““Talk no more so very proudly; Let no arrogance come from your mouth, For the Lord is
the God of knowledge; And by Him actions are weighed.”
On August 15, 2018, VAR (Video Assistant Referee) was first used in a competitive
match between France and Croatia. It debuted after years of argument for and against;
and even now the argument rages as to its importance. It is a technology introduced to
help officials make correct decisions, thereby enforcing fair play. I watched a match
recently where a goal given by the referee was cancelled with the aid of VAR. Unknown
to the centre referee, a player had obstructed the goalkeeper before conceding the goal.
It was the VAR that brought that to focus.

“It is scarier when you discover that even thoughts and motives will be weighed.”

As the game went on, one thing on my mind was how many things that we celebrate as
goals (success and breakthroughs) will be cancelled when God finally reviews them. In
Hannah’s prophetic worship, she submitted that all actions are weighed by God. It is
scarier when you discover that even thoughts and motives will be weighed. “For God
will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil.”
(

In the morning hours of my 61st birthday, I decided to have a haircut. I drove straight to
the salon. Strangely on this day, all the parking spots had been taken. That compelled
me to seek out an alternative outlet. I found one about a kilometre away and met the
barber who had just finished attending to a customer. They were arguing fiercely over
the new monetary policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria. The client was against it, but he
was rooting for the policy. I did not join the fray immediately, but only said a few words
when he asked if I was okay with the level he had taken for the haircut. At my response,
he asked, “Are you a member of the clergy?” I asked what gave him such an
impression. “Because you spoke so calmly” was his reply. Well, I wonder if all members
of the clergy speak calmly. When he finished, I introduced myself to him, and more
importantly I introduced Jesus as the answer to all of the world’s woes as we know them
today.

“Our manner of life should be such that brings people to Christ and not drive them away.”

I left his shop thinking of several things. The world is deciphering different things from
our lives. Our speech matters as does our appearance. Someone said that we the
believers are the Bible that the world is reading and we should ensure that we open to
the right page at all times. Apostle Paul said they were diffusing the fragrance of Jesus’
knowledge in every place. We should live conscious of this also. Our manner of life
should be such that brings people to Christ and not drive them away.

When I asked after a son of one of the men that we had served together in a ministry,
the father told me that he was schooling in the United States of America. His choice of
school was to facilitate his desire to play basketball. The young man told his father that
he did not want to get to heaven and be queried about what he did with his tallness! The
young man was quite tall. That is saying things mildly, but it is revealing. No matter our
height or size, there is a role for everybody. If we take a proper audit of ourselves under
the light of the Spirit, we see how to convert what we are to an advantage.

“Making the most of life is about living life to its full potential.”

Making the most of life is about living life to its full potential. For this to happen, several
things must be put into consideration. We already mentioned one – know and embrace
yourself. Rather than being preoccupied with body statistics that you think are not
complete, think of how to deploy what you have. As mentioned earlier, there is
something that is just right for you. Are you tall? Play basketball like the young man. Are
you stout? Try your hand on Shot Put or Discuss. In addition to embracing yourself, you
must learn to set goals. Though it takes more than setting goals to succeed, it is
nonetheless an important step as there is no chance of pursuing what you never set to
begin with. Set goals, pursue them, and celebrate every little milestone you attain at
different stages of your life. It is called enjoying where you are on the way to becoming
what you could be.

Every purpose has a time. This is a clearly taught in the Scriptures. It is also true that
purposes have their allotted times of accomplishment. This is also true of prophecies
and promises. It takes sensitivity to the Holy Spirit to not miss divine timings. In our text,
Jesus spoke of “that Day” and warned of the danger of missing it. In effect, He wanted
them to stay sensitive so as to know the time of His coming. The text shows us things
that can deaden spiritual sensitivity. They include carousing, drunkenness, and cares of
this life. Carousing is any form of dissolute behaviour. An unbridled appetite for
pleasure, even when legitimate, is antithetical to the spirit of sensitivity. No wonder
God’s word always advocates moderation in all things. On its part, care of this life may
seem normal; but if it takes our full attention, our spiritual sensitivity will nose dive.
Jesus taught us to cast our cares on the Heavenly Father, seek the Kingdom of God
and then we can expect all things to be added.

“An unbridled appetite for pleasure, even when legitimate, is antithetical to the spirit of sensitivity.”

