We don’t teach enough about the idols of the heart in the Church today.
There’s a reason why the devil is a great deceiver, it’s because his methods are not designed to be obvious to the watching eyes. What do I mean?
You are a married woman looking for a child for years, you get a child, a great gift from God and then you make that child your God, the condensation of God’s goodness to you. The child takes up your time for devotion, you are now carried away by the cares of that Child. The devil’s work is done. A good gift has taken the place of the giver.
You want to be prosperous, now the money is coming, you are progressing in your career, salary raises, but you don’t attend Wednesday Bible Study again (a self sub), prayer meeting oho, you are okay to play nasty office politics to advance your career, you are willing to take credit for someone’s work, you are happy to backbite to advance yourself, you are comforted that God is with you because your pension is growing, your family is living comfortably, but you’ve made your work and your getting your God. The Devil doesn’t have to struggle too hard with your soul, it’s firmly in his hands.
You are dating and dating and dating, and it’s not because of anything, you just need the sweetness of someone telling you you are their everything, at the expense of a God who already says you are his everything. And so you are having sex outside of marriage as a way to keep this person, you are open to emotionally manipulating them to keep their love… The Devil just needs to keep you on that treadmill of acceptance, his work is fairly done.
For some of us, it’s acceptance, a new friend group you’ve always wanted to be a part of. But they do despicable things, but your need for acceptance outweighs your love for God, you don’t see it. You are happy to now attend raves if it offers you acceptance, you are willing to bend over your values for a few Snapchat pictures. The devil just has to keep giving you that, and raising the bar for your acceptance, his work is done.
We see this scattered all over the holy scriptures. A small detour if you give it time, will become a big one.
We were giving offerings the other day at @ekoreformedch and I don’t remember the exact words @tinobobotweets uses, but they were: we give because money is not our God, because money does not have us.
And you must be reminded, the battle for your soul is quite an easy one if you are not alert. As Jide says it: 12:01 is not 12:00, you just need to give it time.
The gospel that we know is not Jesus and money, or Jesus and affection, it is Jesus alone. Anything else is 12:01.
So when we fight against the prosperity gospel, it’s not because we want you to be poor, not at all. It’s that we know how easy it is for money to replace God especially when that’s already a strong desire of your heart.
Also, for most, the desire for wealth is how they measure God in their lives and so if you can’t see God in your life in times of little or none at all, then there’s a fundamental sickness of the heart. Does it crush you to the depth of your soul when you are poor? Do you ascribe the presence of God as the presence of money? That my friend is the tool of the devil, and he may as well give you the money if he knows you will mistake it for God.
Again, it is not that we will have you be poor, not at all, it is that if God is expendable in your quest for riches, acceptance, love and the likes, then the work on your heart is not yet done.
Have you let go of the idols of your heart? That’s the question that begs answering.
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Many people will actually buy fake iPhone 17 Pro, and they may not realize for a long while.
As a general rule:
Whenever you’re buying an iPhone, always ensure to check Settings —> General —> About
▫️Confirm the Model Name so you can be sure you’re buying the actual phone you intend to.
▫️Also check the Model Number:
- If the first letter is M, the phone was originally bought new.
- If the first letter is F, it’s been refurbished.
- Likewise, check the ending of the Model Number: if it’s LL/A, it’s a US iPhone. From 14 series upwards, US iPhones use eSIM only; no physical SIM slots. Otherwise, the phone has been tampered with.
▫️Copy your IMEI and go confirm whether or not the phone is blacklisted at “imeicheck . com”
▫️ You can also download JCID Doctor to test some key functionalities and components of your iPhone.
……..
Following those steps will help you confirm if the iPhone is genuine.
I’ve written extensively about these things in many of my previous posts. You can check my highlights or search “iPhone” via my profile search tab.
Stay informed.
And
Stay sharp!🪒
A LETTER TO MY SONS
My sons,
There is a danger in ministry that I want you to discern early: the danger of reproducing what God is doing in another man without receiving the divine allocation that made it possible for him to carry it.
Many men have shipwrecked their assignment because they became fascinated with another man's expression. They saw the manifestation but did not discern the mystery behind the manifestation.
They saw the public dimension of the ministry but knew nothing about the private dealings of God that produced the man. So they copied the visible while ignoring the invisible.
My sons, do not build your ministry from another man's shadow. There is something God has written concerning you that cannot be discovered through imitation.
Paul says:
«“Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us…”
— Romans 12:6»
The Scripture does not Just say that gifts differ.
It says they differ according to grace. That means there is a divine proportion attached to every calling.
There is a measure of grace. There is a measure of faith. There is a measure of burden. There is a measure of authority. There is a measure of revelation.
There is a measure of governmental responsibility.
Grace is heaven's provision for the execution of His divine intention.
When God gives an assignment, He does not Just give Men responsibilities; He gives Men the grace necessary to execute that responsibility.
Therefore, do not volunteer for what God has not commissioned you to carry. There are burdens that look spiritual but are not your burden. There are battles that are legitimate but are not your battle.
There are territories that need conquest but are not your territory. There are people who need help but are not your assignment to carry. There are doors that are genuinely open but were not opened for you. And there are things that God may permit another man to do that He will deliberately forbid you from doing.
This is the mystery of divine measure.
Paul said: «“But we will not boast of things without our measure…” 2 Corinthians 10:13»
Notice the language: “Our measure.” There is a measure that belongs to a man. There is a jurisdiction attached to an assignment. There is a boundary around every commission.
There is what heaven has committed to your stewardship. Therefore, maturity in ministry is not simply knowing what you can do. Maturity is knowing what God has authorized you to do.
A man can have the ability to do many things and still have the grace to do only a few. And this is where many ministers become casualties..
My sons, hear me: You are not called to do everything you are capable of doing. You are called to do what heaven has written concerning you. Jesus Himself lived under this government.
He said: “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” John 4:34
He did not come on Earth Just to do good things.
He came to finish an assigned work. This is the difference between a good man and a commissioned man.
A good man is always concerned about Things That needs to be done. A commissioned man is always concerned about things he has been sent to do.
Jesus could have responded to every human need around Him, but He remained governed by the Father's will. The One who had unlimited power still lived within the boundaries of His assignment.
My sons, there are things you must learn to refuse, Not because they are sinful.Not because they are evil.
Not because they are beneath you. But because they are outside your assignment.
There is a holy “no” that protects a man's “yes.”
There are things you must be willing to say: “This is good, but it is not mine.” “This is necessary, but God has not assigned it to me.” “This is a legitimate burden, but it is not my burden.” Because if you say yes to every burden, eventually you will not have enough strength to carry the burden God actually gave you.