The Main Reason Why 95% Of You Will Always Fail No Matter How Hard You Try

You must probably belong to one of these groups:

1. You’ve purchased numerous products or free product on the internet, and you’ve implemented those advice and techniques, but yet you’re not achieving good or required results. You’ve seen and read testimonials of other people who used the products with good success. But in your own case it is another story entirely.

2. You‘ve bought every product out there, but the problem you are having is that you will never took any action step to implement those ideas. Why will you read and learn many products about how to change you financial lifestyle, internet lifestyle and others but you will never put it to practice because something is always holding you back.

3. You’re successful already, you might be earning a 4 or 5 digit figure income already. But your dreams are much bigger than that. Yet you don’t make any progress with your increase level of knowledge and determination, instead you’re stuck with this level of income.

There is always a reason for being in one of this group and no matter at which point you said, “THAT’S ME”, It’s the same reason for everyone.

There is always a missing link you need if you desire to build a successful internet business you dreamed of.
Are you eager to know what the missing link is? If yes, let me start by telling you an eye opening story I love and has help others to see beyond their limitations.

“Don’t Act Like An Elephant!”

Strange statement, isn't it?

But listen carefully because it can make the difference of success and failure in your business and private life.

So, let me explain...

You might know that in India elephants are used for manual labor. But what to do with them when they are not working? How to restrain them?

Their handlers came up with the idea to program them while they are still very young - by setting self-imposed limits into their thinking.

How does it work?

When the elephants are still small, weighing around 150 pounds, they get tied up with a very heavy rope.

All day long, the elephants try to get rid of it, whine, tug at it and some of them even try to chew it. But they can't break free. Finally, the elephants give up and the fight is over.

And now it's getting interesting...

From this moment on, they strongly believe that there is absolutely no chance to get rid of the rope. They accept the "fact" that the rope limits them.

And with this imprinted belief in place, their handlers are able to tie them with extremely small ropes!

And even as adults, weighing 8,000 pounds and more, they never attempt to break free because they "know" they have no chance at all!

As you can see, the elephants’ limits are not real, but exist only in their mind.

And so are we programmed with built-in-boundaries. They are also not real but exist only in our minds.

But with these imprinted belief systems, with these inner boundaries, we are unable...

- to live our lives to the fullest
- to be as successful as we could be
- to set and reach higher goals
- to make 10 times more money as we do now
- to build a successful business
- to get the promotion and pay increase
we always dreamed of
- to fulfill our true dreams and desires

The point is…

Your Existing Inner-Belief Will either Make or Break Your Business!

I will try and explain this in a simple manner for you.

Depending on your existing inner beliefs one of two things will be happening…

A. If you have any negative beliefs in regards of your business itself or your ability of running a business successfully, you’ll experience thoughts like, “I can’t understand why this is happening to me while everyone else and their dogs are doing great promoting this product; maybe I am simply not good enough to be successful as an Internet Marketer; maybe other marketers have better lists than I; I think the experts were right by telling me that my niche might be too competitive for a newbie to have a chance to make money.” And so on…

B. If your core beliefs regarding your business and your abilities in general are positive, you might have thoughts like, “I expected a little bit more, but hey, at least I made a sale at all; I am really grateful for it; I have accomplished something; I have to tell …(spouse) about my success; I can hardly wait for the next email campaign; I expect even better results next time.” And so on…

A week later there is another opportunity to endorse a good product.
If you were the first marketer (A), you don’t feel that enthusiastic anymore but worry a little about the outcome already, but you still create a rock solid email message - you hit the ‘send’ button - and there are no sales at all from your campaign.

Now you doubt yourself even more. Your feeling of being a failure is deepening. You now really believe that something is wrong with your list. You think you entered your market too late to make any significant profit, etc.

And the worst thing that is happening, you are strengthening your already existing negative belief system! And that will make sure that you’ll go the road leading to more and more disappointments and bad outcomes. And finally you’ll quit and will be convinced Internet Marketing is just not for you.

A damaging belief, no matter if lying open in your mind or buried deeply inside, will always sabotage a possible positive outcome, no matter how hard you try!

If you were the second marketer (B), you feel great while crafting your endorsement email. You are relaxed and grateful for the chance to make some profit again.

You feel highly motivated, and you expect even better results this time – you hit the ‘send’ button – and (drum rolls, please) you made 4 sales this time.

You feel even more grateful. Your feeling of accomplishment is deepening. Your self-confidence is rising. And, most importantly, you are strengthening your already existing positive belief that will support you in everything you are going to do from here on.

From this moment on you are on the road to success not only in email marketing but in all areas of your business. Your positive belief, your ability to feel grateful for even small victories (sales) and your positive expectation will get you more and more things, results and circumstances you can be grateful for.

Because it is so important to understand I want to repeat it one more time.

The chances for the first marketer are slim to none to make any significant profit with his/her business. The negative belief system that is controlling his or her life will always sabotage the chance for big, long lasting success.

Bottom line: your perception of yourself is the vital key to your success.It's because of self-imposed limits. Your inner boundaries will always sabotage true, long-lasting success - no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try.

THE DISCIPLES' SHIP & THE RAGING STORM: MAN EXPERIENCING PEACE IN A CHAOTIC WORLD

(Mark 4:35-41)
by
Pastor Christian Abanum

The world is characterized by trouble and confusion but it is only in Christ that we can find peace (John 16:33, John 14:27)

The peace of this world is but for a moment. It is only in Christ that you can find lasting and eternal peace (Psalm 46)

For you to be recipient of

this peace, you've got to surrender the totality of your life to Christ.

For you to experience peace, you've got to exchange your heavy burden for Christ's light yoke. (Matt 11:28-30)

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.] 28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.]
29 Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle (meek) and humble (lowly) in heart, and you will find rest (relief and ease and refreshment and recreation and blessed quiet) for your souls. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle (meek) and humble (lowly) in heart, and you will find rest (relief and ease and refreshment and recreation and blessed quiet) for your souls.
30 For My yoke is wholesome (useful, good—not harsh, hard, sharp, or pressing, but comfortable, gracious, and pleasant), and My burden is light and easy to be borne.

A WOMAN NEVER TO BE FORGOTTEN

(Luke 17:22-32)
By
Revd. Dr. J.A. Aworinde

-Lot's wife was privileged (Genesis 12, Genesis 18:23-32)

-Lot's wife had a righteous husband (II Peter 2:7-8)

-Despite all the privileges that Lot's wife had, she refused to be impacted positively

-Lot's wife refused to take advantage of every opportunity she had

? Are you not privileged as well

-We are presently in church age where there are numerous avenue to hear God through various medium but mind you!
Religious opportunities that are not utilized can not grant salvation; it only leads to greater condemnation

-Official and unofficial conspiracy against the truth and the raw word of God will not be overlooked by God (Matt. 24:12)

? Are you not wasting the opportunities you have now.

- Remember! Tragedy results from wasted opportunities. It is dangerous to play with the anger of God

-Rejecting Divine opportunities is a show of

*Unappreciation to God

*Consipracy against God

*Living for this age and not preparing for the age to come

*Being glued to the things of the world than getting attracted to the things of God

-Are you not playing with all the opportunities you have? Remember! You will give account of every single opportunity accorded you

THE SEASON OF RESTORATION

(Mark 5:21-30, Micah 7:8)

By 

Revd. Augustus Egbe

-The person you touch in life determines your future (Mark 5:28). You’ve got to touch the right person which is Jesus

-For you to experience restoration, don’t allow yourself to be lost in the crowd. Be focused. Fix your eyes on Jesus

-Everybody has an issue in life but we have a Messiah that has the ability to attend too our issues

-You may be having a negative point of identification like the woman with the issue of blood but there is a God who has power to change your story for good (Mark 5:25)

-Our God is not a story but a reality. Believe Him and His promises. He is the God of possibilities.

Weathering The Storms Of Life

Perhaps you’ve been hit by the downfall of the recession. Maybe you’re out of a job or perhaps you’ve had the unfortunate experience of having your home foreclosed on. You may be tempted to get down in despair but I want to encourage you that God has your best interest at heart. He knows how much we can bear and He won’t let us down.

Life is full of ups and downs; it’s not easy, no one said it would be. However, remember when you’re facing a terrible storm in your life, that’s an indication that the Lord is about to shower down blessings on you. He’s about to take you to a new dimension in your life. It’s up to us to have the faith that we will overcome the trials that we face.

I do believe that our faith determines how God operates in our life. Look at the storms in your life as an opportunity to exercise your faith. I always say that the greater the storm, the greater the harvest.  After all, If we’ve never been through a storm, we would never appreciate the sunshine.

