The Lightroom

In ancient days a tale unfolds

of courage and mystery yet untold.

A young girl named Esther, fair and pure,

whose destiny the world through time would endure.

In Persia's land where kings reside,

a noble monarch ruled with pride,

King Ahasuerus, his name renowned.

Throughout the city his power remained profound.

Ignorant of God's sovereign hand, a queen he sought from all the land.

Maidens were chosen, their beauty inspected,

but Esther, a jewel of Jewish covenant, was soon selected.

Her origins hidden, her faith remained.

A Jewish orphan, but for this time divinely ordained,

under the care of Mordecai, this eaglet's wing got ready to fly.

The palace walls held splendour grand,

but dangers locked within like shifting sand.

Haman, the king's wicked advisor, crafted a plan one to despise her.

For Haman's wrath over the Jews, he plotted their destruction.

His decree aimed at their obstructions,

and throughout the land fear spread its wings,

as the faith of a people hung by strings.

Mordecai sent word to Esther beseeching,

to intercede for her people in his teaching,

and though scared and hesitant she heeded the call.

For such a time as this, she said, I was born,

I will go whether I stand or I fall.

In gathering strength she approached the throne,

risking her life to make the truth known.

In regal robes, she stood with grace, and the king's favour gently embraced.

Grant me your ear, O my Lord, I plea.

A terrible plot threatens my decree.

They are those who seek to bring us harm,

and in their shadows, we bear no charm.

With intrigue and suspense, the story unfolded,

as the king realized how he'd been moulded.

His love for Esther pierced through the night,

and the wicked Haman soon lost his might.

The tide had turned the chance to fight.

Esther's bravery shone so bright,

she pleaded for her people's decree,

saving them from Haman's deadly spree.

Bound by the law, a new decree inked.

To protect God's children, the king now linked.

Esther's triumph a lesson to see.

The power of faith and courage set free.

From orphaned God, queen of might,

Esther's tale shines with a radiant light.

A timeless story forever cherished,

of a heroine whose spirit never perished.

So let us remember this tale divine,

of faith, bravery, and love intertwined.

The story of Esther forever told,

for her legacy the world now behold.

Friends, this is a story of a diva that God used.

I mean, pretty in face and form,

and when the king called to meet maidens,

Esther says, I don't need makeup. I'll go just as I am.

Yet, she was the most beautiful and pretty lady in the room.

Now, this diva at first lost sight that she was put in that kingdom not for her own enjoyment, but to be used by God.

And God has a lot of divas today who have gotten so used to being high and mighty,

so successful, and so self-absorbed that he no longer can use them.

Ephesians chapter 2 verse 10 says that for we are God's masterpiece, and he has created us anew in Christ Jesus,

so we can do the good things he prepared for us long ago, long before.

So if you don't see where you are, and what you have, as an opportunity for God to show himself,

then you need to change your thinking and your operation.

You can be a star to your world,

you can be a star to the whole world,

but in God's eyes, you're blessed to be a blessing.

Have a blessed day friends!

Of Samson strong and bold

A chosen vessel of great might

A Nazarite in God's holy light

From birth his hair untouched by bleed

A symbol of the vow he made

To serve the Lord with all his might

And to use his strength for what is right

But tempted by worldly love

Samson's heart strayed from above

Delilah's charms deep penetrate

And his faith began to dissipate

She crooned with horny words of deceit

I'll tell your secret if you repeat

The source of the power that lies within

And let me cut your hair so thin

Samson so blinded by earthly desire

Ignored the warning, stoked the fire

He divulged the secret of his strength

Allowing her bleed to touch at length

Soon enough his locks shone

His strength was gone, his body won

The Philistines seized him without a fight

A fallen hero no longer in God's sight

In chains he languished, a sight for all

His pride shattered, he took the fall

But in his darkest hour, humbled and weak

Samson cried out a prayer to seek

O Lord, forgive my foolish pride

In your mercy let me reside

Restore my strength once again

To fulfill your purpose to amend

And despite his shame, God did hear

Samson's repentant plea sincere

Restored to strength, his faith renewed

He pushed the pillars, the temple through

In his final act of sacrifice,

Samson found redemption's prize

Though he stumbled, he rose again

And God's grace in weakness found his friend

This is a cautionary tale we must heed

The perils of pride and earthly greed

Let Samson's fall remind us all

To guard our hearts and heed God's call

For in our weakness, His strength is made known

And through him alone, we are not alone

So let us stay steadfast in faith and prayer

To avoid the temptations that lead us nowhere

Friend, this is a story of the most expensive haircut

Don't underestimate the flesh and its desires

And don't negotiate on the word of God

Do not be conformed to this world - Romans 12:2.

