Category: Ministry

Second, third or even fourth career?

“One ought to plan a second career while an existing one is in works. ” I thought I came across this assertion early on during my readings.

Looking back, theres not just a kernel of truth in this, but loads of wisdom embedded. Here are my takeaways for this:

  1. Short sightedness or thinking of today only, not tomorrow. The moment we dont think about what the future lies ahead is the time we stop pursuing matters which might be useful one day. For example, if one is skilled or passionate about certain hobbies, why not consider building it up while one is employed. When the time is ripe, one day, that hobby can become a source of income. Some people call it gifts, some talents. Regardless, when one is pursuing matters aligned to their gifts, then one does not seem to be working at all, but having fun fine tuning their passion.
  2. Most people only think about growing, building and sustaining a career, but seldom focusing on switching careers. Growing, expanding a career of choice is good, provided this aligns with ones passion, talent and skill. For every attempt to grow is also an attempt to polish rough edges, opportunity to perfect etc. So it is important that ones career path matches do ones strengths. Else the time spend to growing, building would be to waste.
  3. Work vs passion vs calling. Early on, a person needs to know what is considered work, passion and calling. The 3 may be inter related and inter changeable. But most important of all is that one ought to begin with ones calling early on. How? Find our where people are most blessed by what we do. For example, if people find you skillful and can produce polished products, then by all means pursue a path in building those. Or if people are blessed by your talent to coach, counsel or even offer an advise or two, then pursue career paths along those lines. With one life to live, it is imperative this discovery early on ones life be realized.

It is futile to think that because one lives long, that one can experiment and take chance on working a plethora of skills until he/she finds what truly makes him/her ‘happy’.

For me, happiness after all is doing things that one loves and enjoy. Time becomes a limiting factor, because when one enjoys what he/she does, there is no way one can stop.

Hope Im making sense this 2024!

Bible reading week 1 – genesis story

Thoughts on reading the scripture for January week 1

  1. The mention of the Nephilim, or beings that were sired with the intermarriage between fallen angels and the beautiful women from Adam’s lineage. Wikipedia says that “The Nephilim ( Nəfīlīm) are mysterious beings or people in the Hebrew Bible who are described as being large and strong. The Hebrew word Nephilim is sometimes translated as “giants”, and sometimes taken to mean “the fallen ones”. Their origins are disputed. Some view them as offspring of fallen angels and humans. Others view them as offspring of the descendants of Seth and Cain. My inquisitive nature is triggered to find out what these beings were, their significance, if any, and any relationships that they may have in the Goliath lineage. Read 2 scholarly articles and come away with more questions than answers.

2. The cataclysmic flooding and historical facts surrounding it. Reading Noah’s Flood paved me to watch again on Graham Hancock’s Netflix on the Apocalypse and how an advanced civilization may have existed dating back to the ice age. His compelling work that took 30 years of his life is so undisputable that modern archeologist have named him pseudo

Leap of Faith – IDIOMS for IDIOTS? The PETER experience

Why do they call this the leap of faith? Scripturally, it could be from Peter Leaping out of the boat to join his Master, our Lord Jesus!

Wikipedia defines this is ” the act of believing in or accepting something not on the basis of reason”.

When was the last we did this in our lives? Some may be doing this on the heels of a broken relationship. Or broken finances. Or broken businesses. Or even broken lives. The thing is – it is fear that mostly preventing people from engaging this on its tail.

Fear of the Unknown. Fear of being ridiculed. Fear of stepping out of the boat. Yes we hear stories of people who were worse than when they leapt out of the boat. Question is – is this the majority of minority? Could be both. If numbers were to be the basis, then maybe we look around our circle of friends who venture into the unknown.

Among my closest of friends, one (Mr. N) leapt out of his comfort zone and made Florida his residence. This came after an emotional separation from a 25 year marriage. So if we think about it, was this a good or bad move? Another went back home to establish (Mr P) set up their family business, did consulting and is slowing down now. Still another (Mr. R) went overseas to New Zealand after retiring at 63, does voluntary work for a church and now doing side hustle as consultant. And many more stories.