It is times like today that we really need to look to God in prayer. Remember my friend that the battle is not yours, it belongs the Lord. We know this because the Word of God tells us in the latter part of 2 Chronicles 20:15, “…Do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God’s.” 

I do believe that when we get worried and fearful about the storms in our lives that we are doing ourselves a disservice. I want to encourage you that your latter will be greater than your past. We can’t get to the next level in life when we’re looking behind us.

I think about the great athletes of our time and how when training for the big game they are taught, not to focus on whats behind them but to keep their eyes fixated on the finished line. They don’t see the obstacles as a hindrance, they see the obstacles as an opportunity to strengthen their game.

A wise man once said, “obstacles are things a person sees when he takes his eyes off the goal.” Another said, “obstacles are opportunities in disguise.” Let’s not view the storms in our lives as a hindrances, but rather view them as an opportunity in disguise.

Hold on to the promises of the Lord, He will work it out. The Lord has great things in store for you my friend. I want to encourage you to keep the faith because your breakthrough is on the way. Be prayerful, stay in the word of God and stay encouraged as you go through your life journey.

Speak Life Into Your Destiny

“O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” (Matthew 12:34 KJV)

God has given you the ability to speak life and death into your situation and circumstance for the bible says that there is life and death in the power of the tongue.

Now that’s an amazing thing because if used for good, you can conquer anything that the enemy can throw your way. However, it is up to you. What will it be life or death?

What are your thoughts day in and day out? Do you speak positive thoughts into your life, your dreams and visions?

David was a great example of someone who spoke life into his circumstances. He encouraged himself in the mist of his own trials. He wrote songs while going through trials and he came out victorious.

David was his own motivator, he encouraged himself in the Lord.

Children are born with an amazing imagination. You hear many stories of children who want to grow up to become firefighters, lawyers, doctors or scientist. Over a period of time, those same kids become conditioned to believe, “Oh you won’t amount to such a thing” and they believe it because someone has spoken death into their dreams.

It’s very important that you understand the power of speaking over yourself in the Lord. I believe that you can just speak a word and birth a miracle into your life and the life of someone else.

The other day I was speaking with a great friend, and we were talking in a casual somewhat jovial tone and I said to them, “If I told you that you can go out here and win a million dollars, would you believe me?”

Their response was, “Well it depends on how or what I’m doing that would cause me to win the million dollars?”

Sometimes you don’t need know the “who, what, when, where and the hows,” you should speak life into yourself.

I believe that sometimes we, myself included, are afraid to speak certain things over ourselves because we are afraid of the big let down. Remember, when you take a step out on faith, God goes on your behalf to make a way out of what seems to be no way. He’s looking for the opportunity to bless you.

As I said we may not always know the “whats” and the “hows” but bible says that you have not because you ask not.

I’m encouraging you just like I am encouraging myself, to dream big dreams, speak them into existence. Don’t fear the possibilities of your dreams not coming to pass. Fear is a tactic of the enemy to throw you off track.

2 Timothy 1:7 says “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” Let your tongue speak life and not death into your destiny today.

Blessings in the Seemingly Insignificant Things

It’s easy to grow immune to the blessings of God. There are blessings all around us that we easily take for granted.
Everyday when the sun rises, it’s a blessing. There are blessings in the activity of your limbs. There are even blessings in the use of your five senses.
The very things that we’re overlooking are the very things that God has blessed us with. It’s like the old saying, “you never know what you have until it’s gone.” Well, here’s encouragement for you, don’t wait until the blessing is gone. Appreciate your flowers while they yet live.
Everyday, God is showering down blessings. Every single moment is a blessing. From the beauty of the sunrise to the greatness of the sunset.
There are blessings in the cool morning breeze. There are blessings in the rain that hits the window pane. Look around you today, and find the beauty in everything.
From the sound of the birds chirping in the morning sun, to the laughter of the children playing in the neighborhood, these serve as reminders from the almighty God of how fortunate we are. They are signs of life. And as long as you have the breath of life, you have hope!
Even in your dark days, when you’re tempted to get in despair, there are blessings even in the storms. There are lessons of wisdom and experience that only come during the dark times.
Be grateful for the seemingly insignificant things. When you’re grateful, you don’t have time to complain. And only good things can come from a grateful heart. Choose to be thankful today and watch the Lord shower down more abundant blessings than you have room enough to receive as you charge forth on your journey of life!

The Joy that God Has Given You

God has given you an unspeakable great joy! One of the greatest things you can wear is your smile, your enthusiasm and your overall good attitude.
This great joy that you have, the world didn’t give it to you and the world can’t take it away. I’m not talking about a here today gone tomorrow happiness. I’m not talking about a joy that’s based on your feelings and emotions. No, I’m talking about something that’s deeper. Something that supersedes emotions and circumstances.
The scripture says that the joy of the Lord is your strength. This joy that God has given you, is a joy that can surface even in the darkest of days. It gives you strength in your weak hour. It’s a feeling of hope and expectation even in the the worst situations.
That’s not to say that there won’t be times when you’re sad. It’s not to say that you’ll always be happy. No, this is to say that no matter what happens, you can rejoice because everything works out for your good. You can go forth in life with an expectation that great things are in store for you!
Now, along with everything in life, it starts with a choice. You have to choose to be joyful. You have to choose to wear your smile and spread your positive attitude.
The choice is yours. You can live in doom and gloom. You can either say, “woe it’s me” or you can say, “woe, look at me. I’m blessed. I have a lot to be thankful for. I have a hope for the future and great things are in store for me!”
The joy that God has for you has a lasting effect. It can take you through the wilderness and through the valley. It will sustain you through the bad times and the good times. Know that the joy of the Lord is your strength and walk in it. It just might make all the difference as you charge forth on your journey of life!

Let Your Haters Be Your Motivators

They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, (Romans 1:29 ESV)
 

There may come a time, if you haven’t already faced it, when you come across haters in life. The sad thing is, everybody that you make acquaintance with are not always going to be supportive of you.

I encourage you to stay motivated, regardless of the haters that you may face. Friend, it may help to know that when you have people hating on you or what you’re shooting for in life, it just means that you’re doing something good. When people hate on you, it also means that they don’t have confidence in themselves to do the things that you’ve done or accomplished in life.

Next time you face someone who looks down on you, or tries to convince you that it’s worthless to dream big and set goals, that is a time to pray on their behalf.

A wise man once said, “Let your haters be your motivators.” Friend, when you come across haters in your life, let that motivate you to press on and do what you’ve set out to do. Don’t let forces of darkness kill your dreams. No. Press on regardless of what those around you are telling you.

Sometimes you will find in life that people won’t like you, just because. You may have done nothing to be disliked but people won’t like you simply because either you have something they want, or you are someone they want to be.

When you come across  those types of people, love on them regardless but be mindful of how you associate with them. If you don’t watch it, they will talk you out of your dreams and goals.

Associate with those who are building you up and who are supportive of what you want to do in life. It’s important that you develop a strong support team of those who will support and encourage you through the thick and the thin.

Even when the day seems dark, listen to those who are encouraging you to press on. In the end it all comes down to whether you succeed, not the haters who you’ve faced along the way. You are more than a conqueror and you can do great things in Jesus name!

You Don’t Have To Run From Your Problems

One of the worst habits we can form is to run away from our problems. We find that we get so caught up in our comfort zone that when a problem presents itself and inconveniences us we so easily run the other way.

I heard a wise man say something to the effect that, “If every time a problem arises we choose to run, we’ll be running for the rest of our lives.“

Are you guilty of running from problems in your life?

The best thing you can do is to stand firm and face adversity head on. You’re either a part of the problem or the solution.

The situation doesn’t disappear when you run away. In fact, fleeing only masks the problem. Running causes the problem to escalate. The problem will continue to find you until you take steps to face it and eliminate it.

The child who grew up being abused may grow to learn that abusing others is the only way to get what he wants out of life. It’s not until the child seeks counsel and eliminates that negative condition of thinking out of his mind that the problem disappears. You have to know that there is no problem too big that God can not solve.

The scripture tells us, “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,” One translation says, “…Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.“

I believe that every battle that you overcome you become stronger and stronger. You’re becoming wiser and wiser. You’re standing firmer than you were before!

One of the reasons we run from our problems is because of the fear that we can’t handle or overcome them. But remember, as long as God be for you, who can be against you! He’s going along the highways and the byways making a way of escape for you! You see, He’s gone before you and has made the rough places plane. He’s made the crooked places straight. Dare you release your burdens unto Him? Dare you trust God to provide a solution?

I want to encourage you today to stop running from your problems, run through your problems. You should be just like the sprinter in a race, no matter how many hurdles you face keep running.

You will always be faced with trials in your life. Even if you overcome one situation, there’s only a matter of time until another resurfaces. But I dare you to stand tall in the face of adversity. Face your problem head on and watch as you rise to higher heights and deeper depths today!