The world is like a molder

And it wants to conform us through pressure

To a worldly image of ourselves

And this is not the true you

This is the you that the world has made

This is the you that the world has conformed

And changed through the most expensive haircut

Say no to Delilah

Your flesh is lying to you

That you need what you think you need

Have a blessed day, friends!

1 John 2 verse 15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. And if anyone loves the world, then the love of the Father is not in them.

Friends, worldliness is a perspective that you have that corrupts your connection to the Lord.

Now anything or anyone or any thought or any belief that stares you away from the truth of God's word is worldliness.

It is that fatal attraction that captures our minds and our hearts and draws us away from God and it diminishes our experience of God.

I mean it keeps us from knowing God as He wants to be known in our experience. And the world is a system headed by Satan with its primary purpose and goal to keep God out.

So whenever God is excluded from something, it is worldly. And the Bible says that all that is in the world is, first of all, the lust of the flesh and then the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life. Now flesh is driven by desire, what I want, what I crave for.

The flesh is our desire to please ourselves independently of God.

So when you want something God doesn't want or when you want something that God made but you want to get it illegitimately.

So God made food, gluttony is the illegitimate desire and pursuit of it and so that's flesh. God made wealth, materialism is the flesh. God made sex, immorality is the flesh.

So any craving that disregards what God wants and what He wills for you is the lust of the flesh.

Friends, have you realized that TV commercials are designed to stir up a desire in you for what is being advertised and so that you begin to think that you deserve what you now desire through what you have seen although it is illegitimate and then in the context of God's word it is illegitimate either in its purpose, in process or in proportion.

The lust of the eyes, I see it and therefore I'm going to get it even if it is illegitimate, is the deliberate pursuit of impressing others by any means possible to look better in the eyes of men.

The boastful pride of life, I mean creating a self-measured standard for men to perceive you, the pursuit of prestige when your priority is not God's glory but self-glory, how you look and what you want and here's the height of this deception.

Many people end up on social media praising God and thanking God for things that He didn't give to them and He doesn't want them to have.

Love not the world friends, the world is the love that God hates. Have a blessed day friends.

In John 7.38, Jesus was speaking and He says

Whoever believes in me, rivers of living water will flow from within him

The Bible says that he was speaking about the Spirit when he said this

So you see the Holy Spirit is not meant to just be in us without flowing from us

It is erroneous to believe or to even teach that the Holy Spirit is in us purely for us

The purpose of the Spirit being in us is that rivers can be created

So that out of us, like the garden of Eden, there will be a flow

The Bible speaks of the garden of Eden

That the river flowed out of Eden, watering the garden first

And then from there, it produced four rivers

And the Bible says that the husband man is the first partaker

I know that we love the outflow

But we don't understand the in-watering

You should never be dry, never be dry in service

Never be dry because you are dispensing

You should never be empty

It is in the in-watering that the ground of your heart is made soft

That the seed of the word of God may find its place and then produce fruit

Because you see friend, he satisfies your thirst first

And he also cleanses you from your dirt

The garden of your soul, your mind, your will, your emotions

That water washes away your lust

It has an effect on your ambition, your pride, your thoughts, your temper

And I know that you want to make an impact in the world

But you have to allow the Holy Spirit first to fill you, to water you

And make you a well-watered garden

I know that you want to take territories for Jesus

But have you fully been taken by Jesus?

