Are You Too Busy for God?

I have often thought that if the devil can't make a man bad he'll make him busy.

When I am busy or in a hurry it is impossible for me to have quality relationships with God or people. The devil knows this and is able to hide behind any man's "busy" schedule to accomplish his goal: the destruction of his relationships. He is very aware of the fact that to really know someone a man must learn to slow his pace down to be present and connect. There are the simple mechanics of healthy relationships that can be easily destroyed through external over-commitment and its partner, hurry.

Satan's scheme gets men playing the "busy" card as a justification for lack of quality in their connections with God and people. A full and robust work life should be an expectation of men not a rationalization for why our relationships are weak especially when it comes to your relationship with God. Get that.

It is a healthy expectation of men to earn a living, provide for a family and secure their future. Take that seriously. But when our "to-do" list overshadows our "to-be" list as a believer, husband or father, then something could be amiss with our faith and understanding of who God is, and what he wants from us.

There's no commandment in the Bible that says, "Thou shalt over-commit yourself for this is honorable." No, Jesus said the most important commandment is to give energy, time and presence toward two sets of relationships:

o    " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment.

o    "And the second is like it: " 'Love your neighbor as yourself' " (Matt. 22:37-39).

o    "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight" (Prov. 3:5-6).

So, what does that look like in the everyday life of a modern man?

1. Have FAITH in God. Men need to put more faith in God to provide and guide than faith in themselves, their abilities and schedules. Do that and God promises to provide for your needs, and give you an abundant life.

The number one enemy of faith in God in your life is pride and self-sufficiency. God says he would like you to replace that with healthy and humble dependency. Both build a strong relationship with Him.

2. Have FOCUS on God. God created men to be in relationship with Him. He yearns to be acknowledged throughout your day, to be sought-after, to be known. When we over commit, our relationship with God suffers. But if we focus on God and living the way he intended us to, he promises to provide power and peace beyond our understanding. It's a win-win transformation.

o    "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matt. 6:33). 

o    "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God" (Col. 3:1-3).

There's your life and God's kingdom. One exists within the other but Satan wants you to believe God's kingdom exists to fit into your kingdom. We borrow great troubles with that mindset. Think like a kingdom man and continuously pray: "Your kingdom come, Your will be done."

3. Make FREE TIME with God. Crowding our schedules leaves little time for God. Try re-thinking your day and week to include a "timeout tithe," meaning give God your time and attention every day. It's like giving yourself a daily tune-up, filling your gas tank or getting an oil change. If we don't replenish, refresh and refuel, our engine will burn out.

So, open your Bible, open your heart and mind. Ask God to speak to you, then listen. You will find nibbles of truth from the Word will become feasts for life. 

o    "Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither whatever they do prospers" (Psalm 1:1-3).

 Another easy step to take is to honor the Sabbath. God modeled taking one day off from work, so should we. Jesus "withdrew" to be with God. There must be a reason if the Creator of the universe wants us to take a break from it all, and focus on our relationships at home and with Him.

o    "Be still, and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10). 

Perhaps the best example of well-placed, well-timed prioritizing in the Bible is the brief story about the visit Jesus made to Martha's house. Read this, and let it marinate in your mind, and then assess which sister you reflect in the story.

o    "As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, 'Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!'

o    " 'Martha, Martha,' the Lord answered, 'You are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her' " (Luke 10:38-42). 

Well, was it Mary? Are you too "distracted" to spend time with Jesus?

Jesus is saying to all men who claim a connection: You have to SLOW to KNOW Me.

By KennyLuck

Prayer for new week

Whatever has been a source of shame in your life will be turned around for your glory. Your past mistakes and failures are working out for your good in Jesus name. As you desire more of God, you will see more of Him. The Holy Spirit will lead you the way you should go. As you begin to hunger and thirst for God, you will be filled. You will not be barren spiritually. Receive every spiritual blessing you need to get to the next level. There shall be no more emptiness, you shall be filled. 

A fresh awakening is coming over you!!J

Happy New Week from us ASB-World. 

Do our encounters with God leave us changed?

I met a school mate during the course of admission into the university. We had not seen for about a year before then. The moment I set my eye on her, without her even opening her mouth I knew something was different about her. She just had an aura around her that wasn’t there before. I’d known her since my primary school through secondary days. She was so changed, it was almost palpable. I got to know during the course of our conversation that she had become born again and I said within me ‘No wonder’.
Do our encounters with God leave us changed? Or do we remain the same after meeting with God? We are to experience a daily change as we encounter God daily in our devotions, bible studies, fellowships, church services and so on. Today’s passage talks about the return journey of Moses from Mount Sinai, where he went to commune with God. By the time he returned, his face shone. His face was so shiny, even Aaron and all others feared to come near him. He had to encourage them they would not be harmed, before they could come close. His face shone so much, he had to cover it with a veil, but he ensured they saw the glory of God shining as a result of communion each time he returned from communing with God, I guess so that they may see by themselves firsthand what fellowshipping with God can do to man, after which he would now cover his face. By now, our faces should be ‘translucent’ due to our encounters with God. Our lives should be so changed, people around us would know something positive is up with us. It is a daily battle because the devil continually contends with our faith to ensure our fall. Today’s passage should encourage you not to give in to the enemy. Stand your ground, if you fall, rise again, don’t stay down, until your face starts to glow, then shine. I’m working on my face, are you? Exodus 34: 29-35