No sex before marriage?

We look at the reasons why you should wait

 

In case you’re wondering why Christians stick with the idea of no sex before marriage, here are some reasons.
Firstly, the Bible teaches it. Check out Romans 13:9, 1 Corinthians 6:13, 1 Corinthians 6:18  Galatians 5:19, Ephesians 5:3, 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 for just a few references!

Taking the long-term view

If you wait until marriage, you can know that the person likes you for who you are, and not because you’ll go all the way. If you wait, you can have a good confidence that both you and your partner should be able to resist having affairs if you have been able to resist hopping into bed with each other! If you wait, you can focus on communication skills which will stand your marriage in good stead for the future.

Research shows that marriages that start out as live-together have a higher divorce rate than those that do not.

A good marriage requires good communication. Communication relies on words and body language. Having sex is the ultimate body language. It sends really strong messages to you and the other person. The messages sent are: “I really care about you. I really want to be with you. I want to look after you. I only want you.” If you say these things with your body, but you won’t say them with your words, you are lying to the other person.  Marriage is when you say these words with your mouth, and you say them with your body. Lying to people, whether with words, or with your body, has terrible consequences. People who are lied to lose the ability to trust. They begin to lie themselves. If you lie to people, you rip them off.

Sex is precious

Have you ever thought that having sex is like giving the most precious part of yourself away? You need to know that the person you give it to will respect, love and look after you, so you won’t be hurt. Marriage allows you to give to each other with freedom and joy, rather than fear that your precious gift will be rejected.

If you have sex with someone else, you are stealing that freedom from yourself, from your partner, and from the spouses you both might have in the future. Every person you have sex with – you will remember. It’ll be like taking them to bed with you whenever you do it with your spouse.

The physical side 

Sex has physical consequences. Sure, you might not get pregnant if you take the pill or use condoms. But then again, you might. Accidents do happen. And when they do, they frequently produce babies. Babies need two parents. Better than that, they need two mature parents. Don’t rip your future children off.

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are also prevalent. People do catch them, and can pass them on. Some can make you infertile.

While you’re single, instead of spending your emotional energy wishing you could have sex now, why not start working towards preparing yourself to be a great marriage partner for whoever you marry in the future?
Is that enough reasons not to have sex before marriage? What do you think?
 

Christian girls in a sexy world

Christian girls in a sexy world
Some people may judge you on looks & clothes, but God cares about your heart.

Messages

Each day we are being fed messages about how girls and women should be. The world shouts out that all women are and should be sexy. It is in the television shows and movies we watch, the internet sites we browse, the songs we listen to, the magazines we flip through and even on the billboards we drive by every day. The world tells us that the ideal woman is hot, sexy, sassy and on the prowl.
At school the message is no different. When I was at school, social groups were roughly divided by the clothes girls wore. Generally the shorter the skirt and more flimsy the blouse, the more popular you were with the girls and the more attention you received from boys – I gather the world hasn’t changed much since I left school. The message we receive at school is that if you dress sexy and engage in sexual behaviour the more popular you are in the social scheme. It is a case of the “survival of the prettiest”.
However, these messages are not what God tells his daughters.

Meaning

Your worth and value are not based on your body nor on being sexy. We need to get real about this. Genesis 1:27, 31 and Genesis 2:23-25 express the goodness of our physical bodies which God created. We are made in the image of God and this should be where our value is found. However, we do live in a fallen world where the goodness of creation and relationship have been broken. In our obsession with our bodies and clothing to gain value and acceptance, we make idols of ourselves. We need to realign ourselves with God’s values.
1 Samuel 16:7 expresses that while humans look at outward appearance, God is concerned with our heart and character more than our bodies or clothes. Furthermore, this side of the cross, our identity as Christians lies in Christ and not our outward appearance. We need to be counter-cultural! God loves us (1 John 4:6), has chosen us (Ephesians 1:4) and wants us to be conformed to the image of his son (Romans 8:29) and not the ideal body image. Remind yourself and your sisters that you are a dearly loved child of His.

Modesty

The Bible teaches quite clearly on modesty and sexuality. Ephesians 5:3 says ‘But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality.’ This ‘hint’ includes both our actions and our appearance. God desires that sex, a good thing created by Him, be enjoyed only in a man-woman marriage relationship. Genesis 2:24 talks of the beautiful union between a man and his wife as does Song of Songs. Elsewhere the Bible warns of the consequences of not respecting the place of sex within marriage such as Hebrews 13:4. Women are encouraged also to dress modestly and develop inner beauty, (1 Peter 3:3-6). This is what God desires for his daughters – not because he is a killjoy but because he loves us and in fact knows what will bring us more joy!

Men

Girls – we need to get real about the effect our bodies and actions have on men. If you dress sexy you may receive unwanted attention, or may become tempted to become involved in ungodly sexual behaviours. Furthermore, we need to love our Christian brothers at all times – not just youth group or church!
Sometimes we would like to argue that it is our right to wear what we want and it is the boys' fault for thinking such “bad” things. This is not Christ-like. We need to lay down our lives (and our rights) to love others and encourage them onto godliness. When we dress sexy this isn’t helping our brothers. Think about what messages you are sending when you are buying clothes and getting dressed. Girls, let’s be real with each other too and point out when your sister may be inadvertently immodest especially when the weather warms up.

Marriage

Sex and being sexy has a time and place that God is all for – within the marriage relationship. Baring our bodies and engaging in sexual practices belong there. I urge you sisters to wait till then to be a sexy Christian girl. Any hint before then is only damaging to your brothers and yourself. Be girls who seek to love God with their hearts, minds, bodies and clothes.

Love vs. Lust How to know the difference?

So… you see a girl (or boy… if you’re a girl) walking across the playground at school. They glance over your direction, only to see you staring right at them with a stunned look on your face! You quickly pretend that you are looking at something else! You start to sweat a little… you try to play it cool, but on the inside your guts do a triple somersault, with a half twist and a few pirouette’s for good measure. Then as she wanders into the distance giggling with her friends, you’re left sitting there like an idiot, with a billion thoughts and feelings pulsing through you, most of which are confusing, and you have no idea what to do with… you know you like her… but is it more than that? Do I love her? Or is it just that you think she’s hot? How do you tell the difference between Love and Lust?

Although we can often get the two confused, the Bible is very clear about the difference between love & lust. As Christians, we need to make sure that we work hard at understanding the difference, because the outcome of loving someone is vastly different from the outcome of lusting after them! So here is how we can identify love & lust, and work out the difference between them.

LOVE
There is quite a lot in the Bible about love. As a matter of fact — according to Matthew 22:34-40, every command that is written in the Bible stems from love! Either loving God, or loving your neighbour (that is, anyone and everyone that you come into contact with). It even tells us about the ultimate example of love in Jesus Christ taking the punishment we deserve by laying down his life for us so we can be forgiven for our sin. But perhaps the most well known passage about love is 1 Corinthians 13 where we get a list of all the things that define what love IS and what it IS NOT. Love IS NOT envious, boastful, proud (self glorifying), rude, self seeking or easily angered, and it doesn’t not hold stuff against one another! Rather, love IS patient, kind, truthful, protecting, and hopeful, it never fails, but always perseveres with the other person, even when it is hard and you don’t really feel like doing it! In other words, love is other-person-centred. It is all about putting the person who you love first, even before yourself… and sometimes at your own expense!

LUST
The Bible also says a lot about lust! Proverbs is full of helpful hints & tips and is a must read for every young Christian! Other passages to read are Matthew 5:27-30, Romans 1:18-32 & 2 Samuel 11, where King David lusts after an attractive young girl & ends up breaking most of the 10 commandments in one day! When you read these passages you’ll see that lust NEVER ends well, and that’s because it stems from a sinful heart. At the core of lust is selfishness, disrespect and a lack of self control, none of which are valuable characteristics in God’s eyes. Lust is self-centred. It is all about putting your desires first, without giving a thought to the person that you are lusting after. This generally plays out differently for guys and girls. Usually guys lust after the physical i.e. what they can see or touch, whereas for girls it’s usually more emotionally based i.e. what makes them feel good or special. But of course, everyone is different and this is not always the case for everyone.

THE DIFFERENCE
The difference between love and lust is the attitude of your heart. If you’re in love, the attitude of your heart is one of selflessness, with the other person as your focus, whereas if you are in lust the attitude of your heart will be one of selfishness, with yourself as the focus. True love is driven by a godly desire to provide for, nurture and care for the other persons needs, whereas lust is driven by an ungodly desire to provide for, nurture and care for our own sinful passions. When you love someone you choose to stick with that person at the expense of all others, even when it’s hard and you don’t want to! When you lust after someone, you get angry and throw in the towel as soon as you don’t get what you want, or you manipulate them until they do what you want them to do.

