THE GREATEST SECRET BEHIND LASTING SUCCESS

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Fear especially of man, or of bad days ahead, or of failure, fear of getting a disease or catching an infection can be very dangerous and are to be discouraged in it's entirerity. However I grew up hearing a very important phrase-'The fear of the Lord is the begining of wisdom'.

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• The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant. Psalm 25:14 (freelancingallday.wordpress.com)

THE MYSTERY OF THE FEAR OF THE LORD (DIVINE HOLY REVERENCE)

This is the anchor, the pivot and the most important principle that is needed to conquer any devil, and to win any battle. The moment you combine this principle with faith, you can never lose or end up completely beaten by the enemy at any point in time. Let us see what the word of God says about this principle. First of all let us ask the most important question! What is the fear of the Lord? I always like the Bible definition of terms, and not my personal or some Professor’s definition because as always man’s wisdom is nonsense compared to God’s foolishness.

In the book of Proverbs, chapter 8 and verse 13 we read the definition of the fear of the Lord:

13 “The fear of the Lord, is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the forward mouth do I hate.”

These scriptures are self explanatory, it says that you cannot say that you fear God and at the same time love or pamper your sinful habits, and addictions, or still practice any forms of wickedness.

The second thing talked about here is pride- and that in scriptural terms means making yourself, or declaring yourself an authority and saying that what you have found out through science or education is now superior to what the ultimate authority, which is God almighty, has said in his word. A very simple example of this is the idea that a man marrying another man or a woman marrying another woman is not wrong, it is just because of the constitution, or the makeup of the individuals involved. We should therefore just allow them to be that way? god has made them? (‘Because I am sure that it is not God that did it). This has been proven to be wrong over and over again, because many homosexuals have had demons cast out of them, and after their deliverance, is today married to the opposite sex. Some of these people today, also now have a ministry to homosexuals, letting them know that they have been deceived by the devil, because God cannot lie.

Talking about the benefits of the fear of the Lord, it is the first preventive measure that a wise takes against trouble. Let us look at Psalm 128, and verses 1-6, because of space and time, we look at the first two verses, you check up the rest latter.

1 “Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.

2 For thou shalth eat the labour of thine hands; happy shalth thou be and it shall be well with thee.”

If you read the rest of that Psalm, you see promises of fruitfulness, long life, and an enduring generation. Some other scriptures go on to illumine on the benefits of divine, holy and reverential fear of the Lord.  The best of these which I encourage you to read is Psalm 112.Others still are beautiful, for example in the book of Proverbs again, chapter 10 and verse 27, we read:

27 “The fear of the Lord prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened”

And again in Proverbs chapter 14 and verse 27, we read what looks like a re-enforcement of the above scripture:

14; 27 “The fear of the Lord is the fountain of Life, to depart from the snares of death”

This last scripture tells us that when our lives, businesses, family, relationships, jobs, whatever they may be, are threatened by death due to sickness or problem, life is guaranteed, if we fear God.

I love the word of God because there is no greater authority than it, so permit me to add one last scripture here, from Deuteronomy, chapter 5 and verse 29:

29 “O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children forever!”

God is telling us that this is the panacea for all our troubles. I think that common sense even tells us that if can remember that God is also a consuming fire as much as He is a loving father every time we are tempted to enjoy the pleasures of sin (disobedience to God) for a season, we stay away from sin and we are blessed.