No aspect of a river is dry and empty

So no area of your life should be a patched ground

In John chapter 4, the Bible tells us about this woman at the well

The Samaritan woman

And Jesus satisfied the thirst of the woman at the well

And then she went into an overflow

And she called the people of the city

Friends, don't go out trying to give of what you have not had enough of

The flow of a river is what guarantees the cleanliness of that river

If all that God is doing in you is not flowing from you

Through you, to other people, to other places

Then that is a waste of eternal and divine resources

It is the inflow that makes us a well-watered garden

And then it flows out of us to touch the world around us

The Holy Spirit is in you, not just for you

But first for you and then for others

Have a blessed day, friends!

We all have one thing in common

and we have the human nature

and the human nature beyond our skin tone, our skin type, our racial identity, our tribal affiliations, our hair texture or our eye color,

the human nature also comes with a sin nature,

I mean a nature that is liable and inclined to rebelling against the standard of God

and it is inbuilt, inherent so no one needs to learn how to sin

and this nature damages the soul and extends that corruption through the body to the physical world

so the sins of others can hurt us and our sins can also hurt other people

and the body will act based on the orientation of the soul and the soul will be trained by the human spirit which at birth is affected and infected by the sin virus.

And sadly friend, a lot of people have settled for managing this condition by doing external renovations and reformations and many others make efforts to conceal it,

they keep it hidden with their jobs, their social status, their wealth and their association but every attempt to manage this nature ends in futility

because the effect of the virus will keep showing up,

it shows up in the anger that we can't control, in the sexual appetite we cannot manage, in the addictions that take over our faculties and destroys our bodies, in the language that we can't censor, in discouragement that rules our lives, in dysfunctions that we cannot deliver ourselves from

and many pretend to be okay but a distorted soul will always bring destruction.

And friend, this virus creates a heightened view of self through a perverted lens

so there's so much emphasis on self, find yourself, be yourself, love yourself and some in the process end up in a concept of self that is conceptualized by satan, my life, my body, my choice

and which is the disguise for bondage, perversion and evil.

And in all of this, the world makes you say to yourself, I was born like this but God says to you, you need to be born again

and being born again is the only way to be free from this virus.

The Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

So the Bible says, so liberty is liberation from anything or anyone holding you hostage illegitimately.

And at salvation, the Holy Spirit begins a transformational work in you by coming to dwell in your human spirit

and He's not all about external reformation or infection management, He transforms you spiritually.

So as you walk with the Holy Spirit, you realize that the true mark of spiritual growth is that you're changing.

Friends, no one can change himself by himself.

So don't try to do what only God through His Spirit can do for you and in you.

Friends we are being transformed whether you feel it or you know it and the Holy Spirit is at the center of it all.

Have a blessed day friends!

Ephesians chapter 6 verse 10 Finally my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might

Now hear me, you don't have a power problem

The things of God are in their perfect state with no need for improvement or additions

You don't need more power

When God gave you the Holy Spirit, He gave you all the power that you'll ever need

God gave you himself and it is, for this reason, nothing is impossible to the one who believes

So God doesn't have extra power for anyone

So prayer doesn't make you stronger

Prayer helps you express the power that is in you

There is power in your spirit man

You don't grow more powerful

You grow more confident in the power that you already have

And many Christians are going around with the Holy Spirit in them but trusting in themselves

2 Corinthians chapter 3 verse 17 says that now the Lord is that Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty

So having the Holy Spirit means having Jesus living in you Because the Bible says that now the Lord is that spirit

So we need to grow in faith and not in power

So how do you grow in faith?

Mind what you consider

Romans chapter 4 verse 19 And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body already dead Since he was a hundred years old And the deadness of Sarah's womb He did not waive out the promise of God through unbelief But was strengthened in faith Giving glory to God and being fully convinced that what he has promised he was able to perform And therefore it was counted to him for righteousness

So you become weak in faith by considering the wrong things

The Bible says that he did not consider his own body already dead Or the deadness of Sarah's womb

Because faith doesn't deny reality

It just doesn't regard it

You cannot confront a problem that you hold in high esteem

And that's why David could defeat Goliath

Irrespective of his size because he did not regard Goliath

Whatever you consider will overwhelm you

Whatever you focus on will fill your heart

So instead of considering his own body or the deadness of Sarah's womb

Abraham considered the faithfulness of God And the ability of God to bring to pass his promise

And this is what you need to learn today

Instead of considering the wrong things Consider the faithfulness of God and the ability of God

David said I've set the Lord always before me He's at my right hand therefore I shall not be moved

And the Bible says that he has set a table before you in the presence of your enemies

So don't focus on what God has not set before you

Remember you don't need more power

You need to grow stronger in faith

And more confident in the power that God has already given to you

And the person of the Holy Spirit

Have a blessed day friends!

