This is a quote I just spotted on Joel Osteen Ministries Facebook page that appeared on my time line.

I think is very inspirational.

The Bible says that if you will obey God’s commands and keep Him in first place in your life, His blessings will chase you down and overtake you. Get ready to see His overwhelming blessings overtake your life. Failure and calamity have no place in your future. You are blessed!

Merry Christmas

People will always argue about whether or not Christians should celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on 25 December. However it will never take away from the fact that God made a promise to mankind and that was fulfilled with the birth of His only begotten son. There is no argument.

 I pray that everyone has a blessed Christmas with their families and friends. I also pray that the coming new year will be a blessed one.

You're Mighty

I saw this song on Youtube and thought how inspiring this youth choir is. Also below is a testimony that is just so aww amazing.

Bishop John Francis

Here is a video I found on YouTube about Bishop John Francis whose the leader of the church Ruach Ministries in Brixton. It is very interesting. This is one church I would like to attend one day.

Veils Hats Coverings

1 Corinthians 11 has always been one of those sections in the Bible that gets mixed messages. It says

2 Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I delivered them to you. ³ But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. ⁴ Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonours his head.⁵ But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonours her head, for that is one and the same as if her head were shaved. ⁶ For if a woman is not covered, let her also be shorn. But if it is shameful for a woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be covered. ⁷ For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. ⁸ For man is not from woman, but woman from man. ⁹ Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man. ¹⁰ For this reason the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. ¹¹ Nevertheless, neither is man independent of woman, nor woman independent of man, in the Lord. ¹² For as woman came from man, even so man also comes through woman; but all things are from God. 

¹³ Judge among yourselves. Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? ¹⁴ Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonour to him? ¹⁵ But if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her; for her hair is given to her for a covering. ¹⁶ But if anyone seems to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God.

I have always interpreted these verses to mean simply that in the presence of God especially prayer a woman should cover her head. However as you read on to Verse 15 it says a woman's hair is her covering. I used to attend a church where women wore veils over their hair and not their faces. Other churches I have attended the ladies wore hats of varying degrees. My current church does not stipulate any actual head covering for women at all. Should women cover their heads in church or in their everyday lives?

Check out below links
Ladies Church Hats Make Comeback
Head Covering according to Wikipedia
Bible Research The Woman's Headcovering

Jesus Statues

For years I have wondered why Europeans insisted on depicting Christ as a white man with blond hair and blue eyes. Yet these modern day artists never lived in the days of Christ and nor do they live where he lived. I remember growing up and being told by my mother that we should not try to recreate what is in heaven on Earth. Poland has just revealed their Jesus statue, there is one in Brazil and one in Bolivia. 

When reading the Bible I do not see the images of Christ as the statues proclaim. I do not get much description about his physical appearance only where he was born and to whom his family was. Could it be said that the pictures and statues have a political agenda that has no relation to Christianity or God. I have heard people get really upset at depictions of Christ as a black man with locs. Oh the irony. God made us in HIS image. Yet year after year people are making Christ in their own image. 

Does it matter what Christ looked like or should it matter? Are these statues idols as opposed to Jesus tributes? 

Help when you least expect

This may seem like such a small thing but help is always welcomed. I was in my hometown London for a few days over the half term. Having chosen to spend a few hours in Oxford Circus than head to the museums my friend chose the Underground as our mode of travel. I have a strong dis-like of the Underground. It is hot sweaty stuffy and over packed of people. It just does not suit me at all, especially with kids in tow one in a pushchair for long journeys.

So I was thinking. The whole underground journey was quite awful for me. The stairs were never ending and the escalators seem to have no end. However at every step and even on the escalators both in and outside the Tube I was greeted by complete strangers who offered their hand of help. In London you often see women with their buggies making do with the inaccessibility the Tube offers and not always getting help. So I can only say that God knew I was going to need a helping hand and sent me some Angels that day. 

I am thankful.

God in my dreams

I have some weird and interesting dreams. I do have some that gets me thinking or I just cannot help but dwell on for ages. The one  am going to share with you  asked my god friends about it. She walks in faith has been born again and knows her God. This is a dream that I had not long ago. I woke up as this dream was ending and this is what I remember. 