Reading from Paul’s epistle, we find additional aid in developing a sensitive spirit. “And
indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you,
brethren, that ye increase more and more; and that ye study to be quiet, and to do your
own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you” (1
Thessalonians‬

John Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Progress” was written in 1678. Since then, it has been
translated into dozens of languages. It is an allegory detailing the journey of a Christian
who is trying to find his way to heaven. It depicts the temptations that a Christian will
face as he makes his way to the celestial city. Hundreds of years after it was published,
the book has not ceased to inspire every generation of Christians. Interestingly, John
Bunyan wrote the book while he was in prison. This shows that great things can happen
in unlikely places.

“No matter where you are, guard your heart with all diligence and be sure nothing tampers with your capacity to connect with God.“

In our text, we have the account of Jeremiah recalling the word of the Lord to him. By
the word of the Lord, he knew that his uncle’s son would bring to him an opportunity to
buy his land. That was exactly what happened. As we observe with John Bunyan,
Jeremiah was also in prison when he received the word of the Lord. That also proves
that good things can happen to us even in awkward places. This brings us back to the
issue of sensitivity. Jeremiah could hear of the opportunity because he was sensitive.
Had he been bitter for being remanded, he would have lost the cutting-edge sensitivity
necessary to receive from the Lord. No matter where you are, guard your heart with all
diligence and be sure nothing tampers with your capacity to connect with God.

When the two sons of Zebedee came with their mother, they requested to sit on either
side of Jesus in the Kingdom. Our text captures the reaction of the remaining ten
disciples – they were pissed off. There is an indication that these two brothers did not
think through their request before making it. They told Jesus that they were ready to
drink His cup and be baptized with His baptism without understanding what that meant.
They did not realise that would end up in martyrdom. There is a second problem with
their request; it showed insensitivity. They did not care how others felt. Their
insensitivity was going to cause disaffection among the disciples had Jesus not
intervened.

“Leadership is like shepherding, and a good shepherd must be sensitive.”

Insensitivity is akin to selfishness, and it can pose a major problem in interpersonal as
well as professional relationships. For instance, anyone who is insensitive to the
feelings of their spouse will cause irreparable damage to their union. An insensitive
boss will make a bad job of his role. Leadership is like shepherding, and a good
shepherd must be sensitive. In order to become more sensitive, learn to think through
your words and actions before deploying them. Be conscious of the fact that words do
not leave people the same. Negative words hurt and can dig at the root of people’s
emotions and confidence. Imagine that you were the recipient of your words and
actions. If you would not receive them well, that shows that others would not as well;
they may just be tolerating you.

Balance in life requires knowing what to give up and what to pursue. In recent
meditations, we learned of the need to give up our worries for several reasons. Giving
up our worries will lead to more robust health and general well-being. However, we
must never give up on pursuing our God-given goals or other worthy causes that we
set. Perseverance is often the difference between success and failure. Here is an
illustration of the point. Howard Carter arrived in Egypt in 1891 and set to work to
discover the tomb of King Tut who lived around 1400 B.C. The king died when he was a
teenager. His expedition was bankrolled by Lord Carnarvon. After five years of fruitless
search, Carnarvon was going to call off the search in early 1922, but Carter pleaded for
an extension of one year. That perseverance paid off as Carter and his team found
steps leading to the entrance of the tomb later that year. It was amazing to Carter and
Lord Carnarvon upon entering the tomb’s interior chambers on November 26, its
treasures were virtually untouched after more than 3,000 years.

Those who quit too soon are writing a memoir of failure inadvertently.

Anyone who wants something truly precious in life must hold on for it. Spectacular
things do not spring up suddenly. In the book of Jonah, the shrub that grew overnight
also perished overnight. Great and abiding things take a while. Jesus gave a parable of
a widow and an unjust judge. The widow kept coming to the judge for justice. After a
while, the judge backed down. This teaching encourages perseverance in prayer, but
the lesson applies to other areas as well. Those who quit too soon are writing a memoir
of failure inadvertently.

When Jesus visited Lazarus and his two sisters, Martha went all out to make dinner for
their august visitor. At a point in time, she got overwhelmed and wondered why Jesus
had not instructed Mary to give her a helping hand. Curiously, she got a loving rebuke
instead. Jesus told her that she was given to worry. Was He talking about her
preoccupation with dinner preparation or something else? Obviously, Jesus took aim at
something deeper in the life of Martha. It seemed that Martha was characteristically
someone who was prone to worry. Mary, on the other hand, was at Jesus’ feet, soaking
in His wisdom. Here we find one of the symptoms of worry – misplaced priority. Those
who worry excessively are often busy, but regrettably it is with the wrong things.