MAXIMIZING DIVINE STRENGHT IN WEAKNESSES: DOING EXPLOITS INSPITE OF ISSUES-4

A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING OF GRACE THAT WORKSI do not want to be misunderstood following this revealing article on grace which is so true. I am not preaching weakness, and never will. However, there are some salient points that must be made, which will bring clarity to many who come across this article.
A GOOD OR PURE CONSCIENCE AND AN OBEDIENT, TENDER HEART.
If a man of God is busy sleeping with the female members of his congregation, year in year out and nothing moves him. This is a normal routine that never changes. He is never moved no matter what is done or said, in fact he often defends himself by saying that Jesus said that everyone who looks at a woman and lusts after her has already committed adultery. This means that whether you finish the act or not you are already guilty. He may sound theologically correct to some people, but he still has a very big problem.
He sounds theologically correct, but he is wrong because Jesus will not tell you to go ahead and cause another person to sin with you, just because you had sinned already by looking.
Secondly since doing the physical act involves joining of 2 bodies and spirits, which can only happen by an agreement, and will eventually result in an exchange of curses, and sicknesses, the two cannot be the same.
The problem of this Pastor, who teaches this, and thinks that he has an advanced revelation of God’s word compared to St Paul; (the apostle) is that he has a bad conscience, and a hardened heart. In the book of 1 Timothy chapter 1 and verse 19, we read:
19 “Holding faith and a good conscience; which some having put away have made a shipwreck”.The Bible tells us that a good conscience is required in other to have a successful Christian life or ministry. If we do not have a good conscience, we end up making a shipwreck of our lives, our faith, and our ministries.
The conscience is the voice of the spirit, and the Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts, through the conscience. If week after week, and month after month, we continue to hear only but ignore these injunctions of the Holy Spirit, it means that we have developed a bad conscience and a hardened heart which can only but now wait for certain judgment.
Again, concerning a good conscience, the apostle Peter wrote in 1 Peter chapter3 and verse 21:
21 “The like figure whereunto even baptism now also doth save us (not the putting away of filth of the flesh, but an answer of a good conscience towards God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:”Paul the apostle again summarizes the New Testament commandments, now under grace, and not under the Law of Moses as follows in 1 Timothy chapter1 and verse 5.
5 “Now the end of the commandment is charity (love) out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned”.From all these we can clearly see that a good conscience, is a very vital tool for faith that works, as well as grace that works. If we lack a good conscience, we are bound to become careless and unable to maintain good works. In Titus chapter3 and verse 8, we read:
8 “This is a faithful saying, and these things, I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which believe in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.”It is only a good conscience that helps us to maintain good works, after that we have known that our sins have been forgiven and will be forgiven. However, it is clear that acting out everything we feel like, while ignoring the voice of our conscience will ultimately lead to shipwrecking our lives.
Some Ministers of the gospel frustrate female members of their congregation who refuse to sleep with them.
The ‘Pastor’ gives the potential spouse the impression that they are Jezebel in the church, and those who comply are always rewarded with rich, faithful members.
This is a serious abuse of one’s privileged calling and positioning by God due to a bad conscience.
We also heard of a Pastor who set up a fiancée to a female member he had been trying sleep with, and in spite of the man not cheating on his fiancée, the hypocritical Pastor got false witnesses to whisper to the hearing of the lady that her fiancée cheated on her. He then invited her for counseling, and in that weak moment, took advantage of her.
Such acts and abominations that we were seeing in movies are now rife in the modern day church which has largely been taken over by hirelings and men who were neither called, nor given a heart after God, as he does to His true Pastors.
The consciences of these men are seared, and they will ultimately destroy themselves and their congregation, unless they turn around.
THE VERDICTLet us go back to Roman’s chapter 7 verses 19-24 which I believe is a summary of it all. Jesus is the solution, Jesus conquered sin and lived above it, and the same Jesus became sin for us by taking all our sins on himself. The same Jesus gave us his righteousness for the sins he took away. The same Jesus now says that we are not guilty of any offence, and anytime we are buffeted by sin, that we should look at what he did on the cross. Let us see it in above portion of the scriptures:
19 “For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me
21 I find then a law that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
24 O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with my mind I myself serve the law of God; but with flesh the law of sin”.The verdict is, thank God for Jesus Christ, who is strong when we are weak and has given us the right to lean on his power and strength, and to depend on the work which he has done. Hallelujah. Let us never forget to maintain a good conscience.

