Be About The Father's Business - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) October 7, 2025

If there's one thing that can be said about Jesus, it is that He was a man focused on His assignment. Even from an early age, He made it known that one thing held His primary attention. Luke 2:49 - And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (NKJV). Jesus was only 2 years old, and He understood that His purpose on earth was to advance God's kingdom. How many of us are aware of the same?

We often think that kingdom advancement is only for those with titles at church or perhaps for those who hold specific roles during Sunday or midweek services. However, every person made in God's image has been given a task to carry out here on earth. That task contributes to God's kingdom in some way. Those who haven't yet met Jesus and chosen to follow Him might not yet understand how God intends to use them for His purpose.

We, who believe, are fortunate to have a basic understanding of how to serve the Lord. Jesus instructed His disciples to preach the gospel to the world (Mark 16:15). He wanted all to know that God loves them and sent His only begotten Son to die so they could overcome sin, satan, and hell. And if we claim to be Christians, those who bear His name, then that is our assignment as well.

The Lord has orchestrated things so humans are key players in His plans for the world. His children are to serve as His vessels to bless others and be the salt needed by a decaying world. And so the question becomes how can you and I be about our Father's business just as Jesus did when he lived in the world and continues to do now at the right hand of God?

Like Jesus, we need to invest time in studying the word. Jesus was in the Temple when He spoke the words noted in Luke 2:49. His parents had lost track of Him at the time and spent three days searching for Him in Jerusalem. He was busy discussing the word of God with others. Similarly, we must discuss the word with others and enjoy receiving wisdom from the Bible. It is time for us to also get lost in the word and lose track of time with the Bible. If we can not claim these things now, then we should pray for such grace. God will be pleased to answer us.

Jesus was about His Father's business in the house of God, and we believers have to be connected to a church and a gathering of believers. Without such fellowship, we risk becoming easy prey for satan to pull us away from the faith. To find a community of Christians, we must ask God to lead us to the gathering He wants us in. If not, we may gather with social 'Christians' who don't live by what Jesus taught.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:33 - Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need (NLT). He prioritized spreading God's word and helping others understand who the Lord was. He didn't just talk about it, but He displayed the gospel through righteous living. He prayed for people, healed them, fed them, and encouraged them. He was a good friend to people, standing with them in good and bad times, such as when He cried with Lazarus's family in their time of mourning. He protected the adulterous woman from hypocrites even when she'd been justly accused.

Let us also be about our Father's business, showing the love of Christ to others by emulating all that Jesus did. Take it one day at a time, allowing the Holy Spirit to teach and change you. And because He said in John 14:12 that those who believe in Him will do greater works than He did, His exploits on earth are simply the beginning of what we can do to be the light of the world (Matthew 5:14). There is a future and a hope for us yet (Jeremiah 29:11). We shall receive the strength and joy of the Lord to be about our Father's business.

As you wait for fellowship at 12 Noon EST, consider reading the following previous P&P messages:​

1. Serve with your Talents & Gifts​

2. Be a Fruitful Vineyard​

3. You are being built for the Lord​

4. Give God What He Wants To Get What You Want​

5. How Salty Are You?​

6. Give Generously​

7. Wear Your Kingdom Identity​

8. Practical Ways To Wear Your Kingdom Identity​

9. Praise God That You Bear His Name​

10. The Fruitful Vineyard & Its Caretaker​

11. Put God's Concerns First

12. Topic: Righteousness​

13. Topic: The Royal Law​

14. Topic: Please the Lord​

15. Topic: Kingdom Identity​

Don't Weary God - Friday Praise & Pray (for others) October 3, 2025

In the Old Testament, God told His people that they had wearied Him. They were confused by the statement. 'Weary' isn't a word one associates with the Lord because the weary are those who are tired and fatigued. So how then can God, the all-powerful and mighty, be wearied?

And yet the Bible provides the reason in Malachi 2:17 - You have wearied the LORD with your words. “How have we wearied him?” you ask. By saying, “All who do evil are good in the eyes of the LORD, and he is pleased with them” or “Where is the God of justice?” God was wearied because the people who should have known Him the best believed that He favored the wicked instead of the righteous. Their lack of understanding of who He is and what He does was draining to Him.

