COURAGE, CONFIDENCE AND SURETY

 And my righteous ones will live by faith.

But I will take no pleasure in anyone

who turns away

Hebrews 10:38

 
 
To believe is to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so: Only if one believes in something can one act purposefully.


To have confidence is to be in a state or quality of being certain (free from doubt or reservation, to be confident and sure).
This confidence is the assurance, that one is sure, without a doubt in whatever we believe in. This assurance and surety gives one the courage and determination to do whatever is required to bring that which we seek to manifestation.


Surety is the condition of being sure, especially of oneself, to have self-assurance.


This, my beautiful people is what faith is all about. It is about stepping out, walking, working and acting in confidence, courage and surety. It is the springboard to the manifestation of our believe in God and His abilities. This is what it means when we talk about exercising our faith.
 


It is important to understand the element of courage, confidence and surety in its entirety because:

• Without faith (confidence, courage and surety) it is impossible to please God   Hebrews 11:6, it reads "And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him."  We have the great example of faith through the 'father of Faith' Abraham. He displayed his faith, not in abject of his existence, but by walking and working in confidence, courage and surety in God.  Think of it, it must take unshakable confidence  and assurance in God to be willing and obedient to sacrifice his only son at the alter! (Genesis 22:1-12). I mean he was so sure that God will provide the offering for the sacrifice - verse 8 "8 Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together".   Bearing in mind that God had told Abraham he will be the 'father of nations', now under normal, human logic, if the son is sacrificed, how will this happen?  However, Abraham was sure of God displayed this in his obedience. 

• The way which we as believers are to display our faith in God is through courage, Confidence and surety as declared right here in Hebrews 10:38, which reads "But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him."  Remember, we established that to be courage, confidence and surety. I am more scared of the second part of that verse "God will not be pleased" ...!

• Faith (courage, confidence and surety) turns our weakness into strength. When we act in faith we don't think of the consequences (which is what holds most of us back - such as the 'why, how and what ifs' . We keep ourselves grounded by being severely consumed with questions such as "what will people say, they will think I have lost my mind, or call me foolish!".  We forget that it was God's word or prompt to act in faith and obedience.

When move daily in faith, we bring about PURPOSEFUL ACTIONS. 

"Purposeful action can be defined as a series of events or steps motivated by commitment to a mission. In order to be purposeful, the mission for the action must be derived from inner conviction, and the action must benefit others beyond self".

Nothing will faze us, because we will be purposefully intentional on all our actions and behaviour. Thus, no matter how long or how difficult, we will keep at it because of the inner conviction and surety we posses.  Are you still with me so far?

So my question today is thus: 

Are you purposeful in your actions, behaviour in your everyday living? 

When you get out of bed, are you intentional in all that you have planned to do, or are you just moving with the flow, like pollen carried aimlessly by the wind?

Do you want a happy marriage or relationships? Are you purposeful in the investment of time, effort and yes money into it?

Do you want wisdom, understanding and insight to what you are doing? Are you purposeful in your prayers to God? Is it a shopping list you present to Him or a desire to be in the presence of the King?

Beloved, today, I encourage you to call forth the courage, confidence and surety you have in God and His abilities; in the words He has spoken to you, in His very promises to you.  They are already within you for it is in your bloodline and heritage as I wrote previously (READ MORE  HERE)

Do you want to have financial freedom? Are you purposeful in your spending, and tithing and giving habits?
Do you want a new job or career? Are you purposeful in seeking out and completing those application forms, even though it is the 100th one?

I encourage you impregnate your daily living with purposeful actions, through courage, confidence and unshakable assurance in God's word, His very power at work within you; making God famous along your way. 

Much love, Remi,
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Something In You + God's Ablity = God's Best

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly

abundantly above all that we ask or think,

according to the power that works in us

Ephesians 3:20

The first week of the year has gone by and I am sure, like myself, most will have written out their plans, declarations and proclaiming that 2010 will be their greatest year yet; declaring Jeremiah 29:11, God's hope and future plans for us all the way.

