ojaysjoel blog

“Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.” Matthew 5:13 (KJV) Devotion: Christians are the salt of the earth. Beloved, God has deposited a lot of good virtues in you because of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 9:54–56). Wherever you find yourself, God expects you to make a difference in the lives of people. Salt brings out the true taste and sweetness of food; it is used to preserve food and other substances, and it can also be used to heal. Dear beloved, those who come into contact with you should taste the good virtues in you and give glory to God (Galatians 5:22–23). Preserve lives by sharing the gospel with the unsaved so that they can be saved. Be an ambassador of healing the broken-hearted with the gospel.    When you are at a place and something is going wrong, don’t wait for somebody to fix it. Ask for grace from...

Proverbs 12:4  A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband: but she that maketh ashamed is as rottenness in his bones.  Devotion : I got this story from whatsapp message, I pray it will bless your family and your mission work in Jesus name.  Richard said_ :  My wife is a Christian.  She lets me live my life. She doesn’t talk to me about anything biblical. She doesn’t curse me. She respects me as her husband and always asks for permission when going to church, to use the car and lot things. She keeps washing my clothes. She has never thrown away any beer in the fridge because she is a Christian.  She has never refused me sex because I am drunk. That woman is a Christian.” His friends stopped laughing. “You really mean this?” Daniel asked, “I think she claims she is Christian because you haven’t really tested her faith. She is pretending.” “No. No. No. She doesn’t pretend. She just lives the life of a Christian,” Richard defended. “What if we really test her f...

*Finnish blogger shocked Facebook when he posted this article:*                Are you asking about the results of Russia's "aggressions"?  They are as follows: half of Europe and part of Asia received their statehood from the hands of this particular state.  Let's remember who it is:            - Finland in 1802 and 1918 (until 1802 it never had its own state).            - Latvia in 1918 (until 1918 it never had its own state).            - Estonia in 1918 (until 1918 it never had its own state).            - Lithuania restored statehood in 1918 also thanks to Russia.            - Poland restored the state with the help of Russia twice, in 1918 and 1944.  The division of Poland between the USSR and Germany is only a short period!            - Romania was...

The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe.  Proverbs 29:25 ESV Devotion : The verse above clearly states the obvious that a man is not to be feared/trusted. The reason is that it leads to a dead end, a failure, unfulfilled promise, a broadcast that will lead to a snare.  The one who trusts a man lacks wisdom because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and is blessed Jeremiah 17:7. So whoever lacks wisdom can easily be ensnared by lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes and of money. The pursuit of these easily leads to sinful act which means spiritual death.  In the physical, a story is told of a person who feared his wife so much that he must meet her unending financial demands. This made him steal from his office and he was caught and dismissed. While serving jail term the woman married another person.  In conclusion, Eccl 12:13, I urge you to fear God  rather than man. Fear of God is obedience to God and it brings life. Hall...

And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.  Acts 11:26. Devotion : The followers of Christ were first called Christian in Antioch because they lived Holy life, preached like Christ and wrought wonders like Christ.    In Matt 5:44 Jesus commanded His followers of which you and I are members to “......, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;”   There was a skit I watched on TV  recently of a lady quarrelling with a commercial bicycle rider over a little matter. She swore at him, made a lot of noise. The next day after Sunday service the same lady went out to evangelise, unfortunately she met the same bicycle rider in an accident and ministered to him. Alas the rider said he preferred...

Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor. Proverbs 21:21 ESV Devotion: The verse above makes us know that righteousness will not come freely, it needs to be pursed, worked for even when we have given our lives to Christ. We need to get the Holy Spirit resident in us then we begin to bear the fruits of the spirit Gal.5:22.  Please note that of the fruits of the spirit "is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness" When we bear these fruits then we have life, honour and righteousness before God and man. This gives us assurance of our salvation which I believe you and I should labour to make it sure.  I therefore implore you not only to give your life to Christ but actively pursue righteousness through the Holy Spirit to make your salvation sure. Hallelujah! Dear reader do you have concerns, share it with us.     -JO.

“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.  Luke 16:10 ESV. Devotion : Honesty is an attribute that is lacking in the world today. When you ask someone to purchase  something it is either a lesser quality is purchased or smaller quantity is purchased so that the the remaining amount of money is used for their personal needs.  Lack of honesty is the root of disobedience to a loving God. If you are honest with God you will obey him when Jesus says "l ove the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind;  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself"  Matthew 22:37, 39.   If  you love someone you will be honest with the person. Gossips,  backbiting, lack of truthfulness, stealing etc all point to dishonesty ie disobedience to the laws of God.  Are you  battling with dishonesty in your place o...

