Posted by: pastorapbell | September 7, 2011

as we prepare ourselves before engaging the enemy!

The next piece of the armour we are encouraged to put on by the apostle is the breastplate of righteousness. Now if the belt of truth hold in all the entrails that try to push and pop out, then the breastplate is there to protect the heart from being damaged. A damaged heart can lead to all sorts of complications and eventually cardiac arrest. As we dress ourselves for the battle, we are encouraged to enter the fray with the right motives and attitude. Therefore the state of our heart is of vital importance. Isaiah reminds us that if we try to work for and do what God has called us to do in our own strength then we will fail since our righteousness is like filthy rages when exposed to the Shekinah glory of the Lord (Isaiah 64:6).

It is from the heart that the issues of life flow.  Jesus reminds us that it is from ‘the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks’ (Luke 6:45), so don’t get hung up over the food that you eat like the Pharisees did, once you are committed to him he is mandated to protect you. Another reason that the heart needs protection is that since Adam disobeyed God and plunged his descendants into sin, all of us have the innate propensity to sin; that is, rebellion and disobedience is our default position. And so another prophet, Jeremiah says this: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? (Jeremiah: 17:9).

Although we now know that when the ancient prophets spoke about the heart they did not actually mean the cardio-vascular organ tat pumps blood around our bodies, we are aware that they were talking about the very centre of our being. That part of us that connects us to the eternal spirit and dictates how we behave. We now call this our conscience and once that is transformed by the washing of the blood of Jesus by faith, our consciences are pure again and we become like new born individuals. Technically we become conscientised, so our actions are in line with what we say and what we believe. So today put on the breastplate of righteousness and protect your ‘heart’ for it is from your heart that everything that you believe in flows! Read Luke 6:43-49.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | September 2, 2011

as we dress appropriately to fight the enemy

Have you ever wondered why things go wrong in your life when all your intentions are for all things to work together for you because you love the Lord? Well things will go wrong because we are in a battle and in this battle we are fighting an invisible enemy. It is rather like the war on terror that the former President of the USA George W. Bush declared against Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaida. Although you don’t where the enemy is lurking you are aware that he is out there somewhere waiting to attack. And this is the situation that Christians face. We know the enemy is out there and that he is waiting to attack us but often we enter the fray not fully protected. As Christians we must always be on red alert. That is we must always be fully armed and fully protected. So what is in our armoury and how do we ensure that we are fully armed. We are encouraged by the apostle Paul to put on the whole armour of God. And the analogy he uses is one of a Roman soldier in his army outfit. Interestingly the apostle starts the dressing process with the belt of truth. And so as we start the month of September let us dress ourselves for the battle that we are engaged in whether we realise it or not. And let us start by putting on the belt of truth. Firstly be true to yourself. Since lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, let us jettison lies and start to speak the truth. Furthermore, if we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves (1 John 1:8) and the truth (God) is not in us. Also if we continue to tell ‘white’ lies we are living in deception and that is the way of life for the terrorist. He hides what he does because he knows deep down in his heart that it is evil. The belt
holds everything in and when our waist wants to get out of shape we can increase the tension and pull in our bellies. So today, put on the belt of truth by applying the word of truth to every aspect of your life. Be honest, avoid telling lies (there are no such things as white lies and black lies) and humbly ask God to lead you by His Spirit in the right paths for his name sake!
Read Ephesians 6:10-17, 1 John 1.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | August 30, 2011

as we stand firm against the wiles of the enemy!

The plan of the enemy is to cause confusion in the camp so that believers in God start to doubt him. This is why we are told to be aware of the wiles of the devil. Now the wiles of the devil are his schemes and his game plan. The purpose of his scheme is to deceive you and get you to the point of believing a lie. This is why we need our minds transformed to the point of believing God’s word even when we cannot see the end from the beginning. To walk and live by faith is a choice. We are all created with the ability to choose and the plan of the enemy is to influence us so that we choose wrongly. This is exactly what happened to Eve, the first woman. She listened to the scheme of the evil one and succumbed to his beguiling words. Did God say that? No, that can’t be right! These are the questions that often tend to thwart us. One of the main tricks of the enemy is to get us to doubt the word of God. When this occurs we start down the slippery slope of compromising on the words of life. The three main areas that the enemy targets are: our Families, our finances and our faith. Today as we move to another level, believe God and stand on his words and be encouraged as Isaiah the prophet reminds us that the Lord says: “Maintain justice and do what is right, for soon my salvation will come and my deliverance be revealed.” Doing the right thing is the natural outworking of thinking the right thing. Read Isaiah 54.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | August 26, 2011

as we develop a new mindset!

