THE SIGNIFICANCE OF EASTER

As we speedily approach the Easter, I will like to look briefly at the significance of Easter.

Let me start by mentioning to you that Easter was stolen from an old pagan holiday used to celebrate rebirth

In this modern time and age, pagan Easter practices are still practiced on Easter day; words like Easter egg, Easter bunny, Easter cards and the likes have watered the real meaning of Easter.

Easter in Christian setting is the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Significance of Easter

The Significance of Easter is very enormous but we should always remember that it’s a season to remember Christ and God’s Love

1.       It is the Foundation of Christian Faith: Just Imagine Jesus died and he did not rise again. Christianity may still exist but it will be taken casually. However, Jesus went to the grave and came out victorious making any Christian proud to say “MY GOD IS ALIVE”!

2.       Celebration of liberty and freedom of direct worship: MARK 15:38 & 39

3.       Remembrance of God’s Love: John 3:16 is a verse everybody remembers even though casually… God So Loved the World that he gave his Only Begotten Son… Whenever we hear of Easter, we should always remember that God Loves us abundantly and if he cannot spare his son just to prove his love for you, then what cant he really do for you. Rom 8:22. Always put this in your mind even in difficult times, his love is enough to give you everything you need

4.       Forgiveness of Sin: In the past, Sacrifices of Lamb and Goats are made on yearly basis to atone for our numerous sins. This is rather expensive and sometimes the poor are left to die with their sins because they cannot afford to buy anything with life (Blood) and blood had to be spilled because according Heb. 9:22 “Without the shedding of Blood, there cannot be forgiveness of sin”. Jesus knew that and knew well that the blood of animal can only last but for a year, He offered himself once and for all on the cross so that you will be forgiven (John 3:16… That WHOSOEVER believe in him will not perish but have everlasting and full filed life)

5.       It is a day remember that death No longer has power: 1 Corinthians 15:55, asks a question “Oh death where is thy power, oh grave where is thy sting. Death lost his grip over the human race the very moment Jesus tasted death that was why it was recorded in the bible that when Jesus Resurrected, Some death people who were saints where seen everywhere in the city

6.       It is a day to remember that as a Christian, we must be persecuted but after persecutions, Greater Glory awaits us. If the great Lord could be subjected to persecution, You definitely will be subjected to untold persecutions but look unto the cross and victory is sure.

7.       It is a day to remember that your problems are over: Jesus in the Book of John 19:30 declared our troubles, worries , struggles, humiliation and everything finished.

8.      It is a day to remember Christ completely:   

Phil 2:5-9

You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

6 Though he was God,* he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.

7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges*; he took the humble position of a slave* and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form,* 

8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross.

9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,to the glory of God the Father.NLT.

I leave you to ponder on the words of paul in the book of Hebrews 9, Then recall the sufferings of Christ on the cross, the shame, the pain and the guilt. Then search deep down yourself, is the death of Jesus on the cross, considered a waste in your life? Are you living like Christ?

Think about it

Evans Chibuzo

From Our Mail BOX -The Most Important thing

Going through our feedback email (winnersink1{at}gmail.com), we stumbled on a rather interesting article for publication

The Most Important Thing

If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it, but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing - 1 Corinthians 13: 3 (NLT)

Love means doing what God has commanded us and He has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning – 2 John 1: 6 (NLT)

Note: The Essence of Life Is Justified By Loving

One of God’s Characteristics:

LOVE IS GOD OR GOD IS LOVE. As God’s children we learn to love just the way He commanded us in order to resemble Him (Our Father). Though learning God’s kind of unselfish love may not be that easy, yet the whole of our lifetime is allocated for it.

Generally, we should love everyone, but essentially those of God’s same family – Gal 6:10, 1 Pet 2:17.

By observing the above command we prove to the world to be God’s followers – Jn 13:35. Every believer shall enjoy God’s family of love in Heaven but foremost of all is the tough task of preparing ourselves here on earth.

