Are You A Proverbs 31 Man?

Happy Sunday Readers and Followers,

I would like to bring your attention to a new blog that I am following. I would like you to follow it as well. The link is below.

http://gracelifter.weebly.com/grace-lifter/the-proverbs-31-man

There's a post on the blog about being a Proverbs 31 man, although I have a better understanding of the role of a man, particularly Christian men. The below post captured my thought very well. I will recommend Dr Myles Munroe's book- Understanding the purpose and power of men for men and women to read so as to increase your knowledge of this topic and above all, the Bible. The Bible covers everything.

Here is the Post:

Ever wondered if all men qualified to be with the ‘Virtuous Woman’ described in Proverbs 31? This is time to think about it. Who exactly is the Proverbs 31 man?  The Proverbs 31 man is a King; a man of great influence, power and importance.  A man whose priority is the Kingdom he oversees.

His mother, who knew what he would become, constantly spoke wise words of instructions. He paid so much attention to her words that it stuck with him for life and became his personal guide with women and royal duties. The Bible calls believers ‘Kings’ and ‘Priests’ (Revelations 1:6). We are overseers of God’s kingdom here on earth. Before I go further, let me ask you these question: Are you a King?! Do you walk worthy of this calling? Are you born again? How much of your time, money and resources are spent for the Kingdom? If your answers are negative, why do you deserve the ‘Virtuous Woman’? Why do you want to be treated like a King? 

3 Give not your strength to [loose] women, nor your ways to those who and that which ruin and destroy kings.
4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to desire strong drink,(Proverbs 31:3-4 AMP)

I believe these words are clear enough. As a young man, where and who does your strength go to? How protective are you of God’s Kingdom? As a married man, are you faithful to your wife? Who are your friends? Are they on the path of life or on the path of destruction? This wise mother taught her son not to drink wine or desire strong drink because it could make him forget the laws in the Kingdom, pervert justice or abuse the decrees in the Kingdom. As believers, we have a far greater alternative to these things – The Holy Spirit. The bible says in Ephesians 5:18 that instead of being drunk with wine let the Holy Spirit fill you continually. 

As a Christian brother (young, single or married), God’s laws encompasses every issue and you have the Holy Spirit to expound any grey areas. The wisdom to handle everything that pertains to you is through Him as well. God’s wisdom is first of all pure (James 3:17). It is not the wisdom of fables, customs, wise sayings, tales or traditions from any village, tribe or ethnic group. You need to soak up God’s word to the point where it guides what to do and say per time. Be bold! Stand up for righteousness and judge rightly. The things around you must not dictate how you operate. God’s word must be your standard at all times. It was after the King’s mother gave these instructions (refer to verses 5-9) that she went ahead to ask in Verse 10 (AMP): “A capable, intelligent, and [b]virtuous woman –WHO IS HE WHO CAN FIND HER? She is far more precious than jewels and her value is far above rubies or pearls.” 

In conclusion, in order to find and recognize the Virtuous woman, you must be somebody of worth yourself: You must be a King! It takes a man of worth to recognize the value in any woman. She may be right before you yet you can never know her worth. If you do not meet up with the standard of being king yourself, you don’t qualify to seek or find her. God is calling you up to higher grounds. Take up this challenge, allow God work through you and in you, and evolve to be THE KING. Let the King in you arise!

Enjoy your Sunday!

 Remember to visit the new blog that I'm following and supporting (gracelifter.weebly.com).

-Myss Lafunky

Christians and Excuses

Hi Readers & Followers,

Thank God It's Friday!
 

How is your week going? Hope it hasn't been too stressful.

This week's post was inspired by a friend of mine, she's a regular reader and writer on my blog. We had a discussion about giving excuses and the role of Christians.

In the Bible, Luke 14:15-24, Jesus told a parable of the Great Feast, also known as the Parable of the Banquet.

Jesus was asked by one of the guests sitting at the table that, how happy are those who will sit down at the feast in the Kingdom of God!

Jesus said to the guest, there was once a man who was giving a great feast to which he invited many people.  When it was time for the feast, he sent his servant to tell his guest, 'Come, everything is ready!

But they all began, one after another, to make excuses. 

The first one told the servant, 'I have bought a field and must go and look at it; please accept my apologies.

Another one said, I have just gotten married, and for that reason I cannot come.  The servant went back and told all this to his master. The master was furious and said to his servant, "Hurry out to the streets and alleys of the town, and bring back the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.

Soon the servant said, Your order has been carried out, sir, but there is time for more. So the master said to the servant, 'Go out to the country roads and lanes and make people come in, so that my house will be full.

Jesus told them that, I tell you that none of those who were invited will taste my dinner!".