However, it is one thing for us to declare to have a good year, and another to see it manifested. The verse above, when looked at properly is divided into two parts;

The first part is thus: "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think.... This shows God's infinite and amazing power and ability.

The second part is thus: "according to the power that works in us" Ah ah! This is the part we tend to overlook or not read as part of that scripture. This part tells us that there is something, an action that we must do. This tells us that we are 'conduits' (A means by which something is transmitted) to the manifestation of God's "exceedingly abundantly and above all we ask for or think" in our lives.

The question to ponder on is thus: "are you an open conduit for God's "exceedingly abundantly and above all that you ask for or think"?

In Ephesians 1:19-20, the power that works within us is confirmed as the same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead. It reads "I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power, that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. "

The power that works within us include:

• The power of Belief: John 1:1
• The power of willingness: Isaiah 1:19
• The Power of obedience: Jeremiah 7:23
• The Power of Prayer: Philippians 4:6-7
• The Power of Patience: Isaiah 40:31
• The Power of perseverance: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
• The power of praise: Deuteronomy 10:21

The word 'works' in the opening scripture means: to act or operate effectively.

This means we must give this power within us a daily and continuous work out. It is no use if the power is just there doing nothing. We must EXERCISE this power, like one working out in the gym. We must confess, declare, and live out it's realities, every single day.

The result of this, when given to God's infinite ability, will provide awesome means to bring forth His best into our lives.

Power Within You + God's ability = God's Best

At this point, I am reminded of a story I heard once, of that of a man who kept praying and asking God to intervene in his life situations. He kept saying "God do something about this or that problem", however, God responded by saying "son, if you want me intervene, give me something to work with".

Are you working and living the intricacies of that something, that power with you, on a daily and continuous basis, to bring forth God's best for you this year?

God wants you to experience the best He has to offer you this year, because He has a good future planned for you as declared in Jeremiah 29:11, which reads "For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." However, we do have our part to play in this promise. We must REALISE the power within us and THEN workout this power to make it a good portal for God's best to be manifested in our lives.

So, as you start a new week, I encourage you to acknowledge and belief, without any doubt the power of God within you. I encourage you to put this power to work through Belief, willingness, obedience, prayer, patience, perseverance and praise, and watch God give you the best year you have ever had yet!

Have a great time living out the intricacies of the power of God that works within you, bringing into your reality the manifestation of God's best; whilst making Him famous along your way.

Much love, Remi
Be uplifted and Inspired
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COMMIT YOUR PLANS...

It is wise to...

"Commit your actions to the Lord

and your plans will succeed".

Proverbs 16:3

For you see, without God's help...
"You may think you are on the
right road and still end up dead"
Proverbs 14:12

Without His help...

"We can make our plans, but the

Lord determines our steps".

Proverbs 16:9

We as "People can make all kinds of plans,
but only the Lord's plan will happen".
Proverbs 16:21

So with this in mind, "DO NOT boast of

[yourself and] tomorrow, for you know

not what a day may bring forth"

Proverbs 27:1

Therefore, ALWAYS remember to...

"Trust God from the bottom of your heart;

don't try to figure out everything on your own.

Listen for God's voice in everything you do,

everywhere you go; he's the one who will keep

you on track. Don't assume that you know it all"

Proverbs 3: 5-6

Much Love....Remi

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Product Of Your Environment?

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand"!

Mathew 3:2

A short while ago, a few friends and I were discussing fashion; what the world of fashion expresses as the appropriate way to put an ensemble together. The argument was that apparently, there is a 'general rule of fashion', which states for example, that it is forbidden to wear white socks with sandals and a pair of shorts!

I replied with the question "who made this so called ‘general rule of fashion' and how did it come about? The way an individual chooses to put together clothing items to make an outfit, isn't this dependant on what that individual is exposed to, their environment?

