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Jesus Christ will not have even His work preferred before Him. The final sacrifice which some men are called upon to make is not the sacrifice of a pleasure, or the relinquishment of some precious treasure; it is the sacrifice of a dear purpose by which they hoped to bring glory to their Lord. They are required to turn from the path of hallowed service, to renounce the holy enterprise. John Ruskin has told us how, when he came into clearer light, his hope of some better service was cut off by failure of health. "Just when I was coming out of school, very sorry for having been such a foolish boy, yet having taken a prize or two, and expect now to enter upon some more serious business than cricket, I am dismissed, by the Master I hoped to serve, with a 'That's all I want of you, sir.'" To give up what is dear to them is for some men comparatively easy, but to give up what they deemed dear to Christ, — to bind on the altar of sacrifice the one offspring of our heart,...

When Joshua dismissed the people, the people of Israel went each to his inheritance to take possession of the land. And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work that the Lord had done for Israel. And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110 years. And they buried him within the boundaries of his inheritance in Timnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of the mountain of Gaash. And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers. And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel . JOSHUA 2:6-10  This wonderful passage inserted in the middle of Judges describes the Joshua generation which served God faithfully. They stands in sharp contrast to the generations that followed who did not know the God of Israel.  The Joshua generation served God by immersing themselves to ...

We are free in Christ to do every calling, no matter how small, for the Lord. MICHAEL WITTMER ( Source : Despite Doubt) How liberating! Can I just add something? There's no small task as long as it is for Jesus. Why is that? Because there's no small Jesus! Only Big Jesus [Colossians 1:15-23] We must grow to understand the full force of this verse : Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?....And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ (Matthew 25:37, 40). The bar for service in God's kingdom is very low! Even giving someone a drink for Jesus at home or work is service for His kingdom! Copyright © Chola Mukanga 2013

The life of faith is both less and more remarkable than many Christians know. It’s less because the Christian life has never been about jumping off temples but about the daily grind of obedience. It’s more because anyone can hop a plane to Trinidad, drive to the state capitol, or spend money they don’t have. But to love your neighbor day after day after ordinary day—that requires an act of God. MICHAEL WITTMER Wittmer’s point is that it is actually harder to be faithful to God in what appears to be small and insignificant areas. We think the sign that God is at work in our lives is whether we have received a vision in the night or developed deep profound insight about an issue.

I enjoyed fellowship this past Sunday  at church. I was sitting next to a good friend. After the sermon, I asked him what he found helpful in the sermon. This is a new practice I have adopted. I want to increasingly speak to people sitting next to me about what I just heard before turning to world matters. I believe this is important for three reasons. First, I want to see if I missed an angle in the sermon that my friend may have picked up. I am also keen to hear, as a preacher, how certain truths were understood. Secondly, it allows me to hear how God is working in his life. Thirdly, it allows me to share any challenges I have with another Christian and how that scripture spoke to them. I wont say what my friend shared, but it was very good and encouraging. But here is what I shared with him as we spoke. The sermon came from this verse: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly pla...

The signs were sporadic, like an occasional wave that trickled further inland than the others, but eventually the erosion of Muriel's mind was too obvious to ignore. She repeated the same story to the same people, forgot to serve dessert when she hosted a dinner, jumbled the lines of the script on her radio show, and stumbled over Bible passages she once knew by heart. Still, her diagnosis of early onset Alzheimer's shocked her husband, Robertson McQuilkin, who was in his fifties and president of Columbia Bible College. Robertson knew that Muriel's deteriorating condition would eventually require round-the-clock care. Should he retire from his flourishing ministry to provide that care, or should he put Muriel in a nursing home and carry on with God's business? Trusted friends urged the latter, reminding him that we must "hate" our wives for the sake of Jesus and His kingdom (Luke 14:26). Besides, Muriel would adjust to her new environment, and her slipp...

An excellent short video on work and worship. It has great graphics and gets the message across very clearly! A lot of work went into this thats for sure! Copyright © Chola Mukanga 2013

Great speakers understand that people respond to a great challenge, even one involving huge personal sacrifice, when (1) they believe in the person making the challenge, (2) they see the challenge itself as being worthwhile, and (3) the challenge isn't sugar-coated but is put in stark, unforgettable terms. Too many public speakers mumble and drone when they would be far more effective if they said less and said it in a simple, direct way. - Bob Briner ( Source :  Leadership Lessons of Jesus) These are critical components. And yet all three carry enormous challenges that must be carefully managed. The people need to believe in the person making the challenge, but the speaker must not become the message. She must explain the challenge as worthwhile without pandering to their base instincts. She must challenge them - but realistically in a way that change is possible. No point calling people to action when the prospects in front of them are unrealistic. 

