You will Never Have To Do Anything

YOU WILL NEVER HAVE TO DO ANYTHING AGAIN.

On the 2nd of October 2014 around 1:30 am in the morning I arrived in Mumbai (Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport). It was my first time in India and I didn't know so many people. I only knew one Pastor James Chacko who I had met earlier in Nairobi briefly (for about 5 mins). I didn't have his phone number though. Only an email address. In fact, I didn't have the phone number of anyone in India.
Pastor Abey Abraham was waiting for me at Bajpe Airport in South India. Pastor Chacko had connected me to him but even they had never met before. (God was the only one known to all of us and hence the link).
It was almost 3pm on 3rd October 2014 when I arrived at Bajpe Airport. With a passport photo I had earlier emailed him, Pastor Abey with his son identified me and took me as their guest.
Our small chat in his car(new at the time,  one would say he bought it to pick me up at the airport) forms the solid background of this post.
English is neither his first or second language but he does a remarkable job at it. At first I had trouble grasping his sentence construction but it proved worthwhile. I want to pick one statement he used that day and develop a really interesting post out of it. This is what he said, "In order to come to India, you want to get a passport and visa. Right?"
He had me confused for a while as I tried to process his question. 'Want to?' I thought to myself. 'I didn't want to go through the process of acquiring the visa and passport. I HAD TO!' But to keep it simple I answered, "yes indeed. "
Over the coming days and months he would continue to use 'want to...' in the places I would have him use 'have to...'
I often thought I should correct his grammar but something kept telling me not to.
As it turns out, a message would be developed from his grammar that would change my life for ever. I began thinking deeply about these words and it brought up this scripture to my mind.

Matthew 5:38-42 "You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also. If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too. If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles. Give to those who ask, and don't turn away from those who want to borrow.

These words were spoken by Jesus Christ but it would be the words of Pastor Abey that would help me understand what Jesus was saying.
What Jesus was indeed saying is this, 'If someone compels you to do what you don't want to do; start liking it and then it won't be out of compulsion but out of your will that you do it.' In other words, Jesus was saying that life would be easier to bear if we turned our 'HAVE TO s' into 'WANT TO s'.
Let me give you some examples, imagine that in your mind, the things you would otherwise not do became desirable to you. For instance, waking up in the morning is an infamous 'have to' for most people. But what happens when you have something exciting to do on a certain day? The 'HAVE TO' wake up early turns into 'WANT TO' wake up early and you actually enjoy it.
Life is grumpy and dull when you are doing the things you 'HAVE TO' but quite a thrill when you are doing what you 'WANT TO'.
Here are some HAVE TO s that you can turn to WANT TO s and enjoy life more.

Have to wake up? Want to wake up!
Have to stay up late? Want to stay up late!
Have to go to work? Want to go to work!
Have to wear that uniform? Want to wear it!
Have to live a righteous life? Want to live in righteousness!
Have to become a better husband? Want to be a better husband!
Have to be a submissive wife? Want to submit to your husband!
Have to go to Church? Want to dwell in the house of the Lord!
Have to do your homework? Want to finish that homework today!
Have to finish your project before the deadline? Want it done by tonight!
Have to communicate with her more often? Want to share all your experiences with her!
Have to sit and listen to him gloat about himself? Want to listen to his achievements!
Have you do the dishes/laundry? Want to be cleaner and tidier!
Have to fast and pray? Want to tap into the Spiritual by fasting and praying!
Have to read your Bible? Want to know God more as revealed in His word!
What are your HAVE TO s? Make them WANT TO s. The beauty with that is that you will never have to do any thing again.
Don't go the extra mile because you have to; go because you want to.

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN.