Are you making excuses for not accepting and welcoming Jesus into your life?

Are you making excuses for the bad habits that you have developed?

Are your excuses justifiable if you think carefully about them?

Are you making excuses for the way you are relating with others?

 

 

Reverend George Adeboye, Rhema Chapel, Ilorin, Nigeria stated the following:

Excuse is an invalid reason for neglect of duty. It is trying to remove blame for something from ourselves. It is said in defense of a particular action but without justification. It is an unwarranted reason given in defense of an action or inaction.

Reasons why people give excuses
1. It is easy to make or give excuses.
2. It is the way they have learnt to live their lives. Psalm 15:4
3. They don't want to be inconvenienced, don't want to make sacrifices. Heb. 13:16, Christianity is a lifestyle of sacrifice.
4. We believe we are the only one in the position in which we are.
5. People give excuses because they think God understands and He has pardoned them for their actions. No excuse is acceptable to God. Luke 14:15-25. Excuses have no weight before God.
6. Because they are only thinking about themselves Philip. 2:4. Excuses are born out of a selfish heart, think about others
7. We believe we will have another opportunity next time. There would not be another opportunity to make a first impression. Deut.33:25


The basic characteristics of excuses
1. Every excuse at the first appearance looks reasonable but a second look shows it isn't reasonable.
2. Though they are made to explain behaviour but they cover the real motives.
3. It puts the blame on something or someone else
4. We simply say certain other things are more important than God.
5. Excuses are about little things and lawful things not in their proper places.
6. Those who make them are the worst for it. At the end of the day, you lose out. 

Bible Quiz:

1) Are you aware of any biblical characters that did not give excuse or blame someone else for his or her actions?

2) Are you aware of a biblical character that gave excuses and faced the consequences?

Enjoy your weekend!

- Myss Lafunky

Photo credit: http://www.keepcalmandposters.com/ and http://ymagazine.com.au/

My Broken Spirit

Hi Readers & Followers,

Hope your week is going alright? Please, take time to pray for me, I have been slacking on posting a blog post every Monday. Ask God to strengthen me and to help me in all that I am doing.

Myss Lafunky welcomes feedback and comments.  Thanks to those that are contacting Myss Lafunky via email (trulymakingadifference@gmail.com) for counsel, offering words of encouragement, and feedback.  I'm extremely grateful for you all. 

Before I write today's post, I would like to state that, Myss Lafunky has not attained everything in my Christian faith, I am still learning more about God every day of my life, I still fall, I usually feel very sad when the Holy Spirit corrects me of my wrong doings. If you are a Born Again Christian, you should never find it fun when you have sinned. 

Last week, I engaged in a grumbling/slandering session. Prior to finishing the grumbling session, the Holy Spirit whispered to me: Whoever does not stumble in his word is a perfect person. I immediately apologised to God and stopped. I stopped because I knew God hates us slandering others, He sees it as if we are persecuting Him. Remember the story of Saul of Tarsus? When Saul was  attacking God's children, God took it personal and said to Saul, why are you persecuting me (Acts 9:5).

 

 

 

Also, during the course of the week, I attended my church Bible Study, we are currently studying the book of James. The Pastor told me to read out James 4:1-12, as I read the verses, and I got to verse 11 & 12- (Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbour? (James 4:11-12 NIV), the Holy Spirit said..I am reminding you of what you need to work on. 

I openly told my fellow Bible Study members that, God wants me to work on this. My lovely Pastor's wife told all of us to discuss how we can stop grumbling and complaining about others. The discussion was very useful.

I am still on the journey of taming my tongue. Myss Lafunky is not ashamed to discuss her weakness, and how God is helping me. Remember, God will not despise a contrite Spirit and a broken heart (Psalm 51:17). 

 

 

 

What about you? What are you working on?

Have you taken time to be honest with yourself about what you need to improve? 

You can ask God to tell you what you need to improve. Once you know the things that you need to improve, you need to discipline yourself, know what the Word of God says about it and start working on yourself. 

 

Remember not to start giving excuses about why you cannot improve yourself.  Start checking yourself for what you need to improve, don't focus on others, focus on yourself, tell God to help you but you must ask yourself, am I ready to give up my weakness? 

 By God's Grace, next week's post is going to be about Christians and Excuses.

- Myss Lafunky

 

Photo Credit: https://amenaccountability.files.wordpress.com and http://dailyjesusnow.blogspot.co.uk/ 

When Trouble Comes Knocking

Hello Dear Readers! Welcome to another awesome week!

