Go to the ant, sluggard; consider her ways and be wise, 7 Who having no guide, overseer, or ruler, 8 Provides her food in the summer and gathers her food in the harvest. [Proverbs 6:6–8AFV]

How strange it must be for the Bible to tell us to go and learn from an ant. These tiny and actually quite amazing creatures perform feats that one would think only humans should be able to do.

These verses explain to us that the little ant knows the importance of times and seasons. It does not need a leader; it gathers food in the summer so that in the winter it would not perish. …

“You see, every child of God overcomes the world, for our faith is the victorious power that triumphs over the world.” ‭‭1 John‬ ‭5:4‬ ‭TPT‬‬

If we want to be fruitful and live victoriously this year, one firm foundation we must build on is the foundation of faith. It is by faith that we please God and in a sense ‘dare’ God to do the impossible; those things that our human wisdom and strength cannot accomplish.

Scripture tells us that the just shall live by faith, and we walk by faith and not by sight. Think about it from our very salvation to planning for the next day as we retire to bed are all acts of faith. Even our obedience to God and acts of service are birthed out of faith. This faith we speak of as believers is not a positive outlook to life or wishful thinking. …

For I know the purposes which I am purposing for you,’ says the LORD; ‘purposes of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. [Jeremiah 29:11 AFV]

It is one thing to have or know our purpose and another to be aware that God is the one who planned it. The question we should ask ourselves is, why should one pursue purpose? God planned before time for us to do well in life by trusting His plans. God wants us to fulfil our purpose — His purpose for us — excellently. …

And it came to pass, the Word of the LORD came to me, saying, 5 “Before I formed you in the belly I knew you; and before you came forth out of the womb I consecrated you, and I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” [Jeremiah 1:4–5 AFV]

Purpose is a gift from God to humanity. The need to pursue purpose is vital because it is generated directly from God. Isn’t it interesting that some living things like trees, birds, water bodies continue faithfully to fulfil purpose even after the fall of man? …

But you don’t have a clue what tomorrow may bring. For your fleeting life is but a warm breath of air that is visible in the cold only for a moment and then vanishes! [James 4:14 TPT]

Being a youth sometimes comes with the feeling of being invincible. We live our lives as if it belongs to us. We want to do what we want first and foremost, and then treat the things of God as a secondary matter. But the word of God tells us to remember our Creator in the days of our youth.

These are the times when we should be doing all we can for God; using our gifts, coming early to clean the hall used for service and helping out with planning, among others. Anything we can do to help in service to God, we must do! …

“Intelligent people are always ready to learn. Their ears are open for knowledge.” [Proverbs 18:15 NLT]

The need and significance of knowledge, when it’s channelled the right way is clearly evident in our lives. There are countless of articles about discoveries made to make the standard of humanity better. Our opening scripture also offers us reason to reflect on the measuring of intelligence based on academic performance only. This is not to say that it is unnecessary to strive to do well academically.

Pastor Roderick once shared an account of one of his times in God’s presence. He spoke of how the Holy Spirit brought his attention to the fact that we essentially go to school to acquire the spirit of learning. This means that it is not about the knowledge we receive, but rather, the character to go after knowledge that matters. The emphasis here is we must develop an attitude of learning always for our own good as well as others. …

The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful [Matthew 13:22 NIV].

One day, Jesus in communicating the power of the Word of God in a person’s life, used “the parable of the sower.” He did that to relate the role a person’s heart plays in the efficacy of God’s word in a person’s life. Some of the seeds sowed fell on thorny ground. …

“Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.” ‭‭[Psalms‬ ‭32:2‬ ‭NIV‬‬]

The guilt of sin is a very heavy burden God never intended for us to carry. For that reason, He sent Jesus Christ; His only begotten Son, to die as an atonement for our sins. The feeling of guilt stands between our intimacy with God and takes away the joy of fellowship with Him. A guilty man cannot receive God’s best because his faith has been imprisoned by guilt.

As believers, if we acknowledge that the price of our sins has been paid in full, why do we continue to brood over our sins? Perhaps we perceive God’s forgiveness to be more ‘complex’ than it really is, or our sins too filthy to be washed clean by the Lamb’s blood. …