THINK ABOUT IT

 In the Story of Redemption by Ellen White, she wrote of Satan having a conversation with Jesus after he was cast out from heaven. In the conversation, Satan said he "repented of his sins and wished to be readmitted into heaven, into the presence of God." "Jesus wept at Satan's woe, but tell him as the mind of God, he, Satan could never be readmitted into heaven because the seeds of rebellion 🥑 were still in him." I have been puzzled by that quote, " the seed of rebellion."  So God allowed the devil and his angels to live so that their true characters can be revealed to all . Satan had been very deceptive in heaven and even the true angel could not understand his character, time was given. The issue of character and its development is an interesting one to me. What is a seed of character 🥑? How do we get such seeds, how is character developed  and how is it revealed? We will be touching upon these points today. Character is who you are. Character is

 Pride goes before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18. If you think you are better than others, more important than others, wiser than others, something will happen to you that make you look foolish. The president of Gabon has just found out about the dangers of pride the hard way. Military coup d'états have been making a comeback in the continent of Africa 🌍. There has been around 8 military coups in Africa in the last 3 years. A military coup is the overthrow of a government by the country's army or security forces. NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The president of Gabon,  Ali Bongo Ondimba , knew well the threat of military coups in his part of the world. But he swore one wouldn’t happen to him. “While our continent has been shaken in recent weeks by violent crises, rest assured that I will never allow you and our country Gabon to be hostages to attempts at destabilization. Never,” Bongo declared this month as the central African nation marked 60 years of

 What is my purpose in this world? Why am here ? This is a very important question and it is a question many are currently asking themselves. Some are even praying to God, asking Lord what is my purpose here in this world? Why was I born ? Very good questions.  But for many the conclusion they come up with is, I need to get a job, make money, have a big saving account and be secure from financial ruin. For others, they conclude I am here to find love ❤, if I can find someone who will love me just as I am i will then fulfill my purpose. For others still, life is about having fun, a good time and they do all in their powers to find the next thrill, the next high . Do you really believe that God put you on this earth to pursue selfish goals ? Do I really believe God put me on this earth so I can have a big bank account? Do I really believe God give me intelligence, health and many other gifts so that I can selfishly use them to further my own ends 🤔? Friends, the answer is no. And here l

 A big story this week in the news is the presumed death of the Russian mercenary warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin of the Wagner group and his deputy Dmitry Utkin. The Wagner group is a mercenary group of soldiers and convicts who were fighting in Ukraine on the side of the Russians. They have been instrumental on some of the key Russian victories in that theather of war and have also been very important in the Russian government's efforts to increase their influence on the African continent. The Wagner group which is mixture of military and business ventures is very important to Russian president Vladimir Putin .  The Russian president Vladimir Putin and the leader of the Wagner group Prigozhin had been very closed since the early 1990s. But they had a fallen out. On June 23, 2023, the Wagner Group staged a rebellion after a period of increased tension between the Russian Ministry of defence and Prigozhin.  Putin called it " a stab in the back." He called the Wagner leadership

 There is a story in Greek mythology of Hercules, the greek hero, coming home to his wife and children. To his horror when he opened the door, he saw a little monster. He chased the monster, killed him, then he saw some other monsters, he went after them and killed them. As soon as Hercules had done killing them, his eyes were opened and he realized the monsters he killed were his wife and children. Herculus had been under a spell by the goddess Hera. Hercules was spiritually  blinded and those he thoughts to be his enemies were actually his family. Hercules was on the "Enchanted ground" and his actions proved disastrous.  We are under a spell. Humanity is under a spell. Ever since our first mother Even stepped on Satan's "Enchanted ground" in the garden of Eden and ate of the forbidden fruit, the enemy of our souls has place a huge covering over our eyes and if it wasn't for God's intervention we would forever remain his captives to do his bidding. Prai

 Being forsaken is tough, painful! Being forsaken by someone who claims to love you and care for you is heartbreaking 💔, devastating! You never read those Hollywood divorces when people say "this marriage wasn't working for us anymore and we have chosen to go our separate ways, but we still have deep love for each other."😂 Sound like a joke right ? But at least these Hollywood statements are more straightforward than how many of us Christians treat God. Many in the church have forsaken the Lord while claiming to love, cherish and worship Him. What does it mean to forsake the Lord and how can you tell if you are in the process of forsaken the Lord?  God is love! God is the source of love! We all seek for someone to love us, so why would we forsake the Lord who is the source of love? Why would "we shoot ourselves in the foot ? " In Jeremiah 2:13, the God says," my people have committed two evils ; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters and have

Self help books, motivational speakers have their place in life, but when it comes to the regeneration of the human race, they are helpless. Man is in need of help, but no amount of his own effort will lift them out of the pit of corruption which he has sunken. If you look at our society you can clearly see that people are getting worse. Our mental health is getting worse, our divorce rates are increasing, violent crimes are on the rise, homelessness is increasing across the land, specially in the west coast. Miseries of all types are on the increase and thinking men and women are perplexed as to the solutions of all these problems. Throughout history, philosophers and thinking people have realized the human condition is dire and have sought different solutions to uplift humanity from its misery. Buddha believed if the human being will seek enlightenment, the world will be a better place. Plato, Socrates thought philosophy will uplift the human race. Karl Marx believed communism was