... and thus the question:

"what is the nature, shape, form and very essence of the environments that we are exposed to"?

The dictionary describes Environment as thus: the aggregate of surrounding things, conditions, or influences; surroundings or the social and cultural forces that shape the life of a person or a population.

Every environment we find ourselves in produces knowledge; good or bad. We acquire knowledge from our environment. The experiences within our environment plays a vital part in the formation of our knowledge, such as pain, love, or compassion.

The knowledge obtained from our environment is eventually transformed into belief. Belief is defined as 'the mental act, condition, or habit of placing trust or confidence in another'. Belief is what we accept as the truth, and this is greatly influenced from the knowledge we are exposed to.

Our belief shapes our values. For instance, we will place a high value on what we think is important and not readily exchange it for what is not.


Going further, our values influence the choices we make in life. When we are presented with options, the values that has been instilled within us, from our beliefs, will inform the choices we make. For example, if a believer is faced with a choice of going to church on Sunday morning as opposed to watching a movie, he/she will most likely choose to go to Church. It is safe to say that the individual will place more value on going to church than watching a movie.

And finally our choices determine the actions we make. Such as wearing white socks with sandals and a pair of shorts! For whoever wears such believes that is sensible fashion and has made the choice to wear it as so, based on the fashion experiences that individual has been exposed to, within their environment.

In Mathew 3:2 John the baptist, whilst preaching in the wilderness of Judea said “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” To repent means to turn from sin and evil towards God. Repentance means to change our environment from a sinful one to a godly one. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and saviour we don't add Him to our sinful environment. We move from our sinful environment into His environment. We change our heart from sin, to one that is open towards God's word of truth. We change our environment from Darkness to Light.

True repentance should and will change our actions, as we are taught in Luke 3: 8 - 14 and in Acts 26:20 , not forgetting that our actions is a result of our choices, values, beliefs and knowledge, all originating from our environment. To have a change of actions when we repent, means we have had a change of environment.

What is the nature, shape and form of your environment? What knowledge are you getting from it? What beliefs are you forming from it? What values are you developing from it? What choices are you making, based on it, and what actions is being manifested because of it?

If your actions are not helping you live out the realities of the salt of the earth (Mathew 5:13), or the the Light of the world (Mathew 5:14) that God has declared you to be, I encourage you to change the very nature, shape and form of your environment. This is so that your good deeds (actions) and not 'the general rule of manifesting from the wrong environment' shines out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly father; making Him famous along the way.

Much Love
Remi

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Constant and Continous is He: even in the midst of famine

And I will put a division and a

sign of deliverance between

My people and your people.

By tomorrow shall this sign be in evidence.

Exodus 8:23

... and the story continues to be delivered through all forms of media; television, radio, newspapers, the Internet, even on bill boards. Tales about the devastating blows of the doom and gloom of the world's recession is never ending, it seems

The constant barrage of the state of the recession is a repackaged tactic of the devil. A tactic to instill fear into the minds of those taking it all in. However, as children of God, who firmly reside within His Economy, we know that because He is good, we are going to be okay.

Over time and throughout the Bible, God has shown us His continuous and constant desire to proposer his children, even in the times of famine (recession). His aim is to prosper us in wealth, health, relationships, influence and affluence and so much more; so that we in turn can be a blessing to others, bringing glory to His name.

God spoke the verse above when he was about to bring the plague of 'the Plague of Flies' upon the Egyptians, (please read the Exodus chapter 6 - 9 for completion). In the midst of all the havoc that was to be evident in the land, God promised to 'protect, set aside, mark and treat different' the Israelites, showing that He is their all powerful, knowing and protecting God.

As I mused over that verse, I realised that, even in the middle of this world's crisis, it is still God's constant and continuous desire to "set us apart, mark us with his blood, make it evident that we have and serve a living God, who is more than able to rise us well above the recession". After all, He is a God that changes not, He did it before and He will do it again; only if we let him through our obedience.

