Beware of the Hireling spirit---Part 2

By Leo Sekoere
When I talk about the hireling, it is easy to think that this denotes a messenger from the devil. One who is in the kingdom of darkness, posing as a shepherd but I want to clearify somethings in this post.

Jesus does not mince His words. In John 10 there are 3 main characters that He talks about. The thief, the hireling and The Good Shepherd.

The Thief
Verse 1 makes a clear distinction. Jesus says "...he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber". This "door" He talks about is Himself. Verse 9 says "I am the door...".

 This character only gets involved in shepherding to "steal, kill and destroy" (John 10:10). This is the guy who can never have any good motive. Please note the "Never". He does not belong to the Kingdom of God. He is a lawless rebel with great contempt for God. He is of the devil.

These are the fake pastors and prophets we know about. All they wanna do is pervert the gospel for hell's gain.

The hireling
The hireling actually enters the sheepfold by the door (Jesus). He is allowed into the fold by The Good Shepherd. He is given permission and access to the Sheep. He is given authority over the sheep. Though expected to act in the best interest of the sheep, He does not own the sheep. Normally hirelings are appointed when the shepherd himself is not physically with the sheep but they have clear instructions on what they should do. David appointed a hireling when his father sent him to deliver the ten cheeses and stuff ( 1 Samuel 17:20); in this verse He is called a "sheep keeper".
Hirelings are pastors/church leaders who missed the point. They have Ineffectual shepherding methods.  Lets go back to Ezekiel 34.  The beginning of this chapter gives us the following characteristics of those kind of shepherds

* They do not feed the sheep: because they don't bother spending time in the presence of God, they have no rhema word for the sheep. Therefore the sheep enter the church with questions and confusion and they leave with questions and confusion. This doesn't mean that the pastor didn't preach the word, It simply means that he didn't address the needs of the sheep. Its like being so hungry and finally getting to the restaurant but all you're offered is water.

* They do not carry out the great comission:
Verse 4 tells us that such shepherds don't strengthen the weak, heal the sick, bind up the broken, help the sheep to get restoration nor bring back the prodigals. All they do is exercise harsh law and order (religion), offending the sheep all the way out of the fold. This is how the sheep leave the fold. When church no longer serves the purpose. When church becomes a place of misery, the sheep start to see a misrepresentation of God and they accumulate bitterness towards God. Even though some stay, their spiritual lives are affected for the long run. That's why people are passive in church, they don't worship, pray nor give tithes and offerings.

Yes , hirelings its your fault! All of it is your fault. Lo, deliverance cometh from the The Good Shepherd, He has heard and seen the despair of His sheep. He will bring them back into the fold and give them new shepherds.(Jeremiah 23:3-4)

The Good Shepherd
In Psalm 23 David shares a revelation of The Good Shepherd. Lets have a look: 
The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
When a pastor/church leader has been imparted and impacted by The Good Shepherd, He will always sense the needs in the house (Physical, spiritual, emotional..) and  the anointing of God in Him will make sure that those are met.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Church must be a place that assures people that they are safe. Not safe because of the building but safe because God is in them and with them. It should be a place of correction and a place where they receive direction (see "rod" and "staff") and look at the last line "they comfort me". When our shepherds correct and direct us it should come from the heart of God because that's the only way one can get comfort from a rod and a staff.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell[a] in the house of the Lord
Forever.
Our Churches should be places where we get annointing, more strength , more assurance of God's love and purpose for our lives and most importantly; places where we enjoy the presence of God. Church must be a place that inspires us to practice His presence.

What then can we say? Give God back His church shepherds. Let Him lead through you. The church is a mess because we have rejected His presence and our hearts are far from Him. That's the spirit of the hireling. The hireling leads the sheep independent of the shepherd but one who operates through the spirit of The Good Shepherd is one with His heart and Mind.

Beware of the hireling spirit.

By Leo Sekoere
“As ungodliness increases, God is raising up a generation that will
stand firm in Christ and dare to be holy. These are the leaders of
thousands who will be greatly used by God to keep the Sheep in the
sheepfold, feeding and taking care of them through divine
enablement.”-#SpiritTalk

One of the outstanding facets of Jesus’ earthly ministry is the motive
behind His miracles. He never sought to glorify Himself and often
spoke of Himself as a son doing the work of His father, even unto
death. Jesus’s love is so deep, there is no other person who could’ve
qualified to take our place at the cross. I love His impassioned
prayer in John 17, it testifies to all of the above.

