I AM

All living organisms are classified into groups based on their basic and shared characteristics. Organisms within each group are then further divided into smaller groups which makes it easier for them to be studied. This obviously mean that they all have an origination, they all have a source that can tell us who they are and how they existed. And everything that comes into being will surely go out of being.

Don't be alarmed, this isn't a Science class but to help in further understanding what we'll be discussing.

God introduced Himself to Moses as I Am that I Am or as other Bible versions put it as I Am who I Am. God's absolute being means He never had a beginning, He just is.  The word 'Am' is an inflection of 'Be' meaning to exist. Notice God said 'I Am' making Him present.  The question I would have asked if in Moses' shoes was 'I Am What/ Who exactly?'

Along the years we've been able to put in words as to who He is during certain times of our lives. If God had said 'I Am King' it will mean He is the King and He wouldn't be more than a King, but I Am Who I Am gives us a space to add who He is because He didn't specifically tell us who exactly He is.

It's similar when asked the name of a certain individual, and the reply turns out to be 'My name is Steve,' meaning He's been defined as that name and He can't bear the name John because it's not who he is neither can he be more than Steve.  But God just said I Am...

Now it's left for us to fill in the blanks. Whenever you are faced with difficulties or challenges you call unto the I AM THAT I AM and at that moment He becomes who you want Him to be. He could be your provider at that moment, your Mighty God in battle, your deliverer, your helper, your King, your Savior and the list can go on and on. He can be what and who you need at that moment because He Is Who He Is. He is Who you want Him to mean to you.

He is present, He exists, His throne is everlasting, I Am who I Am, meaning He is not dependent on anything or anyone to bring Him into being or support His existence. He is not limited and He exists till eternity.

I AM     The Help you Need.
              The Love you Seek
              The Care you Want
              The Life you Want
              The Health you Need
              The Breath of Life
              The Bread of Life
              The Shield in your Battle
              The Wealth you Desire
              The Confidence you Seek
              The Fulfilment you Seek
              The Satisfaction you Need
              The Wisdom you Want

It goes on and on because He is Who He Is, all through the Scriptures we see WHO HE IS. It is assuring to know that He can still do the same Miracles and He still remain the Same because He doesn't grow old or out of form. As generations come and go He REMAINS I AM THAT I AM. Now we know why He's called the Ancient of days, because He is Eternal.

No matter what you might be facing wake up each morning knowing I AM THAT I AM is by your side. He has done it in times past and He'll keep doing it.

Isn't it Awesome!

REASON FOR THE SEASON

We are celebrating the birth of a King, not just any King but the King of kings. Was Jesus born on the 25th? Why do we celebrate His birth if He wasn't born on the 25th? Well I don't know about you but a King left His heavenly throne and came down to this lowly world just to save you and I, He left all He had so as to show us the Way, the Truth and give us Life. I don't know about you but I think it's worth celebrating.

 Who cares if He was born on the 25th, we are just glad He was born and that is the most important reason for the Celebration. Not every King can give up His throne for His subjects, not every King can dress as his subject, eat their food and be like them.


So let's not join in profane and vain blabbing debate as to when Jesus was born but to keep the Celebrant in mind; Jesus. It's always been all about Him, so celebrate the King.
His birth brought Life, His birth brought Hope, His birth brought reconciliation, His birth brought Redemption, His birth is a prove of Love from the Father, His birth gave us victory, His birth brought about a Change, the change the devil was scared of; so scared he killed thousands just to get to a baby. His birth brought pe peace and joy.

A child was born, a Son was given to us and the government and every authority rests on his shoulders.

He is the Reason for the Season.

Compliments of the Season
kellyshor_writes

Leaders Are Servants

[NIV] Matthew 23:11 The greatest among you will be your servant.

Why would Jesus Christ tell his disciples that before they can be great, they must be servants? In this passage, He was speaking to His disciples about humility. The Pharisees and similar religious leaders serve as examples of those who loved to broadcast their good deeds. They took pride in their public righteousness and often forgot that Jesus Christ warned to avoid practicing it in front of others. By doing so, they risked receiving a reward from their Heavenly Father.

It is unfortunate that "Christians" like these Pharisees still exist today. Jesus warned his disciples to be weary of those who expect praises from men and love to be honored with every passing opportunity. This type of leadership is usually not effective because they spend majority of their time protecting their status, instead of doing what is required of them.

Who is a servant? 

