Tag: Thriving

By Oke Chinye

Read: 2 Corinthians 4:7-18

Meditation verse:

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4: 17).

Another lesson we get from the story of little Joe is that it may not always be in your best interest to follow the crowd or the path that is most familiar. Neither is it useful to always tow the path of least resistance. You need to learn to search the unlikely and unknown or even difficult places for the things you desire in life. For in so doing, you may discover unexpected treasures. 

Finally, the bad things that happen to you in life are not necessarily meant to defeat you but to strengthen you and prepare you for a greater glory. The pains of yesterday can become the gains of tomorrow. The pain of losing a dear brother built an inner resolve in that old man: a resolve that yielded a desired outcome. 

“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.  We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed— always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.  For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.  So then death is working in us, but life in you.

And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak, knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. Therefore, we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal” – 2 Corinthians 4:7-18.

IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

or call +2348155525555

For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

By Oke Chinye

Read: 2 Corinthians 4:7-18

Meditation verse:

“In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world” (John 16:33b MSG).

The story is told of a little boy Joe, who disappeared whilst staying with his grandmother in a rural community. He had been playing outside his home and suddenly was nowhere to be found. A search party was sent out to look for him, but the search went on for hours without yielding any result. An elderly man in the community decided to join in the search. His son tried to discourage him, as he had just had a surgery for a heart bypass. Besides, he reasoned that there were already so many people looking for the boy. What difference would an old man who probably would not walk fast make? But the old man refused to be dissuaded, so his son decided to go with him. They felt it was better to go their own way since joining the crowd may slow them down. They also wanted to focus on the unlikely places that would be overlooked by the crowd.

After a few hours of walking, they came across a thick forest, fenced off with barbed wires. The son argued that little Joe would never have wandered this far, let alone gone through the wired fence. But again, the old man insisted that it was the way to go, he entered the forest, leaving his son behind. The old man had suffered a painful loss as a little boy. He had lost his little brother in a car crash and had carried the guilt of not being able to save his brother, for several years. As he trudged along the thick bush, images of his little brother flashed across his mind, and he just kept going. After what seemed like ages, he saw a dog, and then, he saw little Joe frightened and huddled in a corner. He picked him up, held him tightly in his arms and began making his way back to the crowd. The joy in his face could not be mistaken.

There are several lessons to learn from little Joe’s story.

Firstly, just as little Joe disappeared without any warning, life can happen at any time. You have very little control over certain occurrences in your life. Jesus said: “In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world”. You must trust God and keep striving to get ahead.

IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

or call +2348155525555

For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.