This emerging generation of leaders must function in the same school
of thought and humility as Jesus, otherwise they will become like
hirelings.

The hireling
I’ve had the awesome privilege of being part of the family business
for over 5 years and I’ve noticed one thing through the years; No
matter how many meetings we have with the staff, no matter how much we
emphasise the mission and vision of our organization and motivate them
to see things as we do, we always have people who join us with
excitement only to destroy us. When the pressure increases, these are
the people who would betray us without even thinking. Why? Because
they don’t care about our business, they just came to earn money. They
are hirelings. That’s the mind-set of a hireling in a nut shell.

Jesus puts it this way: “But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd,
one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the
sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The
hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the
sheep.” (John 10:12-13-NKJV)

Then Jesus puts it on the record that unlike the hireling, He is The
Good Shepherd.

The Good Shepherd
In John 10:11 (NKJV) Jesus says “I am the good shepherd: The Good
Shepherd gives his life for the sheep”. What a contrast! The Good
Shepherd places the life of the sheep in the highest order of
importance, even above His own life. He even says in verse 18 that no
one takes His life from Him but He, out of free will and obedience to
The Father, lays it down.

The heart of God concerning humanity flowed into the heart of The Good
Shepherd, so much so that we ( the sheep) gained significance in His eyes. Jesus
loved The Father and because we were important to The Father, we
became important to Jesus. He was able to personify God’s love for
humanity on earth because of His relation to the father. He is able to
be a Good Shepherd because of His relation to the father.

The choice is yours
I don’t know if you see this, but the hireling is a selfish coward. He
only gets involved in shepherding out of selfish ambition and doesn’t
care who He hurts. At the end of the day such a man cannot please God.

The Good Shepherd is one who pleases God (John 10:17). His heart is to
only honour God. God lifts Him up and glorifies Him too.
King Solomon made his choice in 1 Kings 3:8-9. He understood that if
he operated as a hireling, he would fail at leading God’s people. He
asked for God’s own mind: His wisdom, knowledge and understanding.
Verse 10 tells us that it pleased God to hear Solomon asking such a
thing.

Would you rather be a hireling or a Good Shepherd?

It is all centred on the Godhead. One cannot lead God’s sheep without
having an impartation from the spirit of The Good Shepherd. We can
only personify God’s love for the people we lead, through our relation
to The Good Shepherd. People who have not had a divine revelation of Jesus cannot shepherd His flock. This divine revelation fosters a solid relationship with His divinity. This is why the disciples had to have individual tailor made encounters with the resurrected Jesus before they became apostles (see Luke 24)

God loves His sheep and Judgement is coming to all shepherds who do not
take care of His sheep.

Warning
Every time God wants to move mightily upon His church, the devil
strikes the shepherds and uses them to beguile the sheep to anger God.
1 Chronicles 1 tells us that Satan stood up against Israel, and moved
David (who was a shepherd to Israel) to disobey the commands of God.
God however is bringing a strong judgement upon the shepherds.

Ezekiel 34
7 Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;
8  As I live, says the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a
prey, and my flock became food for every beast of the field, because
there was no shepherd, nor did my shepherds search for my flock, but
the shepherds fed themselves, and did not feed not my flock;
9  therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;
10  Thus says the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I
will require my flock at their hand, I will cause them to cease from
feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves no
more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may no
longer be food for them.

 

Jeremiah 23
1Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!
says the Lord.
2Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who
feed my people; You have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and
not attended them: behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your
doings, says the Lord.

3But I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries
where I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds;
and they shall be fruitful and increase.
4 I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them: and they shall
fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, says the
Lord.

This “emerging generation” I tell you about is a fulfilment of God’s
promise. They are being called out to lead God’s people because their
shepherds gave in to the hireling spirit. Jesus The Good Shepherd will
be operating through them, to lead God’s people in love and truth.
Like Jesus they be endowed with willingness to lay down their lives
for the sake of the sheep. Are you ready to be a Good Shepherd?

Stay Spiritual!