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.  John 15:5 ESV Devotion : I noticed one important factor from observation of mango trees. Any year it bears much fruit it loses some branches with the immature fruits on it. The branch quickly dries off and the fruits on it perish.     There are Christians like that who are gifted and could have bore fruits for God but they fall by the wayside and fade away. They are young pastors, evangelists who prematurely branch out of the churches to establish their own churches because they feel they were the source of financial gains of the church. The leave the Vine to establish their church where they planned to become CEO/General Overseer. Alas they fade away.  Dear reader stay where you are and bear fruit within the Vine there.  Do you have any concerns? Please let us know.    By JO. 

“Ask,   and it will be given to you;   seek, and you will find;   knock, and it will be opened to you.  Matthew 7:7  And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:19 ESV Devotion: In the New Testament, Jesus Christ made a new covenant with His blood for everyone who will believe in Him. A covenant is simply an agreement or promise between parties—with a seal of blood and invocation of the power of a deity. Jesus Christ sealed this covenant with His own blood; hence He became the embodiment of that covenant (Matthew 26:28). He will not break this covenant and God is always watching to fulfill His promises to everyone who will believe in Jesus Christ and make Him Lord and Savior. Dear beloved, if you are born again, then don’t become worried over anything (Philippians 4:6). You have a covenant with Jesus Christ, Who has promised to provide for you, protect you, and make sure you beco...

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Galatians 5:22" Devotion : When a tree bears fruit, other living things such as animals, birds, and human beings are the ones that enjoy it most.      Likewise, as Christians, the fruit we bear is to be enjoyed by others so they may give glory to God. We live in the presence of God as Christians and, as such, should allow the Holy Spirit to live His life in us.    Dear reader, if you allow the Word of God to work in you, you will never provoke people, let alone envy them.   Share your comments here!

These also shall be unclean unto you among the creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise after his kind, and the ferret, and the CHAMELEON and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole.  Leviticus 11:29‭-‬30 KJV DEVOTION:  A spiritual chameleon is a person who pretends to be something they are not. A spiritual chameleon changes their color to present the image of what they think you want to see. You will find them in any church, ministry, or singles group. There are many types of them in the church of God today, the link between the different types of spiritual chameleon is exploitation for personal gain.  The fellowship chameleon - has  little or no true desire for a deeper spiritual relationship.  He's a pretender,  he cheats his clients and workers but shows piety before the pastor.  The leadership chameleon likes being at the forefront, he uses his oratory and administrative gift to manipulate the people a...

But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one. 2 Thessalonians 3:3 ESV Devotion: Mariam Webster's dictionary defines FAITHFUL as LOYAL, CONSCIENTIOUS and BINDING. If we check the bible very well we will note all the three attributes of God we carried out in the lives of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and others. God's faithfulness to Abraham was fulfilled when Isaac was born. A great nation was established from the son of Isaac in person of Jacob. Today you and me are by faith Abraham's children. You become His child once you give your life to Christ. Are you faithful to God? He will establish you as He promised. The only person who can delay or stop the promise is you - if you continue to live in sin, refuse to take the necessary step of faith. What are you waiting for, he who promised is waiting for you to take the step, take it now He will establish you. Hallelujah! Share your testimony or concerns with us and God will establish...

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. James 1:22‭-‬24 ESV Devotion: As medical students we used to watch surgical procedures on the screen and we believed we could carry out the surgery. Then one day we were asked to try our hands on the cadaver, it was then we realized that it was not easy as we thought. We needed many years of practice to be perfect.  Dear reader, you have been reading these write ups, listening to the preachers weekly or even more frequently. Have you ever tried to put what you heard into practice? Do you know that you can only become like Jesus by doing what He did which is what you read from bible or heard from preachers.   In the kindergarten we used to sing ... I want to be like Jesus in gentleness, faithfulness an...

Hebrews 13:15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. Devotion : God inhabits the praises of His people,  are you one of  His people?  If yes you need to offer your sacrifice of praise to God regularly not only when things go your way.  In tribulation  Paul and Silas sang praises of God and their shackles were loosed. Acts 16:25-26  And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.  And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. Dear reader,  are you in bondage, is your spirit low, is your business thriving,  whatever the situation sing praises to the Almighty God.  Sing along with me :   1. To God be the glory, great things He hath done,     So loved He the world ...

