Brighter Life Ministry

Luke  22:31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: The scripture warns that he who feels sure of standing firm should beware of falling because  our opponent, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion in search of someone to devour.  The Lord wants none to be lost in His worldwide salvation agenda, while Satan's agenda is that, none would be saved, even to the end among the sought out saints.  Simon Peter, another target among the disciples of Christ, had the master's earnest prayer cover, while Judas Iscariot lost all his chances.  Do not be a diehard whenever your weak point is spotted and confronted with His word by His spirit. Any un-confessed and un-forsaken sin will ultimately disgrace and destroy the sinner.  The resolution of the mind by itself cannot overcome the work of the flesh warring against your soul. You are in dire need of the prayer assistance of the Lord and the intercess...

Psalms  78:5 For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children:  78:6 That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children: Our history as humans always give us insight of where we are coming from, our experiences, falls and rises, and it also define what our tomorrow will be if we act positively on it today.  God established a covenant and testimony in the life of Jacob and this gave birth to Israel, He raised a standard as a law for for his children which will serve as a guiding rule for them and generations to come.  These laws makes them distinct from other nations for they are a chosen generation, and they must teach their children and children's children to have a continuity in the laws of God so it will not be lost in the space of time and for them not to suffer the conseque...

Acts  13:22 And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. Every major accomplishment in a man’s life requires a major level of commitment.  I’m sure you can remember such an accomplishment in your life. Perhaps you were starting your own business.  Or maybe you were contemplating a job change or mapping  out a new direction for your company or your family. Whatever it was, there was probably some initial hesitancy. One day you were eager to start. . .and the next day you weren't  so sure. But once you made the decision to proceed, all the long hours of effort were  worth it because of the joy of seeing the fruit of your labors. King David, whose life is the case study  understood  this principle of commitment when he desired to buy land and build an altar to God.  However, bec...

1 Kings  17:9 Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. Getting employed in the circular world requires certain qualifications which are not only to reflect on the paper called CV, but also must reflect in the exhibition of such talents, proving one's ability and capacity. Before the employer conduct assessment test, you personally must have tested your capability so as not to disgrace yourself while being interviewed. But in God's case, an employee of God may not even know or have confidence in himself that he is able to function in the office God wants to employ him into, but God who sees better than man sees himself can never be wrong. In the reign of king Ahab, prophet elijah declared famine in  the land of Israel,  this will definitely affect him also and from his ministry journey, it appears he has no wife nor family he could aboard with. So God took it upon himself to emplo...

2 Corinthians  5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:  At the creation when God made the heavens and the earth, it is naturally understood that the spirit of God that dwells in heaven cannot manifest perfectly in the earth realm so a body is needed to house the spirit of God.  This, God made possible by making a body out  of the earth to house his spirit which He breaths into. Jesus Christ also needed a housing body when coming to this world, so he came through a virgin marry, in other to conform to the habitat of this  world.  Apostle Paul speaks in the verse above of our body as not the real self. We dwell in our body as someone would dwell in a house. In comparison to the spiritual and glorious body that is to come, this present earthly body...

Genesis  1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. The creation of  man was a thought of God to have an extension of a kingdom which will be habituated by beings that are in likeness of His image.  This made Him to create the heavens and the earth and everything that ever existed in it which are for man's survival  The natural tendency of man's existence according to God's will and desire is to dominate the earth, these includes everything as a whole of God's creation that existed both in the sky, sea, and on the land. It is very sad today that many has lost their dominion, power and grace given to them by God, they rather chose to worship the creations forgetting the creator. Just as satan  crept into the garden to deceive Eve in the image of the ser...