All of them did leapt of faith, with good measure for some, others as a result of their circumstance. We may say, life must go on. And it sure does. The thing now is, if we were to account for all these experiences in life, how many times have we leapt out of faith and what is our success rate, if ever we want to call it that way? Success being, you land on dry ground instead of sinking deeper from leaping out of the boat.

January 29 2023 – The Gospel in the Gospels

“The gospel is THE good news, not good advise, and there is a difference between the two.” thundered our dynamic preacher, Pastor Butch. This intro catapulted his message with a captivating title-what is the good news in the gospel anyway. To the undiscerning and uninitiated, the gospel may be perceived as the harbinger of yet another way for religious personalities to convince their hearers to come back to church and be ‘converted’.

Yet this is exactly what Pastor Butch message is all about. The gospel is more than just good news. Its more than just ‘knowing’ that someone by the name of Jesus died on the cross’. Its more than hearing the heroic attempt of one man to part the Red sea, letting the multitudes cross. It’s more than the miraculous encounter of several men witnessing 7 loaves of bread and 2 fish to feed the 5000. No. It is more than this.

The gospel IS the representation of GODS love to mankind – that of sending his only son to die for humanity, who does not even merit saving. All throught human history, we see wars, catastrophic evens, almost miraculous heroism of the privileged few saving people, idealogical struggle and triumph of the human spirit. But devoid of love, all these human achievements fall short of getting a foothold of eternal life. It is only thru the belief and faith into Jesus that will guarantee a shot to eternity.

The Gospel is Jesus Christ. Of whom who died on the cross, enduring excruciating pain, just so we can enjoy the benefits of one with HIM thru eternity,

Answers to Questions

What will happen in the end times?

A summary of the events that will take place in the end times.
Written by ActiveChristianity
What will happen in the end time’
There’s a lot written in the Bible about the end times and it can be confusing to try to follow along with everything. Here we have summarized references from all over the Bible in order to give a better picture of the events that will take place in the end times.

The breaking of the seven seals

“And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals.”  Revelation 5:1. The breaking of each seal signifies an increase in war, famine, natural disasters, etc. on the earth. We can read a full account of the seven seals in Revelation 6-8.
The breaking of the seals is the first stage in the Great Tribulation, a time of turmoil and distress that signify the end times.
The rapture is the name given to the occasion when Jesus calls His bride home. We do not know exactly when the rapture will happen. Only God knows that. (Matthew 24:36) A clear description of the rapture is given in these verses from 1 Thessalonians:
“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.”  1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
This event is not the same as the second coming of Jesus, which takes place at the end of the Great Tribulation.

The marriage of the Lamb

The marriage of the Lamb is the wedding feast in heaven between Jesus and His bride.
“‘Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.’ And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, ‘Write: “Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!”’ And he said to me, ‘These are the true sayings of God.’”  Revelation 19:7-9.
There is not much written about the marriage of the Lamb in the Bible but we can infer that the marriage of the Lamb takes place between the rapture, and the second coming of Christ, right before the Millennium.

The blowing of the seven trumpets

After the bride has been raptured and the harlot has been cast down comes the second stage of the Great Tribulation. This stage consists of seven angels blowing seven trumpets in heaven. Each trumpet blown brings a new plague onto the earth. Details about this time can be found in Revelation 8-11.
This stage also sees the rise of the Antichrist and the Beast, a confederacy of world leaders and governments that blaspheme God and worship themselves. You can read more about the beast and the Antichrist in Revelation 13.
Once the final trumpet is blown then all of the secondfruits will have been harvested (given their lives as martyrs.) Satan will be thrown out of heaven and down to the earth. (Revelation 12:9) Then God will be ready to pour out His wrath and judgment over the earth.

The emptying of the seven bowls

The third and final stage of the Great Tribulation is the emptying of seven bowls of wrath over the earth. Now God has taken up both the firstfruits and the secondfruits. Those who are left on the earth are Satan, the Antichrist, the beast, and all those who follow them. Those who have chosen to follow Satan up until now will be beyond repentance. They will experience God’s judgment.
Each bowl brings new plagues and tribulation to the earth. A full account of this can be found in Revelation 16. During this time the nation of Israel will be the only stable and safe country. God’s promises to Israel still hold fast. Because of this the Antichrist will gather all of his forces and move to make war on Jerusalem. In Israel’s time of greatest need Jesus will come back with the armies of heaven to liberate the earth and begin a time of peace, the Millennium.