A servant is one that offers help to another person of some kind. The attitude of a servant was demonstrated through Christ Himself. Despite being the Son of God, He showed humility by washing the feet of His own disciples. Jesus Christ also stated that he did not come to be served but to serve. That is service and that is humility. Leaders who are servants view their leadership as an act of service.

Servant leadership is service to others. It is not about lobbying for a position, nor politicking for power. Instead it is about looking for opportunity to serve. Servant leaders avoid the limelight and serve in ways that often go unnoticed, such as taking out the trash or making the coffee at work. These acts do not have to be grand in order to be noticed by God, remember He searches the intent and content of man's heart, the little things we think might be too small to be noticed by Him are the things He actually takes note of. To be a Servant leader you must be ready to be criticized by the world, because you'll seize to do what they expect. No matter what Jesus Christ did, He was always critized by the Pharisees, the always wanted to make Him guilty, but Jesus wasn't a bit bothered by them, He went on with His purpose.He didn't love His life to please the Pharisees, He lived His life to please His Father. He was bent on been the King they wanted Him to be, He was more interested in the heavenly Kingdom and didn't care what the Pharisees thought about Him, so far He pleased His Father.

Any leader that is preoccupied with personal interests, protection of status, and preservation of positions, may not be a good ambassador of Christ. True leaders are those who strive to please the Lord through their lives with integrity. The Bible is full of great people who were exalted because of their humble hearts. David, Joseph, Solomon and Samuel are a few. They learned how to serve people and God. Even as kings, they were lowly at heart and were able to be used as a vessel of honor. 

To be great you must first learn how to serve in a humble manner. Jesus Christ said, those who humble themselves will be exalted and 1st Peter 5:5 tells us God opposes the proud. A person who is proud or has pride is indirectly contending with God and would therefore not be exalted. Jesus Christ served for the glory of God. His ultimate service was laying down His life in love. Even though the Son of God, He was always ready to offer Himself. Our Lord Jesus is a perfect example of a servant leader.

THE WAY THE TRUTH THE LIFE

[NIV] Hebrews 13:15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.

The word through means passing from one side of an opening to the other. To go to the other side you have to walk pass the first opening. No wonder our Lord said, '[NIV] John 14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

The Bible has made us understand that Jesus is the only way to God. In time past, there were different ways that God used to reveal Himself to humanity. He spoke through dreams, or through supernatural happenings, but now God communicates with us through His son Jesus Christ. Everyone that seeks the Father finds Him through the Son.

To get to God you have to go through Jesus Christ, you cannot skip protocol. One cannot say they know God and they don't know Jesus Christ, you cannot claim to have a relationship with God and exclude Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the way, He is the door, He is the entrance, the path, the key, He is like a portal to another dimension. You need the key to open the door.
Jesus is the only way through which men can be saved. Everything that God has can be inherited only through the Son. There is no way you can deeply understand the character and nature of God except it is revealed through the Son.

Through the Son we understand God's love for us, His faithfulness, His goodness, patience, kindness etc. We see that the glory of the Father is shown in this world through the Son; through the Son, we know how righteous and holy the Father is. Now we see why Jesus Christ said, [NLT] John 14:13 You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father.

Jesus Christ holds everything in His hands. He and His Father are one. That is why you cannot claim to know one and not know the other. Everything you do must come through Jesus Christ: prayers, Thanksgivings, requests, petitions etc. To be united with God or to have a glimpse of who He is you must first come to Jesus, you have to pass through Jesus Christ and when you pass through Christ you meet the Father because the Father and the Son is one and you become one with them.

[NLT] John 14:6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

A way is a direction, a road, a path from one place to another. And Jesus said He is the way. Have you asked yourself, the way to what? He is the way to the Father. He is the path to follow, He is the direction. Since Jesus said He is the way, it means anyone who think they have gotten to the Father leaving Jesus out of it is on the wrong path. Anyone who is pledging an allegiance to God without Jesus is on the wrong path. Jesus Christ is the way to many things, because the Father can do many things. Whatever it is you seek: job opportunity, school admission, marriage, fruit of the womb, peace of mind, genuine happiness, love, a stable home, whatever it is you are struggling with that you think there is no way out, I have a news flash for you, there is a way. You don't need to struggle alone. Jesus Christ is the way. Just take the road, take the path, take the Way and He will lead you to the right part!

Jesus Christ went further to say He is the truth. Truth reveals what is real, a deeper sense of something, Spiritual or genuine reality.  

