GOD’S PROVISION, AT THE RIGHT PLACE

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

1 Kings 17:2-6 (NIV)

Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: 3 “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. 4 You will drink from the brook, and I have ordered the ravens to feed you there.” 5 So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. 6 The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.

Elijah encountered many tribulations but amidst persecution, he was given a Rhema word; he was directed by the word which proceeded from the mouth of God to go to a place where God would provide for him. Some Christians are stuck is situations and the reason they do not see no breakthrough is because of the absence of the Holy Spirit in their lives who is the master of direction. The Holy Spirit was with Elijah and thus directed him to a specific place for a specific reason as we can see in the scripture above. We all need direction in our everyday life, and if you want to find purpose for your life, you need divine direction because if you lack it, life will take you wherever it likes; you will be like a sailing sheep without a captain. 

The problem we have in this generation is that we do not have a relationship with the Holy Spirit; we just go to church and ask God to confirm our plans not knowing that He already has a plan for you – a plan to prosper you and give you a good future. In order for God’s angels to serve you, you need to be stationed in the right place. God has a specific place where the ravens will come to feed you and where you will encounter a blessing. Make no mistake to go ahead of God; you’ve got to follow Him not vice versa. You will not find victory and rest for your life if you are not in the place God expects you to be; thus if you want to see God’s provision, saving hand and blessing, you must be in the place that Holy Spirit directs you to be, not where you want to be!

After resurrection, the disciples received these instructions in Matthew 28:7 (TLB); “And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and that he is going to Galilee to meet them there…….” 
As a believer, you should never do anything without hearing from above from; the Lord of Lords and God of creation. We miss out on God’s blessing and direction when we do things without consulting Him first; we go out and do things on our own, encounter problems and challenges then we remember to consult him. It is important to know that God will only finish what he started - If He was never your Alpha, He will never be your Omega! If you desire God to be your Finisher, he should be your Author. You can be rest assured that if we go out with God’s direction in the first place, He will go before us and make the crooked places straight. You suffer because you don’t seek guidance from the one who is all knowing; the one who proclaims the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10), and one who knew you before you were born (Jeremiah 1:5).

Isaiah 9:6 (NKJV) says; “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

This scripture tells us that there is someone who should counsel you before you make decisions. He knows your going in and out. But some believers do not desire that. People think every opening and idea is from God – some things are good but not right and godly! Before embarking on anything, pray to God; seek His will. Psalms 27:4 (EXB) says; “I ask only one thing from the Lord. This is what I want [seek after]: Let me live [dwell] in the Lord’s house [the sanctuary] all the days of my life. Let me see the Lord’s beauty and look with my own eyes [make inquiry; discover God’s will] at his Temple.”

God is a God of specific places! He will place you where the ravens will meet you and supply your needs; however, if you are not in the right chosen place, you will miss out on his blessings and provision. The assurance about God’s provision is that it’s not affected by earthly circumstances; despite the drought, Elijah was fed very well -  he ate of the best food that was prepared for the king. 

When you follow God's will and instructions, you will never struggle but you will always be blessed. God knows where you will go and be blessed – He is a specific God, and when he sends you, his hand goes before you; for it's His blessing that makes a difference, not people's opinions. In John 21:5-6 (GNT), Jesus was very specific on where to cast the nets; “Then he asked them, “Young men, haven't you caught anything?” “Not a thing,” they answered. 6 He said to them, “Throw your net out on the right side of the boat, and you will catch some.” So they threw the net out and could not pull it back in, because they had caught so many fish."

God has a plan for you. With God you will not skip a level and whatever level you are at, you will be the head not tail. Ask God to take you to that brook or stream where you will find divine provision; He will send the ravens to feed you and your miracle or blessing will find you there. If there is anything you need from God, present your case to him and he will guide you on where to go and what to do. He says in Isaiah 1:18 (NLT) “Come now, and let’s settle this, says the Lord…...”