MAXIMIZE DIVINE STRENGHT IN YOUR WEAKNESSES:KEEP DOING EXPLOITS INSPITE OF ISSUES-3

THE PROGRESSIVE REVELATION OF GRACEHave you noticed how conscious young believers in Christ are about sin? They try to separate themselves from old friends and family, trying hard to let them know that they too need to be saved or born again; they need to change from their old ways. Many times the radicalism of these new believers, and sometimes, their zeal without much knowledge, ultimately causes a rift between them and relatives and friends. Some who have hardened parents who are not saved, and friends who are not yet ready to quit sinning, end up quarrelling seriously with them, and throwing them out or are thrown out themselves.
Many of these believers literally want to live inside the church, they are there almost 24 hours a day, praying and reading the Bible, trying their best to stay ‘closer’ to God, and far away from sin. They want to stay as close to the Pastor as possible, because that will help them to be holy? I am for all these, because the exposure actually helps some of these young believers to learn as fast as possible, the kingdom principles and the kingdom life.
The irony of this is that these young believers get to a point where their zeal for the things of God, begin to make them feel that they have become champions. Some of these young believers begin to despise the older ones who are now not apparently as zealous as they are. Secondly, these young believers, after sometime discover that they still cannot stop sinning completely, as they thought should happen since they are now saved. Thirdly, for some of them, they discover that they have not yet gone to hell in spite of their sins, and that Jesus has not yet come after all these months or weeks or years and they have equally noticed that some older Christians and even Pastors are still struggling with sin, if not enmeshed in it. These things ultimately make some of them to backslide, especially where there is no guidance. They now become terrible sinners; some will keep trying to live the Christian life but will lose their zeal and their first love.
I still remember remember the teaching that I received on the above subject a few years back from one of my most revered mentors on how this played out in the life of Paul the Apostle. When Paul the apostle realized that he could not do it on his own he said it in the book of Romans, chapter 7 from verses 15 to 25. It seems to me that Paul the Apostle had understood at this point that his spirit had been saved, his soul was being renewed by the word, but his body refused to get saved. Let us look at Romans chapter 7 verses 15 to 18.
15 “For that which I do, I allow not: for what I would, that do I not: but what I hate, that I do.
16 If then I do that which I would not, then I consent unto the law that it is good.
17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
18 For I know that in me, (that is in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.”It seems that he said that his flesh had no good thing dwelling in it because; his flesh was not acting saved, and struggled to make him act fleshly. However, before this revelation, Apostle Paul thought that he was a super champion compared to the Apostles that came before him. Galatians chapter2nand verse 6.
2:6 “But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man’s person :) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference, added nothing to me.”He discovered their weaknesses, and he chided them for it seriously, and if you go down to verse 14, you see this clearly. Galatians chapter 2 and verse 14
14 “ But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou , being a Jew, liveth after the manner of the Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?”Here we can see the boldness of Paul the Apostle, as he fiercely rebuked Peter for not living right. He probably thought or concluded that he was better, and more committed to the gospel than Peter.
Some years later, the same great Apostle was said to have grown in his understanding of grace, and he made another statement in humility, after now understanding things better. In the first book of Corinthians, chapter 15 and verse 9, we read as follows:
9 “For I am the least of the Apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, for I persecuted the church of God”The apostle now understood that he was not really the champion he thought he was, but rather, he was supposed to be considered the least of the apostles.
He did not stop here, but after some more years, or at a later time, as Pastor David Duplessis taught our dear Pastor Benny Hinn in his early days as a believer, Paul understood that“ It is not your ability, but His ability in you; goodnight”.
He then went on to make the statement below in 1 Timothy chapter1 and verse 15.