Some encouraging stories of how God showed his constant and continuous desire for his children to prosper in the times of famine are:

• Isaac became prosperous - Genesis 25 - 26 (please read for completion): Isaac was a diligent and obedient man and he moved as instructed by God to Gerar, the land of the philistines. In response to his obedience God blessed him in the land of Gerar, he reaped in the same year of famine (recession) a hundred fold. We must note that God blessed Issac because he was obedient. Also, we learn that Isaac did not follow the ways of the world and go to Egypt like everyone did, or as his father Abraham did. He obtained instructions for his own victory, in the times of famine. What is God telling you to do, physically or spiritually? Are you following God's or the world's pathway to your victory in this recession?

• God saves the Israelites in the wilderness - In Deuteronomy 8 (please read for completion): Here, we learn how God fed the Israelites on their journey through the wilderness. God supernaturally fed them through manna (bread) from heaven. This bread was to be gathered together by specific instructions from God. The Israelites lived the reality of Matthew 4: 4 which reads "But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God". God did more than feed them, he made their clothing (clothes and shoes) last on them throughout their time in the desert, forty years. Imagine that? They never outgrew their clothes or shoes. The Israelites ate manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan. This is proof that God saw them through the wilderness. As he did it for the Israelites, He can and will see us through the hard times, if we let him and are obedient.
  


• Elijah fed by Ravens - 1 Kings 17 (please read for completion): In verse 2 and 3 of this chapter, we see how God told Elijah to move from where he was to the brook of Cherith , the east of Jordan. In this place God provided water to drink and ravens to feed him food. The awesomeness of this is that Raven birds, are scavengers in nature, and they do not discriminate between humans and animals, they will eat it all. However, this is the same bird that God commanded to feed Elijah. God can use the same wave and instigator of this recession to feed, take care and increase His children.
  

• The Widow of Zarephath - 1 Kings 17 (please read for completion): This is another wonderful example of how God provided for his own, through obedience; and also how the obedience of one person, led to the saving of another life. The widow of Zarephath and her son were down to their last meal and close to death by starvation. God commanded Elijah to move from the brook Cherith, (where he had initially hidden and provided for him), to go to Zarephath, where he will meet this widow. On getting to Zarephath, he did see the widow. He asked her for some water to drink and some bread to eat - on which the woman replied in 1 Kings 17 11 - 12, which reads "11As she was going to get it, he called to her and said, Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand. 12And she said, As the Lord your God lives, I have not a loaf baked but only a handful of meal in the jar and a little oil in the bottle. See, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and bake it for me and my son, that we may eat it--and die."
  
  Elijah heard her plight, but because he knew God was onto something, encouraged her. The widow obeyed the prophet and the result of both of their obedience was that she, her house hold and Elijah, ate for many days throughout the famine. They never lacked. From this we must understand that the ramifications of obedience to God is usually bigger than us. In this case, Elijah's obedience saved the widow and her household. The widow's obedience, gave room for God to do his work and provide for both of them.
  

• The favoured man called Joseph - Genesis 40 - 41 (please read for completion): The favour of God was on Joseph, for God gave him the wisdom and ability to govern and administer the house of Pharaoh and his people. God gave him the wisdom, ability and skills to know where, how to and when to gather up all the [surplus] food that will be required to help Egypt survive the times of famine. We must ask God for His wisdom to know where the opportunities are in this season; when, where and how to invest and sow our time, resources and skills and gifts.



• Famine during the reign of King Claudius - Acts 11 (please read chapter for complete ion): There was a famine in the land of Antioch during the reign of King Claudius. At this time, God provided for the disciples living in Antioch, however, they in turn, provided and helped each other according to their capability and how God blessed them. verse 29 - 30 reads "29 Then the disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea. 30 This they also did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul". We must learn that when God prospers us in this recession, we should not embrace a selfish nature and hold onto it all. We are blessed to be a blessing, thus we should reach out to others and help them to rise above the waves of recession. In doing so, the true nature and colours of God's love will come shining through, bringing glory to His holy name.