All the fishes, whales, and dolphins convened an urgent meeting. "It is a matter of life and death," said Tuna the chair of the meeting.
The agenda was mainly to discuss how they would survive the tough times ahead. If they failed to come up with a solution quickly, they would be facing extinction in a matter of days. Something had to be done and very fast!
But from the heated arguments and hurling of insults at the meeting, coupled up with the despair at the face of possible extinction, it hardly seemed that the meeting would come up with a solution soon.
Sea urchin sat at the corner seemingly helpless. Once he had attempted to intervene and cool the temperatures a bit but he received a sharp rebuke from Whale, "Who even invited you to this meeting? Urchin! Shut up or I will..."
He did not wait for Whale to finish the threat. He knew, from witnessing his family members before him perish, what Whale was capable of.
Shark was getting impatient. His sharp teeth glimmering at the sun rays penetrating the sea contrasted with the waters to give a definition of death. Urchin knew that if the coming extinction does not end him, Shark would be most honoured to do him that favour. He just wished that they would allow him to just speak what was on his mind.
Starfish was the first to come up with the first sensible idea. "A tree without fruit does not suffer the wrath of stones thrown by boys," he began. One would wonder when ever Starfish saw boys throwing stones at trees but he was quite the philosophical type. "The good book says that No weapon fashioned against you shall prosper and that the end of a thing is better than the beginning," continued Starfish.
"Now he can even read? " Urchin thought to himself.
The peace that hung in the atmosphere with every word that proceeded from the mouth of Starfish brought a ray of hope to every sea creature present in the meeting. A dead silence hang about as they all listened to the philosophical Starfish.
"We know that in all things we are more than conquerors.  Certainly we shall overcome this uncertainty. Remember Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego? " Well, no one else in the meeting could say they had ever heard of these three but they let him continue anyway. After all, they were the only words that had brought hope to any of them since the announcement. "Even in the very heart of the scorching furnace they believed against hope that they would overcome and they did. We, brethren, are cut from the same fabric of overcomers. I say we shall overcome!" continued Starfish amidst cheers and guggles as the sea creatures opened their mouths to let in some of the salty water. "But we need to pray!" None of the creatures understood what that exactly meant but they knew that if it was coming from Starfish it was worth a try. Even Shark hoovered by keenly listening to the wisdom of Starfish. All this while, though, Urchin was growing impatient wondering when it would be his turn to speak. He, however, knew that so long as Starfish had the attention, no one would be eating him so he sat patiently at his corner.
"This thing about praying, " interjected Whale," how exactly does it work? "
" Well, am glad you asked . We must win this battle on our knees! " Not even Shark could control his laughter at that point." Starfish, we don't have knees! " he said amidst the laughter.
" Well, it's a cliché. It means we pray to conquer the battles we are facing!" explained Starfish.
"Well I say we hit back at them! This is utter discrimination! How can they just decide who gets to live and who perishes. We attack at midnight! Who's with me? " Shark remarked.
" Two problems with that, Shark. For one, we will never tell what time is midnight. Secondly, and most importantly, hitting back will mean we stoop down to their level, " Starfish intervened again with his wisdom.
" Can... I... speak... now? ", stammered Urchin from his corner. " Shut up! " shouted all the delegates at the meeting. With that Urchin crawled back under the coral.
" As I  was saying, before I was rudely interrupted," Starfish continued. "God will fight for us and we know that in Him we shall overcome. We need to bind these forces of darkness that have risen against us. This is warfare! You all know that the devil uses creatures when he wants to fight you. We cannot fight as one who throws fists at the air.  We need strategy. We need tact. We need to act in wisdom. So this is what we shall do, we fast for three days... "
" I think we can hear Urchin now," remarked Shark at the sound of that. "I am almost certain that he might say something that would make me eat him before we start the fast." Urchin crawled out of his hiding with the prospect of being heard finally but still uncertain of his survival.
"If I heard Noah's announcement correctly, " he started. " The imminent threat on the face of the earth is a flood! We are not exactly inhabitants of the 'face of the earth'. We are more of what you could call inhabitants of the brain of the earth." All the delegates applauded. " Secondly, I fail to see how we can be threatened by floods. We are Sea creatures for crying out loud! Has any of you considered that what is threatening us is our destiny and we can't escape it? Here we are busy planning to retaliate for what appears to us like a grand conspiracy against us yet it is for our good. All things work together for good... "
" To those who love God and are the called according to His purpose, " Starfish finished the statement. "Urchin, I didn't know you are a believer. He is right you know. If the floods are coming then it vindicates Noah of this perceived conspiracy. He was planning to save us all along! "

That, my friend, is how we sometimes perceive a conspiracy against us when life pushes us to our destiny. Not every rejection is fashioned to destroy you. Think of Joseph. If his brothers had not conspired to sell him to Egypt, he never would have become the prime minister of the super power of the day.
Before you begin fighting back for what you perceive as a conspiracy against you, consider this one verse in the Bible.

Romans 8:28 "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose."

God has your back! Regardless of what you are facing, something good will come out of it. It is the other side of the coin. In the end we win. Read the last parts of the Bible and find out for yourself. In the end Christ comes back for us and wipes all our tears and takes us to a place where the streets are of gold and the streams make glad. A place where the sun shall no more be our light by day nor the moon at night for God shall be our light.
 Stay blessed. 