Loving formed the foundation of the family responsibilities. We learn to love so we can develop its skill, we cannot isolate from the imperfect, irritating and frustrating people of this world. In fellowship, we derived three important truths:

!) The Best Use Of Life Is Love.

In life love takes top priority, it occupies primary objective and has greatest ambition. Love is not the good part of your life but the most important one. Hence, relationships must have priority in your life above all:

(A)  Life without Love Is Of No Use – 1 Corinthians 13:1-3. When we talk about finding time for relationship either caring for our children or making time for people else we err. We suppose squeezed relationship into our schedule. Remember God’s commandments in Exodus chapter 20 relate entirely on relationship. First four of the law dealt with God while other six dealt with relationship with people. It is what life is all about. Jesus himself summarized in Matt 22:37-40. After learning to love God (worship), learning to love others becomes the second purpose of our life.

Being busy is being enemy to relationships. We become preoccupied with making a living, accomplishing goals as if that is all life is about. Then what becomes of us is cutting back on giving our time to relationships. What is most important to God is displaced by what is urgent. The point of life is learning to love – God and people because life without love equals zero.

(B)   Love Will Last Forever – 1 Corinthians 13:13. Love leaves a legacy. The way you treat other people (not wealth or accomplishment) is the enduring impact you’ll leave on earth. Mother Teresa once said, “It’s not what you do, but how much love you put into it that matters”. Love is secret of a lasting heritage, when life on earth is ending; people do not surround themselves with objects. What we want around us is people – people we love and have relationships with. In our final moments, we all realize that relationships are what life is really about.

(C)   We Will Be Evaluated On Our Love: in eternity, love shall be base on which we shall be evaluated. Spiritual maturity as measured by God is by quality relationships. That is reason Jesus explained to us in Matt. 25:34-46. Note also when one goes to Heaven earthly things are left behind, only works one did ( that’s the love practiced) and character that’ll follow us there. It is of opinion that we pray daily that God help us spend our time loving Him and loving other people. By this, we will not waste each day.

2) The Best Expression of Love is Time.

 When things are important, time will be invested in them. To value and make something importance reveals much/more time we give to it. Hence people’s priorities are justified by time usage.

Time is your most precious gift because you only have a set amount of it. One can make more money but not time, so the time we give to others is portion of our life that’ll never be gotten back. This makes it the greatest gift owed to someone. Relationships as important as there are would not be sufficient talking alone but to invest time in them. Relationships take time and effort, the best way to spell love is “T. I. M. E “

Essence of Love is not what we think or do or provide for others, but how much we give of ourselves. Men in some cases do not understand their wives / kids because they provided all needed things in the household exceptional of time / personality.

The most desired gift of love is not diamonds, roses etc. It’s focused attention. Likewise, Love concentrates so intently on others that you forget yourself at that moment. Attention says, “I value you enough to give you my most precious asset – my time”. Whenever you give your time, you are making a sacrifice; sacrifice is really, what Love is. See Jesus model in Eph 5:2.

You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving. When we love, we give up – yielding our preferences, comfort, goals, security, money, energy or time for the benefit of someone else.

3) The Best Time To Love Is Now.

Most times procrastination is a legitimate response to a trivial task. Because Love matters most it takes top priority. The Bible stresses this in Gal 6:10, Prov 3:27, Eph 5:16.

Question: Why is now best time to express Love? It is because we do not know how long we will have the opportunity. Circumstances change, people die, children grow up; etc. You have no guarantee of tomorrow; to express love is an action of the moment. Because we shall all stand before God in judgment, let us consider the questions like: What shall we explain to Him those times when projects or things were more important to us than people? Who do we need to start spending more time with? What do we need to cut out of our schedules to make that possible? What sacrifices do we need to make?

Remember – The best use of Life is Love, The best expression of Love is Time. The best Time to Love is now.

Submitted By : Bro. Isaac Nnannah.