On that note, I encourage us all not to be carried away on the waves of fear because of the continuous news about the world's global recession. Declare and decree that "you are NOT participating in the world's recession", for you reside in God's economy. In doing so, you are hiding yourself under God's rock, under his wings and in the shelter of the name of Jesus Christ, where he will not only provide for you and your family but prosper you until you become extremely prosperous.

However, when God prospers you, do not forget to be a blessing to those around you, helping them rise above tides recession; making God famous along your way.


Much Love
Remi Banjo

***Pictures by photobucket***

A Shoulder..

“Above all things have intense and

unfailing love for one another,

for love covers a multitude of sins

[forgives and disregards the offenses of others]”

1 Peter 4:8

Like a soulful melody
its every hearts' and soul's eventual remedy

Like the gift of a new day
it's presence is never old never blue
always relevant and ever so true

God's love is profoundly sure
Yield your heart to him
and experience love like never before

Love is a shoulder to lean on

A drop of its essence,

relieves a thirsty and patched soul

Be that love shoulder

offer a sip of love to someone today

show the true nature of God's love

Making him famous as along your way

"Dear children, let us not love with words
or tongue, but with actions and in truth"
1 John 3:18

Have a wonderful time displaying the true colours of God's love, making him more famous than you did yesterday.

Much love
Remi Banjo
***Pictures from Photobucket***

They Love Adayingodswill...Yipeee

A big thanks to simeone for giving adayingodswill the "I love your blog" award.

Thanks to everyone for reading and commenting. I thank God that you have been blessed by the words the Holy Spirit gives me to write. I pray that as long as I have breathe I continue to write and you continue to be blessed by it.

Right, I am supposed to pass it on to others, well, if it was possible I would nominate all my readers, but I have to nominate a listed number... so here goes, I hereby nominate the "I love you blog" award to the following fellow bloggers:

• Deboo
• Ladyguide
• Solomonsydelle
• shubbydoo
• dunspoken
• Africansunrise
• disgodkidd

These are the rules that come and go with the award.

• The nominated is allowed to put the picture on their blogs.
• Link to the person who awarded you.
• Nominate seven other people and link to them.
• Leave a message on those people's blog to make them aware that they're nominated.

Once again, thank you for this award Simeone, God bless you and may we have many more blogging years ahead of us, to affect this and the next generation to come.

Much Love

Remi Banjo

The Garden Cultivator

His name is George, but everyone who knows him called him "The Garden Cultivator".

George was a business spokesman for his company, but his real passion in life is gardening. He loved the idea of turning a barren land into a beautiful banquet of colours; filling it with trees, flowers and fruits, herbs and everything good that can be planted. Attached to his home is a very good size of land, which spawns from the back towards to front of the house. It was this land that helped him make the decision to settle there with his wife Mary.

George spends every spare moment he has on this piece of land. Planting, sowing, watering; cultivating his garden. Over the years, he has transformed it into a beautiful and magnificent garden, which presents and explosion of colours and life. People travel from far and wide, just to see the beauty it represents. He even won the local gardener award this year, and has done so for the past three years. The local animals even testify to its beauty, even they seem to spend all their spare time in George's garden.

It has not been an easy task or journey to get this garden into such good condition. It has taken a lot of effort, determination, persistence and diligence to get there.

Along the way, he has also learnt valuable lessons of making sure the right seed is planted, at the right time, in the right season and even in the right corner of the garden!. This he learnt especially, five winters ago, when he bought some mango seeds from the local garden shop. They looked like proper seeds and the seller promised that once planted they would grow into a beautiful mango tree. That was not the case. A month after planting the seeds, a good part of his garden was covered with weeds, they were ferocious. Their roots went deep and it was extremely hard to get rid of them. Every time he cut them off, within a week they were back and with a vengeance. He however, eventually learnt how to cut them off from the roots and then treat that part of the garden with special weed repellent for to cure it permanently.