John  21:6 And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. After the failure experienced by the disciples due to their desire to make ends meet outside their master's will, Jesus, whom they thought had left them to their fate, suddenly appeared to the unsuspecting disciples, in the midst of their failure to redirect their attention towards the neglected commission. He have specific instruction to Peter "throw your net to the right side" , and Peter didn't query the master this time. This was at the same spot where they had earlier failed. The master's instruction shows that our experiences and knowledge notwithstanding, only Jesus can teach us to turn our failures to success. It is not so much a matter of direction (right or left), but that of "doing it right", which the master alone can teach us to do. When we follow the leading ...

Acts  16:26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. Paul had a vision form God that invited him and his companions  over to Macedonia for the spread of the Gospel. Being sensitive to God's leading, they obeyed, and God blessed their missionary efforts with instant spectacular manifestations of His power that resulted in Lydia's conversion. However, things turned upside down after God used them to cast a demon out of a girl who was formerly profitable to her master who uses her for personal gain. They subsequently imprison Paul and Silas after stripping and beating them. The devil is never relenting in his effort to tackle God's people in order to stop them from winning the world for Him. Our joy is that, we have the battle long settled in Christ; the devil has been defeated. All we need do is key into the victory that we have in Christ Jesu...

Acts  19:13 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the LORD Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth.  19:14 And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so.  19:15 And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? At the begining of Paul's ministry many wonders were done and unimaginable miracles  through the power of God so much that hand-kerchiefs and aprons that came in contact with him were made to heal the sick, this continued so much that his fame went abroad in the whole of Asia  While at that, there were seven sons of Sceva who was a Jewish chief priest. They tried to cast out demons by the authority of Jesus' name in whose name Paul was casting out demons.  The evil spirit said to the sons of Sceva that he knew Jesus Christ the son of God and Paul His servant, but he did not know thes...

Luke  4:1 And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, The book of Romans 8:41 states that,.. Those who are led by the spirit of God are sons of God. From Jesus' life, we can understand that through out his ministry, He was led by the spirit of God. If we truly are God's children, His spirit should become our compass through which we navigate our life.  If Jesus (the God-in-man) was filled with the Holy spirit, we shouldn't underplay the place of God's Spirit in our life journey. Children of God must be filled with and be led by His Spirit.  Man's blindness can't live meaningfully on his own, hence, the need for God's Spirit's leading. If Jesus allowed the Holy Spirit to lead Him, who are we not to cooperate with Him? However, His leading night sometimes not go down well with our debased human nature, because  God's thoughts are higher than ours.  Jesus was led to be tempted, not by his w...

Exodus  14:14 The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. The verse above were the words of moses the servant of God to the children of Israel while coming out of Egypt.  When they got to the red sea and it seems all hope is lost.  The soldiers of the Egyptians were coming behind, mountains were on their right and left side, there is absolutely no way of escape. They were perplexed and filled with fear, yet Moses told them to be calm that all will be well.  How could moses have analysed the situation?  many of the Israelites would wonder what kind of magic moses will perform that will save over a million souls traveling on barefoot. It was a moment of total lost of hope.  But in that moment, Moses was confident that God is in control, he didn't fret, he was filled with confidence that God's hand is not too short to save and deliver. Surely, God did make a way where they thought impossible.  Are you in the same situation today? Where you...

Luke  6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. Stinginess is the lack of generosity which most time is particularly referenced to money. It is the habit of not wiling to give  to others out our of your resources or abundance. Being generous is one of the the qualities of love by which God showed the world through Christ.  Christ himself teaches the necessity to give to others out of our resources as it is one of the virtue of godliness  As much as many focused on money when the subject of giving and generosity is discussed, but little did we know that giving goes beyond money.. In fact God expect us not to be stingy with everything about us.  God gave his son to us as a ransom for our sin, the disciples were not stingy with their life, career and time. They gave all to God as a tool ...

Revelation  21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. A badge is a piece of metal or cloth which you wear to show that you belong to an organization or support a cause. Also, it can be a prize given for an outstanding performance  especially in the military after a successful operation.  As a believer in Christ Jesus, the moment we become born again is the movement we become enemy to this world, Christ Jesus has given us clues of what we would come across in the cause of defending the gospel. Matthew  10:22.  These challenges and persecutions will eventually become our badges of honour if we endure till the end in trusting God and standing firm in His promises.  No soldier who is determined to win a war will back off, nomatter how intense the war gets.. They fight til finish. You don't pray for rescue from ...

