I was in a couples’ meeting not too long ago where the following question was asked; ‘what will you do if your spouse forgets your birthday?’ ……   My response was; ‘It’s complicated!!?

Let me quickly say that, that is not the kind of ‘forgetting’ this write-up is about? . Staying committed to celebrating one another, especially our loved ones, is one of the ways we express our love for them.

I hear people sometimes say….”I forgive you, but I cannot forget”. Well, I personally used to think that it is difficult to easily get rid of bad memories (not that I am harbouring any hurt) but to just forget?….hmm..?

First Corinthians 13:5 has been popping up on my mind of late and this verse of scripture says (referring to LOVE)….

“…. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.“
1 Corinthians 13:5 NLT

“It is not rude; it is not self-seeking, it is not provoked [nor overly sensitive and easily angered]; it does not take into account a wrong endured.“
1 Corinthians 13:5 AMP

If love keeps no record of evil or wrong done, it means love forgets such things.

Here is the thing, if people close to us never hurt us, chances are that they’re not being their best selves while around us. Meaning also that we don’t know such people so well, and so, we are not enjoying the best possible relationship with them?. Trust me, you don’t want total clones all around you….(kind of boring) 

There is no doubt that our encounters with people is what helps us understand them better. Becoming offended or hurt is still part of the process (we’re getting to know people). My thought is that First Corinthians 13:5 is not necessarily saying we should not remember past experiences from relationships, if that were the case we would be making same mistakes over and over again and hurting people over and over again of same issues (selah). We will never learn how best to relate with different people and enjoy the best of relationships with them.

I believe that this portion of scripture is saying….. we are not to make a habit of recounting  or rehashing negative experiences either to ourselves or to those who hurt us. We should not dwell on them because such practice could stir up impure thoughts, strife and hatred in us.

Love forgets. Love keeps no record of wrongs. Love is not overly-sensitive. Love is not easily hurt.

Brethren, we are of God (Galatians 3:26). God is love (I John 4:8), we should also declare same of ourselves.

Romans 5:5 says God’s love has been lavishly poured in our hearts… .it’s there, within us, let’s draw from it. …

“….. God’s love has been abundantly poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
Romans 5:5 AMP

God forgives and forgets….and so should we.

“bearing graciously with one another, and willingly forgiving each other if one has a cause for complaint against another; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so should you forgive.”
Colossians 3:13 AMP

Help us Lord!

Do you feel resentment at someone else’s achievement, possession, or qualities? Do you sometimes think you’re best suited for certain things except that perhaps the other person is more fortunate? Would you sometimes feel better if you were recognized as contributing to these achievements, possessions or qualities? (happens!). Worst still, do you quickly arrange and project your own achievements, possessions and qualities instead of recognizing and rejoicing with the other person?  Well these sound more like envy than in love?

I heard about a young man who was said to have committed such hideous crimes that has made him almost like a fugitive in his own land. Everyone that narrated the story blamed him as being solely responsible for his current plight which they attributed to his insatiable desire for wealth and meaning in life. Every time I heard about this story, all I could think about was how he was coping wherever he found to hide.

Heaven blessed me on this beautiful day, when my phone buzzed and it was him. My excitement knew no bounds. All I kept saying to him was how much I’d missed seeing him, missed talking with him, etc. I wanted to know about his health and general wellbeing. I asked about his mental health and health numbers. I was so happy to connect with him that there was no time to play blame games. Even though I’d heard about his story many times, I didn’t still have the full details of his crimes, I needn’t know, I wasn’t interested in him rehashing it either. There must be a way out. God must have a way out for him. So I assured him of how much God loved him and that I was confident that God would extricate him from his present woes if he let Him.

Throughout the entire length of my talk with this person, all he did was weep, and weep and weep. These were tears of relief and gratitude that at least one person didn’t scold or condemn him like everyone else had.

Jesus said when a woman loses one of ten pieces of silver coins, she doesn’t go ranting or become uncontrollably distraught. No, she calms down, puts herself together, lights a candle, picks up a broom, looks, searches, looks again, searches in every possible nook and cranny, until she finds it. And when she finds it, she rejoices greatly, calling on her friends and neighbours to come celebrate with her (Luke 15:8-9).