He promised himself to be more careful about his selection of seeds after that experience, and now he is know to travel far and wide to obtain good quality seeds, as only the best will do.

"To visualise Gorge's garden is to experience a soul thriving with life, represented in an explosion of colours, wrapped in the ambiance of love."

*********************************************************************************

Man is the cultivator of his mind. Our minds can be likened to a garden and we, are the gardeners. The thoughts we plant therein are the seeds. Just like George cultivates his land, every one of us cultivates the garden that is our mind. We either plant & cultivate bad or good 'thought seeds'.

The word 'Cultivate' means to:

• improve and prepare (land), as by plowing or fertilizing, for raising crops; till. or
• to promote or improve the growth of (a plant, crop, etc.) by labor and attention. or
• to develop or improve by education or training; train; refine: to cultivate a singing voice.

The word 'Gardening' is the:

• practice of growing plants for their attractive flowers or foliage, and vegetables or fruits for consumption.

We are responsible for the seeds we plant into our minds. The 'thoughts seeds' we cultivate is what will, eventually be (good or bad) manifested as our reality. Why? This is because our thoughts and characters are one.

"What we focus our minds on constantly, will eventually be part of our character. Thus we must be careful of what we meditate on because it forms our character and our character determines our actions."

Proverbs 23:7 reads "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee."

So my question for us today is: "What thought seeds are we planting into the garden that is our mind? Are cultivating seeds that will bring forth an explosion of colours and life or are we planting seeds that breed negativity and an explosion of darkness?"

In today's world, it is more important than ever, that we are mindful of the 'thought seeds' that we let settle in our mind garden; TV (a million channels, a million wrong and right seeds), magazine ( so many to choose from), radio, even from some pulpits!

So, how can we make sure we cultivate our minds with the right 'thought seeds'?

We can learn a few lessons from the great Psalmist David, as he writes in Psalms 119:9-11
How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

Hiding God's words within the realms our hearts is an awesome weapon against weeds that might try to take hold. The word will act as weed repellent or weed killer; destroying any invasion of weeds and killing eliminate any weeds already taking hold.

Psalm 1: 1- 2 reads 1Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. 2 But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night.

Meditating on the word of God is one of the best way to make sure that the garden of our mind is cultivated and ready for the right seeds to be planted.

Also, we should be conscious of our surroundings, not everything we see, hear or read is good for our mind's consumption. We must learn to ask the holy spirit for discernment, insight, knowledge and wisdom, to know what to accept and what to leave behind.

So here is me encouraging us all to be the best garden cultivator of our minds that we can be, for in doing so the manifestation will be to the glorification of God's name, thereby drawing people unto him.

Have a wonderful time cultivating your mind, spirit and soul; not forgetting to make God famous along the way.

Much Love

Remi Banjo

***Pictures curtesy of photobucket***

This post has been inspired by the book "As a man thinketh"

September Only By His Grace...

This is the day, and the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it!

I would like to welcome everyone to the beautiful month of September.

It's only by God's grace and mercy that we have made it this far.

Some have started the year, the month of January with us, but right now in September, they are no more.

Let's join the host of heaven to declare and proclaim His greatness, His awesomeness and His glory as the psalmist declares in Psalm 19:11, which reads "The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship".

This month, I pray that we will all make a conscious decision and effort to put God first and in ALL that we do, therefore giving Him room to empower us to prosper and be all that we should be. This we are taught in Matthew 6:33, which reads "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need".

I pray that we make a conscious decision and effort to INVITE (which is defined as "To ask for the presence or participation of...") His Will and Kingdom into our lives daily (as we are taught in Mathew 6: 9 - 10, which reads "9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done ") and He will bestow unto us all that we need for a daily fulfilled life in His presence.