So… if you find yourself wondering about whether or not you’re in love, ask yourself “what is my heart attitude towards this person? Is it one of selflessness or selfishness? Am I willing to put the hard yards in, even when I don’t really want to, or will I probably throw in the towel when things get tough? Do I want to invest into this person, or is it just about fulfilling my human desires?” The answer to these questions will be a sure indication of whether you are in love, or lust.

Is it OK to date or marry a non-Christian?

Christians are called to be radically different to the rest of the world.

 

Christians are called to be different

You may not be old enough to be thinking seriously about marriage just yet, but you might be thinking about dating. The advice below applies equally to daters, as to those thinking of getting married.
The Bible teaches us that as Christians, we have freedom in Christ (Galatians 5:1). This freedom, that Jesus so dearly bought for us, is freedom from slavery to sin and death. We are now free to live as God in his infinite wisdom, intends. So what kind of life are we to live?

• We need to live as children of God (Philipians 2:15).
• We are called to put off our old selves (Ephesians 4:22)
• We are to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbours as ourselves (Mark 12:30)
• We are to be living sacrifices, not conforming to this world, but discerning what is the will of God (Romans 12:1-2)
• We need to walk in the light (Ephesians 5:8, 1John 1:5-7).

What's wrong with marrying a non-Christian?

If your potential partner doesn't believe in God, or doesn't have any firm beliefs about God, then are you sure they are a good match for you?
Marriage is intended to be a relationship of oneness between two people (Genesis 2:23,24). However, it's not just 'any two people', it's two people who are intimate companions, complementing each other and encouraging each other as they work together toward the same goal.
When a Christian marries an agnostic, or anyone non-Christian, this unity of purpose and direction is simply not possible. Why? Because that which is fundamental and central to the Christian person’s life is not fundamental and central to the non-Christian’s life. It is being 'unequally joined' (2 Corinthians 6:14) and can even become the cause for the Christian to fall away (2 Peter 3:17).

Different priorities

Imagine how many compromises would have to be made in all areas of your marriage! For example, how you spend your time, money and energy. Raising children would be especially difficult, because whose world view would you choose, and would the other person support it?
For a couple to be growing in the same direction, they need to have their foundations the same. For a marriage to work as God intends, both husband and wife need to have their foundations resting firmly on Christ. Perhaps the most clear directive (though speaking to widows) is in 1 Corinthians 7:39 - marry “only in the Lord”.
This advice might be hard to take, but keep resting in God’s word and in His love, trusting that His way is what is best for you.

What to Do When You’re Waiting on God

Have you been praying about a situation in your life and found yourself waiting for a breakthrough? Are you wondering why the answer hasn't come yet? Do you feel as though victory is passing you by?
Sometimes when we pray long and hard about a situation in our life without receiving any answers, we just learn to live with it. We go on about our business, wondering if or when God will send the answer. But God does hear those prayers, and He’s working out the answers even though we may not know all the details. Our situation can change suddenly—quickly without warning!
But one thing is certain: Before God moves suddenly, we will wait. Waiting for answers is a fact of life—nobody gets out of it. So the question is not if we'll wait, but rather how we’ll wait. And I believe how will determine how long.

Two Ways to Wait

All of us will wait passively, or we'll wait expectantly. A passive person hopes something good will happen and is willing to sit around waiting to see if it does. After a short time, he gives up, saying, "That’s it! I've waited and waited and nothing's happened." The passive person has a lot of wishbone but not much backbone!
The expectant person, on the other hand, is hopeful, believing the answer is just around the corner, due to arrive any minute. His belief is not a passive thing. His heart is full of hope, expecting his problem to be solved at any moment. He wakes up every morning expecting to find his answer. He may wait and wait, but suddenly what he’s been waiting for happens.

Expect It to Happen

It’s just like when a woman is pregnant; it's said that she is expecting a baby. She carries inside her the promise of a baby, and even though she can’t see it, she knows it's there. The moment she learns of her pregnancy, she begins to plan for her baby's arrival. She starts collecting items she'll need and busily gets the nursery ready. She actively prepares for the arrival of the baby because she knows the promise will be fulfilled—it's just a matter of time. She is expectant and she'll wait as long as it takes.
We know the word wait means "to expect" or "to look for." But remember, it also means "to serve" — just like a waiter waits on your table at a restaurant. Our act of waiting isn’t supposed to be spent sitting around passively hoping that something will happen sometime soon.

Be Eager with Faith

Once we've asked God to answer a question or solve a problem, we need to be eagerly awaiting His answer. We need to be serving actively, aggressively and expectantly. When our hearts are eager to hear from God, He loves to rush in suddenly with His solution. In many cases this waiting period actually serves as a time of preparation for the answer. If God answered right away, many of us would be ill-prepared to handle His solution.
Sometimes we find ourselves in such horrible messes that it's hard to imagine waiting one more second. But we need to keep waiting on God and trusting Him with a sweet and simple faith. Then, in a way we never could've figured out—God moves suddenly!

Then All of a Sudden...

In the Bible Paul and Silas knew about waiting, and they waited well. Acts 16 tells the story of how they were attacked by a crowd, beaten and thrown in jail. Verse 24 says the jailer put them into the inner prison (the dungeon) and fastened their feet in the stocks. He was making sure they couldn't escape. But about midnight, God showed up. Now it would have been nice if He'd come a little earlier, but Paul and Silas didn’t seem to mind—they just decided to start singing and began to worship the Lord. They began to wait on God.
Verses 25 & 26 say, "But about midnight, as Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the [other] prisoners were listening to them, suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the very foundations of the prison were shaken; and at once all the doors were opened and everyone's shackles were unfastened." God answered them suddenly!
When people patiently and expectantly wait on God in the midst of horrible circumstances, suddenly God breaks through.
So don't give up! Don’t stop believing! Stay full of hope and expectation. God's power is limitless, and He'll break through for you.

Get Unstuck and Fulfill God's Plans for Your Life

by Joyce Meyer
Do you have dreams and goals you’re reaching for? How do you feel about your life? Are you happy, or do you have an “I hate my life” attitude?
Everyone faces problems in their life. We all have disappointments, shattered dreams, people who don’t like us, and people who even come against us. And the devil wants to use these things to discourage us and keep us from moving forward with our lives and the plans God has for us. He’s a dream thief, and if he can get you to focus on what’s wrong or what you don’t like about your life, he can defeat you.
How you think, the attitude you have, what you say and how you act determines whether you live in your problems or you move forward in the plans God has for you. Because our thoughts prepare us for action, we have to be determined to think like Jesus and agree with God’s Word.

Disappointment That Could Have Held Me Back

In the early years of our ministry, we had our TV program on a particular station once a week. At the time, this was a really important station for us to be on. One day, they called and said they were cancelling our contract with us because of programming changes they were making. I was so upset about it and wondered how they could just tear up our contract. It’s so frustrating when there’s an injustice and you feel like something needs to be done, but there’s nothing you can do about it.
Shortly after this happened, I felt God speak to my heart about forgiving the people who made this decision. The devil wanted me to believe that nothing would change, but the truth was, if I would trust God and let it go, He could take it and do something with it. By His grace, I did, and about a year later, this same station contacted us and asked us to come on their station every day.
The devil wanted me to get stuck in my anger about the injustice that had been done. And if I had, it’s likely we wouldn’t have made much progress in God’s will for us.
God has made a lot of things possible for Joyce Meyer Ministries, including opportunities through our world missions outreaches. We’re currently providing food for thousands of hungry children every day, supporting efforts to rescue victims of human trafficking, providing free medical care in places where health care is either hard to get or nonexistent, fully supporting children’s homes in foreign countries, and much more. 
We’re also providing our TV program to two-thirds of the world and broadcasting on hundreds of radio stations. These are just a few examples of how God has blessed our ministry.
But if I had chosen to believe the devil’s lies over what God could do through our ministry, we wouldn’t be helping the hurting and reaching the lost today.

The Power of Having the Mind of Christ

Until we agree with God, He can’t do anything in our life. We have to learn to recognize the lies of Satan and stop believing him. We need to glance at our problems and stare at Jesus. Then we can have the mind of Christ and think like God thinks.
First Corinthians 2:16 says, “…We have the mind of Christ” (NIV). We also have the Word of God to teach us about God’s promises for our life. When our thinking lines up with the Word of God, we are in a position to walk by faith and do what God is leading us to do.
When the devil lies and says you can’t, remember that God’s Word says you can do all things that God wants you to do through Christ who strengthens you (see Philippians 4:13). When he says it’s impossible for you to do what God has put in your heart, remember that all things are possible with God (see Matthew 19:26 and Luke 18:27).
 Make up your mind to shake off the lies that hold you back and have a good attitude. If you will, the devil can’t defeat you. Remember: Nothing is too hard for God!