2 Samuel  6:16 And as the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal Saul's daughter looked through a window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart. Michal was the daughter of King soul whom was married off to long David after the defeat of Goliath. Long David had just brought the ark of the Lord back to Jerusalem and put of joy, he danced among the people.  While the ark was being conveyed, Michal had no pleasure in celebrating the arrival of the Ark, because her heart was far from God's work. She was looking on the proceedings with disgust and not with joy. She was sarcastic in her remarks to long David concerning his behaviour.  Michal resented David parading himself before the people. David had exchanged his royal clothing for the linen ephod of a priest. In doing such, he mingled with the common people in the celebration to bring the eek into Jerusalem.  Seeing Michael's expression and utterance, King ...

Jeremiah  29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. The will of God for every human is peace, joy and happiness and not evil. This, He expressed through His love by creating the garden and providing everything man would ever need before creating Him.  This purpose and will was aborted when man disobeyed the only law given to maintain man's existence, sin  came into the garden  and death followed. Man began to experience suffering, hardship, hunger, bitterness, harsh weather, pain and among others As much as God would not want man to suffer eternally after the physical death, He sent His only begotten Son to die for mankind and by His death man will be saved with God eternally. Nevertheless, believers in Christ  have come to the understanding that some things that happens in life are actually  God's will. Some things like when a Saint died, had an accident, failure ...

Proverbs  16:24 Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones. We face so many challenges at every turn of our lives, it is important for us to have people in our lives that will get behind us to tell us we can do it. When people are struggling, they need Encouragement, when people  needed to be challenged to do something that may seem out of their normal range of ability, they need Encouragement.  A child who takes the first steps of life is never scolded but encouraged to take a better one so as to give them moral for their walking ability  When people are struggling with their faith, They do not need someone to tell them they are worthless and are going to hell for messing up. They need someone to tell them, though you fall, but you can rise again.   To encourage means to “come along side of.” If we are going to encourage others, we need to come along side of them and help them An important part of encouraging another per...

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Many are times when the thick cloud covers the firmament and all is gloomy, it appears as if there is no element of brightness, glory or resplendent therein. 'Tough times', they say, 'never last, but tough people people do' , tough people have problems, but they win at last. Meanwhile you can still see a portrait of your future amidst tough darkness if you can or have identified with the light of the world.  Jesus Christ, as the light of the world is able and more than able to beam light on your path in order to know which way to trudge to your divinely destined future. If you are considering the present spate of bad economy, insecurity, ineptitude of the government, unpaid salaries, corruption, and other headache-giving issues, you may have a wrong picture of the future. Many think Christians don't have any hope here on e...

Jeremiah  10:2 Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. This world seems not to really have identity of itself, the truth is, so many people are not original at all. These people prefer to live synthetic, artificial and copied life. When a man believes the best he could be, the life he should live and his expected hopes and aspirations are all of that  of another individual, such man is counterfeiting himself. This happens a lot in the business world, most products and services are just direct imitation of others. This isn't helping the economy in any way expected. As a child of God, you are not permitted to aspire to want to be like others. Jeremiah warned the exiled Jews not to learn the ways of the strange land so that they would not be ensnared. The only person, and of course, the only supernatural being we should long to imitate is our Lord Jesus Christ, The perfect and  h...

Luke  4:28 And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,  4:29 And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong. Nazareth was the home city of Christ where He was brought up, he came down to the city to teach the words of God after He departed from the wilderness in the power of God. He thought in their synagogue the good tidings of God, and quoting the prophecies of prophet Isaiah as a confirmation and fulfilment of the mind of God. But as religious as they were, they could not comprehend the fact that a whole messiah  would come from a very lowly town and a common and familiar  carpenter. They doubted His authenticity to be the true son of God. They either want the messiah to descend from heaven full of power and grace,. And to totally restore the government to native Israel. But the way of God is not known to man. They misse...

