SUNDAY WORD: DIVINE PROVISION

Genesis 2:7-9 (NIV):
7 Then the Lord God formed a man[a] from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
8 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

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Man was formed from dust but God breathed life into him to make him a living being. When we neglect the breath of God in our lives we neglect our true selves-we are treasures in jars of clay (2 Corinthians 4:7)-to get to the treasure we need to come into that place of intimacy with God hence the reference to breath. This is intimacy and connection. When we fail to get connected to the breath of God through accepting Him through the LORD and walking in the Spirit, we stay in the place of our flesh-in the place of temporary perfection and attention-the place of dust. A place that provides no answers to our questions because it does not hold the capacity to respond. This is the power of walking in the breath of God.
The breath of life entered into man's nostrils-through this access he became a living being.
It is through our nostrils we breathe-this shows when God touches the place of your flesh with His Spirit He brings it to life.
We can stay in the place of being formed-being constantly in battle with the flesh because the sinful mind is hostile to God (Romans 8:7) or we can come into that place of intimacy and submission-of surrendering our flesh to His Spirit-allowing Him to breath life into our nostrils-into our areas of blockage and challenges to clear it up and allow the breath of life to move freely to make you into a living being.
God planted a garden in the east-the sun rises in the east-this means wherever God has planted you is your area of nourishment and victory-the sun rises in the east and the garden of Eden was planted in the east so God has planted you where He intends to prosper you because He has a hope and a future for you (Jer. 29:11). And this is why He put Adam where he planted the garden. This also told me God prepares a place for you before He leads you there-the Word says He leads me beside still waters (Psalm 23:2). He places you in a place of nourishment and growth for your purpose-for that breath He has planted in your life to move.
And this is very important-unless and until you submit to the will of God and allow His breath to move through you-you will not be able to gain access to your Eden.
Notice God placed the man He had formed in Eden-and this means God has to prepare you for your purpose-you must submit to the potter’s touch (Isaiah 64:8).
And this is why this place of Eden-your place of purpose-is a place that is not dependent on man’s supply but God’s provision. This is an environment where God can move freely because you have allowed Him to move through you.
This is why God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground. The trees only grew because God enabled them to do so-in your place of purpose-you will depend on God not man because God will be your sole source of provision-your sole source of sustenance; but this starts from allowing Him to breath life into your nostrils (your flesh) allowing His Spirit to move through you because the Spirit always gives life. (John 6:63).
Trees that were both pleasing to the eye and good for food were enabled to grow out of the ground. This is important-God made the environment submit to His will. Hence don’t be worried about where your supply is going to come-God will make provision and pleasure come alive in your life-these trees were not only pleasing to the eye but also good for food so this is a place of comfort. God always takes us to a place of comfort.
The Word says He prepares a table for me in the presence of my enemies and anoints my head with oil-my cup overflows-His anointing on your life causes an overflow. (Psalm 23:5).
We must come to that place of recognizing He must become greater and I must become less. (John 3:30).
Pensive woman by ZOA PHOTO for Stocksy United
But notice something else-in the middle of this place of provision-there was always a choice. The tree of life-representative of choosing God-because as the Word says the thief comes to steal, kill and destroy but I (Jesus) have come that they may have life and have it abundantly. (John 10:10). But the choice is yours to make each and every time.
Hence the fact that the trees were placed in the middle.
The significance of the middle is that it is in between. God does not like us to be in between-remember the Word tells us in Revelations 3:16 since you are lukewarm I will spit you out of my mouth. This is what it means to be stuck in the middle-so you must make a choice.
Are you for God or against Him? (Romans 8:31). You make a choice in your everyday decisions and actions because faith without deeds is dead. (James 2:26).
In the middle there will always be the tree of life-Jesus Christ-or the tree of knowledge of good and evil which is symbolic of the world and its logic. But remember: the wisdom of the world is foolishness in God’s sight-so you must choose wisely. (1 Corinthians 3:19).
In this place of provision and intimacy in God, there will always be a choice at the center which is symbolic of your heart-the more you choose God, the more you submit to a heart of flesh sensitive to His presence (Ezekiel 36:26), the more you cause your Eden to shine because it remains under His sustenance; but the more you step away from Him and choose the world’s wisdom and eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil-the less you allow God have access to your happiness-which is why Adam and Eve where driven out of the garden of Eden once they ate that fruit-they had made their choice- and which is also why the Word says by their fruit you shall know them. (Matthew 7:16).