Finally, I encourage us all to do diligently, with a good heart, that whichever we find our hands doing; for it is all for God's glory, it's about making Him famous and drawing men unto Him. This we are taught in Ecclesiastes 9:10, which reads "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going."

Have an awesome month in God's presence, being all that you have already been created and gifted to be.

Much Love

Remi Banjo

***pictures by photobucket***

Kabiyesi Modupe

Eyes fluttering open to

the rising of the sun

My soul, it leaps with joy in realisation

that the Lord has blessed it

with the gift of another day

Excitement building up within

I whisper and say to Elohim

"Kabiyesi, Kabiyesi, Kabiyesi, modupe o"

Thanking the king of Kings for

the beauty of a new dawn

Leaping up and out from my resting place

I present to him an offering of praise

Hips, they wiggle gently to the left,

stirring up a dance to 'Olódùmarè'

Another wiggle emerges, this time

veering the hips to the right,

offering gratitude to 'Olórun Agbaye'

Last night, numerous souls that laid down to sleep

the beauty of this mornings light, they are no more to see
Yet, once again, the faithful 'baba', has kept me safe

'Oba awon oba' has really been good to me I mused,

as my soul catches up with the movement of my hips

rejoicing in tune to the King's faithfulness

Full dance now in swing
face heavenwards

proclaiming, I sing
Baba mi
Osuba re re o

Oba taori, tan'rise owo re

Èsé o, modupe, mojuba o

'Kebiyesi, Eledami'

May your Kingdom come
and your will be done today

From the rising of the sun
till the going down of the same
©Remi Banjo, July 2008
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Renew Your Vocabulary

Job 22:28 reads: "You shall also decide and decree a thing, and it shall be established for you; and the light [of God's favor] shall shine upon your ways. (Amplified bible translation).

"You'll decide what you want and it will happen; your life will be bathed in light" (Message bible translation).

"You will succeed in whatever you choose to do, and light will shine on the road ahead of you." (Living bible translation)

"Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways" (NKJ version)

From the passage above, we can say that for God's will to be done and for his kingdom to come in our lives, we need to:

• Firstly, make a decision. We have to decide to desire our lives to be in line with God's will and want his kingdom to come. To decide is to make a choice.
• Secondly, we have to Decree on what we have decided. The dictionary explains decree as thus “to command, ordain, or decide by decree.” And as “one of the eternal purposes of God, by which events are foreordained.”
• Thirdly, when we decide, and decree, God establishes it. To establish means to “bring into being on a firm or stable basis. It means to bring about order” Do you want order in some areas of your life? Then decide, say something - decree it and God will gladly establish it!
• Finally, after God has established it, he blesses us with the manifestation and we walk in it's reality. The NKJ above says - "and the light shall shine upon thy ways." To walk in favour means “ to bestow a privilege upon” This means on establishment of what he has decreed, he goes one further and gives us the privilege to walk in it's reality. Isn't that awesome?

"Our Christian faith is a spoken faith". All throughout the bible, we read the emphasis of this spoken faith. From Genesis to revelation, we read “God said”, “the Lord said” or “Jesus Said”. Starting from the beginning, God spoke creation into existence. He spoke the heavens, the earth and all in-between into manifestation. Genesis 1:3 reads “God said (that phrase again) “let there be light” and there was light. What do you want to manifest or come into existence in your life?

Also in Romans 10:9, we see the basis of our spoken faith, it reads "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."

The emphasis is SPEAK. We have to say something, which in turn gives God something to work with, giving him something to establish and therefore something to favour us with. God cannot establish something until we decree it, and we need to keep decreeing it until God establishes it. I envisage some of us saying "God come on, please do something" and God is saying "Come on my child, say something"

As God can establish that which we declare, so can the devil. So if we speak prophetic words and promises according to God's will, then it will be established. On the other hand, if we speak negative and idle words into our lives, the devil is just as happy to grab hold of it and establish it, making us walk in it's reality. Makes one think huh?