The Kingdom of Heaven is not about blame or condemnation, but about love, faith, and hope. It is about righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.

Do you feel lost, unwanted, ignored, condemned or hopeless? Jesus is waiting with arms open wide to receive you, and love you and make you NEW.

Would You Like To Make Jesus The Lord Of Your Life? If Yes, Please Say This Prayer….

Dear God, today, I believe in my heart that Jesus is your Son. I believe that He died and rose up from the dead for my just to save me. Lord Jesus, please come into my life right now, I confess you as my Lord and Saviour. Thank You Father for saving me, in Jesus Name. Amen.

Congratulations & Welcome to the Family of God!

I’d Personally Love To Follow You Up On Your New Faith…

You can also send an email to info@graceobomanufoundation.org

Love Always ?

Stand by the blood of Jesus

Jesus delivered on His mandate. That’s why we can enjoy all the rights and privileges of being God’s sons. And like the great leader that He is, Jesus committed the same mandate He came down to earth to accomplish to His followers (Mathew 28:18-20, Luke 10:17-21). We have authority in the name of Jesus to get the job done (Mark 16:16-17).

Starting a new venture can be exciting and doubtless risky. Exciting because it is something new and seemingly promising. Risky because of the fear of failure, resource constraints amongst other uncertainties. Sometimes people handle the uncertainties of new ventures by proactively focusing on project purpose and objectives, ensuring tact and discipline in mobilising and utilizing resources, sticking to proven successful models and practice.

A striking and not to be missed commonality between these different definitions is the ability of a seed to reproduce independently. That is to say that a seed has an intrinsic ability to transform into a full plant of its own kind (given the right soil).The word of God as seed has the ability to reproduce and intrinsically grow (on its own) when founded on a good receiving soil.

We sometimes read the account of creation and conclude that God created the universe from nothing. While this may seem right in a way considering that there was originally void, formlessness and darkness on the face of the earth, however, it wasn’t these things that gave rise to the universe. In and of themselves, void and formlessness will maintain their current state or deteriorate but very unlikely to transform to something useful on their own. And as for darkness, it is just a natural habitat for all sorts of imaginable and unimaginable evil to thrive, for dreams to never be realized, for possibilities to continue to be hidden or concealed. Darkness never outshines light, God is light, so every time God steps into darkness, light happens and darkness ceases to be

God doesn’t give SMALL visions.
So sometimes it can be almost overwhelming thinking about how to accomplish God-given visions. This is where we can start feeling challenged and overwhelmed; when we start thinking of ourselves in light of God’s Big visions. It is not about us, but ALL about God. We are simply tools in the Master’s hands and so we must trust Him fully all the way and let Him use us as He wills.

Be UNDAUNTED

Think about the Great God in you acomplishing His Great plans and purpose through you. He cannot fail and if you let Him work fully through you, you cannot fail.

Be UNDAUNTED

Write down the vision, missing nothing. God’s visions may start small but they always unfold. Be sensitive and careful to know when God expands these visions in your heart.

Be UNDAUNTED

Run with the vision; one thing after the other as led by the Spirit of God. Don’t try to do it all at once, you can’t. Follow God every step of the way.

Be UNDAUNTED

Start from where are, take little steps of faith every time. Speak into existence the visions as you see them. You have to create the visions, bring them into tangibility by the Spirit, Wisdom & Power of God. Start from where you are, open your mouth wide and speak! Trust that your words will get to the right people by the Spirit of God.

Be UNDAUNTED

God is not a man.
He does not lie
He does not change.
He does not change His mind about His calling.
Trust God, walk with Him and it shall come to pass.

Shalom!

……………..

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Peter went fishing with an empty boat and empty nets, he returned with an empty boat and empty nets. 
Then he went fishing again with an empty boat with empty nets, and this time he returned with 2 boats and nets full of fishes. 

You can position yourself to have the same experience Peter had, Find out what happened in the time interval Peter’s first and second fishing trip that made the difference and made this miracle possible.