..The Holy Spirit indwelling us and empowering us to respond rightly, the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is able to take what you have and give God his greatest glory from that thing.

The Holy Spirit is the breath of God at the beginning, the wind that carried the creative word of God, the spirit of God that hovered above the face of the deep.

To Joseph, He was the dream giver, to Moses, He was the fire from the bush calling for the deliverance of an oppressed nation, He was the precious oil that anointed kings and prophets.

He is the one who inspired the builders of the Tabernacle in Exodus.

In Leviticus, He is the sovereign fire. In Numbers, He is the different spirit that separated men of faith from men of fear.

In Deuteronomy, He is the cloud by day and the fire by night.

In Joshua, He is the ruach of God's people, the breath that came forth upon the shout and trumpet, the sound that caused the walls to crumble.

He was Samson's strength, the Ruth's oil of favor, the anointing of David.

And to Elijah, He was the still small voice, the multiplying effect for the widow, the one who caused dry bones to live again.

And in Chronicles, He is the kindred spirit, the fortifying spirit.

In Ezra, He is the convincing spirit drawing the hearts of men to repentance.

In Nehemiah, He was the comforter, the leadership ability of Nehemiah.

To Esther, He was the voice of her destiny. And to Job, He was the life-giving spirit. He was Solomon's wisdom. In Psalms, He is the spirit of worship. In Proverbs, He is the spirit of wisdom.

In Ecclesiastes, He is the spirit of purpose. He is eternity in our heart.

In the song of Solomon, He is the hidden dove among the rocks, the alluring wind, the unquenchable fire. And Isaiah reveals Him as the spirit that rested upon Jesus. And Jeremiah referred to Him as fire in his bones, the one who ignites the word of God in any man and in any heart.

Lamentation reveals Him as the one who grieves deeply over sin.

Ezekiel shows us that He is the spirit of oneness with God, the revealer of secret things.

In Daniel, He is the excellent spirit. In Hosea, He is the patient spirit.

In Joel, He is the promise of the Father. In Amos, He is the consuming fire, the flame that devours our idols and our false perception of God.

In Obadiah, He is the guarantee of deliverance. For upon Mount Zion there shall be deliverance and holiness, and the children of Jacob shall possess their possession.

In Jonah, He is the wind that redirects, the one who guides you into the perfect will of God.

In Micah, He is the unchanging spirit. He won't change his mind about you and about what He is telling you to do.

Nahum says that He is the one who warns the sinful ones of the wrath of God.

In Habakkuk, He is the spirit of righteous indignation. In Zephaniah, He is the spirit of hope. In Haggai, He is the spirit of boldness.

In Zechariah, He is the spirit of grace. He empowers us to do and become all that God has desired of us. And in Malachi, He is the refiner's fire, the one who purifies us and sanctifies us in nature and in character.

And in the New Testament we see him as the power behind the incarnation of Christ, the threshing wind, the secret to greater works, the power of the church, the one who sheds the love of Christ in our heart, our intercessor, our helper, our sanctifier, the transforming spirit, the giver of gifts.

And today, He ignites the heart of every believer with a passionate love for Jesus, the kind that causes even martyrs to lay down their lives, the generous giver of spiritual gifts.

He helps us to pray continually, live righteously, evangelize boldly, believe radically, worship sincerely and walk powerfully on this earth and that Holy Spirit is in you.

Don't make your relationship with the Holy Spirit an emergency relationship. It must be an abiding relationship. And if you are not willing to identify with Christ then you are stifling the work of the Holy Spirit. Have a blessed day friends.

