THE GOOD SHEPHERD

Grace  sets back your your setbacks

Edmond Sanganyado

Copyright © 2014 by Edmond Sanganyado

www.revealedgrace.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible. Scripture marked MSG is taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. Scripture marked NIV is taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Cover Design by Edmond Sanganyado

Cover Image by A Roger Davies

ISBN-13: 978-1468117547

ISBN-10: 1468117548

Printed in the United States of America.

Endorsements

This is the book to read if you are serious about setting back your set-backs. To go forward, sometimes some things before you have to be pushed back. This man has dealt with a cartridge of setbacks in his own life, and has applied himself to learn just what this formidable and relentless enemy of his is - SETBACKS - to come out with trues and nuggets that will rock your own setbacks if you so lay hold of them and set them off in your own world. In this maiden book of his, thoroughly rooted in Scripture, he has gone out full force to help us push back and push forward. Get this material in your hands and you are on your way to setting back your setbacks.

Qaphelani Ngulube-Word of Life International Ministries, Bulawayo Zimbabwe

Whenever there is a back there is a front. Various opportunities offer us a chance to remain at the back or go to the front. Life is a journey where we have to move forward not backward. All of us have had setbacks in life; you might be experiencing them now. Your worry should not continue because this book The Good Shepherd: Grace sets back your setbacks will point you to the answer- Jesus Christ. I highly recommend this book because it grounded in the Word of God- the Bible.

Joseph Mutemani- Christian Faith Center, Bulawayo Zimbabwe

The Lord led me to Edmond soon after He revealed the message of His grace to me. God knew I needed a friend and mentor to help me in understanding and gaining courage in ministering the radical message of grace. I have read most of the articles on his blog, which are radical messages that reveal Jesus beyond the religious perception. The Good Shepherd: Grace sets back your setbacks is a well-researched study of the life of King David that can help Christians understand the relationship they have with Jesus, the ministry of the Holy Spirit and the reasons why setbacks are essential for growth. Furthermore, through the life of David, Edmond writes on how to deal with setbacks and how God’s grace can set them back.

Marvelous A. Gandah- Harvest House International, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe

Dedication

To Surprise, my love

When I found you, I found favor and obtained good.

Contents

Endorsements

Dedication

Acknowledgement

Part One

Introduction

Pleasures of God

Image of God

Our Shepherd

Part Two

Setbacks can be set back

Setbacks Are Inevitable

What do you need?

Grace and Truth

Setbacks Again

Grace for Rejection

Grace for Downtime

Grace for Incapacitation

Grace for sin

Grace in relationships

Ambush: Set up for victory

Part Three

Ministry of the Holy Spirit

Exercising for godliness

The Attorney

Accuser lies

Conclusion

Appendix

Notes

Acknowledgement

I know we probably have not met and setbacks have brought us together. Your desire to have your setbacks set back provided the inspiration for this book. Thank you for granting me the opportunity of sharing the grace of God with you through this book. I believe this book could provide the answers to your questions.

I would like to thank Vincent Nyakubaya for the several phone calls and short messages we exchanged during the birthing of this project. Great friends like Qaphelani Ngulube also come into mind regarding the writing of this book, whose constant and consistent teaching on the word of God when we shared the same office helped me grow spiritually. With Frank Makosa we shared the authoring of this book through circumstances that brought us to live under the same roof and experience the constant supply of God together. I am forever grateful to a team of friends across the globe who took their time to check the manuscript of this book for grammatical, scriptural and factual errors. Thank you, Jeremiah Makambe, Emmanuel Kapofu, Joseph Mutemani, Wendy Bagley-Smith and Marve Ganda.

Of course, many thanks to my beautiful wife, Surprise for her contributions in all aspects of drafting this book. I will not forget my son Chesed Tinotenda for providing necessary distraction that gave me rest.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.

(Psa 34:19 KJV)

Part One

Jesus:

The Good Shepherd

[1]

Introduction

How many believe the following statements are true?

1. Everyone will rise up to the level of his or her incompetence.

2. Spending always increase to meet available revenue.

3. If anything can go wrong, then it will.

The first statement sums up the Peter Principle, the second Parkinson's Law and the last Murphy's Law. Such principles and laws are simply adages and epigrams, crafted from observations and experiences of people. Laurence J. Peter and Raymond Hull noticed that employees usually received promotions until the new position exposes their incompetence. Such an observation portrayed promotions as a way of embarrassing employees checking their melting point! Unlike Peter Principle, Parkinson’s Law is actually a saying, a product of folk wisdom. In a nutshell, you can never have more than enough; time is never enough, money is never enough, friends are never enough. This side of heaven, we are all trapped in lack and lack. Murphy’s Law is an epigram, satirical abut ironically the secret ingredient for worry; you simply do not need to expect anything good to happen.

Many people take these statements as a mantra of their life. To some, promotions are a corporate conspiracy to expose employee incompetence. Businesses have capitalized on Parkinson’s Law; commercials aired have a drive to prove to you that what you own is not enough to satisfy you. Pharmaceutical companies have also cashed in on Murphy’s Law; there is a drug for everything. As an environmental scientist, when these psychiatric drugs enter the environment, Murphy’s Law! Unequivocal tragedy begins when the Peter Principle, Parkinson’s Law and Murphy’s Law craft your belief systems and becomes embedded in the foundation of your opinions and expectations.

Personal experiences and popular teachings have created in many people a religious belief in these principles and laws. We all have heard of people who did great work in their previous jobs and messed up after a promotion. We know of politicians who were great as house representatives and messed up big time as senators, secretaries or governors. Despite giving us some stories to talk about, these incidences convinced us that this could happen to us as well. Our personal observations hoodwinked us to believe that promotions open up for unavoidable failure. Furthermore, our monthly budget after a pay raise, always prove to us that money is not enough. Ladies who quit their jobs so that they can have more time with their families can testify that time is never enough. Lastly, anyone who ever did something is convinced that things will go wrong. In project planning, people often plan for contingencies. However, these eventualities are never expectations of something better. Let me be bold and declare to you, these are not universal laws and principles but lies from the pit of hell.

The media today celebrates what they have termed a self-made person. Talk shows, newspapers, movies, books to name but a few all scrounge to glimpse at a purported self-made person. Daily, we see the struggles and heroics of these egocentric self-made people. Some of these individuals have stepped into the multi-million dollar business of quenching the itching ears of a clueless crowd, since all they desire is to be a self-made person. What all these people want is the claim, “I have reached where I am on my own.” Such a claim seems to be a passport to freedom and a certificate of divorce to loving thy neighbor. Self-made people have this superfluous emotional or social responsibility of donating a few dollars to children suffering in Africa. However, such a donation is merely a token for appeasement of their self-made person demons.

This myth of a self-made person, seeks to dissipate the essence of God in your life. When confronted by a story of a man who considers himself illiterate, but today is a world acclaimed musician, human tendency is to seek what they did to be where they are. Biographies of the so-called successful people are always best sellers because people want to know what these people did to get where they are now. Without any doubt, a biography by Kobe Bryant, Lionel Messi or Beyoncé will be best sellers. They are celebrities or stars and many people want to be like them. The human tendency is to emulate the life of people considered successful. Their stories go on to break down the things that these people did to be where they are. In this capitalist economy, companies look at these individuals as an opportunity to market their goods. All these things serve to promote materialism and shun the deep desires of every human being; a desire for love that only God can offer.

A self-made person always has to remember they can only rise until they reach the position of their incompetence. Their abilities put a lid on their success and determine the threshold of their success. There is no room for God’s ability here. The Bible tells us that God is omnipotent. Thus, when those who believe in God rise, they are not limited by their abilities because they depend on God’s abilities.

Parkinson’s Law suggests you can never have excess in life for your needs will always catch up with what you have. Therefore, by implication no one can ever afford the luxury of giving. A self-made person uses expenditure as a measure of their success. I always wondered how a person could declare they have no cent in their bank account, three months after their new album went platinum. One of the most celebrated athlete in Zimbabwe is Alfonso Zvenyika, popularly known as Mosquito because of his light weight. Zvenyika won the Commonwealth flyweight title in 1998 and cashed in lots of money. A few months down the line, he stole a boom box. Where did the thousands of pounds go? Expenditure met revenue. We all know of hundreds of stories of how expenditure suppressed revenue. It is now a matter of fact; most lottery winners end up at a financial position worse than they were before the millions. This law debauches the concept of ‘not want’ deeply embodied in the wonderful 23rd Psalm. A self-made person believes in having more to show how successful they are, hence the increase in expenditure. Murphy’s Law is just a mere insult on the goodness of God. As believers, success is not measured by the size of our bank account, the number of bedrooms in our house, the number of college degrees you have, the neighborhood you live but by the intimacy of our relationship with Jesus Christ.

Have you ever wondered why most self-made persons end up committing suicide and drowning in illicit drugs? Murphy’s Law motivates a self-made person. The desire for income to surpass expenditure drives them. It is the reason why they wake up early to go to work, take up multiple jobs, work long hours, never spend time with family and all they want is excess. Enshrined in the Murphy’s Law is fear. Fear of lack, fear of failing to pay bills, fear is their slave master. However, fear is the number one enemy of success. Acquisition of wealth driven by fear does not equate to success.

A few years ago, I applied for one of the most prestigious scholarships for graduate study, the Fulbright Fellowship. My time at college convinced me that I was not the best brains out there, but through God’s grace I was one of the four people in Zimbabwe who were awarded the fellowship. However, thousands of dollars were required for my wife to join me in the US where I was going for graduate study. I had never held my hand amount or ever saw in my bank account the amount of money required for Surprise to come to US. I was worried sore before I even took my first flight to the US. When God gave me the scholarship it was good, no one had to remind me of how great the blessing was. It was so obvious to me. No amount of work I did helped me earn the wonderful blessing. God blessed me beyond measure to quote Gloria Copeland's book. My faith was wavering like a buoy tossed by the ocean waves at a Pacific beach. The magnificence of the blessing threw me into spasms of jubilation, the next moment the horror of leaving behind my expecting wife drown me in fear. Thoughts of marriages that broke down when spouses lived far apart came into my mind. Thoughts of finally studying in the US, something I always dreamt of also came.

“Would God ever let me down?”

God placed in my heart that His grace will not take me where it cannot keep me. This truth resonated in my heart for quite a while I then shared it with my wife and she cried. God ministered in our lives that day. He told us how He wanted us to trust in Him. He reminded us of His unconditional love, of His unmerited favor and of His faithfulness and truth. In all this, God’s desire was for us to see how much He loves us. God wanted us to see the extent of His love for us.

As I write this book, I pray that God speak into your life. That you may know, that God is enough. We do not need anything else, we do not need anybody else, and we do not need to go anywhere else. All we need is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is enough. He is the man who said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.”

The reason why people say expenditure rises to meet income and money is never enough is because they do not know there is a way, they do not know there is the truth and they do not know there is life. Not just a life, but also the God kind of life, the abundant life. When something is abundant, it is more than enough. People say you can only rise up to the level of your incompetency have never heard of divine enablement. Those that claim anything that can go wrong will go wrong have not heard of the Lord who is a Shepherd. This Shepherd is unlike any other; he created the sheep that He herd, the pasture that He waters with rain, the rivers that He fills with His water and created also the trees that give the sheep shed.

God's grace will not take you where it cannot keep you. Isaiah once prophesied, “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” (Isa 49:15-16 KJV). God promised He would not leave me nor forsake me. I remember a man who had a great call on his life. At 80 years, God called him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and his name was Moses. Moses told God that he would not lead the Israelites unless God led with him. Moses understood that for him to reach where God wanted him, God had to take him there. He understood that without God, he was nothing. Without God when you think you are going somewhere you are actually going nowhere. Another man, Joseph, was successful because he had God. Joseph had the Midas touch, everything he touched turned gold. Place, position or promotion could not limit his success because the Ever-existing One established his victories. The Bible records Joseph found favor among his masters and in all he did because Jehovah was with him.

Where God's grace takes us grace will be there. Grace will be at that place. Grace will be waiting for us. Goodness and mercy will be following us. God surrounds us with favor as a shield.

Do not worry Joseph about leading the nation of Egypt, God's grace is there.

Do not worry Moses, when they complain at Meribah, God's grace is there.

Brethren, do not worry when you face setbacks; God's grace is there for you.

Let those who do not believe in Jesus Christ claim that anything that can go wrong shall go wrong, but let the truth of Christ reign in you. As children of God just stand up and say nothing can separate us from the love of God. Remember what Paul said to the Corinthians, “My grace (Jesus’) is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2Co 12:9 KJV). At that time of need, God's unmerited favor is there, God's divine enabling is there. Jesus is there with you. God is the ever-existing one- Jehovah. Before you had a need, He was there. Where God's grace takes you, grace will increase your capability and your capacity. Grace will empower you. Jesus Christ is there with you. God's grace is enough for you. There is enough grace of God for your journey to work, for your mathematics homework, for your laundry, for your marriage, for your every need. God's grace is sufficient.

Php 4:6-7 KJV

(6) Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

(7) And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

[2]

Pleasures of God

Psalms 19:1-4 KJV

(1)  The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handiwork.

(2)  Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.

(3)  There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.

(4)  Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,

One of the most prominent political leaders in Biblical times, David used to be a shepherd. David spent his childhood in the pastures tending his father’s sheep. This is the same man God declared ‘he was a man after His own heart’ (Acts 13.22). Studying the life and writings of David can give us an insight on what it means to be a shepherd. David personifies the life and role of a shepherd. When Samuel wanted to ordain a king, according to God’s instruction, David was not there at the Jesse’s house. Jesse sent someone to the pasture to call David. David lived with his sheep; that is what a shepherd does. A shepherd’s heart is with the sheep. Therefore, when God said David was a man after His heart, He meant David was a sheep in His flock. How wonderful it is when a good shepherd is simply a sheep in the flock of the Great Shepherd.

Whenever I read the book of Psalms, there is one thing that always struck me, David focused on the majesty of God all the time. David saw how great Jehovah is by looking at the things around him; the stars, the moon, the sun and all the animals on the face of the earth that he met at the pastures. Simply put, the creation is the testimony of the glory, honor, power and strength of our God. As I write this chapter, my prayer is God will help you understand His pleasures so that you can embrace His joy. Nehemiah wrote, “The joy of the Lord is my strength.” I believe when you see and clinch the joy of the Lord as testified by His creation, you begin to understand how much God loves you and that He is truly your Shepherd.

Every creation speaks of its creator. The telephone reminds us of the brilliance of a man called Alexander Bell. Flying in an airplane is a testimony of the tenacity of two brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright.  Against all odds, the brothers made a flying machine. When I am studying at night with my study lamp on my desk, I remember a man who had a strong determination. Thomas Edison created the light bulb, which has become a symbol of industrial development. Of course, history records some inventions, which were by pure accident. Alexander Fleming is credited today of his accidental discovery of penicillin. My point is, all these inventions made by they testify of their creator. Penicillin, for example, shows us how Alexander Fleming respected human health. Edison’s discoveries show us his desire to improve the standard of living for people.

What do the heaven and earth tell us about the Creator? When we look at all, creation we begin to see how great our God is. He is the God who created all the beautiful places of the world. When you look at the Niagara Falls or the Victoria Falls, the waters plunging hundreds of feet into the gorge demonstrate the glory of God. The thunderous noise that you hear is a proclamation of the power of our God. As the waters violently hit the banks and splatters over the deep, the goodness of our God is portrayed. When the light rays from the sun, hits the small droplets of water and scattered to form a magnificent rainbow circumscribing the valleys, the promise and faithfulness of God is proclaimed. The stars in the sky at night and the sun during daytime are a message to all creation of how awesome God is. God created all those stars. Scientists have been studying the stars for quite long and they do not know them all. However, the Creator of the stars knows all of them by name.

I like Chris Tomlin’s song Indescribable; it defines to me how majestic this God is. God placed the sun where it is right now. Just imagine, if the sun were just an inch closer to the earth then the earth would not have been habitable because it will be too hot to support life. Inversely, if the sun was an inch further away from the earth we all freeze to death. God knew the right temperature of the sun and He keeps it at around 6,000°C. He did that so that the sun may be a testimony to us of how much God loves us. God loves us so much that He keeps the sun at a safe distance of about 93 million miles away from the earth.

Jer 32:17 KJV

(17)  Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:

This God is awesome. No words can really express how great He is. When we look at all creation the earth and heavens, this Milky Way galaxy we are is much smaller than a speck of dust in a giant football stadium. Imagine you are watching the super bowl in an 110,000-capacity football stadium; will the speck of dust at the center of the field concern you? Because of its size, it is of no significance whatsoever to you. However, God with all the gigantic galaxies He created, He has great interest in one tiny planet called earth. With all those galaxies, with the smallest having at least ten million stars, God chose this earth. All those star in the sky and the trillions of stars in the galaxies beyond they testify of the greatness of our God.

Psa 147:4-5 KJV

(4)  He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.

(5)  Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.

The wisdom and understanding of God have no limit, God knows everything about anything anywhere. Astronomers have been studying the stars and even now after many centuries, the wonders of the stars still baffle them. Some of the stars we see today in the sky are actually billions of years ago! What I mean by this is we are seeing the stars as they were billions of years ago. To illustrate this point, say I take a picture of myself today and send it to my wife who is in Zimbabwe. It takes about twelve days for a letter to reach Zimbabwe from US. Therefore, when my wife gets the picture twelve days later, what she sees is what I looked like twelve days before. When you look at the sun, what you see is what he sun looked like eight minutes ago. God saw it eight minutes ago and He still sees it now, for that reason we can declare like David, there is no limit to His understanding. The Creator God sees the now, the last light years and the forever.

In one Psalm, David captured the heart of God’s love for us. God’s love, mesmerized David daily in the pastures. Though undeserving, this love caught him and covered him. All that he could say was,

Psa 8:1-9 KJV

(1)  O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.

(2)  Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.

(3)  When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;

(4)  What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

(5)  For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.

(6)  Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

(7)  All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;

(8)  The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.

(9)  O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

In other translations, verse 5 is rendered as ‘little lower than God’. The word angels in KJV is Elohim, which is rendered God in most verses.  This shows the extent of how much God loves us. He loved us so much that some angels where created to minister to us.

You are God’s best creation

After creating the heaven, earth and all creatures that swim in the lakes, seas and oceans, birds that fly in the sky and animals that creep on the face of earth, God saw that it was all good. God was pleased with all creation, both living and non-living. Out of His abundant pleasure, God created Adam and Eve, and was exceedingly pleased.

Gen 1:26-27 KJV

(26)  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

(27)  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

In Psalms 8, David asks a question that everyone should ask, “What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you visit him?” You and I are the prime creation of God. We are God’s masterpiece. A few years ago, I took a biology class and I marveled at how complex, intriguing and unique human physiology is. The way our chemical make-up coordinate our existence is so jaw dropping to say the least. All these biochemical reactions detailed in the human body testify of not only an intelligent creator, but also a God who took his time to design His prime creation.

God created us motivated by love

To understand why God values man like this we need to understand why God created man. By faith, we believe that God created everything that is seen from what is not seen (Hebrews 11:3). The Bible testifies that God spoke these things into existence. The Apostle John captured this awesome truth in the first verse of the book.

Joh 1:1-3 KJV

(1)  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

(2)  The same was in the beginning with God.

(3)  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit all participated in creation. God was in perfect joy before He created anything. There was joy in God. The Holy Spirit was in perfect joy, Jesus Christ was in awesome joy and the Father was in an unequaled joy as well. In heaven, no moments of sorrow sparked God to create the heavens and the earth. Our human mentality and experiences has made us believe the pun, “Necessity is the mother of all inventions.” We have come to believe that when we are in want and dire need that is when our creative genius awakens. All inventions I have mentioned earlier were necessitated by the deep desire of making things better. God is not like us, He did not create the worlds because of a deep need or divine longing as taught by some religion. God created all we see to express His pleasure and His nature.

Creation is a reflection of the majesty of our God as we have shown in the earlier section. This is what David meant in Psalm 19 when He said, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the expanse proclaims His handiwork.”

In His glory, God created all that we see and it was good. God wanted to share in this glory. He wanted creation to participate in His pleasure. For creation to be a partaker into this joy of God, it had to be like God with the right components that can make it capable of this. God created a man in His image and likeness. For that reason, man could participate in His joy. The joy of the Lord sustains us and energizes our creative process. Nehemiah aptly testified, “The joy of the Lord is my strength.”

The Bible tells us that God is Spirit, so man required a spirit to fully commune in this joy of the Lord. For us to be able to experience the goodness of God and take part in His pleasure we need the spirit. The joy, goodness and pleasure of God are part of God’s life. That is who God is; God is joy, pleasure and goodness. Therefore, when God created man, He had to give him His life so that he can experience His joy. God did that.

Genesis 2:7 KJV

(7)  And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

Isa 42:5 KJV

(5)  Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:

In the Old Testament, God instructed Moses to appoint people who will create the ark of the covenant. God gave certain people the skill of learning that empowered them to create the ark according to the specifications He gave. The Ark of the Covenant was kept in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle. Once a year, the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies to offer atonement. This went on year after year until Solomon built the temple for the Lord. The tabernacle was a temporal dwelling. Therefore, after construction of the temple completed, God commissioned it by glorifying it. The Ark of the Covenant was transferred into the temple and so was the Most Holy Place. After the destruction of the temple, the second temple was built which also fell. Later, the Jews constructed places of gathering with no reference of the Holy of Holies. God did not mingle with the sinful people, but asked them to set aside a place for His presence- the Holy of Holies. Through the redemptive work of Christ Jesus, God has made our hearts the Holy of Holies. Your body is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. God gave us the spirit so that we can contain Him. This is mind blowing. God holds the earth in the palm of His hand. This omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent God is contained within us. The Bible in the letters of Paul to the church in Corinthians shows us that, our hearts are the temple of God. God dwells in our spirit. God is spirit, so for us to contain God, we also required a spirit. Therefore, God breathed His spirit into us. All this He did so that you and I can experience His pleasure.

It is important for us to understand the purpose of the spirit within. Everything that God created in us serves a purpose. When we look at our skin, when my wife touches me, her touch brings some pleasures that no words can express. Looking at my tongue, teeth and stomach, I see the organs that bring me tastes that please me. When I bite a chocolate bar, the taste that comes into my mouth is just great; I would not mind losing another dollar bill to get some more Snickers. The first time I flew in an airplane was wonderful that is if we subtract take-off and landing! I enjoyed the flight; I remember vividly when I was coming from Cedar Rapids to Dallas Fort Worth. There was this beautiful scenery in the sky. We were above the clouds. The clouds were dotted underneath us forming mountain like shapes. I will not forget the scene. The panorama stimulated spontaneous worship in me. I have never seen anything beautiful like that, except my wife, of course. Talking about my wife, I was busy minding my own business after Sunday service at church. Someone was passing by and that prompted me to lift my head to check whom it was. Lo and behold, they're passing by in front of me was the most beautiful woman I have ever seen her name, I later found out was Surprise. She had a prophetic name; she was my surprise from God. God created these eyes so that we can revere in the beauty of His creation. All the organs of our body and everything that God placed in us serves a purpose of fulfilling our joy in Christ Jesus.

God gave us the spirit so that we can have access to Him. We obtain freedom when we receive the Spirit of God. God gave us the spirit we have so that we can commune with Him and take part in His joy.

2Corinthians 3:17-18 KJV

(17)  Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

(18)  But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

As we conclude this chapter, I would like to show you something that you have probably heard before.

We believe that God created the heaven and the earth through His word. Jesus Christ created everything we see. God holds the universe in His hand. He knows the names of trillions of gigantic bodies like stars and He knows the number of the tiniest things like the hair on your head. God is concerned about the humongous galaxies, but even more for my next meal. All this shows us that God cares about everything that affects you and me. Our God is not what others call an absentee landlord neither is He too busy trying to fix the galaxies. He is our Shepherd. Going back to the Garden of Eden, God was the true and faithful shepherd of Adam and Eve. God provided the couple with all they needed; Adam and Eve were like sheep in the pastures. However, as a good shepherd, God did not just provide for their needs and wants He provided His presence too. Man had the spirit in him, to receive God and experience the presence of God. God is spirit, and those that can come before Him to bow can only do so in spirit. God gave man the spirit to experience the pleasures of the presence of God.

Isaiah 40:10-12 KJV

(10)  Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.

(11)  He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.

(12)  Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?