PRESENTS OR PRESENCE?

You probably have heard that our values make us who we are. If you haven’t; read that statement again. Our values are inculcated into us from the time we are young. You may, most likely, identify with this. Growing up in Africa was one of two options. Growing in the village or in town.
Now if you grew up in town you remember those times a relative from the village visited. They came loaded with fruits and vegetables and sometimes chicken. Of course there were also the goodies that came up country to those of us who grew up there.
Recently I sat down to reevaluate what that taught us. Every visitor whether from the urban setting or from up country was met with this question. "What have you brought us?" Familiar?
Up till now you may, most likely, still find yourself asking this question.
This is a value that we contracted as children and it may take time to unlearn it. We grew up valuing presents more than presence. It moved us more what was brought us than who brought it. With time this value, which now that we have a common understanding I can call vice, began spreading roots to various aspects of our lives.
We have, today, parents who believe that they can work all week and make up for the vice with presents. Some work out of town only to come home in the weekend loaded with gifts. Pause right there sir. Your children need a father not Father Christmas. Your children need a mother not a visitor. Some of us work away from our families for months and go to visit with gift packs. We have been taught to value presents more than presence.
To a child who dares ask daddy, "Where have you been?" we quickly respond, "Have you lacked anything?" To one who dares say to mum, “You work too late and leave home too early,” we sharply retort, “well someone has to pay the bills!”
Well that's the problem right there. The most important things in life are not things. They are not lacking things. It is you they are lacking. The bills are being paid but there may be one that what you earn in your job can never come close to paying: your presence!

We leave our homes before the kids wake up and come back when they are asleep. We're careful to provide for their material needs while we neglect their emotional needs. As a result, every generation is stressing more to the next that presents can replace presence. Ponder upon this, a few generations ago, children did not even get a chance to sit with their fathers until they were initiated into adulthood. They never related to fathers: they related to men. These men; however, ensured that their children were fed and lacked nothing that was in their power to provide. Their pride as African men denied them the opportunity of holding their children in their hands. They never felt the love of their children. All they felt was the respect, and in most cases the fear, of their own flesh and blood.

Times and seasons have changed. The hardheartedness of the average African man has been softened by the need for the love of their children (probably as a result of the gap created by the lack of it from their own parents). The circle of life continues; however. In so much as the modern father has not such much to make out of holding his children in his arms, he has no time to do so. The gap is widening for presence as we vainly try to fill it with presents.

Your son doesn’t need a ball. He needs a father who can teach him how to play it. He doesn’t need a toy car. He needs the figure of the experienced driver that you are. As you teach him to avoid hitting things and people with his toy car, you will be instilling in him the respect for people and their property. Leave him with a new car without your guidance; though. You will replace the new toy in days if not in hours because it was not the present he needed.

Your daughter doesn’t need a rag-doll honey. She needs to see the image of a mother so she can act it out with her doll. She will treat that rag-doll as you treat her. Watch her closely and discover how well you are doing as a mother. Soon she will tell you she needs a house help for her dolls and teddy bears. It is what you have taught her that a mother does.

I reckon also that we have brought this into our relationship with God. We seek Him more for His presents than His presence. We forget that if we have Him we have all things. Gifts are important but the giver is more important. We spend most of our time in prayer not seeking God but His blessings.
There is a longing in every man and every woman to be loved. Presents only make us feel loved when presence is in place. But presents can never take the place of presence. It is you that I need; not your gifts. You cannot relate with people based on this. It is easier to accept gifts from a person who has given you their self.
A gift without the giver seems more like a bribe. This is exactly what it is before God. We want to bribe God for miracles with money. I dare say that we have more people being conned for miracles than being convinced to attend overnight prayers. Why is this? We are not seeking presence. We are seeking presents. If we were seeking after presence, then the more time we spent in God's presence, the more blessed we would feel. But we do not want to spend time with God. There is not a place where the clock is of greater necessity today than in church. I could even be right in assuming that prisons have a lesser need for wall clocks than churches.
I love the story of Esther in the Bible. She won favour with the King and he offered her half of the kingdom. This woman chose to forsake that offer and go for the King's heart. She knew that if she took the offer she would get half the kingdom but if she got his heart she would have the entire Kingdom. What are you seeking for today? His presence or His presents? If you get Him, all He has will be yours.