“Those who worry excessively are often busy, but regrettably it is with the wrong things.”

Rather than worry, Jesus would want us to set our priorities right. “But seek first the
kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
(Matthew‬

Jesus spoke strongly against worrying. We presented two arguments in ‬our previous
meditation – the fact that our life in Christ is superior to the mundane things of life and
that man is on priority above other creatures. There are other arguments canvassed
against worrying. Our text asked rhetorically what use is worrying. Worry is a thankless
and fruitless exercise. Worry changes nothing. Or, maybe it does; only that it changes
things for the worse. The frustrating aspect of worrying is that it has been observed that
half of the things that people worry about never happen. Going through mental and
emotional torture for some spurious things is hardly the right option.

“Going through mental and emotional torture for some spurious things is hardly the right option.”

Another reason to jettison worry is that you have a caring Father. “For after all these
things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these
things.” (

Worry is described as one of the most destructive emotions known to man. It is a state
of constant uneasiness and apprehension resulting from how people think about certain
things. It may be about the past, present, or future. It may also be about something real
or just imagined. When left unchecked, worry can have a devastating effect on the
mental well-being of people as well as cause other physical ailments. Experts
recommend that people who are prone to excessive worry need to seek professional
help and go through Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). While that may not be out of
place, it is important to get ‘Word Therapy’ as can be seen in the scriptures. Jesus
taught His disciples to not worry and He has His reasons.

Only trust Him!

Firstly, worrying about what to eat, drink, and wear is worthless since we already
already have something superior – life! Life is superior to the things that support it. The
King James Version of the Bible has an emphatic touch to this. “Therefore I say unto
you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for
your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than
raiment?” Life is preceded by a definite article. Jesus said somewhere else that He is
the life! If you have Him, there is nothing else that will not be given in addition.
Secondly, in order of precedence, human beings come before other creations of God. If
the little creatures have their rations, that of man is guaranteed. Only trust Him!

The blind man who Jesus healed had a verbal war with the Pharisees. The Pharisees
argued that Jesus was not of God because He performed miracles on the Sabbath day.
The young man thought otherwise. In John 9:33, he argued that if Jesus was sinful as
they claimed, He would not have been able to connect with God and do the miracles,
because God does not hear sinners. They felt insulted and lashed at him in the words of
our text. They condemned the young man as unwell, wondering at his temerity to teach
them. This brings us two salient things about knowledge. Firstly, anybody can be our
teacher in one area or the other. Recently, a post was trending on social media. It was a
lecturer who found a woman in his class who happened to have taught him in nursery
school. A teacher today can be a student tomorrow, and those who care about
knowledge must never forget this.

“If you think you already know, you cut yourself from the flow of learning.”

Secondly, no one can knows everything. The moment you feel satiated with learning,
you will lose out on what you do not know. In our previous meditation, we cited
Epictetus when he warned about our association. Here is another quote of his: “It is
impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.” If you think you already
know, you cut yourself from the flow of learning. Let us be guided by the words of Paul
to the Corinthians: “And if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet
as he ought to know.” (I Corinthians‬

As a young Baptist boy, I remember that we typically carried the euphoria of Easter
Sunday till the following day, Monday. We used to call that Galilee Day. I am not sure if
that practice is still sustained today. For the most part, Galilee Day was a day of picnics.
We had fun, eating and playing all sorts of games. The originator of that idea thought
that was the best way to honour Jesus’ instruction to the disciples after the resurrection,
that He would meet them in Galilee. The picnic did serve some ends, but not what
Jesus had in mind. Their own Galilee Meet was not a picnic, it was a commissioning
ceremony. As we can see from our text, Jesus sent the disciples just as He had been
sent. So Easter is not just about eating and wearing new clothes, it is an invitation to
serious kingdom business.

“His equipment for us is the Holy Spirit.”

If we may ask, how was Jesus sent? John 9:5 provides a clue – “As long as I am in the
world, I am the light of the world.” An additional clue is His mandate found in Luke 4:18-
19 –  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the
gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the
captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” All these define our task as believers.
From our text, we see that He has not sent us out without equipping us. His equipment
for us is the Holy Spirit.