I was in the church that I attend sat in more or less my usual place. On the left near the radiator in the middle of the rows. Praise and worship was taking place at this time but it was not the start of the service. As I get up out of my seat I feel as though I am falling back. As I am falling I could sense people moving towards me, but I could not see who they were. So as I continue to fall I hear people clapping. 

I do not actually feel myself hit the floor. It was as though someone held me in my fall. When I wake in my dream I am stood up rubbing my eyes. My feet are a bit unsteady. So I am leaning trying to catch my balance. Just as I am trying to get my barings my dream ends as I wake up for real.

My friend interpreted my dream as follows:

Ok to me it sounds like God is letting you feel his presence and HE is telling you that the more you praise and worship Him, the more intense He will be with you. Falling may mean loss of support not being able to carry yourself but the clapping means what ever trial you may face God is gonna pull you out and you will be able to stand firm. Although it may be hard. I would encourage u to keep on praising God through any circumstance.

Wow is all I can say. I do not often share my dreams, but during the times where I need clarity it does not hurt to ask someone sometime. What my friend said does make a whole lot of sense to me. Right now I feel like I am facing so many struggles in my life. I just got to keep the faith. I just got to keep going and God will make everything alright. 

Please feel free to leave a comment or share this post to someone who walks in faith. It would be interesting to see what they say too.

Bless my girl and xyz

Here are two of many blackberry messenger messages and texts I receive weekly. Of course it says to share but its the reason why it asks you to share that some may see at fault. It ends with a promise of goodness if only you share.Yet God teaches you to ask and it shall be given unto you. You get what I'm trying to say. I will post more of these just because most contain nice prayers and inspiration.

Dear God,
This is my girl,my friend n sister, whom I love and this is my prayer for her. Help her live her life to the fullest. Please promote her and cause her to excel above her expectations. Help her to shine in the darkest places where it is impossible to love. Protect her at all times, lift her up when she needs you the most and let her know when she walks with you. She will always be safe. I Love You Girl! Now you're on the clock . . . In nine minutes something will make you happy ;) But you have to tell nine sisters you love them, including me. Get going girl !!! Walk byFAITH!

So now read this one below. It definitely pulls at or tries to pull on guilt and bring into question someones faith

When you carry the Bible Satan has a headache,
When you open it he collapses,
When he sees you reading it, he faints,
So let's read the bible,
Every time so that he keeps on fainting.
(maybe one day he'll have a stroke and never wake up)
And did you also know that when you are about
to forward this message to others the Satan will discourage you, but
forward it anyway, and DON'T let him stop you.

Surely the idea is to share the gospel because it is good news and not because of some guilt trip. I hope I will receive an email without the endings that these contain one day.

Luke 12:13-21. The Parable of the Rich Fool

13 Then one from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
14 But He said to him, “Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?” 15 And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness,[a] for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”
16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’
21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (NKJ)
 

I was watching the God channel a while ago and heard a sermon about this very chapter and verse. I do not know who the preacher was but what he was talking about was interesting. He spoke about tithes and offerings and also if people saw themselves as being rich.

He asked the audience if they felt they were rich. Then he asked various questions like, are you able to replace clothes or fix things when they are broken, are you able to save and do you ever have any left over. By that equation you are rich as you have more than what you need.

He further went on to discuss the actual parable above. A rich man has been blessed with an abundance in his crops. He has far more than what he needs or can currently store in the barns he has already. He decided to build more bigger barns so that he can store all this excess and feels that he will truly be living the good life as he as over an abundance of what he needs. However in his reasoning and his conversation with God he learns of missed opportunity. Instead of being able to sit back and enjoy these new found riches he has passed away and no longer has what he has hoarded.

The verse is not saying that you are not allowed to be rich. However what is the point of being rich when the people around you are not. In what way could your riches or your abundance be used to be a blessing to someone else. After all when you pass away you can no longer control what belonged to you. People will more likely remember you for what you didn't give. Whilst many will decide how to share up what you left behind. 