How wonderful it is to be a sheep in the flock of God. Our shepherd is the one that created the grass that we need for pasture, He is the one that created the rivers and the waters, He is the one who holds everything in His hand and He is my Shepherd. God created man so that we can participate in His joy. He breathed into us His breath, and the life that portrays His attributes. Through God’s zoe life we are partakers of His divine nature. Our God is awesome and powerful. With all His strength as demonstrated by the fact that He holds the universe in His hand, He chose to be my guide, my protector, my provider, my everything and He is my shepherd. We can see that when God placed man and woman in the Garden of Eden, He created all they need to remain in that place of perfect bliss.

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Image of God

Of everything God made, man is different from all. Evolutionists have been raging that we all come from the same cell. All animals evolved from something that they do not even know. Other theorists say that we are a cosmic accident. All the teachings thrown around to discredit the God who created heaven and earth are nothing but a joke. I believe all these theories propounded by people of very remarkable learning are a result of a well-calculated assault of the devil. However, I will not get into details about the weaknesses and the lies the devil is using to discredit the teaching that says God created heaven and earth. This book is about the God who cares about us so much that He made us different.

God made us different for a purpose. In the previous chapter, we understood that God created everything that we see around us and all creation testifies of His glory. In all things He created, God created man differently. God gave man breathe. God placed His life in man. Man became a living being with a spirit and this spirit is what can contain God. Man was the only creation that had the ability to participate in the pleasure of God intimately.

Understanding Value

The level of attention and devotion the inventor or the creator give their creation often determine the object’s value or worth. A musician who values her music always gives undivided attention to her song when creating it. In the account of creation, we see that God spoke things into existence. To create light and everything else God spoke and they came into being. God was devoted to His creation. The Bible records that a person only speaks out of the abundance of his heart. God spoke what was abundant in His heart. Creation had a place in God’s heart; it was dear to the Creator.

Gen 1:2 KJV

(2)  And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

In this account of creation process, we see the person of the Holy Spirit and His work in creating everything we see today. The Spirit of God was moving upon the face of the waters. God took His time to start creation. God did not just launch into creating the universe without preparation. The Spirit of the Lord traversed the deep void and emptiness, pondering and unleashing the divine creativity. Only after the muttering of the Spirit did creation begin. Creation was not a rush job with a deadline to meet. It was not like that, there was no deadline. After all, there was no measure of time. Time is part of creation. When I wanted to write this book, I went for about four or more months just thinking over what I wanted to write. I would write various articles for my blog and study a particular scripture for weeks. As one once noted, “Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.” Invention is synonymous to prepare. Often times the amount of resources, time and plans invested in planning for a project contribute to the overall success of the project. Jesus once advised his followers that when anyone once to build a house he has to consider the cost. I believe, as the Holy Spirit hovered over the emptiness, He considered the costs.

Generally, the deeper the foundation the taller the building. When a building needs to be constructed, the first thing that is prepared is the blueprint. The Spirit of God hovered on the face of the earth and prepared the blue print of heaven and earth. As the Holy Spirit moved on the face of earth, it was like the fluttering of an eagle as it demonstrates flight to its eaglets. The eagle provides a blueprint to the eaglets. The parent eagle flaps its wings, goes on flight to show its eaglets the potential they have.

Twenty-five years ago, Dubai in United Arab Emirates was merely a vast expanse of desert with little development along the shoreline. Currently, Dubai is the center of the world’s finest architectural design. Its skyline is like a city panorama in a sci-fi movie. There is the Burj Khalif stands at more than 2,700 feet, the world’s tallest man-made structure. Another magnificent structure is the Burj Al Arab, popularly called the ‘only seven star hotel’, constructed on an artificial island. The world-renowned architect, Adrian Smith, designed the Barj Khalif. One of the factors that determine the value of a building is the person who prepares the blue print. A building prepared by a top architect will for sure fetch a very high price. The second factor is the builder. A building drawn by the best architect and built by the best builder will be very expensive. Yet, your blueprint was drafted by the Holy Spirit as He hovered on the face of the earth.

The architectures and construction companies that made Dubai the most sort tourist destination are all fallible. They have limitations because they are human beings, no matter how good they are. One of the most beautiful structures in Zimbabwe is the Kariba dam, which is the largest man-made lake by volume in the world. A French civil engineer, André Coyne, designed the dam wall. In 1959, a dam designed by Coyne in France, Malpassat Dam, collapsed killing more than 400 people. Despite his obvious design genius, Coyne made mistakes too. However, the God who created heaven and earth is infallible. Adrian Smith can make mistakes in his architectural designs, but not God. The more prone a designer is to mistake the less is the value of their designs.

On the sixth day, God spoke all creatures into being like always. However, in verse 26 we see a different story.

Genesis 1:26 KJV

(26)  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

When you use the phrase “let us” it is an indication of seeking consent so that you can proceed with the desired enterprise. Mutual agreement will be the foundation of the endeavor. The number and position of the parties or persons consulted before engaging in a project to measure the overall value of the project. The higher the position of the individual consulted and the greater the number of parties in agreement, the higher the value of the project or object. For man to be created, the highest offices in the universe were consulted each other. As if that was not enough, the highest offices declared that the creation would be in their image and after their likeness.

Humankind is the prime creation. We are the pinnacle of God’s creation. Such a thought blew away David’s mind when he was shepherding his father’s flock and saw the glory of God’s creation. Such a majestic splendor provoked him to worship and sang Psalm 8. The reason why God is so mindful of man is that we are His prime creation.

God created trees for us, do not forget photosynthesis.

God created the stars and the moon for my wife and me.

When I see the sun rising, I see God’s love for me.

Even though I have never seen a blue whale, God created it for me. I have never seen an angel either, but God created them for me as well. God illustrated the value, significance and importance of human beings in His creative plan when He only spoke all creation into existence including angels but had to discuss humans into being. I am very important in God’s plan. God created man last because He wanted him to arrive in an environment that is already conducive and idyllic for his survival. Created last does not mean man is the least. You and I are only lower than God, that is how important we are God’s creation plan.

God’s image and likeness

God created only Adam and Eve in His own image and likeness. Humankind is a representation of the earthly form or pattern of God. God created man so that he can resemble God. The word resembles, according to Noah Webster’s Dictionary means to have the likeness of, to bear the similitude of something, either in form, figure or qualities. What it means is you are God’s representatives on earth in either form, figure or qualities. God vested this upon you.

Generally, what you believe regarding your form, figure and qualities, often determine your relationship with God. When you do not believe God created you in His image and likeness, you find no reason to seek or fellowship with Him. This will make you vulnerable to any teaching that offer body improvement and your priorities will be on pleasing or maintaining your body. They are many scriptures that show that you resemble God in form and figure. Human beings have a spirit, a soul and a body. Our body is the tent that lives the spirit. We are divine in that we are spirit just like God.

Form and Figure

A number of scriptures show you resemble God in both form and figure. It is important that you remember that the attributes of God as omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent prove that understanding the figure and form of God is beyond human comprehension, we cannot sketch a figure that fully depicts God. After all, He is God. The purpose of discussing the form and figure of God is to show you that God is capable of doing what you can do with your body parts but only better, faster and at any place. Space and time do not confine, limit or bind God; He is limitless, boundless and timeless.

Psa 94:7-11 KJV

(7) Yet they say, The LORD shall not see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it.

(8) Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise?

(9) He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see?

(10) He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct? he that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know?

(11) The LORD knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.

God has limbs

What we can do and achieve with our hands is a testimony of the abilities of God. Our arms are a symbol of strength, no wonder why some people spend their time in a gym trying to develop their arms. Several scriptures mention the hand of God or the arm of God.  I did a class on building construction and design in high school, which proved to me that my hands were highly limited. At both my school and provincial district, I was arguably the best student in architectural design. For my national examinations, I designed a medical clinic that was the best in the district. Back then, I dreamt of becoming an architect, but now I am a scientist. Honestly, I do not know what went wrong.  However, the architecture was only a small section of the building studies class. There was also the brickwork section where I was supposed to construct a 1 and half feet tall and 3 feet long wall.  Brickwork was my undoing; I was terrible in building a wall. Even though my hands had unparalleled skill in creating paper models and architectural drafting, they turned into pulp when laying bricks and mortar. This was not only limited to brickwork, I was terrible in doing yard work, my mother never recommended me for farm work either. No one is the jack-of-all-trades and master of all. Your strength and skill has limits. We cannot define nor compare God’s hands and feet. His strength is unending.

Eze 20:33 KJV

(33) As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out, will I rule over you:

God has eyes

The eye is an organ animals use for identification, distinguishing and perceiving objects around them. You can see what is around you using your eyes.  Our eyes have some limitations. You can only see what you are looking at. One of my favorite TV series was 24, in the series Jack Bauer often told his partners to watch his six. I always wondered what it meant. In the military, six o’clock is the most vulnerable position because it is what is behind you. The expression ‘watch my six’ is a testimony of the limitations our eyes impose on us. They are 22 verses where the expression eyes of the Lord appear. This means God has eyes. Furthermore, the Bible declares in various instances that God sees. Unlike us, God has no six o’clock; he does not want anyone to watch His six. God sees everything, even a black ant in a dark night; He can even see the deep thoughts hidden in our hearts.

The part of Zimbabwe I grew up has many mountains. Many Christians in Zimbabwe go for prayer in these mountains. The mountains provide a quiet, tranquil environment for prayer. Shortly after I was born again, I would visit one of the closest mountains that overlooked my neighborhood. At the top of the mountain, I could see as far as the horizon. The horizon was the furthest point my vision could get. Anyone who has visited the beach has seen the horizon; it is like a road sign saying you cannot see further than this. A few months ago, I went to the beach for the first time and I saw the horizon. No matter how beautiful the horizon was, it reminded me of the limitation of sight I have. Our eyes only represent a divine concept of sight, but reminds us of our limitations. God does not have a horizon; he is omnipresent.

2Ch 16:9 KJV

(9) For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.

God created our eyes so that we can see in this realm. God has eyes and scripture says He sees. Hagar is one person who saw both God’s eyes and ears. God spoke to Abraham telling him was a father of many nations. Abraham and Sarah conspired to fast track God’s promise by letting Abraham have a child with Hagar. Hagar gave birth to Ishmael and she began to look down on Sarah, her master. As a result, Abraham was advised by Sarah to chase away Hagar and Ishmael. In Genesis 16, God proved to her that He had ears. An angel came to her and told her that God had heard her. Hagar had run away, so she did not want to be seen. Therefore, when she saw the messenger of God, she knew God had seen her. Later, in chapter 21, God heard her again.

Gen 16:11-13 KJV

(11) And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.

(12) And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.

(13) And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after him that seeth me?

God has ears

You use your eyes to see what is around you and understand your surroundings but your ears are important of hearing and understanding what is we are told. What we know is usually built on what we have heard. Isaiah clearly sums up the importance, function and purpose of the ears in the following verse.

Isa 59:1 KJV

(1)  Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:

Having ears does not mean you can hear everything and understand it. When I was in college, I used to take two trips going home. There was a time when there were gas problems in Zimbabwe, so getting public transport became difficult. The terminal point I stood was used by people going on the route that included the suburbs Njube and Lobengula but also included several other routes. So normally when the touts called your route, it was fine to jump the line as long as those in front of you were not going the same route. I remember getting to the bus terminal and the touts will shout, “Njube Lobengula, masiyephambili!” Whenever, I heard this I will jump the line because masiyepambili means let us go/come forward. So I thought they meant people going that route should come forward and jump the line. For many months I did that for many months until I asked what the touts meant. I speak Shona and the touts used Ndebele. To the shock of my life, masiyephambili was a road named after the city’s motto. The touts were not asking me to come forward, but simply the rout the bus was using! God created all the languages, so He is not bound by them.

God has a heart

The heart is the gateway to the spirit and the center of emotions. God has a heart, and we are a people after God’s own heart if we believe in Jesus Christ. Blaise Pascal once said, “There is a God shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God, the Creator, made known through Jesus.” Our human heart, without Christ is full of evil, deceit and hatred. However, when our heart is filled with the Spirit of God all evil is replaced by the precepts of God.

1Sa 13:14 KJV

(14) But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.

Quality

From the above scriptures, we can see that we resemble God in form and figure. However, we also resemble God in quality. I have made an acronym for IMAGE that will help us to understand what the Bible mean by saying we are created in the image of God.

Identity- God gave us an identity. No animal is identified with God. Man is valuable because he has an identity that stems from God.

Majesty- God crowned mankind with glory and honor. We have a majesty that came from creation. No animal has been crowned with majesty. A bird flies, a fish swims, a kangaroo skips, etc. but all this is an exhibit of glory as derived from their nature and peculiarity. Nevertheless, man has a majesty that comes from God by relationship and fellowship. Mankind can hang out with the Creator.

Adept- By merely looking at the works of mankind, one can be convinced it is the work of a skilled person. In 2010, here in Zimbabwe, the town that had the largest number of tourists been Kariba, where the Lake Kariba is located. Lake Kariba is the largest man made dam in Africa by volume and probably one of the largest in the world. It is a display of the skill of man. This is God's signature inscribed on creativity, innovation and us.

Godlike- No animal is like God. Not even an angel in heaven. All other creation testifies of God’s ability and capability but only man speaks of God’s image and likeness.

Educated- God educated Adam. Adam was trained by God, how to have dominion and execute his control in Eden. God trained Adam various things.

Granted Dominion

In 1889, Cecil John Rhodes, an English business person established the British South African Company that sought to promote the imperialist agenda of Britain. Rhodes extended the British Empire by colonizing African territories. The colonizers had dominion over the indigenous people. They lorded over the people, took away their land and livestock. The imperialists controlled and exercised authority over the territories they colonized. In the Garden of Eden, God gave man dominion. God gave man authority on earth. Man had the power to govern, direct, control, use and dispose everything on earth. God’s desire was for a man to have dominion on earth. Of course, God is the supreme authority and He delegated authority to man.

Gen 1:26-30 KJV

(26) And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

(27) So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

(28) And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

(29) And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

(30) And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

It is because of our unparalleled value in all creation that satan had a reason of being envious of us. The devil was jealous of our dominion. God had the supreme dominion as well, however He gave dominion to man.

Psa 8:6 KJV

(6) Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet.

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Our Shepherd

Recently, I studied about God as the Shepherd. My first stop was the book of John chapter 10. The way John 10:1 started baffled me. It seems the verse was a continuation or an explanation of events previously occurred. What caused Christ to tell the disciples and the Pharisees that He was the good Shepherd?

The Good Shepherd

In this chapter, Christ showed us that He is the shepherd, the owner and the door. In contrast, he indicated that there were thieves and hireling. In the illustration, Christ showed that a thief does not come through the door, but uses unruly avenues to enter the flock.

Joh 10:10 KJV

(10)  The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

In imagery, Christ contrasted a hireling to a shepherd to show how much He cares for us. A hireling is a form of a shepherd who, however does not own the flock he is mandated to tend. The hireling focuses on his mandate or function only. Hence, when trouble comes he understands that if trouble perishes him, he will not be able to fulfill his function so he runs for his own life. Therefore, the sheep are not safe with a hireling because he will never protect them when wolves and lions come.

Jesus also compared a shepherd to a thief and singled out using a door as a mark of the shepherd. However, Jesus is the door, so when He came to us as Himself, He showed us that He is not a thief. Jesus as the good shepherd came so that he can take us to the green pastures and the still waters. A thief does not come through Jesus. In Christ, there is grace and truth, so if anyone comes without grace and truth they are a thief. Grace is more than a doctrine or a teaching; it is the person of Jesus Christ. A good shepherd is a gift to the sheep. A good shepherd also brings gifts for the sheep. Christ is that gift. Grace is more than unmerited favor. Grace is more than divine enabling power. Grace is more than the fabric of the relationship between man and God. Grace is more. For that reason we can confess;

2Co 12:9 KJV

(9)  And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Christ is not a hireling. He is the owner of the flock. He will not abandon the flock when trouble comes. He cares about the flock. When you hire an individual to look after your flock, it directly means that you have other important things to attend. If I am a farmer and hire Jack to look after my cattle while I spend time in my tomato garden, it implies that I am more concerned about tomatoes than cattle. Many people think that way about God. When they look at the vast expanse of the universe, they think God is busy fixing issues about galaxies and too busy to look at the earth. Many people believe that God has the power, knowledge and presence fix their problem, but the question they have is, and always is, “Is God willing to intervene in their situation?” When people look at the tragedies around the world, tsunami, terrorism, earthquake, hurricane, drought etc. they always think it is up to them to deal with the situation since God is busy with other things. Hence, the unbiblical yet popular adage, God helps those who help themselves. However, in this teaching, Jesus said it unequivocally, that He is the good shepherd, and He owns the flock showing that He has a remarkable personal interest for the sheep. With all His power, His knowledge and all presence, Jesus is interested in me. Let me put this into perspective. The Lord, who instructs the wind were to blow, holds the whole universe in the palm of His hand, knows all of the trillion times trillion stars by name, was present with me as I wrote this book and will be there with you as read it. He knows the number of hairs on your head and loves you so much.

Jesus’ teaching in John 10 was a response to previous events. The disciples saw a blind man and asked Jesus who was responsible for the disability. The question was very silly because John clearly says the man was born blind so he could not have committed sin when he was still in his mother’s womb. In the Old Testament, people had a saying, “The parents eat sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge” (Ezekiel 18:2). So from that background, the disciples insinuated that his parents sinned so he was born blind. Obviously, they were not aware of Jeremiah’s prophecy that said, “In those days they shall say no more, ‘The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge.”(Jeremiah 31:29).

Joh 9:1 KJV

(1)  And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.

As I read the verse, the word saw jumped out of the text. I had read about this particular miracle a number of times. All those times I always thought the disciples saw the blind man first. Jesus saw the blind man and there is something about how he saw the blind man that led the disciples to ask the question. A friend of mine was on his way to school when he was stopped by the police. The police told Vincent that there was a break in and he suited the profile of the suspect. The cops were looking for a criminal so when they saw Vincent, I guess, he looked criminal enough and they detained him. This is the view that most people have of Jesus, they think he is a cop out looking for people who fit a profile oftentimes made by a clueless witness. The disciples thought Jesus was out to get sinners. Anyone who fitted the profile of a sinner was supposed to be condemned so they asked about who sinned and not whether Christ can restore his sight. Society today has been enshrined with this belief that if anything goes wrong, someone is responsible and that person should pay for it. We are a quick to blame society. The disciples saw sin where Jesus saw a miracle. Jesus gave sight to the man.

We know of Bartimeus, who cried out to Jesus for His miracle. This blind man did not cry out, Christ came to him. The religionists of his day were comfortable to see him blind. To them he deserved his lot in life. They cared less. My simple message to you is this Jesus sees you.  He can see what you are going through. He is the door. Christ is the avenue of reaching to you. You are accessible by the goodness of God. For that reason David sang;

Psa 46:1-3 KJV

(1)  God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

(2)  Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

(3)  Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.

The disciples and most of the religious folks of that time never realized that the ministry of Jesus marked the ‘in those days’ prophesied by Jeremiah. He did not come to condemn sinners, but to give them salvation. Jesus answered the disciples by saying neither the man nor his parents sinned, but he was going to restore his sight all the same because He was the light of the world (John 9: 3-5).The Pharisees threw out the man whose eyesight was restored from the synagogue since Jesus performed the miracle on the Sabbath. When Jesus heard about this he told the Pharisee that He came to make those who think they see blind and those who are blind to see.   Jesus told them since they thought they had no sin, then they were blind.

After that, Jesus taught He was the good shepherd who also owned the sheep. In his teaching, He compared a hireling to the sheep owner and a thief to the shepherd.  Christ is the owner. He owns us. Therefore, He does not want any of us to perish. He will not run away from us when trouble comes. For that reason, we can declare weeping may endure in the night, but joy comes in the morning. We know that Christ will never leave us nor forsake us. We have seen and beheld the prophecy of Isaiah, for unto us a child was born… Emmanuel. For God is with us. Do you know what it means to have Emmanuel? Moses cried out that he would not go anywhere unless God goes with Him; Joseph was prosperous in all he did for the Lord was with Him. This God is with us. Unlike Joseph and Moses, we have something more. This God that Moses cried out to dwell in us. The one who created heaven and earth is in me. My body is the tabernacle of the Most High. He will never leave me.

We have the access to our every blessing; we have Christ who is always with us where does fear comes from? Now Fear is the evidence of things worried about and the substance of the bad things not seen. The perfect love poured into our hearts casts out all fear. Listen to this wonderful song,

Psa 23:4 KJV

(4)  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

I am not afraid, I am not camping in this valley of the shadow of death my guide is there and we are just passing. In your hands, there is the rod and the staff any wolves who want to come close to me beware.

We are the Sheep

Throughout scripture from the Old Testament to the New Testament, verses are awash that refers to either the Jews or Gentiles as sheep. We are described as sheep in the eyes of the Good Shepherd. A few months ago, my local pastor said something that struck me. To paraphrase what he said, “When the Bible calls us sheep it is not a commendation.” I had never realized that before. I used to think it was a commendation when the Bible continually told me I was a sheep.

During school vacations when I was in elementary and later middle school, I used to visit my uncles who owned farms. One of my uncles owned a farm that specialized in rearing livestock among other things. His elder kids used to tend the cattle and us the little chaps looked after the sheep. No one looked after the goats; it seemed they could hold their own with zero supervision.

Tending  sheep were the worst of all jobs. We never liked it because the sheep were a problem. When it rained, which was quite often since we always visited my uncle during the rainy season, the sheep would just stand dumbstruck. We had to protect them from the weather and took pains of driving them to the pen. It was a hectic endeavor. One other problem we had with sheep was they are just clueless of what is dangerous to them. When they saw anything suspicious instead of running for their lives, they would just stand and watch. Every time we saw a sheep that seems to be gazing at something, we had to be extra careful and try to get it away from any possible danger.

In his book, A Friend you can Trust, Greg Laurie sums it up well,

“That Jesus compares us to sheep is not a compliment, by the way. Sheep are among the dumbest of all creatures. Most animals, in many cases, will survive if released into the wild. They will learn to fend for themselves and make it. But a sheep released into the wild cannot survive. Sheep have no survival skills whatsoever. They are totally dependent upon the shepherd - just like we are. The sheep come to know that when the shepherd speaks they should follow because his plan for them is better than their plan for themselves.”

When we look at sheep, they are a symbol of weakness and not virtue, even though many times we have used it as a sign of meekness or humility. Throughout scripture, a sheep is an image of a person who cannot protect, fight, tend or even guide themselves. Without a shepherd, sheep are destined for destruction.

Mat 9:35-36 KJV

(35)  And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

(36)  But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.

Jesus has become our Shepherd, He watches over us. When we go astray, He guides us back to His flock through His amazing love. The Bible testifies that He is the Good Shepherd. One of the most popular Psalm is chapter 23, which speaks of Jesus as the Good Shepherd. A shepherd provides, protects, guides and leads His sheep. However, this Psalm precedes a psalm that speaks of Jesus as the Great Shepherd. Psalm 22 introduces us to a Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep. It speaks of how majestic the love of our Shepherd when He chose to take up our sins and pay the prize on our behalf. The greatness of our Shepherd does not end there. In Psalm 24, we see Jesus as the Chief Shepherd, the All in All, the Great I Am, to whom belongs all that is. These Psalms give us a picture of who our Shepherd is.

Isa 53:5-7 KJV

(5)  But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

(6)  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

(7)  He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

In the next thirteen chapters, we are going to look at how God has given us His word to help us deal with the setbacks that we often meet. The Bible says, “He sent His word and healed them from their destruction.” I believe God has given us His word and the Comforter for us to show and exhibit His glory. God wants to get the glory out of every situation in our lives.

Imageries on sheep

As a young shepherd, I learnt, whenever we went to the pasture, they are three things that could happen to my flock. Some sheep got lost, lured by greener pastures in the hinterland or any other reason for that matter. In some instances, some will fall sick yet another sheep got beat by a snake or attacked by jackals or any other wild animal. As the shepherd, it was my responsibility that none of these things happened. Oftentimes, I would sit on a tree branch above the grazing flock so that I could see every sheep. I would stay alert all the time, watching out for wild animals, especially during the rainy season. The livelihood of the sheep was in my hands.