So what fruit are you eating?

God Bless!



6 STEPS TO BUILD A POWERFUL RELATIONSHIP


1.          Emotions:
How do they make you feel? This is an important question because we sometimes confuse feelings of longing with feelings of love. You may long for companionship but you may have settled for frustration. And this may place you in a position where you confuse temporary satisfaction as a benefit of a genuine connection. This is truly not the case. You need to learn to read your emotions. Do they make you feel happy or sad, frustrated or fulfilled? Because these emotions are closely connected, we sometimes confuse frustration with fulfillment. You may think it is a requirement of fulfillment to bear with the emotional/psychological/manipulative nature of your partner but it is not-so evaluate your emotions according to your interactions and not your frustrated delusions.

2.          Connection, communication, consistency:
These are some of my favorite C’s in the vocabulary of intimacy. You need to understand that if you both are not communicating consistently, you will lose your connection permanently. The result of this combined effort is commitment. So ask yourself do you feel like your happiness or even your peace has been added to or subtracted from by your interactions with this person-this is how you can determine if you are truly connecting. And I guarantee if there is a subtraction, at least one of these key elements is missing.

3.          Development-are you growing?:
This adds to my last point. Notice my pun lol. But seriously are your growing or are you stagnant? Whoever is in your life should increase and not diminish your abilities. This is a clear sign that you are not with the right person. If you feel frustrated or if you are dealing with friction constantly in your emotional, psychological and even physical well being-then truly and honestly that person is not helping you.

4.          Partnership:
Do you encourage and help each other in your endeavours? Are you partners or opponents? These questions are to help you identify if you have reached the end of that particular relationship. Sometimes we have to part ways with others to be able to discover more of ourselves. You have to understand if you are not ready to discover more of yourself then you will lose yourself in holding on to someone else. It is time to either let go or stay put. The choice is up to you.

5.          Family and friends:
Lust is a blanket that covers the truth so easily. But listen-how do your family and friends feel about this person? Sometimes we cannot see the obvious things that those closest to us can readily see because we are blinded by our desires and this blocks the truth.
And this does not always have to do with the other person-it sometimes is you. Sometimes you have to recognize that some people are not suitable or suited to your personality or your particular position. But at other times because we are so blinded by our emotions we cannot see this-which is why we have to trust those closest to us to be able to explain to us the importance of accepting or rejecting this person. The closest people to you can see the clearest when it comes to those around you.

6.          Unified foundations:
Foundations are important. You cannot make a strong building on a weak foundation. You need to evaluate the foundations of your relationship. Are you standing on the same beliefs? Do you have similar aspirations? What are your ambitions? Do they connect or are they colliding? These are questions that will help you identify if this person is someone you can build a strong relationship with because over time if you have a relationship on weak foundations, it will eventually crumble when confronted with daily attacks from the world and its frustrations.

Q: What do you love most about your partner?
A: Is that trait based on your emotions or your connection? If it is based on your connection and your connection is purely physical for instance, then it will be a relationship based on temperament ie it will be temporary; if it is based on your emotions that is your connection is an emotional foundation of similar beliefs, ambitions-it has the potential to be built on a solid and permanent foundation.

Check out:
Is it Love or Lust?
How To Deal With A Bad Breakup

LEARNING TO WALK BY FAITH

Matthew 14:22-33: (NIV)
Jesus Walks on the Water
22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29 “Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

Today’s teaching is based on learning to walk in faith. And I was led to share from this Scripture where Jesus walked on water.

Notice Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side. Sometimes God will send you ahead to the other side-He will send you on a specific direction in a designated vessel and dismiss those around you. Jesus dismissed the crowd. He separated His disciples from the crowd. Has God separated you from the crowd? Or rather the question should be have you allowed God to separate you from the crowd because the LORD stands in the gap. He makes intercession for us:

Romans 8:34 (NIV):
34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

This is the journey of faith-when we choose to follow Him and it may not seem like much. The land may seem more attractive but Jesus will ask you to get into the boat. Have you gotten in? Have you gone ahead of Him even if you cannot see where He is sending you? Remember we walk by faith not sight (2 Corinthians 5:7).
 
