13. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.What things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.
Philippians 3:7.

Apostle Paul had been a man dominated by pride who thought that religion and academic achievement were enough. Yet in a confrontation with Jesus on the road to Damascus, he discovered that nothing he thought was enough really was. As he bowed before the lordship of Jesus, his life began to take shape. While some may not value spiritual discipline, Paul realized that following Jesus is not about religious achievements but about walking in a permanent lifestyle of dependency upon Him. Over the years, I came to terms with the recognition that—no matter how many years of seasoned services to Christ one accumulates, or how much wisdom, experience and biblical depth one gained— before the Ancient of Days, we all remain children.
We are wisely warned against ever supposing we “know everything.” And we are compelled to always remember that, for the believing lifestyle, knowledge ultimately does not relate to information but rather to the Person of God—to know Him with an ever-increasing depth and familiarity. Knowledge in God is not accumulating just scripture verses- it is gaining depth in our relationship with Him.

What does it mean to Press? Single-minded Pursuit The word “press” in original Greek means refers to the idea of pressure and means “to seek after eagerly, earnestly endeavour to acquire”. Occurring three times in Philippians 3:4-14, “dioko” intermittently describes “to follow,” “to pursue,” “to persecute,” or “to flee,” suggesting impassioned pursuit. Paul says that he follows after Christ in strong pursuit. Paul speaking in same Philippians says, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me” (v. 12). He’s talking about maintaining direction. He’s staying on course, refusing the vanity of imagination, refusing distractions, pursuing his assignment single-mindedly. How great would it be if everyone of us, like Paul can single-mindedly pursue the race for which we were made. Those Things which are behind

There is something about that call to press toward the mark that captures the vision of the ancient Olympic race course five centuries before Christ. Paul uses the language of the athletic field of competition, exhorting us to press forward, while calling us to forget that which is behind—our past fears, our past focus, and our past failures.We are called to new faith that overcomes fear. Fears will trail you with the lying forecast that you can’t make it. Fears are today’s lies about tomorrow’s promise. Fears are denials of hope rooted in doubts about God’s power, presence, promise, and workings.
God always offers us the guarantee of His presence, and that’s enough to cast fears aside. The timeless rule for every runner in every race is, Don’t look back.We are called to new values that overcome self. Press in for values that overrule self. Focus personal goals only on serving others, not your own convenience. Give your life away because to save it, you will inevitably lose it. To find your life is to lay it down—first at the feet of Jesus and then in the face of the challenges of your life. Our high calling is to a new value—to serve others in the wisdom of the Lord’s way. We are called to great grace that overcomes failure. Don’t give up! We are called to “lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us…[to] run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:1, 2). The One who calls you has already won. Keep your eyes on Him… even if you stumble, He will carry you on.

In the 1992 Olympic games in Barcelona, one of the greatest candidates for the gold medal in the 400-meter run was Derek Redmond of Britain. Just 150 meters out, his Achilles tendon snapped. A startled gasp erupted out of the crowd as they watched him stumble, then catch himself and continue. Limping painfully down the course, he remained intent on finishing the race, no matter how long it took. As the other runners sped by, a figure pushed his way out of the stands and onto the track. Redmond’s father put his arm around him, lifted his son’s arm over his shoulder, and helped him to finish the race. It is a marvelous illustration of God’s enormous mercy and grace when failure or brokenness besets us on the path toward our goals. If we will just stay on track, we can go the distance, because we have a heavenly Father who will come, put His arms around us, undergird us, and see us through to the end.

The Lord is calling each of us to go the distance, but on His terms. He is yet saying to all who put their trust in Him—“Keep moving forward so that my power can be released in you and my purpose may be fulfilled in you.”Keep pressing toward the mark.

Happy New Month

In trying to increase the amount of multimillion and multibillion dollar businesses in Nigeria, and sharpen their entrepreneurial skills, The leadership and workforce at RCCG Kingdom Palace, hosted a conference on Saturday, January 29th, to mark its 12th anniversary.

With the theme “Starting Right, Growing Big”, and featuring 3 illustrious CEOS as guest speakers; Timi Ologunoye of Autochek Technology, Dr. Jide Adedeji of Easy Sauces and Olumide Gbadebo of Adunni Organics- the conference started by 10am inside the church auditorium and lasted till shortly after 2pm; with the intent of imparting grace and experience, while believing God to produce the next Dangote.

After appreciating the zonal head Pastor Sunday for the platform, along with a brief overview of the guest speakers portfolio, Bunmi Jembola, the MC eased into the event proper by granting two business owners within the auditorium two minutes each to discuss their brands and products.

Making the cut was Akinade Abigail Oluwatoyin of J3 African Foods, who primarily markets branded pap in a variety of tastes and sizes, and Oluwabunmi Akinbule of Right Choice, who sells cassava flour with less starch content. “No matter what you are doing or the level it is, you can never tell where God is taking you, Bunmi Jembola added.