How to Study the Bible

by Joyce Meyer
I've spent about 30 years studying God's Word, and it has totally changed my life. I thank God for what I know now, but it didn't come overnight. If you want to see areas of your life change, learn to truly study the Bible.

Why Should I Study the Bible?

The Bible is no ordinary book. The words within its pages are like medicine to your soul. It has the power to change your life because there is life in the Word! (See Hebrews 4:12.) And when you discover the power and truth of God’s Word, you will begin to see changes in your life that only this truth can bring. You will even learn how to recognize what the enemy tries to bring against you.
The good news is, it won’t take you 30 years to know what you need to know. Just begin where you are right now and determine to stick with it! Every time you study the Bible and pay attention to what you’re reading, you’re learning something.
Proverbs 4:20-22 says, “My son attend to my words…for they are life to those who find them…” The word “attend” means to pay attention to, give some time to something. To attend to the Word of God is a lot more than just reading; it’s meditating on it.
We need to get into agreement with what God wants us to do because, as the writer of Proverbs says, these words are life! When you need an encouraging word, or you’re in a negative environment, it’s good to know that you can find life (plus healing and health) in God’s Word.

What Do I Study?

There’s really no wrong place to start.  You can study anything that’s going to help you. If you’re dealing with anger or fear, flip to the back of your Bible’s concordance and locate those words to see which scriptures talk about those things.

Recommended Study Tools

• Thompson Chain Reference Bible – cross references about different topics throughout the Bible
• Webster's Dictionary
• Strong's Exhaustive Concordance – listing of scriptures organized by category/topic
• Vine's Expository Dictionary – Greek and Hebrew definitions
• BibleGateway.com
• Joyce's Teaching Notes

If you can’t think of anything right away, thumb through the concordance in the back of your Bible and pick one of the words. Begin looking at all scriptures referenced with this word and read them. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead you, and He’ll lead you and reveal things to you.
When I first started studying the Word, I didn’t have very good relationships. I didn’t really understand what love was.
As I studied the subject of love, I learned that it’s more than a gooey feeling, It’s a decision on how you’re supposed to trust people. I didn’t know how to love people, or myself. By studying what the Bible says about love, I learned how to love. Then my life began to change.
Being able to apply what you study to your life, like I did on the subject of love, is just one picture of what studying the Bible looks like.
Hopefully you understand why you should study with some ideas on what to study. Here are four steps you can take to begin digging into God’s Word now:

Four Effective Steps to Studying the Bible

1. Purposely set aside time. I make an appointment with God in the mornings, but if that doesn’t work for you, find a time that does…even if it’s not every day. Whatever you can do, that’s what you need to do. Just start somewhere and you’ll see the fruit that this time brings to your life!
2. Make preparation for your Bible study. Have a place that you enjoy being—a room in your house where you can be alone. Somewhere you are comfortable and like to be.
3. Have all your materials available. You’ll want of course your Bible, but also get a good Bible dictionary, concordance, a pen and paper. That way, you don’t have to stop every few minutes to reference something or write something down.
4. Prepare your heart. Talk to God about things you may need to confess, and enter your study time peacefully and without anything that may block you from receiving revelation during your study.
Make the time in your life to study because there is power in it to change your life and become the person God wants you to be. Once you do, you’ll experience the peace and joy to enjoy every day of your life!

The Power of a Right Choice: It's a Matter of Life or Death

by Joyce Meyer I wonder how many decisions we make every day. I believe it’s probably hundreds. We decide whether or not to get out of bed, what we’ll eat, what we’ll do, what we’ll think about, what we’ll say…and on and on.
While it may seem like many of our daily choices are not that significant, it’s important to understand that they do matter.
In Deuteronomy 30:19 (AMP), God says, “…I have set before you life and death, the blessings and the curses; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live.” Every choice is a seed you sow, and those seeds produce fruit in your life – either for life or for death. And if we want to have the life Jesus died to give us – an abundant life full of real peace and joy – we need to make wise choices.

Consistently Good Choices Lead to the Good Life

Let me give you an example of what I’m talking about on a practical level. I go to bed at 9 o’clock every night and am asleep by 9:30. I get up at 5:30 and spend two to three hours with God every morning before I get ready for the day and walk out the door. I do this because I need to spend time with God to be the Christian I want to be and treat people the way I want to treat them.
Also, I need consistent sleep or I will feel bad physically. I’m in my late sixties, and I can honestly say I feel great most of the time. In fact, I can do more than some people I know who are younger than me. This is the fruit of making wise choices in my daily life.

The Choice Is Yours

When God tells us in Deuteronomy 30:19 to “choose life,” He’s actually showing us what wisdom looks like – it’s life-giving. And when we follow wisdom, we live deeper than “I want, I think, I feel…I want, I think, I feel…” Because wisdom always chooses to do now what it will be satisfied with later on, while foolishness means “without common sense.”

“ Wisdom always chooses to do now what it will be satisfied with later on… ”

Now here’s some great news: If you have made foolish choices (and we’ve all done it at times in our lives) and you’re not happy with the way things are, you can change. But you have to be willing to take responsibility for your wrong choices and make a determined decision to change the way you behave. When you do, you’ll find that every right choice you make helps reverse the wrong decisions you’ve made in the past.
I really want you to get this because my passion is to help you learn how to live the life Jesus wants you to have.

How to Truly Change for the Better

To begin this journey in Christ, we have to understand that nobody can change themselves. I know this because when I desperately wanted to change and be a better person who made right decisions, it was clear that I couldn’t do it on my own. I needed God to heal me of hurts from past abuse and make me secure and whole in Christ. Then I was able to choose life and live the way God wants me to live.
Whatever change you need to make, simply pray and ask God to change you and help you. Study the Bible in the areas where you are struggling, like anger, selfishness or unforgiveness. And be serious about it – you have to really study the Word to get what you need from God and be changed.
It’s so good to know we can do something to choose life, not just have an existence full of misery and death. We can seek wisdom, pray every day and renew our commitment to do what He wants us to do. We can live with integrity and do what’s right – even when no one is watching us but God. That’s when we know we’re really living for Him and not for ourselves or to please other people.
Think about this: How can you change and what could your life be like if you made better choices right now? Don’t put it off any longer. There won’t be a more convenient time, and you don’t have to waste another day missing out on the good life God has for you. You can do it. Make right choices now!

What to Do If You're Tired of Toughing It Out.

What to Do If You're Tired of Toughing It Out
by Joyce Meyer

Have you ever noticed how so many different thoughts run through our minds every day? Some are good, some bad. Unfortunately, our natural temptation is to focus on the bad; so accepting them doesn't take any effort. The effort comes when we're determined to cast down the negative thoughts, and take a firm grasp of the positive ones.

The Battle for Your Thoughts

Positive minds full of faith and hope produce positive lives. The opposite is also true: negative minds full of fear and doubt produce negative lives, which can ultimately destroy your life. Some people have been hurt so many times that they don't think they can face the pain of another letdown. Therefore, they refuse to hope so they won't be disappointed.
Battles are fought in our minds every day. When we begin to feel the battle is just too difficult and want to give up, we must choose to resist negative thoughts and be determined to rise above our problems. We must decide that we're not going to quit.

When we're bombarded with doubts and fears, we must take a stand and say: "I'll never give up! God's on my side. He loves me, and He's helping me! I'm going to make it!"

Don't Give Up!

No matter how bad the battle rages in your mind, don't give up! Step out and regain the territory that's been stolen from you. Even if it's only an inch at a time, make sure you're leaning on God's grace and not on your own ability.
In Galatians 6:9 the apostle Paul simply encourages us to keep on keeping on! Don't be a quitter! Don't have that old "give up" spirit. God's looking for people who will find the courage to rise above all the negative and pursue the positive.
Whatever you may be facing or experiencing in your life right now, I want to encourage you to stay positive and refuse to give up! God is with you. He'll help you make spiritual progress—strengthening and encouraging you to keep on keeping on during rough times. It's easy to quit, but it takes faith to press on to victory.
Reprogram Your Mind
When the battle seems endless and you think you'll never make it, remember that you're reprogramming a "worldly" mind to think as God thinks. In the same way that computers are programmed, our minds are also programmed.
From the time we're born, our minds are like computers that have had a lifetime of garbage programmed into them. But God—the best "computer programmer" around—is working on us every day to reprogram our minds as we cooperate with Him (see Romans 12:2).