In the lifetime of a sheep, one of these three things would happen. It is inevitable. There are no two ways about it. Sheep fall sick, sheep gets lost and sheep are attacked. Such setbacks define a sheep’s life. However, it is the role of the shepherd to provide healing to a sick sheep. It does not matter whether the sheep got sick because it ate some poisonous herbs or simply due to an infection. A good shepherd fights and protects his sheep from attacks. During my early years as a shepherd, I learnt the hard way regarding keeping my flock. When a sheep got lost, my uncle would make me look for it until I found it. Of course, when it got dark, he would go with me, but this taught me that a shepherd looks out for his sheep, even though the reason why the sheep is lost is the sheep’s folly.

As a shepherd, I protected, provided, guided and sought after my sheep out of responsibility, but Christ does all this out of love. What drove me to devise ways of ensuring that no sheep get lost was not because I loved the sheep. It was because I did not want to go out in the dark to look for a lost sheep. I was afraid of the dark! My limitations were many, I did not know all the pasture available to my uncle, I never knew how to treat a sick sheep neither was I strong enough to fight a jackal. We have this Good Shepherd, who is not limited in any way. He is omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient. We can be confident of this.

Christ the Shepherd

The most popular Psalm is, undoubtedly, Psalm 23. Packed in this psalm are some awesome truth that rejuvenates a fainting heart and quenches a thirsty spirit. Some have sang this psalm in wonderful melodies. The first song that enters into my mind is by Brian Doerksen’s ‘When you Shepherd Me’. Our hearts yearn for a shepherd, someone to guide us and lead us into a place of rest. Matthew captures the sorry state that ensues in the absence of a shepherd. In Matthew 9:36, Jesus saw the crowds and had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Most of us, we are living in this realm, harassed and helpless. We are so distressed, confused, weary, faint and bewildered. Each day seems to bring another opportunity for pain and sorrow. Most of the time nowadays, when I look at what is required of me in my graduate program; I toss and turn with anguish and hopelessness. I feel downtrodden by the great intellectual expectations imposed on me. I feel harassed and helpless. All I need is a shepherd! Ezekiel captured well my situation and that of many others like me. Ezekiel tells us the consequences of the absence of a shepherd. When you are scattered you become meat to all the beasts of the jungle.

Eze 34:4-6 KJV

(4)  The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them.

(5)  And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered.

(6)  My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.

In Matthew, we saw Jesus looking at the people and seeing their lack. It was not a lack of focus, determination, or any of those tips from success coaches, but it was simply a lack of a shepherd. The Bible records, He had compassion on them. Jesus had a strong nudge to help the suffering, he began to teach, preach and heal them. I have been on both sides of compassion. Before my mother passed, she was seriously ill. I recall one day coming from school and finding her lying on the floor helpless. It was a painful sight. I wanted to help her, I wanted to get rid of the illness that withered her once so beautiful body, and I wanted to make her whole again. How I wished I was a medical doctor that day. Unfortunately, my compassion could not heal her. Nothing is as painful as failing to help those you love the most in their difficult moments. On the flip side, after my mom passed, my family became a basket case. I needed tuition for my high school classes and so I went to seek help at the world’s most popular international charity organization. My tuition was only ZW$50,000 (less than $50) per annum. The charitable organization pride itself on helping vulnerable people, but they said they could not help me. Their vision and mission statement said they helped people like me, but when I got to their office, they said they could not. It was a painful experience. The charitable organization advertises about its completion on major billboards and TV commercials on major networks worldwide, but failed to help the suffering at their point of need. This all shows that having compassion is one thing, but being able to help is another. Jesus did not only show compassion, he helped the suffering.

In high school, I had a high mathematics and statistics aptitude. For my Advanced Level General Certificate Examination, I taught myself further mathematics and passed it. When my high school mathematics teacher passed away, we received an equally good substitute teacher. However, his stay never lasted three lessons. In his second day, Nyasha asked for help on a certain statistics question. Like any other great teacher, the new teacher threw us back the question. I did not like Nyasha so I never attempted to answer the question. Time went by and no one got the answer correct. Even with the teacher's help, the rest of the class failed to get the answer correct. I only attempted the question when Sibongile, a friend I sat next to asked me to help her. In no time Sibongile shouted, "Edmond has got the answer correct." This brought unnecessary attention to me; honestly as a high school student that wish the moments every kid for. I showed the teacher how to solve the problem and this made a dent on his pride. As a result, he boycotted all our next math classes. He thought the math problem was part of a well-choreographed conspiracy to prove he was not a good statistics teacher.

Sibongile could ask me for help because she knew I was both able and willing, unlike Nyasha who only knew I was able. Many Christians believe God is able but very few believe He is willing to help them in their point of need. We are all aware, whether consciously or subconsciously that God hears us when we are in good standing with Him. In the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus encouraged us by saying, “Seek first the kingdom of God and its righteousness.” In another verse, James wrote the benefit of righteousness, “The prayer of a righteous man avails much.” That is why David said, “When the righteous cry, the Lord hears them.” When we are in good standing with God, He hears us and helps us in our troubles. Are you in good standing with Him? The finished work of Jesus Christ offered those who believe in God’s redemptive work a guarantee to become the righteousness of God. By simply believing that Jesus came down as a man and died for the salvation of all who have sinned and are living as sinners, you are translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. This kingdom of light is marked by righteousness. As a believer, you will now have access to the throne of grace and become a child of God. God credits righteousness to you because of your that faith.

Mat 12:20-23 KJV

(20)  A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.

(21)  And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.

(22)  Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw.

(23)  And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David?

When we are harassed and helpless, we are all like a bruised reed and smoking flax. As a smoldering wink, we are like that irritating light that keeps on flickering which any sensible person turns off. Nevertheless, our Jesus, does not turn us off. Many things make us a mere smoking flax. We can go on a tirade listing all of them, but that is not the good news. The good news is Jesus choose not to quench you.

In Psalm 23, David proclaims a mind blowing revelation about the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus revealed Himself as Jehovah Ra’ah. Hence, David shouts, Jehovah Ra’ah! I shall never ever lack. Because God is Jehovah Ra’ah, I will not suffer any lack of any kind. The Ever-existing One is a Shepherd. If the Ever-existing One is also a Shepherd, then when I am hungry, He knows where the food is, when I am sick He knows where healing is, when I am lost He knows where to find me. The good news is in Jesus Christ, He is my food, He is my still waters, He is. God declares in Ezekiel 34:11 that He will seek His sheep. He will search for His sheep. He will deliver His sheep. He will feed His sheep. He will give rest to His sheep. He will bind the sheep, which was broken. He will strengthen the sheep, which is sick. This is our Shepherd. In all these wonderful promises, we see the compassion of our God. We see the goodness of God.

Eze 34:11-12 KJV

(11)  For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.

(12)  As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.

Part Two

Only By Grace:

Set Back your Setbacks

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Setbacks can be set back

From ashes to ashes

Many of life's failures are men who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.

Thomas Edison, American inventor and industrialist

Amazing as it is, Thomas A. Edison a former telegraph operator and newspaper boy, who had little if at all formal education had a record of almost 1,100 patents in his lifetime. Ironically, most of his inventions were outright failures because they were either impractical or unmarketable. Despite his high propensity for failure, I as Milton Berle said, “We owe a lot to Thomas Edison - if it wasn't for him, we'd be watching television by candlelight.” That failure-mongering fellow is the same man that invented the light bulb that you are using to read this book if at night in addition to the phonograph and the mimeograph.

In addition to being a state registered failure in science, Edison was also a failure in business. Consequently, he lost a number of his profitable businesses due to lack of basic business acumen. At one time, he spent millions of dollars on an invention that proved to be of little if not no use at all. Surprisingly, when he died, he left an estate worth millions of dollars during the Great Depression.

Edison once built a factory in a certain town. As was his habit, Edison invested almost all he had in the factory. It was a case of putting all the eggs in one basket. Of course, it was a risky undertaking. Where there is no risk there is no business, so they say. The risk is all about chance, but anything that has a chance of happening can happen no matter how small the chance. Therefore, it happened. One of the days, Edison heard an alarm. His factory was burning. His life investment was on fire. His future was on fire. Edison sent for his wife immediately, saying, “Come and see this fire. If you miss it you will never see a fire of this magnitude.”

From dull to genius

It is not that I am so smart; it is just that I stay with problems longer.

Albert Einstein, Physicist and Nobel Prize Laureate

His teacher once labeled him as dull just like Edison. Probably he was because he went on to fail his first attempt at the university entrance test.  Legend has it that his wife and he came out the bottom of their university class. As a result, he could not secure a sound job. The position he held was probably boring. At about that time, he started developing some theories that seemed to disagree with the status quo. Einstein propounded the theory of relativity, which when asked to explain it, he said, “A second sitting on a hot plate is like an hour and an hour sitting next to a beautiful lady is like a second. That is relativity.” Such a theory was refuted by most thinkers of his time. Many universities denied him professorship or even lectureship positions.

Despite all this, Einstein’s theory of relativity made him a legend. He garnered the Nobel Prize in Physics through the theory.  Another work again made him scoop his second Nobel Prize. Do not forget that his past described him as an academic failure.

Lifted up by Jesus

Winners and losers have one thing in common; they all had setbacks only that losers were set back by the setbacks when the winners had their setbacks set back.

Edmond Sanganyado

After finishing high school, I got a job as a substitute teacher and stayed far from the capital city and a few miles from my hometown of Karoi. My intention was to raise money for living expenses in college. For two months, I had worked in a grocery store and did not earn enough to save for college, but only to clear lighting and water bill debts and pay for my young brothers’ tuition. I wanted to study at the second largest university in Zimbabwe, National University of Science and Technology which was located in the second largest city, Bulawayo. NUST offered best bachelor’s programs in the area of study of my interest. My advanced level grades were very good, so I was positive I would be enrolled there.

Application forms to NUST were not available online or any place nearby, I had to travel to the capital city, Harare, to make my applications. The head of my school only gave me two days leave, so I only managed to get the application form and filled it. I failed to mail the application letter to NUST and entrusted my brother to do that.

A few months down the line, replies from the universities came. I got a place at the University of Zimbabwe to study for a bachelors in mathematics and statistics, who does that? I waited for my reply from my cherished university, NUST, which never came. Student registration and enrollment was conducted and I was still waiting for my reply. A month before the opening day at NUST, I accidentally discovered my brother had forgotten to post my application form.

By God’s grace, I got a place at NUST during the opening week. The assistant register had to ask me which program I wanted to study and all my top three had enough students I settled for the fourth best.  Ten years later, I am still wondering why I wanted to do Chemical Engineering, Architecture or Electronic Engineering! I started taking classes a week after the opening day and at graduation, I had several awards and recognition in addition to graduating on top of the class. As if that was not enough, I went on to get a Fulbright fellowship to study in the US.

A setback is a setback

From these three stories, you can see that setbacks come in different forms and sizes, but producing the same effect of retarding your progress. Setbacks can be failure or the burning of your life investment. When people regard you as academically crippled can be a setback. Setbacks can be failing to meet a deadline. Setbacks can be anything that detracts you from achieving your goal.

Setbacks transcend time and distance. They have been there and are still there. Nothing we do can eschew them. Ever since, Adam ate that fruit in the Garden of Eden, setbacks have been wreaking havoc in peoples’ lives. Adam had the first setback of being taken out of Eden and the presence of God and having to provide for his family by toiling the ground. Eve had to endure the pain of giving birth. Think of Joseph when he was cast into a pit by his blood brothers, or when his blood brothers sold him to the Ishmaelites, or when the wife of Potiphar falsely accused him, or when the butler forgot him he had interpreted his dreams for two years. Those were all setbacks.

Setbacks have been there in the nineteenth century during Edison’s days, in the twentieth century during Einstein’s days and even today in the twenty first century during Edmond’s days, (You can replace Edmond with your name). For the people I have studied in scripture, there seem to be one underlying reason for setting back setbacks-grace. Grace is the person of Jesus Christ and only by this unmerited favor can setbacks be turned into comebacks. It was by God’s grace that I graduated a string of awards and recognition was by the grace of God. I cannot claim any intellectual superiority, but favor from God. The things I went through growing up, my personal experiences and above all what the Bible says about me, has left me convinced that I can never set back my setbacks , but only Christ can.

In previous chapters, we established how Jesus is the Good Shepherd. When He shepherds us, we pass through the valley of the shadow of death, we might see foxes, and we might have sickness and disease, but when the Good Shepherd is with us all these setbacks will be history.

The righteous also cry

Throughout the Old Testament, the Bible clearly shows us the attributes of the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God, we belong to is noted of righteousness. In the book of Matthew and Luke, Jesus said that we have to seek the kingdom of God and its righteousness and then everything else will be added to us. In the book of Luke, Jesus first warned His disciples of the leaven of the Pharisees. He told them that this leaven of the Pharisees is hypocrisy. On dealing with hypocrisy, Jesus advised them to seek first the kingdom of God and its righteousness, so that everything be given to them (Luke 12:3).

It is important for us to know that righteousness was there before the Ten Commandments and the rest of the law. The Bible tells us that righteousness is one of the foundations of the kingdom of God. Under the law, righteousness were marked with right doing. To be righteous you had to do right. In the book of Numbers, the children of Israel provoked God to anger when the joined themselves to Baal-peor. A man called Phineas stood up and did what the law required and God accounted it to him righteousness (Psalm 106: 28-31). Phineas had to perform the requirements of the law so that it could be accounted for him righteousness. However, before the law, Abraham just had to believe so that it can be accounted for him righteousness. Under the law, righteousness came by right doing, but to us the seeds of Abraham, we are righteous because of right believing. Romans 4 tells us about the faith of Abraham. Abraham simply believed that God could do what He said and God credited him with righteousness. Righteousness is being in right standing with God.

I hope you still remember my high school friend, Sibongile. Sibongile got free math tutoring from me because she was in right standing with me. When you are in right standing with God, there are some benefits as David sang in Psalms 34;

Psa 34:15-19 ASV

(15) The eyes of Jehovah are toward the righteous, And his ears are open unto their cry.

(16) The face of Jehovah is against them that do evil, To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

(17) The righteous cried, and Jehovah heard, And delivered them out of all their troubles.

(18) Jehovah is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart, And saveth such as are of a contrite spirit.

(19) Many are the afflictions of the righteous; But Jehovah delivereth him out of them all.

God watches over His righteous ones. However, even the righteous get afflicted, they suffer at times, they fall sick, they have financial problems, and their marriages get into turmoil. Righteousness is no immunity to affliction, but it is a guarantee of God’s deliverance in your life. Even the righteous cry. The Bible says the righteous suffer many afflictions. Just because you are afflicted does not mean you have sinned. When afflicted the Bible tells us that cry to God and He will hear you. Our God runs to our aid. He is a present help in time of need.

The remainder of this book we would like to look at the life of a man who was after God’s own heart; David. In his life, from being a shepherd, to a castaway and finally a king, David faced several setbacks and I believe if we can permit the Holy Spirit to talk to us through the life of this man we can learn a lot about the amazing grace of Jesus Christ.

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Setbacks Are Inevitable

Anyone who has lived this side of heaven know that one way or the other we are all going to suffer some setbacks. This is not a negative prophecy or some pessimistic adage like Murphy’s Law; it is an unpleasant fact. Jesus told the first disciples that it is impossible for them not to face setbacks.

Luk 17:1 KJV

(1)  Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come!

Regarding causes of stumbling or things that causes people to lose their faith, Jesus said they were unescapable. In Matthew 18:7, He unmistakably said, “Hard times are inevitable, but you don’t have to make it worse” (The Message).

Let us get to basics first; what is causes of stumbling that Jesus talked about in the book of Luke? The Greek word skandalon is translated ten times as offense or offend in the King James Version, five times as occasion of falling, stumbling, or obstacle. One of the most popular scandals in modern history is the Watergate scandal that was an example of an occasion of stumbling for a once cherished American President. I remember some couple of years ago when I was in high school during the athletics season. We were practicing for some inter-house competitions in track events. Though not a good athlete, I must admit, I had performed well during the course of the practice session so I was excited to be part of the contenders representing my athletics house at the upcoming sports event. Together with other contenders, we ran a final 200m dash to which those who would take the first two positions would qualify to represent the house. Of course, I knew I would not take the first position, but I could scratch in the second position. The whistle blew and I took an early lead and the crowd was behind me not because I was a renowned athlete but an unlikely participant. About 100m into the race, I missed a step and stumbled. Few paces later, I stumbled again and you can guess what happened. I took the final position. Stumbling retards your pace and decreases your gaiety. It pulls you back. It sets you back. How does it do that? When you stumble in your path you have set back that is, in other words you have transverse back your set trajectory. Stumbling causes you to be at the wrong place at a given time or the wrong time in a given place.

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a setback is a defeat or a reverse. In military terms, when they say a certain regiment suffered a setback at such and such time and place, they mean the unit was defeated at that specified time and place. I like that, a defeat in a battle does not amount to losing the war. It is just a setback. A setback is a reverse of intended returns. Hence a setback occurs when a projection exceeds the production, that is when reality is the reverse of hopes and dreams. Jesus said such things would happen, come what, come may.

It is inevitable that setbacks should come. Such things will always happen.  It is an unpleasant fact that one has to face in life. Death of a spouse is for sure a setback. Death of parents could be an emotional setback. The horizon seems to have shrunk; dreams seem to have turned into a nightmare, clouds become the limit and not the sky, grief mounts and attracts every negative emotion. Current statistics say that hundreds of people are dying of AIDS not every day , but every minute. Many of those people are leaving a spouse behind and a number of children. The bereaved are left with a list of questions, which might never be answered. Is there any hope left for me? Is there any love left for me? Can I continue to dream? Often the answer is not yes implying the death was a setback.

How many of us would buy a drug for dealing with the loss of a job?  Five or so years ago, in Zimbabwe, some bankers woke up one morning only to find a notice at their entrance halls with the message, “Closed by order of Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.” With the current credit recession, many people have lost their jobs, and millions more are going to be lost this year. The emotional impact on the affected family is more or less the same to those who suffered the death of a loved one and they too ask the same questions. One of my favorite biographical films is ‘Something the Lord made’ which is about Vivien Thomas, based on an article by Katie McCabe called Like Something the Lord made which was published in 1989 in The Washingtonian. During the Great Depression, Vivien lost all the savings he had made for college. All the hopes of going to college were lost with the savings. However, without a college degree and coming from a poverty background, Vivien became the chief pioneer of cardiac surgery.

Vivien Thomas never went to college, but he had a genius, a stunning dexterity. He might have been a great surgeon. Instead, he became a legend.

Katie McCabe

One of the greatest benefits of modern civilization is freedom of expression. When I was in my first year at ordinary level, one of my teachers once said in front of me, “Edmond you are a fading paint.” This was the street lingo meaning you have lost your touch in academics. It hurt me, badly. It was an insult and a setback. Many promising young people have their potential sucked by devilish and ghoulish criticism from people they held in reverence and honor. Children are discouraged from reaching their maximum potential by their parents’ words.

From the preceding chapter, you can see there are different types of setback one can experience in life. It is imperative for us to know the causes and the different types of setbacks that we experience in life for us to be able to deal with them accordingly. Understanding the causes and nature of setbacks is essential in our dealing with them. Such knowledge helps us in ensuring that the setbacks we experiencing in life do not transform into a catastrophe. We can only cure what we know the cause, for example, the smallpox inoculation only came into being when the cause of the disease was known. Hence, we can cure the corrupting or degenerative consequences of setbacks by understanding their cause. Still using my medicine illustration, if you catch malaria doctors will not give you medication unless they know the strain that is causing your malady lest they give you an ineffective medication.

However, we cannot substitute such informative knowledge with a relationship with God, which brings revelation knowledge. The primary reason I took this undertaking of differentiating the various kinds of setbacks and their causes was for the advancement of your knowledge on the subject that you may realize how much you need a strong relationship with God and the necessity of faith, love and hope.

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What do you need?

For us to understand the causes of setbacks one thing that is a prerequisite to know is the impact of setbacks on your life. Setbacks do not just decrease our pace as we race for success; they are a calculated ambush from the pits of hell seeking to distract our view of the King of Kings. The goal of setbacks as detailed in the book of Job is to expose the truth about our devotion to God. Whenever a setback hits you, it exposes the attitude of your heart. Setbacks are like boiling water. We can either be a coffee bean, which will turn the boiling water into coffee or glass tumbler, which shatters with the heat. The impact of setbacks on us depends on what is hidden in our hearts. However, you need to set your priorities straight and know exactly who you are and what does setbacks affect.

You are a spiritual being who has a soul and resides in a body. Why do I say so? I was created in the likeness of God and God is Spirit (Genesis 1:26, John 4:24).  God created me to have a relationship with Him first. In addition, God did not want a robot as a friend, but someone who will love Him with her or his own will. No one would want a friend who loves him or her by instinct and not decision. As a result, God created something, which is of Him- a soul. Lastly, for man to perform his earthly mandate given by God when He said, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth” (Gen 1:28 KJVR) she or he needed a body. Therefore, God created a body for man. It is important to note that the last thing God did about man was to form a body. God created the spirit and soul, then formed the body lastly. This should help you realize the order of things in the eyes of God. Setbacks affect our spirit first, soul second and body last.

Hierarchy of needs

The views portrayed by the world on human needs are those that popularized by a certain psychologist called Abraham Maslow. Maslow came up with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, usually used as a tool for personnel motivation. Today many human resource officers or personnel throughout the world use it. Maslow proposed that people get satisfied when their body, then the soul and lastly spiritual needs are met. In other words, Maslow postulated that man is a body with a soul and spirit. In the previous section, I have refuted that with support of scripture. Setbacks deter our motivation. When you face setbacks, the first reaction usually is to be demotivated. Demotivation is the obstruction or destruction of zeal or drive to pursue set goals and achieve our dreams. It is the fuel of setbacks. When one is demotivated, it only means that their setbacks have drained their passion for success and obscured the prime trophy from their track. Using Maslow’s theory and of course, reality, setbacks affect our needs.

As human beings, according to Maslow, we have the following needs:

Physiological needs are for eating, drinking, clothing and a place to sleep.

Psychological needs include security of body, job and resources.

Emotional needs include the need for friendship, family, relationship and sexual intimacy.

Social needs include self-esteem, confidence, achievement and respect.

Spiritual needs include morality, creativity, self-actualization and lack of prejudice.

Eating and Drinking

Eating and drinking are essential needs that each one of us has. Each day we have to eat or drink to nourish and revitalize our bodies. Just because something is essential doesn’t mean that it should be our prime concern. However, according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, eating and drinking is so important that without it you cannot have security for a healthy body, sound job, lasting friendship, etc. Paul advised the church in Romans that the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17). Righteousness is to the spirit, peace and joy is to the soul what food and drink are to the body. Food and drink come from plants and animals. Righteousness comes from the Gospel as Paul said to the Romans (1:16-17 NIV), “the gospel… is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed- a righteousness that is by faith from first to last.” Furthermore, peace and joy comes “… by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7 NIV).

Jesus here tells us that our spiritual needs should come first before our physiological needs. Therefore, setbacks affect first our spiritual needs, then lastly, our physical needs. If you see any setback as affecting your physical needs first, then you need to turn upside down your hierarchy of needs as pointed out by Jesus in the above scripture. My wife enjoys watching TV Programs such as Wheel of Fortune, American Idol, America Got Talent and the likes. So this other day we channel surfed looking for such programs and bumped into Extreme Weight Loss. In the program, Chris Powell, a fitness trainer, trains people how to lose weight through lifestyle changes and exercise. One thing I liked about the program is, Chris always tries to show that the reason of obesity is beyond eating too much and is at times a psychological problem and at times a social problem. Unfortunately, that’s how high he often tilts the hierarchy of needs.

At the core of our being is the spirit, we are a spiritual creation. God is a Spirit and so are we. The world and its system try to lie to us that we are nothing but flesh and its desires. However, the truth is God breathed a part of Himself in us so that we can cultivate what He desires in our lives. The purpose of the body is simply for interaction with our environment. When we make environmental interaction, the goal of our life, then there is something wrong with us. The pie diagram I created has the spirit at the center and arrows feeding the two segments. This shows that all our mind/soul and body needs are met from the spirit. Meeting our spiritual needs helps in meeting both soul and body needs. That is what Jesus meant when He exhorted and encouraged us to seek first the kingdom of God and its righteousness. In other words, from the illustration you can see that setbacks only affect us spiritually, and all the other things are because of that. Hence, when we feel setbacks physiological it is only a symptom of an underlying spiritual setback. Thus, physiological needs are the effect of spiritual needs. The world realizes this now. Eating too much or any of those excessive behaviors can be traced back to spiritual setbacks. Dealing with the physiological needs will not set back setbacks.  All setbacks that we face affect our spirit first and all other facets are merely extrapolated effects.