Genesis  22:8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. God's miraculous provision has never ceased. Until a man experiences it, he might not really understand that God is Jehovah Jireh. He is the only one who can take care of our cares... When God saw that Abraham was fully determined and ready to offer Isaac unto Him, He manifested His power of provision. Most people don't have such divine spectacular experiences because they attributed all their achievements to their statuses. What does God demand from you? Faith, obedience and sacrifice are key to enjoying divine miraculous providence. There is nothing called impossibilities in His dictionary. He brings something out of nothing.  Release your faith in God and receive the uncommon from Him. When the widow of Zarephath gave her last  meal to prophet Elijah, her faith, obedience and selfless sacrifice restored her life  and her child's. Someti...

Genesis  17:24 And Abraham was ninety years old and nine, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. God entered into an eternal covenant of blessing with Abram that saw his name and his wife's changed significantly. However, he gave him a very humanly difficult task as the sign of the covenant-- circumcision, regardless of age or status (Gen. 17:1-22) That this tradition continues among the Jews till date notwithstanding, the pain involved in the obedience of its original recipients is the main issue here.  Would you have easily obeyed such painfully tasking instruction, if you were on Abraham's shoes? It should have become easier to do, since no one has to be as old as Abraham before being circumcised.  Abraham immediately obeyed with his entire household. Imagine the pain involved for a ninety-nine years old man to be circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. In those dark ages when there were only crude means of healing such wounds.  Being truly bone a...

Genesis 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. After God created the universe, He gave man a clear warning, satan soon came to tempt them. In the cause of the temptation, he chose to attack the spiritual gate of the eyes, He manipulated Eve to look at the tree of Knowledge of good and evil the way she had never looked at it before, such that she saw what she hadn't seen before about the fruit, leading man to captivity. Had she not seen the fruit before?, she must have seen the fruit before, but paying no attention. Then, the tempter came and argued her to look and pay attention to it. So she looked until some conclusions were reached in her heart. Sin hardly committed by chance, fall is progressive. Studies have shown that it is possible to look without seeing, being absentminded a...

Isaiah  1:13 Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. Substitute is a person/thing acting or serving in place of another. As good and productive as it may look when it comes to helping men, it is not the case in God's dictionary. In the scripture verse above, the people of God, named after Him, raised and cared for, were rebellious, despite all they received from Him. Rather than listening to the voice of their creator and have a change of mind, they were full of various activities. As good as their activities were, God rejected them. Are you insisting on fasting and prayers because of your intention to marry, or partnering in business when God has given you a red flag? Or you are willing to get that appointment in which you know very well is ungodly? Are you still tying yourself down to that job and spending so much on God's work, when you...

Matthew  10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna, was threatened to deny Christ so that his life would be spared to enjoy more of what life would offer him. Surprisingly however, he answered, "Eighty and six years have I served him, and he never once wronged me, how then shall I blaspheme my king who has saved me?" so fearless was he in the face of his martyrdom. With those words, he was burnt at the stake. This is the import of standing firm to the end. The apostles and their successors were heavily persecuted. Yet, they didn't deny Christ. For us today, it may not mean physical death. It may mean losing a lucrative job, missing a well deserved promotion, or repeating a class in the school, all because you have chosen to stand for the holiness of Christ. Whatever it will cost, our best bet is to stand firm, in spite of whatever we will have to pass through. We have ...