When you come to Jesus Christ with a genuine heart, the veil that once covered your mind stopping you from believing in Christ will be removed. The sense of who you are will be revealed to you, you see how dirty you have been, you see how unworthy you have been. A deeper sense of Christ grace and salvation will be revealed to you, His light will shine in your heart and all you can see is your nakedness. Jesus Christ is the truth to everything, whatever it is that you want, whatever it is that confuses you; He is the Truth. Anything outside Christ is a lie, anything preached outside Christ is a lie, anything done outside Christ is a lie.

Any Christian living a life that is outside Christ is a pretender because He is the Truth and the Bible says, the Truth shall set you free. When you know the Truth about Christ, you'll know you are no longer under the bondage of sin, you won't be easily tossed by false doctrines, you won't be deceived by the devil. You want to find out more about Christ, you want to become firm in the word? Hold on to the Truth, study His Word.

Finally Jesus Christ said He is the Life. Life means having Life, that's it. Anything that doesn't have Life is dead and if Jesus Christ says He is the Life, this means anybody that is not living in Christ is dead. This also means that anybody that has not come to Christ is dead, and by dead I mean the person is living in sin or dwelling in sin which can lead to spiritual death. The Bible makes us to know that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). When a person encounters Jesus, He become a new a new person thus the new Life of Christ. He makes everything a fresh both physically and spiritually, there is a newsense of peace, joy, happiness, love of Christ in your heart and the more you let Him, the more He transforms you. That is why Apostle Paul said in

[NLT] 2 Corinthians 5:17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 

Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life. You cannot go to the Father except you go through Him. Why don't you give Him a chance and unlock a door to many opportunities.

Don't Live As A Slave

Everyone is in need of Redemption. Redemption has been giving to us but some Christians are still living as slaves, they don’t understand the price that has been paid for them; we underestimate the sacrifice God has made for us. Though we are but dust and worms, God did give His son for our- redemption, essentially God Himself, the maker of the universe, coming to be conceived in a human womb and to be born as human. Not only that, He subjected Himself to the limitations of man and was maltreated by His own creatures; all just for you and me not to perish in hell fire but to be with God forever.

It is pathetic to see Christians living in sin and leaving the case of redemption to unbelievers. Jesus Christ has paid the ultimate price to redeem us back to God, He has freed us from being ransomed, and our debt has been paid off. He bought us out of the slave market; He didn’t purchase us for Himself as a slave but to free us. You may wonder what exactly Jesus freed us from. The Bible tells us that we are all slaves and no man is free, everybody in the world is a slave in their sinful nature. Another question to ask is who is the captor? Who has held everyone in bondage? 

John8:34 says “men are slaves to sin” Romans 7:14 says “men are sold under sin” Romans 7:23 “men are controlled by sin” Romans 8:21 says “In bondage to corruption” Who then or what is the captor of men? Sin, sin is. Sin is the captor that holds men down. Sin demands a price to be paid to release its victim. What is the price? Romans 6:23. The price or wage of sin is death; in order to purchase a person from sin there must be death. Hebrews 9:22 without death there is no remission of sin.

Sin is what Jesus Christ came to free us from, sin is what He came to deliver us from, and sin is what He bought us out from. His life was the debt that he used to pay off; he acquired us from sin so we don’t live a life of bondage, so we don’t live as slaves to sin. 

But we still see some Christians still living as slaves in a free market, John 8:34. So called Christians acting as an undercover, in church they showcase one personality at home or with friends they showcase another one. Some are even suffering from multiple personality disorder spiritually. Or what do you say about “Christians” that indulges in sexual immorality, adultery, jealousy, greed etc and refuses to repent from it. One sin that has been trivialized in modern times is lying.

Today the world has classified lies; you have lies that cannot hurt a fly, white lies, blue lies, heavy weight lies, feather weight lies, business lies, normal lies, ministerial lies etc. If you are a lover of lies, you are far from being righteous; you are living as a slave in a free market. Even if you keep away from every other sin but still tell lies you are on your way to hell. How do I know this? Revelations 21:8, Revelations 22:15. The Bible bluntly said all liars and all who love to live a lie, their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

Jesus Christ has paid everything for us to live above sin. Apostle Paul urged us to stay free and to stay above sin Galatians 5:1 because we have been redeemed. The world might tell you it is impossible, but the life that was given as a ransom for all will tell you it is possible. 

There are lots of benefits that comes with redemption but can only be received through genuine repentance and not by been tagged ‘a Christian or by going to church’. If you don’t repent you cannot experience redemption. Make up your mind today to start living above sin. It is a day-to-day battle of enforcement and resistance that will be “painful”. The flesh is not going to like your stance but you must let it know you are dead to it, you are no longer a slave to it, you’ve been set free and it cannot rule over you.