By Leo Sekoere

In the previous post I alluded that spiritual people are those who are led by the Holy Spirit. These are the “Sons” that have received a map to the heart of God; they can please God because they have divine enablement to understand what God wants, through His Spirit. In the Old Testament people settled for religion and ritualistic approaches to pleasing God because there was a veil separating them from walking in comprehensive revelation of who God is. This annoyed our God, we can see this in Isaiah Chapter 1:11-16 where He says things like “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to me?”, “Bring no more futile sacrifices…”, “Your New Moons and appointed feasts, My soul hates…” , “Even though you make many prayers, I will not hear...” even in Amos 5:21-23 we hear how The Lord hated futile sacrifices and how they meant nothing to Him. This is why He tore the veil and gave us access to His Holy presence and relationship with Him (Matthew 27:51). Religion got replaced by relationship.

I’m going to attempt to go deeper, with my limited experience on relationships! Ha ha ha!, Here it goes:  When one starts a relationship with the love of their lives there is mutual understanding (tied to willingness) that they both have to play a part in pleasing each other and getting to know each other. It’s more than just saying “Yes, I will enter into courtship with you” there is a whole new world behind saying “yes”. There is proving your love, going on romantic dates, learning how to communicate, there is also affirmation of relationship status… You know this is Spirit talk! If it wasn’t, I was not going to be able to explain such things. Anywayyyyy, this is the same with our God although the difference is that there is nothing we can do to make Him love us more YET when we show our love to Him He grants us intimacy. He moves us from babies receiving spiritual milk (being unskilled in the word of righteousness-Hebrews 5:13) to being full of age, ingesting spiritual solids (being those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both evil and good-Hebrews 5:14). I hope you see what I just did there! In a relationship, one has to get to the point where they advance from being “Baby” to “Life time partner bound by marriage covenant.” When we solidify our relationship with Christ He allows us to progress into spiritual growth!

The sad thing that is happening now-a-days is that we have adults that have been “Born again” for over twenty years yet they are spiritual babies. They are spiritually malnourished! Oh My Saviour!! Let’s stay here for a while:

Spiritual Malnutrition

We have defined spirituality now let us define malnutrition. The following information has been sourced from the World Food Programme website https://www.wfp.org/hunger/malnutrition.

*A malnourished person finds that their body has difficulty doing normal things such as growing and resisting disease. Physical work becomes problematic and even learning abilities can be diminished.

In 1 Peter 2:2, the man of God exhorts the Jewish believers to desire the pure milk of the word that they may grow. As children of God, born of the Spirit we need to feed ourselves with the word of God so that we can grow and resist “disease” (the corruption from the world). Since we are Children of God we are meant to walk in power just like Christ did on earth. Like him we are supposed to be followed by miracles, signs and wonders, have a prayer life and call the work of GOD “our food”- This is our “Normal”. Spiritual Malnutrition makes sure that we have difficulty doing “Normal” things, we find praying unpleasant and we have nothing to say to God. We find fellowship boring we’d rather stay at home watching television. WFP states that malnutrition can also lead to learning disabilities and less productivity. People with spiritual malnutrition cannot understand the word of God nor any spiritual revelation. They have nothing to offer to the dying world, they are walking with stinking dead faith that James 2:14-17 says cannot save anyone.

*When a person is not getting enough food or not getting the right sort of food, malnutrition is just around the corner.

Feed on spiritual material. Hang around people that feed you. Listen to spiritual music that teaches you about who God is. Watch what you consume! I watched a missionary on television that was explaining some of the hardships that children in the poorest parts of Africa have to endure. During the program he showed us a video clip of a little boy that was so hungry that he resolved to eating soil just to fill his stomach and alleviate nausea and other physical effects of hunger. I was in tears! Even though it was working, soil contains substances and toxins that can harm that little boy. Recently God showed me that this is what His children are doing. We feel the hunger for the things of God but we end up choosing something else to fill us up.

 As born-again children of God we need to stop choosing worldly substitutes for spiritual fulfillment. It’s a hunger that only spiritual food can fill.

*Malnutrition at an early age leads to reduced physical and mental development during childhood.

Hebrews 5:12- 14 tells us that we need to first become babies then grow into adults, we cannot stay in the middle. We need proper food to aid our spiritual development.This is what I was talking about. God gives a special wisdom to the spiritually matured. It’s such a pain to see an adult that has been born-again for years walking without that wisdom, knowledge and understanding from God. They literally sound like children, talking about what they don’t fully know/understand.

