Grow … truly grow ...
2 Thessalonians 1:3 “We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other..”
A)Church of Thessalonians
I do receive plenty of rave reviews for my devotions! How daring! How gutsy! Encouraging! These and much more are some of the expressions I receive; well, as I write these lines, I remember the words of the Lord spoken to Ezekiel: after a fiery message to the people of Israel, the Lord looks at prophet Ezekiel and said “So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them.”(Ezekiel 33:31, 32)
Yes, I feel the same, like a song that is heard and forgotten! I won’t be cynical and say that changes are not happening – they are – but they are very few, the rare few. Devotions are available in plenty these days, the inbox is overflowing with spiritual teachings; however, what matters is what nourishment has it brought into your life? Are you listening?
The conundrum for me is why so few receive it? One particular lady wrote to me, “I receive so many Christian teachings but I don’t actually read any.” Alas, this is actually true!!! I remember a senior officer call me one day and say,’ I do not fail to read your daily devotions, they are very interesting with your personal experiences’ but the same officer stopped contact with me when I corrected some areas of his life. There are many out there who do not agree with all that I say but still not many leave the group, they stick on; nevertheless, my question is: how much have you grown? Have you cleansed your lives? Do you have quiet time with the Lord and do you regularly and meticulously read the Bible?
Let me talk of the church of Thessalonians, look how they grew in the Lord; they had works, faith, love for one another, patience and hope. Wonderful!
Works to show their growth in Christ! They were not passive, lazy Christians who talk big without any works, these Thessalonian church members came to church on time, helped their pastor in his church activities and also were involved in the mission work.
Faith – their lives reflected the faith they had in the Lord. They were not easily rattled when things went wrong but stood firm and steadfast in their love for God.
Love for one another: Friend, when you grow in the Lord, love would be poured into your heart to love and pray for each other. We would not be fighting for petty issues and silly matters. Colossal ego clashes and selfish motives are the reason for split in the church. Crucify it and work for the benefit of the Kingdom of God rather than your ‘ego kingdom.’
B) CASHEW:
Mature cashew trees grow red or yellow pear-shaped drupes called cashew apples. The cashews themselves grow inside of grey shells on the ends of those fruits.
The cashews are ready for harvesting when the cashew apples begin to fall from the tree. The cashew apples, which are edible but highly perishable, are collected.
The cashew nuts, still in their shell, are removed from the ends of the fruits and may be dried in the sun, these cashews are raw and not sold due to a risk of urushiol exposure. Urushiol is the reason cashews are never sold in the shell and are typically roasted. The oil is found on the outer shell (similar to mangos, where it's found on the skin) and roasting the cashews at high temperatures can kill any remaining oil that makes its way through to the nut. This is done because the oil is toxic.
The raw cashews are then roasted at high heat, either by steaming them in a large rotating drum or vat of boiling oil to remove urushiol remnants before they can be shelled, thoroughly dried, and peeled. The final cashews that comes to your hands are expensive because of all the above process that it has to undergo.
Similarly, do not quit when you feel heat in your life, you got to endure the heat and grow right there and give fruits. Friend, God at times does not come to your rescue immediately but allows you to go through turmoil, agony, heavy burden, persecutions and much more to make you strong and mighty! Believe me, you would come out refined, purified, stronger, humbler and more lovelier!
Isaiah 48:10 "I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering."
Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:7
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C) GROW AS A SOLDIER FOR CHRIST:
2 Timothy 2:3"Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus."
Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:7
Instead of buckling down and quitting over injuries and wounds (of whatever nature it may be - physical and emotional) that you may face in life, arise from that 'hard place of bruises and wounds' dust yourself and brace yourself to fight back. Great and profound lesson.
The seven-time summer Grand Slam champion , 37 year old Novak Djokovic underwent surgery on his knee to repair a torn meniscus following his withdrawal at the French Open. After less than a month he bounced back to play against 21 year old Carlos alcaraz on this Sunday July 14, 2024 Wimbledon. World No. 2 Novak Djokovic took on world no. 3 and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in Wimbledon 2024 men’s singles final. Imagine 37 against 21 after knee surgery! Djokovic brewed with confidence, he lost the game but still his willpower, perseverance is a lesson to all young people who do not want to do hard preparations for their success. This defeat does not make him any less. "In the face of adversity, normally I rise and I learn and get stronger," Djokovic said after his 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (4) loss to Alcaraz. "That's what I'm going to do." Way to go!
Life would not always be hunky-dory, we got to roll up our sleeves and be ready to dirty our fingers! Are you there? No place for complacency, if you are aiming for success! Hard work! Did you hear me? Hard work! Proverbs 14: 23” In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.”
“Adversity is not simply a tool. It is God's most effective tool for the advancement of our spiritual lives. The circumstances and events that we see as setbacks are oftentimes the very things that launch us into periods of intense spiritual growth. Once we begin to understand this, and accept it as a spiritual fact of life, adversity becomes easier to bear.”
- Charles Stanley