To walk in the blessings that come from the Lord requires a renewed mindset and a new way of thinking. Isaiah an ancient prophet who lived some 700 years before the birth of Jesus said this: “Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. As the heavens are higher than the earth so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it (Isaiah 55:6-11 NIV).” The thought process of an individual dictates how they speak, the words spoken then turns into actions, these actions then become habits which in turn becomes a lifestyle which becomes your destiny. So today let the transformations begin in your mind. Remember, nothing is impossible with God who can take a slave and make him a president, and can turn a shepherd into a great king. If he has said it, it will come to pass, just wait and see! Read Isaiah 55.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | August 25, 2011

as we flourish like the palm tree by engaging the eternal spirit

For anyone to flourish there must be a radicalisation in their minds and a total renewal of their consciences. As we have discussed earlier, those who want to flourish must be like the palm tree being able to renew itself regularly and be able to stand the storms that will come ever-so often. The renewal of the mind will never occur if we just follow rituals. However, it will occur once we are exposed to new words, new concepts and new ways of doing things. And so we are encouraged to seek the transformation of our lives by being renewed in our minds (Romans 12:1&2). This is why Jesus instituted the new covenant [New Testament] to do away with the ritualistic way of making atonement for our wrongs. I am aware of those who question the loving nature of our God who seemingly allowed the brutal murder of his only son without intervention. And they ask questions such as, how can God be both loving and wrathful? As we shall see, performing rituals or being ritualistic would never institute eternal redemption. So how do we get out of the ritualistic mode? The writer of Hebrews gives us an insight into this. He often quoted from the Old Testament and Juxtaposed this against what Jesus did when he died on the cross. In times gone by the high priest would go into the holy of holies, kill a lamb for each family, place its blood on the mercy seat and then burn it on the altar. The smoke would ascend to God, he would then take the ashes that remained and sprinkle it on the ground and stand on it. Once this ritual was complete those being represented by the priest had their guilt removed and their sin atoned for. This ritual only occurred once every year and was only performed by the high priest in the inner sanctum. Obviously a lot of lambs were offered up and a lot of blood was shed. However, these rituals had little bearing on the minds and hearts of the adherents and did nothing for their consciences. Although rituals have their place it is the consciences of individuals that need to be transformed to bring total restoration and redemption, so that they can flourish like the palm tree and grow tall and strong in their environment. On the contrary when Jesus died on the cross, the writer of Hebrews states that he entered the most holy place as the high priest to offer up the lamb as the eternal sacrifice once (Heb 9:11ff), but astonishingly he was also the lamb to be offered and symbolically it was his body that was broken to bring about our salvation and redemption. So today if you want to flourish like a palm tree, you must first be planted like a seed, then die [to self], be watered [with the word so that mind renewal can occur] and keep in step with the eternal spirit. So keep in step with the Holy Spirit rather than being bound to ritualistic practices. Read Hebrews 9 and be sprinkled with the blood of the lamb.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | August 22, 2011

as we send down roots to negotiate the routes!

To be able to flourish in each season we must be planted in good soil and must have our roots buried fairly deep in that soil. The higher you desire to grow the deeper your roots must descend. The ability to withstand all that is thrown at us during the worst periods of each season is dependent on the depth to which our roots have dug down. In the spring there is an abundance of rain which waters the plant and encourages growth. However, if the tree grows up before it grows down the propensity to topple over is increased. This is how the Psalmist describes the dullard. They grow rapidly and for all intense and purposes they are seemingly flourishing. But although the rate of growth is rapid, the foundation is not there so when the storms of life come and come they will, he is uprooted and destroyed. On the other hand the righteous are described like the palm tree (v.12). The palm tree is tall and elegant. It produces fruit [palm kernels] that has a variety of uses and it is able to withstand the ravages of winter and the winds in the monsoon. Its ability to bend helps to negotiate all weather conditions. Therefore the righteous [those who do the right thing in the sight of the Lord, and always try to act justly] shall flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar in Lebanon. But the caveat is this they need to be planted in the house of the Lord and it is in his courts that they will flourish (v.13). Those who put their faith in God must implement several things in their lives:-

1.Recognise the need to thank the Lord for the little
things

2. Learn to sing praises to his name

3. Allow the lord to anoint you with fresh oil each
morning

4. Be planted in a particular fellowship where you
are hearing the word often

5. Produce fruit, even when you are old and grey.

The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree and shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon and will produce fruit even in old age. Read Psalm 92.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | August 19, 2011

as we flourish in the season we are in!