*There are two sides to eliminating malnutrition:

1. Sustaining the quality and quantity of food a person eats; and
2. Ensuring adequate health care and a healthy environment.

Thank God we can’t have too much of God, we simply cannot contain Him. He is bigger than our bellies can hold. We can binge on spiritual food, all the better for our growth.  We need to take care of our spirits by being surrounded with more of God- all that He is.

It’s not enough to have been baptized by the spirit, we need to grow! For this reason the Holy Spirit hi-jacked Jude’s letter (Jude chapter 1). Jude planned to write a lovely letter concerning common salvation but the Holy Spirit compelled him to tell the saints to “Contend earnestly for the faith”-verse 3. Evil times are here, satan is already moving in to the church and bringing his legions of demons with him to confuse us. he knows the power released in spiritual solids and he is doing everything in his power to ensure that we stay in spiritual infancy-undiscerning and feeble. The danger is real! Let’s heed the call of our master and STAY SPIRITUAL.

Get Spiritual!

By Leo Sekoere

This is the heart of our loving father concerning His children. This is the reason He sent Jesus who then sent The Holy Spirit. I would like us to start off with a prayer, just to invite the spirit of understanding. Proverbs 8:1 says that understanding calls out with a loud voice. She is available to us let us answer the call:

Father God,

 This is your word and it’s true! Open my understanding and prepare my spirit to understand the spiritual things of God. I yield myself to your Holy Spirit who gives understanding.            

Amen

In John chapter 3 we are introduced to a bible character named Nicodemus; a teacher of the law and a man of God. This man was a Pharisee and he lived to meet the lawful requirements of God, even if this meant living according to a strict regime. Nicodemus was seemingly content with his acquisition of knowledge and righteousness in the sight of God. He was probably convinced that he was on the right path--until he met Jesus! Now, Jesus was also a man of God and a teacher BUT Nicodemus saw something in Him that interrupted his understanding. This made him sneak out to Jesus at night so he could find out if he was really doing this whole “seeking the Kingdom of God” thing right.

Jesus already had Nicodemus figured out. In the last two verses of John 2 we are told that Jesus already knew all men, that’s why He answered a question that Nicodemus didn’t even ask. Nicodemus was over there busy asserting Jesus as the son of God and I can imagine Jesus in His mind saying “yeah, yeah cut through the toadiness I know what you’re really here for…”. Then BAAM!!- Jesus hits him straight in the face with a spiritual concept. He tells Nicodemus that he needs to be born-again so that he can see the kingdom of God. Can you imagine how confused Nicodemus must’ve felt? 1 Corinthians 2:14 tells us that it is impossible for a carnal mind to grasp spiritual principles. Hol’ up Jesus! Are you telling a brother that he must go back to his mother’s womb? I mean, How?

^“5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. ⁶ That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷ Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again…^“ (NKJV)

Lol! Jesus stop it you’re killing this guy! At this point Nicodemus was lost in translation. I like verse nine: “But how?...”, that was the last thing Nicodemus said-poor guy!



BORN OF THE SPIRIT-A rebirth into Spiritual existance

The term “Born- Again” has been used so loosely that it has lost its original intent. We now use it to describe someone who believes in God, goes to church, prays and fasts, reads the bible…everything but what Jesus said to Nicodemus.

John 4:24 says that God is spirit and he is only pleased through spiritual acts of worship. Hebrews 11:6 also tells us that without the spiritual act of faith, we cannot please God. So,being Spiritual is God’s way of helping us relate to him. It is when we receive the fullness of supernatural life from His “Life-giving Spirit”. It is a new life all together and much deeper than merely being familiar with Christian ideology and attending church.

Nicodemus was an avid reader of the word, he prayed, fasted and discipled but that was not enough! We too are living in a time where it has become a norm to casually acquaint oneself with biblical literacy and we have also conformed to a ritualistic approach to seeking God but that too is not enough. God knew that religion would never be enough to keep us going when things got rough that is why he sent us his Spirit of Adoption (Romans 8:15). He knew that we needed His complete understanding and wisdom in order for us to be able to resist the devil, so he offered us His own mind (1 Corinthians 2:16); to lead and fortify us.

