YOU WILL BE ASKED

1,  Luke 16:20-21 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table.

2,    Matthew 25:42-43  For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’ 

The two bible passages above are the two instances where scenes after death was played in the bible and in both instances, giving was a deciding factor.

Majority of us are not generous in nature. Even in tithing, we try to give as little as possible (if the government tax your gross pay, why tithe on leftover after expenses?) or justify not taking it to God's storehouse.

Our offering in church is very poor and giving outside the 4 walls of the church is non-existence.

I want us to read the whole story from the two passages above and ask the holy spirit to open our eyes to see ourselves. If there is need for a change of heart, ask God for help.

We can also read the write-up in the link for more reasons why we need to give olufunkeayorinde.blogspot.com/2018/08/who-you-epp.html

It's another end of the year and i want us to remember the less-privileged in our society. It is well with us in Jesus name. Amen.

Shalom!

WHO YOU EPP?

This is a slang in Lagos, Nigeria where an individual asks a better - off person what value his being better-off has added to his life. For the purpose of this message, I will not only be asking people who are comfortable this question, I will also ask the not-so-comfortable.....Who You Epp?

There are lots of instances in the bible where someone not-so-comfortable has helped someone else even in his/her discomfort and that action meant an outstanding breakthrough for the helper.

1 Samuel 30.told us about King David on a quest to rescue his wives and children that were captured by enemy forces. Despite his state of mind and the urgency of his mission (risk of being overthrown by his devastated men), King David stopped to help a man and this act ensured the success of his mission. He recovered all.

2kings 4 vs 8-end told us about a Great Shunammite woman. She had no child and had lost hope of having one but it did not stop her from being good to everyone. I'm sure her husband had another wife because if he is not Father Abraham and Sarah, he will marry another woman to raise heirs. How we knew she has lost all hope of having children? It was no longer on her prayer - point until someone else (Prophet Elisha ' s servant,  Gehazi) mentioned it to Elisha who wanted to reward her kindness. She gave birth.

The last example we will look at is 1Kings 17 vs 7-end which is about the widow who was preparing to cook a final meal for herself and only son to eat after which they wait for death during a famine. She was met by a prophet who requested for that final meal and she gave it..... The bible said after that action of the widow, "the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail".

Bringing us to this present century, I was out of job for a few years and my income was completely low. It was during that period I knew the value of the "little" help rendered, cash, transport fare you paid,the cup of rice you gave, etc; but It was during that period that I gave much more than I have ever given even while working (and I thought I did not have enough then)... I will not claim I had surplus in return but "the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail". There was a divine covering over my life such that God took care of my every need (sometimes by providing the money or sending someone to meet the need), no evil emergency, I gave birth with N3, 000 (labour of less than 1hour) and was discharged same day; mother and son, very fine. Jesus was (still is) my Shepherd indeed.

Looking at all our examples, we can see that there is need to take our eyes off our immediate challenge, to be the answer to someone else's prayer so that heavens will open concerning our own need.

WARNING! The parable of the sower makes us understand that some soil will never bring yield to a seed. PRAYERFULLY EPP so that your seed sown will be on a fertile soil, will germinate and yield fruits.


Shalom!

STILL DOUBTING?

" Elisha replied, “Hear the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord says: About this time tomorrow, a seah of the finest flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria.The Officer on whose arm the king was leaning said to the man of God, “Look, even if the Lord should open the floodgates of the heavens, could this happen? You will see it with your own eyes answered Elisha, but you will not eat any of it!
And it came to pass as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, Two measures of barley for a shekel, and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, shall be to morrow about this time in the gate of Samaria: And that lord answered the man of God, and said, Now, behold, if the Lord should make windows in heaven, might such a thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof. And so it fell out unto him: for the people trode upon him in the gate, and he died." 2kings 7:1&2,18-20


The bible text above is from the bible text from July 13,2018 RCCG devotional. The spirit of God turned this message for me to understand better.

That Officer was full of data. He knew the extent of the famine. He knew how much money, effort, help and time the executive arm of governance had spent to arrest the situation all to no avail and what it will take for the citizens to feel A LITTLE ease from the famine pains. This information made him conclude that such turn-around is IMPOSSIBLE to man in 24 hours.....he died.

Likewise Peter on the sea had data on the in-and-out of the sea. He knows how fast he can sink of covered by the waves as high as what he was looking at, he knows that location of the sea is "bottomless" he knows that to survive such storm is IMPOSSIBLE and so, as he took his eyes off Jesus, and gazed at the waves (only God knows what was going through his mind at that moment)....... he sank.

Now, you, Pastor, Deacon, Prayer Coordinator, you  "on whose arm the king  (Jesus) leans". You have so much data about that sister/brother's situation. You known how long the rot has been going on. You know how much effort has been put in for there to be restoration all to no avail. Then you got that revelation from God for him/her..... do you doubt it?

You as an individual, even if your Pastor does not have all the details, you know what you have battled with for years. You know the extent of the rot/destruction and you know what you have done....prayer mountain and dry fasting all to no avail. You know where the rot had gotten to and what it will take to make just A LITTLE change/impact.......  then that prophesy came....."in 24hours" he said.... will you doubt it?

We are to be like little children in our Christian faith. Children don't have data that kills their faith; their thought is "Daddy said it? Then it is so".

Oh Lord, I believe, please help my unbelief Mark 9:24