15 “This is a faithful and saying and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief”.Paul the apostle now understood that there was nothing he could really do as such. He therefore surprises everyone by assuming the title of Chief of sinners at a time he was at the pinnacle of ministry. This is shocking and amazing to me, I don’t know about you. All the same, remember all that the apostle still instructed in his writings about living holy and living right. Let us not get it twisted by thinking that he was saying one thing and doing another. He was only trying to emphasize that only God is free from sin.

MAXIMIZE DIVINE STRENGHT IN YOUR WEAKNESSES: KEEP DOING EXPLOITS INSPITE OF ISSUES-2

Most successful Christian leaders have learned to asses and maximize their use of Divine strength while handing him over their issues and weaknesses.
God himself knows that we are weak and incapable of doing it on our own, and he tells us to rely on his strength and this is what grace is all about.
Utter helplessness without the strength of Almighty God.
Psalm 119 verses 176-“I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek thy servant; for I do not forget thy commandments”.
God never pursues after our weaknesses and failures, and will never magnify them. Every time we fall, he is grieved, and he seeks to immediately have us back on our feet.
If you have been involved in speaking in Christian meetings, it becomes easy to understand what divine strength can help you to do when you feel weak and incapable. I remember a few occasions when I had to preach in a meeting, and may be before getting there, something may have happened that made me to say what I should not have said, or do what I should not have done. You know as well as I do that on such occasions you ask God for forgiveness, and plead the blood of Jesus. It however does not end just like that. The enemy still comes back with accusations, and tells you why you are not qualified to stand before God’s people.
If you are not careful, feelings of guilt and condemnation come back and you are wondering how you will cope. If you pray well in the spirit, you will be amazed at what happens the moment you climb upstage.
The moment you climb upstage, you are clothed with the divine presence in that arena of faith. You are now filled with boldness and faith, and suddenly, every word you utter is endured with power. Words of wisdom also rush out forcefully, and if you go back sometimes to listen to the recorded message, you will observe that what was taught was obviously beyond your abilities. This is what the grace of God does.
Maybe you have heard of, or even seen that great American preacher who was born without limbs. Going by ICIDH concepts, a man like that great Pastor would have been so handicapped by his disabilities that there is no way that he would have become a preacher, talk less of winning thousands of souls into the kingdom of God. He however discovered something about how the strength of God can cover his physical weaknesses. What more excuses can someone with four limbs give for his failure?
It is important to know that the enemy likes to hit you at that weak point, and always magnify your weakness. If we are conscious of this, we will no longer feel defeated or taken aback, when someone keeps harping on our weakness. It is easy to know who he is working for: the devil is his master.
One of the things that good mentors have learned to do is to keep magnifying and harping on the strength of their mentees. It has been discovered that the mentee will be ultimately pulled in the direction of his mentors words. If his weaknesses are constantly talked about, he will be pulled in that direction, and he will crash and fall.
A wise mentee will therefore ultimately pull away from a mentor that feeds him spiritual poison by constantly emphasizing his weaknesses, especially if he at the same time tells everyone that can hear him that he does not see you succeeding. This is negativism and cursing or negatively prophesying which will impact negatively on the destiny of the mentee if not countered and cancelled.
One thing that you and I must quickly do now is to make sure that we pull away and stay away from those people who cook and feed their followers and friends spiritual poison(constant accusations, harping on your weaknesses and failures all the time, gossiping and slandering people) because with them, failure is inevitable. These people will cause you to develop the mindset of a sin-sick bound sinner who is weak and helpless and cannot be freed. This wrong mindset will leave you blind to the strength, power, grace and resources of God that are available to you. The tell you that you are not qualified to have this or that, and tell the World that you have no right to receive this or that, they make you look like a beggar that has no choice.