RUNNING WITH VISION

Sometimes I wonder why this life is so cruel or do I say the people in this world. I remembered six years ago in the month of July, I went for an interview in a very reputable IT organization in Victoria Island, after about a week I got a text that my interview was successful and was asked to come back on August 15^th by 9 a.m. for salary negotiations and final interview, this was going to be a day after my POP so I had to travel from Igbokoda in Ondo State to VI that morning, I reached  the venue by 10 a.m. and discovered the interviewer has left the office for a board meeting 50 minutes earlier. I was not allowed to wait for her because she considered I was not going to be serious with the job since I was not there at exactly the scheduled time. I cried out myself throughout the day. Years after, I lived with this guilt and this affected me because I made a very regrettable decision not to apply for any more jobs owing to the fact that I could not forgive employers and myself generally so I had to depend on menial jobs to survive. I also know of somebody who wrote the 1999 WASSCE exam, got all his papers except chemistry which was necessary for him as a science student to gain an admission, 4 years after, he wrote GCE consecutively but the situation didn’t change. At a point he has to give up and took a decision never to make any more attempt, he concluded, “I can never make chemistry result’’. Four years later, there was a conviction somehow and he changed his mind and decided to give another trial and of course got it right this time and today he is a graduate of Information Technology and highly being paid. Considering this scenario, this man got his vision achieved  the 5^th time of trial which means the four years in between the 4^th and 5^th times was wasted for nothing out of impatience, annoyance, disappointment, frustration and inconsistency. On my own side, I sat down and blamed myself and counted all I had lost if I had gotten that job then, but the truth is if I had only persisted in my job search and applications, who knows I would have gotten something much more better paying job, but at  a point I took a decision to put a stop to my naughty decision and start afresh my job search and at that point I got a job with a multi national conglomerate though still hoping for greater opportunities (forward ever).

LESSONS TO LEARN FROM THESE SCENARIOS/STEPS TO FULFILLED VISION

1.        Persistence pays no matter how long it takes, be patient and keep on trying you will definitely get it. Thomas Alva Edison born in February 1847 invented the electric light bulb after suffering setback for about one hundred times.

2.        Put God First. Total dependency on God brings relaxed, peaceful and hope filled life. Psalm 4:5. It is only the grace of God that covers errors, add colors your effort and makes one achieve greater things. The only way to do this is to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as our Lord and personal savior and live in total obedience to His every instructions.

3.        Take the battles beyond the ordinary. Some people wake up in the morning and discovered a mark that was not there before they went to bed. This is a proof of God’s word, which tells us not to be ignorant of the devices of the evil ones. There are people that are ready to make sure we do not progress in life, this is the main reason we must also be ready to get provoked and fight back through prayers for it is the only key to victory.

4.        No Word as Failure. It is only when you admit you have failed, that is the only time you achieve failure, you can only suffer setback which is permitted and then keep on trying again and again in a better way than the previous until u get it but one thing is sure, YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO FAIL…….

5.        Render services to Elders. This should be done especially to those in the church especially those that can render greater services back in one way or the other because you cannot tell where your next help comes from.

6.        Be Creative. Develop sellable ideas that could fetch you extra income because a good visioneer should have multi sources of income.

7.        Keep on Matching Forward. In military, the only command learnt but not being practiced is marking time, you are only allowed to keep moving and marching forward no matter the obstacles you see when taking the next step. BACKWARD NEVER FORWARD EVER.

…. Joshua Umoh

RED in the air

In an ever busy city on this very day

The city remains busy but the activities changed

Every boutique selling RED clothing

Everybody on RED shirts pants and shoes to match

Those who could not afford a RED shirt, aimed for a RED bag or TIE (at least there was a touch of RED)…In fact guys and girls were ready to paint the town RED sharing RED roses as they moved.

The Busy road were filled with RED vehicles-cars bike, bicycles, and even RED wheelbarrows.

The crazy traffic light got no choice than to display a RED light and everybody staRED at the light with RED anger!!! Some in a hurry got RED blood flowing out of them from ghastly Accidents and there were no RED cross to save them.

Buildings changed their coat to all RED both inside and outside and RED carpet events were held at several locations with RED capped officers on patrol.

Fast food joints like MR BIGGS were very happy because they had no cause to change colours (After all they had RED from the beginning) but the BBQ stand had to use RED hot coal to roast their meat.