Make no provision for the flesh. You must not disgrace your buyer, a very high price has been paid for you, do not disappoint Him. 

Irritate The Devil Today

[KJV] Psalms 22:3 But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.

One lesson every believer must learn is that the devil can never repent. Hence we are not to joke with the devil. If you don't want to be devoured by the devil, you must resist him and all that he represents steadfastly. One of the ways the devil uses to entrap people is through music. It is a known fact that the devil loves music, he loves dangerous, perverse and distorted music. The day God made Lucifer who later became the devil, He built musical instruments into his body (Ezekiel 28:13). He was the choir master in heaven.

It's pathetic when you hear some so called Christians arguing against listening to 'wordly songs'. Trying to justify their actions, saying things like 'I just love the lyrics or there is nothing sexual about this song.' Jesus Christ Himself said in Matthew 6:24 there is no room for divided loyalty. 

[KJV] Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. 

Many Christians lose out in battle of life because they do not know who they are and the nature of fight they are involved in. You are not fighting against flesh and blood so don't be naive and complacent. The devil knows his strategy well. He is a dangerous enemy who doesn't get distracted, it is therefore imperative you fight against this enemy by resisting him and all he represents. 

God loves music too, irritate the devil today by singing beautiful songs of worship to the Lord. Let go of wordly music which adds no benefits to your life and replace them with gospel music. In Acts 16:25-34 Apostle Paul and Silas prayed and sang hymns to God and provoked the unimaginable to happen. Apostle Paul also stated in Ephesians 5:18-19 for every believer to be filled with the Holy Spirit by singing Psalms and hymns. He understood the secret behind singing praises and filling your hearts and minds with songs to God. You provoke things to happen! 

That is what the devil doesn't want, he gets irritated because he knows whenever you praise God you are making God happy, he knows that whenever you praise God; the Almighty draws nigh to you (Psalm 22:3). Imagine if God is for you, can anyone stand against you? The more you sing praises to God, the more you irritate the devil because you remind him of his glorious past and his lost opportunity. 

Are you a child of God? You can live above the appearances of the devil and take dominon over your life. Take charge and be triumphant over life by the blood of the Lamb, prayer, the word of your testimony (your confessions and proclamations) and by singing praises to the Lord. Revelation 12:11. 

I remember the first time God used a man of God who is also my mentor to open my heart to the truth, after explaining so much and thanks to the Lord for softening my heart; I got home and decided to remove all worldly songs from my phone. I got stuck with three songs I really liked and all three were ed sheeran's song, just clean lyrics. I didn't want to delete them because I thought, there was nothing wrong with those songs. Just as most Christians tell themselves.  Then something asked me why I was keeping them? What was the reason and use for holding on to them? After listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit I deleted them immediately. I haven't listened to any worldly songs since then and I'm not dead.

You can also come out of it, don't listen to the voice of the devil saying you need it or you need to know the latest and trendy songs. There is a difference between listening to songs and hearing them. I choose what I want to listen to even though I hear different songs in the background. Let go of everything; don't hold on to Jesus Christ and at the same time hold on to worldly desires. 

[KJV] Luke 9:62 And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.


Jesus Christ needs your undivided attention, He needs your hearts and minds to be solely His. Don't think of what you will miss because I assure you there is nothing you'll miss out from, make the decision today; and sing only to your maker don't have a divided heart. And I pray the Lord will give you the strength to overcome and become solely His as you make this decision in Jesus name. 

If you are struggling with this just humble yourself and cast your burdens on the alter of the burden bearer. Don't think if there is any use or if it is necessary or not, don't give the devil a chance to convince you otherwise. Note also that your enemy- the devil, is not foolish. He is full of dangerous and destructive wisdom. He was made perfect in beauty and wisdom (Ezekiel 28:12-15). He is now full of destructive wisdom. So don't give him a chance to give you a reason not to do what is right. He's after your destruction, Jesus Christ is after giving you eternal life. Go to Him He'll give you the strength to overcome and remove every appearance of the devil in your life and home.

Only those who are in Christ will come out victorious and triumph over the devil. If you are not, you can be grafted in by giving your life to Christ as you say this prayer:

The devil take more souls to hell through music than through any other means.

Irritate the devil today!

How Much Do You Know About Love?