MAXIMIZE DIVINE STRENGHT IN YOUR WEAKNESSES: DOING EXPLOITS INSPITE OF ISSUES.

Nothing can be more crippling than the overwhelming consciousness of the fact that you have a weakness. This is usually more so, if you have a good conscience. In this series of articles, the Holy Spirit will help us to look at how that we can maximize the strength of God which He has already made available to us in our weaknesses, and be able to accomplish His big dreams deposited in our hearts, rather than be shut down by the enemy.
DEFINING WEAKNESSES
When we talk about weaknesses, a number of things or definitions readily come to mind, we begin to think of someone who lacks strength, power, determination, or courage. The second thing that readily comes to mind is a character flaw in the life of someone, or a feature of somebody’s character not considered favorable. On the other hand, a weakness could be a fondness, or a strong liking for something (sometimes, this as you know could be something not good or even sinful in the sight of God, or capable of destroying one’s health or body), thus a weakness could be an object of a strong desire.
As a student of Medicine-especially Preventive and Social Medicine, which includes Rehabilitation Medicine, I know that there are gradations of social, physical, psychological and mental weaknesses in the form of Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps. As a matter of fact there is a code name that handles this, known as the International Classification, for Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps- the ICIDH. The ICIDH definitions of weaknesses does not cover all weaknesses because it does not talk about the most important which is the spiritual, but all the same, I will give the ICIDH definitions here just to give an insight to someone reading this article.
An Impairment is any temporary or permanent loss of body structure and or function, whether physiological or psychological.
Disability-restriction or inability to perform an activity in the manner or within the range considered normal for a human being, mostly resulting from impairment.
A handicap is termed as a disadvantage for a given individual, resulting from impairment or a disability that limits or prevents the fulfillment of a role in the community that is normal for his age sex and cultural leanings.
Thus a handicap is any physical or mental defect, congenital or acquired, preventing or restricting a person from participating in normal life or restricting their capacity to work.
Coming to common examples and practical terms based on the ICIDH definitions above, we know people who are blind, deaf, lame, dumb, with a mental retardation maybe due to Down’s syndrome, or Cretinisim or some other factors.
Also children with autism, ADH and ADDH, adults with various addictions-drugs, sex, smoking etc.
Talking about addictions, a man said that as a fourth child, and a first son in a family of five, his sister’s wild friends kept molesting and corrupting him, and left him with a weakness for women.
Another brother said that he used to take drugs, and they messed up his mind, now he can hardly remember things, he feels that he has a calling as a teacher, but his weak mind cannot allow him go into his ministry.
One important definition of weakness is a weak point in the structure or arrangement of something. Think about two wrestlers fighting in the ring, an somewhere along the line one develops a shoulder dislocation- the opponent now target that shoulder, and every time it looks like he is getting up, his opponent goes after the hurting shoulder and hits it. This now a weak point and the enemy could win with it if nothing is done about it.
This is the same exact principle that perpetuates addictions in the lives of people.
Every addiction has a trigger, something that drives it, and keeps opening the addicted one up to it. It could be pain whether physical, emotional or psychological. Harsh and abusive words, stigmatization, loneliness, loss of a loved one, unjust denial of one’s rights. It is a known fact that nobody wants to retain his bad habits or addictions, but sometimes they stay free for 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, or even 2 or more years. I am very much aware that demon spirits may contribute to maintaining addictions, but they are not primarily responsible for it.
Addictions are major limiting weaknesses that can hinder anyone when not handled properly, from fulfilling their purpose, and the enemy likes to introduce them early into the lives of God’s people, when his activities are not checked.
DEFINING STRENGHT-A LOOK AT DIVINE STRENGHT
There are a number of dictionary definitions of strength, some of these are: physical power, emotional toughness, source of support, resistance-the ability to withstand force, pressure or stress, defensive ability-ability to resist attack, asset or quality.
I will use some examples to illustrate strength, but before I do that, let us look at the very scripture that is the foundation of this article.
In the Book of 2corinthians chapter 12, beginning from verse 9, we read as follows:
9 “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."Paul, the great Apostle is trying to let us know that the secret of doing exploits with God is focusing on God’s strength, while acknowledging our weaknesses and in capabilities. That is a little diversion, but very important to note before we continue our discussion.
Talking about strength, let us look at an important phrase used above in the definitions of strength-source of support.
I will like you to think about two football teams that are in a field, about to play the game of football. Side A is a weaker team with less skilled footballers, while side B is stronger, and is supposed to win the match. However the referee and his linesmen in this game have decided to be partial and to favor side A. As soon as the match begins, they watch side B players closely, issuing yellow and red cards every now and then to side B team members for minor offences. The officiating crew ensures that side A is awarded penalties, and side B strong team members are sent off, until side A wins the game. This very much like us and God and the challenges that we face, when we are willing to co-operate with Him. Remember that if side A had decided at the beginning of the game to pull out because they are weak, the strengthening (or source of support) by the officials of the match would not have been utilized. As a matter of fact they would have been disqualified because the match would have been a walkover for side B.
This is exactly what happens between Christians, God and their dreams or even assignments sometimes. God is there waiting to do a partial officiating so that you can win, because He is on your side, but the enemy is busy magnifying the task ahead and telling you to withdraw.

