By Funmi Komolafe

Brethren, it’s   a season of celebration.  Finally, December is here.  You and I are alive.  We have enough reasons to thank God for his goodness to us.

At a time like this, the words of our Lord Jesus in John 14  vs. 1 ( KJV)  should be our watchword.

It states: “ Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me”.

Brethren, perhaps your heart has been troubled over some issues especially what you desire to have but still lack.

For many of us, December is the time to look back and ask, “ What have I achieved?”

We often fail to appreciate the goodness of God in your lives.

From January to December, you paid nothing for the air that you breath in and out daily.   For 11 months, you went out and returned home safely. One can go on and on.

A popular song says Count your blessings, name them one by one and it would surprise you what the Lord has done”.

People may mock you because of what you lack but do your appreciate yourself for who you are and what the Lord has done for you?

Brethren, you and I are not alive for nothing.  God has a purpose for our lives and that purpose would be fulfilled in Jesus name.

This isn’t the time for faith to be shaken. It is the time to demonstrate your faith in the Lord.

If you haven’t been calling the name JESUS, it is time to do so regularly.  

When you do so, you radiate joy; it confirms that you enjoy the peace of the Lord.    The name JESUS calms you down.  It subdues your worries and lifts up your faith.

Brethren, it is the time to radiate the joy of the Lord in you.

For the word of God tells us in 1st John 4 vs. 4: “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them:  because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world”

Our Lord Jesus gave us an assurance in John 14 vs. 13&14: “ And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If ye ask anything in my name, I will do it”.

Brethren, this is a confirmation that God does not want his children to be in pains, lack or any form of sorrow.

It’s up to you to reject what you don’t want in life and claim your heart’s desire that is in line with the word of God.

There is however a condition, in verse 15 of the same chapter. “ If ye love me, keep my commandments”.

Are you ready to keep his commandments?   No Pastor can do this on your behalf.   It is your decision to keep or not to keep the Lord’s commandments.

Brethren, this is the time to live like Christ. It is the time to show mercy, love to others.

This is the time for you to radiate love.

The Holy Bible tells us in Matthew 5 vs. 7: “ Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy”.

Show mercy to as many as people as you can afford to.

It is time to remember orphans, widows, the disabled, the less privileged, etc.  It is season to give out to your Pastors if you haven’t been doing so.

By showing mercy to others, you are simply making an investment that could yield returns beyond your imagination.

Let’s reflect on the ministry of our Lord Jesus. He never   shunned anyone that cried to him for mercy.

We have some lesson to learn from the encounter of blind Bartimaeus.

Mark 10 vs.46-52 is our reference: “ And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.

And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.

And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.

And he casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.

And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.

And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole.

And immediately, he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way”.

Brethren, perhaps, like blind Bartimaeus people have been using the reproach in your life to describe you.  Ignore them. 

Act like blind Bartimaeus.   When people asked him to keep quite, he cried the more.

You too should cry more to Jesus for mercy.

As the Lord stood still for blind Bartimaeus, your cry for mercy this season will attract the immediate attention n of the Lord in Jesus name.

Year 2022 is still some 27 days to go.  The Lord can do a lot for you within that time that seems so short.

I’ll   share with you the testimony of a lady narrated by the General overseer of Laughter Foundation International Ministry, Pastor Moses Bengal Oslo.

A childless couple was invited to the church after the doctors had told her that she wasn’t producing eggs that could make her have babies.

She got the doctor’s verdict but insisted that the Lord that created her could give her eggs. 

Fertility doctors   advised her to use donor eggs but she insisted that God is able to give her eggs.

The lady then decided to give a sacrificial offering.   She gave an amount in seven figures.

Her husband rebuked her with a warning that he wouldn’t bail her out if she should run into financial difficulties.

After the sacrificial offering, the doctors called her to come and prepare for IVF and she was tested for eggs.

To the surprise of the doctors, they found in her not just eggs but quality eggs, the type that could be found in a teenager.

So with prayers backing her, she went for IVF and the woman who had no eggs to produce a baby gave birth to a set of twins, two boys.

Brothers and Sisters, this testimony should confirm to you that your season of laughter is here if only you walk in the way of the Lord.

Brethren, this is the month that we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Jesus brought joy to the world.  It means for you, the days of the end of the challenge that has made you a subject of mockery are limited. Why should you have mercy on the less privilege or better put why should you show love to them?

The answer is found in 1st John 4 vs.7&8: “ Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.

He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love”.

 We are also told in verses 11&12: “ Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us”.

Brethren, make up your mind to show mercy and the God of mercy will visit you and wipe away your tears in Jesus name.

By the grace of God this year will end to your benefit.

As we count down to Christmas and the New Year, you and I would not be missing in Jesus name.

Shalom!