God doesn′t create rubbish
First speaker was Timi Ologunoye, a child of God whose life purpose is helping people to realize their desired outcome in life and also co-founder of Autochek Africa, a multi million dollar company with tentacles across several African countries and financial institutions.

Citing Bible verses to pass his points, Timi began with Genesis:1, highlighting how God created us the same way money will flow in the direction of value creation, “And though some have found a need, but they keep analyzing the perfect condition to start, whereas verse 2 of Genesis states that the earth was without form and void.”
“Verse 26 states when God decided to make man, so unless you start and execute, ideas are useless”.

Other interesting points he mentioned include overcoming laziness, fear of failure, starting small, willingness to experiment, along with the importance of building systems and structure, with financial intelligence.

Transform your nothing special into something special.
The elegant Olumide Gbadebo was next to inspire with her broad insights. A former medical practitioner and advertising expert who turned to become the cosmetologist CEO of Adunni Organics, Olumide began by emphasizing on “to get something good, you have to give something good” and “if making money is your problem, go and get a job” before she moved the conference in another round of interactive session with participants.

“Nigeria has a poverty mindset but we are not poor. There’s a lot of money in this country, what you need is to develop the idea and add the special ingredient called excellence. Transform your nothing special into something special. You may be trying your best but your best may not be what is required”

Sometimes your help is in helping others.
Gifting out soup sachets to everyone in attendance, the benevolent Dr. Jide Adedeji, CEO of Easy Sauces, delivered his presentation by admonishing participants not to begin any business on the basis of “I want to make money, but to serve, help and further the kingdom of God.”

A lecturer at the Lagos Business School, with over 10 US patents, and businessman across 3 continents, Dr. Adedeji advised that “there is no secret in business, but to share your ideas, and maintain resilience, as networking is critical for business growth.” Mentioning that it would be a shame to come out and not interacted to help people, Dr. Adedeji expressed sincere interest towards helping producers package and put their products on store shelves.

The illuminating conference went on to have a panelist session wherein the guest speakers fielded questions from participants, before ending shortly around past 2, and progressed into an afternoon of health and wellness checkup, giving out welfare packages to the community, and finally ending with an evening crusade to celebrate the doings of the Lord of hosts in their midst.

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
What does it mean to have dominion?

Dominion means having authority and rule over a thing, principle or a geographical arena. Dominion means being fully in charge and capable of determining what happen or does not happen.
To fully understand dominion it might be helpful to explain its opposite which is “Subjugation”. Subjugation is being under rule without the capacity to determine what you do, want, or even think. Subjugation; as is seen with the children of Israel may even mean being incapable of dreaming big dreams or even serving your own God.
Subjugation is terrible. When a man is subjugated the rewards of his work is reaped by another man. This basically means that he cannot even determine the course of his own life or future. The worst part of subjugation is that a man cannot actually free himself.
Imagine that Modecai, who was a slave in Babylon did the king Ahasuerus a great favour, he exposed a plot by three men who sought to kill the king. When it was time to give reward, Haman, the arch enemy of Modecai and his people (Israel) was the one who was promoted as Prime Minister making him second only to the king. In spite of this, Modecai could not protest; why?- because slaves have no rights whatsoever. This is how bad subjugation can be.

For everyone reading this who are under the despotic reign of Lucifer; may the Almighty God give you freedom today in Jesus name.
The devil is a bad devil. When he wins a man he captures his life, ambition, health, destiny, family, academics, and even future; just about everything. He leaves him no room to even attempt an escape.
But, our God is a good God. He continually shows mankind his own salvation (Ps 91:16). One of the best promise he made to us in all of his holy book is the promise of all-round dominion
What should we have dominion over?

SIN
Paul speaking to the Roman church in Rom 6: 13-14 says “Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin; but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you; for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”
The devil subjugates men to do sinful things even against their own very wish. People get into drugs and then cannot get out because they are hooked. People get into lesbianism and alcoholism and find it hard to quit. Sin is compelling them to its ways each day. People lie willfully to the point where they have no honour. But the promise of God is this “Sin shall no longer reign in your mortal bodies”

SICKNESS
11 But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also give life to {quicken} your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you.
This is the final verdict over sickness. The Spirit of Jesus gives life that renews our mortal bodies. I pray for anyone reading this bulletin right now who has been struggling with any long-term sickness or the other, the word of God is saying to you today “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for {of} our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” Sickness in your body, blood stream and marrows are cursed in Jesus name. Begining from today, the grip of sickness over your life is broken eternally.