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Grace and Truth

I think that the greatest gift God ever gave man is not the gift of sight but the gift of vision. Sight is a function of the eyes, but vision is a function of the heart. When a person doesn’t have a vision, they live by their eyes. That means we live by what we see. That’s one of the reasons why people are so depressed, and that’s why the future never becomes a reality.

Dr. Myles Munroe

Popular culture defines a visionary as a person who thought and planned about the future using imaginations. Notable visionaries are Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King Jr. These people thought outside the box, and saw that we are all humans despite the absence or presence of melanin in our skin. Their thoughts were vocalized by a South African reggae artist Lucky Dube who sang, “Different colors, one people.”

Who are the spiritual visionaries?

Hab 2:1-3 KJV

(1)  I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.

(2)  And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.

(3)  For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.

In order to be a visionary, you need an imagination and corresponding action to support the vision. Merriam-Webster dictionary define an imagination as the ability to form a picture in your mind of something that you have not seen or experienced. Habakkuk stood and watched for what God would say. When I was in high school, I read a novel by Dean Koontz called Fear Nothing. The words in the book transformed into images in my mind. As I continued reading, the pictures became more vivid and started freaking me out. I had placed my mind on Christopher Snow and the events at Moonlight Bay and my vision was frightening. What you place your mind on becomes the foundation of your imaginations. Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr and Abraham Lincoln all placed their mind on equality of humans and envisioned a world with no slavery or color bars. However, Habakkuk recognized the weakness of man, as the Lord said in Isaiah 55:8, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," (NIV). When we depend on God’s thoughts for our vision we are sure of one thing, God will give us a vision that will never fail. Therefore, Habakkuk chose to take a vigil on the Lord.

Jer 29:11-13 KJV

(11)  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

(12)  Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

(13)  And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

Even our best visions or imaginations are like a speck of dust in the Milky Way, they cannot be compared to God’s vision. God has a plan regarding your life. He has set out certain things in your life for a purpose, He has given you certain skills that no one else has, He has brought certain people in your life and He has done all this so that you can have an opportunity of revealing His goodness to everyone around.

In the book of Proverbs, there is a saying, “here, there is no vision, the people perish…” (Proverbs 29:18a). God told Habakkuk that a vision would make those who read it run; it gives purpose and strength to act. Not only that, a vision is for an appointed time. Visionaries, in the context of this book, are people who have waited upon the Lord and obtained a vision from God regarding the future. Their plans and imaginations depend on Jesus Christ. They might be a woman selling fruits and vegetables at a farmer’s market, a man farming in rural areas, a young woman trying to make a living through singing. As long as their eyes are affixed to Jesus, such people are the spiritual visionaries. Grace and truth came by Jesus and Jesus said He came so that we might have sight. Jesus Christ is the light of the world; He provides illumination for what stands before us. With Christ in us, we have light; His word is a lamp to your feet and a light on your path. Our vision is not simply a dream or a desire it is a belief and full persuasion of the promise of God. The word of God reveals to us these promises. In the middle of pain, suffering, sickness and all the perils of this life we have this hope founded on the word of God. The revelation of the grace of God, which is salvation for all men, will propel you to put your eyes on the author and finisher of your faith-Jesus Christ. This is what makes you a visionary, seeing Christ in all your circumstances. When Christ becomes the center of your life, His grace and truth will constantly supply you for your destination, decisions, determination, direction, discipline, dependence and disposition. These seven things are essential for you to attain the calling Christ has given you. These are divine pillars, which need to be fueled by the unmerited favor of God and His uncompromising truth.

They have a destination.

A destination is born out of desire. The place or position you desire is to be your destination. A destination is the intended disposition, which is the utopia so to speak, of a person who has through life’s dissatisfaction learnt to cultivate a pilgrim mentality in pursuit of personal fulfillment.  Visionaries recognize life is a journey and only those who know their destination can ever get there. Since they know where they are going, they know it when they fall short. Setbacks come to those who have a place to go and not to those who do not know where to go. Only travelers who know where they are going can miss the bus. Setbacks are for visionaries because they have a destination.

Where does the desired destination come from? I love what Paul says to the church in Philippi. Paul warned the church of people who came to make them become performance driven as taught through Judaism. The Judaizers were a group of people who followed New Testament preachers and teaching new believers to follow the Jewish custom that they me be counted righteous. New believers knew that the kingdom of God was only inherited by the righteous. Inheriting the kingdom of God was their destination, their hope and dreams were tied to an eternity with the King of Kings. This is the destination of all called by Christ. The destination of any visionary comes from the grace that has been revealed to all men- Jesus Christ. Our ultimate destination is an eternity with Christ. Christ called us for a purpose. His desire is to reveal that purpose to you and your destination on earth is fulfilling that calling.

Paul told the Philippians that he considered everything that he once held dear as useless, so that he may gain knowledge of Christ (Philippians 3:8). He understood his eyes of understanding had to be opened that He may know Christ. He could attain his life purpose and calling through deep knowledge of Christ. Through the knowledge of Christ, the divine power gives us everything we need regarding our destination by multiplying God’s amazing grace and peace in our life (2 Peter 1:3).

They have a decision.

Visionaries know that only those who make a choice can ever go anywhere. Decisions are there to be made and only those who have a vision can make a decision. You decide on what is to be and rarely on what was. Visionaries know what they want so can make wrong decisions. A wrong decision is one that lands on the wrong plane. A decision is the recipe of turning precepts into concepts and concepts into objects. Setbacks turn concepts into objections and not required objects. Visionaries know whatever decision they have to make the ultimate wisdom is from God. They do not put their trusts in only facts and figures but on the Creator who created heaven and earth. They know there is a Higher authority than statistics departments, scientist, physicians and academics.

In any decision making process, when faced with a difficult situation; you need to gather information, weigh the alternatives and implement the decision. The scariest part in decision making is finding the right information and having the right alternatives. After finishing high school, a friend of mine decided to go to a nursing vocational school. He had good advanced level passes in sciences, his decision baffled me. The funny thing is he could have easily enrolled for a bachelor’s degree in nursing at University of Zimbabwe. In four years, he could have graduated with a bachelors in nursing science guaranteed a better position and salary. The reason he chose vocational school was it would take him only two years to get the diploma. Furthermore, nursing schools used to pay students back then. Another friend of mine who was in a worse financial situation simply put her trust in God and went to medical school and today she is now a medical doctor. Faith makes the difference in making any decisions. Visionaries believe that the just live by faith.

They have determination.

Antony Robbins once said, “The path to success is to take massive, determined action.” Edison said success is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration and Einstein objected and said success is 99% inspiration and 1% perspiration. Whether you are Edisonian or Einsteinian, more perspiration or more inspiration either way it takes determination. It takes determination to turn inspiration into perspiration no matter what percentage of inspiration it is. Only what has been perspired can become. You might have awesome inspiration, but without perspiration, you are just respiring nothing more breathing in and out. Only visionaries have the determination that can be deterred or deferred by detriments called setbacks. Detriments area for the determined. When you are determined to achieve your set goals you will definitely face setbacks.

Success coaches teach that success comes when you are determined to achieve your dream. They teach that your determination should be on your dream and your actions. Pardon me, I believe what these coaches teach is not success but simply getting/having things you desire. Success is simply living out your God given calling to the fullest. The world teaches that we should be determined to do but scripture says we should be determined to believe. Our determination should be on the infallibility of God. We should be determined like Abraham, who was fully persuaded that God was able to do what He promised.

They have direction.

Recently, I came across a book by Dr. Seuss called Oh, the places you’ll go. This was the last book he published before his death. In 2007, USA TODAY reported that every spring the sales of this book increases. This book is the gift of choice for graduating high school and college students. In this book, Dr. Seuss speaks of life and its trials and tests.

You"ll look up and down streets. Look"em over with care.

About some you will say, “I don"t choose to go there.”

With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,

you"re too smart to go down a not-so-good street. Dr. Seuss, Oh, the places you’ll go

As aptly put by Dr. Seuss, life is a journey, with many turns and twists. Unfortunately, Dr. Seuss makes a dangerous assumption which most of us often make. He assumes that we have the ability and capability choose the right direction. The book of Proverbs says, “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death” (Proverbs 16:25 NIV). As a graduate student, I am daily confronted with the reality that I am not as smart as I think. I remember a few months after starting my predoctoral studies I began researching and working on a certain project. On paper, it was the best project I could ever do. I saw myself submitting my dissertation in this research area, publishing numerous articles, flying all over US presenting on my holy grail of environmental sciences. More than eight months of painstaking experiments, trial and errors, the project were a total failure. What I sought to achieve failed. I lost a year of study in the process. The reason of the loss of time was simply I took the wrong direction in my research. You cannot trust your wisdom if you want to take the best direction in life. My favorite proverb, (Proverbs 3:5-6), says, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” God desires to direct our paths so that all the setbacks in our way can be turned into comebacks through His everlasting love and power.

A friend invited me to his house to spend the weekend. The problem was I had visited the place once by car. I arrived in his neighborhood around noon and spent the next four hours looking for his house. It only took me twenty minutes to realize I was lost. After four hours of searching, I gave up. I had no money for return bus far. Only twelve miles of walking lied ahead of me. As I started walking back home, I heard someone screaming and jumping into a swimming pool. The scream was so familiar; it was my friend’s cousin. Immediately, all the bearings I had lost were restored and the sense of direction reinstated. I walked to the house where the screaming came from and my friend was there waiting for me. After being lost for 4 hours, a familiar voice restored me to the right path and directed my way. This voice became my compass; showing me where to turn and the way to take. As the sheep of God, we know the voice of our Shepherd, when He calls us, we hear him and follow Him (John 10:27). The voice of the loving Shepherd gives us direction in life.

They have discipline.

Anything that moves towards a set direction requires a restraining mechanism that will keep it on track. In most cases, a steering wheel provides such a function. Visionaries need a steering mechanism for them to stay put in their vision. Everything has a tendency to follow the path of least resistance. Great rivers that we see today were formed when water flew into the path were the rock structure was weakest. Even today, a large amount of fertile soil is lost by surface water runoff following along the path of least resistance. Even humankind has a tendency to follow the path of least resistance. However, the Bible says, “That way that seems right its end is the way of death.”

Patience and perseverance are sure steerers in our path to success. Patience pays, but patience pains. With patience, one will be trying to stay put in a path of hard terrain even though there seems to be an easier detour besides our predetermined path to our desired destiny. Patience provokes perseverance in our lives. Discipline requires perseverance because it is perseverance that can only transform direction into destination. Visionaries understand that they need a braking system in their lives. Visionaries have the self-control that helps them avoid having accidents. The purpose of discipline is to maintain direction. Discipline is the attribute that keeps visionaries on course. What requires discipline is that which can lose control. When you lose control, you blur your vision or miss your focus. Setbacks are there for those who have the discipline.

They have dependence.

One poet once wrote, “No man is an island.” I cannot agree any further. Visionaries are not lone rangers, they depend on others. They know they cannot do all things. Through wisdom, they delegate what they cannot do to those who can and even those things they can do to those who can do it better. In other words, they recognize that their vision is too big for achieving alone. As such, they make themselves vulnerable to relationship strains. Only those that have dreams bigger than they can be let down by others. The me-myself-and-I dreamers do not need relationships and cannot face setbacks.

They have a disposition.

Visionaries have a disposition. According to Webster disposition is a ‘manner in which things or the parts of a complex body are placed or arranged; order; method; distribution; arrangement. We speak of the disposition of the infantry and cavalry of an army; the disposition of the trees in an orchard; the disposition of the several parts of an edifice, of the parts of a discourse, or of the figures in the painting.’ Only those who have a disposition can evaluate. I like what John C Maxwell says, a leader is someone who, when he climbs the tallest tree shouts back, “We are in the wrong forest.” Setbacks are there for those who have a disposition either current or intended. If the disposition is intended then it becomes the destination and the cycle of visionaries continues.

The next diagram shows a cycle of visionaries that I have developed to illustrate how visionaries operate. At the center of the wheel, there is grace. This is where the lifestyle of those led by the Spirit differ from the world. Most popular teachings will put you and your desires and dreams at the center. I have read a number of inspirational, motivational and leadership books, most of them teach that visionaries are people who have a dream and are determined to get it. I beg to differ; a visionary is someone whose eyes and mind is affixed to Jesus. Jesus is the center of their life. John in the gospels says grace and truth came by Jesus, so grace and truth hold all the seven spokes of the success wheel.

[9]

Setbacks Again

There was a sticker that read, “IF AIN’T WORKING DON’T FIX IT” on one of the priced equipment in a research laboratory I did my internship. I used to wonder what they meant until one man from the company that made the instrument explained it to me. He said, “About 90% of problems which arise when operating an instrument are caused not by the instrument, but the operator.” Well, I believe that’s true even in life 90% of our problems are caused by us, it’s only at less than 10% times that we get hooked up with the wrong bunch of guys when heading to our promised land like Joshua and Caleb. In other words, we either directly or indirectly cause 90% of our setbacks. Another shocking statistic I found it when reading Joyce Meyer’s Reduce me to Love, she reported that 90% of the people who hurt us, they did not even realize it. Do you know what that translates? Ninety percent of the people who cause setbacks in our lives do not even know it. I guess that’s a shocking piece of statistics for some of us, especially the it’s-not-me or the if-it-wasn’t-of people. Through my personal study and meditations, God showed me that they are four major causes of setbacks.

Internal commission

At times the things we do or say cause setbacks in our own lives. Several marriages break due to infidelity, poor use of money and other undesirable behaviors.  The way some people eat might cause health setbacks. For example, some people are obese because they eat too much, some have a lung disease because the smoke, some have cervical cancer because of the drugs they took desiring to kill an innocent soul which was in their womb and others still today have venereal diseases because of their promiscuous activities. Most of the times the setbacks you experience are because of the things you did. In rare instances, we suffer for doing well. How many times have suffered for doing something that you knew was right spiritually, morally and maybe not politically?

However, it is important to know that the reason of these undesirable behaviors is because of some deep seated spiritual deficiency. Internal commission is, simply put the sins you do or others do. We throw ourselves into internal commission setbacks every time we do anything that is not of faith. Faith is the modus operandi of those justified by God. The best time of the year in Zimbabwe is autumn. During the harvesting season, fresh ground nuts, round nuts, corn, pumpkins, melons, calabash and cucumbers make up every meal. During this season, I used to visit my grandmother who would prepare me a feast. I would eat until I could not stuff anything else in my little tummy. The next morning, she would bring antacids, my stomach will be aching. There are certain things we do, but at the end cause us lots of headaches. Paul summed it up well, “Everything is permissible-but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible-but not everything is constructive” (1 Corinthians 10:23 NIV).

Internal omission

It is funny how things we did not do, end up being obstacles in our path. Al Duncan captured this well in his article entitled, ‘6 ways to turn your setbacks into comebacks’ when he said, “All you can do is all you can do. Moreover, all you can do is enough. But you better make sure you do all you can do.” One of the greatest mistakes that one can make is not doing what you can do. A good example, when you are a student and you do not read for the examination. Failing the exam is quite a setback, but the cause is an error of omission- not doing what you can do. An error of omission could be because of fear, shyness, timidity and gross negligence. However, at times, setbacks are caused by what we did not do and could not do.

This is most common in relationships. Expectations and lots of them mark relationships. One thing that really can create setbacks in relationships is when one partner expects something from the other and the other does not do that because they cannot do that out of inability insinuated by not personal belief but personal limitations. For example, my wife would expect me to buy her something for her birthday and I do not, not because I do not want, but because I do not have the money or I got hooked up at work in a meeting and could not have the time to buy her the gift. I could not buy the gift because I could not but that sets a setback in our relationship.

External commission

Such setbacks are a result of what has been said or done to us. It is not what we did, but what they did. A classic example is when Caleb and Joshua had to endure forty years in the wilderness because of what others had done. Caleb and Joshua were just men in an unjust crowd. At one time God commended them for their spirit. However, despite all that they had to wander in the wilderness like any other Israelite. The Bible counsels us that the righteous shall not suffer together with the wicked. In the book of Jeremiah, God made a covenant that the children will not suffer for the wrong of their ancestors. You should understand that such a covenant is there for everyone and only works for those who make a decision to partake of it.

Some women become prostitutes after being sexually abused by relatives or strangers, how some become murderers because of what had been done to them, how some commit suicide after someone said something about them. Furthermore, some of the most unbecoming behaviors, which are a social anemia, are due to individuals reacting to the environment. What the environment does to us can cause setbacks. However, according to Stephen Krauss, PhD, who is the author of many articles and the scientific self-help book, Psychological Foundations of Success: A Harvard-Trained Scientist Separates the Science of Success from Self-Help Snake Oil, “Research shows that environmental cues have a tendency of causing merely temporary setbacks.”

External omission

At times, what others failed or decided not do can cause setbacks to us. Remember how I had to delay enrolling in college because my brother innocently forgot to post my application letter. A person who comes into my mind regarding external omission is Dr. Tererai Trent. Dr. Trent was born in Zimbabwe and her father did not send her to school because he did not believe in educating a girl. Other people’s warped beliefs and values can deny you the opportunity for education or anything for that matter. This denial is a setback which God is willing to set back.

External omission is painful and if not handled carefully like external commission can create in oneself a blaming attitude, if-not or if-only-they kind of people. This kind of setback can be briefly described as one that arise when you do not get or access something which you are entitled, according to your own opinion, because of what the environment which you find yourself in did not do to ensure you obtain it The next diagram will help you visually understand the causes of setbacks in life.

Grace sets back setbacks

I love watching Antiques Roadshow, which is aired on PBS, where owners bring their antiques for appraisal by experts. What fascinates me the most about the show is people bring stuff they bought from a garage sell or swap meet for a buck or two, only to find it is worth thousands of dollars. As I continued to watch the program, I realized that the value of an object was highly reliant on the artist who produced it. Artifacts from famous artists often fetched higher prices. Furthermore, the date of creation of the antique also contributed to its worth. Very old pieces are often very expensive. The value of the antique is determined by the name of the creator and the period of its creation.

It is not always the case that antiques by famous workers or very old pieces realize their true potential worth. Wear and tear often reduced the worth of the pieces. Restoration, fixing or repairing an antique also substantially diminished its worth more than wear and tear. Any restoration work done by anyone other than the creator decreased the worth of the antique. When the artist restored, corrected or fixed their work it was regarded as part of their artistic expression. Such refurbishment work does not affect the worth of their work. Nevertheless, restoration work by anyone else disrupts the integrity of the artwork.

Peter wrote in 1 Peter 4:10, "God of all grace, to Him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.”  I want you to notice there is some important information for all of us, which are in parenthesis. According to the Google online dictionary, the parenthesis is a word, clause, or sentence inserted as an explanation or an afterthought into a passage that is grammatically complete without it, in writing usually marked off by curved brackets, dashes, or commas. Now the words in parenthesis are, "who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast."  The parenthesis gives us an identity of the God of all grace. God showed His grace to us by calling us to His eternal glory in Christ. Being called, being chosen, being, predestined by God is all a gift from God through Jesus Christ. Remember that the worth of an object depends on its creation date. God chose us before creation. Our blueprint had been already in God before Leonardo DA Vinci sketched Mona Lisa. We are of more value than any antique on the face of earth. God expressed His love to us by blessing us with all things that pertain to life and godliness.

In Luke 17, the disciples ask Jesus to increase their faith. Jesus had told them that it is impossible to not have offenses or occasions of falling. The disciples thought if their faith was increased then they would be able to deal with those occasions. Peter probably remembered that day when they went to Jesus and asked for more faith. Peter says after you have suffered a little while there is something, which God will do to you. God shows us his love to us even when we suffer. Notice the verse says after you suffer and this implies our suffering is not coming from God, but is an opportunity for us to see God working in us and manifesting his glory.  I love what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:7-13. Our bodies are a temple harboring a treasure that speaks of the divine power of God. This makes us resilient in the face of adversity.

Having qualified that God is the Creator and we are the oldest masterpiece on earth, it means we are the most valuable artwork on earth. Ephesians 3: 8-10 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” However, just like any handiwork, we wear and tear. Many of us fall into the trap like various antique owners, we employ do-it-yourself or hire an expert on Angie's List or Craig's List. We need to call upon the Creator. This is what God desires, when we have been troubled, harassed and suffered, God through His amazing grace wants to restore us, strengthen us, establish us and settle us.

The Bible says even a good man can fall. Stalwart people can suffer setbacks. Being righteous does not exempt us from afflictions. Even good people, God-fearing brothers and sisters, experience setbacks. God upholds them and they will never remain cast down. God orders the steps of a righteous person. God is the one determines the course of man. We have shown that only people who have a vision can have setbacks. We need to know that God created man and so is the one who knows the purpose of each person. God is the one who knows your vision. I like how Eugene Peterson translated Jeremiah 1:5 in The Message.

Jer 1:5 MSG

(5)  "Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you: A prophet to the nations-- that's what I had in mind for you."

One way or the other, we are going to face some setbacks in our lives, whether we like it or not. It is an unpleasant fact. Jesus said it was impossible that causes of stumbling will not come. In this book, I will explore the life of David who faced numerous setbacks in his life but remained faithful before God. When we look at his life, the troubles he faced, the mountains he climbed, and the tears he wept, we will all be drawn to the God who did it all for him. David’s life was in three phases, which are shepherds, fugitive and king days. In all these phases, David experienced some setbacks which were caused by things that he did (internal commission setbacks), he failed to do or could not do (internal omission setbacks), and what others did (external commission setbacks) and what others failed or could not do (external omission setbacks). David remained a man after God’s own heart. Despite suffering a battery of setbacks, he continued to please God despite facing various setbacks in his life. Was it because of what he did or because of the unchanging love of God? David testified in the Psalms that the mercies of God are new each morning. In another song, he writes that goodness and mercy shall follow him all the days of his life. All this shows us that David trusted in the unchanging goodness and mercy of God. That is what we want to learn in the subsequent chapters. We want to learn how recognize, trust and focus on the grace and truth embodied in the person of Jesus Christ. I pray that God may open your eyes of understanding that you may receive the good news that He has prepared for you before time.

[10]

Grace for Rejection

I do not easily get moved to tears when watching a movie, but the historical drama, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas was too tempting. The film was adapted from the New York Bestseller novel of the same title. John Boyne chronicles the friendship that developed between two 8 year old boys; Bruno, a son of a Nazi soldier, and Shmuel, a Jewish boy living in a concentration camp. During World War, Jews were condemned to concentration camps where they were purged as they were regarded undesirable in German society. Shmuel belonged to a race that had been rejected by the Nazi regime. As I watched the story progress, I marveled at how Bruno saw Shmuel not as a social anathema, but a just another kid who also like playing catch. One day, Shmuel is asked to clean dishes at Bruno’s house. Bruno offered Shmuel something to eat. All hell broke loose when Shmuel was caught by a Nazi soldier eating. Shmuel told the soldier that Bruno was his friend and he had given the food to him. As I watched the movie, I was nearly brought to tears when Bruno vehemently denied what Shmuel said. When I think about that scene, I try by all means not to think about what Shmuel could have felt when Bruno rejected him in front of the soldier. That thought is so painful. There are no enough words to explain the excruciating pain that rejection subjects our bodies, soul and spirit.

Rejected By God

1Sa 15:22-23 KJV

(22)  And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

(23)  For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

God instructed Saul to go and recompense the Amalekites for attacking the Israelites. After the battle, Samuel visited King Saul to see if he had executed God’s instruction accordingly. Excited of the victory, Saul told Samuel that he did what the Lord had said. However, Saul had spared the Amalekite king and their best sheep thinking he was doing God a favor. God viewed his actions as disobedience and rebellion. Sparing the sheep was contrary to God’s instruction so Saul rejected God’s word. God rejected him for rejecting His word. Saul acted out of pride and thought he knew better than God.

Jas 4:6-7 KJV

(6)  But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

(7)  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

God wants to give us more grace. He wants us close so that He may embrace us with His goodness. However, when we allow pride to grow in our lives, we distance ourselves from the love of God. God’s goodness fades away like a distant memory of childhood. Our abilities begin to contend with God’s abilities. Whenever you are convinced that you can do something without God, pride would have crept in. Pride is simply looking up at your abilities, capabilities and resources to meet our needs thus eroding the essence of God. Saul should have learnt from Abraham, who understood that sacrifice and offering came from the Lord. When God instructed him to offer his son Isaac as an offering, Abraham told Isaac that God will provide the offering. Unfortunately, Saul thought he could provide God with better sheep.