I wish I just could climb the tallest skyscraper and spell it out for all to hear: WE DON’T WANT YOUR GIFTS; WE WANT YOU.The next time they ask you, "what did you bring me?" tell them, "I brought you me!"

MY FIRST LOVE

MY FIRST LOVE.

I listened in horror as the charges against me were read out before all who knew me and strangers alike. These were the very people whose admiration I had won over the years. Now they sat in the courtroom as the prosecutor audaciously articulated my weaknesses, call them ‘wickednesses’ if you wish. I was not being charged with crimes against humanity. No! These were crimes mostly committed at the audience of one. The very thoughts that had ever crossed my mind were being laid bare before the world. All the atrocities I had committed in the cover of darkness were being brought to light. Every malicious thought, every murderous intent, thoughts of jealousy, lust, infidelity, hate, anger, bitterness. This was my dirty linen that the prosecutor was hanging at the town park. I was being charged for every careless word I have ever uttered; words that had inflicted cancerous wounds in the souls of people around me.

My very soul cried for him to stop reading the charges sheet but my mind wanted to know how much of the dirt under my carpet this guy had knowledge of. So I let him continue. Needless to say, if I shouted at any time, “Enough of this!” to make him stop, it would be rightly argued that I was pleading guilty to the charges already made against me. He was well acquainted with my past. It would appear that he was always there whenever I dropped a candy wrapper in the streets, eased out the excess water from my system on the neighbour’s fence, browsed a porn site, glanced at an X-rated magazine, scanned through a sensual movie. This guy was good at what he did; give the devil his due. 

Then the events of my life started trickling into my mind in very vivid details. Why had I lived so carelessly? I remembered every road sign I had ever ignored and every wrong turn I had ever taken convincing myself that I would turn back in time.  As far back as I could recollect my life had been a mess and there were numerous people who had tried to warn me but I was young and I felt I needed to enjoy life. Now as I stood in the dock with a charge sheet the size of the constitution being read out against me, I saw my life for what it really was. I wasn’t enjoying life; life was enjoying me. I was too egoistic to see this. Mercy is for the weak, I had often convinced myself. I was macho by all definitions of the word. I was unstoppable. Even now as I listened to the charges, which seemed suitable only for the devil’s mother-in-law, I did not feel any remorse. All that came to my mind was, “how could I have been so careless?”

See, the best thing about being charged in a court that has no jurisdiction to make arrests or sentence those it finds guilty is that you can laugh at the judge and walk away saying, “You are no better than me you hypocrite! I know you also have your own flaws over the law.” That is how I had always seen the church: a court without jurisdiction to arrest or sentence. The Sunday minister was no flawless to me. He was the constant nag in my life that reminded me of my shortcomings in what was no different from the pot calling the kettle black.

However, on this day I stood before an actual court with real jurisdiction to arrest and sentence. I had also been legally advised regarding the sentence if I was found guilty of ANY of the charges against me. The sentence would be death for any of the charges I was convicted for. I was in deep trouble. With a charge sheet that enormous there was no escaping justice. To make it worse, the prosecutor had done such an impeccable investigation into my life that I had no place to hide a dirty sock. I had already been remanded in Conscience Remand Prison for such a long time, I lost track of days. 

“How do you plead?” It was the question that stopped the trail of thoughts on my mind and brought me back to the courtroom. I wasn’t listening to the charges but it didn’t matter anyway. I had been through that charge sheet long enough to recite the contents blindfolded. I wished then that I could have matched the recitation skills in Sunday school. My answer to this question would determine everything about my eternity. If I pleaded not guilty I would be sent back to remand. The thought of howling demons in the remand facility and the foul smell of demonic filth sent shivers down my spine. Who was I kidding anyway? I had a date with the gallows for all my ‘carelessness’. If I pleaded guilty they would go ahead and prosecute me. No amount of pleading was going to lessen my sentence. The only thing that was certain, though, is that I could only postpone the sentence but not do away with it. Then one last thought came to my mind. I remembered something the state lawyer had mentioned during my legal consultation. “They will sentence you to death for eternity.” Then he went on to explain. “That is to say that you will die but every second of eternity. They will execute you in the goriest of executions and then after you die you will wake up again to be executed the same way for eternity.”

“How do you plead?” The same thunderous voice boomed over my thought. Time was in a mad rash against me. “Guilty!” I responded.