Being spiritual is allowing Christ to live in us so that we are never myopic in our perception of reality instead we always see the bigger picture.  The biggest enemy to our relationship with God has always been our flesh. Even Jesus said so himself in Matthew 26:41- There’s a willingness in our spirits to do the will of God but the flesh is always weak. Listen to what Paul says “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells: for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.” (Romans 7:18-NKJV). When we become spiritual, the power of the flesh is put to death-we automatically are enabled to do the will of God and enjoy it.

Why you need to get spiritual:

• You do not belong to God if you are not spiritual-Romans 8:9, 14.
• You can never be able to please God in the flesh –Romans 8:8
• It is the only key by which you will know the things that God has freely given you-1Corinthians 2:12
• You will no longer be led by the constant urges of the flesh! This is power against ungodly addictions- Galatians 6:8
• The Spirit of God will help you in your weakness- Romans 8:26

There are more reasons but I found these to be sufficient encouragement. When you become spiritual you will start to experience the persona of God and the sweet communion of His Holy Spirit. This is enjoyable life. While in the natural, bad things might happen but in the Spirit you will always receive strength to overcome. Things around you can be discouraging and depressing but in the spirit you will gain inner peace to trust in God. Don’t get me wrong you will feel the impact of disaster as it happens in the natural but deep inside you will know what to do next. Allow God to come alive in you, become a “son”-GET SPIRITUAL!!

 

                                                                                                                   

 Coming up next….”Stay Spiritual”

The Journey to God-Given purpose---Part 2

By Leo Sekoere

There’s something amazing happening all over the world. The Holy Spirit has set God’s people on fire, they are being empowered with yoke-breaking anointing to do great exploits for the kingdom of God.

God is raising a generation of holy men and women who are fearless and ready to be different for His sake. We can trace this back to Genesis 1:26, He made man in His likeness and image but they allowed sin to get to them and they disappointed God. Genesis 6:6 says because of the wickedness they condoned, God was sorry that He made man. Noah was saved and his family saved through him, because of his righteousness before God in his generation (Genesis 7:1). I could go on and on recalling the stories of other righteous men and women in the bible but God has made it plain in these days that He is bringing revival through His remnants; A peculiar people fore called and foreknown to be conformed into the image of His son Jesus ( Rom 8:20, Eph 1:4…).

In “Journey into God-given purpose-part1” I shared about the hardships that prelude God-Given purpose. The following phases MUST take their full course after the purging and redirection phase discussed in Part1:

             1.       ANOINTING

This is the pouring of oil on someone important, as a sign that God has chosen them for a task. It signifies divine enablement to carry out any mandate given by our heavenly father. As children of God it is impossible for us to take on any Kingdom assignment without the anointing. 1 John2:27 says The Anointing is our teacher, it teaches us all things and It is the truth that makes us abide in God. The same words chosen to describe The Anointing in that verse are the same words that Jesus uses to denote the Holy Spirit (John16:13 and John 14:26). I cannot recall any man/woman of God in the bible who served God without first being endowed with the Holy Spirit, He is the anointing.

·         The apostles-Acts 1:8

·         Saul-1 Samuel 10:6

·         David-1 Samuel 16:13

·         Samson- Judges 13:25

·         Joshua-Numbers 27:18

·         Bezalel- Exodus 31:3

·         Othniel-Judges 3:10

(I’m getting a little carried away but I hope I have substantiated sufficiently.)

2.       TRAINING: Mentorship/practicals.

In Joshua’s case he started off as Moses’ assistant (Exodus 24:13) and he remained faithful till God promoted him. He had to get an impartation of leadership from Moses so that he can be a successful leader. This was the case with Elisha and Samuel. Respect the person God sends to impart anointing into your life. David and Samson had to fight lions as part of their training before fighting their ultimate adversaries. Many people start complaining when God sends them into obstacle courses. They start telling God how much He doesn’t love them forgetting what James chapter 1:2 says. God will never give you more than you can bear, if he gives you a lion or bear, you go ahead and deal with that.

3.       BECOMING DEPENDANT ON THE ANOINTING.

 A lot of people fail in their God-given missions because they start to get conceited. They start to feel gifted and depend on their gifts instead of the self-sustaining anointing. Samson is a great example of this. On the day he was finally apprehended by the Philistines he didn’t see it coming. Judges 16:20 tells us that he said “I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free” But He didn’t know that the Lord had departed from him. When you get used to winning every battle and getting every praise you will start to depend on your skill, it’s a natural thing. But God wants us to be totally dependent on Him, He is the omnipotent God. When we depend on ourselves we quench His desire to manifest His glory in our lives.