Accepted by God

Just as He was rejecting Saul, God appointed David as the king. In 1 Samuel 16-1-13, God sent Samuel to Bethlehem to ordain a king for replacing Saul. Samuel was the spiritual leader of the Israelites; he was the voice of God among the Jews. I used to do theatre in high school. With a couple of my friends we started the first theatre group at my school and I was the playwright. I went on to write a play about domestic violence and child abuse. The regional theatre competitions were coming up, so a teacher was appointed to lead our group. Other students interested in theatre from other classes soon joined and we became the most vibrant club at my school. On the day of the competition, the community hall and was filled to the brink by people from all walks of life. Word had gone around that the late Colin Dube popularly known as John Banda from the television sitcom Gringo was part of the adjudicators. Everyone wanted to meet John Banda.

At the competition, my school clinched the second position and I was voted the best actor. I became popular for a while in my hometown because a picture was taken of me with the who-is-who of Zimbabwe TV drama. The celebrities picked me up and started throwing me in the air and people started shouting the name Tinashe, filling the hall with applause. Tinashe was the person I portrayed in the drama. My point here is, whenever a renowned person visits a place people often hear about it and makes an effort to go and see them. It would be a great honor shaking hands with the person and striking a conversation. I had my five minutes of fame in the small town of fame because John Banda called me by name in a hall that had thousands of people. John Banda said they had not planned to award anyone but after they were mesmerized by one of the actors they thought it prudent as adjudicators to give the person ZW$100. The moment he said that I knew he meant me, I just walked to the podium to collect my prize money. I was confident of my performance. They were other actors in the hall, but they did not dare walk to the podium before John Banda called out the name of the best actor. I believe it was because they knew or thought they were not good enough.

In another incident, the late Colonel Muammar Gaddafi once passed through my town on his way to meet my president, Robert Mugabe. Of all the towns he could stop and rest, Gaddafi chose Karoi. Business came to a standstill, some shops closed and there was no school that day. It was an eventful day, some schools performed traditional dances, poems and drama. We went there to honor the president of Libya. It was all about recognizing the position of authority he held and giving him due respect. The same happened when President Robert Mugabe visited our small town. Everyone knew about it and businesses were closed to honor the president’s visit. David was a shepherd and probably heard about Samuel’s visit, but chose not to leave his sheep, and go and honor the servant of God. If it was not for God’s faithfulness, David could have missed a lifetime opportunity.

Rejection usually occurs when we feel not acceptable to society. I remember when I was battling rejection in high school and college, I turned to studying and excelled. Simply getting the highest grades never equated to conquering rejection, but it was a drive that made me more miserable. I had to continue to study even harder; I wanted to prove to my peers that I was better than them. My logic was if I were the best in class then they would accept me. The more I attempted the more rejection quickly turn into dejection which is a degenerative depressive mood which have serious health consequences as it can trigger stress related illnesses such as hypertension, ulcers and diabetes. Rejection has catastrophic consequences. Rejection suffocates all creativity in man because one will have this constant fear that their peers will not accept their work. One scientist developed a powerful theory, which then was just a mere postulate. His work was far ahead his peers that they did not accept his work. Rejection crept in and he ended his life. However, today most of the work in thermodynamics is based on his theory. Even Albert Einstein’s work was not accepted among his peers, but he went on to be a double Nobel laureate.

Even though David’s name meant beloved, from the account quoted above, you can see there was nothing beloved about him. His father did not send for him to meet an important man in the kingdom. Jesse did not think it acceptable for his last-born son to meet the man of God. Probably he was ashamed of him. God dealt with the rejection. The rejection was a threat to God’s purpose for David and God had to deal with it himself. God made it known before all that David was important before Him and was acceptable to Him even though his earthly father did not. Rejection is a direct result of other people’s negative opinion about us. When rejected, David did not bulldoze his way to the party; he remained with sheep when his brothers and father were with the man of God. When dealing with rejection we need to put in mind a number of things as shown by the life of David. Let me show you some of the things.

Know God accepts you as you are

Every time when people reject us, we should not switch into the reaction mode, but understand that man’s opinion cannot determine who we are or will be. What should be of importance to us and our prime concern should be God’s words concerning us. We have been created, but God and not structured by human opinion. God did not consult your mom or dad or whoever who has a negative opinion about you when He created you.

Jer 1:5 KJV

(5)  Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

They are four things that you need to meditate upon for you to fully appreciate what I mean by saying know that God accepts you as you are. If we go to the first chapter of the book of Jeremiah, we hear some powerful words about the important things that God did for us to be acceptable before Him. Jeremiah battled with rejection like David and most of us today. Like I said before, they are many causes of rejection in our lives, but the bottom line is rejection provokes serious setbacks in our lives since they suffocate our creativity. Jeremiah suffered rejection because he was a youth. To help Jeremiah, God said four things that can also help us get out of rejection.

God formed you

Isa 49:5 KJV

(5)  And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.

When battling with rejection you need to know that God formed you. God created you. If you go to the book of Genesis you will see that you were not just created, but were created by God in His own imagine. There is no need for you to be haunted by insecurity and rejection or dejection because you have the image of God.  Now you need to know that God formed you to be his servant in other words, to carry out His plan on earth.

You are honorable before God. The word translated honorable in the above translation is translated glorious in the King James Version. It is the word kabed, which, according to the Brown-Driver–Briggs Hebrew definitions mean to be made heavy, be honored, enjoy the honor, or be made abundant. In other words, it means to be made worthy. Therefore, the Bible is saying God made us worthy and you cannot make weighty, something that you do not accept. Hence, we are acceptable to God. You should reject rejection through accepting that God accepts you and has accepted you before you were formed. Most importantly, remember the one who formed you is pleased with you.

God knew you

God told Jeremiah that before He even formed him in his mother’s womb He knew him and had approved him as his chosen instrument. God is the one who formed you, however, before He took His time to create someone called you He knew you and had approved you. What it means is God had already accepted you before you were even born. No rejection can change that. Rejection will never make God change His plan for you. Rejection cannot make God change the purposes that He had purposed before time for you. You are the accepted of God, reject rejection and set back setbacks.

God sanctified us

Eph 2:19 KJV

(19) Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

Heb 2:11 KJV

(11)  For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,

God sanctified you, way before you were born. He set you apart and sanctified you by His blood. We have one Father and Jesus is not ashamed to call us His brothers and sisters. Jesus died for us because he accepted us before time. We now share the citizenship to those who are set apart and have been accepted into the household of God.

Holiness is the standard of acceptability before God. However, God made holiness available to us by the blood of Jesus even before we were formed in our mothers’ wombs. People have their own standards of acceptability which, if we aim for them, we will succeed in building a reputation but not a character. A reputation without character is like a grenade; self-destructive. Holiness builds character and a character that is acceptable before God.

God ordained you

Eph 1:11 KJV

(11)  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

God foreordained you, since He chose and appointed you beforehand to be His inheritance in accordance with His eternal purpose and the good pleasure of His will. The word, appoint mean to put in charge or office, or to select, single out or assign. Common sense tells us that you can only appoint what you have approved or accepted which implies God accepted us thus appointed us before we were born. As a result, we should not allow rejection to take root in our lives because we have been singled out, selected and put in charge by God over some heavenly responsibility. When you understand that God chose you before all the things that cause your self-esteem ever happened, you will see how much He loves you.

Be faithful as God is faithful

Luk 16:10 KJV

(10)  He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.

Despite being looked down upon, David remained faithful where he was. Many times when we are rejected, we tend to lose heart and end up doing whatever we do half-heartedly. Faithfulness means that you continue doing what you have been doing despite being shot down by people’s words. When you are rejected by friends, relatives and workmates continue doing what you have been doing all along. When rejected, your work needs to be energized by faith and your service should be motivated by love and unwavering hope. You need to hope against natural hope and launch into that kind of hope that does not disappoint, expecting eagerly for God to lift you up in due season since He is the Rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Such hope is the blueprint of our faith; faith is being fully persuaded that what God promised He is able to do, in other words, faith is the substance of things hoped for and evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). However, faith works by love and it is love that compels us to action.

Therefore, when we suffer rejection we need to be faithful by continuing with our work of faith, and labor of love, and patience of hope (1 Thessalonians 1:3). When people speak evil about us and fail to accept us, we have to be careful and not let our  faith become a work, a sweating toil or an occupation, love cease to be a motivation, but a travail like a woman giving birth and hope no longer is an expectation of good but an assurance of disappointment. When people reject you need to put faith at work by being faithful in what you do, put your love to labor by giving it to the same people who reject you and finally hope with patience. Remember what Jesus said;

Luk 16:11-12 KJV

(11)  If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?

(12)  And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own?

The only way we can be faithful is through knowing and believing that God is faithful and true. The faithfulness of God energizes our faithfulness. We can only become faithful when we focus on the faithfulness of God. God’s faithfulness is not dependent on our behavior, if we are faithful, He will be faithful, but if we are unfaithful, He will remain faithful because He cannot deny Himself. Paul told the Thessalonians that God is faithful and He will do (1 Thessalonians 5:24). The God who works in us to will and to act is faithful. The faithfulness of God is fully captured in the conversation between Balaam and Balak. Balak had sought Balaam to curse the children of Israel. Balaam received various gifts as payment for cursing the Israelites. The Bible tells us that Balaam failed to curse them because of the faithfulness of God.

Num 23: 19 NIV

(19) God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?

Be humble

One of the reasons we fail to see the hand of God in our life is because of pride. Whenever we think we can do anything by ourselves, we erode the essence of God in our life. Pride is thinking that we have the ability or capability to do anything without God. One person once said, “You cannot see what is up when you look down.” Being humble is taking our rightful position before God, giving God all the honor and glory He deserves.

1Pe 5:5-6 KJV

(5)  Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

(6)  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:

Jas 4:10 KJV

(10)  Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

When people reject you do not fight back by trying to justify yourself. Self-justification is an unnecessary pursuit that uses your willpower, which you could have used creatively. Like David, learn to humble yourself. Humility has the power of setting back setbacks and turns them into comebacks. You should put in mind what Peter said, “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.” God will only lift you up in due season if you would remain humble.

Psa 113:6-8 KJV

(6)  Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth!

(7)  He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill;

(8)  That he may set him with princes, even with the princes of his people.

Insecurity

The word secure is a composite word built from two Latin words, ‘se’, which means without and ‘cura’, which means care. So being secure simply means being without care. The etymology of the word has an implicit meaning of attachment to a solid body as the reason of being without any care. For example, we say, “Have you secured the doors?” meaning have you locked the doors. Securing the door helps you to not worry about thieves breaking in. The opposite of secure is insecure, where 'in' is simply Latin for not. Therefore, an insecure person is someone who is not without care. The opposite of insecurity is not confident, as many think. You can be confident, but remain insecure. The object of your confidence determines your security. If you are confident of yourself, your spouse, your family, your job or any other fellow creation, you are insecure. All the objects of your confidence are nothing but dew in a tropical morning; they vanish with the rising of the sun.

Christ out of His infinite wisdom tells a parable of a fool and a wise person. A wise built his house on a rock, a sure foundation, highly secure. Nevertheless, a fool built on sand. When the winds and the rains came, the fool's house was destroyed. Jesus talks with Martha, who was cumbered with much serving. Jesus tells Martha that she had many cares (not without cares) but Mary had chosen the best and no one will take away that from her (secure). For that reason the Bible says, "Cast your cares to the Lord, because He cares for you."

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Grace for Downtime

Many setbacks in life occur during or result in periods of time you find ourselves with nothing important to do. I have learnt this the hard way. The majority of the time I did abominable things before the eyes of God were when I had nothing meaningful to do. The old adage has truth in it; an idle mind is the devil’s workshop. Some setbacks cast us into positions of idleness. Many times we are instructed to make sure our hands are full all the time. We should not allow a second pass without doing something meaningful for our finances, family or faith. Many people view having nothing to do as sin. For us to fully receive the grace God gave us for the downtime, we need to understand the concept and purpose of rest. Rest is the unmerited favor that Christ gives us for divine use of our downtime so that we can be rejuvenated, resuscitated and revived in our body, soul and spirit. When we enter God’s rest, this is an opportunity for God to pour Himself in us. However, when we do not put Christ as our focus in everything we do, a downtime can become a setback.

Recently, my wife’s friend visited her family in Asia. When she came back, her car was not working well because of the downtime. The person she had instructed to run the car once in a while forgot to do that. I used to teach process engineering classes at a local university in Zimbabwe. In one of the classes, there was a section where we looked at the advantages and disadvantages of downtime in a processing plant. The major disadvantage of downtime in a processing plant is the loss of manufacturing time leading to less production. However, the advantages far outweighed the disadvantages; downtime are a time for reloading raw materials and plant maintenance. God gives us a choice to either turn our downtime into idleness through unbelief or rest through faith in Jesus Christ.

When we make our body the focus of our downtime by seeking to please the flesh, then that downtime becomes idleness. What do I mean? What comes into your mind when you find you have nothing to do? Do you resort to eating, candies, burgers, fries or watch a whole series of Scandal, 24, Breaking Bad or The Walking Dead? Life is like a song, with Jesus Christ as the conductor. When you remove your eyes from Him, you are bound to play a discord. When you keep your eyes on Him you will never miss a note. One of the most revolutionary orchestras is by Sofia Gubaidulina called Stimmen... Verstummen... (Voices… Silence…). In this symphony, there is a wonderful segment where the conductor motions before a silent orchestra. What intrigues me is silence was part of the symphony. Music was made during the silence. Our downtime is like the conductor solo with an orchestra, the time where miracles are made, the time where the goodness of God is revealed or the time we get to see more of God.

The most common lie people say is, “I do not have time.” We are living in a super busy world. People now spend less and less time sleeping, let alone with their families. Funny enough, most people, especially those who are always busy, spend most of their time on social networks. The same people who complain of lack of time spend the better portion of their time gossiping, eating, watching TV, partying and you know the rest. The problem we have is not lack of time, but poor utilization of downtime. What you do with your downtime matters. What is the first thing you do when you woke up before you prepare for work or your kids for school? What do you do on your way to work or back home? What is the first thing you do when you get into your house? God cares about all that downtime. God cares a lot about that so much that He instructed Paul to tell the Philippians in chapter 4. The battle of the downtime is not about our actions but in our mind. Our minds need to be renewed by the grace of God. It needs to be transformed and should not be patterned to the way of thinking of this world. The world instructs us that downtime is a moment of getting some energy drink, freshen up with a glass of wine, and pamper ourselves with a bucket full of popcorn gazing on the latest movie. We are advised to get some me-time. God wants us to change that paradigm; He wants us to understand that He has provided us grace for our employment. As we do our jobs, we have the mind of Christ to excel in it. However, when we finish our job or our project God has provided us with His grace to rest. When we realize how readily available is Christ’s enabling power to us, when we finish our job we see it as an opportunity to give thanks to God for that grace. That is why Paul wrote:

Php 4:8 KJV

(8)  Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

David at the pastures

Tending sheep is an occupation with a lot of downtime. David’s early days were spent with his father’s servants and sheep.  Only those who spent his days with him knew what he spent the day doing. However, the world came to know about it when he faced Goliath. David spent his time learning how to throw a sling, shepherding, writing psalms, learning the harp and at isolated times fighting for the sheep. David occupied his time. He did not let his downtime set him back. Many people today spend their downtime doing unproductive things, but David was wise enough to recognize that it was a time to cultivate his skills.

David the slinger

The children of Benjamin were known for two things, slinging and left-handedness. The Bible uses the word left-handedness as denoting a situation caused by lameness or inability to use the right hand due to some other reason. Despite this peculiarity, the sons of Benjamin were good slingers (Judges 20:15-16). The Benjamites were masters of the sling and were even invited to war to stand against riders of chariots and carriers of sword. These people could sling at hairbreadth and not miss. They set back their setbacks and became warriors of notable worth. They did not view left-handedness as an anomaly or disability but uniqueness. You might be left-handed reading this book and you know how it feels being different.

During downtime, we need to learn from other people who God brought into our life. Brian Tracy once said, “No one lives long enough to learn everything from scratch. To be successful, we absolutely have to find people who have already paid the price to learn the things that we need to learn to achieve our goals.” The best opportunity to learn is when you have the time; there is no time to learn in the midst of crisis. Crisis management courses are conducted not during times of crisis but before. Firefighters learn when there is no fire. They do not wait for a fire to break out for them to learn. Learn all you can and learn all you should when there is time to do nothing because when the time comes for you to do something there will be no time to learn all you should have. When David was in the pastures with lots of time to spare he learnt how to use the sling. The weapons of choice for a shepherd were a sling and a staff. At the pastures the sling was used for protecting the sheep. However, that humble weapon was recognized in Israel as a weapon, and slingers were invited to war together with archers.

David the musician

During his downtime, David learnt music. Today we know David as a man who played a harp and a psalmist, the skills that he acquired at times of idleness.  When he had nothing else to do, David did not establish himself as a soldier by slinging or fighting bears and foxes, but he also cultivated discipline in himself by learning music. David became so good in, music that people recommended him to the king whenever a musician was required (1 Samuel 16:14-19). One writer once said, “Do what you like doing and perfect it until someone starts paying you to do it.” That sums it all. David perfected his skill in music until, the melodies that he played to a bunch of servants and sheep were recommended to an idle king. The king wanted someone to chase away the evil spirit that haunted him during his idle times and the best man to do that was the young man who had learnt to turn his setbacks into comebacks, a man who had developed a skill of playing the harp during his idle hours alone in the pastures.

Redeem the time

Eph 5:15-16 KJV

(15)  See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,

(16)  Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Recently, I had a conversation with my supervisor regarding my research work.  He was concerned about my activities in the laboratory and suggested that I should do more work. Graduate school is a lot of work, at the time I was busy writing journal articles and book chapters, but that was not an excuse for not doing experiments. I heard God speaking to me when my boss said I should take advantage of the rare opportunity I had of coming to study in the US. When he said that, I remembered the parable of the talents. The people who were given more than one talent returned to the king double what they received. The king rewarded them accordingly. However, one person received only a single talent and chose to hide the talent. He kept the talent well but never thought of multiplying it through trade and money changers. Coming to US to study was a talent that Christ gave me, I could choose to do minimal work and graduate just like the guy who received a single talent. That will not please God. We are encouraged in scriptures to do everything as if we are doing for the Lord. If I consider my research, a project I was given by Christ, then when I get into the laboratory to do the experiments I will do with all I can knowing greater is He who is in me than the one who is in the world. Christ will never give me a project which He has not given me enough grace to bring to completion.

The Holy Spirit through the writing of Paul teaches us to redeem the time. The word translated redeem comes from the Greek word exagorazō which means to buy up or rescue. The best illustration of the use of the term redeem is found in the Old Testament. When a piece of land became underdeveloped, it was customary for a relative of the owner of the land to offer to buy it. The close relative redeemed the land by buying the land and putting it to good use. Only land which was poorly used could go up for redemption. So when God tells us to redeem the time it shows that time is being wasted. In these evil days, people are using time to craft evil things. Our calling is to buy up that time and use it with the wisdom that Christ gave us. We have the mind of Christ so we can make the most of every opportunity. God’s grace has been availed to all of us so that we can redeem the time and reveal the goodness of Christ in us.

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Grace for Incapacitation

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.

Dale Carnegie

Success is not so much what we have as it is what we are.

Jim Rohn

Like many African men, I love soccer a lot. Recently, I was following the third African Nations Championship where Zimbabwe was taking part as underdogs like always. Zimbabwe managed to secure nil all draw with a soccer powerhouse nation, Morocco. The fortunes were mixed when they drew again with Uganda. A win against Burkina Faso saw the Zimbabwe warriors writing their own piece of underdog history by advancing to the quarter finals. History books continued to be written when Zimbabwe dismissed another powerhouse, Mali and booked a ticket to the semi-finals against Libya. Libya dismissed us in penalties after the game ended in a full-time nil all. Funny as it is, Libya were the eventual winners of the tournament. In the third place play off, Zimbabwe battled against Nigeria. Anyone who follows soccer knows that Nigeria is the Goliath of African football. Nigeria has won everything in soccer. In sixteen minutes, one of Zimbabwe’s star players was given a red card. Zimbabwe, an underdog, played the next 74 minutes without the one of the star players. Zimbabwe was incapacitated by the red card and lost to Nigeria by one goal.

When my mother passed, my family was engulfed by a beast called poverty. We had no one to pay our tuition. My brother, Lovemore worked so hard to see us in school, but most of the time it was too much for him. After all, he was only twenty one. The death of my mother had incapacitated my family. At times, Lovemore had no money to pay for lighting and that same year I was sitting for my ordinary level examination. For several months I sat by the window in a dark room, studying using either moonlight or light coming from a neighbor’s house. Despite the incapacitation, God showed me His love and mercy and granted me the grace of setting a new academic record at my school of the largest number of As at ordinary level. More than a decade later, the record has not been upset.

David the giant slayer

At first glance, the war between the Israelites and the Philistines seemed not fair (1Sa 17:1-11 KJV). The Philistines knew that there was no man as big as Goliath the whole of Israel. However, they went on to challenge the Israelites using a champion, an intermediary in a war. Victory by the champion implied victory for the whole army. As you can see, the Philistine had done their homework and knew how to win. Someone might say it was not fair. No war is ever fair. However, if you go deep into scriptures you will find that the Israelites had no option but to conform to demands of the crazy Philistines.  One of the tendencies of the devil is to taking you to a no-way-out situation but we have to beat him on his terms. Check the following scripture and see for yourself the magnitude of the setback that the Israelites had.

1Sa 13:19-22 KJV

(19)  Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel: for the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears:

(20)  But all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his share, and his coulter, and his axe, and his mattock.

(21)  Yet they had a file for the mattocks, and for the coulters, and for the forks, and for the axes, and to sharpen the goads.

(22)  So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there found.

Using little arithmetic, you know that 13 come before 17.  Therefore, when Goliath came to challenge the Israelites he knew there were only two swords in that nation. How did this came to be? King Saul decided to do a priest’ job and gave sacrifice that displeased causing the nation to fall into a setback of lack of ammunition. Some things that we do in our lives result in setbacks. In other instances what others did can cause setbacks like in the life of David, Saul led the country into a setback, but David turned that setback into a comeback by confronting the enemy on his terms and triumphing over him. David did not sit down, mumble, and rumble that they did not have weapons and that Goliath was too big to be fought by one man. He used what he had. David searched within himself and found what skill he could use to conquer the foe.

Many people had their setbacks become a permanent fixture in their life because of an entitlement mentality. In most developing countries, a government can lose popularity when it fails to give its citizens what they think they want. No one deserves or has entitlement to God’s grace. Grace is granted to us not because of what we have done or our abilities but it is a gift from God. God is not under any obligation to give us His grace but He gives us all the same. You can never set back your setbacks if you do not develop the right attitude. The right attitude is what I do not have does not pull me down; what can pull me down is what I have. The good news is what you have, you were given by God. God will never give you what is short. God joys in choosing the weak just to shame the strong and using the poor to shame the rich. When God uses these despised people, He gets all the glory. David took inventory of his life and made use of a skill he learnt during his idle moments probably from a person who could not handle a sword. Since David was a powerful slinger, he did not need a sword. Moreover, he beat the enemy on his terms

(1Sa 17:26-46 KJV). How did David bring victory to Israel, even though they had no swords or a champion as big as Goliath?

Focus on the Rewarder

When I wrote my ordinary level examinations, my focus was on the reward. I wanted to have eleven As and be the best in my whole district. The absence of lighting, water and at times food did not hinder me from studying hard. I studied so hard without a light bulb above my head. Sometimes, I taught myself classes which my school did not offer with an empty stomach. The reward was my slave driver. I remember vividly the day after it was announced on public radio and newspapers that the ordinary level examination results were out. One of the neighbors, my late mother’s friend, came to my house crying. People looked at her wondering what had happened. She came straight to me and embraced me. It was an awkward moment; I did not know what had happened. She later told me that I had a string of As and only two Bs. I was disappointed, I did not need any Bs on my certificate I wanted As only. The reward can never satisfy you. Irv in the movie Cool Runnings sums it up well, “… a gold medal is a wonderful thing. But if you're not enough without one, you'll never be enough with one.”