What followed is something I will never forget all my days. All my friends started walking out of the courtroom one by one. The confirmation had been given to their worst of fears. I had just confessed that I was all those things that the prosecutor was saying about me. I still remember the look in my wife’s eyes as she shouted, “How could you?” With that she also, of all people, stormed out of the courtroom. Everybody had deserted me at my hour of need with one question on their lips. “How could you?” This brought me to the gravity of the life I had lived. I knew I was no saint but in that particular moment it hit me like lightning what a terrible person I had been.

In a moment I was all alone facing the judge. Even the prosecutor had left! For the first time since my arrest I gathered the courage to look the judge in the face. It was then that I realized I couldn’t. The glory on His face was like that of the sun.  Glory radiated all around his seat and chamber. There was no way I could have looked at him and lived. I was horrified. This is the person to whom my eternity had been entrusted, not that it was worth much. A person whose face I couldn’t even gaze upon. I was doomed to destruction. As these thoughts flooded my mind he was reading out the sentence against me. The only word I grasped out of the entire sentence was “…Death!”

Then the doors of the courtroom swung open. Whoever had entered seemed to be surrounded by a divine sense of peace. He came and stood right before me facing the judge. He spoke with so much authority yet in such gentleness as no man had ever before. What he said mesmerized me, “I will take his place.” I couldn’t believe it. He was a total stranger to me yet something about him made me feel like I knew him. Then he turned to face me. His face was radiant with glory but I could make out certain features from it. His eyes blazed like fire yet they didn’t seem to burn me. They were on the flames of love. I had never seen so much love… It had never even crossed my mind that love could be seen. I had always thought it could only be felt. Now I could see it and I could feel it. He was the most loving person I had ever met yet he had only stood before me for less than a minute. Then I felt what seemed like arms around me. It was the warmest and most tender embrace I had ever felt in my life. It covered for all the love my father never gave me growing up. It made up for all the rejection the world had shown me. It was the love of a father, a brother, a friend, a spouse and God: all in one embrace.  Then he addressed me, “You are free!”  It was a moment of real dilemma for me. Here was someone telling me I was free to go yet all my instincts told me was to stay.

The move I made next was one that I have long lived to be ashamed of. I left the man who had bailed me out from eternal death and condemnation and ran after those who had left me. I walked away from the only man who had walked in when everyone else was walking out. I left the only man who never asked me, “How could you?” I walked away from the only man who had given me a look that says, “There is no crime you have committed that my love for you cannot pay for.” He was the only one who had cared enough to embrace me when the world was pissed off by my very existence. He is the only man who didn’t mind my stench and my filth but embraced me as I was. He was the true love of my life. He is the Prince of Peace. He is Jesus.

These are the events that took place in my mind the day the love of Jesus was preached to me. I pray that they will inspire you to make the right choice in your own life. Happy Easter.

MINISTER FELIX JOE.

If you missed any of the previous blog posts, click any of the links below.

Prayer that yields negative results
Am I robbing God or is the Church robbing me?
I will never get married!
Maasai greetings
The missing link
Build the weight of your faith
Your future is bright
Make your past disappear
Why you should not look back
The stir

WHO HAS YOUR FOCUS?

Who has your Focus?

So many Christians have lost focus in their lives. So much like Peter when Jesus went to them walking on the water (Mat14:28). One moment he was looking at Jesus, as his focus, and he was actually floating on water like Jesus. The next moment he shifted the focus from Jesus to the waves forgetting that the waves were there even the instance he slid his foot from the boat. As it turned out, with his focus on the danger rather than the saviour, Peter began perishing until he remembered where his focus ought to have been.

We think we are worshiping God while our focus is not on Him but on His nemesis; the devil. Attending corporate prayers over a period of not less than 7 years has helped me get a glimpse at how people pray. God already knows what we need even before we ask Him and thus prayer must not be reduced to petitioning God only. Petitions are only a small fraction of prayer (Philp 4:6). An illustration would suffice here. If you go visiting a friend with the motive of seeking something from them, you should be at least courteous enough to know how they have been. You don’t just knock on somebody’s door and ask, “Can I have a soft loan of twenty thousand?” You want to at least engage them in a chat to find out about their welfare. But so many of us knock on God’s door and jump straight away to our requests. Don’t forget that God is foremost pleased to see you. He is more interested in you than anything else. Spend time with Him.

Taking it deeper, I have realised that some Christians spend more time in their prayer talking more about the devil than God. Yes dear, you heard me right. A prayer time of 10 minutes( which is too much for average believers) is divided into 6 minutes asking for things, 3 minutes hitting on the devil and about a minute or less adoring God. I should like to mention that some will read this and ask, “What does adoring God entail?”