So by using your abundance to be a blessing to someone else does not mean you can not have your luxuries. You can enjoy your abundance just do not get too caught up in your riches that you fail to be a blessing to someone else.

So that is the basically what I am understanding. If you have any other intepretation or angle from this. Please leave a comment. I really would like to know more.

You are my Joy

This is such a lovely and uplifting song. Whenever it sung during Praise and Worship at my church it always gets a reprise. I wish I knew of any artist that has this song available on their album or as single that I could purchase. I really do need to get to know more artists who spread the good news.

You are alive but you are dead

I managed to attend one evening session of my church's conference. It was held over 5 days. Below are the notes that I took. I should have typed these up the very next day so I do hope you still take away what I learned that day and things to ponder.

The speaker was called Dr Kervin J Smith and I had never heard of him before but wow he had some powerful things to say and remind people about. The focus of the session was around Revelations 3 verses 1-6. 

"I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead"

When that part was being read I did not quite understand what was being read out until I listened to the whole service. Well rather when I got home and re-read those verses. 

So basically he said that one of the most dangerous places to find yourself in is yesterday. Staying in your past stops you getting into the future. Think about it. How many times do you sit and think about the "what ifs" ?What if  are the things  that plague you. These things can be from your past or things you wanted to do but have yet to do and keep you in that state of thought. What if I did this or that instead of this. When you settle for mediocrity you accepting what is average and stopping yourself from reaching excellence. 

He went onto say that before you can get to the glory, you got to allow God to kill you first. I take it that he meant that there needs to spiritual birth from deep within our souls lead by God. A new you a better you. The holy spirit is needed by all. 

Why does the church has an identity crisis

There are seven attributes of God (7 spirits of God)

1 - Lord , 2 - Wisdom , 3-Understanding, 4- Knowledge, 5-Council, 6-Mind, 7 - Fear of the Lord 

The church has been inundated with celebrity. Celebrity church TV and more. Some people only want to listen to the favourite pastor on TV yet the person they do not want or side steps may be the person to give the most powerful sermon or testimony you ever heard. So the church and church folk should not get blinded by celebrity.

The church at large is in a mess. People have forgotten the local church. The church that is involved in its local community and not just about getting the most people to attend the sunday service. So the church at large has gotten fat and out of shape.

5 key commandments

 1- Wake up - we have been sleeping and need to wake up at what is going on around us. The church is sleeping and does not want to offend people. However the Gospel is the truth and the church should not be afraid to offend anyone. People need to wake up Psychologically, Spiritually and Socially.

2- Strengthen what remains

3- Remember what  God has brought you out of

4- Move in obedience

5 - Repent - until the church at large repents the church will not see the glory.

Key points in service:

There is no glory without a story

God is pulling you out of the pit 

Greatest anointment happens in isolation 

If you want the glory you have to give God you

When God is getting ready to bless you in the season He will not place a classified ad.

In life you will have 12 true friends yet one of them will be a Judas.  

Start thinking Glory

Church was definitely lively yesterday.Well my church usually is. The spirit of the Lord is definitely among us. I really wanted to discuss more of what Apostle spoke about in service but as usual I didn't take notes. This is something I will definitely aim to do in future.

I am always moved by people's testimonies. One lady spoke about for years not having any feeling attached to life and life events. Such as picking up her great-granddaughter. Through the grace of God she now has those associated feelings that she longed for.

When she was speaking it made me think about myself. I would not say that I do not have any feelings attached to life events. After all anyone that knows me can testify that when it comes to my children, they are so loved by me and they know this. So this lady's testimonie spoke to me. On the front I can come across as emotion less and un-moved by certain things. I am talking about things that hurt that are soul destroying. On the outside I am always happy or appear to be so. Yet deep down inside I feel pain. I just do not know how to deal with it except to smile. Smile in the face of adversity.

I am more rambling than telling a story. I think I just need to learn or allow myself to let go sometime. I hope you got the gyst of what I was trying to say.