1Sa 17:45-47 KJV

(45)  Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.

(46)  This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

(47)  And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD'S, and he will give you into our hands.

Even though David did not fight Goliath until he knew what was in store for him if he wins. He understood that his victory meant victory for Israel, but he needed a motivation. His motivation did not only come from the amount or the magnitude of the reward. It came from knowing who he was with God. David understood his covenant position in Jehovah. He understood that whatever Goliath was saying, Goliath was attacking the God of Israel. He knew that Goliath’s victory did not mean that Philistine had defeated Israel only; it meant that the idols of Philistine were superior to Jehovah. Whenever we are faced with trials and setbacks, we need to understand who we are in Christ. Knowing who we are in Christ and how Jesus views us will help us understand what being defeated implies.

Seek God’s opinion, not men’s

David had to make a critical decision of choosing not to listen to his own brother’s criticism and accusations. When you set yourself to set back your setbacks, the world will not understand you. Do not seek to be understood but to understand. People should not necessarily understand you because that will not set back your setbacks. Who you are should not limit you. What people see in you is not important, but what you see in yourself. David saw a warrior in himself and confronted Saul with his experiences. We need to see ourselves as God sees us. When God met Gideon, he called him a mighty man of valor, even though there seemed to be nothing so mighty or valiant about him. God’s opinion is what can bring us victory. The best thing that can come out of people’s opinions is usually another setback.

Tell your experiences to your Rewarder not a speculator, David did not tell Eliab what he told Saul. Remember God’s opinion is more important than man’s opinion. Seek God’s opinion concerning your set back we shall reiterate this point later.

Be yourself

Saul wanted David to be dressed like a king in war and David refused the honor. The reason why many people remain down when the fall is they want to adopt someone else strategy. If victory was in using Saul’s armory, then why Saul himself did not go to face Goliath? Victory was not in the weapons, but in the person. Many times, we have fallen short in our personal struggles because we have relied on recommendations from other people. Such recommendations are obvious in our present culture. Many people buy the products they are using in their household or at work because they heard on a commercial that the product was approved or recommended by a certain celebrity. The gullibility of our society is such to an extent that anything a popular star recommends is perfect, we do not even check the credentials of the person recommending.

The reason I started off this book by helping you understand who you are in Christ was that you can see that God took His time in making you. He furnished you with a unique gifting and a deep-seated longing for Him.  When you look at Christ and see who you are in Him you will find how He has given you all things that pertain to life and godliness, so that you can partake of His goodness.

Don’t listen to the setback

A setback is like a snare it woos you to fall into its claws. The English have a proverb once bitten, twice shy. When you fall into the trap of a setback you should be wise enough not to listen to it. Financial setbacks, say you are going to die of hunger, your family will suffer, you are a useless person you cannot manage your finances while marital setbacks, say you will never marry or get married, your marriage is a failure your children shall be raised in a discordant family and on and on. Setbacks speak, but they speak about what is likely considering what history says. If history says people who did what you did end up like this than setbacks will say you will end up like that too. It was all in the past. Confront the past with the future using faith. Refusing to listen to setbacks, they are historians.

Instead of wasting your time listening at the problem before you, listen to what Jesus is saying. God has given us His word and His Holy Spirit so that we can be His sons and daughters. As His children, we have the full access to the throne of grace. God will speak His love and grace to us in His presence.

Confess the basis of your victory.

David told Goliath the basis of his victory before the victory came. David saw the victory and spoke of it passionately. Whenever we face setbacks, we need to confess our victory and its basis. We need to see God as our victory. Confess in front of your setbacks that God is your victory. If you are suffering lack, confess that I know that my God shall supply all my needs according to the riches of his glory and not according to my needs. Immerse yourself in scripture, God told Joshua the sure success formula, keeping the word in his mouth, meditating on it day and night and acting on it (Joshua 1). The Bible tells us the victory that overcomes the world is our faith (1 John 5:4, 5). Speak your victory. David said in Psalm 116:10, I believe, therefore I spoke. Speak the basis of your victory to your setback. Is your victory from God or from your own making?

David told Goliath his end before he threw the first stone. This did not prepare Goliath for the end, but prepared David for the end of the setback. We need to be prepared for the end of our setback. Setting back our setbacks should not take us by surprise because that would be creating another setback. Prepare yourself for the set back setback.

Act on what you confessed

Positive thinking and confession is good, but it does not set back your setbacks, it only prepares you to set back your setbacks. We should act on what we said. Antony Robbins wrote, “Action is the foundational key to success.” At another instance, he said, “You see, in life, lots of people know what to do, but few people actually do what they know. Knowing is not enough! You must take action.” Dead faith is that faith that does not produce results. It is like a corpse. It has a shadow, but cannot breathe; you can see the substances but not the evidence. Act on what you confessed understanding God is the basis of your victory.

The question that most people have regarding acting on what you believe is how. The Bible tells us that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Christ works in us both to do and to will. Furthermore, love compels us to action. When we meditate and fix ourselves on the love of God, how much He loves us, God will work in us to do. The corresponding action of our faith is found in Christ. We can come up with a ten-step method of how to act on your faith but it will never work because faith is a relationship. The works of faith follow through knowing Christ.

[13]

Grace for sin

Never complain, never explain resist the temptation to defend yourself or make excuses.

Brian Tracy

In Part One of this book we saw that Adam was created in the image, that is resemblance or similarity, and likeness to God. God's desire was to create someone who could share in His form, shape and likeness. Because when this creation shares the image and likeness of God, it will have dominion over all other creation. Without the likeness and image of God, Adam would not have been able to reign over all creation.

Gen 5:1-3 KJV

(1)  This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;

(2)  Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.

(3)  And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:

Adam was created in the likeness of God and Seth was born in the likeness of Adam. If I was similar to my father and Chesed, my son is similar to me, therefore Chesed is similar to my father. However, was this scenario the same between Seth and God? Something happened between verses 1 and 3 that change everything. Imagine there was a drug that could change your race if you are Caucasian you become Mandarin or if you are African it an Arabic and so forth. The magic of the drug being the children you will later have will have your race and so will their children. However, you were a spit of the old block; you and your dad were similar. You then take the drug and later had a child, who was just like you. Your dad is Caucasian and you are now Mandarin so your child will be Mandarin. So your dad and your child are not similar. This is what happened with Adam and Seth. Adam was created in God's likeness, then he sinned. He lost his likeness to God. Even his offspring lost his likeness to God. Not only that, he also lost his dominion over all creation. Adam could not give birth to someone like God when he had lost his likeness to God. That is why Job said, “Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one.” (Job 14:4 KJV).

Christ came and died for our transgressions. When we believe in Him we are born of God. We become new creations, the old passes. For us to understand why this is good news to us, we need to understand that it was the nature that Seth inherited from his father that we have now lost in Christ. It is that nature that deprived us of having dominion over all creation because we did not have the likeness of God. Now we have received the new nature which is in the likeness of God. Through Jesus Christ, we receive that wonderful new nature. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Co 5:17 KJV). When we believe in Christ Jesus, we receive the super abounding grace. The Bible says that those who are going to take hold of the grace of Jesus and the gift of righteousness are going to reign in life. Grace and righteousness of Jesus Christ give us that which was lost when Adam sinned, dominion.

David the adulterer

The book of second Samuel in chapter two sets forth one of the saddest moments in the history of the man, who the Bible says, ‘was a man after God’s own heart.’ David decided not to go to war during the season when kings would go to battle. David opted not to use the season for its purpose and instead sent his right-hand man to the war. What then followed was a chain reaction of the degenerative nature of sin. David committed adultery and then murdered an innocent and loyal man. However, God through His love sent a prophet to confront him of his sins. David’s acts were a departure from righteousness. God had appointed him a king, so that he may establish a holy throne that emulates the throne of God. We are not told whether David made an effort to seek God concerning the abominable thing that he had done. God is faithful and true to His word, and sought an opportunity to reconcile with his servant. When Nathan confronted him, David repented and God forgave him, but said the son that Bathsheba had was going to die.

Sin is so acceptable that at times the pastors joke about it on the pulpit. There is this teaching that we are all sinners and there is nothing we can do about except to learn to control ourselves. Many times a list of activities are suggested as a panacea of sin. The pastor could say for example, every time you think about watching pornography just think of the women who are being abused by those men. What appalls me is Jesus Christ’s finished work is never mentioned. If our how-to-conquer-sin lists work, then Christ is made of no effect.

Jas 1:14-15 KJV

(14)  But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

(15)  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Jesus Christ died for our sins once and He rose again. Sin was imputed to Him and He became the sacrifice of sin. Just as sin was imputed to Jesus, so was righteousness imputed to us when we believe in Him. We became dead in sin and when we return to sin, we are like a dog returning to its own vomit. Paul summarizes our spiritual condition in Romans 6:14 by saying, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.” Through the obedience of faith we have become servants of righteousness.

1Jn 2:1-2 KJV

(1)  My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

(2)  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

Accept your mistakes

Setbacks are an opportunity for reevaluation. The reason you can only say you made a mistake is that you have learned something new. You are now wiser than when you made the mistake. At such a time, the best thing that you need to do is to accept that you made a mistake. Accepting that you have sinned does not mean that you have to blame yourself and run a civil court in your mind to convict yourself. Ask God for forgiveness and move on. Some of the sins that you are convicting yourself of God does not know them, maybe only the devil does. The Bible tells us that when we ask God for forgiveness He blots away our transgression implying He removes them from His sight as far as the east is to the west.

David identified that he had sinned not only against man, but also against God. The word sin means to miss the mark, so David when he said that he had sinned against the Lord, he in other words accepted that he carried a vision given to him by God. Since the vision that was implanted in his heart towards which he missed the mark was from God, then he was accountable not to man but to God. Every time that we sin, miss the mark, or suffer setbacks that we caused we need to know that we are accountable to the one who give us the vision we are pursuing. I am a writer and I have a vision. Every time that I sin and cause setbacks in my life I turn to God for forgiveness of my sins because the vision that I have and the reason I am here is God, so I am accountable to Him.

Psa 51:1-4 KJV

(1)  Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.

(2)  Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

(3)  For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.

(4)  Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.

Accept the consequences

Isaac Newton summed it up well in one of his laws of motion when he said that to every action there is an equal and opposite force. It is the same in what we do. Everything that we do or say have consequences, no wonder why the Bible says you reap what you sow. What David did, had its own consequences and he had to face them. If you steal from your employer, you face imprisonment.

The consequences of our actions should not pin us to the place we fell. They should be a lesson to us. Experience is the best teacher, though a tough one. The best way to handle the consequences is not to make them our potential boundary, but a springboard to another dimension we will pursue. Consequences of our past failures are like scars they only remind us of the battles that we went through, but do not mention anything about who won. Wise men consider consequences of their mistakes and sins as souvenirs that only tell them of places they went that they should never delight in returning to. Because of what he did, David faced the consequences. His child from adultery died through illness.  He tried to seek for God’s mercy, but God had spoken and it happened.

Know what you cannot change

God, give me grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed,

Courage to change the things which should be changed, and the Wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.

Reinhold Niebuhr

Every time that we cause ourselves to fall into setbacks we need to know that, they are things we can change and some we can’t change. Do not worry about what you cannot change. Coleman Young, an American politician in the 20th century, once said, “I’ve learned over a period of years there are setbacks when you come up against the immovable object; sometimes the object doesn’t move.” David’s prayers and fasting could not change God. Investing our time on things we cannot change is like chasing something that you know you will never catch. It is just a sheer waste of time.

Do what you should be doing

2Sa 12:24 KJV

(24)  And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the LORD loved him.

When David faced the consequences and understood that they were things that he could not change, he moved on with life and started doing what he should have been doing. David was Bathsheba’s husband and had to fulfill certain matrimonial duties. Bathsheba had lost a child and needed to be comforted and David provided her with that. Then after comforting her, she slept with her and had a child, thus performing his ordinance as a husband.

Many people have a propensity of sinking into the shell like a tortoise so to speak every time consequences of their actions mount on them. That is wrong if we want our setbacks set back. Be proactive and not reactive. Les Brown, an American author, entrepreneur and motivational speaker had this offer as advice, “Anytime you suffer a setback or disappointment, put your head down and plow ahead.” The secret of ladies-at-the-top and great man is nothing, but they while their peers were immobilized, continued to do ordinary things despite their setbacks. Great men are nothing but people who do ordinary things under extraordinary conditions and such extraordinary conditions can only be cooked by setbacks.  Get back to work and that marks the beginning of your comeback. Get back and come back! David could not have had Solomon if he had decided to remain mourning for a lost child. Stop mourning its morning, weeping endures but for a night, joy comes in the morning.

Setbacks offer a great opportunity to reinvent ourselves. We begin to set our priorities straight. The illusions that encompassed the decisions that led to the setback will be removed and we begin to see clearly. What an opportunity to see further than our eyes can see! Dream on, and live on. Life did not stop because you had a layback. Catch up and go on. See the future is there. God has not revised your purpose because you had fallen. Guess what the Bible has this to say:

Psa 40:1-5 KJV

(1)  I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

(2)  He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.

(3)  And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.

(4)  Blessed is that man that maketh the LORD his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

(5)  Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.

You might be down because of your own doing but that does not mean you are out. Yes, you have been knocked down, probably because you did not cover the weak spots on your body but you are not knocked out. The match is not still on. Moreover, God has not forgotten you. Just because you have messed up that does not mean you missed out. The mark is still there and is waiting for you to attain to it.

Know it’s God who causes your comeback

Listen to what God said to a bunch of rebellious people who were drinking their own soup in captivity:

Jer 29:10-11 KJV

(10)  For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.

(11)  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

When God causes a comeback, it will be a comeback for real. Whatever you do, you need to know that God set the mark that you missed. You were set back on the path set before you by God and if you acknowledge that the vision that you have is from God then depend on God. Depend on God, and mend your relationship with God. Remember, you are the best to live the life that God has purposed for you. One thing that you need to keep in mind is you will never mend your relationship with God by what you do but by what you believe.

Psa 51:6, 16-17 KJV

(6)  Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts; And in the hidden part thou wilt make me to know wisdom.

(16)  For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.

(17)  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

Remember, God gives grace to the humble and rejects the proud. Your comeback is in the hands of God. This is the time for your comeback.

Continue living

David learned from his mistakes and corrected them. He went to war and fathered a child. David in essence continued with living. Comebacks have an erasing influence on the setbacks. When David set back his setback, the result was the overshadowing of his mistakes by the apparent success. However, he lived with some consequences of his actions, but the triumph was overwhelming and obscuring the major setback of his reign.

See how God caused David to set back his setbacks.

2Sa 12:25-30 KJV

(25)  And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet; and he called his name Jedidiah, because of the LORD.

(26)  And Joab fought against Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and took the royal city.

(27)  And Joab sent messengers to David, and said, I have fought against Rabbah, and have taken the city of waters.

(28)  Now therefore gather the rest of the people together, and encamp against the city, and take it: lest I take the city, and it be called after my name.

(29)  And David gathered all the people together, and went to Rabbah, and fought against it, and took it.

(30)  And he took their king's crown from off his head, the weight whereof was a talent of gold with the precious stones: and it was set on David's head. And he brought forth the spoil of the city in great abundance.

[14]

Grace in relationships

1Co 12:14-18 KJV

(14)  For the body is not one member, but many.

(15)  If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?

(16)  And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?

(17)  If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling?

(18)  But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.

“No man is an island,” so said one thinker and that is true. Isolationists tried to heal their setbacks that arose due to their interactions with their neighbors and the result was they died without fulfilling their destiny. One isolationist tried to practice the doctrine of separating oneself from humanity, but when he saw from the mountain the gut rot that was multiplying like bacteria on a wound in his community, he left his domicile in a cave to come back and impact his people. The order that he established for that purpose are still operational today, many centuries later.

As long as you have a vision, then you will interact with people. Even a me-myself-and-I vision requires the contribution of others. When someone rises from the bottom to become the lady-at-the-top or a great man, then some relationships will be strained just as some will be built. A vision is the light of the heart; it illuminates what lies hidden in the treasure island of man’s heart. Visionaries move in the dimension of light. The principles of light, operate in their lives.

There is the principle of linear propagation of light, which states that light traverses in a straight line. What that implies is visionaries move straight towards their mark, no twist and turns. This means they are some people, who will be obstacles in their path and visionaries brush these aside. Then there will be some standing aside, wishing to interact with them, but the visionaries will bypass them because they will be moving towards their mark. These kinds of people will fill left out, and will talk against the visionaries. If you are a visionary then you know what I am saying. However, they will be some moving in the same direction with you, these will become your allies.

Another principle of light is wave-particle duality theory. Light is both a particle and a wave. There were great arguments about the nature of light; they were two schools of thought. One supported Isaac Newton and the other Christian Huygens. These men disagreed on the nature of light one believed in the wave theory and the other in the particulate nature of light. They had practical experiments to support their views. Just like visionaries, they have ups and downs like a wave. They are times they fall down, but when they arise, they will be ahead. They fall forward. Some people would want them to remain down when they fall and with such relationships fail when they fall forward. Others still blame them for ever falling thus relationships get strained. As if particles that are of the same energy level called photons despite the media they are in, visionaries have principles, which do not change with the environment, they are people of integrity. People without principles do not enjoy the company of principled people. Moreover, the heat that comes from the light is because of the particulate nature of light. Visionaries are fired up people, they are on fire. They are impregnated with a passion for change and this deep desire sets them on fire. However, common sense tells us not all people appreciate the need for heat, hence the creation and breaking of some relationships.

Light attracts. This is one fundamental principle of light that we cannot take for granted. When people go hunting, they use light because it attracts the game. Light is a type for hope. Anything in darkness, require light. Every time that you enter a dark room, the first thing that you do is switch on the lights. Light provides illumination and it is that illumination that attracts. When hunting, not only duikers, rabbits and antelopes are attracted by light even nuisance and nonsensical insects and reptiles are attracted. So light attracts both good things and useless things. The same with visionaries, they attract the right people and useless people who are there to waste their energy.

The last principle of light that is of interest to us is the constant speed of light. Light travels at a constant speed, whether in water, air or whatever media you might think of. Visionaries have a set gaiety. They have goals, objectives, targets and strategies. They are SMART. They have specific goals. They have measurable goals. They have attainable goals. They have reasonable goals. They have time bound goals. Visionaries do not necessarily work hard; they work smart. What pursues you determines your speed. If it is a God given desire, it does not change, goals and objectives might change with time, but what pursues you will remain the same. So if what pursues you determine your speed and what is pursuing you does not change, then your speed does not change. That is what makes visionaries. I have heard of one Secretary of Defense in United States who directed the US Army in one of the world wars from the sick bed. He maintained his speed no matter what. Visionaries do not change their pace they only change their place because they will be moving.

As you can see from the principles of light, a visionary makes or breaks relationships. This is what our theme scripture is saying. Let me repeat for you the last verse from two different translations before we look at the various setbacks that our man David had when dealing with people and what lessons we can learn from them.

Isa 3:5 MSG

(5)  People will be at each other's throats, stabbing one another in the back: Neighbor against neighbor, young against old, the no-account against the well-respected.

David and Nabal

Whether you are rich or poor, fugitive or free, they are times that you need help from others. We are not like worms, which do not need a wife or husband, but can make babies on their own. I believe God created man and woman as an eternal lesson to us that we need one another to fulfill our divine mandate. Despite the gospel of independence, preached nowadays on every form of media you might think of, independence is just as futile as isolationism. Those who practice it are as good as dead. I really do agree with Stephen Covey when he said the highest level of maturity as a leader comes when we are now interdependent. Such a great lesson is exhibited daily by virgin forests. Each specie, be it a worm, snail, bird, tree or a lion they are interdependent. Interdependence is built from mutual dependence, which is when people depend on each other.

After Samuel died, David was still a fugitive and had Saul breathing on his neck so he had to return to the wilderness. As a man of integrity and principle, David helped protect a stranger’s sheep. Fugitives do not farm or tend their own sheep, so David had to depend on other people for sustenance. Realizing this, he had to do good even to strangers because at that time only strangers could help him with food.

However, there came a point in time that Nabal, the man whose sheep he had protected had to reciprocate (1Sa 25:2-8 KJV). David sent his men to Nabal, to ask for some help. Many times when we fall into setbacks, we need to be humble enough to see that there are some people who can help us. Asking for help is one of the most humbling experiences that one can have. When we ask for something, we are cultivating a culture of dependence, but when we combine our asking with doing for other people, anything that is in our power, then that is when we grow into interdependence which Stephen Covey calls the greatest stage in the development of effective leadership.

1Sa 25:9-11 KJV

(9)  And when David's young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased.

(10)  And Nabal answered David's servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there be many servants now a days that break away every man from his master.

(11)  Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men, whom I know not whence they be?

Many of us have faced a similar circumstance as illustrated above. A few years ago, when I stayed at a relative’s house, a certain guy spread malicious rumors about me. The guy lived in the same house; he came to me asking for some advice regarding his career. After the conversation, he went on to say something I never even mentioned. I only came to know about when the relationship with my cousin turned sour. A few days later, when the relations had presumably reached boiling point, I was chucked out of the house with nowhere to go. I do not blame my cousin for that, given the information she received from her trusted sources she was justified. You will not believe that the same person who spread the rumors, I tutored him for free and passed his exams. He repaid me by spreading rumors. Every time we do something good for someone we should never expect them to pay us back in kind. They are under no obligation to do that. We all have been let down by those we love and even those we have been loyal to.

Rom 8:27-28 KJV

(27)  And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

(28)  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Like most of us, David felt let down. This was a great setback in his life. Saul was after his soul. Moreover, for his soul to survive it needed something to eat and that very thing Nabal denied despite all the help he had given him. At such times, most of us tend to switch into a degenerative mood, whereby we do anything that will avenge the harm that has been done to us. Nabal’s actions affected David’s pride and expectations. Any man who does well expects everyone else to reciprocate, but that is not the way it is. They are some Nabals in this world and lots of them after all. I pray that God through the Holy Spirit would enlighten us concerning this issue of dealing with people who cause setbacks in our lives.

People in our lives usually bring offenses. Note that I did not say people into our lives but in our lives bring offenses. How many of us have been angry with a maniac who throws derogatory words on us? If you did then you better visit a psychiatrist because you have a mental problem. Words spoken by those who are close to us can either build or destroy us. Things that done by those close to us only emotionally affect us. With close to us I mean the people to whom we have made an effort to relate to, either by doing them a favor or just talking to them until an acquaintance is built. Greatest setbacks caused by people are those triggered by those closest to us.

How did David turn this setback into a comeback?

Do not regard what has been done to you

1Sa 25:25 KJV

(25)  Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal: for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but I thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send.

The reason why people do worthless things or things that cause setbacks in our lives are that they do not know who we are. Battling with such people is like an elephant stooping so low as to fight a chameleon. It is absurd. If you know who you are, you know you have a heavenly mandate. A foolish ambassador gathers his or her family to form an army to fight the warlords in the country he or she is staying. If any warlord wants to fight, her government will avenge for her. Only a worthless warlord who does not know her government would provoke her.

Saints, we need to develop that attitude. We should not fight those who cause obstacles in our path. We should feel for them and know that they lack knowledge. They do not see who we are. If the people who were in the same class with Bill Gates knew that he was going to be one of the richest men in the world no one would have called him names, no bully could have crossed his path. Jesus summed it all up on the cross when He prayed to the Father to forgive the people who had caused His death on the cross. What was His reason? Because they did not know. Did not know what? Who He was. Do you think if all those guys, the Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes and doctors of the law knew who He was they would ever dare to cross His path? The people who cause us setbacks do not know who we are. They do not know who we are becoming.

God has not forgotten you

1Sa 25:26 KJV

(26)  Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the LORD hath withholden thee from coming to shed blood, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal.

No matter what people do to you, it’s not God doing it to you. God called you. Man did not call you. If man fails to meet your needs that does not mean God has failed you. God does not have a history of failing. Put this in mind, Jehovah lives. I like what David said after facing many setbacks in his life I shall surely not die, but live, and declare the wonderful works of the Lord. God lives. People might let you down, but God will never let you down. When John was at Patmos Island, he saw Jesus Christ riding on a horse he said he had a name written on his thigh-Faithful and True. Yes, that is who He is, faithful and true. Isaiah had this to say about our God.

Isa 25:1 KJV

(1)  O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.

