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Confused, Depressed and Need Encouragement? Life has a way of throwing curve balls at us that we begin to doubt and question all that we believe and hold dear. We suddenly find ourselves in unforeseen circumstances that look so bleak that for the moment, there does not seem to be a way out. And some times there may not be a way out of those hard and excruciating issues of life and we are forced to endure. It could come in the form of loss of a job, death of a loved one, sickness, divorce or difficult relationships and etc. For me, it was the fifteen years of barrenness and waiting to have a child we so desperately desired. At many points in the process, I must confess that I was confused, doubted and even wondered whether God was real or a figment of my imagination. I do not know what challenges of life that you are facing or may be coming your way but we can be encouraged today by reading the account of John the Baptist. John had been imprisoned by King Herod for speaking the tru

Love Your Enemy – Impossible There are many things that are not possible for human beings to do. We can not add another day to our lives regardless of how passionate we want to live. Neither can we add another day to the life of another. There is an appointed time to die and when it comes, it is over. This weekend the nation mourns for Tim Russert of NBC news who collapsed and died in his office at the age of 58. Tim was full of life and he was on top of the world with his powerful position of influencing the world through his political journalism. It is not possible for Tim to raise himself from dead and be alive today or to have stopped his death. When it comes to loving our enemies, I put it at the same level of impossibility. You may say the two are not comparable. Well, let’s investigate this command of Jesus to love our enemies Luke 6:27-36 27"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28bless those who curse you, pray for those who m

Out of the Sunday/Church Box I still remember when the only stores that were open on Sundays were the convenient stores where you could buy stuff like milk and bread. Now everything and anything is open on Sundays and you can’t even tell the difference between Monday and Sunday. The world has transitioned and gone beyond the Sunday box. Granted that businesses are open on Sundays for commercial and profit motives; is it possible that the Church and the body of Christ are still stuck within the Sunday box? What is the Sunday box as defined by Jesus? Let’s read two encounters where the Pharisees wanted to keep Jesus boxed-in within the Sunday box. Luke 6: 1-11 1One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels. 2Some of the Pharisees asked, "Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?" 3Jesus answered them, "Have you never read what David did when he and his compa

Don’t Write off Anyone Yesterday, we took my sister around for sight-seeing in Washington DC since this was her first time visiting from Nigeria. In front of the White House was another scene of its own. Two ladies (“lovers”) were passionately holding and embracing each other and this was not a normal embrace. My first reaction was of disgust and a conclusion that there was no more shame left in our society. On hindsight, there could have been other responses from me. Is there hope of deliverance and salvation for such people that are displaying their lifestyle of sin in public? What about other sinners and sins? These questions tend to imply that we ourselves are not sinners or have crossed some threshold. Is that really the case? In this week’s study, let’s see how Jesus handled such people so we can gain the right attitude toward them. We would also reflect on how Jesus handled us so we can gain the proper understanding of what we are – sinners saved by grace. Luke 5: 27-32 2

Second Chance to Launch Into Your Calling We all have heard lots of stories about the come-back-kid. Usually, it is about the one who tried and failed and later tried again and made it. We read about people like Thomas Edison who would not give up after many tries until he was able to come up with the light bulb. In our study this week, we learn about Peter & Company Fishing Incorporated that was almost going out of business until they met Jesus – the number one encourager. Jesus helped them realize their maximum potential /calling by encouraging them to just trying again. We can all try again and encourage others in their second chances to try again. Luke 5: 1-11 1One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret,[a]with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, 2he saw at the water's edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a l