The resurrection of Jesus offered several benefits to the disciples. Firstly, their doubts
were dealt with. Jesus did this by showing the nail imprint on His hands. “When He had
said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when
they saw the Lord.” (

“Our duty is to let others know that Jesus has risen and He has a package for them as well.”

These offers are significant. They marked the restoration of all that Adam lost in the
Garden of Eden. When man sinned, fear entered and peace fled. No wonder those
were the first set of things that Jesus offered. In addition, fellowship with God was
restored. Here is the good news: All that Jesus offered to the disciples on that
resurrection morning are still available to every believer today. Jesus has risen, so you
and I can experience peace in the midst of tumult. By the power of resurrection, we can
silence the loud noise of fear and intimidation. One other thing is clear from our text;
that is, Jesus made us His ambassadors. All that He offered us are to be relayed to
others. Every offer of God comes with a responsibility. Our duty is to let others know
that Jesus has risen and He has a package for them as well.

The intervening period between the crucifixion of Jesus and His resurrection must have
been a time of great uncertainty for the disciples. For three and a half years, they had
lived with Jesus and built their hopes around Him. He fed them when they were hungry,
reconciled them when they had interpersonal clashes, and defended them when they
were wrongly accused. All that seemed to evaporate as they watched Him nailed to the
cross. Nothing captures their state better than our text of scripture that saw them
huddled together where “the doors were shut…for fear of the Jews”. Yes, uncertainty
breeds fear, and the disciples had a fair dose of that.

“When things appear dark, that is the time to hold tightly to what God told you.”

We often find ourselves embroiled in uncertainties. If not well managed, they will bring
tension and reduce us to emotional wrecks. As children of God, the best way to deal
with any uncertainty is to hold on to His promise. In reality, the disciples needed not to
be in that uncertainty if they had held to the word of Jesus. He foretold that He would be
killed but would resurrect on the third day. If they believed that, they would have been
rejoicing in hope. Most believers are like those disciples. We are prone to forget His
promises or fail to believe them. God’s word is light, and that is what we need to
navigate the uncertain times of life. Someone said, “Never doubt in the dark what God
told you in the light”. When things appear dark, that is the time to hold tightly to what
God told you.

As I write this entry my mind is on those report sheets we got at the end of each school
term. For impressive results the class teacher would write, “Good result, but you can still
improve”. I later came across a quote by Helmut Schmidt who said, “The biggest room
in the world is the room for improvement”.  The strongest case that one can make for
improvement is that it increases value. For instance, you buy a parcel of land today for a
certain amount. Even if all you do fence it, the value will appreciate. Or, imagine a bag
of coca sold for peanuts. When it gets to Europe and is processed into chocolate the
value goes up astronomically. So he who improves himself enhances his value.

“The idea of revision is to find out what needs to be added.”

Improvement can be inspired from various angles. One is through revision. It is
interesting that even God reviewed His work of creation in Genesis. After He made
man, He took a second look and concluded that it was not good for him to be alone.
That brings us to a second way to improvement, and that is by addition. When we
review our lives or works, it should not stop there. The idea of revision is to find out what
needs to be added. In God’s case, He added a woman to the man. Finally, an
improvement could be by changing some things altogether. To keep on the track of
improvement, God’s word to Micah must ring in our hearts constantly that where we are
is not a final resting place.

One day in February, I got up from bed in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. I
had not fully regained consciousness, so it was like sleepwalking. I wanted to position
myself on the toilet seat but ended up on the faucet! The tap was broken, and it was
only by a stroke of luck that more things were not destroyed. When I became fully
conscious of what had happened, I began to think of how I would have reacted had my
wife or son reported that they broke the tap while they tried to use the toilet. I probably
would have rated them as careless.

“When you forbear others, you are giving in advance what you might need someday yourself.”

That experience prompted me to think of how scripture teaches us to forbear with one
another. To begin with, we have this provision because people will fall short of our
standards and expectations. That would generally tend to put a strain on our
interpersonal relationships. Without forbearance, we would not be able to build or
maintain healthy relationships. We may be tempted to lash out prematurely at people or
cut off God-ordained relationships. Through forbearance, we can be forgiving and give
people more opportunities in hope that things will gel ultimately. In our text, Apostle Paul
recommends treating people graciously when they miss the mark, considering our own
frailties as well. When you forbear others, you are giving in advance what you might
need someday yourself.