Like a tender plant each and every one of us goes through seasons. These seasons are stages of development and growth. At each stage of the development process there is a demand placed on us to reach a certain level of maturity. In the spring of our lives we are born into a world full of chaos and turmoil. We are however oblivious of this and begin the struggle for independence and significance. This is our spring season. As we grow and develop we enter the season where we start to flourish and make an impact in the world where we are planted. We develop routine and position ourselves to become fruit producers. During our last seasons we get ready to pass on the baton as we reflect on all we have learnt and the impact we have made in the greater scheme of things. We all go through this process in our spiritual journey. Irrespective of our chronological age when we start the process, we all will go through these stages or seasons. Once we identify the season we are in we must then act accordingly. Blessings come from being able to understand the season you are in and to be able to grow appropriately in this season. We are encouraged to be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, whose roots are deeply embedded in the soil so that all the nutrients needed for growth can be extracted. We are further encouraged that once we are planted we will bear fruit in the appropriate season and the leaves we produce will be for the healing of those around us. In essence the Psalmist is telling us that in order to grow, we need to be planted. That is we need to be in a particular fellowship in a particular place. Those who are running from place to place, from fellowship to fellowship will not be able to grow appropriately. Blessing therefore come to those who are planted so that they can bear fruit in the right season and be on hand to help those who are just starting their journey. So whatever season you are in let it be ordained and sanctioned by the Lord. Read Psalm 1& Psalm 93.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | August 18, 2011

as we erect the infrastructure for blessings

Once our foundations are laid the onus is on us to complete the building. This is what constitutes blessings. When the writer of Psalm 127 states that it is vain to stay up late (v.2) toiling for food and for things to sustain your body; and it is vain to stand guard over what you have when you have not committed it to the Lord (v.1), he is stating that the precursor for blessings is to build your very existence on the Lord Jesus Christ or the word of God, the logos. Those who toil and spend all their time living to work rather than working to live are toiling. This does not fulfil the criteria set out by the writer of the Proverbs, where he says this: “The lessings of the Lord bring wealth and he adds no trouble to it (Proverbs 10:22 NIV).” And so we end up doing a lot of vain things rather than doing things that are kingdom focussed and that will bring glory to God. Those who chase riches invariably end up spiritually poor and those who chase fame and fortune invariably end up being fake and superficial. So the word for today is this, God lays the foundation stone, the building process, painting and decorating and maintenance is up to us. Read 1Corinthians 3.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | August 17, 2011

as we invite the master builder to be a part of all our plans!

Unless the Lord builds the house those who build it labour in vain. Unless the Lord is watching over the city the watchmen are watching in vain. This was the reflection from Solomon who was arguably the wisest man that has ever lived. When he ascended to the throne, rather than asking God for fame and fortune he asked for wisdom and understanding. And because of his genuine desire to know how to deal with people and their problems, God granted him his request and made him the richest man in his generation. For any relationship to last and stand the test of time, that is, to remain when the storms of life press on every side, it must be built on the principles dictated by God. Those principles are only found in the word of God, the bible and in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is why Jesus stated that, although Solomon was the wisest man ever to have lived, all his glory could not compare to the lilies of the fields who are clothed by the Lord God of heaven. And before Abraham was in existence, Jesus was already there. Jesus is the rock of ages and the wheel in the middle of all wheels. Once he is our foundation our relationships will last and flourish as long as we put our faith in him. Secondly, he is the eternal spirit who watches over us. Whilst we keep our eyes on him, he will always be there to watch out for us and to guard us from any impending danger. When the Lord is the builder, the building will stand. When the Lord is the watchman you will always be safe. Read Psalm 127.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | August 15, 2011

as we let out little lights shine

The entrance of your word brings light, it imparts understanding to the simple (Psalm 119:130). In a broken society we need the light of the gospel to impart understanding to the decision makers in positions of authority. For years we have been implementing political correctness and handing over authority to children and young people. Those children and young people who were given the opportunity to challenge the authority of their parents are now challenging the authority of state, the very people who air brushed discipline out of the vocabulary of our corporate parents. I strongly believe in the 5 outcome of the every child matters agenda, I also believe strongly in the fundamental pillars of respect and manners. Without these building blocks our society will go from bad to worse. So how can we stop this decline? We need the light of the gospel to be shone in every crevasse of society so that those in positions of authority can have the understanding and the wisdom to bring transformation which will transform generations. As we pray for our broken society let us ask God for strategies to start the healing process by rejoicing with those who rejoice and crying with those who are hurting. So today ‘let your light shine before others so that people can see your good works and give glory to our father in heaven’ – Jesus Christ A.D 31.

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