Our day to pray for our country Nigeria

http://thoughtsfrommyheart.blogspot.com/search/label/National%20Prayer

Our Prayer

1. God forgive us for trusting in anything (Crude Oil) or anyone other than you.

2. God forgive us for believing that we have all it takes to make our nation what You want it to be.

3. God forgive us for keeping You out of our daily lives – we stopped choosing men based on what is right but based on what we see religion, tribe, sex etc.

4. God give us eyes that see and ears that hear so we can know what is right at all times.

5. God give us the leaders on your heart that will love justice and hate evil leading with integrity of heart and passion for what is right.

Nehemiah 1: 1-11

Hosea 6: 1-3

In Return

These past weeks have heightened the strong anticipation I have for my country. I have always being passionate about my nation from my teen years and this has not diminished as I grew older.

My family has been praying with many others that God will appoint the leaders He desires in these coming elections. Irrespective of my personal preferences, I want God to choose His own for Nigeria. Over the last weekend, I thought hard about how God appoints leaders and from my study of the scriptures, the people deserve the leader they get and the leaders deserve the people they have. A corrupt nation cannot lay claim to a righteous leader. Only a repenting people can receive a Godly leadership.

Based on this, I have taken it upon myself not to just pray for God’s selection of leader but to also pray for God’s forgiveness on me and my nation. God can choose a Nebuchadnezzar as His servant if His people continue in sin [Jeremiah 27:6]. If we repent & cry out to Him, He will send righteous leaders.

I ask you to join me in setting aside Thursday March 17, 2011 as a day for fasting & repentance for our Nation.

Our prayer will be this:

1. God forgive us for trusting in anything (Crude Oil) or anyone other than you.

2. God forgive us for believing that we have all it takes to make our nation what You want it to be.

3. God forgive us for keeping You out of our daily lives – we stopped choosing men based on what is right but based on what we see religion, tribe, sex etc.

4. God give us eyes that see and ears that hear so we can know what is right at all times.

5. God give us the leaders on your heart that will love justice and hate evil leading with integrity of heart and passion for what is right.

I believe that as we become the generation on our knees, God will restore our land and make us a people for His Glory.

Please send any questions you have about what I’m doing and why I’m doing it to tsolakin@yahoo.com. I will try to respond as quickly as I can to them. If you believe in this humbling of ourselves before God, then I ask you please send this information to as many as you can so we can all join together in praying for our country. You can change whatever text you find disagreeable before sending this out but please – LET’S PRAY

Let's return to the LORD. He has torn us to shreds, but He will bandage our wounds and make us well. In two or three days He will heal us and restore our strength that we may live with Him. Let's do our best to know the LORD. His coming is as certain as the morning sun; He will refresh us like rain renewing the earth in the springtime. Hosea 6:1-3

We bow our hearts, we bend our knees

Oh spirit, come make us humble

We turn our eyes from evil things

Oh Lord, we cast down our idols

So give us clean hands, and give us pure hearts

Let us not lift our souls to another

And give us clean hands, and give us pure hearts

Let us not lift our souls to another

O God let us be a generation that seeks

That seeks your face O God of Jacob

O God let us be a generation that seeks

Who seeks your face O God of Jacob

Give us clean hands by Charlie Hall (© 2000 worshiptogether.com songs/Six Steps Music)

Time to …

On March 28, 2010, John Piper, the pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, renowned speaker and author, announced that he was taking an 8 month leave to attend to his life & wife.
His marriage was not failing apart and neither has he been involved in any sin of notoriety. In his words …

“I asked the elders to consider this leave because of a growing sense that my soul, my marriage, my family, and my ministry-pattern need a reality check from the Holy Spirit. On the one hand, I love my Lord, my wife, my five children and their families first and foremost; and I love my work of preaching and writing and leading Bethlehem. I hope the Lord gives me at least five more years as the pastor for preaching and vision at Bethlehem.
Noël and I are rock solid in our commitment to each other, and there is no whiff of unfaithfulness on either side. But, as I told the elders, “rock solid” is not always an emotionally satisfying metaphor, especially to a woman. A rock is not the best image of a woman’s tender companion. In other words, the precious garden of my home needs tending. I want to say to Noël that she is precious to me in a way that, at this point in our 41-year pilgrimage, can be said best by stepping back for a season from virtually all public commitments.” Full text is here
It’s a humbling thought to find out he is taking this leave to nurture his life and marriage all over again. During the period he will be away from all public activity - No book-writing. No sermon preparation or preaching. No blogging. No Twitter. No articles. No reports, No papers. And no speaking engagements.

Reading his words brings a humbling thought to me – I may not have the luxury of taking 8 months out of my daily grind but I sure can take out at least a day every month (or fortnightly) to nurture myself and the relationship that means the most to me. I don’t want to get so busy on the outside that I don’t give attention to the unseen part of me. God, help keep my eyes on the weightier matters of life.