Guys with RED network (airtel) called their vals with RED network (Visafone)

With the flow of RED colour, I felt like maybe RED team (Manchester united) & arsenal will compete in the game of football but if they did, the referee would have no choice than to issue RED cards to all the players

But all the same, some fans of the big RED teams wore their RED jerseys

I stood admiring the city; My mouth Ajar and hands akimbo and I didn’t even notice that I was on a green top and a black pair of trousers.

Love really in the air, some people never reported to office that morning and I’m quite certain that they will get a RED card from their angry superiors

Please someone shine a RED light here!!

Enough of this RED madness!!!

It’s Feb 14 and everybody has gone ALL RED, are they out of their mind??? I thought to my self

I was informed that everybody is out to celebrate love

AHA!!! So love has the colour RED?

Now that Got me thinking – RED; The colour of Danger, Blood, Caution, Furry, Fire, That same colour for love? SOMEBODY CHANGE THIS!!!

It is quite unfair to have given the colour RED to Love or maybe they are right… Just maybe

WHAT IF LOVE is dangerous and must be followed with caution???

Love must involve bloodshed and the lovers must be willing to sacrifice their life for love sake

THAT MAKES PERFECT SENSE! Little wonder why its colour is RED

People go about shouting that they love somebody when deep down their heart they know that they cannot even take a bullet for that "LOVED" one.

Now I’m sounding SADISTIC right?

That is certainly the truth

MY COMMAND IS THIS, LOVE EACH OTHER AS I HAVE LOVED YOU, GREATER LOVE HAS NO MAN THAN THIS THAT HE LAY DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS FRIEND(John 15:12&13) Those where the exact words of the greatest lover that ever lived .

Most people around the world celebrate valentine with someone who does not really love them that they forget completely someone who loved even though they did not love him.

You know him!!! His only mission was to die on the cross for strangers.

30th of March 2013 happens to be a celebration of the greatest Love ever seen on earth and i think i will be celebrating this day with my RED!!! Yea... Today (30th not 14th) is my valentine's day.

Happy Easter (Or happy Valentine's Day) to you and remember that the dress code for today is BLACK, touch of RED (for the blood) and WHITE.

Have a wonderful Easter celebration!!!

Evans Chibuzo

PERSISTENCE

The word ‘”Persist “According to Cambridge Advanced learners’ dictionary, means to try to do or continue doing something in a determined but often unreasonable way. Simply put, persistence is determining to do something or try to keep doing something because you believe that the outcome would be positive. Another word that could be used in place of persistence is perseverance. These words could be used interchangeably.

Stories are told of great men and women, who persisted until they achieved that goal for purpose. There are facets to life and in these facets, we all look forward to having our dreams fulfilled, nothing good ever comes so easy and even when it does; it is because God wants it to be so. However, in most cases, we have to struggle, persist, and persevere to march forward.

One of our Christian mentors apostle Paul, encouraged us to press on that we may at last make heaven. It could be in your academics. Have you given up hope of gaining admission because you have re-written Jamb and that post –Utme repeatedly and they keep telling you to try again the next year? Have you been crying out to God to help you out of that situation? All you have to do is “persist”. For in due time, all will be well. All you have to do is to determine to never give up.

The fact that the hairs of the head grows again after it has been shaven, and the fingers and toe nails do grow after it had been cut, symbolizes that God had destined us to have all round growth and not stagnancy in life. This applies to all humans and you are not an exception. The only way you will not be stagnant is when you persist, persevere and against all odds, determine to march forward.

The big question in life is not whether you get knocked down, you will! The question is are you ready to get back up and press forward to persist and fight for what you believe because you know it is the only way to march forward?