The word translated counsel here according to Strong’s Concordance it means by implication a plan. In other words, God’s eternal plan is faithfulness and truth. God’s plan for your life is faithful and true. It’s a well-thought-out plan, solid and sure (Isa 25:1 MSG). God watches over His word to perform it.

Jer 1:12 KJV

(12)  Then said Jehovah unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I watch over my word to perform it.

Accept help from others

1Sa 25:27 KJV

(27)  And now this present which thy servant hath brought unto my lord, let it be given unto the young men that follow my lord.

There is a tendency among many people to react negatively when hurt by other people. When someone causes setbacks in our lives, we begin to think all people are like that. It is highly illustrated among people who had sour relationships with someone they had made a commitment for marriage. If it were a man who lost her girlfriend, they would tend to react by thinking that all women are like their ex-girlfriend. This degenerative attitude, need to be uprooted.

When we face setbacks caused by other people, we should not be careless and get prejudices about everyone. There are Nabals and Abigails in life. Nabal means worthless and Abigail father of joy, according to the Strong’s Concordance.

Victory comes from God

1Sa 25:28-29 KJV

(28)  I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine handmaid: for the LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house; because my lord fighteth the battles of the LORD, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days.

(29)  Yet a man is risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul: but the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling.

God is the one who gave you a vision, which you are experiencing setbacks. He is the source of your success. Abigail used the language of slingers to remind David of his past victories. David had one because he had inclined himself to the Lord. David had engaged himself in the battles of the Lord in fighting Goliath. In all this, God gave the victory.

In every setback that you face, remember God is the source of your victory. Our victory comes from the Lord. Like what I said in the previous sections, God is the one who will cause our comeback.

1Sa 25:30 KJV

(30)  And it shall come to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel;

What people do against you does not obstruct God; they can only obstruct you not God. God is going to do all He promised you. Nothing can stop Him and no one can stop Him. When God does what He promised you we say you have managed to set back your setback and have turned your setbacks into comebacks.

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Ambush: Set up for victory

David at Ziklag

Whether we like it or not we are going to experience some ambushes in our lives. David was caught up in one (1 Samuel 30:1-3). A war broke out between two of his allies- brothers and friends. He was caught in between and neither of the sides in dispute wanted him on their side, so he retreated home. When he arrived at his town, he found it destroyed. What had caused destruction in the South had also affected him. The Amalekites had ambushed him. We face ambush setbacks in various ways. May be you will be in another state working for the betterment of your family, then illness sets an ambush on the health of your wife or child. The devil knows how to strike our weakest points, since they can knock us down. But when he knocks us down, we should refuse to make that knock down a knock out by standing up and continue the match with much more vigor and passion. Ziklag was a place of sustenance for David and his cronies. It was a place of shelter and rest. It was a place where their wealth was kept. All their precious treasures were housed at Ziklag. In addition, Ziklag was destroyed. Maybe Ziklag was the job that you lost ambushed by the devil, or a wife that you lost, or anything that was your heart’s darling. How do you turn such a setback into a comeback?

Cry but do not waste your energy

1Sa 30:4 KJV

(4)  Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.

As a kid, I was taught boys do not cry. The result was I mounted emotions within myself and never quite enjoyed life. Emotions mounted within me like a volcano about to erupt so to speak. Cowboys do not cry so it said in the Western movies. Crying is good for the body. It helps in releasing emotions that can otherwise cause some serious health problems.

Wise people cry when they fall into setbacks. However, only great men know when to stop crying and seek the way for a comeback. Cry until you have no more power to cry because until then there will be no need to cry but act and devote all your strength to setting back your setbacks.

Expect bad reactions from people around you

When ambushed, those close to you do not know what to do. They do not even know whom to blame for the setback. The best person to blame usually the leader. As the leader, you determine the place around them and they go. To them you are responsible for all things that befall them. Do not be distressed when people speak evil of you when there has been an ambush because they will not even speak well of you when you bring victories into their lives. That should not make you feel bad, but realize that you are a leader and have some lives to influence in your hands.

One thing that you need to know is the fire-the-coach mentality. Whenever either a football team or any other team in any sport for that matter does not perform as expected by the supporters or the team’s management that is the stakeholders of that team, the first person to be fired is the coach. According to John C Maxwell, one of the greatest teachers on leadership in the 21st century, everything rises and falls on the shoulders of a leader. What it means is if a football team suffers a setback then the person who is answerable is the coach, hence the fire-the-coach mentality. By implication, then whenever setbacks caused by ambush comes up in our lives and people speak evil of us it means that they have recognized that we are the leader, hence the need to take Nitin Nohria’s advice, “Enduring setbacks while maintaining the ability to show others the way to go forward is a true test of leadership.” Ambushes offer a good classroom for such training.

Encourage yourself in the Lord

1Sa 30:6 KJV

(6)  And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.

When bad things arise learn to encourage yourself in the Lord. Many people encourage themselves in the situation. They console themselves with what have happened to them. I remember when my mother passed away; I told one of my friends who was my classmate at high school. He did a noble thing in our society by going around and informing all our classmates who were around then. They all came to my place to pay their condolences in a funny way. They all came to me and said, “It happens.” That is funny! It happens. They were encouraging me in the circumstances.

David encouraged himself in the Lord. I believe, David reminded himself of the promises of the Lord and of the victories that the Lord brought to him. In every ambush that we face we have to learn to encourage ourselves in the Lord. God’s word provides encouragement. We need to keep the word of God in our hearts, meditating on it day and night, confessing it like no man’s business. God gave us the Holy Spirit who is the Spirit of intercession. When we face ambushes, we usually do not know how to pray and even what to pray for. Take Jude’s advice, pray in the spirit. Pray in tongues. If you do not speak in tongues, brethren seek this gift given to us by God.

Seek God

1Sa 30:8 KJV

(8)  And David enquired at the LORD, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop? shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue: for thou shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all.

After David encouraged himself in the Lord, he inquired of God. When you inquire, you are seeking someone’s position concerning something. David sought for God’s opinion concerning what he should do. He was gearing up for a comeback. When you face setbacks are geared up for a comeback and seek God along those lines. Do not interrogate God. You should not go before God talking to him as if He had a part in the ambush. God is not your enemy. Neither is He on your side. God is on His side and you should be on His side and do not seek Him to be on your side.

Like Jehoshaphat, we should set ourselves to seek the Lord when we suffer an ambush. We should view such setbacks as an opportunity to nurture our relationship with the Lord. Let us capitalize on these setbacks and deepen our relationship with God.

Act on what God says

1Sa 30:8 KJV

(8)  And David enquired at the LORD, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop? shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue: for thou shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all.

When God answers us, we should not end at rejoicing at the answer, but we should act on it. Our comeback is not the answer, but in the answer. Holding on to the answer will not bring us the answer, but only show us the answer. When we act on the answer, we will see the answer as it is. David acted on what God said and the result was they turned back their setbacks. God caused them to turn their setbacks into comebacks (1 Samuel 30:18-20).

Know who caused the comeback

You should know who caused your comeback if you would like to keep setting back your setbacks. Such knowledge would help you to deal with people who would benefit from your coming back and it will also help you in becoming a better person. The fall of many people who were a great person lies in failing to know who brought them from dust. I beseech you, brethren by the mercies of God, that remember that God causes the comeback that you have or will have. Only that way will you be able to maintain your comeback.

When David understood that God gave them the victory, preserved them from destruction and delivered their enemy into their hands, he set back his setbacks and maintained his comeback. Understanding who caused our comeback operates in the dimension of salt. Salt helps in ensuring corruptible things, objects that have the potential or an inbuilt mechanism to turn from good to bad, remain preserved. Preservation is merely an act of maintaining a desired state, hence when you know who caused your comeback you maintain your comeback through the words that you speak to others, to yourself and to God. Moreover, salt gives taste to otherwise tasteless things. It’s only when what we do please God that we can find personal satisfaction in life. Recognizing the source of your setbacks provokes utterances of praise from your mouth.

Psa 126:1-3 KJV

(1)  When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.

(2)  Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them.

(3)  The LORD hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.

The words that David spoke after realizing this truth became a law in Israel, even though he was not yet a king. Only a king could speak a word that can become a law, but the words of a comeback kid who knows who caused him to come back are like the words of a king, they become law. We have many kings who are not enthroned today, the reason being they are not kings as such but people who set back their setbacks. I was reading a certain leading international newspaper and there was an article that caught my attention. The article contained Warren Buffett’s advice on what to do when there is a credit recession. The reporter said something to the effect that when Warren Buffett speaks Wall Street listened. It struck me, who is Warren Buffett besides being the richest man on the face of earth? The reporter answered my question by saying Warren Buffett had experienced the ups and downs of the investment business and that qualified him as an authority. What that means we are qualified as authorities only when we are tried and tested and such schooling is only provided by setbacks.

Recap of Part Two

According to the Strong's dictionary a hind is a female deer or a doe. A hind can easily and swiftly move on treacherous grounds and  can climb steep slopes without any difficulty.

Habakkuk 3:19 KJV

The Lord GOD is my strength, And He has made my feet like hinds’' feet, And makes me walk on my high places. For the choir director, on my stringed instruments.

Jehovah, the Ever Existing One, the One who was there before our troubles ever came, is our strength. When we get weary, tired and broken down God is our strength. God makes our feet like hinds’’ feet. This is a picture of God's grace. A hind never went before God and asked, "God, I want feet that can make me climb steep slopes, I want to tread on rocks and not slip or fall." God granted the hind its feet by His eternal goodness. To get a clearer picture of what Habakkuk was talking about let's back track a bit few verses;

Hab 3:17-18 KJV

(17) Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls:

(18) Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

The reason why Habakkuk could rejoice was he understood the grace of God. He called the God of his salvation. The word salvation there, is where we get the name Joshua or Jesus. Habakkuk trusted in the God of deliverance. When we walk in the mountainous terrain our feet will be suited for that. When we have to climb steep mountains, our feet are suitable for that. We can move rapidly across rocks and mountains because the Lord has made our feet to be hind's feet. When God takes us to high places, He gives us by His grace the right feet to walk in those places. God's grace takes us to high places. When God lifts us by His grace, He makes us walk on rocks and mountains like we are walking on a well groomed lawn. This is what grace does, taking us from glory to glory! In 2 Samuel 22.34 and Psalm 18.33; David says "He makes my feet like hinds’' feet, and sets me on my high places." When God takes us to high places, we need the hind feet so that we don't slide and fall. These hind feet keep us on our high places. The Lord sets us on High places. The Lord establishes us in our high places. The hind feet take us up the high places and they keep us up on the high places. What takes us up is what keeps us up. If the Lord takes you up, then the Lord will keep you up. The Lord turned my feet to hind's feet by His grace. Grace cannot take you where it cannot keep you. We move from faith to faith and we are moving from glory to glory. God has turned our feet to hind's feet. We will climb our high places and we will remain on our high place.

In previous chapters, we saw through the life of David, how God as our Shepherd watches over us to set back our setbacks. It is by the grace of God through faith in Jesus that we are saved. We do not even have room for boasting when the setbacks we face are set back, we only have a reason to give honor, glory and thanksgiving even before the setbacks are set back. Now, in the next few chapters we are going to look at how Jesus Christ has aided us in abating setbacks through the Holy Spirit.

Part Three

Holy Spirit:

His Present-Day Ministry

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Ministry of the Holy Spirit

The Missing Person

I am an avid reader, and that is an understatement. A few years ago, I was embroiled in the Spiritual Leadership drive gaining a certificate from John C Maxwell's EQUIP Leadership in the process. One of the statements which were repeated most of the time in books, classes and tapes were, “Do what you love and you will be enjoying it the rest of your life.” This seems like a good advice if you do not think about deeply. I love John C Maxwell’s books and I have read a number of them. I have nothing against leadership coaches, but my problem is when we take away the Christ of the Word and come up with so-called leadership principles. No principle stands without Christ because only in Him all things consist. In my bid to be a great leader, I took several personality tests, spiritual gift tests and of course exams in the process so that I could discover, my gifts. There is this push in the body of Christ for people to discover their spiritual calling.

Under the Old Covenant, God physically visited those He was giving spiritual gifts. The spiritual gifts which were on offer were simply, judges, high priesthood, prophecy and kingship. For kings only Saul, David and Solomon had the liberty of getting into office by direct divine appointment, the rest it was by law. So most kings did not discover their calling, but knew it from birth. The same goes for the high priests, they all came into office by law. Prophets and judges were called personally by God. Of course, they were also special gifts for a specific assignment where God raised up people with gifts like skill of learning for building the ark. So in the Old Testament, people did not discover their gifts but were appointed directly through word of mouth or by the written law.

We are now under the New Covenant. In the New Testament, the first apostles and then later, Paul were appointed directly by Jesus. When we read the book of Acts something becomes obvious, the early century believers began operating through the Gifts of the Spirit as the Spirit desired. At one instance, the Bible records they were prophets and teachers at Antioch, then the asked them to set apart Barnabas and Paul, so they started their ministry as apostles. In another case, Philip was ministering to a eunuch and God took him to Samaria, hence began his ministry as an evangelist. Peter and John were walking down the road when they prayed and healed someone. From all the instances we have seen so far, it is clear that people operated in the gifts of the spirit as the Holy Spirit will.

The problem most of the time is people treat spiritual gifts as a Christmas present from Santa Claus. You have to be on Santa's good list to get them. The shocking thing is the word translated gifts is derived charisma a derivative of charis. The Greek word charis is loosely translated as grace or unmerited favor. So the spiritual gifts are based on unmerited favor, it's not a Santa's Good List! Using the same analogy, a gift from Santa you have to unwrap to discover what it is. That is why people now try to use the personality tests, spiritual gifts tests and Bible Seminary Diploma to unwrap their spiritual gift. Spiritual gifts are merely God, The Father is operating through us by His divine empowerment through the grace of Jesus Christ and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.

Since they are divine abilities endowed upon us for meeting other people's specific needs (edification, encouragement, restoration, healing, anything God pleases) despite our obvious shortcomings, we only need to be in an environment conducive of ushering God's manifest presents for the gifts to operate. Therefore, our thrust as the body of Christ should not be on discovering spiritual gifts with all those tests, but permitting the move of the Holy Spirit in our midst. This requires us to understand that He is not the afterthought God, but He is God. The drive in the current generation is to dismiss, the Holy Spirit. I love my wife so much and I love it when the Bible says Surprise and I are one flesh just as God is one. If you invite me to a place and tell me Surprise is not welcome then you won't see me at your house. Is this not what we have done to the Holy Spirit? Surprise can cook well and can teach great! So if you make a checklist of how to cook like Surprise and pass high school like Surprise taught you, without ever meeting Surprise, you are simply a fraud! Is this not what we are doing with our personality, spiritual gifts tests and Bible Seminaries?

As I write this book I am considering participating in a 5 km race. The last time I took part in a 5k was in 2001, when I was in high school. I was in the top ten, so for a long time I fancied myself a long distance runner, until today. The past few days I got an app that promised miracles. I only had to exercise for 7 minutes each day. After mastering my 7 minutes, I thought it expedient to run a 5k trial today. It was a bad and a good idea. So I went online to see how long it takes to run 5 km. Fast runners do it in less than 20 minutes. So I aimed for 30 minutes. I started running and in 7 minutes I was famished. You see, if you want to run for 30 minutes you should exercise for more than 30 minutes.

As I realized the gross mistake I made, God began to show me something. I'll direct this to teachers of the word. When we study, pray and meditate in the word, it is like an exercise routine. The marathon is the life of the saints who will hear the word. Every time we use a quick fix spiritual routine will it impact the eternity of our hearers? I noticed the 7 minute exercise was a bad idea through my breathing. A short exercise routine no matter how demanding short changes our breathing in the marathon. Whenever we exercise our spirit, we are training our spiritual Cardio to constantly allow the flow of the Spirit. The bible warns we should not quench the Spirit.

The good news about the 7 minute workout was it helped my muscles. As I ran today there was a little strain on them. But with poor breathing, I nearly quit. I have attended services where the preacher had all the scriptures, but went to teach a lifeless sermon. There will be no substance, no nothing. They had the muscles but not the breathing. Only the constant supply of the Holy Spirit can transform your life and ministry. The Bible says all scripture is God breathed, we can worship in Spirit only, and the Spirit gives gifts. By denying the move of the Holy Spirit, the church becomes a well-built runner who breathes like a coach potato.

Without the Holy Spirit, setbacks will become permanent residents of our life.

How to walk on water

How many of us have been caught up in the situation like the one that the disciples had when Jesus said. “Let us cross over to the other side.” (Mat 14:22-33 KJV). After Jesus spoke these words, what did He do? He did not jump into the boat with the disciples, but went on and chatted with the crowd dismissing them. He did not follow the disciples after dismissing the crowd. Instead, He went the opposite direction; Jesus went to the mountain and started praying!

Many times, we find ourselves left alone after listening to Jesus’ instruction. What struck me about this account is, we are not told by the wind not until Peter started walking on water. The disciples were holding their own in the boat. They sailed through the wind. After all, most of them were professional fishermen. Peter and his friends knew how to deal with the wind. In this situation, they did not need Jesus. Does this sound like your life?

This does relate to my life. God showed me enormous grace and I got a chance to study in the US. In some of the classes I took, I had previous hands on experience and I just cruised through. However, due to the nature of my program I was required to take some very advanced biology classes. The last time I was in a biology class was in High School in my ordinary level. This was a moment of being called to walk on water. All I needed was Jesus. The truth of the matter is I needed Jesus for all the classes. Just because of previous experience, I thought I could hold on my own for the seemingly easy classes.

The wind was there as the disciples sailed heading towards Gennesaret. They had the expertise of sailing in a windy situation. Then, Jesus appeared walking on the lake. This stirred up faith in Peter. Let me repeat this statement in different words. When Peter saw Jesus walking on water, it arose within him faith. Peter became fully persuaded that what Jesus says it will happen. Jesus Christ is the author and finisher of our faith. When we see the nature of Jesus, when we become aware of the inherent ability of Jesus it raises hope in us. Hope is the earnest expectation of good. When we become aware of what Jesus is capable of and that He is willing to do it we have faith.

Rom 4:21 KJV

(21) And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.

Where was the wind when all this was happening? It was there. Peter walked on water. The wind was there when he walked on water. As he walked on water, he became more aware of his surrounding foe than he was about Jesus. We all know what happened next. Peter began to sink. Peter had no previous experience of dealing with wind while walking on water. What does this all mean to our lives? To answer that question, we need to ask ourselves why Jesus would choose to walk on water. Why did He not look for a boat and followed the disciples in another vessel? When Jesus told the disciples to leave, they did not even ask Him how He was going to meet them. I guess they all thought He was going to use another boat. Nevertheless, Jesus chose to walk on water. I believe this is important for all of us to know, Jesus walked on water despite the raging wind. Peter walked on the water despite the raging wind only when he saw Jesus doing it.

Heb 12:2 KJV

(2) Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Today we might be holding our own in raising our kids, managing our finances, making friends, reading for that college degree, leading that church, and so forth. When we keep our eyes on Jesus, He will raise in us a faith to step out of the boat and walk on water. With the boat, I mean the situations that we are familiar with, the situations we have thought we can handle well. God wants us to step out and have a full Jesus experience. Only when you walk on water will you know about the importance of keeping your eyes on Jesus.

The Ever Present Helper

How many of us have been caught up in the situation like the one that the disciples had when Jesus said. “Let us cross over to the other side.” After Jesus spoke these words, what did He do? He did not jump into the boat with the disciples, but went on and chatted with the crowd dismissing them. He did not follow the disciples after dismissing the crowd. Instead, He went the opposite direction; Jesus went to the mountain and started praying! To answer the various questions that most people might have, let us use a parallel study of the account in the three books it appears. Matthew 14:22-34, Mark 6:45-53 and John 6:15-21.

Here is an encounter we need to savor as children of God. Jesus had fed thousands of people with a child’s lunch. The people had suffered under an oppressive rule of the Romans. When Jesus fed them, I believe it reminded them of Moses and straight away, it dawned on them that Jesus could become their king. In order to avoid such a revolution derived from a misconception of the sign they had seen, Jesus bade the crowd to depart and He went to the mountain to pray. This was after He had already told His disciples to cross over the lake. Many a times we find ourselves in a situation where we know it was the Lord who led us into that place. Jesus leads us to engage in some activity, but in the midst of following His will we find ourselves caught up in a storm and it seems Jesus is nowhere to be found.

After Jesus told them the place they were going, Jesus took the opposite direction. John clarifies why He did that. Jesus wanted to avoid the misconception that had arisen after the miracle He had performed. John in chapter 20 verse 31, he tells us the reason of the miracles of Jesus, he recorded; “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” Jesus did not perform the miracle so that they may crown Him king; He was already a King of Kings. However, Jesus left and went to pray. Jesus is the High Priest. He did not abandon the disciples, but went on to pray for them and all of us. When Christ leads you into an area, He will never abandon you. Christ promised, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” When the disciples were alone Christ was praying for them. Just like us, when we feel like Christ is not with us, remember He is the High Priest interceding for you. This is so that you can confess all things work out for the good to those who believe in Him.

Psalm 46:1-3 NIV

(1) God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.

(2) Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,

(3) though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging

When the winds toss us and leads us astray from our course, Jesus, our High Priest is interceding for us. He sees us in that storm and He will choose to disobey the laws of gravity or any other law to get to our aid as our present help. When Jesus got into the boat, the wind ceased. Not only did the wind cease something else happened. You see, the wind tossed them in the wrong direction. They went for many miles in the wrong direction because the wind was contrary. They had gone astray from their destination. This is what usually happens in our lives. Jesus leads us in a certain direction, but some storms carry us in the wrong direction. When the High priest steps into our lives, not only does he calm the storm, He will take us where He wants us to be. John tells us that after they willingly received Him into the ship at once they arrived at Gennesaret.

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Exercising for godliness

1Timothy 4:7, 8

(7) But the profane and old-womanish myths refuse, and exercise yourself unto godliness.

(8) For bodily exercise is profitable for a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the present life and of that which is to come.

Historical Background

Paul wrote this letter to his protégée, Timothy, who was most probably aware of the then current practice of the gymnasium. When writing to Timothy, Paul by the inclining of the Holy Spirit chose to use the verb gumnazō and the noun gumnasia which were translated as ‘exercise’ in the King James Version and the New International Version. The word gymnasium came from these two Greek words. Unfortunately, the present practice of gymnasium is devoid of the customs and purposes of the ancient Greek. In the ancient Greek, athletes trained and contested nude because they believed that if there are naked and flexing their muscles, they will be like their gods. The ancient Greeks believed that the gymnasia and palestrae were under the protection and patronage of their gods Heracles, Hermes and, in Athens, Theseus. Therefore, being naked echoed the values and beliefs of the ancient Greeks because they were taught that by imitating the gods they were closer to them.

Exercise to Godliness

In the previous section, we established that the ancient athletes exercised their bodies naked so that they can be like the gods. Bodily exercise was an outward show for an inward desire. The outward show was the exercise, but the inward desire was to be like the gods. Greek mythology is full of these gods, illustrating their super powers and heroic deeds. They were many stories about them. It was the desire of many people to be like these gods and bodily exercise was one avenue they pursued.

Paul tells Timothy to exercise himself to godliness. I want you to look closely at what Paul said. The Greek athletes exercised their bodies for their idols. Paul contrasts bodily exercise and exercising godliness, and concludes that bodily exercise only profit a little but godliness profits all things. For the ancient Greeks, they exercised their bodies, we are assured of good health, they exercised their minds, and were assured of being educated but they were one thing missing. They did not exercise their spirit. This is what Paul was talking about, exercising the body and soul only profits a little, but exercising the spirit makes you gain all things.

How do we exercise the spirit?

In order for us to know how to exercise the spirit, we first need to know what godliness is. The word translated godliness is eusebeia, which is a compound word derived from eu (which means good or well) and sebomai (which means worship). Therefore, in other words, godliness only means good worship or worshipping well. Godliness is when Christ is expressed through our life. Therefore, to exercise ourselves to godliness is to exercise our spirit to live out Christ in our daily life. From the Grecian customs of gymnasium, exercising the body was any endeavor that bares the body to the Greek gods, so that the attributes of the gods can be expressed through their lives. However, exercising the spirit is a divine endeavor that bares our life at the feet of God so that we can express Christ through our lives.

Joh 4:23-24 KJV

(23)  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

(24)  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

When Jesus met up with the Samaritan woman, He explained to her what worshipping well is. Worshipping well is when we bow, surrender, or yield our lives before the Father in our spirit and in the knowledge of the truth.

