Pastor Taiwo Odukoya @ Sunday Service
Pastor Taiwo Odukoya urged the congregation at the August 4 Sunday service to pray without ceasing and sing songs of praise to God, noting that these are the keys to a victorious Christian life. Dwelling on James 5:13-20, he said, “Counting everything as joy will take you through the pathway of patience and endurance. And in overwhelming situations, prayers should be made to God for wisdom.”
He added that praying in faith is what God requires and not just praying. According to him, what many Christians call prayer is actually grumbling and complaining. This, he said, will not yield any result or response from God. In his words, “Doubting Christians will not receive anything from God. It is not enough to have faith, the product of faith must be seen.”
He then urged believers to let the Word of God dwell richly in their hearts and walk in the instructions therein so that it would be easy to sing and pray always, thus living a life of victory. “The precious blood of Jesus Christ has imputed to you His righteousness and eternal life with God. You are in right standing with Him, so your prayers ought to be much more effective,” he said.
“WHOSE SLAVE ARE YOU?”
Pastor Kayode Ebenezer @Thursday Showers
Whose slave are you? Are you a slave to material pursuit, self-righteousness or to your lusts? Why are you serving God? Is it because of what you can get from him, or is it because you want to make heaven? These were some of the posers thrown by Pastor Kayode Ebenezer to the worshippers at the first Thursday Showers in the month of August which held on the first day of the month.
Anchoring his exhortation on 2 Peter 2:17-20, he said that human beings seem to have been overtaken in the rat race of becoming better than others around them, noting that this has caused them to fall victim of various temptations and running mostly in the wrong direction in order to fulfill their self-made standards and targets. “Man is a slave to whatever has mastered him. It is not bad to work hard but doing things right should be priority,” he said.
Using Judas Iscariot (John 12:6), Job (Job 1) and Samson (Judges 16:1) as illustrations, Pastor Kayode said that a number of believers are slaves to materials things, inordinate desires, self-righteousness and lust. In his words, “Be careful not to be a slave to self-righteousness. Don’t fall into the error of worshipping God because of what you want. He deserves all your worship and heart, even if you don’t get anything from him. You have an opportunity not only to be saved but to be the reason for many others to be saved too. So, use that opportunity well.”
He then urged them to put their priorities right by seeking the Lord first with their whole heart, and be committed to the kingdom of God so as not to be slaves to others and lose it all in the end.
The full messages are available on CDs and DVDs at The Fountain of Life Church Digital Media Store.