On some level, this is understandable. How many of us have been misunderstood by others? How tiring is it having to go against the lies about you? Many of us choose to let others live with their false notions of who we are and what we've done, rather than constantly having to defend ourselves to strangers. Or even worse, to people who should know better but choose to believe the worst about us instead. Thank God He didn't automatically give up on His people because of their failures back then. Thank God He doesn't give up on us because of our worldly perspectives and sins today. Where would we be if He got upset and turned away from us? What would we do if He weren't merciful?

Many of us, self-professing Christians, believe the lie that God favors the wicked and is unjust. For instance, we've seen those we deem wicked get away with ungodly things, and it's easy to believe the popularly held misconception that there is no justice in this world. However, just because we don't always see something doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

And how do our lives show that we believe this lie? In different ways. For instance, we don't think there can be justice unless we take matters into our own hands. And so we seek revenge upon those who wrong us or others. We are even willing to lie to ensure another person suffers because we want them punished at all costs. Has this ever been you?

Or maybe we think God has been unfair to us. We look at our lives and think we should be on par with our peers. We forget that God's plan and timing for us is different from His plan for others. We also ignore the possibility that our peers present well-packaged fantasies that don't reflect their reality. They may be faking it till they make it, yet here we are discontent and complaining about God, who is dutifully preparing us for 'the more' He has in store. Have you done this before?

We may also have said God is unkind when discussing our struggles with others, and thereby blaspheme and slander Him. The Bible states that God is not unjust in several places and repeatedly reveals His loving kindness. Even in our lives, we have seen Him be good to us and others, pull down Jericho Walls on our behalf, and work miracles. Yet, when the pressure builds and we start grumbling, we become angry, and by our own lips, declare He is not all He has previously proven Himself to be. Making it easier to believe satan's lies about Him.

These are some of the ways that we, like those Israelites of old, have wearied and still weary the Lord. So ask yourself, do you think He is unjust? Do you believe He favors the wicked? Please remember Psalm 7:11 - God is a righteous judge, a God who displays his wrath every day. Yes, each and every day, the wicked are punished and drink from God's cup of wrath. Their pretense to the public does not mean God's word is untrue. Live by what Jesus taught in the Bible, walk in the fear of the Lord, and submit to God's Holy Spirit. You will see the faithfulness of God and know beyond a doubt that He is the God of justice.

And if you have questioned whether God is just, just know that there is grace. Repent and remind yourself of what He's done for you. Think back to a testimony from somebody where God showed Himself as just. Consider the biblical instances where He stands as the God of justice. What happened to Sennacherib is a great example, as is how God vindicated Hannah, Esther, Mordechai, David, Jeremiah, Daniel, Jesus, and many more. God has a track record of being more than good. He is the Avenger who silences your accuser. If you don't believe this, ask Him to show you. Because when this happens, you will no longer be among those who weary Him.

Finally, in your quest to see God's justice meted out, remember that it is only because of His kindness and patience that you have not come under His wrath. After all, you are a sinner who has fallen short of His glory, so be grateful. Hence, respect His choice to show others grace as well. Nobody deserves grace, that is why it is such an incredible gift. Please don't be like Jonah, who was angered because God showed mercy to His people's enemies when they repented. God is just, but He is also merciful and compassionate. We can't expect one aspect of Him without accepting the others. God bless you!

As you wait for fellowship at 12 Noon EST, consider reading the following previous P&P messages:

1. God, the Avenger

2. God Saves

3. Are you paying attention?

4. God's Cup of Wrath

5. The Sin of Disbelief

6. The Lesson in Repeated Patterns

7. God Is Waiting On You

8. Don't Speak Arrogantly About God

9. Is God Unfair?

10. Don't Reject God's Process With Grumbling

11. P&P 500: Be Steady In The Face Of Pressure

12. Pray, Don't Rant

13. Topic: The Wicked/Evil

RaptureTok 2025 - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) September 30, 2025

On Tuesday, September 23, 2025, the Lord gave me a prayer point for our gathering that day. It was unexpected, and I wasn't sure how to pray at first. The prayer point was about the spirit of deception. It was later that day that I understood why. I found out that people were caught up in the swell of 'Rapture Tok' and believed the day of the Lord was upon us.

It is a week later, and many are discussing the issue. All I will say is the following. RaptureTok is a reminder to be a disciplined student of the Bible. We have to study God's word so we know, firsthand, what it says. Yes, God speaks through dreams and other means, but He will never tell us something that contradicts His word. After all, He magnified His word above His name (Psalm 138:2, KJV). And if He says something and we don't know where it is in His word, He is so gracious that He will lead us to scripture. He does this because He does not want His children deceived by satan and its acolytes. 2 Corinthians 11:14-15 says they pretend to belong to the light of God, and it is only through God's truth that they can be identified.