This week started on a sad note after hearing about the death of Dr Myles Munroe and his wife, Ruth. I pray that God shall comfort his entire family and congregation in Jesus' name. But I'm comforted by the words of scripture in Isa 57:1 which says: "Good people pass away; the godly often die before their time. But no one seems to care or wonder why. No one seems to understand that God is protecting them from the evil to come" and 1Thess 4 (Please, take time to read the whole chapter 4 of 1 Thessalonians).

Here goes the Post for this week.

Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them.” Ecclesiastes 12:1

Look carefully at the above Bible scripture, the book of Ecclesiastes was written by King Solomon under the inspiration of God.  King Solomon was renowned for his wisdom and wealth; however, in the later years of his life, he accumulated many wives and wandered from God’s ways.  

King Solomon described the emptiness of life without God in the book of Ecclesiastes. You can create time to study the book of Ecclesiastes, I have studied it and I learnt so much from the book.

The crux of the post for this week is the latter part of Ecclesiastes 12:1b, the Bible did not say that, “Remember your Creator just in case the days of trouble come.”  It says TROUBLE will COME.  It comes to everyone sooner or later.

God wants us to always prepare for the time that trouble or hard times come.  The book of Proverbs 21:31 says that “The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but victory is of the Lord”. 

God told us in the book of Isaiah 43:2 that, when you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers of difficulty, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.

God is reminding you that, no matter the challenges that you experience on earth, He is ready to help you to overcome it.

• In the Bible, a man named Daniel experienced troubles, however, he overcame the trouble as he refused to sin against God.  Daniel proposed in His heart that he will not sin against God (Daniel 1:8). He refused to eat the King’s delicacies as the food had been sacrificed to idols.  Daniel could have been scared that the King would punish him. However, Daniel, with his friends (Shedrach, Meschach and Abenego) made the decision not to sin against God.  This also suggests that, Daniel and his friends knew what God expects His followers to do, and they also knew God’s Word.

• Joseph was another man that refused to sin against God despite the forceful nature of the troubles that he experienced (Genesis 39).  His master’s wife kept pushing Joseph to sleep with her. Joseph challenged the trouble, and he evaluated the situation, and he concluded that he would not sin against God.

           When trouble comes:

        A)  Propose in your heart not to sin against God.
        B)  Ask God to help you to stand by Him as you cannot stand by yourself.
        C)  Have good friends around you, just like Daniel had his friends.
        D) Take time to read what God’s Word says about the trouble.
        E)  Talk to God about it.

Myss Lafunky has also experienced troubles since the day I became matured in Christ. What has helped me thus far is reminding myself of what God says concerning the trouble, listening quietly and waiting for God to speak to me about the steps to take, and talking to God about the trouble.

Are you reading this post and you feel a little bit down about your relationship with your spouse and God?  Think carefully and remember the good days that you had, what made the relationship very good? How can you ensure that when trouble comes, you will ensure that the trouble does not divide your relationship with your spouse, and your relationship with God?

Remember to share this post. There's love in sharing. If you have any questions regarding this post or any other post, feel fee to leave your comment below or send an email to trulymakingadifference@gmail.com

Enjoy your week. 

- Myss Lafunky

  Picture Credit: www.dailylifeverse.com and http://julia4jesus.wordpress.com

Desiring a Good Name: Is it Necessary?

Happy Monday readers and followers,

How was your weekend? My weekend was quite eventful. I attended a friend's surprise birthday. It was a nice time to catch up with friends and to rejoice with my darling friend who happens to be selfless in nature. People travelled from different cities within England to be at the surprise party.

At the party, I pondered on the legacy/the seed that I am sowing when I meet people. What would they remember me for? If Myss Lafunky's name was to be mentioned, what would people say about me? What would people say about you? What seeds are you sowing? 

While it is vital that it is God's report that we should believe, God also wants us to desire a good name wherever we go or wherever we find ourselves. The word of God says in Proverbs 22:1 that: A good name is more desirable than great riches; favourable acceptance is more than silver and gold. At the same time, we must remember that, some people may still condemn us, remember our Lord Jesus Christ was condemned on earth? However, due to the fact that he lived a pure and good life continuously, his lifestyle showed that he was a good person and the false accusations stopped. 

Actually, some people have continued to condemn Jesus Christ (Please, remember to pray for the unsaved souls, pray that God will touch their heart so that they will know the true God). Some people still believe that He is not God, and some people have continued to say nasty things about Him. Only those that truly know Jesus or those that have regular fellowship with Jesus speak positive about Jesus. It could therefore be argued that, when people become close to you, they are likely to know the true you. 

Final words from me, remember to desire a good name from today..be ye on social media, at work, with your family, within your community, with your friends, church, school or wherever you find yourself.

Have a lovely week. 

- Myss Lafunky