"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. Romans 8:28" Devotion : Sometimes, as God's children, we go through tough situations. These tough situations work together to strengthen our faith. Whatever happens to you, dear reader, it will definitely work for your good.   In the Bible, Job went through all the hardships you could think of but in the end they worked together for his good. It is only Christians that have this assurance that the good and bad things they suffer in life work together for their good.  This is simply because it is God who is working behind the scenes to enhance the life of His loved ones. Solomon confirmed this in proverbs 16:9 "A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps" Therefore, dear reader when you plan a project or something always say 'if God wills it' or simply commit it to God.  Do you have any concern send it to...

"Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.  Mark 11:24" Devotion : The Christian cannot do without prayer as long as he has desires. Any time we decide to pray, we should believe that God is able to give it to us and we shall have it. If we entertain doubt, we cannot receive what we pray for.  The number one enemy of our prayer is doubt; we must not entertain it. This is why James characterizes a doubter as a wave of the sea James 1:6-8. Dear reader, do you receive whatever you pray for? Stop doubting!  Share your story with other readers!

O LORD , thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.  Isaiah 25:1 KJV Devotion : The writer in the verse above says of the reasons he will praise God. If we check ourselves and think deep we will discover many reasons to praise God. Unfortunately many of us are just eager to ask God for one thing or another.   The gift of life is enough reason to praise God, and when the life is abundant we have more than enough reason.   A driver told a story of how his master started crying when he saw the driver eating roasted plantain. Why? The man was very rich but because of Diabetes he must follow a strict diet and here's the poor driver eating whatever he wants.  Dear reader let's make a habit of praising God always no matter the situation, let's remember those in the mortuary or grave cannot praise His Holy name. Hallelujah, amen.  Share your testimony with us....

From CAC Gospel Hymn Book  1. When we walk with the lord In the light of his word What a glory He sheds on our way! While we do His good will, He abides with us still, And with all who will trust and obey CHORUS : Trust and obey, for there's no other way To be happy in Jesus, But to trust and obey 2. Not a shadow can rise, Not a cloud in the skies, But His smile quickly drives it away; Not a doubt nor a fear Not a sigh nor a tear, Can abide while we trust and obey. 3. Not a burden we bear, Not a sorrow we share But our toil he doth richly repay; Not a grief nor a loss, Not a frown nor a cross, But is blest if we trust and obey. 4. But we never can prove The delights of His love Until all on the alter we lay; For the favour He shows, And the joy he bestows, Are for them who will trust and obey. 5. Then in fellowship sweet We will sit at His feet, Or we'll walk by His side in the way; What He says we will do Where He sen...

Acts 4:20  For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. Devotion : Many people are out there moaning,  saying silently that God did not answer their prayers while in reality the prayers had been answered many years back. Such people expect miracles they pray till their sweat is like blood. Jesus Christ prayed in similar situation but he confronted the situation Matt 26:39-46.    Are you  moaning this morning,  thinking God will come down to  do it for you? Dear reader there things God expects you to do by yourself. Do you want a good job?  Get educated and get top rated certificate, do you want to start a business wake up  and take the very first steps - get knowledge about the business,  do your market survey and write your proposal.   Do not die with your fantastic ideas, bring your idea to fruition, do not be afraid of failure if you don't fail you have not learnt a lesson.  Peter and other disciples...

Devotion: Good morning dear readers,  from the verse above Jesus  explains to us the meaning of persecution  in contrast to  punishment for misdeed. Persecution is when you're made to suffer because of your belief in Jesus Christ, living right. It is  common place to be denied promotion,  be posted to remote countryside because of one's belief especially in our society.  I once lived in a society where I cannot openly practice my religion but I  can suffer  the noise of other religious practice. If a thief is caught and sentenced he should not say he was persecuted. When you suffer hardship  for your sin do not count it as persecution but if you  prevent corruption in the office or anywhere  and you're made to suffer, rejoice because  you have reward. If your  family  forsake you because of your righteous stand against any sinful act,  rejoice for you're blessed.  Dear reader,  do you h...

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.  Hebrews 4:12 KJV Devotion: Do you want to live a happy, active and successful Life? Then read the Bible,  understand what it says  and apply it to  your life.  In psalm 119 :15-16  I will meditate in thy precepts, And have respect unto thy ways.  I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word. Dear reader do you have  concerns or do you find it difficult to  read the  Bible alone? Please find a Bible teaching church near you.  Share your testimony with us. 

"Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Deuteronomy 31:6" Devotion : Moses encouraged the Israelites to be strong and courageous because God was with them and would lead them to the promised land. God reiterated this in Joshua 1:9 to give the Israelites the confidence to move forward.   Fear has the tendency to create doubt in our minds to keep us from pursuing our vision. The solution is to have faith in God and in His Word, and move forward.    Remember the master KEY- prayer, once you have prayed and received the signal from God make the move. Do you want to start a new business, move to another city, make the move, do not be afraid for God will not leave you nor forsake you. In fact He will assist you and lift you up with His righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10.  Dear reader, have you ever felt forsaken? Share the story with other learners! ed...

The liberal soul shall be made fat: And he that watereth shall be watered also himself. Proverbs 11:25 KJV Devotion: In Luke 6:38 the bible says "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again" Despite this counsel some people still believe that they need to pray before they are blessed. Of course prayer is good but the key is "GIVE" so use the key rather prayerfully than just praying. It also depends on how you give eg if you give with motive to receive you have only saved in a "human bank" but if you give to someone who cannot repay you then you have given. That's why the bible says in Ecclesiastes 11:1 "Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days" The meaning of this is give to where you cannot receive.  Another criteria is give to hurt you not g...

He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: But a companion of fools shall be destroyed. Proverbs 13:20 KJV Devotion: A Yoruba proverb says "A sheep that lives with dogs will eat excrement" In other words "show me your Friend and I will know who you are" Dear reader who do you associate with? If you associate with farmers you start reasoning like them after sometime even though you're a doctor or an engineer. I did reason like farmers and hunters some years back because I lived among them for 18 years. The only stories I had was how to cultivate cassava, maize and how to set traps. Thank God I left the place. Who are your friends? Does your association with them lift you up, any improvement in your physical life, in your finances and in your spiritual life?  Dear reader make a sober reflection, are you living in obedience or far from it. You may need to dissociate yourself from that group of friends if you cannot influence them to live for Christ. What are your...

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Isaiah 26:3" Devotion : The mind is an intangible part of the human soul: the mind has the ability to control the human spirit and body. Wherever the mind goes, the body follows: our mindset can either free us or keep us in bondage.   A mind that stays with God is a mind that meditates on the Word of God day and night. Such a person will enjoy peace and prosperity, Psalms 1:3.  Dear reader, what do you meditate on? Share your comments with other readers!

and he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Matthew 5:2 KJV Devotion: Jesus at the start of His ministry taught His followers because He knew the importance of knowledge. Jesus did not just send out the disciples until He was satisfied that they are knowledgeable enough. Read Matt chapters 5-7.   Teaching leads to understanding and both combined gives wisdom. When taught of God we have godly wisdom to navigate the complex world we live in without sinning.     Jesus was like a father to the disciples just like you're a parent to someone. Do you teach your children the word of God? Do you want to have rest in your old age, do you want Godly children then teach your children right from the time of conception.     Prayer is good but without knowledge of the word of God may not be effective enough. Unknowledgeable Christian will easily be deceived by the devil remember Eva was deceived (Gen 3: 1- end) because she didn't have complete understanding of ...

“And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” Genesis 28:15 (KJV)    Devotion: Beloved, sometimes the pressures of life are so strong that many thoughts flash through your mind. Some of these thoughts are that God has totally forgotten about us; that we will fail and cannot make it (Psalms 9:18). All these thoughts are coming from demons, who want us to lose our hope and trust in God.    Meditate on the opening scripture and be a partaker of the promise God made to Jacob. You are a seed of Abraham and every promise made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob also belongs to you (Galatians 3:29).   Dear beloved, God is with you in your difficult situation (Isaiah 43:2). Just as He was with Jacob, bringing him again to the land of Bethel, God will make sure He brings you to your destination. Continue to live in obe...

"Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:39" Devotion : As a true child of God filled with the Holy Spirit, it is absolutely impossible to be separated from the love of God. God's love goes beyond distance, space, and created beings. It is so strong that only Jesus Christ understands it and it is founded in Him. The present age Christian need to watch out for the trick of the devil, let's remember that Peter almost fell by the way Matt 26:75, but Jesus had prayed for him and even then had to restore him after the resurrection John 21:17.  Let us not give room to the deceit of the devil to turn against God in doubt. Kindly share your comments with us! edited by JO.