The only reason some people cannot see what God is doing is because they are focused on what he hasn't done for them.

They are focused on their disappointments.

Well here's the truth. It is not what God does for you that validates who He is. God is still Jehovah Rapha.

The death of your loved one did not change that.

God hasn't stopped being provider because you couldn't pay rent.

God hasn't stopped being Jehovah Nissi because you slipped into depression.

It is not what God does for you that validates who he is. God is God.

So don't build your faith on acts. Don't build your faith on acts. Build your faith in the knowledge of God.

Your faith must be based on the revelation of Jesus Christ, on what he has done on the cross of Calvary and the power in his name.

Friends, don't let your disappointment infiltrate your doctrine.

So in our text today, we see the life and the faith, the attitude of the believers in Acts chapter 12.

Although James died, they still fought for Peter.

When your disappointment does not affect your concept of God, your labour of love, your walk of faith, and your patience in hope, then you have gained a level of maturity that is not common today.

Your faith must be in the character of God, the power of his name, and the finished walk of Christ on the cross of Calvary.

Your life will change if you don't think on the level of your feelings.

Any believer who is ruled by the Word of God cannot be trapped by the enemy.

So don't think on the level of your feelings. Think on the level of the truth. Think on the level of your faith, not on the level of your feelings.

This is why it is possible for the child of God to feel down, but think up. This is why it's possible for the child of God to feel death, but you think life. This is why you can be surrounded by uncertainties, but you can see possibilities.

Discouragement is the first step to your next failure. Satan will get you discouraged so he can set you up for your next failure and your disappointment.

The discouragement that comes from your mistakes is designed to put a wall on your way. It's designed to put a wall on your journey.

A wall makes you turn back. A wall prevents you from seeing the way forward. It's like losing James and not seeing the possibility of having Peter back.

You must determine, you must make up your mind that by the grace of God, you will never get discouraged. No matter how much you failed, no matter how deeply you failed, even if everything goes wrong around you, you're going to have hope that God is still almighty and he has a plan for you.

Remember the Lord. Remember who God is. Don't lose sight of him. Don't lose sight of who He is. Remember the Lord.

Remember that he's kind. Remember that he's merciful. When you make a mistake, remember that he's merciful.

Also, remember who you are in him. Also, remember what he has done. Remember what he has done.

The same God you are agitated about is the same one who stepped in in time and went to Calvary for your sake.

How quick we forget. How quick. How quick we forget that he gave himself. And if he gave himself, what can he not give to you?

Listen, if God does not release things to you when you want him to release them to you, then you must learn to believe that he has a better plan. You must learn to see what he's doing. You must learn to see what he's doing. You must learn to realize that God is withholding that thing from you because he has seen that that is the thing that brings him or brings you to him. And he wants to get that thing out of the way. He doesn't want your needs to be the mediator. He wants Jesus to be the mediator.

Sometimes for a lot of us, our needs are the middle point between us and God. Every time there's a need, that's when we come. And so we come to God through our needs. And God says, no, I want you to come to me.

God says I honor my word more than my name. Remember what he has said to you. Don't be quick to forget what God said to you.

The moment we lose our hunger for God

We start filling up with other things

And then the casualness of our pursuit Begins to define our decline

And the reason we fall is because we're trying to stand And we're trying to do it in our own strength

God is not in love with the future version of you

It is not the you in tomorrow that God loves and delights in

It's not you when you get your act together

Now if you believe that Christ's love for you is a future love for you

Then you dismiss the cross of Christ

Because the more you make this world about you The more miserable you will be

God does not regret saving you

Now Satan is trying to give you a mental discount For what Jesus paid in full for

But you see, without a heart transformed by the grace of God You just continue to manage external and internal darkness

Christ must have your attention Be your ambition and your treasure

And without this, everything that you try to do for him Including suffering for him is a fool's errand

And then you realize that grace is not a sin management venture

Your encounter of God's grace is first an encounter of God's saving grace

Which is an invitation to experience the life of Christ

And then there is the enabling grace which empowers you to be all that God has called you to be In his will and in his standard

Remember friends, God is not in love with the future version of you

Have a blessed day friends!