2Pe 1:2-4 KJV

(2)  Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,

(3)  According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

(4)  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

In verse 3, Peter, through the Holy Spirit reveals to us that Jesus Christ has given us all things that we need in life and for worshipping well. Christ has granted us all things that pertain to godliness through the knowledge of Him. It is our knowledge of Christ that ensures we express Christ through our life. The Holy Spirit has been brushed into the sidelines of many Christians. The ministry of the Holy Spirit has been expelled out of the lives of many people. The Holy Spirit is important in our lives.

We are Not Orphans

According to the Wikipedia, the legal definition used in the United States [for an orphan] is a minor bereft through “death or disappearance of, abandonment or desertion by, or separation or loss from, both parents.” The absence of a parent causes the child to be susceptible to trouble in any form. Orphans are characterized by a deep longing for acceptance, affection and provision. Orphans are vulnerable to different societal and economic woes. Among the highest abused kids in the world are orphans. Why? They do not have a parent to love them and protect them.

In John 16, Jesus tells the disciples that He was not going to leave them as orphans. Jesus does not want us to be a people that are deprived of affection, acceptance and provision. The ministry of Jesus in Galilee was typified with compassion. Christ was full of grace and truth. For that reason, He was like a parent to the disciples. However, the death and ascension of Jesus could have meant that the disciples would be orphaned. Then Jesus told them it was important that He leave. This was so because He was going to leave them with the Holy Spirit.

To understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we need to know what the orphans need. The good news is the Holy Spirit came to provide that. Before I get ahead of myself, let me read scripture for you.

Joh 16:6-14 KVJ

(6) But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your heart.

(7) Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

(8) And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

(9) Of sin, because they believe not on me;

(10) Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;

(11) Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

(12) I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

(13) Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

(14) He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

It is my prayer that after this study, we will all be living in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. I urge you to send this message to your friends and beloved ones because I know it is going to transform them because of the grace of God in Christ Jesus.

The Holy Spirit is our Comforter

In this chapter, I would like to let us focus on verse 7.

Jesus tells us that the Holy Spirit is our Comforter. We are a people who need comfort. Day by day we are confronted with that need of a loving embrace. Situations arise where we wish there was someone who could bail us out. When I was doing my advanced level after my mom passed away, there were days I wished she were there. If she was around, she could have found a way to pay my school fees. What this meant is I believe my mom had some understanding, some way or some ability to pay my fees. The good news is Jesus sent the Comforter.

Jesus promised that the Spirit that came upon Him was with us. He promised that He would be our Comforter. That same Holy Spirit when it came upon Jesus, the Father shouted in heaven full of joy, “This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.” In this promise Jesus is saying, “Cheer up! When the Spirit comes on you, Daddy will say, “This is my beloved Edmond (put your name) in whom I am well pleased!”” We got it wrong. Jesus clearly tells us here that the Comforter will convict the world. Many Christians believe that the Holy Spirit came to convict them. Are you the world? If you are then the Holy Spirit will be convicting you. The Holy Spirit leads us not convict us!

You have the Comforter.

Isa 11:1-3 KJV

(1) And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:

(2) And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;

(3) And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:

This same spirit, which was in Christ Jesus, is in us. Since the Comforter is with us, we have comfort. Rejoice that you have wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and the fear of the Lord. God is rejoicing over you with singing. This is the ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life today. This Comforter makes the Father say, “This is my beloved Edmond (put your name) in whom I am well pleased.”

To conclude this section, I will quote two of my favorite books, Romans and Galatians.

Rom 8:15 KJV

(15) For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

Gal 4:6

(6) And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

Spirit of Adoption

An orphan needs a parent. The desire of the billions of people who are orphans today is not for money, a house or a car. These materialistic possessions can never soothe the deep emotional hunger rooted in the hearts of an orphan. Social status, promotions, academic achievements can never quench the innermost thirst for someone to call dad or mom. Nothing can ever replace a parent.

When Jesus said that He would not leave the believers as orphans, He further augments the revelation He had brought to us that God is the Father. In various teachings, Jesus proclaimed that anyone who saw Him had seen the Father. He continued to reveal to any who bothered listening that God is our Father. Jesus came to reveal to us the love of God who is our Father. Now His crucifixion, in the eyes of the believers, then meant the departure of the Father. Without the Father you are an orphan.

It is against this backdrop that Jesus comforts them with the words that He would never leave them as orphans. These words had a resonance of awesome good news then and still two thousand years later, they are a fountain of hope to many who choose to believe in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of adoption into sonship. With the Holy Spirit we have become not orphans, but children of God.

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The Attorney

The Defense Lawyer

In this chapter we will be moving on to the second part of our series on the present day ministry of the Holy Spirit. In the previous chapters, we focused on John 16:8. We came to understand that when we the Holy Spirit came upon us as promised by Jesus Christ, God declared that we are His beloved son or daughter in whom He was well pleased. This was further revealed in scriptures from both Romans and Galatians, which said we received the Spirit that makes us call God Daddy, or in Aramaic Abba, Father. This helps us to understand that when Christ ascended into heaven He did not desert us but left us with the Comforter.

Today we want to back track a bit so that we can understand better the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Our desire is to reign in life just as Christ did. We have the same Spirit that He had.

In John 14, Jesus tells the disciples that He will be going away. The disciples did not understand what He meant or even where He was going. Christ went on to tell them that because they have seen Him so they have seen the Father. This was so because Christ is the way, the truth and the life. He highlighted that the works He did, he did because it was the Father who He lived in Him who was doing His work. Jesus said that if anyone had faith in Him, they could do what He had been doing.

John 14:15-18 KJV

(15) If ye love me, keep my commandments.

(16) And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever;

(17) Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

(18) I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

I would like us to focus on the Holy Spirit as another Comforter. In this passage, Jesus said, if they loved Him, they should keep His commandments. When I read this, Romans 7 was quickened in my spirit. I urge you to read it to gain understanding of what I am about to say. I also urge to weigh what I am about to say with other scriptures. My desire is to lead you into the Truth and grace of God. To know what commandments Christ meant read the following scriptures; John14:21-24, John8:42, John15:10-14, John 21:15-17; 1John 2:3-5, 1John 4:19-20, 1John 5:2-3.

Now Romans 7 shows us the futility of trying to keep the commandments of Christ using our own efforts. Paul shows us that the carnal man or the flesh cannot do God’s will. Now God had an answer for that. Many Christians are living in defeat today because they have been tried to do God’s will in their own effort. In the passage above, Christ made a powerful and redeeming promise. He said He would ask the Father to give us another Comforter; this word is translated as a Counselor in NIV and in the first epistle of John as Advocate. The word Comforter here means a Helper or a counsel for the defense or in current jargon a defense lawyer. In essence, Christ said if we love Him, we will keep the commandments and we will in addition have a defense lawyer. What is a defense lawyer for?

To know what the defense lawyer is for, we need to note that Christ did not just say He would ask the Father give us a defense lawyer but ‘another’ Counselor. This implies there was another Counselor who is not the Holy Spirit. Who is this Counselor?

1 John 2:1-2 KJV

(1) My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

(2) And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

This scripture shows us that Christ is also an Advocate or Counselor or Comforter. Jesus Christ is our Comforter who is the propitiation of our sins. The Holy Spirit is another advocate for us. This defense lawyer is always with us and lives with us forever. Just imagine walking around knowing that you have your lawyer by your side. The devil will through accusations of you. You do not need to respond to him. Just tell the accuser of the brethren, “Talk to my lawyer.” When satan tells you are not doing this, you are not doing that just tell him, “Talk to my lawyer.” Praise God we have our lawyer with us always!

Romans 8:1-2 KJV

(1) There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

(2) For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

This is the work of the other Counselor, when He walks with us as our defense lawyer defending us from all accusations we rein in life. We live in the no condemnation zone. With our Lawyer, we are free from the law of sin and death. Sin does not have dominion over us. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth and Jesus said the Spirit should lead us into all truth. Now we know that if you know the truth the truth sets you free. Saints with our defense lawyer we are free. In the next sections, we will focus on the truth that the Holy Spirit leads us.

Work of the Holy Spirit

In the past section, we spoke of how God rejoices over us, calling us His children after the Holy Spirit came upon us. Let me emphasize this point. The Holy Spirit is our seal of righteousness, so when He comes upon us, we are seen as righteous before God. We become members of His family and the Father’s pleasure is showered on us.

Previously, we talked about another important aspect of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. He is our defense lawyer. The Bibles says He is another Counselor; Jesus Christ is also our Counselor. The defense counsel of Jesus, our advocate is presented before the Father as He is with the Father. However, the Holy Spirit is with us and in us. Now, we would like to look at the three aspects of the work of the Holy Spirit as promised by Jesus. From John 14 to 16, Jesus repeated said some important words regarding our Counselor and Comforter. Jesus said three times when the Counselor comes he shall… What will the Counselor do? It is important to understand the break drop of all these promises and work of the Holy Spirit.

Teach and Bring to Remembrance

Joh 14:23-27 KJV

(23) Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

(24) He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.

(25) These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you.

(26) But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

(27) Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

I believe after hearing verse 23 to 25, the disciples were worried asking themselves how they will ever be able to keep His words. Understand these words were spoken before Jesus was crucified. The order of events here appeared like first keep the words of Christ, then you love God, finally God will abide in you.

However, verse 26 starts with a ‘but’ which means for you to understand fully what has been said previously and get the full picture consider this because it is of more importance. Jesus then says but your defense lawyer, who is the Holy Spirit, will teach you all things and will remind you all things. It is like driving with the driving instructor by your side, the good news is the driving instructor is in us! Jesus is saying do not even think about keeping my words because your defense lawyer will be by your side teaching and reminding you.

The Holy Spirit will show us God’s love for us and we love Him because He first loved us. Peace is the impression of God’s love. It is what is left to us when God bestows His love on us and on the other hand grace is the expression of God’s love. The Bible says grace shall teach us all things. The Holy Spirit helps us in receiving God’s expression of His love and teaching us all things in so doing. For that reason Jesus says He leaves us His peace. Praise God!

Testify of Christ

Joh 15:25-27 KJV

(25) But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.

(26) But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

(27) And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.

The Holy Spirit does not only teach us and remind us, but it also helps us in reaching out to others. Through the Holy Spirit, we are witnesses of Christ. The Holy Spirit helps us in testify of Christ. To give a good and honest report of our Lord and Savior. Why is that so? Because the world cannot hear from the Holy Spirit, the world cannot see Him, but we know Him and He is in us. How does He testify of Christ?

Joh 16:8-11 KJV

(8) And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

(9) Of sin, because they believe not on me;

(10) Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;

(11) Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

In the next section, we will look considerably at these verses.

Guide into all Truth

Joh 16:12-14 KJV

(12) I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

(13) Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

(14) He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

In addition to teaching and reminding us and testifying of Christ, the Holy Spirit guides us into all truth. Guiding is showing the way. This is good news. The defense lawyer is with us showing us the way. As the teacher, He merely lays out the Truth. Showing us what the Truth is, we become acquainted with the Truth, but as the Guide we experience the Truth. Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the life. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. The Holy Spirit is from Jesus, one with Him. We are one with the Spirit.

Jesus Christ fulfilled the law of the letter, we are not under the law of the letter that kills we are under grace. This grace is also called the law of liberty or truth. The Holy Spirit is our defense lawyer who makes sure we remain in grace. What it means He is there to keep us blessed, to keep us in favor, to keep us in godly provision, to keep us delivered. How does He do that? By teaching, reminding, testifying Christ and guiding us.

Understanding Favor

I posted this statement on my Facebook Timeline, “Surely, being educated is not measured by what you know but the documents that prove you know. I cannot imagine, I have to endure an inhumane insult on my intellectual ability by sitting and writing notes on what I taught my high school Geography class comprising of a bunch of 13 year olds.”

A friend of mine responded

I understand your feeling. Humility will take you through this experience. Blessings.

A few hours after he made this comment, I remembered something; I always prayed to God for favor in everything I do. I believe grace is the person of Jesus Christ and there is nothing impossible when you are looking at Jesus. In the Psalms, David sang that God surrounds us with favor as a shield. There is nothing more I can ever need a day, but the grace of God.

I am one person who thinks that learning is doing difficult stuff. Now, I have realized that belief stemmed from deep insecurity. Mastering what not everyone else could be a way of gaining acceptance and recognition. Many a times, I was trapped in trying to know more than my peers do. Such a behavior showed the skewed understanding of favor I had. I believed through my actions that favor before God is unmerited, but before men, it is earned. How terribly wrong I was!

Pro 3:1-6 KJV

(1)  My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:

(2)  For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.

(3)  Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:

(4)  So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

(5)  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

(6)  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

In the previous series, we showed that the Holy Spirit is our Counselor and we understand that Jesus Christ came and fulfilled the righteous requirements of the law. Our Counselor helps us to understand this. The Counselor reminds guides and teaches us the Truth. What Truth? That Christ came and fulfilled the righteous requirement of the law and He was punished for our transgressions. As our defense lawyer, He reminds us that the sins have already been punished for even before we committed them. The word translated kindness is chesed which means favor or grace or goodness. The Bible tells us that Jesus was full of grace and truth. Jesus promised not to forsake us. The word of God is near us it is even in our mouth. God has written His words in our hearts. Christ fulfilled all the demands of the law. Therefore, we find favor and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

These things demanded by Proverbs have been fulfilled in us if we can just believe in Christ. For that reason we need to trust in Jehovah and lean not in our own understanding. We have the Counselor, our comforter, to see us through. Describing Jesus, Luke 2:40 and the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him. For the grace of God was upon Him (Luke 2:52)… Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men. Another example we may give is Joseph. The Lord was with Joseph, he had the grace of God on him. Because of this grace that was upon him, everything he has prospered and he had favor with his master. We do not need to do stuff to gain favor with God or man, but we need to believe in the finished work of Jesus.

I have learnt my lesson, when I pray for God’s favor in my studies; at times that favor comes with doing things that I already know and at times He gives me a good understanding in areas that I never have any previous experiments. In all these, Christ receives the glory.

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Accuser lies

The Accuser is a Liar

Imagine you are a jury in a court of law. The judge asks the accuser to step forward. The accuser steps forward and says, “I, the accuser, I am a man of known reputation of lying. I am a perennial liar. It is in my nature up to lie. Every word that comes out of my mouth has been proven to be a lie. I guess you have been wondering why my name is Lie Liar.”

The accuser, Lie Liar, then goes on to tell the jury of the accusation that he is leveling against the defendant. Will you listen to the testimony of a liar in court? It is the role of the defense lawyer to show beyond any reasonable that the accuser is a liar. The defense lawyer will show the jury how every word that Mr. Liar says is a lie.

I remember such a scene in the book of Zechariah. There was a time when the temple of Jerusalem had fallen and God raised fire and brimstone prophet to remind the children of Israel to rebuild the walls. Haggai spoke with authority rebuking them of neglecting the house of God. God, then instructed the people like Joshua, the High Priest and Zerubbabel, the Governor to lead the people in rebuilding the house of God.

The people were all excited at first, but the excitement steamed out after some time. God, then raised another prophet who spoke of God’s kindness. Haggai spoke of judgment, but Zechariah spoke of His love.

Zec 3:1-5 KJV

(1) And he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of Jehovah, and Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary.

(2) And Jehovah said unto Satan, Jehovah rebuke thee, O Satan; yea, Jehovah that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?

(3) Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the angel.

(4) And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take the filthy garments from off him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with rich apparel.

(5) And I said, Let them set a clean mitre upon his head. So they set a clean mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments; and the angel of Jehovah was standing by.

The reason why the work had slacked was that Joshua was under condemnation. Condemnation destroys our enthusiasm and kills our drive. God knows that. The enemy was accusing Joshua, who wore filthy rags. This reminds us of the scripture in Isaiah where God tells us that all our righteousness is like a filthy rag.

Brothers and sisters, remember the enemy comes to steal, kill and destroy. The words that he has spoken in your ears are just doing that. The devil is the accuser. After all, he is a liar. He is the father of lies.

The Holy Spirit is our defense lawyer, day by day He will remind us that every word that comes out of the devil’s mouth is a lie. With the Holy Spirit, we receive no condemnation. Do not be beaten down by the lies of the enemy.

The jury does not listen to a liar!

Salvation is more

As a graduate student, I walk up quite early in the morning and cycle to my laboratory. I discovered I could focus on my research work in the early hours of the day than at any other time. We have two laboratories, one that has the instrument I use on a daily basis and the other that has the chemicals I used. However, when I got the keys for the laboratory, I was given a key marked that it was in the room with the instrument. Therefore, every day when I went to the lab I would only open one door and wait for my lab mates to come and open the other. Of course, it was frustrating most of the times. Especially, when I would discover in the morning that I do not have any of the chemicals I urgently needed. Yesterday, as usual I opened only one room which I had the keys for and started my work. A lab mate forgot her keys for the other lab at home and she came to me asking for my keys.

“Hi Edmond. Can I use your keys? I want to open the other room.” She said.

“Hi. Sorry, I only have keys for this lab.” I answered.

“No, it’s the same key. Only one key opens both labs.” She answered probably amused by my ignorance.

For nearly two years, I thought I had a key for only one lab when I had both. I thought of the time I wasted when I discovered I had forgotten to take some chemicals in the other lab. It then dawned on me that that is exactly what happens with most people. The person who gave me the keys did not know any better. She clearly wrote that the key was for one lab only.

Ephesians 2:4-9 KJV

(4) But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

(5) Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

(6) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

(7) That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

(8) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

(9) Not of works, lest any man should boast.

When most of us were born again, we were told clearly that our salvation was by grace of God through simply believing in Jesus Christ. Grace is the gift of God that brought salvation to us. As the above scripture clearly states, God out of His ever-abounding love showered us with His grace and translated us from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. The scripture goes on to tell us that God’s intention is to demonstrate or simply show us how great the riches of His grace are. We are told that God’s divine purpose is to demonstrate His kindness toward us through Jesus Christ.

The person who gave me the keys for the lab went on to label the door that the key can open. I went about for two years only opening that door. I had to wait for other students who had the same key I had to open a door I could have opened if only I had known. For most people God’s salvation is simply the forgiveness of sin. Many people believe that grace is for the forgiveness of sin only. Because of that, many people are living a defeated lifestyle. They are harassed by sin, sickness and lack.

3 John 1:2 KJV

(2) Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.

Many people believe they have to do nothing to earn their salvation, but have to do everything to prosper and be in good health. How does our soul prosper? It prospers as we look up to Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith. Our soul prospers as we embrace God’s grace through faith in Jesus. We daily realize that for us to be welcome in the beloved is a gift of God. Every day we are confronted by our shortcomings, but God tells us He loves us anyway. We see it is all by His grace.

That same grace is available for your health and success. The Bible tells us that our God is a jealous God. He will not share His glory with anyone else and not even with you. He deserves all the glory and the honor. When we embrace the truth that that same grace for the forgiveness of our sins is the same grace for our health and is the same grace for us to be well we will begin to reign in life.

Many people, especially in the developed world spent their time trying to prove that miracles do not happen. I always laugh when I meet or read articles by Christians saying that God no longer ministers healing by the laying of hands. This is all because many folks failed to realize the extent of their salvation. They think God just wants to forgive their sin and let them continue in their destructive ways. I believe this a subject of another article. For today, I only want to tell you that the same way you believed for your forgiveness is the same way you should believe in anything else. It is all by grace through faith in Christ.

The Holy Spirit Leads

Rom 8:14 KJV

(14) For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Christ as given us the Holy Spirit, to lead us. When we look at the word translated as led by the KJV, Thayer defined this word as to lead, take with one,1a) to lead by laying hold of, and this way to bring to the point of destination: of an animal, 1b) to lead by accompanying to (into) a place, 1c) to lead with one’s self, attach to one’s self as an attendant.

The Holy Spirit will bring us to our point of destination if we allow Him to lead us. He is not like a camp compass that only shows where the north or south is but is like a tour guide who tells us where we are going and also about where we are. The Holy Spirit is not like traffic signs that only shows you what to do or where you are. He is more than a loving parent who holds your hand along the way. We have the company of the Holy Spirit wherever we are; He is attached to us as an attendant. In whatever situation you find yourself, when life throws at you trying times, there is good news. Jesus was not playing around when He promised this;

Heb 13:5-6 KJV

(5) Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

(6) So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

When we follow the Spirit, the Bible informs us that we will not follow sinful stuff. This scripture encourages us to surrender our lives to the Holy Spirit so that we can be holy. Looking closely to this verse, you find that this is the same instruction Paul gave to Titus.

Tit 2:11-13 KJV

(11) For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,

(12) Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

(13) Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

To Titus, Paul says the grace of God will teach us not to fulfill the lust of the eyes, but to the church in Galatians he said walking in the Spirit teaches us to deny worldly lust. In Hebrews 10 verse 29, the author referred to the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of grace and so does Zechariah in Zechariah 12 verse 10. When we allow the Holy Spirit to lead us, we will be now under grace. For that reason, Paul says when you are led by the Spirit you are no longer under the law but under grace. Now grace is the expression of God’s love for us. Let us all allow the Holy Spirit to be our leader.

Led into all Truth

Why should we allow the Holy Spirit to lead us?

Joh 16:12-16 KJV

(12) I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

(13) Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

(14) He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

(15) All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

(16) A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father.

Jesus clearly tells us that the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth. For that reason, He will lead us and guide us into all truth. When we are led into all truth, there is this good news you should here speak of Jesus Himself;

Joh 8:31-32 KJV

(31) Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;

(32) And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

[20]

Conclusion

Shadows of doubt had cast on my soul, so like David I asked, "Why are so downcast, my soul?" I remembered a song by a South African gospel artist called ‘He has never failed me.’ I sang the song in my mind; Jesus' love has never failed me, yet. My fallible mind did not know what to ask in prayer. Will he fail me now? Then I remembered what has never failed me is His love. God’s love never changes. If God is love, then God has never failed me, yet. The yet is still there. God's love was the same yesterday, today and forever. If Jesus' love never failed me yesterday, it will not fail me today and it will not fail me forever. I love this song because it portrays my journey of faith. When something happens, I look back and see that the Lord has never failed me. Doubts come as the enemy wants to take advantage of my weakness. Then I confess, "Jesus love has never failed me, yet." The yet begin to haunt me. Will He fail me now? My fallible mind, confronted by the testimonies of the enemy begin to say He might. The song goes on to emphasize "Jesus' love" Immediately I realize, it is not about my weakness but all about the love of Jesus. The consistency and persistence of His love remove all shadows of doubt. The song then goes on to say,

Yes, He has never failed me, He has

Never failed me

Jesus love has never failed me, yes

This to me begins the outpouring of His grace on me. I like the man who brings his son to Jesus disciples to cast the demon out that was oppressing him. After probably all night of praying with the men who had spent a couple of years with Jesus, the son did not get any better. If those who had lived with Jesus failed to heal his son then who could? When those who seem to have the resources and the ability to help you fail, then who could? Jesus comes down from the mountain where he had spent the night praying. The man rushes to Him and ask for the healing of his son. When Jesus asks him whether he believed, all he could say was "help me in my doubting." What brought about this doubt?  The whole night he witnessed Jesus disciples failing to heal his son. This could have been the source of his doubt. Jesus rebuked his disciples for lack of faith but never rebuked the man. Could it be that the man had faith in the midst of his doubt? "I believe, help me in my doubting."

Sometimes we fail to come to Jesus at the throne of grace afraid of our doubts. We fear that our doubts will withhold Christ from pouring His blessings on us. My Bible says, "My grace is sufficient for you and my strength will be made perfect in your weakness." I am not ashamed of my weakness, when doubts creep in; I know my God will remove all of it through His love. The man's doubts were removed when his son was healed. Yes, I will continue singing;

There is one thing, I know

Everywhere I go

That Jesus' love has never failed me, yes!

Appendix

Notes

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Table of Contents

Endorsements

Dedication

Acknowledgement

Part One

Introduction

Pleasures of God

Image of God

Our Shepherd

Part Two

Setbacks can be set back

Setbacks Are Inevitable

What do you need?

Grace and Truth

Setbacks Again

Grace for Rejection

Grace for Downtime

Grace for Incapacitation

Grace for sin

Grace in relationships

Ambush: Set up for victory

Part Three

Ministry of the Holy Spirit

Exercising for godliness

The Attorney

Accuser lies

Conclusion

Appendix

Notes