WATCH YOUR WORDS!

Ecclesiastes 5:6 - The Message Bible (MSG) simply says,

"Don’t let your mouth make a total sinner of you.

When called to account, you won’t get by with

    “Sorry, I didn’t mean it.”

Why risk provoking God to angry retaliation?"

This means that it would be better for us to keep quiet and not utter anything rash or foolish before God. The words of our mouth can either mar us or make us.

 If you are contemplating marriage and church membership, make sure you understand what you are committing to. There are many Christians today who are experiencing God’s judgment in their lives because of their refusal to follow through with their commitments to Him. 

Deuteronomy 23:21-23

"When you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not delay to pay it, for it would be sin in you, and the LORD your God will surely require it of you. "However, if you refrain from vowing, it would not be sin in you. "You shall be careful to perform what goes out from your lips, just as you have voluntarily vowed to the LORD your God, what you have promised.

That judgment may not come in the form of physical ailments and death, though it certainly can. It may instead come by means of God destroying the work of our hands. That is, God may take our goals and aspirations and efforts to succeed and just turn those things into dust. Or He may allow us to prosper but make us miserable in our prosperity.

I Samuel 1 narrates the story of Hanna, the wife of Elkanah. She was barren, but with every fiber of her being, she desired a child. Though Elkanah treated her with love and kindness, his other wife, Peninnah, who had children, became Hanna's adversary, provoking her until she was miserable. Wisely, Hanna took her situation and desire to God. She vowed that if He gave her a son, she would give him to God for His service.

And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the LORD and wept in anguish. Then she made a vow and said, "O LORD of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of your maidservant and remember me, and not forget your maidservant, but will give your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head." (I Samuel 1:10-11)

In verses 19-20, God hears Hanna and gives her desire to her:

And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her. So it came to pass in the process of time that Hanna conceived and bore a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, "Because I have asked for him from the LORD."

God had fulfilled His part of the agreement, and now it was Hanna's responsibility to keep her promise. Notice how completely she holds up her end of the bargain:

Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bulls, one ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the LORD in Shiloh. And the child was young. Then they slaughtered a bull, and brought the child to Eli. And she said, "O my lord, as your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the LORD. For this child I prayed; and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him: Therefore I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the LORD." So they worshipped the LORD there. (verses 24-28)

Hanna's example shows how a proper vow works. She intelligently thought it through, made it solemnly and humbly, and kept it completely. God not only respected her vow and fulfilled it, but He also greatly used the product, Samuel the prophet! Notice, too, how the process caused Hanna to thank and glorify God and built humble and righteous character in her (II Samuel 2:1-10).


We, Christians nowadays in our frustrations and challenges make vows to the Lord for example, at baptism, the Lord's Supper, in front of the church congregation vow in the presence of Jesus Christ, "the angel of the covenant" (Mal 3:1), and of ministering angels as witnesses (1Co 11:10; 1Ti 5:21) etc. making such vows upon fleshly or carnal, and not upon spiritual and religious motives. Peradventure you had in any way done this, have a rethink and redeem as necessary.

MALE AND FEMALE DELILAHS! BEWARE!!

By Bro Gbile Akanni

MovieStillsDB.com

One aspect of Delilah that broke my guard was her food! ‘Delicious’ was an understatement when it comes to her dishes… as soon as she came, my fasting life died!

The grace of fasting just dissipated. At 6.00am, she woke me up with a cup of cold juice, then followed with ‘fries’ – it could be fried chicken, fried turkey; fried goat meat; fried fish, fried snails and other bush meat from their country home of Gaza.

Her service was another thing! She never delegated my food to house girls, she brought it herself: She never served me standing. She went on her two knees and pulled me by the ear with the pet name she coined for me:

“Sam, the Great”… “Great is my Samson”! I also responded with “Del, the Den” My head swells up any time she tickles me with her finger and whispers “Sam, the Great”, but my heart shrinks. Some measure of anointing just drop off my spirit…

She perfected my drinking spree; she never rushed me to finish a bottle. She knows how to mix different grill of wine. She served me sip by sip; “sip by sip’, I wouldn’t know when I have finished five bottles.

She had all the time. She gave me full time attention! I never begged her for sex. She satisfied me to the full. I was the one who usually begged her to release me.

I had no need to go out any more. She was never boring! She changed her dresses like chameleon, with assorted perfumes.

As soon as I married Delilah, I was also a full time ‘househusband’. I never went for raids any more.

You know before now, despite my backsliding; these were occasions when the Spirit will remind me of my call: and my call was to kill and route out the Philistines from our Father’s land. I will just jump up and go furiously looking for any Philistine’s camp to raid. That was my own form of evangelism.

All of this finished for me. I began to actually cherish the Philistines. I reasoned: ‘why should we insist they leave the land?’ I began to propose a co-existence with these uncircumcised.

Besides, I had put on so much weight that I could not carry myself easily about again. I had no disciple to send or any army that I have raised and taught the principles of warfare.

I did not transfer the anointing to anyone. I was a loner. I was alone, now trapped between the breast and the lap of ‘Del, the Den’.

When I proposed that we should have children, Delilah objected, saying the honeymoon had not finished; besides Children will interrupt our “love play” too early.

Little did I know she was planning to cut me short out of the land of the living. That was why I had no descendant or do you know any of my sons that I gave birth to?

My father’s name perished in Israel with me. I squandered my father’s inheritance, I left no next of kin. I was a useless son to my father and my cherished mother Manoah’s name had since been forgotten in our tribe of Dan…

Delilah occupied me so much, I forgot my calling; I lost my vision and I lost contact with my people.

None of them could visit me while Delilah was around, she stood at the gate and told them I was sleeping and none should disturb me.

She cut me off from all who would have reinforced my life in fellowship; all who would have prayed with me, she estranged me from! She got me isolated from my roots. She so occupied me with vanities.

Hm…

Brethren, let’s watch out for every Delilah in our lives. And if you are already trapped by one, even the lawful captive can be delivered.

Proof Text: Judges 16:4-18

Let’s trace back our steps to the cross, to where we 1st met Him and ask Him to fix us up again. He can restore lost hope, lost vision and lost lives.

And if you are yet to give your life to Jesus, this is just the right time to ask Jesus to come into your heart as your Lord and personal Saviour and lo all things will become new.

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