 A popular Christian hymn says,

“I’m pressing on the upward way

New heights am gaining everyday

Still onward bound, till heaven I’ve found, lord plant my feet on higher Ground”

Most times, we sing this song without actually digesting and ruminating over the lines…. The more he presses on, he gains new height, and He marches forward! Show me a successful man/ woman and I will show you a fighter. Not a physical fighter as you may imagine, but someone who is not deterred by his present situation but persisted against all odds and marched forward and is still marching on. I was opportune to be in a gathering and hear a lady talk to teenagers/youth about how she repeatedly wrote UTME eight (8) times! Now think about it, think about repeatedly doing a particular thing for eight years without success. People said all sorts and to worsen it, she had no father. Her mother was a petty street trader who sold eggs. It was not until the eighth time before she was finally admitted. Today, she is somebody to be reckoned with. She finally made it. Persistence! Is what keeps hope alive!

Now faith without work is dead. Build your faith and do not forget to seek his face. You cannot do it on your own except of course God sends the Holy Spirit to empower you. Now, no matter how long you persist, if God does not help you, it will all be in vain…. It would all be for nothing. Just hold on my brother, Just be strong my sister, God has your problems all in control and he is working it out, he is all in control if only you can just hold on. Stay Blessed

James E.Blessing

MARCHING FORWARD

The will of God for you as his child is for you to progress and not to be stagnant in life. Agree with God as your number one if your level must change from where you are now to the table of greatness.

SOME STEPS TO MARCHING FORWARD

1.HUMILITY, VISION AND FOCUS: Beloved, God can impact you with greater blessing, honour, anointing than the ones you have now. To get such, you need VISION to see or tell yourself where you are going even before the starting of your journey. You need FOCUS which is your refusal to deviate no matter the distraction on the way and HUMILITY to obey without complain for you to march forward. Remember, if you are humble- you can’t crumble’

2.THANKSGIVING: Locate something in your life to thank God for, no matter how small or insignificant it appears to you or others. Thanksgiving is a spiritual multiplier. Can you remember what Jesus did to the few fishes and bread before God multiplied the meal to feed thousands of people? He thanked God. God responds to praise more than any other thing because IT BRINGS YOU INTO HIS PRESENCE. Praise opens the gate of heaven for you and will march you forward into his court and not see him. Paul and silas tried praise and the aroma of their praise moved God and he did not send his angel but he came to the scene Himself (Act 16:26). If you must march forward this month, praise is the key.

3.FORGIVENESS: Forgive what others have done to you (Eph 4:32), Forgive yourself (Ph 3:13), Believe that God has truly forgiven you and act on it (Is 43:25) And you will march forward

4.HAVE FAITH: Jesus said, If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain “Move” and it will move (Matt 17:20-21). You do not have to be a spiritual giant, Just use your tiny mustard seed-sized faith and God will march you forward to your greatness. Many people are unable to start a building project because they lack the confidence that God will help them complete it. Peter was not the only disciple in that boat in matt. 14:29 but he was the only one who exhibited great confidence in Jesus- He stepped out of the boat and walked on water with Jesus. When you show your Faith in God by action, God shall march you forward by lifting you above your equals.

5.     CONSISTENT PRAYER: Is Paramount for a child of God to march forward. Jesus was always enjoying heaven’s help while on earth because of consistent prayer life. He started with Prayer and ended with prayer. God desire to hear your voice on daily basis. In Daniel 6:10, The bible explained that Daniel prayed three times on daily basis, no wonder, when he was callously thrown into the lions den, the Almighty God whom he consistently Prayed to was there to help him

6.   EMBRACE GOD’S PRINCIPLES: Uzziah in IIChronicles 26:4 did that which was right in God sight (He practiced God’s Principles) and Verse 15 says “And His name spread far abroad for he was marvelously helped unto greatness by God because he consistently operated God’s Principles. God’s Principles are meant to bless you, make you better, and advance you. The ten-percent (Tithe) He demanded from you is to expand and bless you in return, the evangelism He commanded you is to make you a power carrier and also expand his kingdom, The Holy living He admonishes you to practice, is meant to keep you pure and inaccessible by evil power and also bring honor to your personality. Be Proactive to God’s instructions and be kingdom addicted if you must march forward this month

7.     YOU MUST WORK: Prayer minus work equals to frustration. Never fold your hands because of unemployment. Find something to do, learn to create Jobs; do you know that there are many businesses you can start without money? Ye! And the ones you can start with little capital. Things only work for workers. Work diligently and learn to save for the future. Be a progressive minded person in anything you do .Are you working for someone or an organization? Do everything you can to provoke the progress of that establishment and the Almighty God will surely cause progress in your life. Have “I CAN DO IT” Mentality and you will March Forward.