Time to …

On March 28, 2010, John Piper, the pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, renowned speaker and author, announced that he was taking an 8 month leave to attend to his life & wife.
His marriage was not failing apart and neither has he been involved in any sin of notoriety. In his words …
“I asked the elders to consider this leave because of a growing sense that my soul, my marriage, my family, and my ministry-pattern need a reality check from the Holy Spirit. On the one hand, I love my Lord, my wife, my five children and their families first and foremost; and I love my work of preaching and writing and leading Bethlehem. I hope the Lord gives me at least five more years as the pastor for preaching and vision at Bethlehem.
Noël and I are rock solid in our commitment to each other, and there is no whiff of unfaithfulness on either side. But, as I told the elders, “rock solid” is not always an emotionally satisfying metaphor, especially to a woman. A rock is not the best image of a woman’s tender companion. In other words, the precious garden of my home needs tending. I want to say to Noël that she is precious to me in a way that, at this point in our 41-year pilgrimage, can be said best by stepping back for a season from virtually all public commitments.” Full text is here
It’s a humbling thought to find out he is taking this leave to nurture his life and marriage all over again. During the period he will be away from all public activity - No book-writing. No sermon preparation or preaching. No blogging. No Twitter. No articles. No reports, No papers. And no speaking engagements.
Reading his words brings a humbling thought to me – I may not have the luxury of taking 8 months out of my daily grind but I sure can take out at least a day every month (or fortnightly) to nurture myself and the relationship that means the most to me. I don’t want to get so busy on the outside that I don’t give attention to the unseen part of me. God, help keep my eyes on the weightier matters of life.

Time to …

On March 28, 2010, John Piper, the pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, renowned speaker and author, announced that he was taking an 8 month leave to attend to his life & wife.
His marriage was not failing apart and neither has he been involved in any sin of notoriety. In his words …
“I asked the elders to consider this leave because of a growing sense that my soul, my marriage, my family, and my ministry-pattern need a reality check from the Holy Spirit. On the one hand, I love my Lord, my wife, my five children and their families first and foremost; and I love my work of preaching and writing and leading Bethlehem. I hope the Lord gives me at least five more years as the pastor for preaching and vision at Bethlehem.
Noël and I are rock solid in our commitment to each other, and there is no whiff of unfaithfulness on either side. But, as I told the elders, “rock solid” is not always an emotionally satisfying metaphor, especially to a woman. A rock is not the best image of a woman’s tender companion. In other words, the precious garden of my home needs tending. I want to say to Noël that she is precious to me in a way that, at this point in our 41-year pilgrimage, can be said best by stepping back for a season from virtually all public commitments.” Full text is here
It’s a humbling thought to find out he is taking this leave to nurture his life and marriage all over again. During the period he will be away from all public activity - No book-writing. No sermon preparation or preaching. No blogging. No Twitter. No articles. No reports, No papers. And no speaking engagements.
Reading his words brings a humbling thought to me – I may not have the luxury of taking 8 months out of my daily grind but I sure can take out at least a day every month (or fortnightly) to nurture myself and the relationship that means the most to me. I don’t want to get so busy on the outside that I don’t give attention to the unseen part of me. God, help keep my eyes on the weightier matters of life.

Cuddled or Crucified

As I start this new season of my life, I wonder if my life is still the testimony of the Cross.

My prayers seem to be “God cuddle me more” rather than “God crucify me”. I seem to want the comforts faith brings without the death it calls for.

I am no masochist who takes delight in self inflicting punishments. I rather consider myself to be a disciple who is trying to embrace all that his master has asked from him.

Yet I still wonder if my message has not become “the couch of Christ” instead of “the Cross of Christ”.
Lord, humble me, let me seek only your glory

Christ-Centered Relationships 02

Someone told me that friendship is give & take. But that is contrary to the message of the cross. The cross requires us to surrender our desires in exchange for His glory. Christ as the center of our relationships means we may have to give us our comforts for the joy of making others better.

In my little years, I have found the following friendships, friendships I give more to the other, friendships I receive more from the other and friendships where there is a near-mutual exchange. It is the glory of God that we embrace whatever manner of friendship He has assigned to us at any time.

I don't measure my expression of commitment to the measure of commitment of my friend - I simply do what I have been called to do.
In the end, every friendship is a trust, a trust we must be found faithfully in. One of the serious businesses of heaven on earth is to walk heavenly in it.

He guides us through the path of understanding.
Lead me Lord as I walk this narrow road

Christ-Centered Relationships 01

Can we really say we love people as Christ loves them?
Every day, I ask myself if the life of Christ is lived out in my relationships.

In the list of ingredients for successfully Christian relationships, I hardly ever hear the mention of Christ.
You must be understanding, patient, forgiving but what about being "Christ-centered"?

We have succeeded in creating life outside of Christ - Christ is not really the center of our life. He is probably the extra bonus that comes with going out for an altar call.
He is God but doesn't alter our lives. He is probably a bit like superman - He saves us when we are trouble and then, up, up and away. This is definitely not the God of scripture.

God be the center of my life and center of my relationships.

The Cost of Discipleship

It seems we have defined our faith by what we get out of it. Faith has become a promise of all you can get in this world with the afterlife tossed in as a bonus.

Someone almost lost his job for refusing to carry out an instruction which was against his faith - the verdict from other Christians? He should have used wisdom. Everyone seemed to forget that the decision is a choice of serving the unseen or the seen - fear of man or God.

Our faith is not a promise of all things in smooth tandem. It is a promise of refusing the world and all it promises. Little wonder, it is written "if we have hope only in this world, we are of men most to be pitied".

Who holds the key to our life's decision? I wonder if it's God

God, help me to stand for who I believe in - You