The second coming of Jesus

At the end of the Great Tribulation, when all the nations are gathered to make war on Jerusalem, Jesus will come back with His bride. This is what is known as “the second coming of Jesus Christ” when He returns with His bride to defeat the Antichrist, the beast, and their followers. (Revelation 17:14)
“Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations, as He fights in the day of battle. And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east.”  Zechariah 14:3-4. See also Revelation 19:11-16.
After the battle Satan will be bound in the bottomless pit for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:1-3) Jesus will cast the Antichrist and the beast into the lake of fire. Those who followed them will be killed with the sword of God’s Word. (Revelation 19:19-21) Now Christ along with the saints will reign for 1000 years. (Revelation 20:4) This is called the Millennium.

The Millennium

The Millennium is the name given to the thousand years’ kingdom of peace when Jesus will rule over the whole earth from Jerusalem.
It will be a truly amazing time on earth. Read Isaiah 65:20-25 for a fuller description of the wonder and harmony that will characterize this time. The entire earth will be ruled by Christ, His bride and the martyrs. (Revelation 20:4)
At the end of the Millennium Satan will be loosed from his chains for a short time, though it is unclear exactly how long this time is. He will then gather an army from all over the earth and they will surround Jerusalem again. God will then send fire down from heaven to devour them. The devil will finally be cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the Beast and the Antichrist are, and they will be tormented there forever. (Revelation 20:7-10)
This will happen at the end of the Millennium and will be the last event before the Final Judgment takes place.

The Last Judgment

The Final Judgment takes place at the end of the Millennium, after Satan’s last rebellion. This judgment will be for all those who have not experienced God’s judgment already.
Everyone who has died will now be resurrected and together with the living will be judged before God’s great white throne according to their works in their time here on earth. Books are opened which contain all the details of what everyone has done in their life. Another book is opened called the Book of Life. (Revelation 20:11-12)
Those who have shown patient continuance in doing good will receive glory, honour and peace. All who practiced unrighteousness, in any of its forms, and remain unrepentant, will earn God’s wrath and righteous judgment, regardless of who they are or their religious background. God is a righteous God. (Romans 1:27-2:16) All whose name is not found written in the Book of Life will be cast into the lake of fire. (Revelation 21:8)

Eternity

When God makes everything new, that includes even a new heaven and a new earth, because both the old heaven and the old earth have been tainted by sin. Even heaven was blemished by Satan when he tried to exalt himself above God.
In God’s new creation, every consequence of sin from the first creation – sorrow, pain and death will be no more. Fellowship between God and man will be restored, as well as fellowship between people. Jesus will reign from Jerusalem with His bride, and from them the glory of God will illuminate the new earth.
“Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God …And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them … And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’ Then He who sat on the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’”  Revelation 21:1-5.

Wisdom

proverbs 9:1-6 New Living Translation (NLT)

9 Wisdom has built her house;
    she has carved its seven columns.
2 She has prepared a great banquet,
    mixed the wines, and set the table.
3 She has sent her servants to invite everyone to come.
    She calls out from the heights overlooking the city.
4 “Come in with me,” she urges the simple.
    To those who lack good judgment, she says,
5 “Come, eat my food,
    and drink the wine I have mixed.
6 Leave your simple ways behind, and begin to live;
    learn to use good judgment.”

2020 Perspective

The Rich and the Kingdom of God

16 Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”

17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”

18 “Which ones?” he inquired.

Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’[a] and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’[b]”

20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”

21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

100% Human

I am lost for words when I saw another celebrity fell big. The proverbial ‘be careful where you stand, lest you fall’, is so very true yet again. And Im reminded of this encounter by the Lord with the mob..


At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women.Now what do you say?” 6They were using this question as a trap,in order to have a basis for accusing him.
But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
9At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
11“No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,”Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”