OVERCOMING FAILURE-4

THE CONSEQUENCIES OF FAILURE
Failure has many consequences, and it is how we handle the consequences of a fall or our failure that determine whether or not we will overcome it and recover.
The consequences of failure include shame, disappointment, confusion, withdrawal, disenchantment, disgust, disorientation, disillusionment, delusion, regrets, depression, anxiety, and sometimes physical manifestations such as collapse or fainting, ulcers, psychosomatic illnesses, may follow a severe fall.
Depending on what happened, friends and family, except the few committed and caring ones, may abandon the one who has missed it.
Enemies may have been armed with one more weapon with which to cajole and fight you. The question is how you are going to respond.
DEALING WITH THE CONSEQUENCIES OF FAILURE
How does one feel about the shame that follows a fall. The feelings of dishonor, embarrassment, unworthiness, and lowliness that follow one’s failure to achieve his goals whatever they may be.
Many people commit suicide because they feel that they cannot face the embarrassment that will follow their failure. They ask themselves-how are they going to see me now? What are they going to be thinking about me? Everybody will now think that I am a failure or a looser. Everybody will now say that I am no good. People will now say that I am not wise, they will now say that I lack discretion, they will now say that I am foolish and gullible.
One of the things that I discovered is that there will always be people that the devil will anoint to rub your failure in. Some of these fellows will come before your face and say to you-shaaame on you!
The worst amongst them are the whisperers who move about with the story trying to let everybody know that you have been sacked in your office, you failed that exam so many times and now you have been rusticated out of the college. They want everybody to know that your marriage has collapsed and now you are divorced, they want people to know that you have finally fallen into so and so sin and you were caught red handed so now everybody knows about it, they want everybody to know that you have so and so addiction which is shameful.
Now you have a bigger problem because of the work of these tale bearers. Instead of having few people to deal with, you now have to deal with this everywhere you go.
However, whenever you want to think about shame and you have all the negative thoughts coming to your mind: think about Jesus.
Nobody suffered shame, nor ever will suffer shame like Jesus. Think about the God who made the entire universe, one day being stripped naked by the people he created, dragged around beaten, flogged, and finally nailed to the cross and died, I can’t think of any greater shame than that. Remember that he did all that for you too so that you will never know that degree of shame in your life.
Also remember that he did not end in that grave where his enemies buried him, but rose up on the third day.
Many rejoice and boast about their great talent in pushing others down and burring their gifts and talents. It is supposed to be a horrible and shameful thing, but these twisted people brag about the evil that they have sold themselves out to keep doing. However I love that beautiful Good Friday message that says-“Thank God it is Friday, because Sunday is coming.” What you bury today, will surely resurrect tomorrow as long as the seed of God is in it- it will resurrect to your chagrin to embarrass you and hunt you.
Disillusionment tells you that what you have always believed is wrong or false. ‘You thought that God said so and so, but it was not God, it was your mind that deceived you, that is why you failed.’ The devil will ask you where your God is now. Those that have made themselves available for the enemy to use, will come to you and try to convince you that what God has in his word, is no longer true, or that what human beings have verified scientifically is what should be trusted, not what the so called Lord has said. They will call you a fool for holding on that vision that God gave you or showed you in spite of previous or even current proofs, just because of a temporary delay or a fall.
When disillusionment comes knocking on your door, remember that God said that He is the Lord who never changes, and that heaven and earth shall pass away, but not one jot of His word shall fail. Equally remember that His word is perfect and all His ways are just, remember-‘I have never seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging for bread.’
In the book of Isaiah chapter 32 verse 17 we read as follows:
17 “And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness-quietness and assurance forever”.This simply means that if you will continue to live your life as a righteous man who is saved and serving the Lord-the peace of God which passes all understanding, shall enfold you, and guard your heart and rule your mind. Ultimately, your faith in a God that never fails will produce results as we have already seen.
Therefore when disillusionment comes knocking on your door after a fall, say like Job-‘Though He slay me, yet will I trust him’, and like the three Hebrew children: “Even if our God does not deliver us, we shall not bow down to you graven image”.Disgust-This means feelings of strong disapproval. The affected one says I don’t like this, this cannot be true, and this cannot be happening to me after all the efforts that I have put in. The devil is a liar, and I will rather die than accept this. Then the devil will say to the one-‘yes, you better die now because you cannot stand this humiliation and shame’. You need to look that devil in the eye and say that the Bible says in the Book of Romans chapter 8 and verse 28:
28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose”.Delusion-this is a false belief held on to tightly by some, from which they cannot be easily shaken. In Africa, it is common for people to believe that their problems are caused by witchcraft, spells, curses and ancestral demons. In as much as this is true sometimes, a lot of people who have refused to develop their faith in God, are suffering because they have refused to fast, give, and live holy lives so as to destroy the power of witchcraft which is nothing compared to the power of a believer who lives a life of the word.
It becomes imperative that when the enemy tries to remind you about those who swore that you will never achieve your goals, or reach your destiny because they have power (including witchcraft power), money or influence, and that they will surely stop you. It may look now like they are winning, already. Instead of believing that God has failed and you need to seek for help from man or witches and warlocks, you look that devil in the eye and say to him like David, ‘This day will I take your head off from your shoulders, and will give the bodies of the armies of the philistines, to the birds of the air, and the whole world shall know that there is a God in Israel’.
Disorientation- It means that someone is losing his direction, he is now confused, he is being forced to change focus or direction. This often happens when people fail. They change course, some change direction, or lose focus as a result of the things talked about earlier. In as much as a change of strategy may be necessary in order to achieve certain goals, it is not the same as throwing away your God given vision. Unless God never really spoke in the first place. The solution is deciding to stay on course and not straying away or throwing away what God has already said which is tantamount to making Him a liar. The dissenting voices will never stop speaking and even shouting and will get louder and heavier, and even sound more correct as you get closer to God’s target.
In psychiatry, there is what is called CBT-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy aims at opening the eyes of a patient believed to lack insight into the fact that his way of thinking is contributory to his problem-maybe a learning disorder, a form of dementia, an eating disorder, a depressive illness, an anxiety disorder, a personality disorder and others. The therapy includes teaching through the use of words. It equally includes confrontation when the wrong behaviors and attitudes are displayed.
I am very convinced though a medical doctor that sitting under the influence of anointed messages from God’s anointed servants will do much more in transforming the lives of those in these cases and any one that has failed in any area of life than just Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (combination therapy is my recommendation).
Finally, remember Ephesians 6:18, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance”.

