy to drift from the main thing. But the main thing will always be the main thing! Satan loves to push Christians onto roads that are close and parallel to the real road. He urges us on into good things which are not God's will. Through this demonic guidance, there is a lot of Christian activity but much of God's purpose is set aside. Boy! Watch out, you don’t want to do many activities which seem good but they are contrary to Gods will.

We often gravitate toward what is safe, not necessarily what is right. Please take note nothing can take the place of doing the right.  Don't settle for just being happy settle for being right, being right will bring blessings and happiness.

Blessed Weekend.