Most of us have read or know of, the story of Job. But that story has an interesting fine  print which some may not have picked up on.  That interesting aspect of the story of Job is the fact that satan could not attack Job because of a "hedge" God had put around him for his protection and blessing as is evidenced when satan says to God-  "Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has...."(Job 1:10) This concept of Gods hedge of protection is very real. The Contemporary English Version (CEV) translates Job 1:10 this way: "You are like a wall protecting not only him, but his entire family and all his property" This hedge is multi-dimensional. It protects us from external dangers and protects us from ourselves. The fact is We are our own worst enemy. God has to protect us from us. To do this, he may create a hedge that makes it difficult to engage in the behavior that he knows is not good for us. He may put obstacles or thorns i...

"And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul". — 1 Samuel 27:1 How many times have we all not thought or said that? The thought of David’s heart at this time was a false thought, because he certainly had no ground for thinking that God’s anointing him by Samuel was intended to be left as an empty unmeaning act. On no one occasion had the Lord deserted his servant; he had been placed in perilous positions very often, but not one instance had occurred in which divine interposition had not delivered him. David could not put his finger upon any entry in his diary, and say of it, “Here is evidence that the Lord will forsake me,” for the entire tenor of his past life proved the very reverse. Is it not just in the same way that we doubt God’s help? Is it not mistrust without a cause? Have we ever had the shadow of a reason to doubt our Father’s goodness? Have not his loving kindnesses been marvelous? Has he once failed to justify our trust? No! our Go...

Utopia describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island society in the New World. While we consider Utopia as fiction, i believe it is not, because it is actually described in Revelations - Revelation 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Through this belief one can gain strength to handle the ups and downs of life on Earth, in the knowledge that it is temporary  and that one day we shall be citizens of a utopian land called Heaven. But how can we be sure we will get that citizenship? Because through our relationship with the triune and complete trust in our Lord Jesus Christ, we have received an assurance that we will or already have that blessed citizen...

On Whom Do you trust?  A powerful devotional Adapted from KJV Listen to the Christian’s answer and see if it is yours. “On whom dost thou trust?” “I trust,” says the Christian, “in a triune God. I trust the Father, believing that he has chosen me from before the foundations of the world; I trust him to provide for me in providence, to teach me, to guide me, to correct me if need be, and to bring me home to his own house where the many mansions are.  I trust the Son. Very God of very God is he—the man Christ Jesus. I trust in him to take away all my sins by his own sacrifice, and to adorn me with his perfect righteousness. I trust him to be my Intercessor, to present my prayers and desires before his Father’s throne, and I trust him to be my Advocate at the last great day, to plead my cause, and to justify me. I trust him for what he is, for what he has done, and for what he has promised yet to do.  And I trust the Holy Spirit—he has begun to save me from my inbred sins; I...

One day we will all be a picture on someone's wall. Or maybe in a wallet, or in a frame on the table in someone's drawing room. When people see the picture what will they remember? Success? Failure? Honesty? Gratitude? I think none of the above. But they will see another picture in their minds - a picture based on characteristics exhibited by us, hopefully of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. How will we rate against these characteristics? What will our picture communicate to those who see it? Will it inspire the viewer to inculcate those traits, or will it inspire nothing? Whatever it inspires is the legacy we will have left behind. It is this nature that will define whether our profession of Christianity has been successful . Those who are in Christ are distinguished from unbelievers in that they have been gifted with the Holy Spirit, enabling them to bear fruit, that is the fruits of the Spirit. Our belief t...

 

  You can't get away from God! Moses, Jonah, Lot, Abraham, Elijah, and so many more had a calling from God to do His work - as many of us still do. Some of these gentlemen meekly did what they were told, and some tried to run away, just as we do. The story of each one of these folks indicates just one thing: If God has called you, don't try and run. You can't! So here is Nellie, a member of the Hilton Street Church who tells it like it is. 

 All we have is time.  I, you and we belong to a world where more is less. We want more of everything, from food to clothes to cars, to education and other luxuries and we want more time to do what we want to do. When we get what we wanted, we dream and want the next level. We want it for ourselves as well as for our children, which is natural. And our children want the same for  their  children. And the story goes on till it can no longer, because we die. And we spend the last few years of our lives deciding who to give what, of what is left of what we have collected. So we spend 20 years dreaming, 40 years acquiring and then the last phase where we are giving or rather planning to give or praying hard to get more time for all of this.  Covid broke that vicious circle for me.   I and my family were stuck in a foreign country for more than 2 years. We had planned travel for 1 month but spent 2 years and more. Everything we had was in our home which was lock...

For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way: because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek him; but his power and his wrath is against all them that forsake him. — Ezra 8:22 The story of Ezra is very often our story as well. His situation was very similar, yet while he demonstrated faith to the point of facing death, we fail miserably, seeking the help of fellow men, while professing faith in God. We profess all blessings of God and His power to help us overcome any mountains we face. We say God provides. Yet in the time of adversity, we run to our fellow men for their help. Will that cry for their help not dishonor the very God we professed to them? Will they not laugh and think, where is the God we so highly talked about? Craving aid from man dishonors the very God we proclaim to have saved us. Yes, God may work through man. He may send an angel in time...