David won his fight against Goliath because he was solely dependent on God and His ability to faithfully give him victory over any adversary. When Saul told David that He was just a young man, incapable of defeating the Philistine champion, David simply replied “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear…will deliver me from the hands of this Philistine”. Know your God! God loves it when we declare His faithfulness and our trust in Him during our difficulties, moreover David proved his trust in God when he refused to wear Saul’s armour. He went as basic as he was and took the name of The Lord as his main weapon (1 Samuel 17:45) I like how He says “The Lord will deliver you into my hands…”for he was confident that the hand of The Lord will move on his behalf. David conquered Goliath with a small stone empowered by the power of God!

4.       RIGHTEOUS LIVING- walk worthy of your call (Ephesians 4:1)

When you realize that you are approaching your God-given Purpose, you better be ready to be a new man created according to God in true righteousness and holiness. The devil hates your purpose therefore he wants you away from the presence of God. 1 Samuel 18:12 tells us that Saul was afraid of David because the Spirit of God was with him but had departed from Saul. Everything that does not have the Spirit of God will come up against you. I therefore urge you to put off anything that gives the devil entry into your destination. Many have gone out with zeal only to be defeated by the devil along the way. Do not be afraid, says the spirit of Grace. Follow my commands and keep them for I am the Lord your God who makes you Holy. This is a journey designed for man and his/her God—It’s  a journey into God-given purpose.

The journey to God-given Purpose

By Leo Sekoere

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before-hand that we should walk in them.”-Ephesians 2: 10. This is our God-given purpose!

 

 God-given refers to anything given or created by God. Purpose, in this context, refers to the main function of an individual i.e. what you were born for. Every created thing has a purpose and it gets this purpose from its creator. Think of it this way now; when a person creates a toy he gives it a purpose and releases it to be sold in retail outlets. Before an eager child gets to buy it (to fulfil its purpose) sometimes it has to undergo a period of dormancy; being left in the storage, stored on the shelf etc. the fulfilment of its purpose will only begin when it is in the right place at the right time -all the while the toy is oblivious of this.

Like this toy, we as individuals were created by God with a special purpose but then we had to grow up and experience life and its woes. While some have found what they were created to do and are doing it, a majority of people are clueless. They are still “waiting on the shelf” or accumulating dust in the storage.

 Unlike the toy in the analogy, our time and our creator’s time are not the same. While our purpose has already been fulfilled in the spiritual realm, in the natural realm there has to be a waiting period. Evidence of this can be found in Genesis 18:14

The fulfilment of Godly Purpose will not wait for you to feel ready; it only comes because you are ready. When it comes, it comes to shake every foundation you think you were built on and Christ becomes the cornerstone. It comes to bury every past identity and every identity given to you by your circumstances and it comes to magnify God above all your shortcomings.

I’m inspired by Apostle Paul’s journey to the fulfilment of his God-given purpose. In 1Timothy chapter 1:13 we are introduced to Paul’s identity as given to him by his past and choices he made under that false identity. I bet at the time, he felt like it was his purpose to be a Pharisee and a persecutor of the church. Little did He know…In Acts chapter 22 the divine Hand of Jehova Tsidkenu grabs a hold of him and pushes him straight into God-Given purpose.

Most times a confusing period of depression or uncomfortable change precedes this journey into God-given purpose. Sometimes you just go through a time of purging where God will start moving things and people out of your life. Paul lost his sight and had to be lead by his subordinates right before God-given purpose was fulfilled. Ruth had to lose a husband and live in poverty, Ester had to lose her parents and live with her cousin, Jochebed, Mary and Hannah had to lose their sons too. Research prominent ministers of the gospel of Christ and you will hear about the difficult processes that lead to their discovery of God-given purpose.

When purging happens it is often to make our purpose sure. The mistake we often make is walking away and/or building over the same foundation Christ is destroying for our sake.

I am now addressing a particular person who is going through depression. You are overwhelmed by everything around you and you often feel like it is better to die than live. You are constantly battling suicidal thoughts and no one seems to have a solution. God hasn’t given up on you, He is rearranging your life in order to fulfil His plans regarding your life. There are some paths He is closing, some relationships He is destroying. You can trust him! He doesn’t intend on hurting you, everything will work out for your good because you are called according to His purpose. Find refuge in God. Rebuild your relationship with Him and in no time, He is going to release you into your God-given purpose!!