NATURE AND CIRCUMSTANCES
Jesus was in the inner cabin in a ship one day and the storm was heavy. The apostles were really afraid. He slept on unbothered and the apostles asked him “Do you not care at all that we perish in this storm?” And really Jesus did not care about the storm because he was certain of his ability to call the storm to a halt. “He who calleth forth the things that be not as though they were” (Rom 4:17).
Several times; our Father in the Lord; Pastor E.A. Adeboye has make use of the power of God to stop the rain and clear the skies. You too can. You are not helpless when nature works against the purpose of God in your life. You can speak your expectations to life.
Dear Reader, let me challenge you as we round off our 12th Anniversary and carry on in faith on this mountain of prayer and fasting. By all means, ensure like Hannah that you do not return without a proof. These 50days fasting and prayers will be the weapon for making champions. Ensure by all means that you are one. You shall come back from this Shiloh with a Samuel. You shall return with dominion in Jesus name.

Happy new month.

Happy new year to you dear reader. I want to congratulate you for making it into this new year 2022. It is my prayer that this new year will be a year among years unto you in Jesus name. I pray that God will cause your feet to be deeply planted on the road to progress and you will never look backwards.

Our theme as we start this year is Repositioning. - RE-positioning.
What does it mean to reposition? First, you need to understand that positioning speaks about how you stand in relation or in contrast to other objects or other matters of reference. Positioning can also be explained as how you differentiate yourself from other similar concepts, principles or players in a domain.

As you begin this year dear reader please note yet again that the heart desire of God is that you succeed. The Bible speaking about the desires of our God for us in 3 John 1:2 says “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth”. God desires your all-round progress and prosperity. But in spite that God desires progress for you it is easy for a man to hinder the good thoughts of God towards him in 2022 by the error of wrong positioning.

To be clear dear friend; the blessings of a man assigned to him by God is always planted in the place of his assignment. So, just to let you know, God’s blessings is everywhere but not everywhere for everyone. The Book of Genesis Chapter 12:1-4 Chronicles the beginning of the journey of Abraham with God.
“1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father′s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:”
Notice very closely, the wordings of Verse 2 and the order of the instructions- first go where I will show you and then I will bless you. You see how important your positioning is in determining the blessings of God over you? Until Abraham left his father’s house for the country of his assignment he did not receive the promise and fulfillment of the promise. There is an exact place where God wants you to function. There is a place of your own planting. Prayerfully ask God for it as you go into 2022 so that your effort more than ever will yield great reward.

Secondly, I want to have you know dear brethren that your positioning is also a function of the people and the environment even in the place of your calling. While it is important to go where God wants you to be, you must ensure by all means not to be around people that God does not want in your life. Sometimes we like a company of many but a company of fool shall always suffer destruction. Prov 13: 20 says “Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.”
If your environment is not right for the word of God to find full expression, you might be frustrating Grace in 2022. It is a very important requirement in 2022 that you cultivate a kingdom environment all-around you throughout this year. Find the right companions as prayer partners. Get an apartment where you will not wake to the chant of Muslim prayers. Look for a job that allows you to serve God- be intentional.

Lastly, I want to have you know that your positioning is God-limiting if you are not very differentiated from unbelievers. 2022 is not the year to try to please men and blend-in. It is the year when all you do is please God and God alone. If you would be pleasing God you have got to stand in clear contrast to the ways of the world. Stop trying very hard to be accepted by the world. Jesus already said it in John 15:18-19. “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. Verse 19: If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you”
The Book of Luke shows us the life of the Prodigal Son. He had left the place of his planting to go to a country where God did not send him. The result was catastrophic. He was reduced to lesser than a pig.
He said to himself “I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, Verse 19: And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. Verse 20 :And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.” (Luke 15-18-22).

Dear reader, even if you are very far from where God planted you or where God instructed you to go it is time to do like the prodigal son. This new year provides a great new opportunity. Make use of it.

I wish you a happy and prosperous new year 2022.

Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the Lord; Thus saith the Lord, Tomorrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria” (2 Kings 7:1).

In military parlance a siege is understood as a military operation in which enemy forces surround a town or building, cutting off essential supplies, with the aim of compelling those inside to surrender. Brethren, please note that a siege is a trial. It sometimes comes in the form of very long-drawn nights. And for the records, a siege can happen to a genuine child of God. Many times, when a siege occurs it may not be because of a sin. 2 Chr 32 Vs 1 says “After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself.” Hezekiah was faithful, yet Sennacherib of Syria laid siege upon Judah. For as many as are under the military (Spiritual or physical) invasion of the enemy today, the Almighty God Himself will execute your freedom in Jesus name.

Please note brethren that the expectation of the devil when he lays a siege is for us to surrender. The expectation of our God when we see the siege laid by the enemy is that; like a brave man we confront the battalions of the enemy. A siege is not an invasion, even though it may look like one. A siege only results to an invasion when the children of God react to the lies of the siege of the enemy very poorly. The Bible in 1 Pet 5:8b says “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” The operational word in that text is “Like”. The devil has three very powerful tools that he deploys on unsuspecting Christian victims. They are lies, stoking fear and being an impostor. The devil claims to be who he is not, lies to have what he does not have and stokes anxiety and fear that are very unreal. Please ensure by all means that you are not giving in to an invasion just because there is a siege.