A brother and partner went a great length to buy me an iPad Pro which revolutionized
my work. A couple of years later, he bought me an Apple Pencil to compliment the iPad
Pro. Weeks passed and he never saw me pair the pencil with the iPad. So after service
one Sunday, he asked why I was not using it. Since he gave it to me, I had used it only
once till then. I complained that I was yet to master it. “You taught us to read Owner’s
Manual” he said; and then returned my counsel to me.

“Using your spiritual gift brings glory and honour to God.”

I see a number of parallels with this regarding spiritual gifts. Firstly, when he asked
about the pencil he was not about taking it back. The scripture makes us to understand
that the gift and callings of God are without repentance. Use or leave it to rust, God is
not about withdrawing it. However, if you don’t use what He has given you, He is
bothered. Secondly, note that the benefactor is always on the lookout for when the
beneficiary will showcase what they are given. That is how a benefactor derives joy.
Using your spiritual gift brings glory and honour to God. Finally, your profitability along
with that of the entire Body is in using the gift. “But the manifestation of the Spirit is
given to each one for the profit of all:” (I Corinthians‬

A Greek stoic philosopher by the name Epictetus left behind a treasure of witty sayings.
One of them on wealth is this: “Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in
having few wants.” That means that people with insatiable wants are poor even if they
have the whole material world at their beck and call. Uncontrolled want could spell
disaster. I have king Ahab on my mind here. Being a king, he literally had the whole
realm of Israel. However, he got carried away with the inheritance of one of his subjects
– Naboth. Aided by his wife, he had a hostile takeover of the vineyard spilling Naboth’s
blood in the process. That marked the beginning of the end for him. Haman also comes
to mind. He was supreme among the king’s servants, but all that did not satisfy him
unless he could get rid of Mordecai. He pursued that one “want” to his utmost fall.

“We will live a lot happier and more peacefully if we learn what contentment means.”

We will live a lot happier and more peacefully if we learn what contentment means. On
this too, Epictetus said, “Contentment comes not so much from great wealth as from
few wants”. When we factor contentment into the equation, many people will discover
that they are much wealthier than they realise. All these bring us back to the lesson that
Jesus taught a young man – that life does not consist of abundant material possessions.
If we have our basic essentials met and are at peace with God, we are truly wealthy.

The text before us was Jesus’ defence of the people who rapturously welcomed Him as
He made His entry to Jerusalem. They celebrated Him, saying, “Hosanna to the Son of
David!”. The chief priests and scribes objected to this, but Jesus defended them. The
interesting thing here is that Jesus quoted from Psalm 8:2. For emphasis we reproduce
it here: “Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength,
Because of Your enemies, That You may silence the enemy and the avenger.”

“When you praise God over any situation, He takes over.”

Jehoshaphat had the daunting task of facing three nations that aligned against Judah.
In 2 Chronicles 20:12, he admitted that‬ Judah had no power against the multitude
coming at them nor did they know what to do. Then in verse 21, the king after
consultations decided to just praise the Lord for His enduring mercy. Opting to praise
God became the game changer. God deployed His strength on their behalf. They did
not have to shoot an arrow but enjoyed the victory. When you praise God over any
situation, He takes over.

In 1986, the now late Reverend Arthur Hokett made an unscheduled stop at our Bible School in Kaduna. He taught many things, but one that made a lasting impression on me was when he said that “the natural tendency of fire is to go out”. It does not matter how big the fire is, it will go out if left untended. So God did not leave the fire in the tabernacle to chance. In the verse before our text, the children of Israel were commanded to bring olive oil for the lamp. Then God gave the charge of the lamp to Aaron and his sons to see to it that it burned all night long every day. Imagine what it would have cost Aaron and his sons to tend the light. I guess they had to take turns in the night, keeping vigil.

Neither can the spiritual light of God in our soul be left to chance. If you see anyone’s light burning bright, they are intentional about it.

Keeping aflame will cost something.

Any of the long list of spiritual activities that we engage in is a way of keeping the fire on. Attendance to church services, personal study of the word, prayer, fasting, and a lot more will ensure that the fire of God does not go out. When the fire is burning, our zeal for God is equally burning. In addition, a believer whose fire is burning hot cannot be a playing ground for the devil.