RaptureTok has also highlighted the need to seek and submit to the Holy Spirit of God. The Holy Ghost's job is to remind us of what Jesus taught. As I saw videos of people speaking about the Rapture on September 23rd, one scripture came to mind by the grace of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 24:36 - “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. If Jesus is unaware of the exact day He will return to commence the beginning of the end, then why do we think that we, mere humans, will know the date? That verse is in the Bible to help God's children dismiss anyone who claims to know when the Rapture will come, and it is the Holy Spirit's job to remind us of such godly wisdom.

Many of us do not realize that not every spirit is from God. However, we are taught in 1 John 4:1 - Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. Also, we are told to seek the gifts of the Spirit, one being the ability to distinguish between spirits (1 Corinthians 12:10). This reveals that some people are speaking by the influence of unclean spirits, not the Spirit of God. The more we spend with the Lord in prayer, fasting, praise, and Bible study, the more we receive grace to operate in this discernment. And the more experience we have at applying this gift, the more God can use us as vessels to keep others from becoming victims of the spirit of deception. This can't happen when disobedience, idolatry, spiritual adultery, and other sins have control over us.

On this matter of the spirit of deception, I encourage us all to read about Prophet Micaiah and his experience with King Ahab in 1 Kings 22. There, the Bible shows that a spirit of deception was sent by God to effectuate a hard reset in the Kingdom of Israel's leadership. The spirit spoke through the king's 'prophets' save for one true prophet of God - Micaiah. But King Ahab didn't listen to Micaiah, whom he hated. And since no word of God will ever fail, Ahab died, despite what his 'prophets' had said would happen. One might wonder why God would use this approach, but never forget, God's ways are beyond our comprehension. Plus, Isaiah 54:16 says that God created the destroyer to wreak havoc for His purpose. Thus, it is God's right to do whatever He likes. He is God all by Himself, and He is just.

Is it possible that with RaptureTok, God allowed a spirit of deception to wreak havoc for a reason? Even if only to reveal to people (including the pastors and prophets who believed) that they have been under the influence of such a spirit? Or maybe to reveal that the pastors and others who heralded this recent Rapture 'prophecy' might not be His servants after all? Could it have been to show how satan seeks to ridicule God and His Son through bringing mockery upon the faith? Maybe God allowed this to reveal those who claim to be Christians but are now mocking those who were deceived, forgetting that Christians are to speak graciously. Only God knows, but each of us must go to the Lord for insight as to what He wants us to learn from this recent episode. 

It is my sincere prayer that by the grace of God, any blindspots that are hidden in our spiritual life will be exposed and the Lord will patch things up for us. I pray that all of us will dig deeper into the soil that is God and His Word, so we are well-rooted and cannot be washed away by the lies and deception satan uses to steal, kill, and destroy. Remember, satan schemes to take advantage of a person's innocent desire to serve and honor God. And where it can - if that person fails to obey God - it will. The Lord God will help us all and keep us in His service (Philippians 2:13). By His grace, He will make us blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ, so we are not missing from the number that walk triumphantly into heaven, IJMN, Amen.

PS: If you have questions regarding RaptureTok, feel free to ask. The Bible teaches that iron sharpens iron. Situations like RaptureTok provide believers an opportunity to take a frank look at ourselves and our community. They also allow us to discuss without being hypercritical of others, as we remember that we are saved by grace, and not our works. Anything else would be hypocritical and prideful. To God alone be all the praise; it is only by grace that the web of deception has not destroyed us.

PPS: Rapture is indeed coming, and no man will know the hour of its arrival. Give your life to Christ, receive the Holy Spirit, and start living as one who truly anticipates Christ returning at any time. That is the key way to not be deceived by fake prophecies, demonic teaching, and wolves in sheep's clothing that may or may not be tied to the rapture. God bless you.

As you wait for fellowship at 12 Noon EST, learn more from these previous P&P messages:

1. Will He Know You?

2. Listen & Check the Word

3. The Well

4. Know God's Word & Power

5. Don't Ignore God's Knowledge

6. What Kind Of Messenger Are You?

7. What Would God See When He Looks At Your Heart?

8. What Fruit Are You Producing?