 Things break down! We break down. "The second law of thermodynamics describes basic principles familiar to us." It is a universal law of decay. Everything ultimately falls apart and disintegrates over time. Everything appears to change eventually and chaos increases. Humanity is on a downward spiral, mental illnesses and difficulties of all types are increasing. Stress and anxiety are increasing and many are asking why doesn't God do anything? Does God care of what's happening with my life, whats happening in the world ? My life is full of difficulties and I am stressed out. Why so much difficulties 😣? You buy a new car and motor is soon messed up. Buy a new house and soon there are leaks, mold etc.. and you have to fix things. You have relationship that are good one time and the next moment there is a break down in the relationship. You work out to be in shape but during the work out, a muscle is torn and now you at the hospital. Life seems like vanity, everythin

 Man and woman are both made in the image of God.  Man and woman are both valuable and equal in worth but are not the same.I repeat, man and woman are not the same. There is an attempt in our culture to make man and woman the same, it's nothing but a Satanic assault to destroy the beauty of God's creation . Man and woman are different for a reason. Each reveal different qualities of the Godhead. When a man and woman come together in the way of God, real beauty will be revealed. Man and woman offer different things in a relationship. What do you bring to the table 🤔?  Is the question many are asking when it comes to choosing a spouse . According to the Bible the man is to provide for the woman and the woman is to be a help meet to the man. A help meet is a perfect match for someone. The woman is to match her husband,  completing him, making him stronger, being strong where he is weak . The man is supposed to provide financially, security,  stability. The man is to provid

 What is the problem with this world ? Lack of love. The hearts of many are cold from lack of love. From youth up many are not accustomed to love. Many parents while proclaiming to love their children never uttered words of love, kindness and appreciation to them. So many of us grew up with cold hearts. We are accustomed to words of criticism but when it comes to love we are deficient, bankrupt. As we get older we  behave like our parents, showing no love because love is seen as a weakness. And when we come to the church and refuse to allow the Spirit of God to melt our hearts we become even worse than before. We act righteous but show no mercy. A loveless Christian is worse than an open sinner . A good friend of mine once told me about a story he read from a book. A husband was planning on divorcing his wife 🤵🏾💔👰🏽. He went to a counselor or a friend, and the counselor told him to give her 30 days. He said during those 30 days,  each day he should look for something good in his wi

 America is an individualistic society! A society in which everyone look out for themselves,  a society in which everyone is preoccupied with themselves,  with their goals and aspirations and have little concern about others. Yes, in America we speak about love a lot, but the reality of love is lacking in our hearts. The American way of life is like this," me first, then my immediate family, then maybe some friends and that's it." "As long as me and my family are good, I could care less about the wellbeing of others." Then we wonder why is the world so evil 🤔? As goes the world, so goes the church 😔. The church is supposed to be a light to the world, but sadly the church as a whole follows the culture. There are individuals here and there who follow Jesus, but the majority of the church follows the world and when it comes to the individualism, many of our church folks are following the culture. The people in the world care mostly for themselves and many in the

 Ezekiel 28:16," By the multitude thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones  of fire."  I love the book of Ezekiel, love its imagery, and their vivid portrayals. This verse right here is a verse I meditate on a lot. This verse is speaking about Lucifer. Chapter 28 speaks of the creation and fall of Lucifer. But one thing that always stuck out for me is the mention of "violence." The Bible said because of the multitude of Lucifer's "merchandise" in heaven, he became fill with violence. Lucifer in heaven became a merchant, a seller of merchandise. What was he selling? Falsehood and deceit. He was spreading lies about the character of God and the Bible said he became filled with violence. One thing we notice immediately is the things you do impacts you, the things you do to

 Idolatry is the worship of idols. When we think of idols, many of us think of statues in a catholic church, a Buddhist or Hindu temple. These statues are the more crude form of idolatry.  Idolatry is much more than that. The essence of idolatry is putting someone or something in the place of God in our hearts, in our life. The essence of idolatry is to replace Christ as the great center and to put a person or a thing as the center of our lives, notre raison d'être , our reason for being. Idolatry began in heaven when Lucifer believed he could do a better job running his own life than God could. Lucifer believed he should center his life around his own will and not God's will. Lucifer replaced Christ as his center 🔘 and replaced it with self. Then Lucifer went and convinced 1/3 of the angels that he could do a better job than God, he could bring them more joy than God, he could bring them more satisfaction than God. These angels then replace Christ as their great center and pu

 People are suffering, loneliness is rampant in the land. Many people in the world look to marriage as a savior, an institution that will rescue them from their loneliness. They think finally i will have someone I can call mine, someone who will love me with all their hearts until death do us apart 🤗. But the increasing divorce rates tell a different story. A story of marriage being difficult, a story of many married people being miserable , lonely , bitter and see divorce as a viable option to escape the misery they find themselves in. A story of many preferring to live together instead of getting married.  Marriage has become a scary thing in the land. Marriage for many has become synonymous with losing half your wealth and your children. But why has marriage become so destructive to many ? Why has something as beautiful as marriage become such a terror to many 🤔? It is because marriage has become an idol to many. Marriage has become a god to many in the church and in the world. Sa

 As a nation, as a society we are on our way down towards destruction. Every nation eventually collapse. If you look at the great empires of the past you would see this fact clearly. All great nations eventually collapsed when madness becomes the norm. Our society right now is one where madness rules .  No where is this madness more evident than in our women. In every great society women are protected. The body of a woman is treated as sacred, something to be hidden from the sight of the world. But when a society is on its way towards destruction, its women are devalued and treated as cheap. Nakedness is associated with sin and shame in the scriptures.  A woman celebrating her nakedness in public is a woman who is proud of her sinfulness.  The modern woman has no self worth and so the modern women seek validation from the streets. The modern woman is very cheap and is for the streets for the most parts.  Many modern women are displaying their naked bodies on social media for everyone t