8.     HAVE A PASTOR: Jer 3:15 says “And I will give you pastor according to mine heart which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding”. A sheep without a shepherd may eat feces consciously or unconsciously.  Solomon was able to recover his destiny and possessed his possession in life because he had a pastor (Prophet Nathan) watching over him (I Kings 1). As long as Uzzaih remained connected to his Pastor (Zachariah). God made him to prosper (2 chronicles 26:5). However, when he became proud, rebellious and decided to usurp authority over God’s minister, he became vulnerable to demolition and he died a leper!

Beloved have a man of God that you can submit to, stop being a freelance Christian; This church today, that church tomorrow will not make you march Forward as an effective and productive worshipper of God. Be an established Christian like Elisha who followed only one pastor (Elijah) and got a double blessing.

9. REMOVE YOURSELF FROM MAN’S MERCY: Dan 6:20. Beloved, your human connection is not enough for you to positively and continuously march forward in life. Thank God, that Daniel had always depended on God’s own connection -Assuming that he had only depended on the kings connection at the expense of God’s Own Connection, he would have been highly disappointed and disconnected from the earth when the king failed to reverse the Law. No matter how rich, Powerful or Influential a man maybe, he is still a man and can be limited by situation, circumstances or other Men. It is only God that is not vulnerable to such. Remove yourself from Man’s Mercy and Locate God’s mercy from now onward and you will see yourself marching forward to greatness, favour, blessing and to all the good thought God has for you.

10. WATCH OUT FOR IDOLS: If you must march forward: Talking about idols, it is not until you bow before a carved wood or shrine, before you become an idol worshipper. Whatever you attend to when you ought to attend to the things of God- That is your Idol.

Whenever you esteem or regard anyone or anything e.g. Job, Holiday, Party, Business, Education, Money, etc. Mal 3:8-9 says Above God, you have worshipped an idol and God is not pleased. For you to march forward and be great in Life. You must delete Idols from your life. Do not give God’s time, Money, Tithe, Vow, Offering, praise, worship, to anyone or anything. When you adequately fear and worship God, nothing will hinder you from marching forward.

Get up, get over it and march forward'.

FORWARD EVER AND BACKWARD NEVER IN YOUR LIFE IN JESUS NAME (AMEN)

Amarachi Ndudim

EDITORS INK- mARCH 2013

OPEN HEAVEN MONTH 3: MARCHING FORWARD

Wow! It seemed like yesterday when we shouted happy New Year on the first of January and we have MARCHED into the third month of the year.

How was your month of Divine Direction? Did you drive through the month alone or did you allow God take the driver seat? Well I leave that to you to answer

This month of March, we will be looking at marching forward.

MARCHING according to English mini dictionary means to walk purposefully or quickly in a prescribed manner.

FORWARD on the other hand literally means the direction one is facing.

Last month, we dealt expressly with direction and by now, you must have understood that only God shows the right path.

Marching forward may mean good or may be a complete bad omen to others because forward is only the DIRECTION YOU ARE FACING (anywhere belle face) and if you have failed to ask God for divine direction, I’m afraid you may be marching towards the wrong direction and you will be gaining speed and success in the wrong direction. IT’s still not too late to commit your ways to him and get the direction TO YOUR FORWARD so that you can truly ”FACE FRONT”  not because it is your front but because it is the forward of your life.

I leave you to ponder on this and remember that we are still enjoying the month of Open Heaven and may the dews of Heaven fall on you this month, keeping you cool and giving you peace and sound sleep.

I will not fail to wish you a happy Easter celebration and may the death of Christ give you more reason to continue holding to the old rugged cross.

Shalom