OVERCOMING FAILURE-3

There is another hilarious story in the Book of Judges that happened in ancient Israel, which we can use to illustrate how godly people who mean well and are only trying to do the will of God can find themselves apparently on the ground. You will also notice that it was only a temporary event in the end.
I am going to tell the story that led to the war briefly, and you can check it up later. The whole story is to be found in the book of Judges, chapters 19, 20 and 21.
This whole event took place in ancient Israel at a time it was said that Israel had no king. Obviously there was confusion and chaos, and everybody did what pleased them. There was so much anarchy that a group people will just gather together, lay hold on a man, and make him their priest forcefully.
A man was said to have been abandoned by his concubine, who went and became a harlot. The concubine thing is what is confusing here, was she his fiancée, or was she his girlfriend (maybe), or was she his wife? Anyway, whatever the case might be, she left him and practiced prostitution for about four months from her father’s house. The man decided to go and reconcile with his wife and bring her back home.
When he finished discussing with his father in-law, it was already late, and his in-law begged him to sleep with them since it was night and very late, but he refused and continued his journey. They got to Jerusalem which belonged to the Jebusites and his servant begged him to stop so they can sleep over since it was late. He insisted that since the inhabitants of Jerusalem at that time were not Israelites, they could not enter in to sleep with strangers. They therefore continued their journey until they got to Gibeah which belonged to Benjamin. They stayed under a tree until they were found by an old man returning from work (probably) his farm. The man took him and his wife home to spend the night.
Shortly after they arrived the house of the man who wanted to accommodate them for the night, and were eating and making merry, some fools who were wicked men- the Bible calls them sons of belial surrounded the house where they were.
These wicked fools demanded for a most shocking thing-they demanded to be allowed to perform homosexual acts with the man who was a stranger amongst them. The old man pleaded with them along side with the man himself to take his daughter and the man’s fiancé and do whatever they wanted with them.
They finally accepted to take his fiancé and the Bible says that they took her and abused her sexually throughout the night until morning they left her.
Her fiancée came out to take her but only met dying, and she finally died.
The man decided to cut his fiancée into pieces and share out her meat to the twelve tribes of Israel, as a way of informing them about what has been done to him and his own.
The Israelites were shocked and angered by the wickedness of these men who decided to commit such an atrocity amongst God’s chosen people. They demanded for the Benjamites to bring out the men that were responsible so that they will be punished, but they said no.
This got the rest of Israel very angry with the Benjamites, who they told to prepare for war and which they did. Benjamin made up its mind to fight with the rest of Israel rather than release to them wicked criminals who had committed rape and murder. What folly was that, that made them to harden their hearts?
You and I would have expected that since God was involved, the demands of justice will be met and Israel would overrun Gibeah of Benjamin. In Judges Chapter 20 and verse 18, Israel consulted God, and God told them to allow the armies of Judah to go first.
18 “And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to battle the children of Benjamin? And the Lord said, Judah shall go up first”. If you hear the voice of the Lord like this, you will be encouraged, and am sure that Israel was. However what followed after this was totally shocking.
21 “And the children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah, and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites that day, twenty and two thousand men”.
Israel fell to Benjamin in spite of what they had done. I am sure that in their hearts, the Benjamites felt good. They must have felt that they have shown these weaklings that might is right. However the story did not end there.
Israel went back and sought the face of the Lord and eventually defeated the Benjamites and brought them to their knees. The righteous demands of justice were met. You can read up the rest of the story.
Those who have might, and power and worldly connections may push us down and brag that we have fallen because of their pressure, but the vindication of the righteous shall surely come if he refuses to give up.

OVERCOMING FAILURE-2

There are two Bible stories or examples of where people who were apparently doing the will of God failed, and this was because of something beyond their control. They just could not understand why such a thing could have happened, because ideally they were supposed to have had the backing of heaven.
However, they later realized that somehow they had missed it because they were not all knowing, and God latter saw them through.
Joshua who replaced Moses is well known to us who read the Bible. The Lord had promised him that every piece of ground he shall set his feet upon shall be his. This clearly meant that all of his enemies had automatically lost their grounds to him.
Joshua 1:3 “Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you as I said unto Moses”.
In fact the Lord said that no man shall be able to stand before him all the days of his life, again in Joshua chapter 1 verse 5.
5 “There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee nor forsake thee”.
If anybody in this world ought to have had absolute confidence in the Lord and in himself, this man was supposed to have had that confidence. He was promised good success as long as he stuck to the book of the law to observe and to do it, and he was determined to do that.
Just before trouble showed up, Joshua had everything going for him. He had just fought and defeated Jericho, supposedly the superpower of the region, with fortified walls through the power of the Lord. The Lord was really being faithful to His promises and to His word! Woo Glory Hallelujah. He was really enjoying this, and I am sure that he felt like dancing too, that is if he was not already dancing.
The next city which Joshua wanted to take was a small city named Ai, he quickly sent out men to go and spy out on Ai and bring in their report which they did. Ai is a small weak city that is nowhere near us in population, their soldiers are very few. Let some of our men relax and prepare for the stronger nations we shall meet after beating this tiny city or nation. Let us attack them with only three thousand men; we are sure to beat them. We can see this in the book of Joshua chapter 7 and verses 2-3.
7:2“And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Bethaven, on the east of Bethel, and spake unto them, saying, ‘Go up and view the country’. And the men went up and viewed the Ai.
3 And they returned to Joshua, and said unto him, Let not all the people go up; but let two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai; and make not all the people to labuor thither; for they are but few”.
This clearly shows the confidence of a people that were very sure of victory. I love to add scriptures because they clearly tell you the story better than I can do with my own words. Let us proceed to verses 4 and 5.
4 “So there went up thither of the people about three thousand men: and they fled before the men of Ai.
5 And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty-six men: for they chased them from before the gate , even unto Shebarim, and smote them in the going down: wherefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water”.
Is this not surprising, and even shocking? How could people who defeated the powerful, fortified and secure city effortlessly and by the power of the Holy Spirit fall like a pack of cards before a small, supposedly weaker country.
Why would the marriage of a mighty couple working for God, suddenly be devastated by the devil of divorce? Why would a scandal suddenly bring down a mighty and powerful ministry?
We shall still take one more example of unexpected failure, by God’s people, after which they finally found victory. We shall also look at the immediate and remote consequences of failure and how to overcome them.