These are times when the devil is credited for more action and less talk and God is lowered, in the subconscious minds of His children, to more talk and less action. People see the devil at work more than they see God. They ask questions like, “where was God when the devil…?” We see the evil in the world and out rightly see the devil at work. When referring to the devil we say, “The devil has done A B C D.” however, when we are talking about the Almighty we say, “God says in His Word…” that way the devil is credited for action and God for speech.

Surprisingly, even the messages we preach on the altar of God are 70% or thereabout talking about what the devil has done and 30% about what God can do, mark you, it is ‘can do’ We know God can do but we hardly say that He has done it. We have very elaborate messages where we insist, “God can turn your tests into testimonies, He can turn your mourning into laughter, He can do so much and so forth...” But we read a different script for the fallen angel, “he is roaming about like a roaring lion, he has blinded…” Enough of this ignorance! God has done so much yet He is credited for so little.

We need to come to a time and place where we look unto Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith (Heb 12:2). It is only when we fix our eyes on God that we shall see Him at work. You can’t be staring at the darkness the entire time and hope to see what is happening in the light. I long for a time that we can spend hours in prayer not because we have so many needs but because we can’t get enough of our basic need: the holy trinity. The Bible says that we should “make our petitions known.”  This allows us to free our prayer time for important things like intimacy with God. Sometimes I spend hours just fellowshipping with the Spirit, the Son and the Father and only a few minutes asking for my needs and making intercession. Those are the prayers that I receive answer for with speed.

One of the weapons the devil will use against you is attention. The devil would have you focus entirely on him and forget about God. We, being ignorant of this, give him all the attention. We spend more time thinking of how he has afflicted us, talking about his doings and praying against him. When he sees this he smiles (am not sure if he can afford such a tender expression) or grins at his accomplishment; he has us where he wants us, thinking, talking and praying about him. Even as I write this article I feel like I am giving him more attention than befits him but I can’t watch him cage unsuspecting Christians anymore.

As I conclude, let me give this illustration. Whenever you face temptation, it always comes in stages. Stage one is when the devil knocks on your door: this is the best stage to overcome temptation. He either draws your eye, ear, or mind to a tempting thing.

Stage 2 is where you answer the door. You look, listen or allow your thoughts to be captured.

Stage 3 is when you start entertaining your visitor. You let your mind wander off and be captivated by what you saw, heard or the thought that entered your mind.

Stage 4 is when the ‘visitor’ starts destroying what is in your ‘house’ and you let him. He will destroy your self-control, your patience, and all your values before you wake up from the trance.

Stage 5 is guilt for having let him in.

You don’t fall into temptation because of what you saw or heard or the thought that crossed your mind, you fall because of paying attention. It is natural for people to knock on your door but it is foolishness to entertain destructive guests. You can’t stop a bird from flying over your head but you can certainly stop it from building a nest there. You better stop paying attention to the devil. The first thing the devil will do in order to trap a Christian is to have the Christian believe that he (the devil) can trap him. The devil can’t hurt those who don’t pay attention to him. Stop giving the devil so much credit.

So am I saying that you start pretending that the devil doesn’t exist? Certainly not! You must be aware of his tricks and you must resist them. Keep your focus on the saviour and not on the threat. The devil hates to be ignored and he loves to be entertained.

If you missed any of the previous blog posts, click any of the links below.

Prayer that yields negative results
Am I robbing God or is the Church robbing me?
I will never get married!
Maasai greetings
The missing link
Build the weight of your faith
Your future is bright
Make your past disappear
Why you should not look back
The stir

PRAYER THAT YIELDS NEGATIVE RESULTS.