The photo is striking: three little girls, each bald from chemo treatments

The photo is striking: three little girls, each bald from chemo treatments to battle a different type of cancer, leaning into each other with their eyes closed. They stand beneath the cursive caption, “Sometimes strength comes in knowing that you are not alone!” The image went viral in April, melting the hearts of thousands of Facebook fans but leaving a haunting feeling, too, because we couldn't know how each child’s story would turn out.

Now we know, though, and the news couldn't be better: All three girls are in remission.

“Rheann was the only one still fighting, and she was still pretty sick and still projected to have quite some time to go,” the photographer, Oklahoma-based Lora Scantling, tells Yahoo Health through a Facebook message about the 6-year-old who stood in the center of the photo. She had been battling a rare form of brain cancer called Mucoid Spindle Sarcoma. “So of course when they declared her in remission I cried! About a year before that photo was taken, she was so sick that the doctors told her family to prepare for the worst, because there was no way she would make it. She is a very strong girl.”

The other girls had pretty much won their battles by the time the photo went viral, and the good news still stands, according to their recent follow-up scans: Ryley, 3, has beaten a form of stage-five kidney cancer, while 4-year-old Ainsley remains in remission from acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. It’s a lucky three-for-three in beating the odds, because though survival rates have increased drastically over the past few decades, cancer is still the number-one cause of disease-related deaths among children, according to the American Childhood Cancer Organization.

The original photo was the work of Scantling, of  Scantling Photography, and her studio partner, Christy Goodger, of Goodger Photography. The two, who share a studio is in Bethany, Oklahoma, decided to create the poignant images after finding the children through Facebook. “The girls had not met before, yet they bonded the instant they saw each other and it was like they knew they had a common bond,” Scantling told Yahoo in April about the studio shoot, for which the three got gussied up in vintage clothing and flapper-style headbands from local boutiques. 

Scantling, who has been thrilled and overwhelmed with the reaction to her work, found inspiration for the photo concept from the cancer that was affecting her own family: Her stepfather was battling stage-four lung cancer at the time, but died in May. “It was very hard losing him,” she tells Yahoo Health. “I know he was very proud of me taking a picture that was so inspiring about such a terrible disease, and I know that he would want me to continue to use my gift this way.”

She’s been doing just that, as she and Goodger have been working with Ally’s House, a children’s cancer foundation in Oklahoma, to create even more poignant images, some of which can be seen on the project’s Facebook page.

And if the mom of superstar survivor Rheann is any indication, the photos make a huge difference in the lives of those who get to pose. “It was so heartwarming, getting all the messages from around the world!” Valerie Franklin tells Yahoo Health through a Facebook message about the public reaction to the viral image. “It has really helped keep our spirits up, and helped us to see the impact that all of our daughters have had on the world with this one photo shoot.”

Between the time of Rheann’s diagnosis in 2012 and now, her mom explains, she has undergone five brain surgeries, chemotherapy, and proton radiation all of which seem to have saved her life. “The doctors didn't think she would make it through last summer,” she says, “but she sure proved them wrong.” Source: yahoo.com

An Enduring Portion

TEXT: JOSHUA 18:21-28

Key verse: “...This is the inheritance of the children of Benjamin according to their families” (Joshua 18:28).

Generally, there is a sense of sacred and cherished birthright attached to the inheritance of land in many nations by the beneficiary. In Israel, the Lord had promised the people, through Moses and his successor, Joshua, that the land of Canaan would be divided among the tribes as an inheritance. After Joshua had fought all the battles successfully and there was now peace round about, it became imperative to do as the LORD had instructed concerning the land.

The dividing of the land was not without squabbles as Joshua had to cast lot. “And the lot of the tribe of Benjamin came up according to their families…(verse 11). On the whole, the tribe of Benjamin had a total of twenty six cities, including Jerusalem. The portion lay north of Judah and south of Ephraim. Though the territory was small in size, it was strategically located, commercially and militarily.

Today, many families are held up in scores of litigation over issues of land inheritance. This has had a telling effect on the unity and cohesion of such families. While it is good to inherit land and property from our families because “a prudent man leaveth an inheritance unto his children’s children”, we should be more concerned about our heavenly inheritance “where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God”.