When Progress is Slow

This process of reprogramming or renewing our minds will take place little by little, so don't be discouraged if progress seems slow. Don't get down when you have setbacks or bad days. Just get back up, dust yourself off and start again.
When a baby is learning to walk, he falls many, many times before he develops the ability to walk without falling; however, the baby is persistent. He may cry for a while after he falls down, but he always gets right back up and tries again.
Learning to change our thinking works the same way. There will be days when we don't do everything right—days when our thinking is negative. But never stop trying. God is gradually bringing us around to His way of thinking. Just don't give up!

Failure is not final!

Failure is not final!

Sometimes the biggest failures turn out to be the greatest blessings.

 Coping with failure

It seems to be the word a lot of high school students dread, especially when exam time comes around. Questions buzz through students' minds at night, questions like 'what will I do if I don't get a mark of at least 99%?' and mental images of becoming a homeless person flash in their minds as the ultimate outcome of being a failure.
The fear of failure can drive students to do an insane amount of extra work at school and at home, to try and get the highest grades possible.
The fear of failure drives normally active and lively students to suddenly spend more and more time at their desk, studying (and probably more time on Facebook, talking about how stressed they are). They give up sport on the weekend, they spend less time hanging out with friends, and sadly they stop coming to youth group, Bible Study and church, because they're doing all that study study study!
Ok, maybe I'm over-exaggerating.
Then again, maybe I'm not.
What's so bad about failure? Is there anything wrong with failing?

At first glance, Jesus' life seems like an EPIC FAILURE

I mean, what a life! He had such promise, what with all those miraculous healings and the amazing teaching skills. He claims to be God, so they crucify him. On the cross, people mocked him about being a failure. "If you're the Son of God, then save yourself!" How does Jesus respond? He dies. EPIC FAILURE.
Or was it? The Bible makes it clear that to God, we are epic failures. We've failed to live up to his standards. Yet on the cross, the Bible says that Jesus carries our failures, and his death is the punishment for our failure.
What looks like a fail at first is ultimately a huge success. And to top it off, Jesus rises from death 3 days later.
So what's the answer to Jesus' epic failure?

Putting things into perspective

In the grand scheme of things, Jesus' greatest so-called 'failure' turned out to be his greatest success. He has saved millions upon millions through his death.
When we look at our own fear of failure, we need the same sense of perspective. Not achieving the mark you set out for will not mean the end of your world. You'll still be alive, your family will still love you, you'll still be able to get a job, you'll still be able to live a long life. Most people these days change careers and end up doing something that has nothing to do with what they studied at uni anyway.
But the best thing about perspective is remembering that God will never stop loving you. If you keep trusting Jesus, nothing can undo his greatest success for you, and nothing can stand in the way of him letting you into heaven. Check out Romans 8:38-39.
So sure, aim high, study hard. But don't lose your sense of perspective. Don't drop out of church, youth group, Bible Study, or having friends because you're afraid to fail. Do all that you do, trusting that God is in control, and know that as his child, you have nothing to fear.

You are what you wear

They say 'the clothes make the man', so what do your clothes say about you?

If you have ever seen the 'What not to wear' show on TV, you'll know that clothes can say a lot about a person. The right or wrong clothes can affect a person's confidence & change how others view them as well.

In fact, you don't even have to watch the show to understand how this works. Simply take a look around next time you are in a shopping centre. What are people wearing? How do they look? What are they trying to 'say' by wearing what they do?

I believe we all wear clothes that say something about ourselves. Clothes are the outside version of our inside selves. Let me give you a few examples. The guy who wears the t-shirt with a joke on it, is trying to tell you he's a funny man. The girl who wears the shirt with 'Sneaky Sound System' on it is trying to tell you she's into music. Pretty simple...

But what about the people who wear lots of heavy black clothing & black make-up? What about those who wear not much clothing at all? What about the guys who spend hours getting just the right shirt to match their shoes, or the girl who just wears simple jeans and a t-shirt. I believe all of those people are trying to say something. Maybe some of them are trying to say 'I'm part of a goth subculture', which gives you an indication in to their belief system. Same could be true for the Christian who wears a 'St Harry's Youth Camp 05' T-Shirt.

We all know of people who wear provocative clothes who are either saying  “I'm not just an average person & I want your attention”, or “I'm insecure & I hope by wearing this you will think I'm cool”. Either way, we're all trying to say something with the clothes we wear.

What about you? Perhaps you don't even think about the clothes you put on. Maybe you're more of a 'whatever is in the cupboard' kind of person. Maybe so, but I'd guess you gave at least some thought to the clothes when you first bought them. Take the example of the average guy or girl wearing a 'Billabong' shirt.  This person is choosing to identify themselves with the surf culture. maybe just letting everyone know - “I'm a laid-back guy”.

Whatever it is, next time you wear something, give some thought to what you are trying to say & what do the clothes in your cupboard say about you? And no matter what you wear, remember - “Man judges by the outside, but the Lord knows the heart.” No matter what you try to say on the outside, it's really what is inside that is important and in the end truly defines you.

Why do bad things happen to good people?

What the Bible says about suffering 

 

You said what??

People have a lot of ideas about why bad things happen. Here's a couple of odd and unhelpful things I've seen:

• I teach scripture in my local High school. I remember a girl whose mum had a mental illness. Her former scripture teacher had told her that it was because her family was under a curse.

• I have a friend who was surprised at a group of ministers who were talking about depression, when they said “If you are depressed, it’s because you have sinned. You need to repent and you will be fine again!”

Why do bad things happen to good people?

Where is the justice in a good person ever having to face trouble, and bad people having it easy? This is exactly what the writer of Psalm 73 was struggling with.

Asaph; the guy who wrote this psalm knew that God had promised to be good to his people who were faithful to him. However, as he looked around, he saw the people who hated God and loved doing the wrong thing having a great time.

• In vs. 3-5 he says he is jealous of them because they have it so good, face no troubles and don’t worry about the stuff most people need too.

• In vs. 2 he tells us that he was in such a bad way as he saw the wicked living so happily that he almost gave up trusting God himself! Ouch!

I wonder if you have ever felt like that? Maybe when you as a Christian are having a real hard time in life, while your mates (or enemies) at school who hate God, seem to be living it up? They have the friends, they have the stuff, they have the look, they have the life, but you don’t.

In vs. 13 Asaph basically says “Surely it’s been a complete waste of time trying to live God’s way, it’s gotten me nowhere!”

Some reasons for suffering in the Bible:

At my youth group we looked at a bunch of stories and saw that bad things happen to good people for all kinds of reasons:

• Joseph (Genesis 37-50) was sold into slavery by his brothers, and imprisoned in an Egyptian Jail for many years. But with God’s help, he was able to interpret the King's dream, and was eventually made second in command of all Egypt. As Joseph said later to his brothers, "you intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”

• Jeremiah told the Israelites to turn away from their sins and that God would destroy them if they wouldn’t. He was ignored, abused, and suffered for faithfully telling God’s word to people who didn’t want to hear the truth.

• Jesus was the only perfect man who ever lived and did bad stuff happen to him? You bet - he was hated by the people he had created, and we killed him. He warned his disciples that because the sinful world hated him, they shouldn’t be surprised to be hated as well (John 15:18-20), and Paul later wrote to his mate Timothy that anyone who wants to live a godly life in Jesus WOULD be persecuted (2 Tim 3:12).

The real question is, 'how will you respond to suffering?'.

It may not always be clear why people who love God have it rough and those who hate him are having a great time, but the bible does tell us to expect this. The question is, what do we do when bad stuff happens to us? The answer is trust God and hang in there.

Asaph (the guy who wrote Psalm 73) remembered some important things when he went to the temple, he remembered that the final destiny of the wicked is their destruction (vs.17 and 27) And he also remembered that his desires in life are fully met in God (vs.23-26).

Sometimes it's hard to trust God when bad stuff happens to us, or when we see it happen to other people we love, but God calls us to trust and enjoy him now, and look forward to the day that is coming when he will make everything that is wrong become right, when he will fully deal with the problem of evil and comfort Christians who have suffered. Bring on that day!
 

How to stay out of bed until you get married

If you’re committed to waiting until you get married to have sex, you probably need to think about how you’re going to do this. The way our society is set up these days, the default is to get into bed rather than stay out of it, so to be different from the world, you need to make some decisions.

There’s not much point in starting with the question: “How far can I go?” because that just creates arbitrary rules and leaves you teetering on the edge of acceptable versus dangerous.

Instead, you could start from the position of: “How can I best respect my girlfriend/boyfriend and not put him/her into a position which will make it hard for him/her to say no?”

So, here are some things you might like to consider as you plan ahead for purity.

For a start, don’t do anything which would make others assume that you are sleeping together.