“Our words create our worlds" The question I have for us today is thus “what words are you speaking into your life or into that of someone else (your friends, family, husband, children and the like).

Some truths about words:

• Words are powerful: We read in James 3: 3 – 6 (message bible translation reads)
  "It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell" Yikes... dosen’t that just send shivers down your spine?!


• Words are Piercing: The dictionary defines piercing as “to penetrate into or run through (something), as a sharp, pointed dagger, object, or instrument does.”
  The words we speak borrows deep into the lives of those it's directed at, like the roots of a palm tree, which burrows itself way down into the centre of the earth, making the tree almost indestructible.


• Words are perpetual: The dictionary describes perpetual as “continuing or enduring forever; everlasting” and “Flowering throughout the growing season.” Imagine that, for ever and everlasting!! Words travel from our past to present and to the future and it keeps on going.

Just for a minute, picture the scene. A mother tells her son to complete a task, unfortunately he gets is slightly wrong (after all he is only human). The mother gets upset and in anger she makes this statement “you are so useless, you will never amount to anything, just like your father"! . Now imagine this to be a repetitive occurence, various times of the week, month or year.

Now imagine those words creating a spark, a fire, burning the flames of worthlessness and inability within the boy. Imagine the words springing forth roots, burrowing deep into his soul, attacking his identity, distorting the view and notion of who he is or who he can become; the doubt encouraging him to embrace the lie that maybe, just maybe, he is as useless as his mother keeps telling him. Now, this boy armed with this distorted view of himself, goes through life, childhood and adulthood; whilst in college, whilst establishing a career or even in marriage!

What damage a simple, careless statement can cause... and to imagine that this can go on forever and ever! Thank God for his mercies and grace and for deliverance!

Just like a small rudder stirs and controls a big ship, our words control and stirs our life. The choice is our s to make; speak life and give God something to work with, or speak death and give the devil something to run wild with.

Here are a few positive words that should be the makings of our vocabulary.

I am...

Abraham’s seed
Blessed and highly favoured
Covenant Child
Distributor of God’s blessings
Elevated child of God
Flourishing
Gracious
Humble
Irreplaceable
Justified in Christ Jesus
Knowledgeable
Lovable
Made in God’s image
New season planted
Obedient
Precious
Qualified for God’s kingdom
Redeemed from the curse of the law
Saved in Jesus Christ
Triumphant
Upright
Victorious
Wise
Xtra special
Youthful
Zealous

Have a wonderful day declaring God’s will for your life; he will establish it and grant you the privilege of walking in it's favour.

Much love

Remi Banjo

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Expectation

The clouds, they give way
to reveal a sea of eager faces
Faces, impregnated with hope and expectation,
lifted up towards heaven, awaiting
a swing from God's fountain of blessings
Hearts, tapered and carefully laid out
on a bed of assurance; of whispered,
promised and declared manifestations

Psalm 62:5-8

5 Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him. 6 He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken. 7 My victory and honor come from God alone. He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me. 8 O my people, trust in him at all times. Pour out your heart to him, for God is our refuge.

Steadfastly, she fasted and prayed
untold seeds and sacrifices
she sowed and made. Yet, she
awaits at yet another crossroad,
waiting for direction on which way to turn.

She waits, not in panicked anticipation,
but with joyful expectation; for she
knows when she prayed, he heard and
answered even before a sound she made

At the crossroad she waits, she waits for
her angels to ferry forth words of
wisdom and direction, promising herself
not to say "what took you so long?
I've been waiting on you since the break of dawn"

She awaits on words, from the one who holds the
heavens and earth in the palm of his hands
The one who has magnified his word, above his very name

She waits for the master to manifest that which he spoke and
promised to her in secret and to make perfect that
which he has already started within the depths of her

Like one would for train on a deserted station's platform,
so she waits to board the train of words and wisdom,
which is to ferry her to the next appointed destination
©Remi Banjo, July 2008

Much Love
Remi Banjo
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