Job  19:10 He hath destroyed me on every side, and I am gone: and mine hope hath he removed like a tree.  19:11 He hath also kindled his wrath against me, and he counteth me unto him as one of his enemies. Many people, at one time or the other, have the nagging thought that God had offended them, so to say. Far be it from Him. The infallible God cannot cheat on anyone. Most times, one needs to objectively examine him/herself where things have gone wrong, to facilitate one's journey of recovery.  At times, God might delay certain blessings or breakthrough for the reasons best known to Him. We should know that He doesn't need to consult us to make sure His plans align with our schedules, plans, or timetable.  Sometimes, He shakes our foundations in order to develop us, He would allow tests to visit the believers in order to prove the believer's worth and promote him accordingly.  Therefore, when your hope  seems dashed or when that desired miracle seems delay...

Isaiah  6:8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. Call to ministry is by grace., and God always prepares His vessels for His work. On most cases, those who God calls do have some forms of complaints about their inadequacies. They are not just being humble. They are just sincere and factual. No one has the qualification to work for God. They eventually surrender to God's will when God assures them of His readily available all-sufficiency to support them. Moses gave God some excuses when he was called. He even told God to send someone else (Exod. 3:1-20). When Isaiah finally surrendered, the caller (God) 'worked' on him, thus making the called qualified. Thus is what the Holy Spirit does with those who cooperate with the caller. God had to assure Jeremiah  before he finally gave in. So many of our church patriarchs had similar experiences of the feeling of unworthiness of such great call from th...

Proverbs  3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. It is wiser to draw up a well-structured plan for one's life, but it is wiser to integrate the plans in God's master plan for one's life to make it effective and fruitful.  Knowledge of God's plan, accuracy in decision-making, and true success in life require that one steps into the divine compass. Until you move into the supernatural to access divine direction, you may only remain assuming at the point of decision-making.  You do not need to pray that God develops new plans for you, just integrate your plans in His agenda for you. Accessing Divine Direction is a sure heritage of God's people. By it, we know the plans of God for our lives, so that we become precise in making decisions, being free from vain Labour and unnecessary losses.  You can access this divine heritage by first being a child of ...

Matthew  4:10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Jesus Christ was led into the wilderness in a spiritual empowerment for the commencement of His earthly ministry. Behold, Satan was waiting patiently for Him. Knowing fully well that the ministry of Christ is the precedence of the  redemption of mankind and will jeopardise his works on earth. Satan has no power in the life of any believer, but has a way to engage anyone in a conversation so as to gain access into such person. The same he does with Christ, firstly asking him to exercise His power to turn stone to bread since he is hungry.  Secondly to jump down from a high place, after all, angels will help Him and not let Him fall. And finally to bow for him in exchange for all the riches of the world. All his conversations with our Lord were harmless conversation but a dangerous means to destroy the redemptive  plan o...

Proverbs  8:5 O ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart. When does the learner becomes the teacher? When do we know enough to Share our knowledge with others? Many of us have had the pleasure and privilege of teaching, whether formally or informally. Whether in the classroom or in everyday life, we have experienced the joy of helping others learn. Many of us have also noticed that as we teach, we often find that we learn the most, it seems there is always more to learn. Learning and teaching from a relationship that benefits both the learner and the teacher. Often, of course, teachers feel as if they do not know enough to be able to teach. They may be intimidated by their students or by the material they are dealing with. Or they may  simply be aware of how much they don't know. Yet, a sense of our limitations should never keep us from sharing our knowledge and wisdom with others. Proverbs has a healthy respect for the student and the teach...

Luke  1:26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,  1:27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. It is strange enough that God includes finite human beings, mere creatures in His magnificent plan to redeem the world.  But He often makes a point of using people who were weak and insignificant rather than powerful and influential. I probably would have listed the resources of the roman Caesar Augustus, but no. God bypasses the powerful structures of the day and goes to a nothing town in Galilee. He calls on a young virgin and her insignificant fiancé. What is God thinking?  God is thinking the same thing that was in His mind when He inspired David to battle Goliath ; when He arranged for a Jewish girl named Hadassah (Esther) to win a Persian beauty contest; when he called lowly fishermen to be disciples and then leaders of His church.  Whe...