Don’t stay over in the same house or room without a ‘chaperone’. Don’t take overnight trips together without other people. Set a curfew for yourselves and be accountable to other people for keeping it. Talk about your plans to wait until marriage together. Work out what might be a difficulty for you to stay pure.

Some of these guidelines might also help. Don’t touch skin between neck, elbow and knee. Stay vertical. Don’t get horizontal. Only kiss in daylight. Recognise any potentially difficult situations and stay away from them or change them. You might even consider not watching romantic films or TV together.

Finally, get married soon. Why wait for years if you know you want to be together?

However, be aware of your age and the advice of other people who love you and know you. Eighteen or 19 just may be too young to marry, or it may not. How mature do you think you are? How mature do others think you are?

3 Ways to Becoming a Great & Effective Leader

Absolutely true it is, successful leaders understand that the path to good leadership is a journey of discovery; a journey of making right choices and taking good steps consistently for a period of time, that will give you a resultant effect call success

It amazes me why some leaders leads their organizations to greater heights while some settle for mediocrity, short of excellence. You may be leading your home, your business, or an organization, the quest to stand out and be a great leader should be your heart desire, not settling for the status quo.

It is time to move beyond mediocrity and become the leader you were meant to be. Stand out and be counted as the saying goes. In this my article today, I will like to share with you, 3 ways I know will help you on this journey of becoming a great and effective  leader. Though I know there are many, but let’s see these three today

1. Courage- Great leaders are effective not because they know all the answers, but because they have the courage to act and take the first step. They do not wait for things to happen, they make things to happen.

Moses one of the great and effective leaders in the Bible took his rod and hit the red sea and the sea parted into two. He didn’t wait for the sea to part by itself, but obeyed God and took the first step that resulted into a miracle.

To see the goals and dreams of your organization come to pass, you must act with courage. Great and effective leaders understand the law of cause and effect, so they act with courage, taking the first step to create the conditions that will make their dreams and goals become reality.

2. Decision-Making-David Ramsey once shared the secret to his effective leadership and decision-making strategy: I make decision, and if it’s the wrong one, I make another one. Great leaders are effective, not because they don’t make mistakes, but will keep on trying and making right decisions until they succeed. Life is a series of choices; Joshua told the Israelites to choose this day, whom they will serve

3. Take Responsibility- To be a great and effective leader, you must be ready to take responsibility of your actions. Leadership is really an act of making intentional decisions and accepting responsibility for their outcome.
For sure, you can step up to the plate and be courageous, start making good decisions and be responsible for their outcome.

Question: Are there more ways to be an effective and great leader? You can leave a comment to help someone.

Committed To Your Success

Who are Eagle Christians?

Who are Eagle Christians?
Spiritual Warfare, especially High Level Spiritual Warfare or what we like to call Xtreme Big Game Hunting is a ministry that only a Spiritual Christian or Eagle Christian should get involved in. It is much more advanced than deliverance or what some call exorcism. When going after principalities and powers, rather than just devils, evil spirits or demons, you'll need to deepen your submission and relationship with Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

Also, in order to be caught up in the spirit into the heavenlies, in order to accomplish healing, in order to raise the dead, obtain God's strategies, you'll have to leave being ordinary behind!

What is the difference between Spiritual Christians who are Eagles and those who are chickens, crows, peacocks, cuckoos, vultures, pelicans, sparrows, or canaries?

How do you become an Eagle Christian?

“But those who wait for the Lord (who expect, look for, and hope in Him) shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up close to God as Eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.” Isaiah 40:31

Eagles are the “king of birds” and throughout the Bible, God likens Himself and His children to an Eagle.

Eagles are mentioned 34 times in the Bible and are considered an international symbol of strength, stamina, power, majesty, authority, and freedom. You can’t fly as an Eagle unless you stay strong.

If eagles are placed in captivity their entire personality changes… they don’t clean themselves anymore, they lose their aggression, they become lazy, passive, depressed, and they begin to eat dead, rotten meat, when normally they only eat fresh meat.

Like the eagle, Eagle Christians don’t operate well in captivity… such as when they are boxed in, controlled or manipulated or stuck in a religious cage. Most Christians are in captivity… captive to what other people think and what others are doing… they are people pleasers, not God pleasers. Some Christians are captive to what other people expect out of them… they live under the domination of man and the world. Many even prefer captivity and subjection to man-made religion.

Paul said, “In this freedom Christ made us free and completely liberated us; stand fast then, and do not be hampered and held ensnared and submit to a yoke of slavery, which you once put off.” Galatians 5:1

We are to be free from legalism, from religion, from man-made doctrines. These are all dead.

If you are captive and want to be free to work with God… The Holy Spirit and Way of the Eagle are waiting to open your cage today.

Learn how in our eBook!

The church is full of chickens, crows, peacocks, canaries, sparrows, vultures, buzzards, cuckoos, and pelicans. Eagles don’t hang out with such birds.

Let’s examine a few of these “Christian” birds.

The most often found “Christians” are chickens.

They are fat and lazy, scratch around with their heads down, seldom flying, living in fear, feeling safe in groups and running in panic to shelter whenever their world is threatened. Never leading. Low self esteem. Limited desire to achieve. A worldly bird.

Vulture and buzzard “Christians” eat anything that is dead… others choose their diet. They feed on the dead doctrines and dead religions of man and of devils. They feed on gossip, slander and negativity. When they hear that someone has a problem or fallen into sin, they circle around from person to person spreading gossip, telling the tale, and waiting for the fallen to die. Gossip is dead… negative talk is dead. The Bible says that we are to restore the fallen. Vulture Christians are dangerous in the Body of Christ.

One of the most cunning and dangerous birds in the kingdom of God is the “Christian” crow, which pesters the Eagle Christian. The way that the eagle bird handles the pesky crow, is to just simply mount up…flying higher and higher and higher until they reach an altitude where the pest cannot breathe, and so the crow falls away from lack of oxygen. The “Christian” crow thinks only of themselves and enjoys ripping up and destroying people, pastors, and churches. Get such people away from you.

There are also “Christians” who are sparrows (flitting from one group to another, never satisfied, accomplishing nothing worthwhile) or canaries (Christians with potential, but content to willingly remain caged), or pelicans (looks to fill their desires instead of others), or strutting peacocks (this bird is usually a leader who is very popular with the other birds (except eagles) as they are good talkers, showy, worldly, in love with themselves, desires mammon, are prideful), or parrots (super-religious, does little else but mimic what they have heard from others), or cuckoos (sponges off of others looking for freebies).

You cannot stay strong to fly as an Eagle Christian if you are going to spend your time with vultures, chickens, crows, and peacocks, etc.


Do you find yourself in any of these categories?

Most birds fly in flocks, but eagles usually fly alone or in pairs, but only with other eagles. Eagle Christians are also very careful about who they fellowship with, as not all relationships are healthy ones.

“For the mind of the flesh which is reason without the Holy Spirit is death. But the mind of the Spirit is life and soul peace, both now and forever. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.” Romans 8: 6, 8.

We have the ability to make ourselves happy, or we can make ourselves miserable by what we think and what we say and by what we do. Be careful with how you move through life as the eagle is with theirs.

The eagle only reaches its full potential by how it handles the adversity that comes its way.

The eagle loves adversity and they have absolutely no fear at all.

In order to display the character of Jesus Christ we need to discipline ourselves during adversity. We need to discipline our mouth, mind, emotions, and attitudes. The eagle is a highly disciplined creature. The eagle can sense a storm even before it sees one, but it never runs for cover, nor tries to get away from it.

When the Eagle sees the storm they don’t think survive, they think overcome.

Eagles are destined to be overcomers.

Adversity in life makes us stronger!

Two things that an eagle has to learn to deal with are the storm and the serpent. The eagle handles both in two different ways. They embrace the storm in life, but they fight the serpent.

For example Joseph when he was sold into slavery, was brought into Potiphar’s house and later put into prison for something he never did. He embraced the circumstance where he was: he resisted bitterness, resentment, jealousy, unforgiveness, hatred of his brothers, and rebellion. He rose above the storm.

It’s not what goes on around us that hurt us, but what goes in us and what comes out of us that hurts us. You will not grow up unless you are in a hard place. You will never get a miracle unless you have a need. It’s all part of learning to fly.

“Though the fig tree does not blossom and there is no fruit on the vines, though the product of the olive fails and the field yield no food, though the flock is cut off from the fold and there are no cattle in the stalls, Yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will exalt in the victorious God of my salvation. The lord is my Strength and my personal bravery, and my invincible army; He makes my feet like hinds’ feet and will make me to walk not to stand still in terror, but to walk and make spiritual progress upon my high places of trouble, suffering and responsibility!” Habakkuk 3:17-19

Go where Eagles go… Christian Eagles live on The Rock.