As believers, we are heirs of all things: His grace (1 Peter 3:7); His salvation (Hebrews 1:14); eternal life (Titus 3:7); and His righteousness (Hebrews 11:7). We are therefore advised to set our affection on things above, for our life is already hid with Christ in God. It is wise to split hairs on transient and fleeting material perquisites. How we need to devote our burstling energies into laying for ourselves treasures and inheritances in heaven!

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Believers’ portion is a never fading one.

LEAVE IT TO GOD

David therefore pleaded with God for the child, and David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground. 2 Samuel 12:16

You must learn to leave situations in God's hands when you cannot tell the outcome of an issue.

Sometimes you can get caught in situations where it appears as if you are in a no-win situation and no matter what happens, you will end up with a bad result. In such cases, you must learn to release the situation to the Lord and rest in Him.

King David dealt with such a situation when the prophet Nathan confronted him with the sin of adultery and the murder of his body-guard - Uriah.

The judgment against David was that the consequence of his action would end in the death of the baby to be born out of the adulterous relationship.

David did not know what to do - no matter the outcome; it was going to be bad for him. He prayed and fasted and just lay before the Lord.

He did not stand in prayer to claim any promise of God. He just lay down in surrender, trusting the Lord to handle it in the best way possible.

Later when David heard that the baby was dead, he accepted the outcome and moved on with his life.

He trusted God with the outcome, and accepted the verdict without questioning God or getting bitter.

Like David, we must learn to accept God's judgment in every situation. He is a loving and a righteous Father. All His ways are perfect. Even His judgments are inspired by His unfailing love.

Prayer: I thank You Father, that You are a righteous God. All Your ways are perfect. May You have Your way in me.

Scriptural Reading: 2 Samuel 12:1-23

Health: The Ebola Virus What You Must Know

The Ebola Virus is spreading like wild fire across the continent with cases being reported in Ghana our next door neighbor of recent and just this week an alert was raised in Lagos,Nigeria. 

In view of this,we bring to you a little info about the virus and what we can do to avoid this deadly disease that kills faster than HIV/AIDS.

Introduction :
Ebola is a rare but deadly infection that causes bleeding inside and outside the body. Ebola strikes mainly in remote villages of Central Africa and West Africa,but it has spread to some other African Cities too.
The disease also known as Ebola Hemorrhage Fever or Ebola Virus disease,kills up to 90% of the people who are infected.

How Do You Get Ebola?
You can get Ebola by coming into contact with the blood or body fluids of an animal or person who is infected.

People often get sick with Ebola when they care for or bury a person who has the disease. Someone also can catch the virus by touching contaminated needles or surfaces.

Symptoms :
Symptoms of the Ebola virus show up 2 to 21 days after someone is infected. As the virus spreads through the body's cells, it damages the immune system and organs. Ultimately, Ebola causes levels of blood-clotting cells, called platelets, to fall, which can lead to severe bleeding.

Many of the early symptoms of Ebola look like the flu or other mild illnesses. They include:

*Fever
*Headache
*Muscle aches
*Sore throat
*Weakness
*Diarrhea
As the disease gets worse, people who are infected may develop:

*Bleeding inside and outside of the body
*Rash
*Trouble breathing

How Can You Tell if Someone Has Ebola ?
Doctors may first test for other diseases that have the same symptoms as Ebola, such as:

*Cholera
*Hepatitis
*Malaria
*Meningitis
*Typhoid fever
Tests of the blood and tissues, such as the ELISA test, also can help diagnose Ebola.

If someone might have Ebola, they should be isolated from the public immediately to help prevent the spread of Ebola.

Treatment :
Right now there is no real treatment or cure for Ebola. Doctors try to manage people's symptoms by giving them:

*Fluids and electrolytes through a vein
*Nutrition
*Oxygen

Prevention :
There is no vaccine to prevent Ebola. People can avoid catching the disease by not traveling to areas where the virus is found.

Health care workers can prevent infection by wearing masks, gloves, and goggles whenever they come into contact with people who may have Ebola.

**** Most importantly to we Nigerians,we should be careful with eating of "Bush Meat" (Eran Igbe) as the source of the virus has been traced to infected animals such as Monkeys,Chimps,Fruits Bats,Antelopes,Porcupines,Pigs etc. They must be THOROUGHLY cooked if we must eat.
***** Please endeavor to educate our local hunters on this. A mere contact with blood or body fluid of infected animals is enough for one to be infected.
Hand gloves and other preventive gadgets MUST be worn when attending to an Ebola infected patient at home. So also when burying a dead victim of the virus.
Such dead victim should be properly buried to avoid the spread of the virus.
Regular washing of our hands after EVERY visit to the hospital is also very important as a means of prevention.
Once a person is infected,he/she can spread it to others !