A siege is like a dark cloud without a storm it will fade away very shortly. But how then do we end the siege of the enemy? First, you need to talk to God and take express instructions in warfare. The Lord does not intend that your life will become a constant battle ground, chances are that God himself will want to fight in your stead or even send angels to fight for you. He may even create a wall in the spiritual realm that the enemy would never be able to penetrate; like he did for Job.

Please brethren, fear not. Whatever siege you are passing through right now is ending in this Month of December in Jesus name. As instructed by God through our Father in the Lord this siege will not survive 2021 and from this point you will have absolute peace and rest of mind on all sides.

“Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the Lord; Thus saith the Lord, Tomorrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria” (2 Kings 7:1). With this pronouncement, famine, bareness, poverty, groaning, sufferings, debt, failure, isolation, failures, and other misfortunes came to an end within 24 hours.
Connecting to the power in that prophetic declaration, I decree into your life that the siege over your entire life, your finance, career, marriage, academics, spiritual life, home, and ministry is over in Jesus name. However, remember to maintain your right standing with God at all time so that devil is denied any legal grounds into your life.
This month is a turning point in your life as you remain a permanent channel of blessings to your generation in Jesus name.

Happy New Month and Merry Christmas in advance.

As Parents, you should help your child to develop his/her God′s given gifts right from cradle, so that he/she can live his/her full and true potential in life.

The guidelines below will assist you;

Spend time with your child: you’ll need to come down to his/her level, spend time with him/her and show interest in what he/she is interested in.

Appreciate your child′s ability: Be on the lookout for things to praise in him/her for.

Encourage a wide range of interest: by all means, encourage your child to develop interest in different aspect, also, encourage his/her creativity by doing creative activities with him/her and by sharing ideas.

Never ridicule your child: you should never make fun of him/her just because he/she is different to others, either in his/her behavior or interest.

Acknowledge your child′s ability: This will help your child to grow in confidence and be more prepared to tackle other things that he/she might not be good at.

Encourage your child to set target for himself: This will help him to develop an “aim higher” attitude to life.

Make learning fun.

24 This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Many men live in “yesterday”. Even while the world has moved on, they are tied to yesterday. The problem of many people is their attachment to the struggles of their yesterday. You see, many people are so used to the comfort of their past failures that they are unwilling to move into the promises in the future.

Dear Reader, if there is one thing you must know- it is that yesterday has no control over anything that happens to you from here.

It amazes me each time I read the passage of the Bible Ex 14: 10-12 which chronicles the regret of the Israelites and their anger against Moses in spite that God was just executing their freedom from 430 years of oppression.

10 And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD.
11 And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? 
12 Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.

… Isn’t that interesting? The Children of Israel actually said with their mouth that they would have preferred the harrowing torture of Egypt to the freedom that was just ahead. Many of us are like that- unwilling to embrace progress because of the unyielding attachment to the past. I pray for you today dear reader, in any way that you may currently be attached to the past, God Almighty will cause a definite separation today in Jesus’ name.
The breaking of dawn signifies the opening of new opportunities. When a new day breaks a new opportunity opens.

The bible speaking in Ps. 118: 24 says “This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”. Please understand dear friend that every single day that God makes comes with mercy, rejoicing and gladness. It is never the desire of our Lord and Saviour that you partake in the troubles of a day. For you to enjoy the goodness in a day however, you need to lift up your expectations particularly if you have endured dryness, lack, affliction and rejection much of your life. You may be in that place right now where you have concluded that a new day is not for you. That is not correct. The specialty of our Lord and Saviour is giving a new beginning to men who had a terrible yesterday.

In Isa 43:19c God says “I will make rivers in the desert”. Please note, NOT “a river” BUT “rivers”. By definition a desert is a place where no plant can grow because there is never water in and around it. As a result of this, a desert is always lonely and deserted. Is there anyone reading this piece who is in that condition right now? Perhaps you have been avoided by men like a plague. It could be because of a malignant medical condition or a terrible financial situation. It is even possible that family and friends do not pick your calls anymore; maybe you have become so much a burden to them. Hear me dear reader, your glory will speak yet again. Very soon men will come to the glory of your rising. I have the assurance of God to say to you this day “You will not die in that terrible situation” God, even our God will show up for you. Behold, our God will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? He will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in our deserts.

As this year runs to an end, let me assure you yet again, that your morning is coming very soon. I assure you dear Reader, there is a rainbow on the other side. Very soon your sun is shining and very brightly too. Do not despair. Hold on to God in faith. Your own morning will soon break.