The ones you’re rolling with

By Leo Sekoere

A while back I heard a punchline from a gospel rap song: “Life is like a pair of dice. So, watch the ones you’re rolling with”. I know this sounds a bit like overthinking but I wondered why the rapper would say that. The first and reasonable answer I gave myself was that he was making reference to the unpredictable nature of LIFE. Every time a person rolls a pair of dice they have no idea which side it will land on, all they have is hope that they will achieve a high roll. If life was so unpredictable why would he advise: “watch the ones you’re rolling with’’? .What difference does that make if you still can’t predict life?

 What if I told you that "watching the ones you're rolling with" has great effect on the numbers you roll? I’m serious! Ask people who gamble, there is a whole regime of how they treat dice in order to control the numbers they roll. This includes choosing the “right dice’’, forming a solid bond with the dice, respecting it and keeping it away from ‘’negative energy”. Gamblers usually talk to the dice and even chant before they roll. If you’ve watched dice games in South African townships you might find the exclamation ‘’Op-op!” familiar in this regard.

All this dice talk! What’s this rapper saying? Let me rather tell you what I’m hearing. If you’re lyrically conscious you might have picked up on the pun in “rolling”. It is colloquialism for “following, agreeing with or sharing experience/experiment with. In biblical terms, this is called “being yoked”. This term is derived from the ancient act of pairing oxen or any beasts of burden together by a wooden implement, in order for them to share a heavy load. For yoking to work, the two have to be of the same breed, height, strength etc. (you can google that one for more information). In conclusion: LIFE IS UNPREDICTABLE, SO IT IS IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO AGREE WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE.

Let us spiritualize it ‘cause that’s what we came here for. There are many biblical accounts of people who were destroyed for rolling with the wrong people. They plotted their own demise when they allowed the wrong people to influence them i.e Samson and Delilah, Adam and Eve, the Man of God in 1Kings 13, Israel and Baal of Peor (Numbers 25:3)…the list is too long. Paul understood this so well that he also advices the Corinthians not to be yoked with unbelievers.

2 Corinthians 6:14 King James Version (KJV)

¹⁴ Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

A lot of people think this means that we must hate people that are different from us but they’ve lost it. The Apostle uses the term “Yoking” to talk about partnership and unity in mind, body and soul. He is talking about a relationship of counsel and weight sharing. If a strong ox is yoked with a shepherd dog, the load they are pulling will definitely destroy both of them. If you don’t believe this, try carrying a heavy load with a two year old.

1 Kings 12 also shows us that it is important to “watch the ones you’re rolling with”. Here we meet Rehoboam, a new king who was met with a simple request. King Solomon had just died and his people requested a lightening of the hard service in exchange for loyal servitude. That’s cue for a wise king to give consent BUT verse 5 says that Rehoboam wanted to think about it first. He sought counsel from old men who recommended that he shows kindness to the people and grant their request as this would indemnify eternal servitude. In verse 8 the king does the unthinkable, he disregards the guidance of the old men and turns to his peers for guidance *are you kidding me, Rehoboam, man?*. These young men instruct him to do the total opposite…’long story short; this decision culminates in a splitting of the Kingdom into two.

Rehoboam was rolling with people who were in full contrast to the character he needed to be, as a leader of God’s people. I know a lot of people who are modern day Rehoboams. God has given you a task to do but you cannot rise to the occasion because you have surrounded yourself with people who are unequal yokes. As a result you feel the weight on your shoulders more heavier than it would be if you were around people who have the same interests, I’m talking kingdom interests. I know a lot of people who should be far spiritually, people with dormant spiritual gifts, people who have been going to church for years without any notable change in their spiritual growth. Such people settle for religion because relationship with God becomes utopian in their minds.

Listen here, God wants you to know Him. He wants relationship with you. He wants to make His dwelling among you and be YOUR GOD. There’s a call right now in the spirit! God is calling his children out from poisonous relationships, this is a call of separation and dedication unto the Lord.

2 Corinthians 6:17-18 King James Version (KJV)

¹⁷ Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.

¹⁸ And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty

WILL YOU ANSWER THE CALL?