Whenever you are in the right place, you will see God.

THE ANOINTING

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Acts 10:38 (AMP)

"God anointed and consecrated Jesus of Nazareth with the [Holy] Spirit and with strength and ability and power; how He went about doing good and, in particular, curing all who were harassed and oppressed by [the power of] the devil, for God was with Him."

Anointing is the power that comes upon you and propels you to accomplish things you would never have been able to accomplish in your own power. Jesus was anointed for a specific assignment as seen in the scripture above.

For you to receive the anointing, you need to have a healthy relationship with the Holy Spirit. Paul asked the believers in Ephesus in Acts 19:2(AMP) that; “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed [on Jesus as the Christ]? And they said, No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."

We receive the Holy Spirit the moment we accept Jesus Christ - the anointed one as our Lord and Saviour, and then we can be called Christ-like. John 4:25 (AMP) says; “…..I know that Messiah is coming, He Who is called the Christ (the Anointed One); and when He arrives, He will tell us everything we need to know and make it clear to us."

Below are some of the benefits of anointing

      1. The anointing directs and teaches

1 John 2:27(NKJV) “But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.

     2. The anointing breaks the yoke

Isaiah 10:27 (KJV) “And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing."

     3. The anointing causes increase and brings a blessing

Psalm 23:5(NLT) ".....You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings"

     
     4. The anointing brings revelation

1 John 2:20 (NKJV) “But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things”

GOD SHARES NOT HIS GLORY

Pr. Geoffrey Kibombo

Isaiah 42:8 (NIV)

"I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to anyone else, nor share my praise with carved idols.”

When we look at the Ten Commandments in Exodus, the first commandment God gave us is; not to make any images in his likeness – idols and not to bow before them. Exodus 20:3-5 (TLB) instructs; “You may worship no other god than me. 4 You shall not make yourselves any idols: no images of animals, birds, or fish. 5 You must never bow or worship it in any way: for I, the Lord your God, am very possessive. I will not share your affection with any other god!.............”

In the scriptures we see that God does not share his glory with any other thing! All he has done is for the sake of His name according to Isaiah 48:11 (NLT) “I will rescue you for my own sake - yes, for my own sake! I will not let my reputation be tarnished, and I will not share my glory......”

There are things we may not be aware of that can yield God’s anger; some blessings - jobs or children God has given us may turn into idols; our thinking or way of life can become an idol. If we exalt the things God has given us beyond his name, it causes his wrath to be unleashed unto us. We need to learn something from Paul; for he glorified God in everything he did and received. It had been revealed to him that it was not by his own strength or knowledge of the Jewish law to get all he had received in his life, but because of God. That is why he said in 1 Corinthians 15:10 (TLB) “But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out such kindness and grace upon me – and not without results: for I have worked harder than all the other apostles, yet actually I wasn’t doing it, but God working in me, to bless me.”

There are things God has blessed us with and because of them, he has taken away his saving hand – we have been blessed by God but instead of exalting him and glorifying his name, we take the praise by attributing the success to our efforts. The first thing you should know is that God does not share his glory with anyone or anything. Secondly, everything he does is for the glory of his name. There is nothing God has done in your life whether big or small which is not for the sake of his name - whatever God does is to glorify and exalt his name. God is serious concerning his glory; you do not mess with it! 

For whatever you have achieved in life, God wants you to glorify him; for any promotion, victory and success achieved, he wants you to acknowledge that it wasn’t by your own strength or experience or astuteness but by his grace and power – that is the reason why we testify; whoever testifies must have that mind! So whatever good thing has happened in your life is not because of your individual witty ways but because of God. If a testimony does not acknowledge God’s might or exalt his name, then it is not a testimony but a story. For all testimonies given, God must be glorified and his name lifted.