Is it possible to pray for rain and get draught instead?
Is it possible to pray for healing and get death instead?
Is it possible to be praying for a promotion at work and you end up getting fired?
Most people read this and say, "No way!"
There are those; however, who have experienced it and these will not say anything until they find out what I have to say.
Whichever category you belong to, stay with me for some time and you will be amazed at what you unravel here.
I should state, as I start, that there are people who are gifted with coming up with new knowledge and I admire them. I don't have such a gift. What God has given me is the ability to look at things differently and tell you what you already know in a way that you have never looked at it. In plain English, this is called revelation. It is available to all who seek it out.
Revelation cannot be gotten on what you don't know already. When you read or hear something for the first time you get understanding or enlightenment. It is not until you come across it several times that you get a revelation. That answers why you read the Bible and don't seem to get the revelation.
Well, having said that, it is common knowledge that the things we don't see move the things we see. For instance, there are approximately 16 animal species whose body is transparent. Only in these animals do you get to see the brain and the heart, for those that possess any: which move living things.
God created living things in a very interesting way. For one, you can't see the systems that support life. Secondly, most living things have voluntary and involuntary muscles. This simply means that there are muscles you can move at will and some that you cannot move or stop. The muscles of the hands and legs are voluntary: you can move them whenever you wish (at least for most people). Those of the heart, on the other hand, are involuntary: you can't stop your heart for a moment. This shows you just how dependent we are on what we don't see and, to some extent, on what we don't understand.
You can't see the engine yet it moves the car. You hardly see the hinges yet they move the door. It is the unseen that moves what we see. Your spiritual life will move your physical life. Heaven moves earth.
The second argument is this: prayer is gaining access into the spiritual world in order to change the physical world.
Whenever you pray; the attainment of a result is dependent on your ability to gain access into the spiritual realms.
For prayer to yield it must move heaven or hell and preferably both. The prayer that moves hell aside and heaven to action will yield positive result, but there is a prayer that cripples heaven and hell takes advantage.
There are generally three kinds of prayers that are most likely to yield the opposite result.

1. The prayer of a sinner

"Proverbs 15:8 The sacrifice of the wicked [is] an abomination to the LORD, But the prayer of the upright [is] His delight."
All prayer must be done from a point of right standing with God. He is Holy and will only admit the holy before His presence. The writer of Hebrews tells us to enter through the blood. Heb 10:19. This has a connotation of sanctification at the entry point. If anyone had sinned against God they must repent before making Petitions.
God already said that any sacrifice a wicked man will make is an abomination before Him. It is most likely that this abomination will bring a curse rather than a blessing. Some will ask me, "How then will the prayer of repentance be accepted?" It is very simple because God sees the heart even before you open your mouth to pray. He can see the motive of your prayer before you even start to pray. Remember that when the prodigal son went back home, his father embraced and kissed him even before he opened his mouth.