This song was sung during Praise and Worship. Kurt Carr - In the Sanctuary

Baptism services

I attended a Baptism service at church yesterday. It was so amazing. My friend who has been a Christian for a few years now finally decided to take the next big step in his faith. He nearly died 6 weeks ago and when he was giving his testimony at church he was choked up in tears. God has definitely blessed him with a good family support network. His family starting with his wife joined him at the altar as his chosen song by Marvin Sapp played in the background called "Never Would have made it".

I could tell that not just him alone but his whole family has been blessed by God. Jesus has truly got them in hand and in spirit. I pray this is the start of the next chapter of his life in Christ.

I had a conversation with another friend of mind about the morning events. She told me amongst other stuff she thought that I was ready to be baptised myself.  I am not too surprised by this as many people do tell me this all the time. It is just I do not see it myself. I would definitely have to concur one of my fears of having my head under water. I cannot swim and the thought of being dipped in water no matter how controlled does put a little fear in me. Just know that when I do my fear would have been concurred or met head on with Jesus by my side. One thing for sure I am going to start attending Bible study soon. Even if I have to start doing a distance learning course like I used to do it will be something a start.

Key points in service :

Apostle noted that Baptism comes from the Greek word  Baptizo which means to immerse in water. Some churches simply splash water on the forehead but that is not the example Jesus set. He Himself was baptised by being submerged in water.

Baptism can occur from the moment you choose to follow and begin following Christ. It is a testament of faith.

During praise and worship at start of service we sang Revelation song and let me tell you this. It gave me chills. I could feel the hairs on my arms and elsewhere standing. It just speaks to me in some way and I cannot explain it. I have included a video below.

Feel free to share your thoughts!

Cassidy expresses his Faith

I came across a beautiful testimony by a rapper called Cassidy. He freestyled some praise and worship to the Lord. This is very refreshing to see. It just goes to show you God welcomes everyone and calls on everyone.

The clip was found on World Star HipHop. He starts off by saying "I want the crowd to know I love my Lord and saviour Jesus Christ with all of my heart".

Bible in Patois

I was reading The Voice newspaper and came across an article about the Bible being translated into Jamaican Patois. As my parents spoke it and my elders speak it, I am always surrounded by Patois. So this sounded interesting. The Bible has been translated into so many languages so that the Word can be understood in the 1st language of so many people.

Luke's Gospel is the 1st book in the Bible to be translated into Jamaican Patois which is the language of the people home and abroad. I have listened to some of the audio book and I am impressed. The story telling is amazing and is sure to get more people wanting to hear more. They have not used the rawest form of patois that foreigners do not understand. Think of it this way it is Patois without slang.

You can get a free download from i-Tunes.

Gospel of Luke in Patois audio book 

The download is free. So tell me what do you think?

My faith is being questioned

I was meant to write this post yesterday. I was just never sure how to put my thoughts into perspective. At work I have been faced with some changes which may not work out to any good for me. The only good thing so far is that I am still employed.

I have new co-workers to work alongside. One in particular seems to have many issues with my faith. He is a Christian devout baptised etc etc. He speaks so negatively about the level of my faith and how I choose to live my life. He has gone so low as to ridicule my church which he has never been to. He preaches to people on the street and evangelises alot. He is committed to God, that is unquestioned.

His qualms are that I currently do out on nights out with the girls and I do drink alcohol. I do know my limits and I do not go out that often. I tend to make the effort for birthdays and childrens parties. This is just a miniscule of what I enjoy doing. Co-worker now refers to me as a rebelious Christian and a drunkard. Come on now how rude and judgemental are you. He loves quoting scripture which is okay. But why quote it to attack someone or be negative.

There is a way to approach people with what you believe and what you think is right. The wrong approach falls on deaf ears. I have spoken to many devout and very committed Christians for their opinion and they were not happy with what they heard. This guy does not know me and has made a sweeping judgement of me based on the fact that I went out for my friends birthday and had a couple of drinks.