Promise Me by Aaron and Jeffrey remains one of my favourite songs of inspiration! The song pictures Christ speaking to the believer. He is responding to the unspoken prayer. The tone is deeply human and personal - and yet altogether transcendent and triumphant! It's hard to imagine that I've been there too I've felt the passion burning in you Every temptation, I understand Your Saviour knows what it is to be a man I know what it's like when the nightmare comes true Someone left a cross for me like they left for you Trust me when I say, I've been where you are The strength to live again my child is hidden in the scars For those who stand, for those who fall Strength is found in one place : beneath my Cross crying out for grace Promise me. Promise me before the passion turns to flame, promise me you'll call my name Promise me. Promise me you'll remember these scars of grace and remember I took your place Promise me! ( S...

I am a part of the fellowship of the Unashamed. I have the Holy Spirit Power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colourless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don’t have to be right, first, tops, recognised, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by presence, learn by faith, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power. My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my Guide is reliable, my mission is clear. I cannot be bought, compro...

I have been attending a training course at work over the last two days. Three pieces of advice I took away about effective working. (1) Be clear (and know) what you can and cannot do. (2) Take care of yourself, so that you can take care of your job. (3) Always create space for thinking. I came away thinking that the most important is missing. I would add (4) - always have someone who will honestly challenge you on (1) - (3). Acting on this is priceless. This is good worldly wisdom which one can readily find appropriate biblical ground. For example : (1) is all about tackling pride and insecurity. When we are secure in God, we don't need to live up to our jobs. He is our job security. That frees us to admit to stop and do less if we must. (2) surely is about knowing that we are more important than the job. We are are NOT our job. Our worth is grounded in God himself. But more importantly, the more we act in concert with that truth, we are able to get a p...

There is such depth in the Christian Scriptures that, even if I studied them, and nothing else, from early childhood to worn-out old age, with ample time and unflagging zeal, and with greater intellectual ability than I possess, I would still each day find new treasures within them. The basic truths necessary for salvation are easily found within the Scriptures. But even when a person has accepted these truths, and is both God-fearing and righteous in his actions, there remain so many things which lie under a great veil of mystery. Through reading the Scriptures, we can pierce this veil, and find the deepest wisdom in the words which express these mysteries, and in the mysteries themselves. The oldest, the ablest, and the most eager student of Scripture, will say at the end of each day: "I have studied hard, but my studies are just beginning" - Augustine of Hippo   ( Source : Letter 137)

No doctrine concerning the divine and saving mysteries of the faith, however trivial, may be taught without the backing of the holy scriptures. We must not let ourselves be drawn aside by mere persuasion and cleverness of speech. Do not even give absolute belief to me, the one who tells you these things, unless you receive proof from the divine Scriptures of what I teach. For the faith that bring us salvation acquires its force, not from fallible reasoning, but from what can be proved out of the holy Scriptures. - Cyril of Jerusalem ( Source : Catechitecal Lectures )

While I was on holiday, this story broke in the news regarding controversial American teacher Todd Bentley. He had been planning to visit the UK but the Home Office decided to shut its doors. In their words : "We can confirm that Mr Bentley has been excluded from the UK. The government makes no apologies for refusing people access to the UK if we believe they are not conducive to the public good. Coming here is a privilege that we refuse to extend to those who might seek to undermine our society" As pastors who invited him moaned about the "missed opportunities" of "God's outpouring" many other local Christian groups welcomed the decision. One local  Presbyterian Church in Northern Ireland issued a supporting statement for the Home Office : "Violent activities reported as part of Mr. Bentley's faith healing technique have no part whatsoever in our understanding of a loving, caring and compassionate ministry that is sought, often by weak, fra...

In Jesus’ statement about God and Caesar, he established the broad outlines of a new order in which “the things that are God’s” are not to be under the control of the civil government (or “Caesar”). Such a system is far different from the Old Testament theocracy that was used for the people of Israel. Jesus’ new teaching implies that all civil governments—even today—should give people freedom regarding the religious faith they follow or choose not to follow and regarding the religious doctrines they hold and how they worship God. From How Christians Should Relate to Government by Wayne Grudem. This is wrong. A huge leap in application and terribly wrong one for that matter. Jesus's teaching gave freedom for people to worship the Lord God, not just any religion! There's no where in the Bible where freedom of religion is encouraged whether through a civil government or another medium. To suggest otherwise is heresy.