2. The prayer with a loophole

The Bible says that the devil disguises as an angel of light.
"2 Corinthians 11:14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light."
He will listen to your prayer to poke holes into it. Woe to the man who leaves loopholes in his prayer.
What do I mean? Let me give you an example. Suppose I am praying for money and while walking, someone ahead of me drops money by mistake. Should I say that God has answered me or should I stop him and give him back what he lost by mistake?
So many times the devil will try to present a counterfeit miracle so that you accept it and reject the real one. Whenever you accept the devil's offer, he takes away what you would have received from God. It is a trade: the devil doesn't give gifts!
I have witnessed people fall into traps by making prayers with loopholes.
In one case, somebody was tired of the many conflicts in their family and prayed that there would be 'A CHANGE' in the family. They never said which kind of a change. In less than a year one of their parents died.
In yet another instance, a friend who had battled a recurring sickness finally gave up and said, "God, just do whatever you see fit." The following day, they collapsed and were admitted in hospital in a near-death experience.
Let me analyse the second example for you. This kind of prayer says, "I have done all that I could have done and now I don't think that I can hope anymore. I resign myself to whatever (good or bad) may happen to me." In fact, this person thought that they committed themselves to the hands of God but in essence they had taken themselves from the hand of God and surrendered willingly to 'fate'. As it turns out, there is someone always waiting for this to happen. As soon as you surrender to fate, the devil comes. Since no one can really define fate, he helps you with the definition!
Most often than not even the statement, "we leave it in the hands of God..." is just a coat on the "let's-leave-it-to-fate..." attitude. If you ever listen to a teacher say before an exam, "I have done my part and now it's upto the students...", you could judge from his tone whether he means it as an expression of confidence or as a disclaimer. One would expect him to finish, "... to make me proud " but very often, the unspoken end of this statement is usually, "... to make me hang my head in the shame." When statements like this are left hanging in a prayer, there is no telling how they will be finished. You better finish your statement lest the devil finishes them for you. I have so often told God, "I commit this matter into your hands..." but I like to finish it this way, "... because I am confident that you will prosper it."
Taking it deeper; the person praying this prayer had initially been within the fortified walls of God's protection even though they hadn't received the breakthrough. Uttering this statement makes this unseen wall to immediately collapse and then it becomes clear what was lurking just outside the fortress. The devil is referred to as the accuser of the brethren. As soon as you utter anything that suggests "God, has failed" he runs to God and starts the accusations. God can't say 'no' on behalf of someone who has already said 'yes' . In my opinion, you would rather remain quiet than utter reckless words in your pain and frustration.
All prayer must be done in faith because the Word of God says that WHATEVER is not of faith is a sin. Rom 14:23b. This means that a prayer can actually become sin if it is not made in faith. You also know that without faith it is IMPOSSIBLE to please God.
The opposite of faith is actually not doubt but fear. Never pray out of fear. Always pray in faith. If you pray for healing with the fear of death at the back of your mind, it weakens all your faith and the prayer becomes only a duty. Even if you were going to live, this prayer may most probably end up with a burial. Cast out fear for we have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear!
2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of POWER and of love and of a sound mind.
Prayer is an exercise of Power not fear.
Then there is the Prayer of ignorance.
In this prayer you pray without knowing whether it is the will of God to receive what you want or not.
Look at what Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus
"Ephesians 5:17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord [is.]"
He actually says that it is foolishness (or the lack of wisdom) to NOT know the will of God.
You need not be reminded of the scripture that says, "my people perish for lack of knowledge."
Before you create a loophole in your prayer saying, "if it is your will..." or "whatever your will is..." read the Bible and know what the will of God is.
For instance this verse can tell you that healing is the will of God.
"3 John 1:2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers."
If you analyse the life of Jesus, you will discover that He NEVER turned away anyone seeking healing. He never said, "come tomorrow..."  Healing is God's will for you and Now! It is the will of God that all may be saved. Don't ask Him to save your father, 'if it is His will.'
People who pray this prayer wish to portray humility but they portray ignorance.
Do not be conformed to the pattern of prayer that you found in your congregation...
"Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what [is] that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."
God wants you to know His will but the devil is riding on the fact that you don't. Because you don't know what the will of God is, when your miracle is stolen you will still say, "the will of God has been done" Far be it from you that you should fall victim to this folly.
Another classic is when your prayer is not specific. In this kind of prayer, the devil waits for the answer and hijacks it exchanging it with 'anything that could fit the description'. Don't just pray for a car, be specific. Don't just pray for children, go on and make declarations over their character and future.
Don't just pray for a job, be specific. God already said that He would give you the desires of your heart. Tell Him what that desire looks like in details. He also said that "if you ask for ANYTHING..." John 14:14, 1 John 5:14.. He won't say it's too much or too ambitious. Be specific!
The Bibles says that every good and perfect gift comes from God. So where do you suppose the devil worshippers get their wealth from? The devil is not a creator yet he rewards his worshippers with even babies! These are all hijacked from believers.
Of course, a successful hijack is an interplay of several factors which I can't cover comprehensively lin this post. In a nutshell, they include, nonspecific prayer, compromised life, failure to pursue the promise in warfare among others.


3. The prayer for evil.

If you are praying for evil to befall someone, then it must be within the limits of the Word of God. You must realise that God is not a contract killer for hire. Indeed the Bible says that the wicked will flourish... So if you are praying for them to collapse you may most likely  treat stomach ulcers over unanswered prayer. The Bible says to do good to those who do you evil. This is the way to attract God's wrath upon them. Solomon actually said that if you rejoice when your enemy falls, it may displease the Lord who will take away His wrath from him.  Prov 24:17-18.
On a number of occasions David prayed for God's vengeance. This you can do and ask God to avenge or vindicate you but do not be surprised if still your enemies proposer. The Bible tells us what lies ahead for the wicked.
Moving forward, you need to realise and acknowledge that God is not responsible for your suffering. In fact, I can assure you that He is doing all that He can (and He can do all things if you don't get in His way with doubt and unbelief) to get you out of the snare of the devil. If you are suffering, you need to honestly and objectively examine where you have created a loophole either in your lifestyle or speech. If you discover that indeed there is a loophole, take time to seal it up in Prayer. If you realise that you can't deal with the mess already created, seek a spiritual authority that you honour and engage them.
The prayer of sealing the loophole includes repentance for any blame apportioned to God, denouncing of words uttered, and renewing your faith in God.
After the seal then you want to reclaim what you lost in ignorance. Pray to God for restoration (of both your faith and what you lost) and then wage spiritual warfare.
I sincerely hope that this post has been of help to you. Please leave your comments below and copy the link below and send it to a friend.

http://ministerfelix.blogspot.in/2015/01/prayer-that-yields-negative-results.html?m=0