Eagles sit on the Rock and wait for the thermal current of the wind (the Holy Spirit)…they wait…they wait… they wait… and then they soar up high in the sky when the wind comes for them.

So many people never reach their full potential or destiny with God, because they don’t get a real revelation of what they can be in Christ Jesus.

“As a man thinks in his heart so is he”. Proverbs 23: 7

It is obvious to see why God likens Himself and His spiritual children to the mighty eagle and why we chose Way of the Eagle as a means to highlight this connection!

Much more focused teaching is available in the free Ebook, “Xtreme Big Game Hunting” to assist you in developing yourself into an Eagle Christian, as countless others around the world have already done!

Are you ready to leave the ordinary behind?

spiritual warfare training, cast out demons, territorial spirits, spiritual warfare, deliverance school, exorcism training, spiritual mapping, warfare ministry, strategic level spiritual warfare, intercession, exorcist, principalities,  Ephesians 6:12

THE PALM, GOD AND A NATION (NIGERIA)

THE PALM, GOD AND A NATION (NIGERIA)

This is a story of the Palm tree, God and a nation. When God created the Palm tree He saw it was very good. And He was very pleased with it. However the Palm tree thought otherwise and decided to let God know about how he felt. The Palm tree didn’t like the way God created him so he went complaining to God and vented out his feelings. This is the conversation they had; The Palm tree started by saying: “Dear God, why do I have as many as 3,000 species? It’s ridiculous! It’s absurd! Why can’t I just be one of a kind, just one type of me? And how come you made me so tall and ugly? Other trees laugh at the way I stand shoulders above them with my bare and not so pretty trunk.  My evergreen leaves are not like the leaves of other trees that have different shades in different seasons. Why? God why did you make me so different from them? Why do they despise me so? They are always looking for ways of making me look bad and they constantly say negative things about me. I hate the way I look! I also don’t like the way I bend and sway with every wind that blows my way. Why for heaven’s sake did you make me so unattractive?” God didn’t reply immediately. He said nothing for about five minutes but it seemed like forever to the Palm tree. When God finally spoke He said “My dear Palm tree you are asking me the wrong questions.” “So what kind of questions should I be asking?” said the Palm tree in an angry and frustrated tone. “What is my assignment to be? What is the purpose for which you created me? How am I to fulfill my destiny on earth? These are the questions you should be asking Me.” said God. “OK, God please would you be so kind as to answer those questions? I’d really love to hear what you have to say.” said the Palm tree with an attitude. And this is what God said “There is a nation that I have created that I will one day direct to use you as an analogy for its existence.  In fact you already sound like them with your complaints. I love variety that’s why you have many species – over 3,000 in number. Like you, the nation in question also has many ethnic groups over 300 in number. They are one of the most interesting, fun loving and exciting people you’ll ever meet. There is never a dull moment in this nation! And I mean NEVER!  I want the citizens of this nation to understand that I made them a nation of nations. And it is in their diversity that they will discover their strengths.” Your evergreen leaves speak of your vitality.” Like you, the citizens of this nation are energetic, warm and friendly. They are full of life and vigour. It is an engaging society! I made them to be one of the most optimistic and happiest people in the world. I equipped them with a great sense of humour to help them deal with the numerous challenges that come their way. And funny enough they think it’s a problem.” Do you know why you bend and sway as the winds blow your way? I made you strong, hardy, and elastic, that’s why when the winds blow you bend and sway without breaking unlike some other trees. The winds have made you strong and hardy. No matter the winds that may blow your way you won’t break under its pressure. Even the hurricane winds have been humbled by your resilience! Don’t you think that is something you should be proud of? Perhaps you didn’t know, you were designed in such a way that you will flourish in all kinds of adverse conditions.” Like you, the people of this nation are tough, resilient, resourceful, and creative. They are tough minded, they have the never-say-die attitude. And nothing can ever break their indomitable spirit. They have successfully humbled problems, challenges, crisis, chaos and confusion by their resilience! In challenging and adverse conditions they don’t crack under pressure. This nation always finds a way to bounce back from the oblique. It is a comeback nation!” I didn’t make you unattractive and ugly, that’s just your perception, a figment of your imagination! I made you tall, stately and elegant, with an exotic and striking appearance.  I created you to be the image of vacations and the stereotypical tropical island paradise. You may not have realized it but I made you one of a kind that why you are the Prince of the Plant Kingdom.  I made you beautiful!” Like you, this nation has exotic tourist attractions begging to be discovered. And once developed they will end up becoming some of the world’s greatest tourist attractions. Like you, this nation will stand tall like a giant shoulder above every other nation of the world.” I made you special really special. You are useful and fruitful. You are the most useful plant in the universe. You are of great economic importance to many people. Your fruit is eaten daily by millions around the world especially the Arabs. Every part of you is useful. Over 300 products can be made from you. Isn’t that awesome!  That is why you are the envy of other trees. I created you to be a WONDER tree.” Like you, I have blessed this nation with abundant mineral and human resources. Every state in this nation has at least one mineral resource. Its human capital is highly resourceful. It is absolutely INCREDIBLE! I have blessed them with an abundance of CREATIVE INTELLIGENCE that will help them build the WONDER of WONDERS! They will use their creative intelligence to give the world powerful breakthrough ideas and products that will innovatively solve problems for many people in different countries in the global village. This nation will be one of the world’s wealthiest.  Just watch and see as this nation becomes the envy of nations. It will be a WONDER nation!” You are a source of daily food to millions around the world.” Like you, this nation’s, fertile land will feed millions in many nations.” You are a religious tree. Do you realize that you are mentioned over 20 times each in the Koran and the Bible? I know the nation in question will love that about you. The men and women of this nation will be able to identify with you in this area,” Like you, this nation’s citizens are extremely religious. There is a church or a mosque in almost every street corner. At one time they are named the most religious people in the world?” I made you an oil producing tree.” Like you, this nation is an oil producing nation. Its oil represents a flow of abundance of blessings I will bring their way which every citizen of this nation will soon enjoy. They will enter their PROMISEDLAND of GREATNESS!” I designed you to be a symbol of VICTORY and HONOUR, PEACE and PLENTY, TRIUMPH and SUCCESS.” Like you, this nation is also a symbol of HOPE to many developing nations. This nation will become a WONDER to behold. And it will come into its own in the comity of nations.” When I think of you I think of this nation. And when I think of this nation I think of you. Isn’t that revealing?” Your purpose on planet earth is to be a symbol of HOPE to the citizens of this nation. They are almost giving up hope.” Like you, they complain about their nation nonstop .I want them to see what I see in them. I want them to focus on their strengths and not on their weakness.  I want them to use what I have given them to build THE 8TH WONDER in their nation!” After a long period of silence and thoughtful reflection, the Palm tree found ‘his’ voice and ‘he’ asked God, “What is the name of this nation?” “I am referring to that great nation Nigeria! And the interesting thing is that they don’t even seem know what I have in stall for them. My desire is for them to unleash their GREATNESS and enter their PROMISEDLAND. I want Nigerians to use you as a reference point for focusing on their STRENGTHS, ASSETS, and the GOOD THINGS about themselves. They must build on their strengths that’s how great nations are built. Please tell them all these things that I have told you.” In a sober voice the Palm tree said to God “I so sorry for complaining and my bad attitude. Please forgive me. And thank you for unveiling to me my life purpose. I want you to know that I have a better appreciation for my creation and I appreciate it. You want Nigeria to flourish just like me – the Palm tree. I just thought of three slogans that I think will work for a campaign for a GREAT NEW NIGERIA. The slogans are ‘Nigeria is flourishing like a Palm tree.’ ‘Nigerians are flourishing like a Palm tree.’ ‘Think NIGERIA, think PALM TREE!’” God said “The slogans sound great. So, now that you know your purpose get on with the job and let Nigerians know so that they can see themselves and their situation differently! I’ve got work for them to do. I have given them the assignment of building THE 8TH WONDER of the world, first in Nigeria, then in other African nations and Third world countries. And they can only do it with this new perception of themselves. Please tell them to GO, BUILD and WOW the world!” And the Palm tree replied “Thanks God, I’m already running with the vision. I’ll be back daily to get ideas from you on how to help build NIGERIA into THE 8TH WONDER of the world! Thanks again! See you later. YOU’RE THE GREATEST!” P.S. Please read this story again. Everywhere you see “this nation” replace it with NIGERIA. Does it read better? Does it make sense? Does it motivate you? Does it inspire you? Does it make you feel proud? Does it give you hope? Does it make you believe in a GREAT NEW NIGERIA? Do you feel like running with it? I sure hope so! NOW GET TO WORK BUILDING the NEW NIGERIA of our DREAMS!