Jesus dismissed the crowd and then went up on a mountain to pray. Prayer is a part of our relationship and intimacy with God. The Word says you should pray for the saints always (Ephesians 6:18). Jesus had sent the disciples out but He went up to pray-does prayer hold priority in your life. Prayer requires separation and also positions you for elevation-how? Notice that Jesus went up to a mountainside to pray-alone. This is separation and elevation. When we come to God in prayer we are separating ourselves from the world and seeking His face and this will always elevate your situation and more importantly your perspective-hence the fact that Jesus went up to the mountainside to pray.

The boat was already a considerable distance from land and the wind was against it. The world does not stand for God-so do not be surprised if you face persecution (1 Peter 3:14).
When God sends you on a mission the wind would be against you-and the vessel He has sent you in-the world would stand against you and try to prevent you from moving forward but the Word says if God be for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31).

This was also in the night-there is a time for everything under the sun (Ecclesiastes 3). There is a time where you will feel persecuted and alone as you walk with God-where you will feel like He cannot hear you or He is not listening but this is not the truth. These trials are to build your faith. (Romans 5:4).

Notice that Jesus went out to them walking on the lake. He was not running on the lake or calling for them. He was walking on the lake and this is important because we walk by faith and not by sight. And Jesus is literally illustrating what it means to be walking by faith and not sight because He is walking on a lake. When we face challenging situations and choose to focus on Jesus He shows us how to walk in faith through that situation. Hence Jesus will teach you how to walk by faith and not sight.

And then we are able to see Him because we are not focused on our sight but our faith and as believers we live by faith. (Matthew 16:16-17). He becomes alive in us through that situation and we experience Him personally.

The disciples saw Him walking on the lake and were terrified and thought it was a ghost. They cried out in fear. Sometimes when God is trying to get your attention He needs to put you in a position of fear so you will listen-this is usually through trials and tests that come your way. Notice these are the followers of Jesus and they were not even able to recognize Him because they were afraid. When you are afraid you are not able to see God in your situation. The devil tries to distract you with fear because He does not want you to recognize the presence of God in that situation. This is why the Word says perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18). God is love. (John 3:16).

But Jesus spoke to the disciples and told them to take courage it is Him. The LORD has told us to be very courageous because as His disciples we will face multiple challenges and have to recognize God in that situation. He may not come how you expect as Jesus did not come here how the disciples were expecting but He will show up.

Peter responded to Jesus’ words and told Him to tell him to come to the water. Peter saw an opportunity where others saw danger. He spoke in faith when others around him were surrounded with fear. Too many of the LORD’s disciples stay on the boat of faith instead of stepping out into the lake and stepping away from their fear. Sometimes your solution is not on the boat it is in the lake.
Ask the LORD to send you! It will require further separation. The more you grow in your faith, the closer you grow to God and the farther you fall away from man. This is an environment of faith not logic because the LORD speaks a language of faith. And we constantly have to practice this language so we can hear Him clearer and clearer when He speaks.

The LORD simply said to Peter-Come. We should strive to reach that point where the LORD is no longer trying to calm down your fears but is now challenging your faith-where He calls and you immediately answer. This is a serious separation-this is why now He is only talking to Peter because it is only Peter that is willing.
Remember: the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41).

Peter responded in action-he got out of the boat of his fear and safety and walked on water and came toward Jesus. Through the power of Jesus we are able to do anything in His Name if it is in His will. When we lose focus of Jesus-of who sent us or even who called us we become afraid and this is why Peter started sinking when he saw the wind. Men and women of God we must learn to stop looking at the wind in that situation of frustration, of fear, of impatience and rather focus on the one who called us out.

Peter called out to God to save him and Jesus immediately caught him and told him: his faith was little because he doubted. So do not let doubt infect your faith. Notice also in James 1:6 we are told that we must believe and not doubt because when we doubt we are blown and tossed by the wind. So doubt should not be present in the believer-let us learn to walk by faith. And also this means we must reach the point where we do not depend on our feelings-because although you cannot see wind you can certainly feel it. Stop relying on your feelings! It is dangerous and contaminates your faith.

When Jesus got on the boat the wind died down. This means the wind was a test. Jesus would test you on the boat-He will not leave you but He will test your faith on that boat and give the wind permission to blow. Which is why when He stepped on the boat the wind died down.
And it is through these situations we receive revelation of Jesus being the Son of God (Matthew 14:33).

I hope this teaching has helped you to understand the importance of faith in the lives of believers.

Have you struggled with your faith? What challenges and triumphs have you attained through that season?


Check out more teachings on faith:

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