Dearly Beloved,

GOD IS STILL FAITHFUL!

“It is because of the Lord’s mercy and loving-kindness that we are not consumed, because His [tender] compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great and abundant is your stability and faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23 AMP).

“But as surely as God is faithful, our message to you is not ‘Yes’ and ‘No’” (2 Corinthians 1:18 NIV).

Apostle Paul planned to visit the church at Corinth, but some circumstances beyond…

Dear Beloved,

THEY RISKED THEIR LIVES

"Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus. They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them" (Romans 16:3-4 NIV).

A foreign missionary had an intimate friend. They had been together for quite a long time. The missionary really relied on this friend who was a native of the land. It happened that a persecution arose against the…

Dearly Beloved,

WHAT ARE YOU LIVING FOR?

“I expect and hope that I will not fail Christ in anything but that I will have the courage now, as always, to show the greatness of Christ in my life here on earth, whether I live or die. To me the only important thing about living is Christ, and dying would be profit for me” (Philippians 1:20-21 NCV).

It has always been my desire to live for Christ and be a channel of His blessings to the humanity. This has been my driving force…

Dearly Beloved,

“THE HIGH PLACES”

“Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the years Jehoiada the priest instructed him. The high places, however, were not removed; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there” (2 Kings 12:2-3 NIV).

“[Hezekiah] did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father David had done. He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles” (2 Kings 18:3-4, NIV).

The…

Dear Beloved,

THE WEALTH OF THE WICKED

"Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes" (Psalm 37:7, NIV).

Have you ever thought that God prospers the unbelievers more than the true believers in Him? Then, you think that God is not worthy of your worship because after all, why do ungodly prosper and the righteous are in penury?

In this way, some Israelites in Malachi's days…

Dearly Beloved,

“WILL YOU STAY WITH ME?”

“Don't panic. I'm with you. There's no need to fear for I'm your God. I'll give you strength. I'll help you. I'll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you” (Isaiah 41:10 The Message).

Recently, my eleven-year-old son was ill. I took him to the hospital for treatment. The doctor advised that he should be admitted for proper monitoring of the treatment. He was led to one of the wards of the hospital. As he was given the initial…

Dear Beloved,

THE RACE IS NOT TO THE SWIFT

"I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise nor wealth to the discerning nor favor to men of ability; for time and chance overtake them all" (Ecclesiastes 9:11, NASU).

My family members have gone to bed. I had not slept. I was watching my favorite football team playing with another team in a continental competition on the telecast. It was…

Dear Beloved,

GIFTS FOR EQUIPPING OTHERS

"[God gave spiritual gifts] to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:12-13 NIV).

"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone…

Dearly Beloved,

DO NOT BE LIKE THE RICH FOOL!

“But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich towards God” (Luke 12:20-21 NIV).

“Fools say to themselves, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 14:1 NETB).

I had an online chat with somebody recently. The person was asking me to prove to her why she…

Dear Beloved,

IDOLS OF THE HEART

"You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God…” (Exodus 20:4-5 NIV)

"Son of man, these men have set up idols in their hearts and put wicked stumbling blocks before their faces” (Ezekiel 14:3 NIV).

The primitive Africa was full of idolatry. The more I like the…

Dearly Beloved,

WILL YOU NOT PRAISE HIM?

“I will praise the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live” (Psalm 146:2 NIV).

Recently I was invited to be a facilitator of an aspect of the annual leadership training session a deaf organization. That would be my first interaction with people that were mainly deaf and dumb. I could see the enthusiasm of serving God and the humanity in these special people. What fascinated me most was the way they were…

Dear Beloved,

GOOD, BETTER, BEST

“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14 NIV).

One of the…

Dearly Beloved,

WHERE IS YOUR DWELLING PLACE?

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalms 91:1 NIV).

Psalm 91 is one of the most popular psalms. It is popular especially because it is a psalm of assurance of the protection and security of God. However, there is a striking truth in the opening verse of the psalm: the divine protection and security are only for those who live a life of communion with God. People that can…

Dearly Beloved,

WAIT PATIENTLY FOR THE LORD

“I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry” (Psalm 40:1 NIV).

After God rejected Saul as king of Israel and sent Samuel to anoint David as the next king (1 Samuel 15-16), David faced a lot of hostilities and troubles even from his brothers. He became a fugitive in his own country. He had to relocate his parents to a foreign country for safety (see 1 Samuel 22:3-4). He twice sought refuge with the enemies…