OVERCOMING FAILURE-1

This subject title may sound funny and even like a misnomer to someone reading this article. You may begin to wonder, how can someone who has failed talk about overcoming failure when he has failed already? I mean if he or she has failed, then that person has failed, so what do you mean again by overcoming failure, does it really make sense? It sure does make sense because the only one that has truly failed, is that person who is either dead and gone to hell, or has left this physical realm of being and cannot come back here to try again, and probably never laid any foundation, so that others can accomplish his vision/mission, when he is gone.
What is failure, or what does it mean to fail? Simply put, failure means to be unsuccessful in or at something. It means not to achieve something as planned, or to make a mark that is short of what is expected.
What then does it mean to fall, because for the purpose of this discussion, the words fail and fall shall be used as if they mean the same thing because both refer to a downward movement for the individual or group concerned or missing the mark.
Therefore we take the definition of the word fall, which means to move downward from a higher position, or to drop, or to be lowered. It means to come down suddenly from an upright position.
Is it possible for a Christian or a child of God to fail, I mean a Holy Ghost filled and tongue talking believer to fail? At this point, I will not use my brain or sense of judgment or knowledge alone , you know the answer already. Let us get to the Bible which is the highest authority. In Proverb chapter 24 and verse 16 we read as follows:
24:16 “For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief”.
This is coming from the King James Version of the Bible, and it clearly tells us that a just man or a righteous man could fail to accomplish his goals seven times, or fail in his mission seven times, or fall short of the mark seven times, but he will ultimately accomplish his mission.
Let us look at the same scripture in the New King James version of the Bible.
24:16 “For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, But the wicked shall fall by calamity”.
This scripture I believe spells it out a bit more clearly. The righteous man may fall seven times, which means that he does not necessarily have to allow himself to fall, when he can help it or prevent it, if he really has the power. On the hand, if he falls, we don’t need to go around looking for the news media to advertise it and say, please come and see the strangest thing that has ever happened in this World. This man or woman or boy or girl, who is supposedly a Christian, a righteous person, justified by faith, has failed, or has fallen.
There are many ways and many areas in which a man or a woman can fail in life, the same for a boy or girl or child, failure is a universal problem that knows no boundaries. You can fail your own self when you fail to achieve the goals that you have set for your own self such as an academic examination, you can fail God, when you sin against Him, and you can equally fail people, when you disappoint them or hurt them or sin against them. You can fail your family, your children, your organization, your friends, the church and so and so forth.
Thus in life we have business failures, marriage failures, academic failures, failures in ministry, failures in government who have wrecked the economies of their nations, failures in science or the scientific world who have propounded fake theories and theorems that have proven to be false and have led people astray. If I may repeat it again, failure is a Universal problem, and can never go away until Jesus returns. The only time I believe that there will be no more failures in this World will be during the millennial reign of Christ when he would have made all things perfect.
In the book of Romans chapter 3 and verse 23, we read as follows:
3:23 “…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”.
This clearly tells us that all have failed already, all have missed the mark, and all have sinned. There is therefore now no need to judge and condemn others, there is therefore now no need to advertise the mistakes or the errors of someone else. Instead of that the Bible tells us to lift up the weak hands and to strengthen the feeble knees.
It is pertinent to understand that failure is not an event, and that for a Christian, failure can never be the end or the final conclusion of the matter, because the righteous man does not just fall seven times, but rises up all the time.
In the Book of Proverbs again, chapter 23 and verse 18 we read:
23:18 “For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off”.
This scripture tells us that there is an end, and that the expectation of the righteous man, shall not be cut off.
Again in Psalm chapter 37 and verse 37, we read a very true and heartwarming promise as well as revelation from God.
Psalm 37 “Mark the blameless man, and the upright; For the future of that man is peace”.