Should I point the finger back at him and remind him of his past and the way he used to choose to live his life. The fact that is bride to be is a strong Christian woman, yet he had no standards prior to him being saved. I expressed to him that I felt that he is very judgemental by nature and that even if he was not saved he would be a very judgemental person.

I have prayed about this and believe that God will provide me with the perfect solution. I am just going to keep doing my work and let his words go over and above my head. I know my Lord knows my heart.

I have not given full details just the gyst because there has been more said that was not good. What are your thoughts and how would you handle this situation. Keeping in mind you are at work to work.

  

Search for the Lord and for His strength; continually seek him." 1 Chronicles 16:11

The Son

I recieved this email and thought I would share it only because I like the way the message is given.
 
The ending will surprise you.
 
Take my Son
 
A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art..

When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.
 

About a month later, just before Christmas,

There was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands..
 
He said, 'Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly... He often talked about you, and your love for art.' The young man held out this package. 'I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this.'
 
The father
 
Opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears.. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture.. 'Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift.'
 
The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.
   
The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.
     
On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. 'We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?'
   
There was silence....
 
Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, 'We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one.'
   

But the auctioneer persisted. 'Will somebody bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?'
   
 
Another voice angrily. 'We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Gogh's, the Rembrandt's. Get on with the real bids!'
   
But still the auctioneer continued. 'The son! The son! Who'll take the son?'
   
Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. 'I'll give $10 for the painting...' Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.
   
 
'We have $10, who will bid $20?'
   
'Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters.'
     
The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son.
   
 
They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.
 
   
The auctioneer pounded the gavel.. 'Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!'
 
   
A man sitting on the second row shouted, 'Now let's get on with the collection!'
The auctioneer laid down his gavel. 'I'm sorry, the auction is over.'
  
'What about the paintings?'
  
'I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will... I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings.
 
The man who took the son gets everything!'
   
God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on the cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: 'The son, the son, who'll take the son?'

Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.

For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son, who so ever believe, shall have eternal life ... That's love !

Video Testimony: Song Bird Diva 4 Life

This testimony is very inspiring. It lasts about 26 minutes but well worth it. God is so good and when you put your faith in him, He does not let you down. This young lady is a YouTuber whose screen name is SongBirdDiva4Life.

I hope and pray her words inspire you.

I attended KICC

I attended KICC in East London this past Sunday. It is one of the biggest churches in England and in Europe. They now have 12,000 church attendees every Sunday. As some may know they had to leave their huge church due to the London Olympics and compulsory purchase orders placed on their land and buildings . I am told their current location is only temporary.

Just reading the Sunday bulletin that you are given as you enter the building I am amazed at the amount of services they have. The church holds Sunday services at 7am, 9.30am, 1130am and 1pm. Youth services are held from 4.30pm -6.30pm and the evening service commences at 7pm. That is a lot of worship.

We made it to the 9.30am service and the sermon was about reaching for a higher dimension. Pastor Ashimolowo further expressed that we need to ensure we are not limited by our flesh. I wish I had taken notes of this service. There was so much more discussed.

I liked the fact that there were plenty of young children in attendance. Their noises did not take from the service and let me tell you, It was a very lively service that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Adjacent to the church is the KICC book shop. It is filled with titles from various authors including some of the most popular names. I was pleased to buy What is wrong with being Black" by Matthew Ashimolowo. I have wanted a copy of this book since I saw his series on Black history. I also bought The Winning Women - Habits of a successful Woman by Yemisi Ashimolowo. My friend mentioned this book and I thought I would buy it too. I am reading other books at the moment too so once they are complete I will update

Next time I am in East London I hope to attend KICC again.

For more info on KICC please click here

.com and hopefully changes will come

I bought .com name for my final blog. This time I bought it through google just to simplify the process. I am hoping to update this blog which has been somewhat neglected.

I am still praying and yearning for that spiritual connection. Even more so keener now that my friend got baptised recently and she understood me. So fingers crossed it could be this year. Who knows.

As for this blog I will begin to reflect on my spirituality more often. I am also keen to find out what would make you read this blog more often or even refer it to a friend. Are there any blogs out there that I should be checking out? Please let me know.