[ESV] 1 Corinthians 13:4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth, Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

We must all be familiar with the above passage, it must have been preached in churches as sermons, in a gathering, during wedding ceremonies etc. But even though some might claim they haven't heard, read or come across this passage, I'm sure they've heard of the word Love before; they've confessed it truthfully or falsely to a person, they've been told of someone's love towards them... I'm sure you are getting the picture now.

To be honest the word Love is clearly over rated in the world today. People say it without the knowledge of what they mean. Most people have stopped saying it to others, because they don't feel the need to or majorly because they once loved and it left them shattered so the best they could do is avoid the word Love. Some even believe it doesn't exist or it isn't real. 

And I won't blame them for coming up with such conclusion, remember the devil is here to steal and destroy. He's here to steal the love, happiness etc that God has in store for you. 
The Bible tells us God is Love. 1John 4:16, 1 John 4:8. So if God is Love, how would you think Love doesn't exist? Now do one thing for me, scroll up to the first passage and read it all over again but now where you find the word Love replace it with God. Did it make sense to you?
The moment you stop seeing love as the intense feeling or attraction the world wants you to see it and start seeing Love as God, you'll be on to the first step in believing in God's Love for you.

God is patient with you because he Loves you, His patience is intended for you to turn away from your sin, God doesn't hold you according to the wrong that you do, instead he forgives you over and over again because that is Love, God is a righteous God, he is truthful and He's a just Judge, that is why he'll always fight your battles, God bears all things, the Scriptures says, Even if everyone is unfaithful he remains faithful, he doesn't punish us as our sins deserves, that is Love, Even when we are ungrateful to Him, he still gives us breath. What I love is Love does not insist on its own way. God would not force you to believe in Him I got this insight in the movie The Encounter (if you haven't seen it please do really!) God won't insist you follow him, he gives you a choice but hopes you make the right decision, he hopes you hear his voice when he calls. That is why Jesus said in [ESV] John 10:14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me.

Should I still go on?

God has faith in us, hoping we'll turn from our sinful ways and acknowledge Him, because he loves us that much. That is Love. Love is powerful and that is who God is amongst many other things. Until you believe in the Love he has for you, you won't be able to feel or see it.
A husband loves his wife dearly but if the wife doesn't believe in this Love the husband has for her she'll be insecure, there'll be lack of trust and many other factors which might lead to the failure of the marriage.

A relationship cannot work out without God in it; a marriage cannot work out without God in it. Why? Because God himself is Love, how can you claim to Love someone when the source of Love itself is absent. You see marriages fail or lead to divorce; you see relationships of 5 years, 2 years, 6 months or even 1 week end with break up. What was the reason? Betrayal, lack of trust, insecurity, fear etc name it.
Perfect Love casts out fear. A relationship or marriage involves three people and it's like a triangle; God at the top and the two people beneath. You can only grow to Love the other person if you grow closer to God. This isn't a point to be argued about. You keep God out of it; you keep Love out of it. All that is left is a bitter taste. Draw closer to Him so he'll direct your path, don't let the devil feed you with lies. God himself is Love. Don't be ignorant, [ESV] Hosea 4:6a My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; 

Part 2. Believe In God's Love For You.

It's possible to be in a relationship or marriage and totally trust your spouse. Forget what the world says. But it is only possible with God, and I'm not saying getting married in a church. Having God in your life and in everything you do. Because really you cannot trust man, man would fail (I'm not talking of the male species but both male and female because it's something that

we just do. Only God doesn't fail.

My mentor usually say, "Don't trust me but trust the God in me." That is the presence of God's spirit which would lead you to do what is right, you can only trust God's spirit in a human to make them not disappoint you...that's just what it means. 
Who says you can't have that perfect guy/husband or the perfect lady/wife? The world says it right? But I say you can. How? Because you have a Perfect God and like I stated earlier, having a man or a woman with the Spirit of God in them would make them perfect. The Holy Spirit is the source of the perfection.

I remember people saying, 'will love put food on the table?' When I was ignorant I believed in the above statement. Like seriously, how would you expect someone to wait on only Love. But now I can boldly answer and say Yes Love can put food on the table. Hope you don't want to ask me why. But ok let me answer some curious minds. Remember God is Love.

If He is Love why won't there be provision? Some marriages include both parties been stable financially but there is no trust, no peace and no happiness. I have seen people who would choose a stable family over riches. They aren't crazy; they know what it means to have a man who loves them even though there is no wealth 
The key to this true, genuine Life is Love God first; believe in His Love for you. Express your Love for him. Be wrapped within His Love, enjoy His Love and place no one above the Love you have for Him. Because the Bible says, [ESV] 1 John 4:19 We love because he first loved us.