In everything that happens in your life, God’s name must be exalted. Everything God does in our lives, He does for his own glory. A couple of times our mindset or attitude is an equivalent of an idol; and other times our jobs have become idols. Some people think that all they do or have achieved is because of their own effort or academic qualifications while others attribute their success to their families and friends. However, what they do not perceive is that its God is at work behind the scenes. It takes God to move people to do things in your life be it your family members. Remember that even salvation is not by our own strength. Scriptures discourage us from boasting and attributing our salvation to our own strength because it is through God’s grace. Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV) reminds us; ^“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.” 
It’s God’s grace that enables us to become Born Again and walk the Salvation journey; it is only God's grace that enables you to enter the narrow gate and walk through the difficult path. For everything you have and can do, it takes God not your strength or intellect!

Taking pride in yourself for what you have achieved ignites God’s wrath! That type of thinking causes enmity between you and God. We are encouraged in the scriptures to have an attitude such as that which was with Christ Jesus. It takes God to be able to; pay bills, sleep, wake-up, blink, build a house and accumulate wealth, not your strength and wisdom and once you begin to understand this, you will know that everything is by him, for him and all about him!! 
A proud egotistic person has the “I” mentality. He or she attributes successes to him or herself; but remember God resists the proud but blesses the humble - The more humble a person gets, the higher God exalts him or her. God resists the prideful attitude; He is patient but will not tolerate a proud person. The book of 1 Peter 5:5-6 (TLB) says; 

“You younger men, follow the leadership of those who are older. And all of you serve each other with humble spirits, for God gives special blessings to those who are humble, but sets himself against those who are proud. 6 If you will humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, in his good time he will lift you up.”

God demands his honour and respect. He must be appreciated in every area of your life however small it may seem. It takes God for you to become what you are! He must therefore appear in your life. When you have done all you can, never forget to say ‘it’ was not me but God’ Malachi 1:6 (AMP) says; “A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is the [reverent] fear and respect due Me? says the Lord of hosts to you……”

When the Israelites were leaving Egypt, they were given gold. God had blessed and favoured them and as a result they were able to accumulate those valuables. But we see in Exodus 32 that they melted and molded it into a golden calf and begun to worship it. God was angry because they were worshiping the work of their hands. They turned all the wealth God had given them into an idol. Some things God has blessed us with have become idols - we value them more than God. Do not let that which God has put in your life become an idol.

Many times we pray but our prayers are not answered. Why? Because we ask amiss; we make selfish showy prayers – Prayers that are aimed at nothing but our selfish interests. When you have an issue and ask God to help you, let it be for his own sake - that they will know that he is Mighty. David told Goliath in 1 Samuel 17:45-47 (MSG)
“You come at me with sword and spear and battle-ax. I come at you in the name of God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel’s troops, whom you curse and mock. 46 This very day God is handing you over to me. I’m about to kill you, cut off your head, and serve up your body and the bodies of your Philistine buddies to the crows and coyotes. The whole earth will know that there’s an extraordinary God in Israel. 47 And everyone gathered here will learn that God doesn’t save by means of sword or spear. The battle belongs to God—he’s handing you to us on a platter!”

You may have a need and God is going to give it to you, but how will it be known that you have you serve living God? Will you return the glory and honour to God? Some of our prayers are bent and God does not benefit from them – they are aimed at exalting us, but when David was preparing to combat Goliath, he made sure that he disappears and God appears. For every milestone you achieve do not forget that it is not your efforts but God. If you are able to see how far God has brought you, you will also be able to see how far he can take you!

One of the reasons as to why God has blessed us is that; his glory may be seen and name lifted - there is no other reason. In everything you achieve and all that you acquire, God must be seen. Your prayers will be hastened, when you pray with the motive of exalting God's name. Do not despise what God has done for you however small it seems - there is no small testimony! We are what we are because of God and that is why he deserves all the glory and honour. It is neither by your strength nor wisdom but by the grace and mighty hand of God. Always return the glory to him, exalt and lift up his name.

Happiness is ours, the glory is the Lords!